Of the various eras of MST3K, which ones did you prefer, the comedy central episodes or the Sci-Fi Channel episodes? While Sci-Fi had some classics like Werewolf, Puma Man, Space Mutiny, Hobgoblins, and Merlin's Shop of Mystical Wonders, Comedy Central had Manos, Gamera vs. Guiron, Santa Claus vs. the Martians, Eeagh, Mitchell, Escape 2000, Zombie Nightmare, and Laserblast.
shareI much prefer the SciFi Channel shows. A big reason is that SciFi had access to better movies. I've always felt that the movies needed a certain minimum level of quality for them to work well on the show. Movies like The Dead Talk Back and Red Zone Cuba were so bad that even the MST3K folks couldn't make them really enjoyable. In contrast, SciFi was able to offer them films which, while bad, were better than much of what was available at Comedy Central.
Seasons 3 through 9 are my favorite seasons for episodes(I count the KTMA23 season as season 0, in keeping with the show staff.) I can't say I prefer the SciFi era more or less, but I liked the dynamic better during the SciFi era. The host segments just gelled better during those years.
shareThe Sci-If Years, no contest. I prefer Pearl, Bobo, and Brain Guy to Dr. Forrester and TV's Frank, I prefer Bill Corbett as Crow, I prefer Mike to Joel, and while Kevin Murphy might not like the plot lines they were forced to write during the Sci-Fi years, I DO. I LOVED their parody of the Planet of the Apes, I loved the Brain Guys, I love the camping trip planet, I loved the Wormhole, I loved ancient Rome, and I loved Castle Forrester. And I prefer the movies they watched in that time period. I can barely make it through pre-Mike episodes. Joel is such a bore.
"All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to you." -Gandalf
I second pretty much everything WeirdRaptor said, though I wasn't as into the skits, but I didn't skip them, either, as I do all the time with Joel's
shareComedy Central years BY FAR! Joel, Frank, and Trace were best. It was so much fun back during those years with Penn Jillettes voiceover at the end of every episode too. This was back when cable tv was MUCH better.
You could usually flip the channel and see Chris Farley and Spade on SNL or maybe flip the channel to USA Up All Night with Gilbert Gottfreid hosting his own bad movies. You can't find this stuff on tv anymore and tv is not fun at all. By the SciFi years, the fun was already gone anyway.
The riffing was pretty consistent through the entire run. So focusing on the host segments CC wins my affection without a doubt. There's a charm to the bots,Clayton and Frank that makes repeated viewings a pleasure I don't find it in Bobo, Brain Guy and Pearl.
shareCom Central. I preferred Mike to Joel, though, and I thought the writers really hit their stride in the 4th-7th seasons. Were some of those later seasons on Sci-Fi? Seems to my memory like the show was on Sci-Fi by 1997, or so...
- Lord, have mercy on a country boy
I think Joel's segments were stronger despite some duds but the riffing was top notch from both crews.
share