Product Description

Space travelers Joel Robinson, Mike Nelson, Tom Servo, Gypsy, and Crow mock B-movies sent to them by mad scientist Dr. Clayton Forrester.

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Product Details

Publisher	Shout! Factory
Number Of Discs	4
Format	DVD Box set Color DVD Full Screen NTSC
MPN	826663116779
Brand	Universal Studios
EAN	0826663116779
Directed By	Kevin Murphy
Release Date	2010-03-16
Label	Shout! Factory
UPC	826663116779
Region Code	1
Title	Mystery Science Theater 3000, Vol. XVII (The Crawling Eye / The Beatniks / The Final Sacrifice / Blood Waters of Dr. Z)
Studio	Shout! Factory
Starring	Joel Hodgson,Michael J. Nelson,Kevin Murphy,Bill Corbett
Running Time	400 minutes
MPAA Rating	Unrated
Aspect Ratio	1.33:1
Manufacturer	Shout! Factory

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Customer Reviews

MST3K, Vol. XVII

Review by jw4, 2010-08-23

This is totally worth the purchase just to own "The Final Sacrifice." It's one of the best episodes in the series!

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"The formula they all laughed at!"

Review by Andrew McCaffrey, 2010-07-03

Introduction

When the twentieth anniversary box set of MST3k DVDs was announced, there were two omissions in particular which seemed to irk a vocal minority of fans. MST3k's first episode seemed to be an obvious inclusion and fans had long wanted to see THE FINAL SACRIFICE. That box set did not contain those episodes, but this one does. As they say, better late than never.


THE CRAWLING EYE (1958)

Here it is, at last. The first national episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Until now I had never actually watched this one. I was looking forward to seeing how they explain the premise of the series, but it turns out that most of the information is intended to be conveyed only in the opening theme song. I did like that they never bother explaining why they do the invention exchange. And I couldn't help but chuckle when Joel says "This is the last time," when carrying Tom Servo into the theater. Joel and Mike would carry Tom into the theater for the next ten years.

As Joel points out in the (newly filmed) introduction, the riffing is slower than what MST3k would do in later seasons, but it seemed to be a little quicker and livelier compared to other first season episodes (THE ROBOT VS. THE AZTEC MUMMY or THE CORPSE VANISHES). Still, a lot of opportunities for jokes are missed. For example, characters in the movie repeatedly say "Just like..." and then pause; I kept waiting for a "Sister Ray says..." The MST3k characters themselves aren't fully developed yet (despite having one season at a local Minneapolis station under their belts). Dr. Forrester seems to be the only fully complete character.

Truthfully, I wouldn't mind seeing this one tackled by Joel Hodgson's current Cinematic Titanic. The quick gag they do based on Forrest Tucker's name in the final episode of MST3k ten years later (where they briefly watch this movie again) is probably as funny as any riff delivered here.

The film itself is a fairly typical 1950s sci-fi B-movie. It felt to me like a Patrick Troughton era episode of Doctor Who minus the character of the Doctor. It features the absolutely ludicrous shot of a gigantic eyeball speeding around a mountainside which would enter into MST3k's opening credits and (as Joel points out) give an instant visual shorthand as to the types of movies Joel and the bots would be subjected to.


THE BEATNIKS (1960)

I had not seen this episode of MST3k before getting the DVD, but I had previously seen the original movie itself and been outraged by the lack of beatniks in a movie called THE BEATNIKS. The movie is fairly dull and unoriginal. Most of the plot points are signposted well in advance so there really isn't anything to get overly excited about. I honestly wouldn't describe the riffing and gags as anything more than an average outing for Best Brains, but it's a solid, fun episode.

An episode of "General Hospital" is included for your convenience.


THE FINAL SACRIFICE (1990)

A fan favorite for years, it's great to finally get this one on DVD (especially after a representative from Shout! Factory had once declared in a fan interview that it was unlikely that this movie would ever see the light of day because of legal/rights issues). This is really a fun episode to watch because the underlying film is a wonderful combination of fresh-faced enthusiasm mixed with utter ineptitude resulting in enjoyable ridiculousness.


BLOOD WATERS OF DR. Z (1975)

I watched this episode when the Sci-Fi channel first aired it. I hated it. I know I recorded the episode on VHS, but I'm not sure I ever watched it again. I thought the movie itself was so bad, so slow, and so painful that the jokes and the riffing couldn't manage to make it watchable. Literally my only memory of this was a guy dressed as a human-sized catfish walking up and down the same flight of basement stairs seemingly hundreds of times.

So I'm as shocked as anyone to find that this episode turned out (over ten years later) to be my favorite disc in the set. Sure the whole movie is populated with a parade of characters who have no last names (or in some cases no first name either), and, yes, the main character's evil scheme is the most illogical, implausible attempt at villainy that the movies have ever seen. But somehow now I am able to laugh at the sheer madness of it all rather than being overwhelmed and depressed by it. The riffs from Mike and the bots are an example of the cast and crew really at the top of their game, mixing pop culture references and observations, managing to puncture the film's attempted pretentiousness seemingly without breaking a sweat.


Stinger

Another strong effort from Shout! Factory. Can't wait for the next one.

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Mystery Science Theater

Review by H. Hurlbut, 2010-06-04

I bought this as a present for my husband and he hasn't stopped talking about it. Blood Waters of Dr. Z and the Final Sacrifice were his favorite. He laughed until he cried.

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An overall let down for a true fan...

Review by Cajun J, 2010-05-29

The crawling eye is the problem. It was before Servo was Servo, another guy does the voice. I don't know his name, but he is not good. His deep voice, and poor delivery make it clear that he had to go.

If you are a fan, I suppose it's worth buying to complete the collection. But, it's not worthy of the money. I am an MST3K lover from waaay back, but I am not letting my loyalty get in the way of this review. Every fan who put down 4 or 5 stars is not being honest.

Individual Movie Ratings:

- Crawling Eye - 2 stars
- The Beatniks - 4 Stars
- The Waters of Dr. Z - 3 Stars
- The Final Sacrific - 3 Stars

The mini posters are cool though.

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A box set... or something more?

Review by Lleland Abernathy, 2010-05-26

As far as DVD box sets go, this is surely one of them. While others might choose to criticise it's uniformity in shape and let's say adherence to broadcast TV "standards" as a flaw. I instead appreciate the complexity of these "flaws" as they are a perfect fit for my off brand DVD player.

This DVD Box set of Mystery Science Theater may rock your world, or not.
It's just a TV show don't worry about all that science stuff.
It's up to you.
Sit back, enjoy the show.
It's Mystery Science Theater 3000.

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