I don't know if I would call Kirschner's stint with the Monkees a "fiasco". It made them all rich and gave them careers, manufactured or not. Keep in mind that all of them had some sort of music background, even if it was in theater for Jones and Dolenz. Give them credit for bucking the system and actually going out and playing their instruments and in Nesmith's case, writing songs. It may have been "ego", but there is nothing wrong with having one. Their film "Head" was actually quite fun.

Still, the Archies were just a studio band - although they did some appearances.