Shark Bytes

I've only just started to get into Mystery Science Theater 3000, and I've seen episodes with Joel and Mike. Honestly, it didn't affect me as badly as I thought it was going to. Yes, shows usually suck when the main character leaves, but with Mystery Science Theater 3000, it's hard to notice that they're gone. 95% of the show, the characters are in darkness and for the other 5% they are just making fun of what the viewer just saw. Whenever I watch the show, I have the same reaction to everything. Either I will laugh hysterically at certain random comments, or I will say "Wow, that's so true". Of course, I'm in my teens and the humour is obviously a bit dated so I won't understand everything. But who cares? That just means it'll be funnier to different people. For example, I might not find a joke too funny about Rip Taylor, but my dad in his forty's might find it hilarious because he was around when Rip Taylor was at a higher peek of popularity. I love the randomness of the quotations. I'm guilty of stealing some of their lines. Another example, when reading Macbeth at school, after the death of Lady Macbeth, the class was discussing, I put in my two cents by saying my favourite quote from the Pod People episode: "Well, our breakfast is getting colder and she's not getting any warmer". I love it, and it got a huge laugh. It's amazing that kids in high school found a line from a 15 year old episode of three guys talking through a 25 year old movie funny. The show obviously still has some sort of life today with Joel making Cinematic Titanic and Mike making Rifftax.

As for jumping the shark, I don't care anymore. I'm just getting into it and have been watching episodes from every season but I can safely say, because of the simplicity of the show, it never jumped.

For the people who just explore this site randomly and wanted to read mine, I'll just warn you that the movies they show are some of the worst ever made. The first episode I saw was "Santa Conquers the Martians" and I said "that was the worst movie I've ever seen". Then I saw "Pod People" and said "Ok, THAT was the worst movie I've ever seen". Then I saw "Manos: The Hands of Fate" and just ask anyone who knows the show about that one it's one of the best episodes, but one of the worst movies ever made. With Manos, I heard that the actors would be paid depending on how much the movie made except for the little girl in the movie who was given a bicycle for her work, and she was the only one who gained anything. Finally, I just saw "I Accuse My Parents" and of all the episodes I've seen of the show, that one was the worst movie I've ever seen, but the commentary is some of the best.

I always loved MST3K, whether Joel era or Mike or Pearl or Frank. They all had their moments. If you didn't like the show, fine, I still think it was a great show. It was just my type of humor I guess.

Can't have had a problem with different actor, same character - Joel and Mike were two different characters!

Okay, yes it did jump when it moved to Sci-Fi, but I jumped right along with it!

BEST SHOW EVER!! We have gone around quoting this show for years now and have LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT. One thing good about werewolves...they scoop their own poop

You people who like to slam MST3K need to remember that it requires absolutely no talent whatsoever to make fun of something. And just because you can make fun of something that doesn't mean it's bad...Hey, wait a minute...

It definitely jumped the shark before the final season, which had a palpable air of being written and performed on autopilot; season 8 had "Space Mutiny" and "Overdrawn", but I can't think of a classic from seasons 9 or 10. And it was always hit-and-miss. Joel and Mike had different styles (Mike was slick and consistent, but a bit bland, whereas Joel had intermittent flashes of genius), the story arc host segments were short enough to ignore, Pearl was irritating, but even when it wasn't side-splitting it was pleasant background entertainment. It didn't so much jump the shark as gradually slide over it.

I don't know where somebody gets off accusing MST3k of bigotry. Can you present even one example of that? MST3k consistently presented feminist points of view in their jokes (see, e.g., The Home Economics Short). They also did a lot of jokes that took a racially thoughtful point of view (e.g., the joke at the end of I Accuse My Parents). If you don't understand irony, then at least don't criticize it.

I think MST3K jumped the shark when the fans went nuts and started acting like any and all legitimate criticism of the show was just an assault on Mike's fragile male ego. I think we've all seen way too many exchanges like this all over the internet:

Deranged Mike Fan: I see in your profile that you enjoy watching bad movies. Did you like MST3K?

Reasonable Person: Sometimes it was okay. Other times it sucked even worse than whatever movie was being shown.

Deranged Mike Fan: WHY DO YOU HATE MIKE?! YOU SUCK AND SO DOES JOEL!

Now in many cases the reasonable person may have only seen the later years of the show and won't even know who Joel is but that won't stop Mike's unhinged fans from trying to flame everything the reasonable person says like this:

Reasonable Person: Y'know, I really like sex!

Deranged Mike Fan: Sex is for losers! You suck and so does Joel!

And for those Mike fans who don't want the show criticized because they say it ruins their fantasies about being part of the show? Grow up! It's not up to the rest of us to accomodate your pathetic fantasy life. Mike's fans themselves invite much of the criticism of him with this kind of behavior.

Joel Hodgson once said during an interview about MST3K that (paraphrase) "We're not concerned that everybody will get it- just that the right people will get it."
Obviously, many of the comments on this show post are not from the 'right people'. The target audience of this show spanned the 60's-80's pop culture generation. If you weren't up on these subtle, sometimes blatant, references throughout the show, you would be lost- and probably would deem the show stupid.
As for me- I'm glad I was one of the 'right people' that Joel was aiming for. This was and always will be one of TV's most creative and hilarious shows.

Oh, I loved this show. I have "Copies" and like to watch them all the time.

I think it jumped the shark after a year or so after Mike took over. Certainly, around that. But it still had some episodes I would consider 'great'. Yes 'great'! Space Mutiny and that horrible Werewolf film.

Oh yeah... let me also say that Mad Movies, which used to air on Nick-At-Nite in the eighties, was much better than this show ever was. It's a crime that so many episodes of the Pearl years have become DVDs, but there hasn't been a single Mad Movies DVD (at least not yet, anyway) and there are so very few people who remember that show.

Oops... I meant 10 years old where it says 19 years old. But you've got to admit, that WOULD make for an interesting childhood...

I spent the end of my kiddyhood (19 years old) to the last of my adolescence and into my teen years (13 years old) watching this show. The first couple seasons I watched on HA! (the channel that would later turn into Comedy Central) were awe-inspiring. Then HA! turned into Comedy Central, and my local cable company stopped carrying Comedy Central, and I lost my precious MST3K.

Then I started hearing reports that the Sci-Fi Channel was going to pick up the show, and wonderful memories flooded back and I got a strong blast of nostalgia. And then I saw the first show on Sci-Fi, and WOW, I wished I hadn't. TV's Frank and the other bad guy were gone, only to be replaced by Pearl, Joel was gone, the writing had taken a nosedive, stupid Sci-Fi execs forced them to only show sci-fi movies (which is ironic, considering all the non-sci fi horror movies they show these days) and all my sweet memories of the show were ruined. Nowadays I still can't think of MST3K without thinking of "The Pearl years" as I call them. Oh well, at least I can still download episodes from the Joel years.

MST3K was a wonderful show. I buy the DVDs as soon as they are released. My favorite short had to be "Mr. B. Natural". Classic! The battle of who was a better host, Joel or Mike. They both had their moments. The MST3K movie was funny. I would say my favorites are "Manos, Hands of Fate.", "Terror from the year 5000.", "Horrors of Spider-Island" and "Horror of Party Beach". But they are great shows, check them out if you haven't.