If you're a child of the 90s, the line "In the not too distant future, next Sunday A.D." takes you back to a younger version of yourself sitting in front of the T.V. giggling along with Joel, Mike, Gypsy, Tom Servo, and Crow T. Robot.
This being said, I am not a child of the 90s. I barely started school before the end of the millennium.
But a simple Netflix suggestion changed my world and turned me into a fan of Mystery Science Theatre 3000.
Mystery Science Theater 3000, or MST3K to fans, was created by Joel Hodgson, a comedian and sculptor with a razor- sharp wit, and premiered on KTMA in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1988. It was later picked up by Comedy Central (then known as 'The Comedy Channel') and SyFy, completing a ten-year run.
The show revolves around Joel Robinson who's been shot up into space by mad scientists, or "Mads," who force this everyman to watch cringe-worthy B movies. To keep his sanity, Joel created three robots out of the parts of the ship; Gypsy, Tom Servo, and Crow T. Robot.
Hodgson left the show in 1993, and head writer Mike Nelson took over the role of the everyman. Then in 2015, Hodgson created a Kickstarter Campaign to create a reboot of the beloved show, with the hashtag, #bringbackMST3K.
The Kickstarter was highly successful, raising over $6 million for 14 episodes on Netflix and attracted the attention of Felicia Day (Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, The Guild), Patton Oswalt (King of Queens, Ratatouille), and newcomer and huge fan of the series, Jonah Ray (The Nerdist, The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail ).
Before I got into the reboot, I started with the original series, which is a joy to watch if you're a fan of 90's pop culture references and all around silliness. The riffing, where the actors make fun of certain bits in the movie, make the movies, ranging from corny to cringeworthy, a little more tolerable.
The reboot is like meeting up with an old friend you haven't seen in awhile, but it feels like you pick up right where you left of the last time you saw each other.
Ray, who plays Jonah Heston, adds a different feel to the show. Whereas Joel was like the 'cool dad' character and Mike Nelson was frat bro character, Jonah Heston is your nerdy, lovable buddy that you meet up with for drinks (The character initially got tricked into participating in The Mads' experiment because of his goodwill).
In short, Jonah Heston is a precious cinnamon roll that must be protected from this earth, or Day's character, Kinga Forrester, acts as the new Mad.
Even the Mads are loveable in their right. Kinga Forrester is a role model for any young girl who wants to take over the world through mainstream media and capitalism. Oswalt's, TV's Son of TV's Frank/Max, is Kinga's hapless, yet loyal minion who just can't get a break from his beautiful overlord.
There really is a lot of love that went into this show. Ray even grew up as a fan of MST3k, making the experience more pure for the cast and the audience. If you're a millennial and nerd, like me, this is definitely the show for you. It connects original fans with new ones, creating a new generation of MSTies.
The reboot, as well as 20 classic episodes of the original show, are currently streaming on Netflix.
