The Most Sensational, Inspirational, Celebrational, Muppetational Action Figure
Written: Nov 23 '02 (Updated May 07 '03)
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Pros: Dr. Bunsen Honeydew in all his Muppety glory--sculpt, texture, paint, design
Cons: ZERO. ZILCH. NADA. ZIP.
The Bottom Line: A toy line that has already amazed me almost made me cry. In a good, girly kinda way. But still manly.
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| JediKermit's Full Review: Dr. Bunsen Honeydew figure |
Of the five Muppet Show action figures in Palisades Toys’ first lineup, I think each one is my favorite at different times. Kermit and Piggy because I love the characters, Dr. Teeth because of his obscurity and the outrageous amount of color and detail; Beaker…because he’s Beaker!; and Dr. Bunsen Honeydew…well, he’s sort of the best of the best for all of these reasons.
Dr. Bunsen Honeydew runs Muppet Labs, “where the future is being made today.” He and his youthful assistant Beaker are sort of those “B-List” Muppets who everyone knows (even if they don’t know their names), but are always one tier below graduating to full-on Stardom, like Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and Gonzo. Bunsen is a sort of absent-minded mad scientist, who has the knowledge and audacity to play God with any number of subjects: chemistry, cloning, mechanics, quantum physics, Rubber Duckies… and the unfortunate guinea pig for most of his experiments is Beaker.
Like Dr. Teeth and Beaker, both of whom I’ve already reviewed for Epinions, the Palisades action figure is my first piece of Bunsen Merchandise. I’ve been collecting Muppet Stuff for well over a decade, but this is the first time Bunsen has been available to the masses. And they’ve surpassed all measures of quality in making this figure.
My first impression of the figure is just that he’s PERFECT. Having recently seen some of the Muppets in person on a Pilgrimage to New York, I’m made even more aware of how accurate these toys are. Bunsen looks EXACTLY like the puppet he’s based on, as if he somehow were a victim of one of his own experiments and shrunk down to a six-inch scale (making Bunsen about five inches tall). I’ve heard complaints about the coloring of his “skin,” but it’s the color of a honeydew melon, which is what he was named after…obviously, this is the color he should be.
He’s got the same marvelous texturing on his head and hands that Palisades Toys developed for this line—so it has the look of the flocked foam rubber that many of the Muppets are built from. For the full effect of his texturing, I recommend putting your lips on top of his head—it’s nothing naughty, you’ll just appreciate the texture more. I did the same thing with Darth Maul three years ago. Maybe it IS naughty!
Bunsen’s face is remarkable for it’s LACK of features—the character doesn’t have any eyes, and has a slightly sculpted nose, lips, and double chin. Instead of exaggerating these features, which would be the easiest thing to do, Palisades’ sculptors have been careful to make them as understated as they are on the original puppet. Bunsen wears a sly little smile, as if contemplating the next experiment he’s going to put Beaker into. His glasses rest on his nose in front of his nonexistent eyes; the glasses are NON-REMOVEABLE and very brittle, so don’t make the mistake some of my friends did in attempting to remove them—you’ll likely break them and need a dab of SuperGlue to fix them.
His clothing is beautiful—especially the labcoat. This seems like such an obvious, simple detail, but the way the grey coat hangs on his frame looks just as it’s supposed to. They chose a softer vinyl-like plastic for the coat, so there’s some flexibility, but it maintains its shape nicely. He’s got an assortment of pencils and pens in his breast pocket, and I (ever impressed with the little details) am stunned that the paint applications here are so accurate that the pencil is topped with a silver ring and pink eraser, just as pencils are wont to be. It’s the silliest detail, but one that would be so easy to slop up.
Bunsen’s other clothes are pretty stylin’…a tweedy vest mostly covers his red, textured tie and his stripey shirt, whose cuffs emerge at his wrists from beneath his labcoat. He’s wearing charcoal trousers, which hang nicely on him, and these are also textured, with a sort of pebbly look and feel. Bunsen wears black shoes, and even the laces look just as they’re supposed to.
Bunsen’s accessories really put this over the top—I mean, this is a PERFECT action figure, and Palisades just shot him into orbit by adding a Robot Rabbit. The Rabbit is almost as tall as Bunsen himself, and qualifies as an action figure in his own right. He’s a sort of brushed silver and pewter color, and looks like he’s built of either steel or tin. There are even rivet marks on his body! His arms and legs move, and although they’re awfully spindly, I haven’t had any problems with breakage. I’m not sure if this Rabbit is a friend or an enemy, but I have had him attack “carrot-topped” Beaker a few times. Bunsen also comes with a “Muppet Show” logo base to help him stand (although he stands well enough alone), and an opening “Muppet Labs” notebook that includes a tic-tac-toe game. You get extra points if you discover the problem with that particular game played between Bunsen and Beaker.
The Miss Piggy action figure was pretty good. Had some problems. The Kermit the Frog is one of the best Kermits in my extensive collection. The Dr. Teeth was over the top, and I would have paid twice what I did for him. Beaker still leaves me breathless. But Dr. Bunsen Honeydew is without a doubt, my favorite Palisades Muppet Show action figure from this first series of the line. Because he’s so amazing, he’s quite difficult to find. If you see one at Toys R Us, Media Play, EB, or online somewhere, BUY HIM! Don’t waver, don’t second guess yourself, BUY HIM! Even if you don’t end up “collecting them all,” there’s no way you can go wrong with the good (if psychotic) Doctor.
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MORE Muppet Action Figures? You BET!
Series One
Kermit the Frog http://www.epinions.com/content_81549233796
Miss Piggy http://www.epinions.com/content_81637707396
Dr. Teeth http://www.epinions.com/content_81569549956
Series Two
Fozzie Bear http://www.epinions.com/content_85935820420
Crazy Harry http://www.epinions.com/content_98525613700
Floyd Pepper http://www.epinions.com/content_98514865796
Gonzo the Great http://www.epinions.com/content_98463813252
Series Three
Scooter http://www.epinions.com/content_91825081988
Lew Zealand http://www.epinions.com/content_91457293956
Zoot http://www.epinions.com/content_91549830788
Rowlf http://www.epinions.com/content_90764316292
Playsets
Muppet Labs with Beaker http://www.epinions.com/content_81755606660
Electric Mayhem Stage with Animal http://www.epinions.com/content_98538262148
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 7.99
Type of Toy: Action Figure
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Epinions.com ID:
JediKermit
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 in Movies, Kids & Family, Books |
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Member: Quinn
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Reviews written: 1995
Trusted by: 591 members
About Me:
Books, Movies, and Toys. Is there more to life?
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