First shown: 5/31/97
Opening: Tom shows spirit, but Mike and Crow only offer MRxL
Intro: The campers recall their trip, Tom portages and Pearl shares some pod-like “zucchini”
Host segment 1: Pod-Gypsy suggests sleep, but Mike is suspicious
Host segment 2: Mike and the bots try to stay awake, while Bobo is skeptical
Host segment 3: Pod-Servo seems convincing, until asked about his “collection”
End: Bobo saves the day, but Pearl declares movie sign again!
Stinger: Pthpthpthp!
(152 votes, average: 4.68 out of 5)
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• At last. With this episode you can sense that the channel begins to trust BBI more, and the result is the first of a memorable stretch of episodes. We get the first color movie of the Sci-Fi Channel era, and what a movie! A real departure from the sameness of the film choices up to this point. The segments playfully take on another classic sci-fi trope and the riffing is top-of-the-line, featuring many memorable lines. All-in-all a landmark, breakthrough episode.
• Get Paul’s rather dyspeptic take here, which includes some mild satirical slander to which director Bill Rebane himself, in humorless email to us not long ago, took personal offense, causing us to add a disclaimer.
• References.
• Callback: “Down and down…” (The Mole People), “Somebody tampered in God’s domain,” (Bride of the Monster), “Did you beef?” (I Was a Teenage Werewolf).
• During the intro, Tom gets even for getting clobbered during the very similar “board routine” in episode 614- San Francisco International.
• Of course, “Invasion of the Body Snatchers’” (and other pod-based horror movies) have their turn at being parodied.
• Daleism: As the we see the dying girl’s hand: “He thought I was Dale!”
• When amped-up Tom Crow is in the theater, a heart beating sound effect continues for several minutes.
• Those who’d never seen “MST3K: The Movie” were probably baffled by the host segment reference to Tom Servo’s underwear collection.
• Of course, the cry “PACKERS!!!!” became an immediate catchphrase.
• Fave riff: “I hate it when a movie kills off a beloved character…this is great, though!”
The movie theater seen in the background of the big crowd sequence toward the end of the movie is the Cosmo Theatre in beautiful downtown Merrill, Wisconsin. I lived there for about 6 years. The theater is one of the best small town theaters you’ll ever want to go to. The big tub of popcorn is still only $3 and they use real coconut oil. My wife grew up in the area and wanted to be in the crowd scene (she would have been 9 at the time) but her parents wouldn’t let her.
Ah, the wonderful world of Color!
What’s that? Repeat everything you say to give exposition?
A very good episode, all around. Really like the host segments, the riffing was great, and did I mention that the film was in color? All 16 colors allowed in the 1970s, but color, none the less.
Poor mixed-up Ev. Picked herself a winner, that’s for sure. So, was that farm Ev’s family farm, thus why the sister was there, too? Maybe why she pokes at her husband, about the farm not doing well, since he started running it.
Ah boy, talk about bad science! Lethal radiation levels at the site of impact, which also contains a black hole, but people, including the scientists who warn of the dangerous radiation levels, freely walk inches from the opening and handle the geodes found there. And their use of the Geiger counter really piddled out, didn’t it? They didn’t even think to use it at the site of the impact.
I question Cousin Billy’s credibility.
I guess women just can get enough of hillbillies in red long-john underwear.
The giant spider had almost no features or details at all. Legs, two red eyes (?) and a couple of spinnerets. The special effects guy really needed a lesson in making a movie monster. If you stuck a smile on that thing, he could host a kids show.
Want a piece of milk?
I must say, that panty-wearing sister just didn’t get enough screen time. Alan Hale got too much screen time. I would love to have seen Alan Hale hit the spider with his hat, and say Doop!
Crow’s Like A Rock bit always bothered me, because that was Chevy’s truck slogan for years, while the truck featured clearly shows Ford on the tailgate.
Oh, and Sampo, you talk about ‘amped-up Tom’, but it was Crow. SSSSSSSUUURRRRGGGGGEE!!
Now, if only the Incredible Melting Man had been in the area, we could have seen a great battle royale! Hmm Maybe that spider passed thru the rings of Saturn while looking at the sun?
You know, it’s true:I won’t soon forget when the thing they don’t know what it was was put into the helicopter by the guy they didn’t know.
This film hate us. Ramps us the repulsion. Lay off the booze. I always laugh when the drunk lady runs toward the cabin and they say help mr lincoln. Abe! Packers! won the super bowl. Surge! This is when they started the surge erefernce. i used top drink that soda. i liked it. Whatever happned to it? This is one fo those films that feels like what the making of this film was like.
Good story Revlillo, I’m also from Wisconsin and the “Go Packers, whooo!” cry always gets a laugh. Good episode, especially seeing Alan Hale play the town sherrif dressed extremely sloppy.
