Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988–1999) User Reviews (237)

Excellent! Ranks right up there with "The Simpsons" and "The Daily Show" !

[Cowman · 10/10 · 19 July 2003]

For those unfortunate few who have never seen an episode of Joel Hodgson's MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 (referred to by fans as 'MST3K'), here is a brief rundown on all the fun you've missed out on. Dr. Forrester is your typical mad scientist. He sports big glasses, an oversized lab coat, crazy hair, and an insatiable urge to take over the world. In an effort to kick off his latest foolproof world-domination scheme, Dr. Forrester abducts a dry-witted janitor named Joel Robinson from the research center they both work at. Joel is blasted into space in an apparently escape-proof ship called the Satellite of Love, forever doomed to orbit the planet Earth. Forrester keeps contact with Joel via satellite transmission, and each week sends hims an unbearably awful b-movie which he is forced to watch. The mad doctor's idea is to keep sending movies that are so mind-numbingly terrible that it will eventually drive Joel and his viewers to insanity, thus giving him an easy outlet for conquering the world. To help preserve his sanity, Joel uses parts from the ship to build four wise-cracking robot friends that keep him company and help us to avoid cinema-induced lunacy by mercilessly heckling the films.

The show aired weekly, and re-introduced old 1950s-70s era drive-in swill to a world that has long forgotten about it. The movies they chose--The Brain That Wouldn't Die, Time of the Apes, and (most notorious) Manos: The Hands of Fate, for example--were truly some of the most awful abominations in cinema history, and how they were able to find clear, working prints of these (mostly) obscure films is beyond me. Not only was it great to be able to witness some of these "masterpieces" first-hand, but the non-stop commentary by Joel, Tom, and Crow was absolutely hysterical. There was never a dull moment when those boys hit the SOL's onboard movie theater. On occasion, there would be a break from the movie to show a humorous sketch that would further the basic plot of the show. While many of these segments were admittedly not all that funny, they didn't last long, and Forrester would call for "MOVIE SIGN!" again in no time. Come to think of it, it may not even be that these primitive skits weren't funny, but that they simply paled in comparison to the sheer hilarity that took place in the ship's movie theater.

MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 is one of the few television programs that seems to be loved by virtually everybody. Seriously--I know of not a single person who didn't like this show, nor have I ever read a single negative comment or review of it. That being said, why on Earth was such a brilliant show like MST3K canceled? It couldn't have been because of poor ratings, since the show had a huge cult following and a substantial amount of regular viewers. If anyone has any information regarding why this series was taken off the air, please contact me!

My Best TV Friends at the Movies!

[lambiepie-2 · 10/10 · 1 July 2003]

Comedy Central gets credit when credit is due. "South Park", the "Chapelle's Show", "Win Ben Stein's Money", "The Daily Show" and a few others -- were breakthough series for a very hungry comedy generation. But this was their very first hit, let no one tell ya differently.

At first, I thought Mystery Science Theater 3000 would bug me. A bunch of folks talking through a movie. I HATE that. But these guys have gone through and chosen a host of films that are bad to begin with. And you know as you're sitting in the comfort of your home, by yourself or with friends watching these same films, you are saying or thinking the same thing of what Joel and Mike and the 'bots are.

Yes, MST3K is "cheap", its stupid..but its a heck of alot of fun. There are a few movies they took that I didn't think deserved an MST3K "do-over" but at some points in the series, they did a unique thing and added in Cartoons, old Soap Operas and TV Series before showing the full feature. That was a laugh riot.

Comedy Central's MST3K went to the Sci-Fi Channel where they still show the series but I wish they would also show the ones with Joel and the 'bots along with the ones with Mike and the 'bots. In such a depressing time, it puts a smile on my face for two hours every Saturday Morning. It's simple and s-i-m-p-l-e.

Every year the Sci-Fi network does "Twilight Zone" Marathons which I love. I remember Comedy Central ONCE doing a "MST3K" Marathon, it's time to do another. This is the best comedy/sci-fi series to date, it deserves alot more than it got.

If not, maybe its time to pull the gang together and do another "Movie". The "MST3K" gang really blew it with doing "This Island Earth" when we all know "Manos, the Hands of Fate" would have gotten them Academy Award Nominations. Find another film like that, put these guys back into space (and hey, bring 'em back home!) and I bet it would surprise everyone in the film industry for how well it would do.

Great Series!

The best comedy series ever.

