Mystery Science Theater 3000: One of the Funniest TV Shows in the Past 20 Years

Mystery Science Theater 3000 was a hilarious show that ran for over ten years. It aired on both Comedy Central and The Sci-fi Channel. Unfortunately, I didn't discover it until its final season in 1999. It has grown to be a cult phenomenon amongst sci-fi/horror nerds. What's it about? Why are the fans so avid and sometimes creepy? How could it have run for a decade without becoming immensely popular? These answers and more on this week's episode of "I Haven't Seen Daylight in Months."

MST3K (that's the nerd abbreviation) was birthed in 1988. Experts speculate that it was a natural birth. The basic premise involved Joel, a guy who was stuck in outer space with a concourse of robots. Our protagonists are forced to watch unspeakably bad b-movies by the evil Dr. Forrester. How did everyone get into space and why do Joel and the bots have to watch movies? I don't know. As the theme song says, "It's just a show. You should really just relax." This wasn't a 30-minute series of goofy skits. Each episode was two hours long with commercial breaks. The viewer watches the characters watch a movie. It may sound tedious, but it's not.

Joel and the two main robots (Crow and Tom Servo) heckle whatever slipshod schlock is on the docket that week. They butcher the film with no remorse. The quips didn't become consistently funny until the third season or so. Halfway through Season 5, Joel was replaced by head writer Mike Nelson. Mike would host the show until its final bow. Fans of the show (dubbed "MSTies") have argued for years over which host was better suited for MST3K. It's a touchy subject. So touchy, in fact, that it caused The Canadian War of 1997, one of the bloodiest wars in North American history.

Storylines and cast members changed throughout the show's tenure, but it seemed to actually get funnier with age. How many TV shows can claim to have peaked in their final season? Sure, it's only my opinion, but thousands of MSTies agree with me. The show showered infamy upon certain films that would have never been seen by more than a handful of people otherwise. In fact, directors would even request to have their movies jeered on MST3K. While the show was always a cult favorite, a MST3K feature film hit theaters in 1996. It wasn't too different than your average episode, only it sported more polished production values.

The special effects on the show were notoriously terrible. This was intentional. Everything from the over-the-top acting to the hokey props was meant to parrot the dingy "effects" of the low-grade cinema being spotlighted. Some of the flabbergasterpieces featured on MST3K were Hobgoblins, The Pod People, Manos: The Hands of Fate, The Prince of Space, The Devil Doll, The Beast of Yucca Flats, The Brain That Wouldn't Die, The Wild World of Batwoman, Gorgo, Devil Fish, Werewolf, The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies, Jack Frost, and Zombie Nightmare. Those titles should give you a hint as to the quality of the MST-ed flicks.

Mystery Science Theater 3000 has been dead for 8 years, but the fanbase is still a vociferous typhoon of geekdom. Personally, I quote the show on a daily basis. I even own rare MST3K merchandise, and yes, I just threw that out there to verify my coolness. The spirit of the show is alive in the form of Rifftrax, a podcast that serves as an irreverent commentary track to movies both good and bad. Rifftrax was founded by MST3K alumnus Mike Nelson. Recent "episodes" have featured guest appearances by fellow MST3K stars Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett. It's just as funny as the subject of this article. For more information on Rifftrax, see my supporting links.

If you've never heard of MST3K, start with any of the 30+ episodes that are on VHS/DVD. You'll either laugh for 90 minutes like I do or you'll be bored senseless. Some don't "get" the show's humor. Then again, some folks are cannibals. I think I've made my point.