“Yer hittin’ the BOOZE agin!” And, I just have to say, the Menard’s riffs kill me every time. “It’s a giant spider invasion of savings at MENARDS!!”…et al. Is it true that we can no longer purchase the catchphrase t-shirts with that reference?
All I can say about this ep is…
I love tick-infested hounds, slaughterin’ deer, and beer.
Oh, this is a regular for me in the DVD player. Starts off with a great sketch. “Give me a P!” “What’s in it for us?” Then moves on to a wonderfully loathsome little film with plenty to hang its hook on. “Go, wattle-man.” “Brett Favre at home.” And the jokes on the spider (which, for those of you who didn’t know, is a VW minibus under all that foam and felt) are priceless.
Thanks to this episode I have occasionally tossed references to Menard’s to my midwestern-originated friends. Those who like the show understand why a person who’s never lived nearer Wisconsin than is Albany, New York, and who spent the better part of a decade in Singapore where Menards is just a dim notion (and a cosmetics shop) and MST3K itself barely appears in the DVD stores although it’s got fans still, might have any thoughts about Menards at all.
I finally actually saw a Menards visiting a friend back in June while on the way to Cedar Point, but we didn’t go in. No spiders of any size were noted.
The Un-MiSTed Giant Spider Invasion turns up on Turner Classic Movies’s “TCM Underground” Friday nights now and then, where it seems longer but nothing further seems to happen. I think they have more stuff about the plane crash where AOL tries to keep up.
Crow was amped-up up, not Tom.
They are throw pillows.
And now we start a solid stretch of “quality” episodes. Even Mike and the bots seems a bit stunned to see a color film in front of them. But as we know, color doesn’t mean that it will be better. The real trick is to see if it kicks the dreariness that infected many of the previous films.
Things don’t start off promisingly, it’s a 70’s flick. If there was a decade that managed to be colorful and dreary at the same time, it was the 70’s. But my fears were put aside when I saw the name Alan Hale Jr. on the screen. Good ol Skipper is always good for some riffing. Right away it becomes very clear that this one inept film. Cutting between a falling object from space, a preacher yowling away and a cracker couple bickering – I was reminded of a red neck version of “Pod People”. This movie isn’t as incoherent, but it also lacks Trumpy. Quickly we are shown several repulsive humans (some of them I’m not sure are supposed to be repulsive), lame attempts at humor, and pant suits galore. When the giant spider finally appears it’s impressive bulk is hilarious, as are the scenes where it devours people. Clueless screechy scientists roll in the grass and Charlie Manson get’s eaten. The movie quickly spirals into riots, dark photography and an ending that still confuses the heck out of me. Then director Rebane seems to have some kind of stupid religious comment to make with the preacher, but it’s just as pointless as Arch Hall Sr.’s quote of the Bible in “Eegah”. At last – a truly horrible film with plenty of fodder to work with.
Mike and bots are ready and raring to go and they unleash on the film. The cracker couple provides plenty of laughs with one of the most loathsome characters ever to grace the screen. I think the back-brace wearing farmer would find good company with Torgo. Nearly all the comments made at his expense were hilarious. All the characters provide some kind of humor outlet, either in their clothing, acting, reactions or looks. There isn’t a bland performance in the bunch and it works just fine for the riffing, especially when the scientist get’s her screech going at the end. Of course, the spider scenes are a gold mine of comedy. Most of the spiders get the patented “gruff voice” which they reserve for giant creatures (used to great effect in “Giant Gila Monster”). And this episode gave us PACKERS!!!!, for which I am eternally grateful. I’ve used that riff on countless occasions – at work and at home. Try it, won’t you? The riffing is pretty constant in this one and nearly all of it is funny. Nothing was fall on the floor funny, but the ratio of laughs on this one is higher than it has been since “The Undead”.
The host segments work well too. I actually enjoy their take on the Body Snatchers more than last week’s Alien parody. Lots of silliness and of course Bobo saves the universe as only Bobo can. We get one of my favorite Crow moments where the poor bot is so high on caffeine that he’s vibrating, bug eyed and his heart is audibly pounding. SURRRGGGEEEE!!!! We also get a detailed inventory of Servo’s underpants collection, so that always key.
If I hadn’t stopped watching after “Terror from the Year 5000” I would have felt that this episode was the first one that felt like the old show. The movie is wretched, the riffing is solidly funny and host segments are entertaining. Not a full blown top notch episode, but I give “The Giant Spider Invasion” four solid gold stars found in this here geode.
