The 5 Funniest Episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000

ByRemy Carreiro Posted on

Puma Man

I believe that one of the things that made MST3K so great was that it hit big right before the big “politically correct” movement of the late nineties, that ensured everyone being sweet and sensitive to each other’s needs. These jokes are rarely politically correct, but they sure as hell are funny, and that is why we watch funny things, right?  To laugh? Not to worry constantly about who may be getting offended.

Puma Man is another great example of a film I now love that I would have never known about if it were not for the MST3K guys and their constant need to redefine terrible films for us all. Even without these guys doing dialogue over it, this film has my very favorite special effect of all time in it, when the lead character falls out of the window. The special effects in this scene are so terrible, 60s’ era Batman TV show watched it and said: Come on guys, even WE try harder than that, and our Joker has a mustache.

Puma Man also flies in what may very well be the most awkward method of flight we have ever seen, and we have seen an albatross fly, so that it has to be pretty extreme.

I genuinely hope Superman flies like this in the forthcoming reboot.

Outside of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, do you think there is a modern show that would pull off as many cultural jokes as this one did in this episode? I don’t know too many Aztecs, but I imagine even they would find this episode incredibly funny.

Best Riff: The Aztec gags

The Final Sacrifice

Outside of Denny in The Room, I honestly do not feel like there is a more awkward character who has ever been on screen than the lead in this movie. He is the kind of kid who you just want to punch in the face. Honestly, I am a pretty passive person, and this kid fills me with the kind of seething hatred that only klan members and republicans can muster in me. But, being as astute as they are, this is a fact that the MST3K guys pick up on right away and they have no problem playing with.

This is Rowsdower: It is like Kenny powers had a baby with with Chuck Norris, and Ron Swanson is the grandfather.

The real reason this is on here, though. Is Rowsdower. Rowsdower might be one of the best running gags in MST3K history, and everything about him is just so terrible, yet terribly awesome, that no matter how hard you try, you cannot look away. Much like the above caption indicates, Rowsdower is less of  man and more of a pure force of testosterone driven nature. He really is like Kenny Powers with none of the talent and 70% less charisma. Oddly, I find him entrancing.

Also, this is the riff that pretty much cemented the fact that I am definitely going to name my son Zap, if I ever have one.

Zap, middle name Rowsdower.

And now, when I say something really cool, or do something epic, I tell people they just got “Rowsdower’d”.

Best Riff: Rowsdower, obviously.

Unlike a lot of comedy movies and old episodes of sitcoms, these episodes are consistently funny, year after year. I have seen most of these episodes at least a dozen times each, and every time, my sides ache and I look like I was crying afterwards.

So do yourself a favor and pop on over to their site and check out some of the riffs. The stuff is witty, smart, and consistent. And after the guys stopped doing the MSt3K stuff, they started riffing on modern movies. They call themselves RIFFTRAX now, and if you think the MST3K stuff is funny, go watch the Harry Potter series, as riffed by these guys. It may be some of the funniest stuff I have ever seen. If you like to laugh, you owe it to yourself to become more familiar with MST3K and Rifftrax. Usually humor aimed at our (nerd) demographic can feel a little patronizing, but not with these guys.  They have truly mastered their craft.

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My name is Remy Carreiro and I live in New England, where most of my time is spent trying to summon the Great Old Ones, like Cthulhu. When not writing for Unreality, I am writing for a slew of other sites, and working primarily on unending music and art projects. I am not married but I have a beautiful young lady in my basement, errr, life, whom I love very much. When not focused on those things, I play video games and watch movies. I am EXACTLY what my parents feared I would become, and I take pride in that.

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29 Comments

  1. This is and was my favorite show of all time. Did you know that their dvd’s are actually set up for you to copy them? They have absolutely know antipiracy measures and actually encourage you to copy them. I want this show back so bad and I know it kind of lives on with Mike Nelsons Riff Tracks but it is not the same.

  8. Ugh I love MST3k! I miss it dearly, but the same guys (Mike, Crow, Servo) riff modern movies over at Rifftrax.

    No ‘Time Chasers’? The story of an uderwhelming hero who can fly back in time and features a library as the villain’s lair! That’s my absolute favorite, possibly because the creators gave them the rights to the movie before knowing they were going to be made fun of.

  9. My favorite was the Leech Lake episode in which the dumbest townspeople are sent to blow up the monsters in the lake because they’re expendable. The guys sing a song about it (“We’re a Danger to Ourselves and Others”) which includes the following line in the chorus:

    “How dumb are we, Uncle Dad?”

  11. This list is incorrect, you have at least one episode with Mike instead of Joel, and therefore, can NOT be one of the best. Sorry, but you are wrong.

  12. Laserblast is one of my favorites.

    Also, anyone who wants to continue to get their MST3k fix can listen to the guys on RiffTrax. They rip on current movies (sans the robots and pseudonyms) and it’s just as funny.

    “The Day After Tomorrow” and “Willy Wonka” stand out (WW&TCF is the original and has NPH ripping on the flick!) An additional one to check out is: “Birdemic: Shock and Terror” one of the worst movies of all time made in 2010.

  14. Hahaha, I love it! This show brings the fans to the surface! I honestly wanted to list more, but I pretended this article was an introduction for people who hadn’t seen the show, so I kept it small and easily contained.
    @ Bob, funny you say that. My intro paragraph (honestly) had a section debating the Mike versus Joel ( which is a very hot button topic for us fans) but I decided it watered the whole intro down a little too much, so I took it out. That, my friend, is a great debate, and one that has no right or wrong answer. I am a Mike guy myself, but I have a shit-ton of respect for Joel, because it is his baby. But hey, even Joel admits Mike is better on camera, so there you go. I think Joel is a little more cerebral, usually, and Mike is easier as a pick up and go kind of treat. Did any of that make sense? I hope so. When all else fails, ROWSDOWER! * runs out of the room

  16. I think Mitchell was a pretty great episode. Joe Don Baker is just a mess in that movie and you get Joel and Mike in that episode. What more could you want?

  17. If you loved the show will love RIFFTRAX.com. The MST3K crew now does modern movies. They get around the licensing fees by just recording an audio track that you sync with your own copy of the movie. Most of there rifftracks are around $3. Both Star Wars trilogies will make you hurt. a lot.

  19. A lot of mst3k is on Netflix I Recently watched one I’ve never seen before simply titled werewolf. Definitely one of their funniest episodes I couldn’t imagine making a top 5 list tho there is just too many classic episodes.

  21. This is my favorite show of all time. My username is actually taken from the MST3K movie. (“Wait, Meechum!” -Character in movie. “You’re holding a mutant turd!” -Crow. Favorite line in the movie) I own all the volumes that are currently out on DVD and actually watch one just about every night before bed. I will say this, while the show is an absolute laugh riot, nothing can put me to sleep faster save for mixing prescription drugs and alcohol.

  23. Wow. The only way I even got through Manos was because of MST3k. And even then, barely. My favorite movie (but I have yet to see them all) Is Fugitive Alien II. That forklift song just kills it. I love that. I call them “boomerang jokes” when they come back over and over and that’s why it’s funny. Those are my favorite kind. I miss this show dearly. But, Rifftrax is great. I’ve watched Harry Potter, Twilight, Tremors… so funny.

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