"I often panic while making sandwiches."
March 15, 2017 12:38 PM Subscribe
I have great affection for Agent For H.A.R.M.
posted by Chrysostom at 12:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Chrysostom at 12:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
This dude ranks "Beast of Yucca Flats" near the bottom, which exposes the fatal flaw in his methodology because
(A) Mike and the 'Bots nail the riffing, and there's two great shorts attached too
and
(B) the movie is so bad that it actually disappears into a singularity of badness and comes out the other end as—well, not good, of course, but baffling and fascinating in an almost Herzogian way.
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 1:01 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
(A) Mike and the 'Bots nail the riffing, and there's two great shorts attached too
and
(B) the movie is so bad that it actually disappears into a singularity of badness and comes out the other end as—well, not good, of course, but baffling and fascinating in an almost Herzogian way.
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 1:01 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
I'm glad this factors in the quality of the shorts. (although the linked top 10 list of shorts was obviously written by a person without taste or honor)
posted by dismas at 1:01 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by dismas at 1:01 PM on March 15, 2017
INTERNET: Here's some things you like!
PBO: Yay!
INTERNET: Ranked according to somebody else's subjective standards of best to worst!
PBO: nooooo
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:05 PM on March 15, 2017 [18 favorites]
PBO: Yay!
INTERNET: Ranked according to somebody else's subjective standards of best to worst!
PBO: nooooo
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:05 PM on March 15, 2017 [18 favorites]
Paging J.Harris.
posted by Room 641-A at 1:07 PM on March 15, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 1:07 PM on March 15, 2017 [5 favorites]
genuinely surprised that manos didn't make it into the top ten, but other than that the top 25 is pretty solid. also: kind of buried in the article is the great news that 20 old eps of mst3k are back on netflix!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by burgerrr at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by burgerrr at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
I plan to get into some MST3K watching when they release all the old shows. I was a very occasional viewer so I don't have much memory of specific episodes.
Would you guys say that this is a good guide to get started? Say, take the top ten on this list as my starting point?
posted by tunewell at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Would you guys say that this is a good guide to get started? Say, take the top ten on this list as my starting point?
posted by tunewell at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Wouldn't, in this specific case, be by definition, that "the worst" is "the best"?
posted by sammyo at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by sammyo at 1:08 PM on March 15, 2017
At one point I got a torrent of all the MST3K episodes and downloaded them all and burned them to plastic disk storage and so i have them all and can watch them at any time.
I will say, The Deadly Bees probably has made me laugh more than any other episode. I can't explain way, but that's how it is.
posted by hippybear at 1:11 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
I will say, The Deadly Bees probably has made me laugh more than any other episode. I can't explain way, but that's how it is.
posted by hippybear at 1:11 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
tunewell: The 20 episodes that just went up on Netflix today are actually an excellent starting point, some of the best stuff is in there.
posted by hobgadling at 1:13 PM on March 15, 2017 [9 favorites]
posted by hobgadling at 1:13 PM on March 15, 2017 [9 favorites]
plastic disk storage
You make the medium sound so retro-futuristic-cool when you say it that way!
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
You make the medium sound so retro-futuristic-cool when you say it that way!
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
Manos is actually kind of difficult to watch. It's impressive in how bad it is, but the movie itself is pretty boring and that leaves them without a lot to work with/riff on, because there are long stretches of time where nothing is happening. It gives rise to that great Servo moment where he makes up a conversation during that nearly endless driving scene near the end of the movie, but that's pretty much it.
A movie that's both stupid and has more going on (e.g., Space Mutiny) is generally better material.
posted by Kosh at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017 [7 favorites]
A movie that's both stupid and has more going on (e.g., Space Mutiny) is generally better material.
posted by Kosh at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017 [7 favorites]
i.e. it works perfectly for many of the movies on this list.
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:14 PM on March 15, 2017
The site's taking FOREVER to load, but if Prince of Space isn't in the Top Ten, then I shall send off a sternly worded letter to the Editor of Paste magazine. WE LIKE IT VERY MUCH.
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 1:18 PM on March 15, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 1:18 PM on March 15, 2017 [8 favorites]
Netflix just added 20 classic episodes in prep for the new episodes coming April 14.
posted by valkane at 1:20 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by valkane at 1:20 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Mitchell is my favourite, Cave Dwellers is my wife's, and both are in the top 10, so that's cool.
Mitchell!
posted by The Card Cheat at 1:21 PM on March 15, 2017 [9 favorites]
Mitchell!
posted by The Card Cheat at 1:21 PM on March 15, 2017 [9 favorites]
Oh, and almost all the old eps are available on youtube. Here's a good resource for finding them: Club-MST3K.com.
posted by valkane at 1:23 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by valkane at 1:23 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
tunewell: "I plan to get into some MST3K watching when they release all the old shows. I was a very occasional viewer so I don't have much memory of specific episodes."
