I’m not kidding when I say that each time a new MST3K volume is dropped onto my desk for review, I’m probably happy for the rest of the entire day. I’m not sure whether that’s due to the fact that I used to watch the show as a kid or simply that it’s freaking hilarious, but regardless, the franchise certainly has some curiously enchanting qualities about it.
This set marks Shout! Factory’s second crack at honoring what Time Magazine recently called one of the 100 Best TV Shows of All Time, and while the extras aren’t nearly as robust as their last go-round, the episode selections are, for the most part, fantastic. I was as worried as anyone when I heard that Rhino would no longer be in charge of the DVD sets for Best Brains, but now that I’ve seen how Shout Factory plans to handle the releases, I’m feeling some relief.
Movie Sign × 4
This set’s four episodes include two Joel- and Mike-era offerings apiece.
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Mad Monster (#103)—Without a doubt the weakest of the bunch, this is actually only the third episode of the show after it debuted on The Comedy Channel (now Comedy Central). As such, we’re treated once again to another rare performance by Josh Weinstein as Dr. Erhardt and Tom Servo (as well as Gypsy). Everyone’s got their preferences, but I always miss Kevin Murphy’s Servo performances whenever I see a pre-Season 2 episode. On a more positive note, while the production as a whole is obviously pretty rough this early on in the series’ life, this episode is actually still pretty funny from time to time. To briefly summarize the “movie”, it’s basically a really bad version of Frankenstein, starring a wolf-man-thing in place of your familiar ten-foot-tall man. There’s a short beforehand as well: Radar Men from the Moon – Chapter 2: Molten Terror. Some grown-ass man in a ridiculous metal helmet named “Commando Cody” flies around and battles the evil Radar Men, who have a heat cannon that melts rock… or something like that anyway.
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Final Justice (#1008)—Joe Don Baker had to know that following his alleged reactions to MST3K’s earlier Mitchell classic episode, the crew of the SOL were obligated to skewer another one of his films. And, thus, we’ve got Final Justice, a clunky and remarkably cheesy “crime drama” where Baker plays… well, pretty much precisely the same character he played in Mitchell. While this one isn’t quite as amusing as the venerable Mitchell, it’s still a hoot. To summarize, Joe Don’s character, Thomas Jefferson Geronimo III (ROFL), loses his partner to a thoroughly Italian mob boss. He pursues the man until the trail goes cold in Malta, where the local law enforcement is less than enthused about Geronimo’s Texas law practices. Nonetheless, the gritty southern cop continues in his rebellious ways, landing him in jail a number of times and prompting American officials to ostracize him. “You think you can take me? Go ahead on. It’s your move.” Barfs Joe Don near the end of the film. My advice: take him—it’s hilarious.
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Manhunt In Space (#413) –Between the disappearing rocket ship and Winky’s self-proclaimed “gay night life”, this just might be the cheesiest movie of the set. Well, actually, this isn’t even technically a movie, but instead a number of episodes of Rocky Jones, Space Ranger edited together and released as a feature film. The premise is that a new form of light has been discovered called “cold light” which can make things disappear (heh). When Rocky’s girlfriend is captured by space pirates (these ones are way less cool than the space pirates in Metroid), he employs the new technology to get her back and smite the enemy. Meanwhile, Winky… well, Winky just sits in the control room and plays with said anatomical component. Poor old Rocky has to do all the work thanks to the fact that Winky can’t even bring himself to fire a freakin’ laser cannon from his comfy perch deep within the ship’s cockpit. Anyway, there are far too many phallic puns in this paragraph already, so I think I’m going to stop here. Oh yes, and there’s also a short before the film: part of an ooolllldd episode of General Hospital.
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Soultaker (#1001)– How did I ever miss this one? A real turd of a nineties film, Soultaker is about “the bridge between life and afterlife”. Plus, it stars Joe Estevez… Martin Sheen’s “vastly more talented yet less appreciated” brother, as Crow puts it. “Does anything really ever star Joe Estevez?” “Isn’t that some kind of oxymoron?” “Some kind of moron.” Chide Mike and the bots. The film was actually written by a girl who wanted to star in her own film… so that’s always good, right? This episode serves up plenty of hearty laughs, as there’s just so much to make fun of. I personally can’t decide whether my favorite aspect of the movie is the we’re-so-80s-it-hurts cast or the dude with the chin larger than the whole of the eastern seaboard. Regardless, this one’s not to be missed.
Overall, this is a solid selection of MST3K, regardless of the inclusion of one “vintage” episode which sags below the appeal of the rest (collectors won’t mind).
Other Science Facts
In terms of special features, there’s really not much this time around… nothing on the level of the MST3K Comic-Con panel or the Oral History of MST3K from the last set anyway. The video quality of the new interviews is actually quite questionable as well; it seems like the vertical resolution is stretched or something of that nature. Nevertheless, here’s what you do get:
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Brand-New Interview with Soultaker star Joe Estevez – This roughly 5-minute long featurette is actually a bit—er, depressing—thanks to the way Joe Estevez seems to interpret all of the jokes directed at the movie. He actually says with a straight face that he “knew” it was a “good movie”. Either way, it is always fun to hear from the star of a film after they’ve been ridiculed by the MST3K gang… even if their interpretation of the situation is rather delusional (or perhaps just unrelentingly positive).
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Brand-New Interview with Final Justice director Greydon Clark – Of course, any director likes his own movies, but it’s intriguing to see Greydon express his honest opinion of what it’s like to see one of your creations requested for inclusion in the MST3K library. This interview’s even shorter than the Joe Estevez segment (clocking in at just over 4 minutes), but it’s still appreciated.
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Mike, Tom, and Crow on ESPN Classic’s Cheap Seats Without Ron Parker – This originally aired to apparently great fanfare by the mainstream press (see here for full details), but it’s honestly nothing special. Sure, it’s a great thing to have as a series collector (especially seeing as it occurred in the post-mortem MST3K years), but it’s a one-and-done.
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Original Mad Monster trailer – Call me a sucker, but I love these original trailers. This is the only one on the set however.
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Exclusive Mini-Posters – As with last time, you also get four artist-rendered lobby cards (one themed after each film) specifically created for this DVD set.
