Review of Miss Piggy, Floyd, Janice, Rowlf, Crazy Harry
Muppets Wave 3 Action Figures

Introduction

When Diamond Select Toys first announced they were doing Muppets figures, I was elated. I love the shows and films, I love the characters, I love the old Palisades releases. Then they announced they were doing them in a 5" scale...and I was less elated. But by the end of the second wave, they had me sold, and this third wave keeps the good vibe train rolling.

There are three sets in this wave: Floyd and Janice; Miss Piggy, Foo Foo, and Penguin; and Rowlf, Crazy Harry, and a Mahna Mahna.  Each sells for around $22, depending on the retailer, and they started shipping about a month ago. Wave 4 is already up for pre-order, which is a good thing - it includes Dr. Teeth and Zoot, so you can finish off the Electric Mayhem.

A note - I'm counting the Penguin and Foo Foo as accessories, so I'll only be grading the other six figures in each category.

Packaging - **1/2
These come packed in the big bookshelf style bubbles/card backs you expect with any DST release. There's some wasted space with Piggy, but they want to remain consistent with the package size, and it's all used up with the Rowlf set.

I don't expect these to be collector friendly, but I do expect to get the figures out of the trays quicker than Dominos can deliver my pizza. There area a TON of twisty ties, as many as a dozen, holding the figures and accessories in place. You absolutely need wire cutters, and even with them you should pour yourself a tall drink before you start the opening process.

Sculpting - Miss Piggy, Janice ***; Rowlf, Floyd, Crazy Harry, Mahna ***1/2
This is my favorite wave overall so far, although there isn't quite the stand out that we had with Statler and Waldorf in wave 2.

Rowlf is perhaps my personal favorite. Fans of the old Palisades line were always disappointed that the only way to get a regular Rowlf was with the play set, and I expect this one to be the most popular of the wave. The proportions and detailing look great, and he has his usual happy expression. He stands about 4" tall, and the fur texture is quite good considering the scale.

Both Floyd and Janice are critical to your Electric Mayhem display. We got Animal earlier, and we'll see the release of Dr. Teeth and Zoot in the next wave. I really like the work on Floyd, and his slightly chunkier legs and lower body seem more on model to me. The detail work on the mustache, eyebrows, and jacket is great too, and he's on the taller side, coming in at 4 1/2".

Janice is a little less impressive, but the big reason for the drop of a half star is her hat. It simply won't stay on her head properly, making it a frustrating situation. I think she looks best wearing it, but since it can't stay on or even fit correctly, it's a moot point. She's also about 4 1/2" tall.

Another excellent release is the Mahna Mahna. Lots of sculpt detail here, and I love the expressive eyes and lion-like mane of hair.  These guys were pretty much a psychedelic hodge-podge of fur and color, and they've captured that nicely here. He's on the shorter side of course, coming in at about 3 1/4".

Just a little taller at 3 1/2" is Crazy Harry, and yes, he's crazy. The articulated mouth allows you to do some interesting expressions, but he's always crazy. The beatnik beard looks great, and I'm quite impressed with the detail on the teeth, tongue, and mouth.

Finally, there's Miss Piggy. She seems just slightly off to me, although I can also argue that she's more on model than the Palisades version. Still, there's something not quite right, at least to my eye, but I can't give you a definitive reason way. She's about 4 1/2" tall as well.

Paint - Miss Piggy, Janice ***; Rowlf, Crazy Harry, Mahna, Floyd ***1/2;
It's important to remember scale with this category - these figures are small, smaller than most people realize until they see them in hand. That makes the clean work on the paint all the more impressive.

There's a few slips to be sure. Miss Piggy has some issues with the lines around her dress, and the pearls could certainly be less sloppy. Janice has some lipstick on her teeth, and the top lip itself has a poor edge. All of them have a bit of gloppiness to the paint here and there, but overall, it's still quite well done for figures in this scale.

Articulation - ***
All of these have plenty of joints for figures in this scale, although not all of them are particularly useful.

The necks are largely cut joints, although it looks like there might be a ball or hinge hiding up in there. The heads merely turn, and for this set, that's pretty much a moot point thanks to the long hair, big ears, or pony tails. Harry and Mahna Mahna work a bit better, and you can get the most movement out of their necks.

Rotating hinges make up the majority of the other articulation points, with shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees, ankles, and hips following this pattern. Some of these, like the hips on Floyd and Piggy, are restricted by the costumes.

Some of the figures also have a cut waist. Obviously, Mahna Mahna and Rowlf don't (both have fewer joints in general due to their character designs), but they manage to be just as posable with fewer joints.

The 'accessories' are articulated as well, with Foo Foo having a ball jointed neck, and the Penguin having a cut neck and posable wings.

All of the figures can stand easily on their own, and you can get them into decent poses with their appropriate accessories, like Rowlf with his piano or Floyd with his bass.

