MST3K (209)

209 - The Hellcats - It's The Side Hackers companion movie, with Russ Hagen and Gus Trikonis together again for the first time. All have to say about this is: finally, a real biker movie with a real chain-fighting biker gang in it. I've been waiting all season for one of these. Drunken parties in bars. Drunken parties in fields. Drunken, unseen races over hills. This is it, Papa.

The movie wasn't 100% biker fun. As things progress, the film spirals into near-utter irrationality. Who was that blonde airhead putting on the stockings? Why was she killed? Why did the bar owner freak out? Why did the bikers want revenge for a road accident? Why did they head towards the docks to seek that revenge? Most of all, how did Wilson Hong ever get work again?

Joel gets to use his invention that the Mads didn't let him show off last episode. That's the last bit of originality before we descend into flashback hell. Boo. I know the guys had to go to New York and didn't have as much time to work on this episode as normal, but that still doesn’t make the repeats any more interesting to watch. K15's typewriter/flashback device, 106's Bill Shatner hands, 201's floating items and 203's scope segment all put in appearances. At least they borrowed from the length and breadth of their history, but I don't know why they picked the overlong scope segment to repeat.

Goatee, week three.

Riff of the episode: some idiot biker shakes up a bottle of beer in an attempt to spray his lady. Instead, as he holds the bottle at crotch-level, the spray hits entering Ross Hagen in the face. Crow-as-Ross: "That better be beer." (6/10)

film d. Robert F. Slatzer (1967)
mst d. Jim Mallon (8 Dec 1990)