[DrZaat · 10/10 · 5 September 2000]

The best comedy series ever. The range of humor, from lowbrow to extremely sophisticated, is amazing. Despite numerous cast changes over its ten-year run, it maintained a high quality and its final season was no less funny than the others. The writing was top notch, the performances hilarious, and their treatments of the abysmal films they mocked proved that you CAN make silk purses from sows' ears. Certainly, a station with greater resources than Comedy Central or the Sci-Fi Channel could have delivered the audience the show deserved, but, sadly, this was not the case, and its second cancellation was final. No TV program has enchanted me the way MST3K did, and I still mourn its cancellation more than a year after the fact. Catch it while reruns are still being aired! I don't expect them to continue much, if at all, into 2001. If you manage to see it, I guarantee you'll be heading to Rhino Videos to order tapes of the old episodes, and contacting fans to obtain copies of newer ones.

I am in my forties, yet Servo and Crow, the two main robot puppets, became as real to me as any human character on TV. Along with the rest of the cast, they became friends with whom I looked forward to spending a couple of hours every Saturday morning. Invite some real friends over to watch it--it's much better as a group experience. Once again, catch it in reruns on the Sci-Fi Channel while you still can!

Movie Sign!

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 14 November 2003]

Mystery Science Theater 3000, one of my favorite shows of all time, I'm serious. This is one of the best television shows ever created, why is it such a cult classic? Ever see a really bad movie? I know you have, we also know how much we love to make fun of a really bad movie, that's exactly what the characters of Mystery Science Theater 3000 do, they take the worst movies of all time and absolutely tear them a new one. They are like the friends we want to have around when you feel like you wasted your money at the movies, because at least you can get a good laugh at just making fun of it. I saw this show for the first time in 1998 when my parents finally broke down and got cable, the first channel that popped up when I turned on the TV was the sci fi channel and what looked like a fun werewolf movie... then I noticed three little figures in the corner. I didn't get it, why are they talking through the mov... oh, because this is a really bad movie and they are saying everything that I am thinking... I'm in love! At that point I was hooked and tuned in every week to see a new episode.

The show first started off with Joel, a man who is stranded on the satellite of love space ship with several robots: Crow T. Robot, Tom Servo, Gypsy and Gambot. He is being tortured by our villain, Dr. Forrester with terrible movies. Eventually in the middle of season 5, we got a new host, Mike Nelson. He was a slave to Dr. Forrester, but is now sentenced to the same fate as Joel to see the most horrible movies of all time. We also later on got a different villain, Dr. Forrester's mother, Pearl Forrester who is trying to take over the world while presenting horrendous movies to Mike and the bots.

The great thing about this show is it didn't just make fun of horror movies, nope, any bad movie could face the hand smack of Mystery Science Theater 3000. I couldn't choose a favorite episode, but I stepped into the Mike era so most of my favorites come out of those seasons like: Prince of Space, The Final Sacrifice, Space Mutiny, Girl in Gold Boots, The Brain that wouldn't Die, Squirm and Soultaker. Not only do they make fun of movies, but "educational" shorts as well with the scary "A Date With Your Family" and "Spring Fever!" that are frankly the most disturbing thing on film. Like most shows, not every episode is a classic, but is always guaranteed a good laugh. There are some haters on this show saying that they hate seeing people talk through the film, if you really want to see films like the one's they make fun of, I pity you.

Now THIS is funny.

[Professor_Elemental · 10/10 · 28 June 2001]

Many people are wise to the attraction of BAD movies - however poor they are you can sit and gasp 'WHAT WHERE THEY THINKING' or pull holes in the plot/acting/effects/continuity/script. Especially Sci-Fi. And, like myself, you probably rip the mickey out of said films whilst they are watching them. This show takes it one step further - and makes a GOOD job of doing just that for you! And the humour is ALWAYS spot on - so much so that during a recent showing of 'Overdrawn at the Memory Bank (1985)' I laughed so much I almost did SERIOUS damage to myself (and my underwear)!! I just wish this was shown more in the UK. Sci-Fi channel - come on!!! Put it on earlier so us non-vampires can see it! Top class comedy.

In my opinion, the greatest thing to ever happen to T.V.

[lmntathffan · 10/10 · 27 July 2005]

basic synopsis: Joel Hodgeson, along with his robots Tom Servo, Crow, and Gypsy, is held captive thousands of miles above the earth, in the satellite of love (S.o.L.), where he is forced to endure gruelingly bad movies. Joel, rather than succumb to the terrifying badness of the films, makes slapstick puns, which Tom Servo and Crow easily join in on. Joel also creates weekly inventions for Frank, the man who shot him into space. Inventions include the comic grinder, which mixes boring comics with other boring comics to create FUN!!! comics, i.e. "Ziggy got Garfield neutered?!? NOW THAT'S FUNNY!"

Even after 10 seasons, the humor never ran down or let up. In fact, the only notable difference was the change in humor styling, from Joel to Mike. What happened, basically, was Joel either decided to quit, or was fired from, the cast of MST3K. His replacement was Mike Nelson, who did an equally good job commentating on movies. Anyways, where Joel brought a sarcastic, harsh tone to his humor, Mike gave more of an analytical, joke-by-comparison type of humor. It is very hard to explain, but you should understand once you actually view a couple of episodes.