FWIW, we may never see all the episodes released officially (either on DVD or streaming). They're at about 90%, but there are a lot of rights issues associated with the last couple.
posted by Chrysostom at 1:25 PM on March 15, 2017
FWIW, we may never see all the episodes released officially (either on DVD or streaming). They're at about 90%, but there are a lot of rights issues associated with the last couple.
posted by Chrysostom at 1:25 PM on March 15, 2017
Keep Circulating The URLs
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 1:26 PM on March 15, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 1:26 PM on March 15, 2017 [8 favorites]
I plan to get into some MST3K watching when they release all the old shows. I was a very occasional viewer so I don't have much memory of specific episodes.
The vast majority of the classic episodes have already been released on DVD (first through Rhino, then through Shout! Factory), with an excellent percentage of those available on streaming. Sadly, there are a handful of a dozen or so episodes which may never get an "official" DVD/streaming release, because the rights-holders are humorless dickweeds.
The 20 that are up now on Netflix are good for an intial taster, and from there I strongly suggest checking out either the official Youtube channel or the Shout! Factory TV site/app; there were roughly 50-60 episodes up for free streaming the last time I checked.
posted by Strange Interlude at 1:29 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
The vast majority of the classic episodes have already been released on DVD (first through Rhino, then through Shout! Factory), with an excellent percentage of those available on streaming. Sadly, there are a handful of a dozen or so episodes which may never get an "official" DVD/streaming release, because the rights-holders are humorless dickweeds.
The 20 that are up now on Netflix are good for an intial taster, and from there I strongly suggest checking out either the official Youtube channel or the Shout! Factory TV site/app; there were roughly 50-60 episodes up for free streaming the last time I checked.
posted by Strange Interlude at 1:29 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
INTERNET: Ranked according to somebody else's subjective standards of best to worst!
Any subjective ranking of aesthetic experience is inherently fascist unless kept to oneself. And even then.
Fight the power! Eschew hierarchies!
/runs around room pumping fists in the air until swooning
posted by Celsius1414 at 1:31 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Any subjective ranking of aesthetic experience is inherently fascist unless kept to oneself. And even then.
Fight the power! Eschew hierarchies!
/runs around room pumping fists in the air until swooning
posted by Celsius1414 at 1:31 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Is there a paginated version? This page is loading slower than Mitchell's beer-addled mind.
posted by Think_Long at 1:41 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by Think_Long at 1:41 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
We can all agree that Glenn was the best host, and the best bot is G Dalton
posted by beerperson at 1:48 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by beerperson at 1:48 PM on March 15, 2017
Riding with Death (with Ben Murphy) and The Puma Man got robbed - these prime cuts should be top 15.
"Time to do a little pinch hit, pop in some Deep Purple and get this secret government project on the road."
posted by porn in the woods at 1:53 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
"Time to do a little pinch hit, pop in some Deep Purple and get this secret government project on the road."
posted by porn in the woods at 1:53 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
DEEPLY offended to find Devilfish ranked so low. "He's never encountered a mediocre woman with a handaxe before!"
posted by a fiendish thingy at 2:02 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by a fiendish thingy at 2:02 PM on March 15, 2017
Who can really be sure of anything these days, but this injection scene is the funniest thing ever. From Assignment Venezuela, which is pretty awesome all around.
posted by Gorgik at 2:04 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Gorgik at 2:04 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Riding with Death (with Ben Murphy) and The Puma Man got robbed
My kids love Puma Man.
posted by My Dad at 2:14 PM on March 15, 2017
My kids love Puma Man.
posted by My Dad at 2:14 PM on March 15, 2017
I had to RTFA to find out what 'best' and 'worst' might mean in this context.
I don't have a favorite episode, but my favorite experience was the one time my wife and I were watching 'The Beginning of the End'* and she realized she had seen that movie when she was a kid and it had totally freaked her out at the time... and apparently still did.
*"The film is generally recognized for its "atrocious" special effects and considered to be one of the most poorly written and acted science fiction motion pictures of the 1950s."- Wikipedia
That's really an accomplishment. Among the 'special effects', the giant grasshoppers attacking Chicago were played by real grasshoppers placed on a photo of Chicago.
posted by MtDewd at 2:15 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
I don't have a favorite episode, but my favorite experience was the one time my wife and I were watching 'The Beginning of the End'* and she realized she had seen that movie when she was a kid and it had totally freaked her out at the time... and apparently still did.
*"The film is generally recognized for its "atrocious" special effects and considered to be one of the most poorly written and acted science fiction motion pictures of the 1950s."- Wikipedia
That's really an accomplishment. Among the 'special effects', the giant grasshoppers attacking Chicago were played by real grasshoppers placed on a photo of Chicago.
posted by MtDewd at 2:15 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
From Assignment Venezuela, which is pretty awesome all around.
