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You may or may not have heard about the Kickstarter to revive Mystery Science Theater 3000. So far, it's reached its initial goal of $2,000,000 to film three episodes. Each stretch goal reached will result in three more episodes, topping off at twelve. Should the next stretch goal be reached by the end of Thanksgiving (that's this Thursday for you foreigners), there will be a surprise reward.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mst3k/bringbackmst3k (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mst3k/bringbackmst3k)

Yeah, I've been following it. I'll probably contribute a little something later. I am skeptical it can work but I'm willing to give it a chance.

I'm hearing, and I don't know if it's true, but the surprise reward if reached by Thanksgiving will be the three initial KTMA shows that nobody can find.  The rest of that season is available via the tapes that circulated. 

I'm hoping to contribute to this. 

Even if it hits the full 12, who knows if it'll be picked up elsewhere.

I wouldn't bet on the "lost" KTMAs, Happy. They have never officially released the "found" KTMAs, so I would bet that's what Joel is hinting at.

True.   :smile:

At this rate, it looks like they're gonna at least hit $3.3 Million, so we'll at least hit 6 new episodes of the show.

Which, as a lifelong fan, I wouldn't have imagined in 2015.

No Mike, no Frank, no Trace, no Joel, no Bill, no Mary: no Kevin, no go.  :thumbdown:

I'm sure Joel is involved in some capacity.  I doubt he'd do all this work for nothing.  He's at least writing, and cameo'ing on it. 

If the show went longer back in the day, we'd have had new hosts, Mad's, etc, anyway.  Sci-Fi Channel cancelled it so.

Their dream was to have it kinda like SNL, where it changes every few years.

He's invited everyone back that was involved.  Some said they won't do it, but I'm sure if they hit enough cash to fund it, they'll work things out. 

I'm excited for a new chapter in this.  At this point it looks like they'll hit enough for six episodes.  I hope they can do enough with that six to have a network pick it up for a full season.  Other shows have done reboots that have worked.  Plus it helps some new, younger comics launch their careers to the next level.  And all of them were fans of the show handpicked by Joel.  I have faith in him.  This doesn't seem like a cash grab.

Just over 48 hours to go. Looks like there will be 9 episodes (I doubt they can make it to 5.5 million for 12 episodes but maybe Joel has a trick up his sleeve. Could be an angel will swoop down at the last minute).

I'm going to go ahead and pre-order the DVDs from the add-on site. That's $85 for at least 9 episodes, a decent deal (assuming the new episodes don't suck!)

Just a hunch, but I am thinking the animated TITANIC movie will be one of their riff choices. Even more likely is one of the THUNDERBIRDS movies, since Shout already has the rights and we know Joel is a fan.

We're guaranteed 9 episodes. 

I like the casting choices so far.  And I'm hearing (nothing official) that the Rifftrax guys (Mike, Bill, Kevin) will be involved in some capacity. 

Some of the writers write for Rick and Morty, and that's a fantastic show.  With Joel overseeing them, this could be good.  If it is only 9, fine, but I'm hoping someone, somewhere, sees the nine and what they can do, and helps them out.

Patton Oswalt being cast is great.

They're doing a final day telethon with a bunch of people, including some of the cast, Pendleton Ward (Adventure Time's creator), Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon.  I don't know if it'll be enough to grab the last 1.3 million, but considering they had $300k off Kickstarter that suddenly appeared (curious where that came from), I wouldn't be *too* surprised if it makes it from a combination of the telethon and some other outside source we don't know about.  Either way, it really sounds like Joel is trying to do it right... Roiland and Harmon doing some guest writing (I think Roiland could solo-riff a movie drunk and it'd be watchable, if not as refined as MST3K) is a terrific idea, and some of the other writers sound good too.  I'm looking forward to it.

I think the 300K comes from "add-ons" that they sell in the MST3K store, which they add to the Kickstarter total later.

Anybody who pledges even $1 gets a downloadable Rifftrax short. I pledged $1 and will pre-order the season from the store. I am still not 100% sold on the idea but I think it's worth a shot. Worst thing that happens is I get to see a bunch of bad movies with professional comedians making fun of them.

The 'add-ons' could push it.

I just checked and they're around $4.6 Million.  Will it hit the $5.5?  Who knows.  But there's literally 26 hours to go.

I'm excited.

It needs to earn 500K on the last day. I have the feeling they have some angel lined up to swoop in and make up any shortfall so they will be sure to make it to the goal.

So looking at titles Shout Factory controls that might be suitable for MST3K, here's a fantasy Season 12:

EP 1101: BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS
EP 1102: BLACULA
EP 1103: BREAKIN' 2 IS ELECTRIC BOOGALOO
EP 1104: EMPIRE OF THE ANTS
EP 1105: THE FOOD OF THE GODS
EP 1106: FROGS
EP 1107: THE GARBAGE PAIL KIDS MOVIE
EP 1108: KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS
EP 1109: SWAMP THING
EP 1110:  MESSAGE FROM SPACE
EP 1111: REPTILICUS
EP 1112: STARCRASH

And the stretch goal is for a 13th holiday special episode, so I will guess

EP 1113: SANTA WITH MUSCLES

There's 5 hours left and they're at $5.1 million.

