Sunday, March 18, 2007
Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Volume 10: At last I am able to see this sadly out of print set of MST3K goodness.Godzilla vs. Megalon: Hailing from season 2 is this film which many consider to be Godzilla's weakest entry. Joel and the Bots have fun with this one and the commentary is good but it just doesn't have the polish that later episodes would have. The real weakness happens to be in the host segments, most specifically the rather mean one aimed at Orville Redenbacher and his grandson. Sadly, this was the episode which made the set go out of print as Rhino was acting under the assumption that the film was still public domain. They weren't the first to make that mistake and I'm sure not the last.
Swamp Diamonds: Now here's a movie that certainly banks more on star power than on content. The sad part is their stars really weren't A-list, at least not yet. Mike Conners (billed as "Touch Conners" ) goes into the bayou with his girlfriend only to meet up with a couple of escaped female prisoners (and one undercover cop) looking for some diamonds their ex boyfriends stashed before getting the electric chair.
This episode is decent with Joel and the Bots doing a good job at riffing a really terrible movie. The real gems here, if you pardon the pun, are the fact that the girls are pretty hot. Of course, Beverly Garland was always nice to look at and it's somewhat interesting to see her as a tough killer, even after watching the putrid episode, Gunslinger.
Of course what else is good is that the episode features one of my favorite shorts (MST'ed and plain) What to Do on a Date.
Teenage Strangler: Another terrible movie that equates to one of the best Comedy Central episodes I've ever seen. In this film Jimmy, a local teenager, gets blamed for some horrific strangling that is going on. Don't give away the bland and boring ending of "Teenage Strangler."
Also on this episode is the normally hilarious short, "Is This Love?" where a crazy gal decides to elope with her "football player" boyfriend much to the disapproval of her parents and all good sense. I used to laugh at this episode a lot but when you see someone make the same mistake at home, it becomes harder to laugh at.
Rounding out disc three is Poopie volume 2. This was a collection of outtakes originally sold through the old info club but now is here for all the world to see. Or at least those fortunate to get Vol. 10.
The Giant Spider Invasion: The last disc takes us to the Sci-Fi years with one of the most putrid movies to ever be released to theaters. Starring a cast of "has-beens" and set in Wisconsin this film is about some alien spiders who crash land and start attacking cattle. There's also a lot of putrid looking rednecks being attacked in some rather unpleasant surroundings.
I don't know if this film accurately portrays Wisconsin, or at least parts of Wisconsin. I know that after watching this film I no longer wish to visit it. Of course, Step by Step was set in Wisconsin so if TV is to be believed, they may have cleaned up a bit since then.
Rounding out the set is another fantastic extra in the form of the MST3K video Jukebox. Included are videos of many of the songs done by the gang over the years. While they did not have the Gamera songs, like I had hoped, it was still a nice compilation.
Seeing MST3K Box 10 out of print is nothing short of a tragedy. I know there are a lot of MST3K fans, like myself, who had to pay through the nose for this after it became impossible to find. Perhaps Rhino could rerelease it as a three disc set in the future.
Either way, I can't wait for box 11 which is slated for release sometime this summer. This time I won't goof around and it will be preordered.