Assignment Venezuela is great, although I think comes slightly behind Progress Island U.S.A. ("Look, just come here, okay?!?")
posted by Chrysostom at 2:17 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Assignment Venezuela is great, although I think comes slightly behind Progress Island U.S.A. ("Look, just come here, okay?!?")
posted by Chrysostom at 2:17 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Jet Jaguar! Jet Jaguar!
posted by Kafkaesque at 2:18 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Kafkaesque at 2:18 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Page won't load for me, but here is what it should be, in no particular order:
Riding With Death
Pod People
The Final Sacrifice
Mitchell
Monster A Go Go
Merlins Shop of Mystical Wonders
Horror at Party Beach
Warrior of the Lost World
Cave Dwellers
Escape 2000
There probably aren't enough teens or beatniks in this list, but that's a rough draft top 10.
posted by StopMakingSense at 2:24 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Riding With Death
Pod People
The Final Sacrifice
Mitchell
Monster A Go Go
Merlins Shop of Mystical Wonders
Horror at Party Beach
Warrior of the Lost World
Cave Dwellers
Escape 2000
There probably aren't enough teens or beatniks in this list, but that's a rough draft top 10.
posted by StopMakingSense at 2:24 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Riding with Death (with Ben Murphy) and The Puma Man got robbed
Lucky guy, he's about to find out I'm Ben Murphy.
posted by AndrewInDC at 2:30 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
Lucky guy, he's about to find out I'm Ben Murphy.
posted by AndrewInDC at 2:30 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
I absolutely LOVE Red Zone Cuba (Night Train to Mundo Fine). I went and bought the full movie from some website, no MST3k added. The full movie has parts that make the whole movie make more sense, and I came away feeling like MST kind of cheated out by making fun ("WTH does THIS mean??") of an incomplete movie, chopped down for time sake. I wonder how many other films they did this with.
It's a terrible movie, but there's something so enormous about the whole thing. It's not just HAHA monster is a guy in a rubber suit! LOLZ
Why, WHY would adults try to make such an ambitiously-sized film with almost no budget? Was Coleman trying to evoke the dustbowl novels of John Steinbeck (I think so)? They actually have one of the actors play 2 parts, one of which is done by wearing a very fake beard and mustache and portraying Fidel Castro.
Then, they get back to the USA and try to get rich by stealing a tungsten mine (!!!).
Yes, it's terrible, but something about it resonates with me. It's much, much bigger than a bad movie. It's a catastrophe, but there's an earnestness to it. They weren't just cheaping out to fill time in a drive-in for teenagers to make out to.
"Griffin... He ran all the way to hell, with a penny and a broken cigarette"
posted by jeff-o-matic at 2:32 PM on March 15, 2017 [5 favorites]
It's a terrible movie, but there's something so enormous about the whole thing. It's not just HAHA monster is a guy in a rubber suit! LOLZ
Why, WHY would adults try to make such an ambitiously-sized film with almost no budget? Was Coleman trying to evoke the dustbowl novels of John Steinbeck (I think so)? They actually have one of the actors play 2 parts, one of which is done by wearing a very fake beard and mustache and portraying Fidel Castro.
Then, they get back to the USA and try to get rich by stealing a tungsten mine (!!!).
Yes, it's terrible, but something about it resonates with me. It's much, much bigger than a bad movie. It's a catastrophe, but there's an earnestness to it. They weren't just cheaping out to fill time in a drive-in for teenagers to make out to.
"Griffin... He ran all the way to hell, with a penny and a broken cigarette"
posted by jeff-o-matic at 2:32 PM on March 15, 2017 [5 favorites]
I think Time Chasers is my favorite. There are so many good ones that it's hard to say it's #1, but I probably would have bumped it higher into the top 5. But I always was a Castleton snob.
posted by AndrewInDC at 2:36 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by AndrewInDC at 2:36 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
I basically dedicated 2007 - 2010 to collecting episodes and watching them back to back and can safely say I have at least 25 all time favourites.
And a bunch of them are on Netflix now for me to bore my kids with! YAY!
posted by annathea at 2:45 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
And a bunch of them are on Netflix now for me to bore my kids with! YAY!
posted by annathea at 2:45 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Being From Another Planet is one of the very few episodes I actually dislike. Season 1 is more "they just don't have it all figured out yet" but Being is just un-funny.
posted by Chrysostom at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by Chrysostom at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017
Severe underrating of "Puma Man."
MY NAME IS PLEASANCE AND I AM FUNKY
posted by praemunire at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
MY NAME IS PLEASANCE AND I AM FUNKY
posted by praemunire at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
> I came away feeling like MST kind of cheated out by making fun ("WTH does THIS mean??") of an incomplete movie, chopped down for time sake.
