When Mystery Science Theater 3000 was going into its 13th season, Emily Marsh & Joel Hodgson gave an interview discussing some of the ins and outs and personal experiences when working on the show. Season 13 will be coming to an end soon, and while there is no news yet as to what will happen from here, there is certainly no shortage of content available to watch!
Mystery Science Theater 3000 brought viewers a new type of content that started in 1988 and ended in 1999. While this new era of MST3K has proven successful, some fans still prefer the old episodes, some of which newer fans may not have seen yet. These episodes have received positive feedback, especially on IMDb, and new fans should be watching them.
Gamera Vs. Guiron (1991) - 8.5
The 1969 film Gamera Vs. Guiron, is a Sci-fi/Monster Japanese kaiju film. The movie is about aliens kidnapping two children to bring them to their planet. But Gamera is there to save the day, and the crew of MST3k is there to commentate!
This isn't the first time Gamura would appear on the Satellite of Love due to there being plenty of sequels, and they all would become MST3K fan favorites due to how silly they are. This film was no exception, and the trio immediately poked fun at the horrible English dubbing of the film, terrible effects, and poor acting. One of the most notable and funny scenes fans enjoyed from the episode is of Tom Servo saying how odd the film is.
I Accuse My Parents (1993) - 8.5
There is plenty of wholesome comedic content on apps such as TikTok. However, some prefer a bit of dark humor, and a good example of that kind of content is MST3k's take on the 1944 film I Accuse My Parents depicts a young man who accidentally kills someone after he goes to work for gangsters.
Due to the storyline, many found that the movie's attempt to spread awareness to parents was hilariously bad. The gang was able to use this and bring to life the unintentional comedic moments of the film. Some of the funniest remarks fans enjoyed that made the episode more memorable were of Tom Servo saying, "I'd like to deposit some guilt and withdrawal some denial, please," and Crow later saying, "Organized crime, please hold!"
The Pumaman (1998) - 8.5
Later in the series, the actor who played Joel left MST3K, and replacing him would be a man named Mike, who was kidnaped and put on the Satellite of Love. One of the many films that Mike and the robots would watch was the 1980s film, The Pumaman.
The crew has perfected the craft of picking apart bad movies, and Pumaman's unimaginative powers made him a much easier target for jokes. The hilarious choice of music in the film alongside the acting was a turnoff, but the intentionally bad jokes that had viewers laughing and the banter between the three made watching the terrible 80s movie more tolerable and ended with crow singing in one scene, "Pumaman, he flies like a moron!"
Hobgoblins (1998) - 8.5
When explaining to others what kind of content MST3k has, one could use the example of Beavis and Butthead doing commentary during music videos. Instead, MST3k covers terrible films such as the 1988 film, Hobgoblins.
When tiny, fuzzy, ugly, and deadly aliens come to Earth, they go on a complete rampage after escaping from a vault. One of the best things about the episode that viewers loved was the beginning scene where Tom Servo and Crow start by making corny jokes and then crying after they sound so bad. Once they try to leave, Mike has to try and round them back up and get them to sit down to watch the film. Small things such as these make the show so much fun to watch!
Pod People (1991) - 8.5
The French film Pod People, more commonly known as Extra Terrestrial Visitors and by its foreign name Los Nuevos Extraterrestres is a 1983 French-Spanish Sci-fi movie. It is about a young boy who finds an alien in the woods with telekinetic powers he names, Trumpy, and the MST3K gang had a few choice words about Trumpy.
With the movie's awkward transitions, moments of the band singing, and the constant jumping from scenery to scenery, Joel and his robot pals picked this movie apart with commentary that left viewers laughing hysterically. One of the funniest moments is the scene in the film where a group of people discovers their friend's dead body, and Crow responds with, "Wow…Come on, your breakfast is getting cold, and she's not getting any warmer."
Werewolf (1998) - 8.6
The direct-to-video 1995 film titled Werewolf tells the story of archeologists discovering the bones of a werewolf that ends with its main character becoming one and the movie becoming part of the MST3K show. The episode Werewolf was one of the funniest MST3K episodes that developed a running joke and became a fan favorite.
Mike and his robot pals pulled no punches with the film, and the jokes from the beginning of the episode had viewers laughing. The acting was targeted the most, and there were plenty of moments where the special effects were made fun of. One of Mike's funniest lines would come from watching the scene of the two main characters in the attic, with him saying, "Flagstaff! Industry! Family! Foreign people talking in attics!"
Mitchell (1993) - 8.8
There are plenty of final moments in comedies that ruin the mood for viewers, and plenty of horrible films ruin the mood entirely. Luckily, terrible movies are made better when the MST3K gang is doing commentary on them.
The 1975 action movie Mitchell is about a detective who hunts down a drug trafficker and a killer. What was supposed to be an intense action film was a flop but a win for the MST3K gang as they gave the film more attention than it originally had. The trio would randomly start singing, and during an intimate moment between characters, Crow would ask, "Why would anyone want to do that with Mitchell, Joel!?"
Space Mutiny (1997) - 8.9
The 1988 film Space Mutiny is about a pilot who wants to stop a mutiny of a spacecraft that a security group has organized so they can sell the crew members into slavery. Considering the low ratings and how ridiculous the acting was, it was only natural to expect that sooner or later, Mike and his robot companions would review it.
The special effects, unnecessary pan shots, and predictable moments made this movie the perfect target. The main character's acting was constantly under fire as they put too much emphasis on their screams and overacting certain scenes. One of the funnier moments occurred during one of the predictable scenes, and how the actor's facial expression looked. Tom Servo would chime in, saying, "I'm sitting in something wet."
The Final Sacrifice (1998) - 8.9
The 1990 Canadian film The Final Sacrifice is about a teenage boy's investigation into the murder of his father leading to an encounter with a mysterious evil cult led by a man named Satoris. Eight years later, this film would encounter the hilarious crew on the Satellite of Love.
Right from the beginning, one of the henchmen named Brain Guy would call this film "One of the worst things to come out of Canada." The episode was mocked for its poor acting and over-the-top moments and became a favorite among viewers. Unfortunately, this episode was ultimately removed due to copyright issues brought to light a couple of years back by the creator, despite initially giving the okay to run it as an episode.
'Manos' the Hands of Fate (1993) - 9
Out of all the movies that ended up in an episode, The 1966 film Manos: The Hands of Fate is a classic. The movie is about a family who encounters a devil-worshipping cult led by the horrifying Master and his servant, Torgo. While the film received horrible reviews, the movie became an MST3K fan favorite.
Manos: The Hands of Fate is by far one of the best episodes that Joel was in. Torgo is constantly picked on due to the voice acting and how the character is portrayed. There is not one scene where Torgo is not acting creepy/weird. One of Joel’s best jokes is about Torgo and how he walks, saying, “That’s not how you wear your Depends, Torgo.”