Oh to see the Spider now, click here:
http://roberthood.net/blog/index.php/2008/09/01/giant-spider-graveyard/
“Monster-a-Go-Go,” of course, was the other Rebane film that MST 3K did, the difference being that “Monster” was taken away from Rebane by Herschell Gordon Lewis and recut with additionally filmed scenes that made it even more tedious and incomprehensible. Here, Rebane himself is entirely responsible for this fiasco. The similarities between the two films include:
1) The “Lucky Man” synthesizer whoop (I just love MST’s references to that song)
2) The helicopter pilot who talks like Charlie Brown’s parents
3) “But Mr. Rebane, you really can’t see anything!”
4) A scientist offering some incomprehensible and tedious solution to a crisis while unseeable “madness” goes on around them
5) Strange sets masquerading as laboratories — “Why are they in a laundromat?” in “Monster” and “Mrs. Herzberger’s third period bio class” in “Spider”
So this puts the lie to poor Tom’s exclamation at the end of “Monster” that “none of the people in this stinkburger ever went on to do anything else.”
Poor Alan Hale. Poor Barbara Hale. You can understand why, later in their careers, they preferred to do TV movies based on their classic shows.
Oh, and Gypsy’s lullaby is hilarious. We still sing it around our apartment sometimes. “Let an evil superconsciousness swallow you whole…”
this ep pretty much has it all.
you rolled on me!
There goes the last shred of dignity.
As I mentioned somewhere else, when Della Street and Steve brodie are rolling down the hill is anyone else waiting for Prince Humperdink to appear?
And who is a less likeable character
a) Robert Easton (Dan Kestor) or Boggy creek II’s suspender guy
b) Alan Hale, Jr. in this or in Angel’s Revenge? (And wouldn’t it have been easy to get rid of the spiders if he’s have had the Professor make a bomb out of coconuts?)
When shown in a movie theater I wonder if anyone was NOT cheering for the spider when it went after cousin Billy.
Oh yeah, and PACKERS, WOOOOO!!!
@ Michael (#9) I concur. It was most certainly Crow who was amped up on Jolt and Surge and whatnot. I distinctly remember the bloodshot ping pong ball eyes.
I’m going to be in the minority here, but I felt like, after a slight break in the previous episode from the deadly dull gray movies, we slipped right back into it with this one.
I can’t stay interested in the movie long enough to have any idea what’s going on, and the scenes with Alan Hale are almost too embarrassing to watch. (He does give it his all, though, despite the material.)
Normally, this would make a wonderful feast for M&tB to dive into, but I can’t get into this one.
The pod host segments are pretty amusing, though. Gypsy’s song is great.
Always had a soft spot for this one. Could be because much of my family are Packer fans and in a house with 5 teenagers, you can imagine how long this catchphrase lasted (hint: It’s still heard whenever two or more are gathered).
It could be just my youthfulness, but I never realized the “Hitting the BOOZE again” guy was an actual actor in quite a few things. He was the Maestro in Get Smart for the Don Rickles two-parter, as well as the Beverly Hillbillies (TV show and later movie) and Primary Colors. According to IMDB, he’s still working. Good to know.
I don’t know why, but Bobo waving the fish derisively at MaTB is one of my favorite quick visuals from the host segments of the Sci-Fi era.
Screenplay by Robert Easton?
For some reason, the interrelationship between the different characters cracks me up. The Hittin’ The Booze lady is calling Dutch for booze early in the movie. Dutch’s waitress is the part-time hooker for the Viking guy. The Viking tries to unload his tainted beef to Dutch.
“He’s pink!”
Dated joke: a young Bill and Hillary. Dated because we probably don’t remember that the anti-Clinton jokes at the time were based on them being white trash hillbillies from Arkanasas (and not them as snooty elitists).
Something struck me while watching this episode (falls under “should really just relax”). Since the SoL is orbiting the camping planet, several hundred years in our future… who is Mike saying “We’ll be right back” to when they go to commercial?
“He’s got a hatchet wound!”
“Snap, crackle, poop.” — Laughed uncontrollably when this episode first aired. Still laugh at it.
Still confused about what the meteoroid does. Cobwebs are popping up everywhere… Did the giant spider come to earth and activate the local spiders into a killing army? Or is the giant spider just a regular Earth spider that grew?
“Welcome to Hooters…” — Hah! Never noticed this the first million times I watched this episode.
“I made a ‘R’!”
Who misses Surge?
Who uses a blender to mix tomato juice and vodka? And if you look, she starts the day drinking beer, switches to straight vodka and then to a Bloody Mary and then a whiskey(?) before bed. Man, that would be one hell of a bad hangover…
Usually it doesn’t bother me, but I really got annoyed at how the movie’s timeline went. Day scenes / night scenes. There’s a school visiting a planetarium at seven in the morning? When the Viking guy goes to see Cousin Billy, does he stay in the town overnight, or was the hooker scene just dark for no reason?
“Good-BYE, Dave!”