Before the era of on-demand video, editing full-length movies down to fit broadcast schedules was such an ordinary thing that MST3K wouldn't have stood out for doing it too. So they frequently made cuts for time, but the edits were to preserve riffability, not the movie's narrative, and I've long felt that the "huh what happened" gags were for calling themselves out rather than the movie's creators.
posted by ardgedee at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Before the era of on-demand video, editing full-length movies down to fit broadcast schedules was such an ordinary thing that MST3K wouldn't have stood out for doing it too. So they frequently made cuts for time, but the edits were to preserve riffability, not the movie's narrative, and I've long felt that the "huh what happened" gags were for calling themselves out rather than the movie's creators.
posted by ardgedee at 2:50 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
And sometimes edits were for decency reasons - see the rape scene from Sidehackers that they cut.
posted by Chrysostom at 2:53 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Chrysostom at 2:53 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Puma Man ♬ When you want / the flavor of bacon / in a dip ♬
posted by porn in the woods at 2:54 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by porn in the woods at 2:54 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
I never got into MST3K. I like to watch bad movies straight-up. My family yelling at the TV set during movies was training enough so I already have an alternative snarky script running in my mind.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 3:05 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 3:05 PM on March 15, 2017
Severe underrating of "Puma Man."
This is my absolute favorite MST3K episode, ranked even higher than Space Mutiny on my personal list. I'm STOKED that it is one of the ones available on Netflix.
Kobras: Because you come from Earth...
Servo [as Kobras]: Corn grows in you.
The first time I saw this episode, I laughed so hard at this bit I had to stop the movie and rewind it because I missed like the next 5 minutes.
posted by chainsofreedom at 3:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
This is my absolute favorite MST3K episode, ranked even higher than Space Mutiny on my personal list. I'm STOKED that it is one of the ones available on Netflix.
Kobras: Because you come from Earth...
Servo [as Kobras]: Corn grows in you.
The first time I saw this episode, I laughed so hard at this bit I had to stop the movie and rewind it because I missed like the next 5 minutes.
posted by chainsofreedom at 3:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Severe underrating of "Puma Man."
Püma Man.
posted by Celsius1414 at 3:31 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Püma Man.
posted by Celsius1414 at 3:31 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Pu-MAY-man.
posted by praemunire at 3:40 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by praemunire at 3:40 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
I only realized how much MST3K has influenced my life when my son and I couldn't stop ourselves from riffing on the video they had him watching in the oral surgeon's office about the risks of either leaving your wisdom teeth in or taking them out.
posted by randomkeystrike at 3:41 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by randomkeystrike at 3:41 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Fortiething that Pumayman is way too low on this list. I can accept some individual variance, but this is right out. "I get this way when I sense danger" will never not be funny.
Still: fun list, provoked lots of fond memories, really enjoyable to read.
posted by Palindromedary at 4:11 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Still: fun list, provoked lots of fond memories, really enjoyable to read.
posted by Palindromedary at 4:11 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
see the rape scene from Sidehackers
Check out sex tape?
posted by achrise at 4:12 PM on March 15, 2017
Check out sex tape?
posted by achrise at 4:12 PM on March 15, 2017
Is there a paginated version? This page is loading slower than Mitchell's beer-addled mind.
Yeah, that's a crapload of embedded YouTube videos for a single page. OTOH, as the guy who always complains about clickfest web sites, I'll accept it.
posted by Splunge at 4:26 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
Yeah, that's a crapload of embedded YouTube videos for a single page. OTOH, as the guy who always complains about clickfest web sites, I'll accept it.
posted by Splunge at 4:26 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
One of my all-time favorites is from Warrior of the Lost World. There's a scene where Paper Chase Guy (Robert Ginty) shoots at one of the motorcycles pursuing him, and there's a brief slow-motion shot of the motorcycle and its rider on fire....
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 5:54 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
JOEL: Another Buddhist protesting the helmet laws. posted by Mr. Bad Example at 5:54 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Girls Town is one of my all-time favorites, and I'm happy to see it in a pretty good ranking. I used to always see billboards for Paul Anka when I'd drive through Philadelphia and I would always begin laughing uncontrollably in my car.
Also, I still sometimes complain that "my destiny is a SWAMP" from Jack Frost...
posted by TwoStride at 6:12 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Also, I still sometimes complain that "my destiny is a SWAMP" from Jack Frost...
posted by TwoStride at 6:12 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
I have a weird affinity for the 70s movies: Riding with Death, Parts: the Clonus Horror, the Touch of Satan, Laserblast, Angels Revenge. I can't explain it, except that maybe it's because the bad movies of the time encapsulated all the worst parts of the 1970s. They're like a time capsule of awful.
