208 LOST CONTINENT

208 LOST CONTINENT

What was supposed to be a film about a team of researchers finding a Lost World-like land where dinosaurs still reside quickly turns into a film about monotone idiots rock climbing. Normally, I try to stand up for Lost World knock-offs, but Lost Continent is just too boring to salvage. By the time that our heroes do get to the dinosaurs, you're already asleep.
Verdict: 1/4-zzzzzzzzzz....

The boys try their hardest in the theater, but when you're up agents a film as boring as this one...well, there just isn't enough to properly make fun of. The few times that things actually HAPPEN the boys are quite funny, but there's just too much dead air for it to get a very high recommendation.

OPENER: Joel gives the bots a pep talk
INVENTIONS: Frank's treadmill, Joel doesn't get any time for his invention
SEGMENT 1: Hugh Beamount visits the Hexfield
SEGMENT 2: The Explorers
SEGMENT 3: The Bots find something interesting out side.
END: Fun facts about Lost Continent
STINGER: Camp fire chant
OVERALL: There where some bits that got a good giggle out of me and the Invention Exchange (or lack thereof) was the highlight of the episode.

FINAL VERDICT: The film bogs the episode down with it's overwhelming boredom. The riffing was far from impressive, but the crew tried to deal with what they had.

207 Wild Rebels

It's all about the kicks baby! Man, I love me some exploitation, and this flick is all kinds of exploitive! Not too mention, it's all kinds of silly. So silly that it makes Sidehackers look gritty and realistic by comparison. I thought that this over-the-top little film was a riot all by itself! It would make for a great party movie.
Verdict: 4/4-Fun! Silly and over the top, this film is a goofy delight.

At first I thought that I was walking into a very Sidehacker-esque experience. I had my B- grade on standby and then BAM! This episode caught me completely off guard! The riffing in this episode reached new heights for MST3K. This was bar-none the best riffing that I've seen in the series thus far. I was laughing all the way though the theater, so much so that I found myself pausing the episode to catch my breath every now and again.

OPENER: Joel shuts off the SOL's higher functions so that Gypsy can talk out her problems
INVENTIONS: The Mads' hobby hogs, Joel’s 3-d Pizza
SEGMENT 1: Brainy Bikers
SEGMENT 2: Wild rebels cereal
SEGMENT 3: Joel sings to Gypsy
END: Joel cheers up the crew
STINGER: NONE
OVERALL: Much like the riff of the film, these host segments are top notch! Each one had me gasping for air. Man I gotta get me some Wild Rebels Cereal.

FINAL VERDICT: This episode is absolutely FANTASTIC, with constant hilarity throughout. An absolute

K20 The Last Chase

K20 The Last Chase: There's only one last episode left for the boys at KTMA TV 23. I've seen the show start to grow it's legs and I have to say that I can't lie, it's certainly been intriguing. I got to see the mads in their genesis, the host segs gain some structure to them, and of course, I got to see the riffing slowly rise in gienus.

I've seen pro-America movies. I've even seen pro-gun movies. But this is probably the first pro-car movie that I've ever seen. I can barely understand just what the message is, but It pretty much comes down to this: if you take away our cars, you take away our freedom. I find that to be really amusing. This was a silly flick that takes itself way too seriously. The film did surprise me with by having some very interesting and well thought out characters. Namely the old kite-loving pilot played by Burgess Meredith.
Verdict: 4/4-Fun! A silly plot and good characters make this a fun sit.

It seems to me that the boys have finally gotten into the swing of things when it comes to the theater segments. The riffing starts out strong, and stays strong throughout the episode. There where a few parts that had me laughing quite a bit. It's even better that last week's episode!

Opener:The mads conduct a cold fusion experiment in Larry's mouth.
Seg1: Joel teaches the bots a very short humanity lesson.
Seg2: Joel announces the 1,000th club member.
Seg3: We get a horribly misspelled letter "Joel says when you've got lemnins, you make LEMNINSNAUCE!"
End: Joel reads another letter.
Overall: This wasn't a particularly impressive batch of host segs, but seg 3 was REALLY funny! Probably one of the funniest that this season has to offer.

Verdict: 4/6-Good! Strong laughs at a steady pace.

WEEKLY UPDATES WILL RESUME

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206 Ring of Terror (& Phantom Creeps part 3)

206 Ring of Terror (& Phantom Creeps part 3)

Ring of Terror is a short little film and I guess that it's supposed to be a psychological horror flick, but in that regard it's a complete failure. Despite the short running time this film still manages to drag itself out! You didn't see very many psychological horror films from the period that this movie was made. It's a shame that it had to be so dull.
Verdict: 2/4-Bad! Dull and silly, but at least it's short!

This episode tends to be on everybody's list of favorites. I can see why. The riffing on the feature is absolutely hilarious! I was cracking up almost all the way though! However, by the third act the riffing starts to loose its bite a bit and the short only gave me a few minor chuckles. I would recommend this episode, but I doubt that it will pop up on my top 50.

OPENER: The bots prank Joel with the movie sign
INVENTIONS: The Mads' life version of "Operation", Joel plays pinball with his digestive system.
SEGMENT 1: The boys put on a little commercial about the school for old students.
SEGMENT 2: Joel gives a vacuum and autopsy and also gives a lecture.
SEGMENT 3: The boys have nothing good to say about the movie.
END: Frank sings "If Chauffeurs Ruled the World"
OVERALL: Some fantastic segments are in this one, but Frank's song easily takes the cake.

VERDICT: A very good episode that I would happily recommend. Although the somewhat disappointing riffing on the short keeps it from achieving true greatness.