“Audiences won’t soon forget when the thing we didn’t know what it was was put in the helicopter by the guy we didn’t know.” Man, how many times could they have used a variation of this riff in a bizarre, nonsensical scene?
Overall, one of my favorite episodes. Go Packers.
Love this one! What the hell kind of agent did Steve Brodie have that he was still doing this crap this many years after “The Wild, Wild World of Batwoman?”
The episode-length “Body Snatchers” parody is great- although seeing as it followed an episode-length “Alien” parody makes this not really a ‘breakthrough’ episode. A ton of great Bobo moments, though…
Bobo: I got bit by a rattle-snake in a very embarrassing place, had to suck the poison out myself…
Pearl: I’ll never eat again.
Bobo: No, it’s John Schuck on a bad hair day- Of course it’s me!
Bobo: Should we assimilate the monkey? No, the monkey’s got a red butt!
This episode marked a milestone in my life- The first time this episode aired, I was riffing along with the guys and when it got to the scene where Back brace Man takes the hot rocks to his cousin I said “Charles Manson: Jeweler”… about two minutes before Mike made the EXACT same joke! I felt pretty proud.
Anyhoo, on to the riffs!
THE GIANT SPIDER INVASION
Mike: Hey, it’s a giant spider invasion of savings at Menard’s!
Tom: Oh, this is when all those spider singers came over from Great Britain!
Crow: Oh, don’t act with your tongue, Alan!
Mike: I gotta go drain the Little Buddy…
Crow (on Alan Hale answering phone): Pork Vacuum- I mean, Sheriff!
Crow: Ooooh, he stood up, he’s gotta get hazard pay for that!
“I’m Jenny Langer.”
Crow: Smoker, Coffee Drinker.
Mike: The movie that takes the bold step of not including the audience!
“Man can’t have any peace in his own house!”
Mike: Well, Section 8 owns the house…
Crow: I love summer in Wisconsin, meat rotting in the fields…
“You’re so dumb you wouldn’t know rabbit turds from Rice Krispees!”
Crow: Snap Crackle Poop!
Mike: You know, they’re poor only in money… And spirit… And dignity, and moral fiber, and hygiene…
Mike: They saved a lot buying the old Gein place.
Crow: Well, guess I better move Grandma’s body out of the den…
Tom: Mork from Ork was rushed to St. Mary’s but pronounced dead on arrival.
“Well, frankly speaking, Doctor…”
Crow: I want to see that jumpsuit hit the floor!
Tom: I’m gonna pre-bury myself to save time after I die!
Crow: I’d like to say a few words- Uh, this guy’s dead, the end.
Mike: You know, in her defense, laying off the booze would mean seeing him sober…
“He’ll find the diamonds- and all that grass we’re growin’!”
Tom: Lawns are illegal in Wisconsin?
“It looks like you could use a drink.”
Tom: And a shower, and a job.
“I found another body.”
Mike: Well good, yours is getting pretty gross.
“Another cow?”
“A human body.”
Crow: It was walking down the street and I killed it.
Tom: Yeah, and Dutch will only give me 39 cents a pound.
“It was chewed up worse than them cows.”
Mike: Funny, I used to like things like that…
Crow: Uh-oh, his hair started a grease fire!
“It’s a geode. It’s not from around here.”
Crow: Let’s beat it up!
“Just how good are these diamonds?”
Tom: Are they worth two months of my welfare checks?
“Sheriff, if your stomach can handle it–”
Mike: I’d like to show you my vasectomy scar.
Crow: I hate it when a movie kills off a beloved character… This is great, though.
Mike: I can’t wait to tell my friends about this- Oh, wait, I’m a friendless drifter.
Tom: Oh, like he’d resist anything near his pants!
Mike: Johnny Crappleseed.
Crow: Paul Infected Bunion
Tom: Old MacDonald had a cyst…
“Well if it’s the same aunt as last night, she left a hickey on your neck.”
Tom: My aunt is kd lang, okay?
Crow: So, Leatherface been around here lately?
Tom: Ah, greasy guys carrying unconscious girls, comfortable 2pm beer buzz- you homesick yet, Mike?
Tom: Does it matter that the spider ate him with his butt?
Mike: No, I think it seems suitable for this guy.
Crow: You know, the carnies are the most respected citizens in this town…
Mike: Is this going to be another case of a scientist declaring martial law?
Crow: Where’s John Agar when you need him?
Tom: I’m gonna squash your shoe under ME!
Crow: Ride the vomit rainbow! Swirling fans of Technicolor yawn splayed across the sky!
Tom: Audiences won’t soon forget when the thing we didn’t know what it was was put in the helicopter by the guy we didn’t know!
I was mistaken- THIS episode, not “Teenage Werewolf”, has Pearl talking about Observer “harvesting wild mushrooms with his mind, we sat by a crystal blue stream having mind-fried rainbow trout. Aw, it was heaven.”
