Climb Out of My Nose: Muppet of the Fortnight: Kermit the Frog

Welcome to the third round of my biweekly look at a member of one of my favorite troupes of loveable puppets, The Muppets. Last week we went to the obscure end and this week we're rocketing back toward the popular side to without a doubt the most popular and recognizable Muppets there is: Kermit the Frog.

["Hi-ho, everybody!"]

Here we have the frog who is the iconic face of the Muppets brand. A pop culture superstar. He has a star of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Kermit's kind of a big deal. So where the hell do I begin as far as my thoughts on him are concerned?

Well, truth be told, I've only really appreciated him more recently. Part of the reason for that is I tend to be drawn to the less popular characters, the ones that don't always get the spotlight, the underrated and under appreciated. I mentioned a bit of this in my first entry. Kermit's the star of the show, the leader of the pack, the spokesman and, as I said, the face of the brand. Not everyone wants to like that guy. Sometimes by default you kind of want to dislike that guy. I mean, what's so great about him? He's kind of boring, really. Kind of overrated. I mean, look at this freaky weird guy over here, isn't he more interesting? He's more interesting and not overexposed like the frog. The frog...I mean, c'mon, there are monsters and weirdos and all manner of crazy critters and he's just...well, the frog. Meh. That's kind of how I felt about Kermit for a very long time.

[I know, Kermie, I know...but I'm not finished yet...]

So as a kid, I was no Kermit fan. He was bland and hogged the spotlight. But, much like how I sort of outgrew some of Animal's appeal, I also grew to understand and value Kermit and his role in the group. It's kind of like how when you're a kid you go through that phase where you think your parents are totally mean jerks but then later on in life, you realize the value of the discipline and advice that you were so resistant to when you were younger and now you're grateful for it. Six year old me probably wanted to punch Kermit in the face. Now that I'm thirty-one years old, I'm grateful for Kermit the Frog.

What's so great about Kermit, I asked? He is relatable, he's three-dimensional, he's more than a frog, he's a person. We can all see ourselves in him. What I mistook as blandness as a kid I now see as a certain everyman quality. While a lot of other Muppets have one certain personality trait that's amped up to define their character, Kermit's personality is broader, more even. While he's the backbone, he's the glue, and he's often the voice of reason, he's also flawed, makes mistakes, struggles with serious doubt, and is known to have a temper. All of his redeeming and inspiring qualities are matched by faults and flaws we all have and can understand. He leads the group with determination and encouragement but also repeatedly finds himself at his wits' end, snapping with exasperation and frustration, all but ready to give up the burden. But he never does. Not with finality. He always comes back after sorting himself out, apologizes and reconciles with the gang, and returns to his place as the father figure of the Muppet family.

There's an honesty about him. He's genuine and charming. He works hard. He loves his family and friends and wants to see them happy. But he doesn't have all the answers and doesn't always know what to do. It doesn't all come easy for him. He's everything we want to be and also everything we are when we fall short.

So there you go, I got older, I dug deeper, I saw the bigger picture. Maybe Kermit's not as cool looking as Sweetums or Uncle Deadly or as zany as Lew Zealand or the Swedish Chef but he's the rock, he's admirable, he's inspiring, he's you and me as we are and as we want to be.

From what I've read, it sounds like a lot of who Kermit was is who Jim Henson was.

[Couple of good dudes right there.]

Now that I got the deep mushy stuff out of the way, let's move on to some random bits:

I think my first introduction to Kermit was as the reporter for Sesame Street News. As a kid, I always thought his name, as he would introduce himself on the show, was "Kermit E. Frog" as he would pronounce 'the' with a long E. I also wondered why he was the only cross-over Muppet who had a regular gig on Sesame Street and why none of the others made appearances. Again, something that probably fueled my dislike for him at the time.

What's the deal with the pointy collar thing? I remember reading it was added to break up the monotony and add interest to his frame but what the hell is it? Frogs don't have weird point frills around their neck. He's not supposed to be some rare species of frilled frog. Of course, now I'm imagining that he is and am picturing it raising up ala the dilophosaurs in Jurassic Park before he spews acid at..oooh, let's say Steve Martin. I've just never gotten Steve Martin. But that's another thing for another time that will never happen. So the collar...is it clothes? No, Kermit himself has said he doesn't wear clothes most of the time. He hasn't said, "I don't wear clothes...well, except the frilly thing around my neck." So it's not a natural frog part and it's not clothes. Not much left for it to be. Also, there are other frogs. Plenty of other frogs have appeared in various Muppet stuff. I can't recall any of them having a pointy collar like his.

[Count 'em. One.]

I'm probably wrong about that, though, and there's something where his dad has one, too...

[Well, there you go, young Kermit between his parents and they've both got one. Frogs with Collars:1 mth:0]

One of the other things I really dig about Kermit is the expressiveness of the puppet. He's such a basic puppet and yet with certain scrunches, twists, and distortions of his face, they can convey so much emotion so effectively. His half ping-pong ball eyes never change but all it takes is simple movement of the corners of his mouth and you can read gritty resolve, meloncollie, or bewilderment. It's an amazing testament to both the puppet design and the puppeteers themselves. His often flailing limbs certainly help, as well.