Overall, there were many decent episodes, such as those from the first season, which were really stepping stones for the MST3K crew to find their real footholds on the show. the jokes were less risqué', and the cast lacked it's flare. Nonetheless, the episodes were still worthy of watching. Titles include: The Crawling eye, the robot versus the Aztec mummy, and Mad Monster. Definitely not a bad group.

However, the third season was where the MST3K really got things cookin'. This was the first season where MST3k appeared on Comedy Central, and it shows. Personally, this, along with season's five and ten, was my favorite season. The episode's were all great, every last one of them, and they all had the necessary emotion put into them. Titles include: Cave Dwellers, Santa Claus conquers the Martians, and fugitive alien. Must see!

Finally, we have the fifth season. Half way through this season, something went wrong with Joel, and thus he was fired. So, starting with episode 514 (Mitchell) we were introduced to Mike Nelson. Do not take this statement the wrong way, this season was great! All of my favorite episodes were packed in here, and above all else, the season had the change that MSTies everywhere were looking for. Titles include: Eegah!, Mitchell, I accuse My Parents

The only other episode I would like to remark on is Manos: The hands of Fate, which is considered to be the worst movie ever made, and, in my opinion, truly is. It is also a great episode, providing lots of hilarious gags, etc. Definite must see.

Overall: MST3K is a 10/10 fa sho.

Best Cult Show EVER!!

[lauraeileen894 · 10/10 · 19 November 2006]

"Mystery Science Theater 3000" does what we'd all love to do when watching a bad movie, but hesitate due to courtesy or our own lack of wit: Offer our own biting commentary on the wretchedness before us. For 12 seasons, this sleeper cult TV hit used this idea (one that can never grow old because there will always be bad movies) to hilarious advantage. The plot was as follows: mad scientists Dr. Clayton Forrester and Dr. Larry Earhart (who was replaced one year later by doofy henchmen TV's Frank, who proved much more popular) run Gizmonics Institute. They have such an irrational dislike to quirky, sleepy-eyed custodian Joel Robinson (Joel Hodgson, the show's creator), that they blast him into space on the "Satellite of Love". As if that weren't bad enough, they force poor Joel to sit through bad movie day after day to study their effects on our hero's brain. Well, space gets pretty lonely, so Joel builds himself four robot companions (according to the show's theme, they're built from parts that could have helped him "control when the movies begin and end"). The main robots are suave smart-ass and occasional crooner Tom Servo (who is made from a gumball machine) and abrasive pop culture fiend Crow, a bizarre, gold, bird-like thing. There's also Gypsy, who controls the main functions of the ship and has a girlish crush on B-actor Richard Basehart, and Cambot, who tapes the show. Every week our hapless captives were sent an awful movie (just a reminder, these are REAL movies, and they have to be seen to be believed), each more horrendous than the last. Bad acting, cheesy scenery, plots that range from silly to reprehensible, lame special effects, laughable fashion, stilted dialogue, these movies have it all. Yet Joel and his plucky pals have a secret weapon: their never-ending supply of wisecracks at the rubbish they're forced to watch. Everything that comes out these guys' mouths is a comedic gem. Example?

Servo: What do you think the lesson of the movie was? Crow: Don't watch it.

Like all long running shows, "MST3K" went through many changes. Dr. Forrester and TV's Frank moved from Gizmonics to Deep 13, a lair located at the core of the Earth. Joel Hodgson left the show in 1993 and was replaced by one of the show's writers, Michael J. Nelson. Like the fictional Joel Robinson, "Mike Nelson" was an affable, All-American temp working in Deep 13 who was much disliked by the mad scientists (Dr. Forrester called him a "mild-mannered boob"). When Joel miraculously escapes after seeing the Joe Don Baker crapfest "Mitchell", Mike was immediately blasted into the Satellite of Love in Joel's place, and stayed for the rest of the show's run. Mike was an excellent replacement, having a slightly different comedic style than Joel, but still getting plenty of laughs. While Joel was more laid back and wry, Mike tended to be more blunt with his remarks during movies ("Did ANYONE know how to run in the '50s?" he quips during a horror film). Five years and one movie later, Dr. Forrester's mother Pearl was the main villain, along with her henchmen: Bobo, a simian professor, and the Observer, or "Brain Guy", a cloaked genius who transported movies with the power of his mind. No show has ever had one formula that stayed fresh for so long, and it's still a cult favorite that's a hit on DVD. Mike Nelson even keeps it up with Riff Trax, a web site where you can download his skewers of bad mainstream films like "Road House" and "The Phantom Menace". Yet the fine art of making fun of cheesy movies will belong to those silhouetted three chaps who tear sub par movies a new one. Yup, I stand by my statement: Best. Cult show. EVER!!