Wow. I’d give this 7 stars if I could. Dammit! I’m just going to anyway!! I never knew the emotional weight that could be attached to “PACKERS”. The rabid excitement of a cheese-fueled mob frenzy, to the frightened lilt of “PACKERS?” at the sight of seeing fellow cheeseheads cut down in the prime of life, to the somberness of “GO PACKERS.” at the end of the film, where you wonder if mankind can truly be saved.
Tons of great riffing in this one, also. Almost too much good stuff to mention. But here I go anyway:
“…and the movie ramps up the repulsion.”
“Charles Manson- jeweler.”
“My waddle needs 5 more minutes.”
“Yeah, you can borrow my shirt.”
“Not an actual joke, but an incredible simulation!”
Ah! Now this is the kind of movie that was made for the MST treatment. Just perfectly awful.
Maybe it’s just because the rest of the movie is so bad, but one bit of actual cleverness amuses me. That’s when the jeweler dismisses the diamonds as industrial quality, then facetiously goes on, “If you had a bucket full of these… a BARREL full of these… you might be rich.” Of course, he doesn’t know that Kester probably does have that many.
It’s like, you watch the film charge its stupid way along, and then suddenly, it’s, “Hey, did the screenwriters just employ irony?!”
As an MST episode, I really enjoy it, because it moves pretty well, and has a lot of colorful grotesquerie for M&TB to riff on. Coming up in a couple of weeks, by contrast, is one of my least favorite, which… just… moves… so… slowly.
This has always been a favorite for me, and the riffs are timeless and spot on, in a 70′s sort of way.
If you can track down an original copy, you’ll soon see why the Brains cleaned it up here and there and why “Good people, salt of the earth!” makes so much sense.
Great episode indeed. Movie’s fun, host segments are good, they’re in a good groove.
BTW, TCM aired the original movie as part of their cult programming. I’ve had it on my DVR for months, but still haven’t managed to get past the first ten or so minutes…
Hm, Sampo I’m curious about the e-mail Rebane sent you. Are you sure he wasn’t just joking? I vaguely rmeember Bill Rebane saying in an interview years ago, that he liked what MST3K did for his films.
Or maybe he just hates Paul for some reason.
love Love LOVE this episode.
And yeah, we taped & watched the uncut Spider Invasion from TCM. Once.
IIRC, there was one flash of booby and more pointless plot.
There are a lot of movies MST has done that I can watch uncut with no problem, and even some actual pleasure, but some — like this one — practically cry out for the riffs.
I’ve seen the whole original movie, and I suppose you should be glad you only got in 10 minutes. Those additional scenes with Cousin Billy = Ick!
Whoah, step back everybody because it seems that what i’m about to say may blow your collective minds. I’ve seen this episode a good five or six times and i’ve never really thought it was that good. In fact, i think it’s rather medicore.
For my viewing for this week’s discussion, i thought i’d watch this one with a friend who has seen a good number of episodes but hadn’t seen this one. Both of us found the episode lacking. There are some good riffs scattered around the show but most of them fell flat for us (though I do have a soft spot for the “PACKERS!” riffs). The host segments didn’t do much either. I’d probably give this a 2.5 if I could but i’ll give a 3 instead. Not their best but the season REALLY takes off in a few episodes.
Ok, a couple of other things. When the name Leslie Parrish came up in the opening credits, M&tBs didn’t know who she was. Didn’t they remember she was in one of the eps of Star Trek:TOS? And she was Daisy Mae in the Lil’Abner movie. Now for something disturbing…when her character is ordering more BOOZE! over the phone (“that’s not the purpose of 911, ma’am”), doesn’t she say something like, “you’ll find me very appreciative when you get here”. Does that mean what I think it means? Or maybe I just don’t know the correct tip for an emergency BOOZE! delivery in crackerville. 15% or 20?
In a fun little twist, the booze lady is cheating on the Viking guy with Dutch while the Viking guy is cheating on the booze lady with Dutch’s waitress.
Say, just thought of something. They make fun of the shack by saying “Brett Favre at home” (formerly of Wisconsin). Then they make fun of the owner of the shack by saying “Our proud Viking heritage”. And just this year, Brett Favre became a Minnesota Viking. Coincidence? I think not.
#32: Doesn’t she say something like, “you’ll find me very appreciative when you get here” Does that mean what I think it means?
Well, consider she expressed a desire to “jump the bones” of a sixteen year old kid, I would say it does. I didn’t miss that either, especially on later viewings when I discovered who Dutch was.
Even though you’re probably supposed to feel a modicum of sympathy for Ev, she’s really a horrible person, just as shallow and greedy as her loathesome husband. Rebane had a magic touch, all right; it’s really amazing when you can make even the Skipper profoundly unlikable.