Accessories - ****
There are a muppet-load of extras here, and all three sets come with plenty of goodies this time around. There's some re-use, but it all makes sense considering the characters.

I mentioned that I'm counting the Penguin and Foo Foo as accessories, and both come with Miss Piggy. I wouldn't blame you if you counted them as figures, especially the Penguin, who stand about 3" tall. She also has a food bowl and leash for Foo Foo (pop her head off to put it in place), a framed photo of Kermit, a hand mirror she can hold in her left hand, a copy of Moi magazine printed on all sides, and a Hollywood Walk of Fame star.

Floyd and Janice require lots of band gear of course. There's two guitars, two microphones and microphone stands (these are separate items although they come attached in the package), two music stands, two sheets of music (printed on both sides), two amps, a tambourine, a harmonica, a playbill, a large Electric Mayhem sign with stand, Janice's ill fitting hat, and a spotlight. That's a lot of goodies, and allow you to properly set up a great looking band display.

Finally, there's Rowlf, the Mahna Mahna, and Crazy Harry, who are packed together with their own goodies.  There's two more of the microphones and microphone stands, along with two more music stands. There's two more sheets of music (all five sheets of music that come in this wave are different songs), along with a third music sheet that's double wide, perfect for the piano. Yes, there's Rowlf's piano, with a bust of Beethoven and a candelabra for the top. To complete the musical theme, there's a triangle, but nothing that I could find to strike it with. This goes with Harry, if you were wondering, and he was in the band in the main theme playing it...I think.

And yes, there's a glaring omission. How do you have Crazy Harry and no detonator? It was originally listed in the pre-order marketing information. I suspect they felt it was too violent, but it does beg the question why do Harry at all if that's the case?

Fun Factor - ****
They have their nits, but these are still a ton of fun for kids and adults alike. It's all those extras that allow you to set up cool displays - or create play stories with the kids. All the figures were quite sturdy too, including the thin limbs on Janice.

Value - ***1/2
All those accessories help boost the value score too. You're getting six (or eight, depending on your point of view) figures for around $66. While they're smaller in scale, the quality is still there, and there's plenty of value in the extras.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not much. Be a little careful when you're first popping the joints loose, since they are small. I didn't have any trouble, and it didn't feel risky, but it's always a good idea to take care the first time you're working a joint this small.

Overall - Miss Piggy, Janice ***; Rowlf, Crazy Harry, Mahna Mahna, Floyd ***1/2
This wave is a turning point for me. While none of the figures are *quite* as good as the Statler and Waldorf (which were so popular they just recently re-released the pair), the overall wave is a winner. I'm particularly happy with Rowlf, but getting more of the Electric Mayhem is a huge plus. Piggy is really the least exciting to me, but she's obviously a critical component.

Wave 4 will bring us Zoot and Dr. Teeth, must haves for finishing off the Electric Mayhem, as well as the Swedish Chef, Sam the Eagle, and Rizzo the Rat. These are all important characters to me, and I'm hopeful we'll see a wave 5 go up for pre-order soon.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - **1/2
Sculpting - Miss Piggy, Janice ***; Rowlf, Floyd, Crazy Harry, Mahna ***1/2
Paint - ***
Articulation - ***
Accessories - ****
Fun Factor - ****
Value - ***1/2
Overall - Miss Piggy, Janice ***; Rowlf, Crazy Harry, Mahna Mahna, Floyd ***1/2

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Entertainment Earth has the next series - wave 4 - listed at $68, but doesn't appear to have series 3...

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I have reviews of wave 1 and wave 2 from Diamond Select Toys as well. I've covered lots of Muppety goodness over the years, but much of it was in the beginning, back in the early aughts. The last Muppet review I did was the Rainbow Connection Kermit, and that was 11 years ago. Before that, we had Uncle Deadly, Frog Scout Leader Kermit, Palisades wave 7, Cabin Boy Gonzo and Rizzo, Super Grover, Palisades' wave 9, Sweetums, the Backstage Playset, Mini-Muppets series 3, the retailer exclusive versions of Animal, Super Beaker, Palisades' wave 8, exclusive Tuxedo Gonzo, Mega Camilla, Ghost of Sam Arrow, Adventure Kermit, Mega Gonzo, Sideshow's Muppets busts series 4, Palisadies' wave 6, Pigs in Space Playset, Mini-Muppets Christmas Carol set, Palisades' series 5, Mini-Muppets wave 1 & 2, Vaudeville Statler and Waldorf, Koozebane Kermit, Sideshow's Busts series 3, Palisades' wave 4, Mega Animal, Super Scooter, Kitchen Playset, Sideshow's mini-busts series 2, Mega Beaker, Palisades' wave 3, Crash Helmet Gonzo, Electric Mayhem play set, Palisades' wave 2, Sideshow mini-busts series 1, Invisible Spray Fozzie, Tuxedo Kermit and Vanishing Cream Beaker, Muppets Labs Play Set, Palisades' wave 1, and Miss Piggy. *whew*

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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