Also the medieval fantasy movies. They're a special kind of awful.
posted by gc at 6:24 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Also the medieval fantasy movies. They're a special kind of awful.
posted by gc at 6:24 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
I'd like to look into the list, but it keeps stalling out on two different browsers.
posted by doctornemo at 6:27 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by doctornemo at 6:27 PM on March 15, 2017
Chrysostom: “I often panic while making sandwiches.”“Yeah! Well maybe its that kind of thing...”
posted by ob1quixote at 6:29 PM on March 15, 2017
This crashes every browser I've tried. Bummer.
posted by tzikeh at 6:42 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by tzikeh at 6:42 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
The number 1 episode should be Prince of Space.
I have now expressed an opinion on the Internet.
posted by wittgenstein at 7:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
I have now expressed an opinion on the Internet.
posted by wittgenstein at 7:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
UK Mefite here, I actually don't have an alternative favourite to offer,(nor a hole to pick, mores the pity!)I'm easy, well provided it's a Joel episode obvs. Amongst my closest RL friends, both long-standing and acquired-along-the-way are certain comedy touchstones. The Young Ones, Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Bottom ... you get the idea. You can drop a direct reference or a similar-styled joke on any of us and be fairly sure of a positive reaction. This is our language.
When I first got online it was weird to find popular Monty Python (good but so old!), Princess Bride (good, but so Disney/Ren Faire!) and Office Space (good, but howww many pieces of flair?). Oh, plus something called "must-three-kay" which turned out to be a US Saturday Morning Thing or maybe a spoof or perhaps a "riff" entirely separate from the product. Hrm! Je ne comprends pas!
Fast forward to 2015 and I'm looking for something different to consume media-wise. I'm slightly more open-minded than I used to be ("Whaaa? You mean The Germans had a New Wave as Welle?") but still pretty narrow in a lot of ways ("I wonder what people I like and/or people like me would have enjoyed back in the day?"). I checked out posts from JHarris's already extant Fanfare group for Mystery Science Theatre 3000 and enjoyed what I found. Something that helped soften the culture-shock blow was the fact that commenter(s) mentioned references were sometimes surprisingly regional rather than national. In any case I enjoyed what I watched (even if I did start with Manos because of name recognition, d'oh!).
I've watched a solid double-handful of MST3K episodes along with/after Fanfare plus a more random smattering courtesy of YouTube. That's been my eventual way in and that's where I've found the fun in them. Going back to my original observation, I can 't ever imagine them becoming a conceptual currency between myself and my friends, but there'd several of us who'd happily build upon them at this stage in life.
posted by comealongpole at 7:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
When I first got online it was weird to find popular Monty Python (good but so old!), Princess Bride (good, but so Disney/Ren Faire!) and Office Space (good, but howww many pieces of flair?). Oh, plus something called "must-three-kay" which turned out to be a US Saturday Morning Thing or maybe a spoof or perhaps a "riff" entirely separate from the product. Hrm! Je ne comprends pas!
Fast forward to 2015 and I'm looking for something different to consume media-wise. I'm slightly more open-minded than I used to be ("Whaaa? You mean The Germans had a New Wave as Welle?") but still pretty narrow in a lot of ways ("I wonder what people I like and/or people like me would have enjoyed back in the day?"). I checked out posts from JHarris's already extant Fanfare group for Mystery Science Theatre 3000 and enjoyed what I found. Something that helped soften the culture-shock blow was the fact that commenter(s) mentioned references were sometimes surprisingly regional rather than national. In any case I enjoyed what I watched (even if I did start with Manos because of name recognition, d'oh!).
I've watched a solid double-handful of MST3K episodes along with/after Fanfare plus a more random smattering courtesy of YouTube. That's been my eventual way in and that's where I've found the fun in them. Going back to my original observation, I can 't ever imagine them becoming a conceptual currency between myself and my friends, but there'd several of us who'd happily build upon them at this stage in life.
posted by comealongpole at 7:09 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
tzikeh: “This crashes every browser I've tried. Bummer.”Here's the paginated version.
posted by ob1quixote at 7:32 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
I don't remember which movie it was, but I do remember the first time and the very first riff when I stumbled across MST3K. As the two lead characters were slowly leaning in for a kiss, I heard zooming-crashing car wreck noises: "NYEEEEEERRRRRRRR KRKRKRKRKRKR!!" I was immediately hooked.
posted by Greg_Ace at 7:39 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by Greg_Ace at 7:39 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
I watch a lot Joel, but the only Mike I put on regularly is Prince of Space. Given all the Mike at the top of the list, might should I persevere through the early Mike episodes and try again?
posted by ob1quixote at 7:40 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by ob1quixote at 7:40 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Also, and no offense to Joel-ites, one of my favorite exchanges is when Mike has become a were-Crow:
TOM: Ahhh!
MIKE: What?? What??
TOM: Mike, look at your hands! Feel your head!