205 Rocket Attack USA (& Phantom Creeps part 2)

205 Rocket Attack USA (& Phantom Creeps part 2)

Ah yes, nothing like a good old nuclear scare flick!  There isn't very much in this movie that hasn't been done before. It's a very by-the-numbers film. The only 'slightly' surprising thing from this movie was the 'sad' ending. It's a bit dull, but I couldn't really hate it. It's an bit interesting as a time capsule though.
2/4-Bad! It's interesting, but still an unoriginal and dull propaganda flick

After last week, I was very relived to have returned to some more riffable movies. This episode starts off great with another Phantom Creeps short. I've got to say, the Phantom Creeps have been providing a lot of big laughs. I wasn't too thrilled to see another serial on the show (sure Commando Cody gave us some good laughs as well, but it got old for this reviewer), but I fond them a pleasant surprise. The riffing on the film was not as good, still better than last week, but far from the most impressive theater segments that I've seen this season.

 Intro: Servo's 'hair cut'
Invention Exchange: Joel's candy adding machine, the Mads' water polo foosball
Seg1: The McCarthy hearings
Seg2: Civil Defense Quiz Bowl
Seg3: Joel meets his Russian Counterpart and his strange robots.
End: The Boys complain about the movie (namely it's ending)
Overall: Segment 3 was very funny and certainly worthy of note. I loved seeing Mike in Joel's KTMA jumpsuit, and his odd looking robots. It was like one last taste of of the good old days.

Verdict: While there where parts of the episode that I enjoyed quite a bit (the short and the 3rd segment), it was still a bit unimpressive. I managed to chuckle a bit in theater, but nothing spectacular. C

UPDATES WILL NOT BE WEEKLY (for now)

Yeah, ol' *Dan has been pretty busy lately, so the blog is going to have to take a back seat for a while. I'll still get reviews done, but much less frequently than I would hope so. After things slow down, the blog will return to it's normal format.

204: Catalina Caper

204: Catalina Caper

A bunch of rich white kids have a good time at the beach. Treasure is involved. Antics ensue. Bad music is blared. I need an Aspirin.
Verdict: 2/4-Bad! I hate these shallow, annoying, unimaginative  beach movies.

This episode used to one of my most frequently watched and stayed on my usual rounds for about a year. Coming back to it...well, Let's just say that I was not very impressed. Sure, there where some pretty decent riffs in the theater, but for the most part it's rather dull. The main problem lies within the film itself, it is nearly impossible to make comedy out of something that is already trying to be a comedy. The boys try their damnedest, but they don't quite hit the mark.

Opener: Tom and Crow pray
Inventions: The Mad's Tank Tops and Joel's Tickle Bazooka.
Seg1: Joel and the 60's
Seg2: Tom sings about the Creepy Girl
seg3: Frank's tupperware party
End: Joel makes a chart out of the film's plot.
Overall: A fine batch of host segs if you ask me! Seg 1 and 2 are probably some of my favorite moments from the season. Seg 3 was the only unimpressive one.

Verdict:  I hate to do this to an episode that I have such nostalgia for, but the theater segments are nothing short of blah.

203 Jungle Goddess & Phantom Creeps part 1

203 Jungle Goddess & Phantom Creeps part 1

It's funny, Sidehackers barely bothered me yet Jungle Goddess made groan out-loud more than once. Probably because it's all about unsympathetic white people with superiority complexes and a horribly offensive stereotype African tribe. Yeah, that's probably it.
Verdict: 2/4-Bad! It's bland and offensive.

I LOVED the riff of the short! I was laughing out loud almost all the way through (we got to hear Joel do his Bela impression again, yay)! The film however, was a different story. While there where laughs to be had, but there wasn't enough to prove the experience very impressive.

Opener: Hide and seek with the universe.
Inventions: Joel's Remote controlled saw and Dr. F is a human sax!
Seg1: The boys' Phantom Creep infomercial.
Seg2: Joel shows off some Gobo matte effects.
Seg3: The 'heroes' from the movie stop by on the hexfield.
End: the boy's sitcom, "My White Goddess"
Overall: Seg1, seg3. and the ending segments where all hilarious. I especially loved the hexfield visit.

Verdict: A great short and some fantastic host segments save this episode, even if the feature riff wasn't very impressive.

202 Sidehackers

202 Sidehackers:

Oh my. This film was a surprise! I was not expecting to  find a nasty exploitation film this early on. At first, it seems like this movie is about "sidehacking", which is one of the stupidest 'extreme' sport ideas that I have ever seen (it's right up there with noodling). But soon the film takes a swift turn into "Death Wish" territory! It's a nasty little exploitation yarn with one of the most over-the-top villains to date!
Verdict: 3/4-Watchable! If your into the exploitation scene, then this movie should give you a kick or two.

This seems to be one of those episodes that people either love or hate. Of course the fact that the movie is so unpleasant tends to be one of their biggest reasons. Personally, I really enjoyed the riffing. There where some really good lines and the boys managed to keep me interested and giggling like mad.

Opener: Bedtime on the SOL
Inventions: Joel's Pet slinky, Dr. F's slinky body
Seg1: The boys sing the Sidehacking song
Seg2: Joel and the bots come up with some sidehacking terminology
Seg3: JC and Cooch on the hexfield
End: Only Love Pads the Film
Overall: The host segments from this experiment have to be some of my favorites of the season. There are a couple of fun songs (Only Love Pads the Film would go on to become one of the series' most famous), and the terminalogy bit had my in stitches!

Verdict:  Despite the nasty film, the boys managed to keep me laughing all the way.