I think...I think they'll do it.  Hoping. :teddyr:

They made it. There's $400K in the add-on kitty that isn't reflected in the Kickstarter total. Playing for the Holiday episode stretch goal.

It's at 5.7, seems like a good shot even for that.  Wow.  Wonder if this is technically the new high for Kickstarted TV/movie?  Can Kickstarter count the non-kickstarter stuff for the total?

Edit to add: Just reached the final goal.  13 episodes.  $6 million to $6.2 million total looks likely.  Man.  

I'd actually say this makes the longer term aspects of the show pretty possible too.

Also, Joel (and whoever helped him with all this) did a terrific job.  The slow rollouts, leading questions, personalized videos and updates, celeb teases and reveals, use of social media, URL registration forward, telethon, it's text book how to run a campaign like this.  

Another edit.  It did break Veronica Mars record even without the addons, just barely.  Also, the Kickstarter top line now says they're going make fourteen episodes.  Guess the extra $200k+ on top of the $5.9 was enough to make an extra!

The new MST3K will be shown on Netflix. The below link also includes a video interview with Joel and the new SOL crew.

http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=22976 (http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=22976)

I'm trying not to read the post above this one because I want to be surprised. Wish we had a spoiler tag on the forum.

Sorry about that. After much failed experimentation with the limited options for text colors on this forum, I just deleted the list and will give it its own post. That way, it'll be purely your fault if you go look at it.  :tongueout:

The premiere date has been officially announced as April 14.

http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=23913 (http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=23913)

(https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6yzZQ5EDPHw/hq720.jpg)

And now a countdown clock has been set up.

http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=24030 (http://www.mst3kinfo.com/?p=24030)

20 Classic MST episodes dropped on Netflix today to bide our time until the debut.

Not entirely certain but it looks like it's about evenly split between Joel and Mike episodes.

Episodes featured include:
Catalina Caper
• Eegah!
• Future War
• The Giant Gila Monster
• Hercules Against the Moon Men
• Horrors of Spider Island
• I Accuse My Parents
• Jack Frost
• Laserblast
• "Manos" The Hands of Fate
• Merlin’s Shop of Mystical Wonders
• Pod People
• Puma Man
• Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
• Sidehackers
• Space Mutiny
• Teenagers from Outer Space
• Time Chasers
• Werewolf
• Zombie Nightmare

Indeed they are.

Joel episodes

• Catalina Caper
• Eegah!
• The Giant Gila Monster
• Hercules Against the Moon Men
• I Accuse My Parents
• "Manos" The Hands of Fate
• Pod People
• Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
• Sidehackers
• Teenagers from Outer Space

Mike episodes

• Future War
• Horrors of Spider Island
• Jack Frost
• Laserblast
• Merlin’s Shop of Mystical Wonders
• Puma Man
• Space Mutiny
• Time Chasers
• Werewolf
• Zombie Nightmare

Jack Frost is one of my favorite episodes. 

At least they were fair in the split.  Sometimes they seem to favor one over the other.

And now a trailer is up on Youtube. Those who don't want to be spoiled on which movies are going to be featured may want to pass for now, as it includes some in theater scenes.

 (http://youtu.be/5ct0Z2bQndM)

If you're like me (and I know I am), you pledged at a certain level that gives you an early online screening of the first episode. That screening occurs today. For those who go to a church that follows the lectionary, it could be seen as a treat for going through the extra long audience participation Palm Sunday gospel reading.

Some random thoughts after seeing the first episode:

* The new doorway sequence is a treat for the eyes. However, it looks like it may be CG (not that there's anything wrong with that). If it isn't, color me impressed.

* While the Bots retain their original designs, Servo and Crow now have semi-functional arms.

* Of course there are the voice changes. The most startling is Gypsy, who has gone from Jim Mallon doing a falsetto to being performed by an actual female woman of the opposite sex.

* The half-baked understanding Reptilicus has of regeneration inspired a host segment where we got multiple Servos, including Evil Servo and Southern Belle Servo.

* Some old standards that are making a return include the Invention Exchange and letter reading.

Isn't that a double negative type thing? Or is it a guy who identifies as a female?

Just giving you a hard time. As long as we have Patton Oswalt and Felicia Day, I'm a happy camper.

And now it's available to anyone with a Netflix streaming subscription.

I got 2 out of 14 correct.  :smile: That leaves 12 great new possible episodes!

It's BACK!!!!

LA LA LA

(http://i.imgur.com/8gk3yLc.jpg)

After watching episode 1, I have a few things to say.
Pros:
Love the new cast
Love the new set
Love how the bots now use their arms, Tom flies, And Gypsy comes from the top.

