MST3K (K21)

K21 - The Legend of the Dinosaurs - Wow, JatB were rockin' and rollin' this week. The riffs kept a-coming, yet were refreshingly light on filler. The host segments were also great, even if they were out-of-order. "Joel is Dead," "Fire-Breathing T-Rex," "Sitcom Simulation" and the fun "Giant Kid Grabs Joel" were all funny, creative and, for once, more than 5 seconds long.

It was appropriate to end the KTMA shows with a Sandy Frank film ("Never trust a man with two first names... especially if the first one's a woman's."). Shockingly, the movie didn't make too much sense and was hard to follow. But, at least it wasn't two TV episodes stitched together. The titular dinosaur has about 10 seconds of screen time for the first 90 minutes of the movie. Without him, things drag. As will happen often in the future, the constant riffing helped me survive the slowness of the film. And, geez, Joel's absolutely right: every song is just wrong for the scene it plays over. It's like the movie was taken over by a lithium-drinking P-Funk cover band.

One moment in the theater gave me a bigger laugh than anything in the previous 17 episodes. A man attempts to empty an O2 tank and then slaps his girlfriend. Joel quips, "Finish the job, man." He was referring to the tank, but it came across like he was cheering for more domestic abuse. "Oh man, I'm sorry," he says, as everyone cracks up and Joel puts his head in his hands. Servo replies, "After 20 weeks, Joel Hodgson snapped a twig." Ah, a great, unscripted moment. I was chuckling for minutes afterwards. This type of things will be missed.

I wasn't before today, but now I'm sad to be leaving the KTMA era. This episode was fun and just like what I think MST3K is in my mind. (7/10)

film d. Junji Kurata (1977)
mst d. Vince Rodriguez (28 May 1989)