Bunsen: The jolly green scientist...green?
Written: Sep 01 '03 (Updated Sep 13 '03)
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Pros: Excellent quality and detail; great accompaniment to Beaker and Muppet Labs set
Cons: Not a lot of posing ability
The Bottom Line: A great purchase for any fan, and goes even better with the Muppet Labs playset. Don't be put off by the green, which was surprisingly the color of the original.
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| sweet_caroline's Full Review: Palisades The Muppets Series One Figure: Dr. Bunse... |
I always remembered Dr. Bunsen Honeydew from The Muppet Show, which ran in the 70s and 80s. I think the job that Palisades did with Bunsen in their first series of the line is very good, although there are a couple of items that need addressing.
SCULPT AND PAINT:
I found that the workmanship put into this figure is excellent. His clothes, head, and hands are well detailed, and the likeness to the original character is superb... except you might be wondering why the figure is so green. When I saw the figure for the first time, I wondered why it was that color. From what I remembered from The Muppet Show Bunsen was more of a yellow tone than a bright green. Even the picture of Bunsen on the package's cardboard backing showed Bunsen as a peachy-yellow sort of color. What happened? Well... I looked into it and apparently Bunsen's original color was actually a fairly bright green, like the referenced honeydew melon. It turns out that when Palisades was preparing to make the Muppets line, Henson brought out the old original Bunsen Muppet and it was the color that we now see on the figure. Apparently the lighting for the show used to wash out the color and made Bunsen look more yellow. Mystery solved. Bunsen still looks great as this figure.
The rest of Bunsen is done superbly. He is wearing a collared red and brown striped shirt, a red corduroy-like textured neck tie, a khaki green vest with five black buttons down the front, a pair of pleated and cuffed black dress pants, black patent shoes, and of course, a gray knee length lab coat complete with creases and side pockets, as well as a pen and pencil in his breast pocket. I like the detail and the material/fabric-like appearance that the clothing has. Another nice touch is that the lab coat is made of pliable plastic, unlike many other action figures. The items of pliable clothing that Palisades has incorporated into various figures in the line is one of the things that I like about the Muppets' design.
His small featured expression of contentment suits him and is a likeness to what he generally resembled on The Muppet Show. As is true to the original character, he has no eyes, only a pair of brown glasses where they should have been.
The figure's overall appearance is great, and he looks excellent... even if some of us are not used to his new green color!
ARTICULATION:
Bunsen has 5 points of articulation. His head moves from side to side, and his arms have ball joints at the shoulders. His right arm also rotates/swivels halfway above the elbow, while his left arm bends at the elbow. His arm can therefore be placed in various positions and poses. However, he has no articulation in the lower half of his body, and I find that this limits his posing ability. In addition, his sturdy stature allows Bunsen to stand well on his own even though he comes with a stand that you can use if you desire.
ACCESSORIES:
Bunsen comes with a two accessories.
-A "Robot Rabbit", which looks pretty cool, stands on its own and is also poseable.
-A "Muppet Labs Notebook", which the figure can hold in his hand.
It doesn't appear that Bunsen comes with a lot of props, but consider that there is an entire Muppet Labs environment available from Series 1. If you have Bunsen, as well as Beaker and the Muppet Labs environment, the effect is really neat when displayed, and Bunsen then appears to be right at home among all his gadgets and experiments.
FINAL JUDGMENT:
Dr. Bunsen Honeydew has been turned into a pretty good action figure by Palisades. He is from Series 1 and I think Palisades could have made a couple of improvements, as they have been doing in the following series.
This figure is great in any collection, especially if posed in the Muppet Labs with Beaker from the same series. Bunsen is also fun to have if you are simply a Muppet fan.
Be aware that if you are buying this item for a child, it has small accessories and may be possibly broken with rough play. I don't really recommend this figure for children under 5 years.
Feel free to check out my reviews of other Palisades Muppet figures:
Series One
Kermit the Frog ~ In the works
Miss Piggy ~ In the works
Dr. Teeth ~ In the works
Muppet Labs with Beaker ~ In the works
Series Two
Fozzie Bear ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_110737526404
Crazy Harry ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_112433270404
Floyd Pepper ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_112513552004
Gonzo the Great ~ In the works
Electric Mayhem Stage with Animal ~ In the works
Series Three
Lew Zealand ~ In the works
Scooter ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_110731628164
Rowlf ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_111955250820
Zoot ~ In the works
Swedish Chef with Kitchen ~ In the works
Series Four
Mr. Samual Arrow ~ In the works
Dr. Strangepork ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_111204601476
Rizzo the Rat ~ In the works
Link Hogthrob ~ http://www.epinions.com/content_111030668932
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 8.00
Type of Toy: Action Figure
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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Epinions.com ID:
sweet_caroline
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Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada
Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 6 members
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