2010 is The Year of the Muppet!

I hate to do two blog posts in one day, but this stuff is too amazing not to post! So, in case you didn't know, this weekend was Disney's first fan convention ever: D23. Sort of a Disney Comic Con. Except all the programs focused on Disney properties. Naturally, the Muppets ended up on the D23 line-up with their own program announcing all the upcoming projects and 2010 is going be insane!

First off, on Friday we got an official announcement on The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever for a 2011 release (that's just my own estimate). The film as announced will be written by and will co-star Jason Segal of TV's How I Met Your Mother and the films Forgetting Sarah Marshall and I Love You, Man. Segal has cited being a huge Muppet fan, holding the utmost nostalgia for the characters and I can tell that he's really trying with this film and I wish him the best of luck. But Sunday was the huge day for Muppet news. Here's a list of what to expect:

• An online cooking show with the Muppets and starring Chef Cat Cora. I have no idea who Cat Cora is but this seems like a start.
• Muppet YouTube music videos for "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Dust in the Wind" and "Stand By Me" all coming online soon. These sound exciting, I can't wait for "Stand By Me" myself. The Timon and Pumbaa version is Muppet-y enough already, I wonder how they'll top that.
• Halloween special slated for October 2010. This was supposed to be filmed and aired this year but got delayed. I'm a little miffed, but hey, at least it's coming! COUGH-COUGH America's Next Muppet COUGH-COUGH
  
• The Muppets to appear on Andrea Buccelli's Christmas special this year. I knew about the album but a special? That's cool, too.
• Muppet*Vision "Remastered" coming soon. It's about time! They've been saying they'll switch to a digital projector for years, it took long enough.
• The Muppet Show: Season 4 for 2010, Gonzo makes the cover. Great news! We're almost there!
• Muppet iPhone apps. I don't have an iPhone, but this is a great thing to do.
• Statler & Waldorf book. If it's like Before You Leap, I'm sold. Well... I'm sold either way...
• Studio DC DVD. That took long enough.
• Muppet Whatnot Workshops in Disney parks with new Whatnots. YES! I haven't gotten a Whatnot yet, what a better time than when these new workshops go up?
• Mobile Electric Mayhem. Neat! I hope I get to see it when I go down to Disney World in February.
• Kermit's gonna be at the VMA's tonight. Hopefully Steve is there for the ride.
  

It's safe to say 2010 is going to be one of the best years for the Muppets in years. How fitting for the 55th anniversary of the franchise. I guess the countdown to New Year's begins now! 2010, the year of the Muppet. You heard it here!