And speaking of the Skipper, here’s another odd moment: When Alan Hale has conversation with Dutch about “the limburger cheese smile” and “one of the loggers”… am I mistaken or did he just accuse Dutch of having a gay affair, especially since it’s on the heels of accusing Helga of dating one of said loggers? It’s a really peculiar exchange, which Mike and the bots seem too glad to attribute to “just random words.”
Wow, just looked this up. She was Lt. Palamas in “Who Mourns for Adonais?”. Yooowsa, she cleans up nice. Never would have spotted that without help.
VAAAAANCE!!!!!!
The scene where Vance rolls on top of Dr. Langer is hilarious, and the Brains give it the right treatment.
Overall, this is one of those episodes that is delightful to watch, despite the overall loathsomeness of the movie. The whole Invasion of the Body Snatchers thing they did in the jost segments was hilarious (Zucchini! Throw Pillows!), and Alan Hale as the sloppy unfunny sherriff is an easy target.
I immediately recognized Robert Easton from old episodes of the Beverly Hillbllies and the Munsters. He played slow talking hicks in both shows. He wasn’t anywhere near as disgusting in those shows as he was in this movie.
Great goofy movie without MST treatment and the gang were hitting on all cylinders when they did this one. The only thing missing was Bridget doing a skank parody! Robert Easten has to be the Sir Ian McKellen for loathsome hillbillies roles. I have to give ck @ 15 props though for his observation. Virtually every character is loathsome, greasy, moronic, skanky, bumbling, slovenly, parasitic, predatory, greedy, loutish, slattern, besotted or incompetent. Great direction!? Great casting!? An incredible Geshtalt!?
Loved David taking pot shots at the giant spider with his BB gun from a quater mile to save muscrat love! The rolling scientist scene was classic. Kestor and Cousin Billy are molester poster boys. Last, but not least, ‘yer hittin da BOOZE agin Ev!’
I have to give this one 4.75.
Ah, it’s been a while but this is an episode I can finally offer a full commentary on since the start of the season.
Movie:
* This is an episode I didn’t like very much to begin with, but grew with subsequent viewings.
* I saw The Touch of Satan before this and was actually excited to see Robert Easton again. I’m familiar with his career as a dialect coach and think he does a decent job as an actor.
* Given that most of my Sci-Fi episodes were obtained in out-of-order re-runs, it took a fair degree of research to figure out why Servo was excited to see this one in color.
* This marks Alan Hale’s third MST3K appearance and the second one where he’s placed in a dopey comic relief position. He actually has a very serious role in The Crawling Hand and, while still hammy, does a much more respectable job.
* On a related note, I also like Steve Brodie quite a bit (and he was also in Wild Wild World of Batwoman) mainly because he does a great job as Director Lucky Striker in The Wizard of Speed and Time, one of my all-time favorite movies.
* Has anyone ever figured out exactly who the “twin brother of Dutch” is at the end? He literally comes out of nowhere.
* Favorite riffs- Servo providing plenty:
Mike: “Then add the ribs-”
Crow: “I hate when a movie kills off a beloved character… This is great though!”
Servo: “A young Bill and Hilary struggle to make it!”
“I’m gonna pre-bury myself to save time after I die.”
“C’mon, moo! MOO, DAMMIT!”
Host Segments:
* Servo’s cheerleading routine has certainly discouraged me from ever asking Mike or Crow to do anything charitable.
* It must’ve been a nightmare for Kevin to get the portage board gag right while keeping the canoe balanced on Servo’s head. Poopie II confirms it.
* I wonder how many takes it took for Mary Jo and Bill to get the zucchini/throw pillow argument right too.
* Who played the mother pod? My guess is Paul.
* Favorite line: Gypsy’s lullaby.
#28 Brandon:
Mr. Rebane took issue, mostly, with Paul’s dismissive remarks about Barbara Hale. He was basically defending her honor. He also expressed irritation at Paul’s comments about Wisconsonites.
While he may have said some positive things about the episode, has has also attempted, in vain, to have it pulled, claiming he never gave permission for MST3K to use it. My sources tell me Rhino did in fact secure the rights to the movie properly.
Thank you, pearliemae (#32), for bringing up the oddness of M&TB failing to recognize Leslie Parrish — I remember feeling very sad about this because Trace, first-class STAR TREK fan that he is, would certainly have remembered her… to me it was just an added twist of the knife, a reminder that my favorite Brain had left the show. Why didn’t Mike remember her from THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE? Why didn’t Kevin remember her as Daisy Mae in LI’L ABNER? Ah well… Shows how ephemeral fame really is…
#34 Thomas:
That reminds me. In the scene where Brodie and Barbara sit down with the skipper and the kid reporter in the restuarant, at one point the skipper calls the kid away for little private sidebar. We never find out what this was about, do we? Or did it get cut by the Brains?