MIKE: Hm. Well, so I have claws and a net, what's the b-haaaay waitaminnit....
For some reason Mike's delivery always makes me laugh.
posted by Greg_Ace at 7:49 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
TOM: Ahhh!
MIKE: What?? What??
TOM: Mike, look at your hands! Feel your head!
MIKE: Hm. Well, so I have claws and a net, what's the b-haaaay waitaminnit....
For some reason Mike's delivery always makes me laugh.
posted by Greg_Ace at 7:49 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Mr. B Natural at 68? Wut.
Greg_Ace, I believe you are referring to Overdrawn at the Memory Bank right about here.
Here's looking at ubiquitous.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 7:56 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Greg_Ace, I believe you are referring to Overdrawn at the Memory Bank right about here.
Here's looking at ubiquitous.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 7:56 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Mr. B Natural
What really makes that one for me is the increasingly hysterical shrieks of "MOOOOOOOOOOM!".
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 8:05 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
What really makes that one for me is the increasingly hysterical shrieks of "MOOOOOOOOOOM!".
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 8:05 PM on March 15, 2017 [6 favorites]
Bad touch.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 8:06 PM on March 15, 2017
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 8:06 PM on March 15, 2017
Greg_Ace, I believe you are referring to Overdrawn at the Memory Bank right about here.
Here's looking at ubiquitous.
posted by computech_apolloniajames
Yup, that's the one! Time to watch it again. Also: I believe this merits an "eponysterical", if anything ever did!
"My nuts?"
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:12 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Here's looking at ubiquitous.
posted by computech_apolloniajames
Yup, that's the one! Time to watch it again. Also: I believe this merits an "eponysterical", if anything ever did!
"My nuts?"
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:12 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Mitchell should be first and last, completing the circle.
posted by zippy at 8:35 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by zippy at 8:35 PM on March 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
My group of friends in college would regularly attempt the four page version of the MST3K drinking game, but I don't think we ever finished a movie before the staggering drunkenness settled in and people starting drifting off.
Meanwhile, my roommatedid roughly two things in his six years of college: meticulously plot out his course schedule for the next term (while not going to any classes each term) and making MST3K mixtapes with cabled together VCRs. His crowning achievement was a nearly two hour long collection of the best shorts and the little skits around commercials. It was painfully funny, seriously, actual pain would settle in after laughing for 30 minutes straight.
And the best of all shorts is Why Study Industrial Arts because you're bad at math, closely followed by Are You Ready For Marriage First Federal Church, member FDIC/ He's a sorcerooorrrooorr, and The Home Economics Story. Here Comes the Circus and Mr. B are good, but not in my top 3.
posted by Ghidorah at 8:39 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Meanwhile, my roommatedid roughly two things in his six years of college: meticulously plot out his course schedule for the next term (while not going to any classes each term) and making MST3K mixtapes with cabled together VCRs. His crowning achievement was a nearly two hour long collection of the best shorts and the little skits around commercials. It was painfully funny, seriously, actual pain would settle in after laughing for 30 minutes straight.
And the best of all shorts is Why Study Industrial Arts because you're bad at math, closely followed by Are You Ready For Marriage First Federal Church, member FDIC/ He's a sorcerooorrrooorr, and The Home Economics Story. Here Comes the Circus and Mr. B are good, but not in my top 3.
posted by Ghidorah at 8:39 PM on March 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
"Where, O Werewolf?" is, I think, the best music sketch ever.
The best Joel music sketch is, "Hired! The Musical."
posted by Chrysostom at 9:47 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
The best Joel music sketch is, "Hired! The Musical."
posted by Chrysostom at 9:47 PM on March 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
I came into this thread just wanting to say that I love Mitchell, which I guess at this point is not terribly interesting. I can add that the soundtrack is by the Oklahoma songwriter Hoyt Axton. His greatness is undeniable.
posted by Quonab at 9:49 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by Quonab at 9:49 PM on March 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
Yes, I am here. First, let me remind everyone that we're actually watching 621 THE BEAST OF YUCCA FLATS tomorrow night at 9 pm Eastern, 6 PM Pacific, at the MST3K Club Cytube channel.
Second, any list of MST episodes has to account for the fact that the best episodes for newcomers and newbie MSTies are different from old timers. People who've watched tons of the show find they can enjoy more than people who only know the show as "that one with the silhouettes." Experienced MSTies tend to like the hardcore stuff, but try to show a newbie Manos, Monster A-Go-Go or Red Zone Cuba and you might chase them off.
And episodes tend to change in people's rankings over time. Final Sacrifice is a relatively recent addition to the show's list of classics, for example.
Given all the Mike at the top of the list, might should I persevere through the early Mike episodes and try again?
Yes.
