Even If You Don't Know Your "BORK-BORK-BORK" From Pork, You'll LOVE The Swedish Kitchen!
Written: May 09 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Wow. The sculpt on the figure, the size of the playset, the 43 accessories...
Cons: That I'm not six inches tall so I can USE this kitchen!
The Bottom Line: Du Svenke Koek oes oener du avhallesten Karaktaern du "Muppet Shoo;" och nu herste baest Lersak hoeen moener Samling! Bork-Bork-Bork!!!
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| JediKermit's Full Review: Palisades Toys Swedish Kitchen Playset With Swedis... |
My alternate title for this review is “The Best Thing To Come Out of Sweden Since That Enlarger Pump.” But I’m not gonna go there.
I just found this Muppets playset today, and I don’t think I’ve been this impressed with a TOY in a long time. If I could give it TEN stars, I would. The playset is the third of the Muppet playsets, after Muppet Labs http://www.epinions.com/content_81755606660 and the Electric Mayhem Stage http://www.epinions.com/content_98538262148 . I was impressed with both of those when they came out, but this set just raises the bar again on not only the Muppet line, but on all other playsets.
The Swedish Kitchen is of course the workspace of the Swedish Chef; that mumbling-yet-deadly cook who’s one of the more unintelligible Muppets (along with Beaker and Animal); he peppers his English with “Swedish,” including that most wonderful expression “Bork-Bork-Bork!!!” He’s one of the most memorable Muppets, even though he’s never been an “A-List” star or been featured in his own movie; he’s usually a background character, but one that everyone knows. He’s also (to my knowledge) the only Muppet on which you see human body parts—his hands aren’t “puppet hands,” but just hands. Back in the day, the head and voice of the puppet were performed by Jim Henson, and the hands by Frank Oz—which led to unintentional comedy on the set—most of which made it to air.
Now this unforgettable character has been faithfully been reproduced by Palisades Toys as a part of their Muppet Show line, and if you pass this one up, I have no hope for you. This is hands-down the best playset yet, and is right up there with my 1970’s Kenner Death Star and Lego Hogwarts Castle as one of the best playsets EVER. For them to manage that feat with one room is remarkable, and it boils down to three things: The Chef, The Room, and The Accessories.
The Swedish Chef himself (real name unknown) is very large. He’s both tall and wide, and along with Fozzie Bear is the largest character we’ve seen in the line so far. Put him next to Kermit and Gonzo, and you’ll see the variety that simple scale puts into the line—something this line does that other Muppet toys have left by the wayside. A simple detail, but one that makes the line much more interesting. The Chef is wearing brown shoes, grey and black checked pants, a blue and white striped shirt and pink bowtie, and of course he’s got a nice heavy white apron and fluffy chef’s hat. The hat is magnetic, and is strong enough that you can pick the figure up by it, but if you want to have him bald-headed, perhaps out of respect for a dearly departed turkey, you can do that as well. The paint job on him is flawless, and considering the difficulties of getting the stripes right on his shirt, that’s amazing. His “skin” is textured with the same kind of foaminess that most of the Muppet figures have had. They’ve extended this to his “Muppety” hands, which isn’t technically correct, but they’ve compromised to make the figure better and included five fingers (unlike most Muppets) and fingernails, keeping some of the realism of the human hands. His eyebrows, moustache and hair are surprisingly dark—even the picture of the puppet on the box has a lighter brown hair, and the hair on the figure is dark brown. Not a big deal, but a little difference. It could be the lighting.
“Lighting” is the one thing the kitchen doesn’t have, because Palisades has crammed this full of everything you wish YOUR kitchen had. If you click on the little picture here, you’ll get a good idea of just how much stuff is in this baby; before going on to all the accessories, let’s look at the room itself. Large by any standards, the kitchen has enough room for the Chef and several guests to move around between the island and the stove, refrigerator, countertops and sink. There are at least ten opening cupboards and drawers for storage, including two that have frosted glass fronts. There’s also a frosted glass window over the kitchen sink; and a white refrigerator with enough compartments for all the beer—or uh, food ingredients that the Swede might need to keep cool. The oven has an overhead compartment, a drawer for storage, and a baking compartment large enough for the included muffin tin; evidently it’s a wood-burning stove, because there’s even a door to allow stoking the fire with more wood. The back wall includes storage hooks for everything that comes with the kitchen, and has a China rack for the four dishes that are included. The kitchen “island” features four more drawers and cupboards, and has a towel rack for when things get messy. The floor is tiled in red and white tile and highly detailed; the brick wall and stonework around the fireplace also bring the set a “warm” feel, a nice contrast to the sterile and “cold” feel of the Muppet Labs and Electric Mayhem playsets.
Check out the * 43 * accessories that come with this kitchen, and tell me you’re not just a bit jealous. Or hungry. Or frightened.
I’ll break these down into three categories: Food, Kitchenware, and “What The—“
FOOD: Chocolate Talking Cake, Cloth Bag of Sugar, Cloth Bag of Flour, Two Different Sets of Sausage Links, Salt Shaker, Pepper Shaker, Vegetables, Peanuts and Butter on Cutting Board (I assume to make “Peanut Butter!”), Ham, Kielbasa, Stack of Pancakes on Sausage.
KITCHENWARE: This includes dishes, utensils and stuff that would be in a “normal kitchen”…Cutting Board with Bread Baguette, Spatula, Muffin Tin, Two Copper Pots w/Lids, Cast Iron Skillet w/Lid, Cloth Dishtowel, Four Clear Plates, Fire Extinguisher (especially handy in HIS kitchen), Radio, Meat Cleaver, Wooden Spoon, Tea Kettle, KitchenAid Mixer, and an Ice Tray—no one seems to know what this one is, but it’s a little drawer that DOES fit in the freezer—you just have to turn it the right way.
In the “WHAT THE ---“ category, we have things that probably aren’t in your kitchen, but the Swedish Chef uses on a daily basis when preparing food. These are a nice touch, and something I wouldn’t have thought of myself. The Jumper Cables, Tennis Racket, Wood Saw and Pipe Wrench, all come in handy for the Chef—and we don’t want to know how.
We moved into our new townhouse about six months ago, and let me tell you, unpacking the kitchen from its box and then finding places for EVERYTHING in the kitchen was as much work on a miniature scale as it was to REALLY move! And that’s a lot of fun.
Growing up, my sister had Barbies. She had a Barbie dollhouse that was huge. But the kitchen, when you compare it to this monstrosity, just plain sucked. Guys, the Swedish Kitchen is THE playset that your girlfriends and wives are going to freak out about. My wife, usually lukewarm-but-supportive, gushed about this set. That it’s only a few dollars more than the other playsets in the line is amazing, and you get a lot of play value for your money.
If you’re looking for the Swedish Kitchen, and you should be, your best bet right now will be Media Play, Suncoast, Electronics Boutique, or local Comics/Collectibles Retailers. Within a month or two, they should be popping up at another major retailer. Find one now, because if you see one and pass it up, you’ll kick yourself later. I can’t wait to get home and play with my Svenska Koek Leksak!
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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
Dr. Bunsen Honeydew http://www.epinions.com/content_81822191236
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
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 29.99
Type of Toy: Action Figure
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JediKermit
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Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
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Books, Movies, and Toys. Is there more to life?
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