Stars:
Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieau, and Frank Conniff
Writers:
Michael J. Nelson, Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieau, and Frank Conniff
Created
By: Joel Hodgson
Executive
Producers: Joel Hodgson and Jim Mallon
“The
Crawling Hand” Stars: Alan Hale, Jr., Peter Breck, and Kent Taylor
“The
Hellcats” Stars: Ros Hagen Dee Duffy, and Sharyn Kinzie
MST3K
Feature length: 98 minutes/Non-MST3K Uncut Versions: 88 minutes/84minutes
Extras:
Uncut Version Of The Films and Original Theatrical Trailer For Uncut Version Of
The Films
Languages:
English Stereo and Monaural
Subtitles:
N/A
Packaging:
Amaray Keep Cases
The
Crawling Hand Chapter Stops: 20/12
The
Hellcats Chapter Stops: 20/12
Sound:
Stereo and Monaural
Year
of Television Broadcasts: 1989/1990/DVD Release: 2002
Home
Video Distributor: Rhino Home Video
MPAA
Rating: Not Rated
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
MST3K
fans, Rhino Home Video has released two more volumes of the cult series that has
appeared on Cable Television’s “Comedy Central” and “The Sci-Fi
Channel.” These two volumes are from the show’s earlier days. In fact in
“The Crawling Hand episode Frank Conniff had not yet appeared on the show and
the evil mad Dr. Clayton Forrester’s assistant is named Larry. This particular
episode is interesting because it shows how the series began with a slightly
different opening credit sequence and Tom Servo’s voice is different too. The
set for the “Satellite Of Love” is somewhat simpler in appearance and while
this may be a result of the film used to make fun of or simply not my taste, the
comedy both on screen and the jabs Joel and his robot friends make just don’t
seem as funny as some of the other episodes I have seen both on DVD and on
cable. I am inclined to think that this first season episode are from a time
when the writers, puppeteers, talent, and producers will still experimenting to
see what worked and what did not work more than anything else. I am not even
sure if this was an episode produced for public access television in
Minneapolis, which is where the show was produced. Joel even describes the
premise right at the beginning to the viewers as if the show were still new.
Anyway,
Rhino Home Video had released “The Crawling Hand” last year on DVD just in
time for Halloween, but for b-movie fans and MST3K fans, this new release from
Rhino is the one to buy since viewers get the entire MST3K episode complete with
the original theatrical trailer on one side and the uncut non-MST3K version of
“The Crawling Hand” on the other. The same holds true for “The
Hellcats.”
“The
Hellcats” episode is a much better installment mostly because this is the
MST3K fans of the series will arguably remember as the show’s golden age when
it was just catching on and airing on “Comedy Central.” I remember this
vividly because I did an internship at HBO Downtown Productions in Manhattan
during the summer of 1991 and one of the shows I worked on during that summer
had Joel on as a guest. HBO and MTV had merged their two fledgling cable comedy
networks at the time to form “Comedy Central.” MST3K was a series that aired
on the Time Warner owned “Comedy Channel” before it merged with “Ha!,”
which was the Viacom MTV counterpart. So it was no surprised that HBO would have
Joel Hodgson on as a guest since it had aired MST3K long before the merger.
There
are just more humorous jokes and talkbacks done with “The Hellcats” on a
broader scale than on “The Crawling Hand.” One has to remember that part of
the appeal of “Mystery Science
Theater 3000” was the mix of contemporary and obscure references that made the
show funny for viewers across many walks of life.
As
far as picture and sound quality are concerned, both discs look pretty good
considering the shows were taped with analogue cameras over ten years ago and
well these b-movies are not restored for DVD so do not expect great transfers
for the uncut non-MST3K versions. The MST3K episodes feature English Stereo
Sound while the uncut films are presented with English Two-Channel Monaural
Soundtracks.
The
menus for the MST3K versions feature full motion video scene selections and
animated transitions while the uncut non-MST3K versions feature standard
interactive still frame menus that are easy to navigate.
“Mystery
Science Theater 3000” “The Crawling Hand” and “The Hellcats” are
available on DVD-Video now sold separately from Rhino Home Video.
©
Copyright 2002 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.