Hens' mascot mix gets scrambled

For years, the cuddly mascot duo of Muddy and Muddonna have delighted fans of the Toledo Mud Hens with their playful personalities and affectionate demeanors.

But now there are new mascots in town, and they are anything but cuddly.

After weeks of trickery and deception, which included the sudden disappearance of Muddy's favorite bat and an anonymous troublemaker putting gum in Muddonna's hair, a new era began in mascot lore when the mischievous tandem of Muddiva and Muddevious emerged from a cloud of smoke onto Fifth Third Field during the Mud Hens' game last Friday.

As loud, spooky music blared from the stadium speakers upon the pair's arrival, a surge of excitement ran through the stands. Finally, impatient spectators were getting answers as to who -- or what -- had been causing all of the recent commotion.

"People would ask a lot of our staff members what was going on," JaMay Edwards, the Mud Hens' manager of promotions, said. "And, of course, we just told them to be patient and to make sure you're there, so you can see the big reveal."

The fans who made it out to the ballpark were treated to quite a show from the new Hens on the block. After making their grand entrance, Muddiva and Muddevious broke into a wild dance that thrilled the cheering crowd.

A season-long promotional campaign by the Mud Hens' front office had been generating excitement about the newest team members leading up to their arrival and performance. "Weird Watch 2007" featured 30-second news reports during each game to update fans on occurrences such as the mysterious crop circles and giant alien-like eggs that were appearing in the outfield.

The hens who eventually "hatched" from the oversized eggs turned out to be a completely different breed from the more conservative Muddy and Muddonna, who have been with the organization for 18 years and five years, respectively.

"[Muddiva and Muddevious] are a lot different from Muddy and Muddonna, who are kind of like angels," said Edwards, who developed the personalities of the new mascots. "These two are a little bit sillier and more mischievous."

Not only do the new characters act differently than their predecessors, they also look a bit more devilish than their kinder-gentler counterparts. While all four Hens are gigantic and yellow, the older pair features a more traditional "big bird" look with large, welcoming eyes and soft furry feathers. The new-age duo, on the other hand, are inflatable creatures, with one Hen donning horns and a scowl while the other wears a Zorro-like mask that hides most of its face.

The stark contrast between the pairs of birds was exactly what Edwards wanted when she came up with the idea of adding members to the mascot family.

While many people within the organization thought the best way to introduce new characters would be for Muddy and Muddonna to get married and hatch kids, Edwards was intent on creating new characters who had a bit of an edge to them.

"I wanted to go in a different direction, at least for right now, because I thought it would be so cool if Muddy had an alter-ego," she said. "If there was like a bad Muddy, or an anti-Muddy, that would make for more opportunities for crazy antics and more skits because he has an evil twin."

Having a pair of mascots who seem a bit sinister creates a whole new set of opportunities. Unlike Muddy and Muddonna, the new Hens are a whole lot cockier.

"They're kind of attention hogs," Edwards said. "So they'll be making their appearances more so on the weekends, for a lot of our sellouts, so that we can get the maximum entertainment out of them."

Edwards isn't concerned about a possible public backlash against Muddiva and Muddevious. In fact, she expects fans to grow attached to the devious duo.

"My goal is to get [the fans] to kind of love to hate them, whether it be from something fun or something entertaining, as well," she said. "Because these two will be more performance artists, whereas Muddy and Muddonna are more the type to show up on the concourse where people can come up and hug [them]."

With two pairs of mascots so different, will it be possible for them to peacefully coexist?

"Oh yes," said Edwards. "And they may even interact ... very soon."