The Muppets Take the Marvel Universe #1 Review: Kermit, Chaos and Marvel Mayhem Done Right

WEPAAAA! Yo, who let the Muppets into the Marvel Universe? Better question, who thought they were ever getting them back out? The Muppets Take the Marvel Universe #1 is exactly the kind of comic-book madness I can get behind. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Animal, Beaker, Swedish Chef and the rest of the crew crashing into Marvel sounds ridiculous because it IS ridiculous. That’s the whole damn point. Marvel doesn’t try to make the Muppets fit into some serious continuity event either. They open the door, let these maniacs run around the house, and hope somebody still has insurance when it’s over.

Chip Zdarsky and Pete Woods get this party started right because Zdarsky understands Kermit. My dude just wants everybody to behave for five minutes. That’s it. Five minutes! Unfortunately, Kermit lives in a world where everybody around him wakes up choosing chaos, and dropping Marvel superheroes into the mix only makes his life worse. Spider-Man slides into this insanity perfectly because his mouth is already built for it. The comedy works because nobody is standing around explaining why this crossover is funny. Kermit plays it straight, everybody else loses their minds, and the madness keeps moving.

Pete Woods has an even crazier job because Marvel heroes and Muppets should look weird as hell standing next to each other. Somehow, they don’t. Woods lets the Muppets remain the Muppets while still giving the Marvel characters their superhero presence. Nobody looks pasted onto the page. Nobody feels like they wandered in from another comic. Expressions sell half the jokes, especially whenever Kermit gets that familiar look like he’s two seconds away from questioning every decision that brought him here. That’s the Muppet magic right there, fam.

Then this big boy starts bouncing through its different stories, and that’s where the creators really get to play. Pigs of the Galaxy from Mackenzie Cadenhead, David Baldeón and Yen Nitro is already working with a title that tells you exactly what kind of foolishness you’re walking into. Kyle Starks, Mike Henderson and Nitro hit us with A Terrible Invention. Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Attila Fabbio and Mike Atiyeh bring Bad Man. Ashley Allen, Chef Paul Carmichael, Paco Medina and Nitro serve up Just What the Chef Ordered, while Adam F. Goldberg and E.J. Su bring everybody home with Muppets Assemble! That’s a lot of cooks in this kitchen, papi, but somehow nobody burns dinner.

Some jokes naturally hit harder than others. That’s always going to happen with comedy, especially when you’re jumping between creative teams. But there’s enough good stuff flying around that I never felt like the book was depending on cameos alone. Animal and Wolverine? Come on, son. You already KNOW. Miss Piggy mixing it up with Marvel characters is every bit as dangerous as it should be. Beaker anywhere near Marvel science is a horrible idea, which means it’s obviously a fantastic idea. And Swedish Chef getting involved in Doctor Strange territory? Ay bendito. Somebody better check Wong’s blood pressure.

What really impressed me was how much storytelling is happening through the artwork. Muppets aren’t easy to draw because they need to remain recognizable as puppets while still showing enough expression to carry a comic panel. The artists understand that balance. Kermit can look worried without suddenly becoming Rubber Face Kermit. Piggy can go from glamorous to ready-to-body-slam-somebody in seconds. Animal looks completely insane, as the good Lord intended. Meanwhile, the Marvel characters still get their action poses, movement and superhero energy. The colors keep everything bright and lively without turning every page into visual overload, and Joe Caramagna’s lettering has to keep up with a LOT of personalities without letting the dialogue stomp all over the artwork.

I also appreciated that Marvel lets itself get roasted a little. That’s important. This could have easily become two famous brands standing next to each other screaming, “LOOK WHO WE OWN!” Nah, nobody wants that. The creators actually play with Marvel history, superhero habits and comic-book logic while letting the Muppets do what they’ve always done best: walk into somebody else’s world and immediately start screwing with it. Marvel gets jokes thrown its way. The Muppets get clowned too. Everybody catches something. Beautiful.

Beneath all that madness, you can tell these creators actually dig these characters. That’s why it works. This isn’t forty-something pages of “Hey, look, Kermit met a superhero!” There are little visual jokes, character combinations and bits throughout the book that reward fans who know their Marvel and Muppet history. You can fly through it and have fun, but slow down and you’ll catch extra nonsense hiding in the panels. I love that.

The Muppets Take the Marvel Universe #1 isn’t trying to change comics forever, fam. It doesn’t need to. Sometimes I want cosmic consequences and emotional devastation. Sometimes I want Kermit trying to survive a room full of superheroes while Miss Piggy looks like she’s about to put somebody through a wall. This comic knows exactly what it came here to do, does it with style, and gets the hell out before anybody can ask too many questions. Funny, colorful, packed with personality and genuinely respectful of both worlds without treating either one like museum property. Yeah, I had a blast with this joint.

CRUSADERS SCORE:
4.5/5

Writers: Chip Zdarsky, Mackenzie Cadenhead, Kyle Starks, Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Ashley Allen, Chef Paul Carmichael & Adam F. Goldberg
Artists: Pete Woods, David Baldeón, Mike Henderson, Attila Fabbio, Paco Medina & E.J. Su
Colorists: Yen Nitro & Mike Atiyeh
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Artists: Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg
Publisher: Marvel Comics