Yes, it's terrible, but something about it resonates with me. It's much, much bigger than a bad movie. It's a catastrophe, but there's an earnestness to it. They weren't just cheaping out to fill time in a drive-in for teenagers to make out to.
"Griffin... He ran all the way to hell, with a penny and a broken cigarette"
This is because it's a great bad movie. An ordinary bad movie is just a pandering mess. Witness anything Michael Bay has done. Movies that don't aspire cannot even be good at being bad.
Red Zone Cuba, someone cared for it. Also Manos, Ed Wood's classics, and yes, The Room, each of these someone thought they were making art. They tried but they just couldn't, due to lack of skill, talent and budget. It's not that "they just didn't care," they did care. Their reach exceeded their grasp.
posted by JHarris at 9:55 PM on March 15, 2017 [15 favorites]
Second, any list of MST episodes has to account for the fact that the best episodes for newcomers and newbie MSTies are different from old timers. People who've watched tons of the show find they can enjoy more than people who only know the show as "that one with the silhouettes." Experienced MSTies tend to like the hardcore stuff, but try to show a newbie Manos, Monster A-Go-Go or Red Zone Cuba and you might chase them off.
And episodes tend to change in people's rankings over time. Final Sacrifice is a relatively recent addition to the show's list of classics, for example.
Given all the Mike at the top of the list, might should I persevere through the early Mike episodes and try again?
Yes.
Yes, it's terrible, but something about it resonates with me. It's much, much bigger than a bad movie. It's a catastrophe, but there's an earnestness to it. They weren't just cheaping out to fill time in a drive-in for teenagers to make out to.
"Griffin... He ran all the way to hell, with a penny and a broken cigarette"
This is because it's a great bad movie. An ordinary bad movie is just a pandering mess. Witness anything Michael Bay has done. Movies that don't aspire cannot even be good at being bad.
Red Zone Cuba, someone cared for it. Also Manos, Ed Wood's classics, and yes, The Room, each of these someone thought they were making art. They tried but they just couldn't, due to lack of skill, talent and budget. It's not that "they just didn't care," they did care. Their reach exceeded their grasp.
posted by JHarris at 9:55 PM on March 15, 2017 [15 favorites]
Yes, precisely. This is why I cannot enjoy any of the "deliberately awful" school of cult classic movies. To be funny, the movie MUST NOT BELIEVE IT IS BEING FUNNY. It is the sincerity shining through that generates the pathos from which true humor in awfulness can be found.
Red Zone Cuba remains one of my favorite MST3K episodes, for this reason among others.
posted by Scattercat at 3:55 AM on March 16, 2017 [4 favorites]
Red Zone Cuba remains one of my favorite MST3K episodes, for this reason among others.
posted by Scattercat at 3:55 AM on March 16, 2017 [4 favorites]
I still say that Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass should remake Red Zone Cuba. They could call it Red Zone Cuba: The Return of Cherokee Jack.
posted by valkane at 4:11 AM on March 16, 2017
posted by valkane at 4:11 AM on March 16, 2017
One of my all-time favorites is from Warrior of the Lost World. There's a scene where Paper Chase Guy (Robert Ginty) shoots at one of the motorcycles pursuing him, and there's a brief slow-motion shot of the motorcycle and its rider on fire....
JOEL: Another Buddhist protesting the helmet laws.
this, along with Any fruit to declare?, will make me cry from laughing so hard every single time i see the warrior of the lost world episode
posted by burgerrr at 10:19 AM on March 16, 2017 [7 favorites]
JOEL: Another Buddhist protesting the helmet laws.
this, along with Any fruit to declare?, will make me cry from laughing so hard every single time i see the warrior of the lost world episode
posted by burgerrr at 10:19 AM on March 16, 2017 [7 favorites]
I can add that the soundtrack is by the Oklahoma songwriter Hoyt Axton . His greatness is undeniable.
There's a Hoyt-Schermerhorn stop on the A/C. I don't go by it often, but when I do, I swear to God, a voice in my head always says: "Hoyt! How could you!"
posted by praemunire at 10:49 AM on March 16, 2017 [1 favorite]
There's a Hoyt-Schermerhorn stop on the A/C. I don't go by it often, but when I do, I swear to God, a voice in my head always says: "Hoyt! How could you!"
posted by praemunire at 10:49 AM on March 16, 2017 [1 favorite]
The Sampo one is The Day the Earth Froze, I'm pretty sure.
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 3:40 PM on March 16, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 3:40 PM on March 16, 2017 [2 favorites]
A friend of mine once went mining IMDB for what he called "The MST3K Effect". The mere fact of having been featured on MST3K means lots of fans will just mark it down as a terrible film on all kinds of rating systems. This ignores the fact that a lot of the films on that show were not necessarily bad, but still fun to mock.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 5:16 PM on March 16, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 5:16 PM on March 16, 2017 [2 favorites]
So apparently MST3K isn't available on the Dutch Netflix.... sigh...
posted by Pendragon at 3:10 AM on March 17, 2017
posted by Pendragon at 3:10 AM on March 17, 2017
I came into this thread just wanting to say that I love Mitchell, which I guess at this point is not terribly interesting. I can add that the soundtrack is by the Oklahoma songwriter Hoyt Axton.
