Opening TikTok can, sometimes, feel like playing a game of emotional Russian Roulette.
Will I be delighted, disgusted, or annoyed by the first video on my feed? Will I discover that I’ve missed out on multiple posts from one of my favorite creators? Will the algorithm completely forget who I am and start showing me the most random, middle-of-the-road viral posts?
TikTok’s Live function heightens this feeling even more, because you genuinely don’t know what is about to come across your phone screen. This is why I, admittedly, don’t use it a lot, unless I have a specific task in mind like hunting for livestreams during Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. And yet, the app still serves me a slew of livestreams that can often defy explanation… including Crashout Kermy.
Yes, you read that combination of words correctly. The fan-made account centers around a puppet of beloved Muppet Kermit the Frog, propped against a nondescript headboard and pillows. This Kermit (who, as the account repeatedly states, is not officially affiliated with Disney and The Muppets) is tasked with one purpose: to dance. Bathed in neon lights, he gyrates and waves his hands around to virtually any genre of music, from NSFW hip hop to Top 40 pop hits to “Bella’s Lullaby” from the Twilight soundtrack. If and when he’s not doing that, his emotions swing to the complete opposite end of the spectrum, as he is suddenly tucked into the bed and drowning his sorrows in a bottle of liquor.
It’s not easy crashing out…
Sometimes, Crashout Kermy is longingly looking at a framed photo of himself with Miss Piggy. Sometimes, a stuffed animal of SpongeBob SquarePants‘ Patrick Star is inexplicably imprisoned in a cage behind him. Oftentimes, there are props and costumes and at least a 50% chance that Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” is playing or about to start playing.
With a Cameo account, fanart, and (at the time of this writing) 1.4 million followers and nearly 20 million likes, people have clearly taken a liking to Crashout Kermy. And if you spend enough time in his world, you can understand why.
I initially found Crashout Kermy through his livestreams (which happen nightly at 9:30PM PT), and felt like I had accidentally stumbled into a late-night fever dream. I immediately screen recorded a clip on my phone, so I could offer proof when explaining to another person what the hell I just saw. Since then, Kermit’s many standalone videos have sufficed, whether he’s recreating the line dance from Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild” video or flying off of a park swing to the tune of Wicked‘s “Defying Gravity.”
As ridiculous of a concept as he is, Crashout Kermy strikes a sort of delightful chord with people. The energy in his comment section, either on a video or an ongoing livestream, is usually one of camaraderie… which kind of honors the spirit of the character, in a way. The actual Kermit the Frog already captures plenty of indescribable human emotions, as evidenced by just how many reaction memes of him exist online. And there are a lot of things for Kermit, whether official or not, to theoretically “crash out” over. (The closure of MuppetVision 3D, for one.) And yet, he still keeps entertaining us, whether through keeping his fellow Muppets on track, or perfectly covering Talking Heads’ “Once in a Lifetime”, or delivering an emotional performance of “Rainbow Connection.” In his own special way, Crashout Kermy does the same.
(featured image: Jim Henson Company)
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