MST3k: Broken Down

FINALLY! This is what they should have been making since the beginning. If they had made this four cartoons ago, Jim wouldn't have faced as much mocking and ridicule among MSTies.

Today's cartoon, which is the first in 3 or 4 months, is actually clever. We start in some room that I guess is suppose to be some kind of play room. I'm not sure where this is on the ship but it doesn't really matter. Gypsy is malfunctioning, and Tom and Crow try to figure out what's wrong with her. The only problem is that they're too involved in their own activities to do anything about it. Tom is riding a train around, while Crow has his body wrapped around a boat on a bathtub.

It doesn't take long before you see what the cartoon is about. The boat looks like a certain doomed superliner while Tom's train has the word "Riff" on it. (Get it? Riff...tracks) The fact that the character played by Gypsy is malfunctioning shows that the writers (but mostly Mallon) are admitting that the cartoon had sucked when it debuted back in November. Or October. Whatever. If they can make more cartoons like this, fans may eventually warm up to this addition to the MST3k lore.

Even the little details are great. Crow's boat is really slow, while Servo's train circles around very quickly. I loved how Servo's train ran on bacon, a joke you would get if you read the Rifftrax blog. My favorite line? "You didn't hear about no guy drownin' out there, did you?"

The characters still look the same, but they must have paid someone an extra 50 bucks because the animation seems a bit smoother. Paul Chaplin turned in a fine Crow. He's no Trace or Bill, but he's better than given credit for. As for Servo, the guy who plays him is still hard to get used to. I'm trying to adjust to him but it's real difficult. Still, it's much easier with material like this and not dumb material like solitaire and comparisons.

Meanwhile in the video section, which I admit to not seeing in a while, has one of the all-time classic MST3k host segments. I wasn't a big fan of the short "Last Clear Chance", but the host segment where they made fun of it is hilarious. "A little bit, with just a little bit of mayo and a little bit of salami..."





Grade: B- More like this, please.


Edit: For some reason, the cartoon is down. I wish I had grabbed a screen pic earlier. Stupid computer.