Mystery Science Theater 3000: XXXII

The fact that this is the 32nd collection of MST3K episodes speaks not only to the dedicated original viewers who kept the show alive as a pop favorite of the 1990s, but also to the timeless mainstream appeal of its ingenious comedic premise of wiseacres (human and robot) stuck on a space station who crack jokes while watching bad movies. The four installments here feature original janitor/host Joel Hodgson and his replacement, Mike Nelson, leading bots Crow and Tom Servo in the peanut gallery. The set kicks off with 1969's Space Travelers (aka Marooned), directed by John Sturges and starring Richard Crenna, Gene Hackman, and James Franciscus as stranded astronauts aboard a malfunctioning spacecraft, with Gregory Peck as the NASA chief determined to get them back to safety. Next up is the original Hercules (1958), from Italian filmmaker Pietro Francisci, with Steve Reeves in the title role, muscling his way through the legendary labors. Radar Secret Service (1950), helmed by Sam Newfield, stars Ralph Byrd as one of a group of “radar men” who use nifty gadgets to track down hijackers of weapons-grade uranium. Finally, the 1970 TV movie San Francisco International, directed by John Llewellyn Moxey, features Pernell Roberts as an airport manager. What ties them together is the fact that all are equally worthy of ridicule, which is here peppered with pop arcana and showbiz trivia. Although carefully crafted by a clever writing staff, the nonstop riffing on dialogue, action, characters, acting, and the preposterousness of the plots comes across as completely improvised. MST3K is a cult classic ripe for continual discovery by new generations of fans. Compiling four episodes from 1992-94, extras include featurettes on the films. Recommended. (T. Fry)