Holy crap. How did I never make the connection that the guy singing "MAH-MAH-MAH-MAH-Mitchell" was the dad from Gremlins? That voice is unmistakable!
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:30 PM on March 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Holy crap. How did I never make the connection that the guy singing "MAH-MAH-MAH-MAH-Mitchell" was the dad from Gremlins? That voice is unmistakable!
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:30 PM on March 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Anyone recognize where those movie clips were from?
posted by Chrysostom at 9:47 AM on March 22, 2017
posted by Chrysostom at 9:47 AM on March 22, 2017
Felicia Day is a national treasure.
(Awfully white cast, though. Jonah Ray is in the People Who Had to Change Their Ethnic-Sounding Name to Get Work club, but Portuguese is still white. And I say this as a fellow Hawaiian Portagee, albeit one with an Anglo last name.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:48 AM on March 22, 2017
(Awfully white cast, though. Jonah Ray is in the People Who Had to Change Their Ethnic-Sounding Name to Get Work club, but Portuguese is still white. And I say this as a fellow Hawaiian Portagee, albeit one with an Anglo last name.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:48 AM on March 22, 2017
(I'll add for completeness that Tom Servo's new voice is Baron Vaughan, who is black. So that's cool, but he's a robot.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:50 AM on March 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by tobascodagama at 9:50 AM on March 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
The AV Club id'ed one of the clips as Reptilicus.
posted by Chrysostom at 11:36 AM on March 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Chrysostom at 11:36 AM on March 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
Would that be the clip of the poster that says "REPTILICUS" on it? :D
posted by tobascodagama at 11:39 AM on March 22, 2017
posted by tobascodagama at 11:39 AM on March 22, 2017
Am I wrong in thinking that the satellite and Mads scenes look green-screened? I guess that's the updated version of the basic-cable vibe, but a little disappointing.
posted by Think_Long at 11:41 AM on March 22, 2017
posted by Think_Long at 11:41 AM on March 22, 2017
Would that be the clip of the poster that says "REPTILICUS" on it? :D
Shoot, I never noticed.
posted by Chrysostom at 11:45 AM on March 22, 2017
Shoot, I never noticed.
posted by Chrysostom at 11:45 AM on March 22, 2017
Word on the street on this season's movies:
At the Earth’s Core (1976)
Avalanche (presumably the 1978 version)
Carnival Magic (1981)
Cry Wilderness (1987)
Hercules (presumably the 1983 Lou Ferrigno version, also directed by Luigi Cozzi, aka “Lewis Coates” of Starcrash fame)
Reptilicus (1961) ***CONFIRMED***
Starcrash (1978) ***CONFIRMED***
The Beast of the Hollow Mountain (1956)
The Christmas That Almost Wasn’t (1966)
The Land That Time Forgot (1974)
Time Travelers (1964) ***CONFIRMED***
Wizards 1 (Probably Wizards of the Lost Kingdom 1985)
Wizards 2 (Probably Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II 1989)
Yongary (1967)
posted by Chrysostom at 10:32 PM on March 24, 2017 [4 favorites]
At the Earth’s Core (1976)
Avalanche (presumably the 1978 version)
Carnival Magic (1981)
Cry Wilderness (1987)
Hercules (presumably the 1983 Lou Ferrigno version, also directed by Luigi Cozzi, aka “Lewis Coates” of Starcrash fame)
Reptilicus (1961) ***CONFIRMED***
Starcrash (1978) ***CONFIRMED***
The Beast of the Hollow Mountain (1956)
The Christmas That Almost Wasn’t (1966)
The Land That Time Forgot (1974)
Time Travelers (1964) ***CONFIRMED***
Wizards 1 (Probably Wizards of the Lost Kingdom 1985)
Wizards 2 (Probably Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II 1989)
Yongary (1967)
posted by Chrysostom at 10:32 PM on March 24, 2017 [4 favorites]
Oh, man a Hercules movie? This really is a faithful reboot!
posted by tobascodagama at 7:17 AM on March 25, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by tobascodagama at 7:17 AM on March 25, 2017 [1 favorite]
Oh god Starcrash. We've been through that one in MST Club prerolls more than once.
posted by JHarris at 1:37 PM on March 25, 2017
posted by JHarris at 1:37 PM on March 25, 2017
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I stayed up way too late last night reading this list and laughing at remembering the episodes.
posted by hobgadling at 12:46 PM on March 15, 2017 [5 favorites]