Tales of the Great Gonzo (ideas for a graphic novel)

It will be a long while before tackling such a task, but recently I was inspired to create a collection of origin stories for Gonzo and assemble the conflicting tales in a comic book. As a fan I took issue with the Gonzo alien idea of Muppets From Space. In Juhl's original treatment of the film the aliens were mere fans of Gonzo, not relatives. Either way, I view MFS as I do MTM - Gonzo's as much an alien as Kermit and Miss Piggy are married.

This comic is based on the Joker's Killing Joke concept where some parts of the tales are probably true, but will ever know the real story. Someday I might develop this for my own freaky fan side, but until then - here are the 5 story concepts. Almost everyone gets their way with this:


It Came from Under the Stairs:
Lightening strikes a formation of mold underneath the stairs in the back alley of the Muppet Theater thus evolving into Gonzo. Young theater gofer-frog Kermit gives the weirdo a job tending the outdoor chicken coop. Both rise to greatness.

Crash Landing – A Muppet Babies Saga:
Gonzo’s parents escape in a flying saucer when the evil Lord Rooster threatens their home planet. In this planet chickens are considered great beings. Baby Gonzo is accidentally released into outer space and crash lands on earth in front of an orphanage next door to Nanny’s house. The Muppet Babies befriend the weirdo and he is adopted by Nanny. The other kids may go home, but Baby Gonzo’s home is the nursery.

A Deadly Wish:
Phantom of the Muppet Theater, Uncle Deadly, wishes for a companion to cure his loneliness. His ritual chant results in the appearance and creation of Gonzo. This is not what he expected.

Circus Weirdo:
Fozzie encounters Gonzo while on the vaudeville circuit. He frees him from the evil ringmaster of an exploitive freak show. Some of his freaky friends come with him to land jobs on the Muppet Show.

Fed-upEx:
Fed up with Gonzo’s demanding and crazy behavior, a Bollywood film director air mails the weirdo from Bombay, India to the Muppet Theater. Surprise!

I really, really, REALLY like this idea! The general idea of having so many origin stories for Gonzo is just awesome. I'd like to see one based on how he became a plumber in TMM. Maybe the Fed-upEx one could end up like that. Who knows! But really it's a fantastic idea!

Prawnie's right; this idea is awesome! All of the story ideas are possible, and... well, most of them are more likely to happen than not. ("Crash Landing", "Circus Weirdo", and "Fed-upEx" more so than the other two...) Still, this is a great concept. I look forward to (eventually) reading the (planned) graphic novel!

You know... Kinda like the Deadly Wish and Circus Weirdo ideas. Please post when you've got something more to share.

Wow. I didn't think these stories would be so well received! The first one is my personal favorite in that it focuses on the origin of the Muppet Show and Kermit's rise as well, but there are fun opportunities for character interaction built-in for each of the tales.

I kind of see Nanny leaving Gonzo the house in Crash Landing when she retires to a condo in Florida. That house would end up being the MFS house.

I like prawncracker's idea. I can see Gonzo taking on a job as a plumber-photographer-artiste in the Fed-upEx one. I see lots of interactions with Miss Piggy in that one. Seeing Gonzo in action as a Bollywood movie star amuses me - and the fact he'd happily hop into an airmail box does too.

I see each story having its own palette and genre style – from film noir to sci-fi. Someday. I’d really like to come up with a graphically striking Gonzo design first. Here’s last year’s valentine that was drawn for my partner who likes Donald Duck (Hey, if he can flirt with Big Bird this image isn't a stretch, but in each comic Camilla will be his one and only squeeze). I don’t feel like Gonzo’s ever been drawn quite right by me or anyone. He’s a hard weirdo to capture in ink.

Love the story ideas! Your art is top-notch! I love it.

Do you have a deviantart page yet? If not, you should!