Cons:
Tom should have a deeper voice
The set may be too big, just focus in a bit more.
There's only 1 B&W film, I would love to have at least 2 more B&W films.

I guess I'll post my reactions to the first episode here.

*A lot of the opening was spent on a one-time explanation of how Jonah got trapped on the SOL by Kinga. It was OK, not side-splitting but necessary. The Wil Weaton/Erin Gray cameo didn't do much for me.

*Jonah was inspired casting; he really fits the easy-going, slightly nerdy MST3K host mold. Servo and Crow are fine, no complaints.

*Felicia and Patton look like they are going to have great chemistry. They didn't get to do much in this episode but I am sure they will have a time to shine.

*But the new Gypsy is going to take some getting used to.

*Tom flying around the theater and Gypsy showing up to drop off and pick up stuff (and add the occasional riff) seem a little gimmicky. I'm sure I'll get used to it and they'll make some great jokes in time.

*I had trouble telling the voices apart in the theater.

*The movie is not my favorite. REPTILICUS is just a by-the-numbers GODZILLA clone set in Denmark (which is weird, but not weird enough to make it really stand out). Giant monsters are sort of familiar territory for the show, which may be why they chose it for the opening riff.

*The host segments were mostly meh, but the song was fantastic! Neither Joel nor Mike could have handled rapping like that. It was almost a classic moment, and if nothing else, it inspires confidence for the future.

It took MST3K all of a 13-episode Season 1 to iron out the kinks; Season 2 was a tremendous improvement. Similarly, when the show rebooted on the Sci-Fi Channel, it took them about 9 "practice" episodes before they started firing on all cylinders with THE GIANT SPIDER INVASION. With 14 episodes under their belt, I suspect that if the show is renewed for Season 12, they'll listen to all the feedback and make another great leap forward. Overall, I give this episode a 2.5/5 rating, maybe a 3/5 for nostalgia's sake. It's better than almost all of the Season 1 episodes, and in line with the opening episodes of Season 8. There was enough promise that I think they can get a good episode or two out of this season with the right movie. Looking forward to the rest of the season (I'll be viewing one per week).

If Mark Hamill is going to be making semi-regular appearances, perhaps he could bring up a copy of the live action adaptation of The Guyver which he was in.

It's definitely miniatures just like the original.  Joel mentioned it in one of the updates.  They have way better video tech and it's a lot easier to make that kind of stuff now (3D printers, better wireless motors, etc) which is why it looks better.

I had a friend who was a heavy backer, so I saw a few episodes early and he also had a party where we watched a bunch in a row (honestly, probably not the ideal way to watch but it was fun).

My general thoughts:

They did a great job getting the general vibe back.  It feels like MST3k.  Jonah seems like a good new host, in performance and personality.  Seems a bit inbetween Mike and Joel if that makes sense.  Felicia Day and Patton Oswalt have good chemistry.  I like the additions to the bot movement.  Some pretty good songs.

Negatives...  I think Jonah and the new Tom Servo voice are too similar, can barely tell them apart.  I hope we get a bit more character based humor, which is one of the big things that differentiates MST3K from Riff Trax or Cinematic Titanic.  The pacing and style of jokes, it at times reminded me a bit more of Riff Trax than MST3k.  Still, I'd agree with Rev that the eps I saw generally reminded me of the average ones from like season 8.

Brief episode thoughts:

Reptilicus - This movie is too slow, dull and repetitive to be very interesting riffing material.  It's still a decent episode, and I enjoyed the musical introductory number.

Cry Wilderness - Utterly bonkers film, hard to even describe.  Perfect MST3k material, and the strongest episode I've seen.  Pretty funny from beginning to end.

Time Travelers - Really really slow movie.  I was falling asleep.  The riffs are fine, but can't save it. 

Avalanche - Slow film, has a few good lines.  Decent.

Beast of Hollow Mountain - a bad B western that has a hilarious stop motion T-rex at the end.  The dinosaur stuff is hilarious, but the bland opening hour is hard to find much material to riff on.  Just OK.

Starcrash - I like the film (only one I own on disc), and the riffs are pretty solid.  Good one.

Land That Time Forgot - I have no idea how I'd never seen the original film before, would have been right up my alley as a kid.  Film is a mixed bag - I actually like most of the monsters, particularly the design - actually kind of creepy, and the matte work and rear projection is quite good.  The pterodactyls look awful though.  As a vehicle for MST3k, it has its moments, but the film gets a bit repetitive and isn't quite bad enough to riff super well.

Loves of Hercules - What a stinker of a film, yeeeesh.  Incredibly dull and boring.  I liked the hydra prop, even if it can barely.   Some good riffs, but again, the film is so slow moving it gets a bit hard to watch.

The description I've heard (and it's a reasonably accurate one) is Pod People crossed with Boggy Creek 2, with a hint of The Final Sacrifice.