Mystery Science Theater 3000: Village of the Giants

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Village of the Giants
Comedy Central
January 22, 1994
Riffing
VHS
B-

While this has some funny moments, I feel like the action of the '65 Bert I. Gordon movie and the riffing slow down after the bad teens become giants.  Still, it is fun to listen to the Jim-Begg-spotting.  Note that there's a David Duke reference that's unfortunately not dated.  For once, I enjoyed the non-movie sequences, as Mike and the Bots sympathize with TV's Frank, who's been fired.  They sing a musical tribute to him, which doubles as a tribute to Frank Zappa, yes, the second tribute this month, on my shows alone.

Bob Random, who plays Rick, would that Fall (of '65) be one of Gidget's TV boyfriends.  Murphy directed this episode.

I don't know if I have a representative sampling, or if it's completely fair to rate episodes that in most cases I edited down.  But as it stands, my twelve MST3K episodes range from C to B+, and average to a B.  I'm still not a MiSTie but it has been fun revisiting the series.  And, yes, it would go through further morphing and spin-offs.

Gidget: Gidget's Foreign Policy

Gidget: Gidget's Foreign Policy
ABC
December 15, 1965
Sitcom
DVD
C+

I don't like how the character of Inge is punished in this episode (including spanking by her boyfriend!), and for once I don't at all sympathize with Gidget's schemes.  That said, even with the line "I just set women's rights back 100 years, where they belong," I don't think the episode, the first directed by Jerrold Bernstein, is entirely anti-feminist.  Like other recent episodes, it's more ambiguous and conflicted.  This time Jan Crawford plays Ben rather than Roger.

Gidget: Chivalry Isn't Dead

Gidget: Chivalry Isn't Dead
ABC
December 1, 1965
Sitcom
DVD
B

This is notable both for its plot and its cast.  Gidget takes a stand, wanting the boys to show the girls more consideration, especially in regards to not asking them out at the last minute.  Her friends go along but then give in, while Gidget mostly holds her ground, winning the respect of her boyfriend, Mark.  I like Bob Random's performance here.  The actor has an edge to him (he was one of the bad teens in Village of the Giants around that time), but Mark also comes across as the brightest and most considerate of the guys.  I remember as a teen being more intrigued by him than Moondoggie, although both characters only got two episodes each.

On the distaff side, it's impossible to watch this and not exclaim over young Bonnie Franklin (Jean) and Barbara Hershey (Ellen).  If you're wondering how Franklin could play a mother of two teens a decade later on One Day at a Time, she was actually 21 here and not much older than her TV-daughters in the '70s.  She and Hershey definitely have star power and so their later success isn't at all surprising.  Both actresses would return to this show, but as different characters.

Rick Cooper (Ted), Pamela McMyler (Betty), Beverly Washburn (Marcia), and the aptly named Bob Beach (Pete) would also all return.  Martin Ragaway, who came up with the story, would write a few Brady Bunch episodes, among other things, while the author of the teleplay, John McGreevey, had done "A Hearse" and would write three more.