The Muppets not only brings the classic characters back together in a new adventure, but that new adventure is about those characters getting back together. The constant self-doubt voiced by Kermit and the other characters about how appealing they would be to a newer audience feels a lot like discussions that must have gone when Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller both started working on the project. Can a show and set of characters that haven't seen any real popularity in decades really come back and make an impact in the current market? Well, based on this film, I would have to say, most assuredly, yes.

The film starts off by introducing us to a new muppet, Walter. He and his brother, Gary (Segel), have grown up in Smalltown, USA and while Gary has grown up to be a normal man, Walter's muppet life has left him feeling left out ... that is, until he watched The Muppet Show growing up. He immediately identified with the group.

Fast forward to the present and Gary is about to take his girlfriend of 10 years, Mary (Amy Adams), to Los Angeles for their anniversary. Gary makes Walter's day when he says the smaller brother can join them. Unfortunately, this puts Mary at unease since the two humans are never really alone together. Regardless, the trio travel to the West Coast. When they visit the rundown Muppet Studios, Walter discovers a plot by oil tycoon Tex Richman (Chris Cooper). He and his muppet lackeys, Uncle Deadly and Bobo the Bear, know that if the Muppets don't raise 10 million dollars in just a few short days, the rights to the land, and oil underneath, all go to Richman. He also gets the "Muppet" name to do with as he pleases.

Walter, Gary and Mary go to warn Kermit and convince him that the Muppets must put on another show. From there, its a fun-filled ride of gathering all the big names, putting on the show and doing several song-and-dance numbers. From begining to end, The Muppets is just a fun experience.

Not only is the film just a fun, family-friendly experience, but the Blu-ray version also comes chock full of special features. One making-of featurette interviews pretty much everyone in the film, both human and Muppet, while another special feature is a gag reel containing tons of bloopers. It's really amusing to see how, even when things go awry on the set, the Muppets are still in character. There is an extended scene that contains the full Tex Richman song as well as other deleted scenes.

Another amusing extra was a screen test done to see how the Muppets and Segel look in different lighting and environments (indoors, outside, day, night, etc.) as the various characters make their way to a read-through. Also, while the inclusion of theatrical trailers is common in most DVD and Blu-ray releases, and quite frankly, skippable in most cases, because of the unique advertising campaign used for The Muppets, I couldn't help but watch all of their parody trailers, especially since there are a couple that were never released and at least one I, personally, hadn't seen before.

One little detail that, I believe, is unique to this Blu-ray, is what the film does when you pause it. The player kicks into an intermission mode. Sometimes you will hear Statler and Waldorf heckling the viewer, and others it will start playing one of the aforementioned special features. This is just a nice touch that fits well with the product. Kudos for this detail.

These extras, combined with the fact that the Blu-ray release also comes with a DVD, digital copy and download code for the soundtrack, just puts this package over the top. If you are even the mildest fan of the Muppets, then there is no way you will want to miss this film, and this package gives you the most bang for your buck. Check out the clips below for a taste of what you will get.

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