A Pop Culture Icon

[camerondalepulliam · 10/10 · 23 June 2020]

Want to make instant friends in a crowd of strangers? Just say, "This is where the fish lives." Everyone who laughs is a soulmate.

Great great show, laugh all the way through

[clorby · 10/10 · 25 September 2004]

I got hooked on this show when it was on the Sci-Fi channel. I tried to watch it, along with my parents sometimes, to watch it every Saturday morning. It is so funny, cause I like that kind of quick smart-alic humor, I'm good at it. Thats what it is at our house. But the drawback to getting hooked on it, so my parents say, is now whenever I watch any movie, I do the same thing now. After I started watching MST3K I started cracking jokes when I watched movies. Which at first drove my parents nuts, except my dad would do it too. Now they and my friends just got used to it and go along really. But this show is so funny, I'm sad that no one shows them anymore. Sci-Fi should bring them back.

One of the few reasons I watch TV

[NateW · 10/10 · 14 September 2002]

I feel that I am at a loss of words to describe how much I truly adore this show. It is pure genius and pure delight. I remember my first ever encounter with MST3K: It was five years ago and the featured movie of the episode was Hobgoblins. I had heard about the show but had never really had an interest in seeing it. I came across it channel surfing and decided to watch it for awhile. At that moment, I was forever hooked. Since then, I have seen every Sci-Fi era episode and roughly half of the show's Comedy Central days. I have been exposed to some of the worst movies in history, and I have loved every minute of it. When I found out that the show was ending its run of original episodes in 1999, I was devastated. Fortunately, Sci-Fi has kept re-runs of MST3K going every Saturday. My only complaint is that its not on enough. Rhino has made the wise decision to release select episodes of MST3K from the Comedy Central era on video and DVD, making the show readily available to a new generation of fans. Hopefully, someday every episode of the show's prestigious run will be released for human consumption, or at least it will go into wide syndication like many beloved TV classics. Until then, tune into the Sci-Fi channel every Saturday morning and witness a true work of genius in progress.

The Greatest Show ever, bar none.

[FlaviusAetius · 10/10 · 9 December 2006]

This, fellow men, in the finest work of art ever made by humans. The off-beat but promising concept of two humanlike robots and their human friend riffing bad movies quickly blossoms into the funniest show ever made. From the sheer quirk factor, (the genius host segments, the seriously weird movies,) the raw entertainment value, ( the jaw-droppingly hilarious jokes tossed at the worst movies so bad they make fun of themselves, jokes so funny you'll be spitting whatever you happen to be drinking from your nose,) and the timeless quality, (I have 60 episodes on DVD and have vigorously watched and re-watched them, and honestly can't wait to finish my collection.) Manos, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, Space Mutiny, Merlin's Shop, Boggy Creek, Prince of Space, Final Justice, Revenge of the Creature, Jack Frost, Riding with Death, Invasion of the Nepture Men, Horror of Party Beach, and so, so, so, so, so, so, so many more of the funniest gems you've ever seen and will ever see. Why anyone would want to get rid of this perfect show is so mind-boggling in its evil that I grow nauseous thinking of it. For a time, I couldn't sleep unless I had seen a Mystery Science Theater before I went to bed. ( Okay, that is pretty pathetic, and I've grown out of that seeing as how I've loved the show since I was little. But still...my love remains undiminished.....) This show is a bastion of good taste and raw hilarity against a storm of lame and overrated sitcoms, (coughFriendscough) We've got movie sign!

Right On!!!!

[donjeffries · 9/10 · 1 July 2003]

Simple concept, brilliantly executed. Three little shadows aiming poisonous barbs at unintentionally hilarious films, most of them 1950s-era sci-fi and horror turkeys. "I Accuse My Parents," "The Giant Gila Monster," "The Girl In Lovers' Lane," "Teenage Strangler," the list of my personal favorites could go on and on. The shows with Joel Hodgson were especially well-done, and one hopes that we will hear again from this very funny fellow. For unclear reasons, only the recent shows from the sci-fi channel run (the shows from the comedy channel run were far superior) are being re-run. One wishes that one of the myriad of cable and/or satellite channels would re-run the classic shows we know and love. Also, a nice set of DVD releases (unlike the cheap, single show DVDs which have been produced) would be welcomed.

Finally, A Movie That Does Reality Checks On Movies!(spoilers)

[rogerc210 · 7/10 · 26 July 2006]

One of the things I don't understand about people who say mst3k is stupid is why they can't see that it's boxing in our corner against movie stupidity. Granted, TIE was a pretty decent movie, but when Rex Reason's stuck to a magnet-unless he's made of metal-something needs to be addressed.

