Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XXXV

Volume 35 of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" follows the same pattern as recent volumes; namely, the first two movies are hosted by Joel Hodgson, while the last two movies are hosted by Mike Nelson. A young (but not teen-aged) Robert Vaughn stars as the Symbol Maker's Son in "Teenage Cave Man" (1958), directed by Roger Corman. Like most teenagers, he rebels against the laws enforced by the elders. The tribe of cave men and women speak a primitive form of English. How that is possible is explained in the movie's surprise ending, which I won't reveal. A brief bonus feature about the movie, entitled "I Was A Teenage Caveman," is included. Up next is "Being From Another Planet" (1982), a strangely satisfying movie. King Tut's tomb is unearthed, and the mummy inside turns out to be an extraterrestrial alien! Even stranger, the mummy is brought back to life after an overdose of x-rays. The special effects were good for a low budget film, and the riffing was priceless. The original version of the film, entitled "Time Walker," is included as a bonus feature. It does not include any riffing from Joel, Tom Servo and Crow. The third film is the sci-fi snoozer "12 To The Moon" (1960). An international team of astronauts, including ten men and two women, fly the first rocketship to the moon. The scientific inaccuracies that take place in the movie are too numerous to mention. Disappointingly, alien beings living underground on the moon contact the astronauts, but are never show on film. Fortunately, the rollicking riffing helps the viewer past the dull parts of the movie. A brief bonus feature about the movie, entitled "You Are There: Launching 12 To The Moon," is included. Last and least is "Deathstalker and The Warriors From Hell" (1988), apparently the third film in the Deathstalker trilogy. That sword-and-sorcery stinkbomb would be unwatchable without the humorous riffing from Mike and the 'bots. The bonus feature, entitled "Medieval Boogaloo: The Legend Of Deathstalker III," is included. Rather than a documentary, it's an interview with the film's villain Troxartas, played by Thom Christopher. While Volume 35 is not the ideal place for a "Mystery Science Theater 3000" novice to start, it is a most welcome addition to the collection of long-time fans, like me.

BOTTOM LINE: This is one of the best batches of MST3k experiments released on DVD yet. No stinkers in the bunch, just a lot of great belly laughs. Worth the regrettably steep asking price, IMHO. 5 STARS THOUGHTS: All four of these movies are fully deserving of the scathing satire foisted upon them by Mike, Joel & the Bots. The stand out for me was 12 TO THE MOON, a film I actually enjoy in it's unslaughtered state, but made equally entertaining as the main entree of a merciless SOL roasting. The various names the gang kept coming up with for the hunky captain character had me howling out loud. This is another entry that I never go to catch first-hand but am oh so glad I finally got to see. BEING FROM ANOTHER PLANET (aka Time Walker) isn't that bad of a film, well.. okay, so maybe it is. It gets the full treatment here and the jokes are mostly great ones. (The film is also included in it's un-MSTied version as a bonus on that disc.) DEATHSTALKER just stinks to high heaven and it was a deserving entry for the hosing it got. TEENAGE CAVEMAN is a classic effort from early in the show's history. Fun & funny, with plenty of fodder for the crew to pounce on. Overall, MST3K Volume #35 is a very solid entry, and comes highly recommended!!

And yet I laughed all the way through these 4 stinkers. The extras were, as usual, informative. And it helps explain some of the questions I have when watching these movies - such as: Who thought this was a good idea? Teenage Caveman. Wrong on both counts. Well coiffed, shaved, nice teeth, perfect english. All that was missing was Illya Kuryakin. The shorts on this episode contain one of the best ever: Catching Trouble. And the skit as a follow-up to it is pitch perfect. The Aquatic Wizards could be the reason why we have child protection laws. Deathstalker and the Warriors From Hell. Well named. We now know where this movie came from. Too bad it didn't stay there. Being From Another Planet. I made the mistake of watching the original version of this trainwreck before seeing the MST3K version. Please - DO NOT watch the original version. Cheesy and campy - and that is the MST3K version - imagine how bad the "un-MST3K" one is! 12 To The Moon. Remember Ralph Kramden telling his wife "one of these days Alice - to the moon"? He could have been talking about this escapee from "B movie" hell. This mess made the cold war look good!

Funniest show ever.

MST3K movies are the best! So glad to find boxed sets at reasonable prices!

I'm always happy when a new volume of MST arrives. My husband and I love watching these. I was so upset when they took it off the air, but glad that I can watch my favorite episodes anytime I want. I did not see any of these episodes when the show was airing, but I can't wait to watch because I'm sure I won't be disappointed.

I have to be honest; most of the MST3K box sets are slam dunk home runs for me. Here I was mostly bored. Don't get me wrong, the riffing is excellent as usual, but these are four of the more tedious episodes in my view. I suppose my favorite is Robert Vaughn starring as a very well-manicured caveman in the Roger Corman classic "Teenage Cave Man", who fulfills his teenage angst of exploring the world beyond his tribe with unpredictable (OK, very predictable) results. I also liked "12 to the Moon", an atomic age international collaboration to the moon where humans confront an ambiguous alien force; this one plods sporadically but I enjoyed it nonetheless. At the other end of the spectrum, the third and worst movie in the "Deathstalker" franchise demonstrates why I have a longtime dislike for most films involving mystical journeys, princesses, and wizards. The acting is so bad I found it almost impossible to get through despite the cracking of wise from Mike and the bots. It's truly one of my least favorite episodes, and is largely responsible for this set garnering a four versus five-star rating.

Some good and long awaited episodes, though I do hope the riffed version of "Diabolik" is close to the release list from Shout Factory.