Mystery Science Theater 3000

Mystery Science Theater, or 'MST3k' as it is known to fans, was a successful, long-running sci-fi comedy show. While somewhat obscure to the general public, it is a major cult classic amongst many sci-fi fans.

Uniquely, the show's premise was to have its main characters (a human and two robots) satirize various obscure low-budget sci-fi, mystery, horror, and action films. The show had a low budget but was executed very well despite this, and its decade-long run speaks to the fact that the humor, not the sets or the props, was the true draw of the show.

MST3k can be divided into several major periods. Its first host (and creator), Joel Hodgeson, presided over the entirety of the first phase of the show, which ended with his departure and the arrival of its second host, Mike Nelson.

In the first phase (Season 1 to partway through Season 5), Joel ('Joel Robinson' on the show) is being held captive on a space station by a pair of mad scientists (Dr. Forrester and TV's Frank) who are experimenting on him by measuring his responses to bad movies. To help keep himself sane, Joel builds several robotic companions - Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo (who watch the movies with him), Gypsy (who takes care of the station, the Satellite of Love) and the aptly named Cambot, from whose perspective the show is viewed.

In the second phase (part of Season Five through Season 7), Joel has escaped the Satellite of Love (SOL), and the mad scientists replace him with Mike Nelson so that the experiment can proceed.

The third phase marked a transition onto the Sci-Fi Channel, and saw a major shift in setting and characters. Mike and the bots remain, but the mad scientists are replaced, ultimately, by the mother of one of the scientists (Pearl Forrester); Professor Bobo, an ape from Planet of the Apes (which the SOL makes a visit to, in a fashion), and an Observer, a highly intelligent being who, because he carries his super-powerful brain in a glass dish, is usually referred to as 'Brain Guy.' During this phase, this quirky trio pursue the SOL in order to keep the experiment going - after all, it's the mad scientist's mother doing the chasing . . .

In the final phase, the SOL finds itself trapped over contemporary Earth, with the antagaonists occupying a castle which once belonged to the ancestors of the Forresters. Pearl herself is obsessed with taking over the world, leading to various ineffectual schemes to do so. In the meantime, the movies keep coming.

With 176 national episodes during its run, MST3k covered a huge amount of film, with movies which ranged from halfway decent to utterly terrible. The quality of the movie, however, is no judge for the quality of the episode, and while the show is somewhat hit-and-miss (some films offer less material to poke fun at), its overall enjoyability is quite high.

Record 809 - universe - Last update 28 Mar 2007, 23:09:36

Entry written by: Torvus

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