One could ague that the bots are just doing rehearsed versions of what audiences can do spontaniously, but what MST3K does is save the audience the trouble of thinking any up. Then it inspires (us) to do spontanious versions in future features.

If this comment confuses anyone, it's because it's intended for the movie version as opposed to TV.In the movie, This Island Earth was the one being MST3K'd & Mike Nelson was in it.

I used to think it was Hollywood poking fun at itself. But somebody on the discussion board said it was not made by Hollywood, but from someone in the mid-West who was demonstrating that the viewing public isn't going to swallow everything Hollywood dishes out to it.

I liked the part where the scientist told his assistant what he said to himself after 5 cups of coffee. I won't spoil it more than I already have by repeating what the bots said then. I also liked it when they said "What'w this '& the rest' crap!?" when Russel Johnson made his entrance.

Who told these guys they're funny?

[Maciste_Brother · 1/10 · 14 April 2007]

I'm a big fan of "it's so bad it's good" movies (check my IMDb reviews). I've enjoyed watching them since I was a kid, even before the concept of bad movies a la Ed Wood became an "in" thing. Some bad movies are so beautifully bad that they're almost an art-form. Some films definitely deserve to be made fun of, like TERROR IN THE JUNGLE, DRAGON HUNT, NIGHTMARE WEEKEND, A NAME FOR EVIL, DON'T GO IN THE WOODS come to mind. But there are also big Hollywood movies which are as bad if not worse than the majority of obscure grade-z films.

So as an avid fan of bad movies, I finally decided to watch several MST3K episodes and I never laughed at anything. Anyone can do funnier improvisational bits than these guys. In fact, drunk guys who know nothing about movies would be funnier than these guys.

I watched the episode with THE CRAWLING EYE and it wasn't funny at all. The movie itself is not great but with so many bad movies out there, which are much worse than this, THE CRAWLING EYE didn't deserve to be made fun of. Some films are so bad unto themselves that add-libbing comedy bits to them is hardly a remarkable or a clever feat.

This is the main problem with these guys. Not only they think they're funny, when in fact they're not, but they selectively choose certain films to make fun of, mostly old low budget movies, when big budget atrocities released by Hollywood, past and present, like THE PHANTOM MENACE or VAN HELSING, deserve more derision than these often forgotten or deservedly forgotten films. It's very easy to make fun of old movies if you're a snobby Fanboy. It's ironic that a low-budget show like this one can only afford low-budget films. Getting the rights of big budget films would be too costly so these poor unfunny comedians are stuck trashing films which are mainly public domain stuff.

But there's something more disturbing about this show. It's the inherent elitism it reeks. Today's generation rarely watch old movies. There's so many disposable new films on DVD or cable, and so much specialty programming spoon-feeding these young viewers that this generation can hardly think outside the box when it comes to entertainment. When I was young, everyone watched old movies and as well as current films. There were just a few channels and we could watch something made in the 1930s as well as the 1970s or 80s. It wasn't unusual for me to watch a WC Fields movie one moment and then watch a brazen Blaxploitation film right after. Ask anyone under 30 who WC Fields is and probably no one would know who this comedian giant is. And it's not just about old movies, but TV shows, music, books, etc. A 20-something will see an old film on TV and immediately switch channels. We have an entire generation of moviegoers who don't even watch movies which are 5 years old, never mind one that is 40 years old, no matter how good or bad they are. And these MST3K guys feed into this massive generation gap, by trashing old movies mainly because, well, they're just old. For many, an old film = bad film. Just check the MST3K IMDb forum for examples.

In the end, if you're a fan of bad movies, you don't need to watch MST3K to enjoy them. I certainly won't be watching this unfunny show anymore.

Should go down in history as one of the greatest shows ever written

[skillwithaquill · 10 December 2005]

Mystery Science Theater 3000 could quite possibly be one of the most inventive and hilarious shows of all time. In a nutshell, an average guy is rocketed into space by his evil boss and is forced to watch terrible, cheesy, poorly acted, poorly written, poorly shot, B-grade movies (sometimes even lower grade than that). The only way he keeps his sanity is by mocking and riffing on the movie-of-the-week with his robot friends, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot. He is also kept company by the robots Cambot and Gypsy, who do not watch the movie.

Each episode of MST3K delivers almost non-stop laughs and great one-liners that make watching these awful movies not only bearable, but also hilarious! There are fans (known as MSTies) of all ages, from adults who have been watching it from the first televised episode to teens just discovering it thanks to the release of the DVDs.

All in all, I am a huge fan of MST3K and have never been dissatisfied with it. I've never seen an episode that didn't make me laugh out loud.

It's difficult to describe it to those who haven't seen it before, so if you're not one of the legions of fans of MST3K yet, hurry out and rent or buy one of the DVD sets. You won't be disappointed! 10/10

Greatest...television show...EVER!