#41 Sampo: Actually it’s Steve Brodie who calls him away (“yeah, you can borrow my shirt”), and no, we never really know why Vance calls him away, because there’s no reason to suspect David knows anything more about the crisis than the goofy sheriff, especially since Vance just met him. When David and Vance come back, David’s next line is “I wonder if what happened to me and Terri had anything to do with this,” which really doesn’t follow.
It’s a upward climb for Season 8 from this episode onward–eh, well, there’s Devil Doll but even the smoothest uphill road sometimes has a pothole in it. That being said, I’m not a huge fan of this episode; I’ve seen it a few times but nothing really stands out except the host segments. Gypsy’s lullaby and Crow’s caffeine overdose are particularly funny moments. Otherwise it’s solid but not superb entertainment.
Oh, it did teach me one thing: if the people of backwoods Wisconsin weren’t drunken leches they wouldn’t have anything else to do–not until spiders from space came along, anyway.
Robert Easton is not only a well-known Hollywood dialect coach (check out his credits as such on the IMDB!), his most suprising credit – well, to me — is that he plays the Klingon Judge at the trial of Kirk and McCoy in Star Trek VI !
And since he’s credited with the screenplay for Giant Spider Invasion, I guess we have to assume that its elevated and spiritual view of humanity comes from him….
I love this one. I watched it with by Brother-in-law (who’s from Wisconsin) and he cackled and explained many of the local Wisconsin riffs. It was hysterical before that though.
Well…while I usually keep this kind of stuff to myself…here goes…
I can certainly see why there’s a disclaimer at the top of the episode guide page featuring Paul’s comments, and why Mr. Rebane would have cause to be (at least slightly) upset. Paul DOES seem to get a little too venomous in his blanket over-view of small town residents in general…and particularly Wisconsonites. (Being from a more or less “small town” in Oklahoma, I even find MYSELF slightly offended by some of his remarks.) And granted, while this movie role may not have exactly been the crown jewel in Barbara Hale’s career, he DID come across as just a little bit too personal and mean-spirited in his comments regarding her.
I know that Paul’s a really smart guy and all, but I think this was one instance where he failed to temper his intelligence with any sort of basic common sense, and like it or not, it tends to lower my opinion of him a wee bit. It’s one thing to be an intellectual…but quite another thing altogether to be an intellectual snob, which is how he comes across, at least in this instance.
That said…
I find that I enjoy this episode more every time I see it. SO many goofy elements for M&TB to grab hold of, it’s almost an embarassment of riches.
What’s that you say? Repeat what you say to provide exposition?
Oh Giant Spider Invasion, my love for thee runs high. As boxset 10.2 was the first I purchased within a week of MSTiedom, this one holds a close place in my heart. And, as my dad is from Wisconsin and I’ve taken only ten billions trips up there, the riffs run high.
So much so that this past Super Bowl, my dad and I hoveled in the basement and watched this episode, much to his delight. Then I loaned the boxset to my brother and his wife and this is their favorite as well. It’s a family affair, really.
A running gag in my tech club became the “Look! I made a ‘r’!” riff, since we would carve and write things on the back of stage flats. And let’s not forget “PACKERRRS!”, which has become a rallying cry between me and my friends.
Overall an awesomely awesome episode with one of my favorite sets of host segments.
“Snap, crackle, poop!”
I saw this movie (unriffed) one Saturday afternoon, many many years ago. Very little stood out for me, except for the scene with Easton’s character getting eaten…I remember it as being simultaneously gross and really stupid. Kind of sums up the whole movie, for me.
Thought the movie overall was greatly improved by the riffing, and enjoyed the host segments. What else can I say?
“PACKERS!”
This one ranks among my top ten favorite episodes of all time, and as Sampo aptly noted this begins a long stretch of terrific episodes, which in my opinion makes Season 8 amongst the very best in the show’s history.
Terrific host episodes spoofing the Invasion of the Body Snatchers, with my favorite being Crow digesting every caffeinated product he can to stay awake to the point where you can hear his heart beating loudly.
The riffing is outstanding throughout as Mike and the ‘Bots knock out one classic gem after another, many which have already been noted in earlier comments so I won’t waste space repeating them. Just a wonderfully funny episode.
Oh, and “PACKERS!!! WOOOOOOO!!!!”
I can’t believe that I forgot Leslie Parrish was in The Manchurian Candidate! Good point about Trace would have remembered her in Star Trek. I bet Frank would have remembered her film history. She was (is?) a very pretty woman, and I have always been a little dismayed at her portraying such an icky character in this film. Actually, I think she still looks pretty good, even with them trying to make her look icky.