[chrstphrolson · 10/10 · 16 October 2001]

Not much else for me to say about this series except that it is my all-time favorite show. Anyone who has stayed up way past midnight watching and heckling bad (REALLY bad) movies with friends will appreciate the humor of this show.

Admittedly, MST3K isn't for everyone (alas, one man's idea of genius is another man's utter crap), but if you give it a try (and have a warped sense of humor) you just might like it.

My favorite show ever...sad it had to go, and still sore at the channels that canceled it and passed on it.

[Aaron1375 · 10/10 · 23 February 2012]

I figured I have reviewed many of the movies that were parodied on this great show so I may as well review the show itself. I am one of the few Msties out there that first became exposed to this show on the Sci-Fi channel rather than Comedy Central as we did not get Comedy Central till 1998 where I live, but we had the Sci-Fi station shortly before this show came to this channel. Suffice to say I fell in love with it from the first episode aired which was "Revenge of the Creature". I have all the Sci-Fi channel shows taped including the one featuring "Gorgo" which apparently aired only twice due to copyright issues. I collect the DVDs now and a lot of the ones from the Comedy Central days are like watching new episodes for me. The cast in this one is great, I first saw the show with the last lineup on Sci-Fi. The show started out being hosted by Joel Robinson then Michael Nelson. I like both of them quite a bit, I can not say I prefer one over the other as both had their good qualities. Joel did really good voices while Mike seemed more smooth at what he was doing. I also feel that both Trace Beaulieu and Bill Corbett were both very good voices for Crow, as they both sounded quite similar, Corbett sounding a bit sharper. Hearing him first then Beaulieu it was not really a shock to the senses. However, hearing Kevin Murphy as Servo then catching one of the episodes in the first season where Weinstein was voicing him was a shock. I will say I favor Murphy, but once I got over the initial shock of hearing Servo with a much different voice he was not that bad. I just think the episodes during that initial season were a bit weaker than the rest because they were just starting out and trying to feel their way. The show started out with Weinstein and Beaulieu as doctors who sent Joel into space, forcing him to watch horrible films in the hopes they would find a movie horrible enough to somehow enslave the world. TV's Frank would replace Weinstein and was very funny as more of a henchman or toady character. He would be replaced by Pearl Forrester who was Clayton Forrester's (Beaulieu) mother played by Mary Jo Pehl and she would take over the tormentor's role for the duration of the Sci-Fi days and she would be joined by two henchman type characters in Professor Bobo played by Murphy and Brain Guy played by Bill Corbett. The show was excellent in nearly every season never missing a beat. The weakest season to me has been the first, but it was not bad then, but you can tell they had not quite gotten into a good groove yet, however it did not take long as season two shows are wonderful.

What is very irksome is that this show could have gone on indefinitely as all the principle players were willing to keep doing the show. Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett do something similar today called rifftrax, while funny I still miss the silhouettes and Servo and Crow. The first channel to get rid of this show was Comedy Central, which this show virtually built! The channel often featured this show in celebrity hosted marathons. Then new management took over and this show got the boot. Next up came Sy-Fy, the horrible station whose home grown films could keep the MST3K gang going forever! I hate the channel as they not only gave this show the boot, but they turned what was once a very entertaining channel into pure crap. They never really gave this show a chance or promoted it like Comedy Central did and once again a change in management and direction left MST3K without a home and it would cease to be. I think I begrudge the Sy-Fy channel more mainly because their change in format not only took out this show, but also made the channel just hard to watch period and I do not watch it unless it is by accident now. I also do not think they fully supported this film which is evident by the lack of episodes in the second and third season it was on Sy-Fy. The first season had nearly 25 episodes, the final two only 13.

Enough of my rant, I will simply go on to say this was my favorite show of all time and it makes me sad that it could have gone on forever, but thanks to a bunch of idiots it was canceled. I am grateful for Shout as they release the collections of the show and I hope to have them all one day as this show's humor works so much more for me than does any comedy released at the theater.

Side splitting laughs guarantied.

[hannelore_leavy · 10/10 · 20 December 2006]

Personally this is the funniest thing i've ever set my eyes on. When ever I watch an episode I just think oh my gosh what if you were watching the movie without Mike/or/Joel and Crow and Tomservo it would be awful. There would be nothing to watch just a bunch of junk. My favorite episode would have to be 'Girl in The Golden Boots.'I just Can't get over how stupid the movie is there is no point to it. Just a dumb broad who wants to be a dancer. Who really stinks at it. and then there are all these ditsy dancers and anyway there is no point to it. But Mike, Crow and Tomservo make it all worth while. The theme song gives a great summery of what the show is about. I'm not so good at making comments so hopefully some other peoples comments make you want to watch the show. Everyone who loves comedy should take the time to watch an episode or two.

!! ROBOT ROLL-CALL: Cambot, Gypsy, Tom Servo, Crooooow !!

[jroussins · 10/10 · 2 October 2006]

A mild Mannered Every-man is shot into space by a mad scientist and is forced to watch the worst Movies of all time. Luckily, he's a handyman, and he builds himself some robot friends to help him endure the unfathomably bad bits that Hollywood had to offer. So, basically it's sort of the plot from Silent Running (1972), but with movies instead of murders. This show was Mystery Science Theater 3000 and truly it was brilliant. It ran for 7 years on Comedy Central and 3 Years on The Sci-Fi Network (spanning 10 years and producing a feature film)! The movie changes every week, so the strength of the show has a good deal to do with what movie they are watching. The Show typically comes in 3 Flavors: A) The movie is bad, but ambitiously bad. These are Typically the funniest/most entertaining episodes, as the jokes come easier at the films expense. (Example: Time Chasers, The Brain That Woudln't Die)

B) The Movie Features uninteresting/cliché characters, as well as poorly lit/shot scenes. The acting is sub-par. The sheer awfulness of these films is cut by the hilarious jokes and quips. The movies are watchable, but not by much. These episodes can still be quite entertaining, if the jokes really hit. (Examples: Samson Vs. The Vampire Women, The Deadly Mantis)

C) These are the most putrid piles of BUTT-ROT ever known to man. Often these 'films' were written/directed/produced by some random moron who got some friends and family to 'star'. These films should be shot into the sun. These episodes are very hit or miss for most. These movies are truly unwatchable and weird. The average viewer can't endure it, even if the jokes are funny. These are for the hardest of the hardcore fans (Examples: MANOS: The Hands Of Fate, Sky Divers, The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies!!?)

DEFENSE: It might look like a puppet show to those who haven't seen it before. I could understand how some people might even think it looks ridiculous, and to it's critics I say this: get passed the cheesy sets and low budget and use your imagination a little. If you buy into the show's premise, the payout is huge and hilarious. Truly, One of the best television shows of all time.

one of the great 'cult' TV shows of the past twenty years

[Quinoa1984 · 10/10 · 20 September 2006]

It's a shame this show doesn't get much airplay anymore, but when it was on I tried to watch as regularly as I could. To this day the show affects the way I watch certain movies. And, really, they make it so that it's the ONLY way I can watch some of these movies. I could maybe see myself seeing a bad monster movie or an undercooked message sci-fi tome or something that was made with (stolen from a grade-schooler's) lunch money and put shoddily to celluloid, but not too often unless in the company of a lot of friends and a mood to heckle. Instead, this show basically does it for you, and though it seems all improvised bashing and goofing, it is definitely all written out, from scene to scene the observations are by a team of professionals- more or less- and the wit is at best scabrous and at least worth a few chuckles. The method is so ingenious that they've made it actually really enjoyable to see some of the worst drek ever contemplated. Some of these for me in the past have included, but not been limited to, Manos: The Hands of Fate, The Hellcats, The Sinister Urge, a Godzilla movie, a Cuban missile crisis movie (I forget the name), Mixed-up Zombies, and many others I can't remember. The only drag comes in the in-between filler segments, with the sort of dialog that really can only be classified under 'banter'. But when Joel/Mike, Crow and Tom Servo get their critique on, it's very, very funny more often than not. And now that more and more of them are popping up on DVD, the bad-movie night choices are endless, if ironically daunting at the promise such bad movies made fun of well can bring.

MST3K Price Quite Prohibitive

[darkicestorm · 10/10 · 22 January 2007]

I love mst3k as much as any fan out there, but the cost of acquiring the dvds is quite disappointing. Id much rather rent them when I want them than pay 70.00 for a box set. I was quite surprised to see such prices (I'll blow a couple hundred a night in NYC but to pay 70.00 to view something a couple of times (at most) doesn't make sense to me) That said, I can't even seem to find them in video stores or at a decent price on half.com or anywhere else. Wondering if anyone knows where to get them at a fair price or a national chain that rents them.... If I don't get an answer ill prolly just buy em anyway but it seems like a waste

Simply, one of the greatest shows of all time.

[axemblue · 10/10 · 7 July 2006]

You know, I bet each of us has seen a movie that just practically shouts out "AWFUL!" For me, that movie was My Big Fat Greek Wedding, but that's a story for another day. The point I'm trying to make is that somewhere out there, there may be a guy who has to sit through all of history's greatest wastes of celluloid.

In Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K for short), that's just what happens: a human male (Joel Hodgson/Robinson in the earlier seasons, Mike Nelson in the later episodes) is subjected to horrible films. But one aspect that remains constant is that the human is accompanied by his robotic pals Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo (along with supporting droids Gypsy, Cambot and Magic Voice). Since Joel/Mike has no say in the weekly movie choices, he, Crow and Servo just heckle and mock the movies all the way through to keep themselves from going nuts. Depending on the season, our heroes are pursued by the insidious Dr. Forrester, his mother Pearl, TV's Frank and other crazy characters.

During the movie (and an occasional bonus educational short or something), Joel/Mike, Servo, and Crow are all represented by silhouettes at the bottom of the screen. This, in my opinion, is much more realistic than having voice-overs, although the snide remarks sometimes make it hard to follow the movie (if you actually care enough).

Nevertheless, these guys crack a great mixture of obvious and subtle jokes. They don't alienate either the casual viewer or the hardcore trivia wizards. And since many of their flicks hail from the USA in the 1950s/60s, there's time enough to beat up the squeaky-clean, woman-hating, perfect-hair conformity stereotypes present in cinema of that era. Moreover, the producers were careful to pick up only movies that were too horrible to become famous (although Manos: The Hands of Fate owes the majority of its fame to MST3K), yet there are a few episodes with movies featuring well-established sci-fi icons like Godzilla and Gamera.

MST3K has disappeared from television broadcast, but the show is being released on DVD by Rhino Entertainment in boxed sets of four episodes each. It will unfortunately take a very long while for every possible episode to show up, but until then, MST3K has found a loving home in the home video trading scene--possibly inspired by the "keep circulating the tapes" message in the credits of several episodes. (Don't tell the industry bigwigs, though.) Best of all, they're non-sequential, so pop a show in and enjoy one of the thoroughly funniest programs in the universe...

A Terrific And Hilarious Comic Horror Film Showcase

[FloatingOpera7 · 10/10 · 27 October 2006]

Mystery Science Theater 3000 (TV Series 1988-1999)J: Starring Joel Hodgson, Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy, Trace Beaulieu, Jim Mallon, Bridget Jones, Paul Chaplin, Mary Jo Pehl, Frank Conniff, Patrick Brantsen, J. Elvis Weinstein, Jann Johnson, Beth McKeever, Peter Rudrud, Alexandra Carr, Bradley J. Keely, Faye Burkholder, Robert Czech, Eli Kenneth Mallon, Daniel Breyer....Director Trace Beaulieu, Joel Hodgson, Jim Mallon, Kevin Murphy, Michael J. Nelson...Script Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, Jim Mallon, Frank Conniff, Paul Chaplin, Kevin Murphy..........

"Mystery Theater 3000" was a highly successful horror film showcase on cable television. When it premiered in 1988, it was unlike any other horror film showcase in that it was FUNNY! Everything, including the films, were marked with comic remarks from the principal characters who hosted the show. The series ended in 1999, about a decade later. The premise: Michael J. Nelson (who was the head writer) and at times the other host Joel Hodgson (yet another writer on the show), are subject to punishment from Pearl Forrester, a gruff female forest ranger (possibly a lesbian), an unintelligent Planet of the Apes ape Bobo and the brainy Observerer. Forrester hopes to rule the universe and has locked Mike Nelson/Joel and his robot friends Tom Servo, Gypsy and Crow, in their own spaceship where they are forced to watch the worst in B movie horror films. Believe it or not, but some of the films were more than entertaining. Despite cult classic and cheesy, awful films such as "I Was A Teenage Werewolf", "Space Mutiny" and "Viking Women" and others, some of the films were quite good in their badness!! Mike/Joel and the robots constantly speak over the film to make jokes. This was never on standard TV and therefore only cable TV owners in the 1990's were able to enjoy it. This show targeted a young demographic, mostly college-age students. It was a well-written show, due to the fact that most of the writers frequently appeared on the show. A fine show overall.

Pretty Niiiiice

[antoniocarisi · 7/10 · 29 November 2018]

I only recently came across MST3K , It´s fun ... it really depends on the movie tho and how high you are . I can see why it lasted 10 years

Infantile trash.

[Derekflint-726-995720 · 1/10 · 22 September 2013]

What's so hilarious about a show that criticizes low budget films? With the comments so supposedly clever that idiotic fans label the show "genius" and the "greatest show, ever...", etc. MST3K is the TV equivalent of idiotic trash like the Howard Stern radio show. A bunch of morons sit around and make fun of, whatever, without taking a good look at themselves. Taking pot shots at low-budget films is no big deal. The morons who embrace this show have no imagination and have to have someone make the remarks for them, so they can feel superior. If MST3K took on the big, so-called "important" films, like ALL THE PRESIDENTS MEN, THE COLOR PURPLE, ARMISTAD, anything by Woody Allen, Robert Redford, Spike Lee, etc., then I could respect them. Making fun of a low-budget film on a televised show, is the TV equivalent of a bully picking on a 98 pound weakling.