Ugh. This movie, this movie. Filled to the brim with loathsome characters, for once NOT southerners (my favorite riff “You know, I kind of wish the South would rise again and crush the North”) but this movie is almost unwatchable even with the riffing. I don’t think I’ve ever understood, upon watching, what the HECK the explanation for the spiders’ presence is supposed to be! A black hole in the middle of a field? Wouldn’t that be really noticable, what with the sucking in of all nearby objects? Did the filmmakers not understand what a black hole, in fact, was? Or am I the one who doesn’t understand what one is? It IS a singularity which attracts (or sucks) all nearby matter into itself right? So how could spiders (even GIANT ones) come OUT of one? Nonetheless, I LOVED the host segments. “Close your eyes, go to sleep, be absorbed by the collective…” I can’t tell you how that speaks to my own fears…
…and yes, I just realized that I misspelled “Wisconsinites”!
Sorry ’bout that! (what’dya expect?…I AM from a SMALL TOWN, ya know!)
WOOOO! PACKERS WON DER SUPERBOWL!! WHOOOOOOOO! PACKERS!!!
YEA! I just noticed that Sampo misspelled “Wisconsinites” too!
Whew!…I’m not alone!
GO PACKERS!!!
This Robert Easton fellow is a respected character actor with quite a long listing at IMDB. But, his portrayal of “white trash” was offensive and represents a type of human I have never met! It’s a bad stereotype. I think Alan Hale has some peculiar charm even when he’s doing something undignified, as his every frame in this movie; probably the ghost of The Skipper. This episode is one of my favorites.
Confession alpha- Some of my neurons locked together in an unholy chain and I had the idea (for a time) that Alan H and Barbara H were related. My bad.
Confession beta- I purchased the single DVD of “The Wild, Wild World of Batwoman” and took it back because it had a huge gnarly scratch. I should have kept it, damage and all.
This was the first Sci Fi channel-era ep I watched (on the DVD box set, years after the show’s cancellation), and it convinced me that they’d lost nothing in the jump from Comedy Central.
One of my favorite riffs is when the motorcyclist crashes in the beginning of the film, and Servo yells, “Albert Camus!” in his tragic voice. It cracks me up every time – such a little throwaway joke (but not really accurate, as Camus died in a car accident, but whatever).
Bill Rabane had the gall to complain about Paul’s mild reflections on a movie that is less a movie than a rucksack of meadow muffins stuffed to capacity. And this is the same turnip head who cobbled together four plotless movies into one blow to the head called “Monster A-Go-Go”. He should thank his lucky stars MST3K scraped these abortions out of the garbage heap for a verbal thrashing else he’d be the anonymous back alley drunk he deserves to be.
Randy
PACKERS WON THE SUPERBOWL! WOOOOO!
The scenes in the planetarium and “bio lab” were filmed in the science building (with planetarium) here on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. I’ve walked up those stairs that give El Doughy Scientist heart palpitations.
“Has anyone ever figured out exactly who the “twin brother of Dutch” is at the end? He literally comes out of nowhere.”
He seems to be a deputy – AFAICT the same one who’s doing crowd control earlier on, as everyone is riled up coming out of the bar.
Don3k@#2: I always thought Crow was implying that by so clearly showing the pickup rusting away in the front yard of these repulsive characters was a Ford, the movie may as well have done just the opposite of product-placement: encouraging viewers to buy a Chevy pickup instead.
For me, the line, “Wow, it’s such a nice day out…and they’re spending it making this movie”, sums up the whole appeal of this ep’s feel: Several outdoor scenes near the end just make it look like it must have been fun to run around with the spidey VW, breakin’ stuff, hitting the fair, whatever there was to do in that Wisconsin summer. The late RDS’s magnum opus 2 shows later holds a similar appeal.
The host segments come together beautifully, despite one unfortunate instance in the theater of Tom telling Mike to take no extreme measures to revive him if he lapses into a coma, immediately after a host segment that reaffirmed their need to stay awake. D’oh!
What more than makes up for that disconnect though, is the stinger complimenting the host story arc perfectly. M&TB just saved the universe, and their reward is…sitting through the movie again!?! NOOOOOOOOoooooooooo…
And what 3 seconds of the movie could compliment this sentiment better than Cousin Billy’s eloquent “THBBBB-B-B-B-B-B-B-BTH! He-he-heeee…” The perfect ending to a perfect summer evening.
Y’all are psychic! I just popped this one into the ol’ DVD player last night. Still get uncomfortable seeing Alan Hale’s waaaaaaay-too-unbuttoned uniform shirt.
Still squirm when the woman hubby’s sleeping with gives him back his dirty, stinky ol’ truss! *blecch* 
Still get nauseated when Ev makes a ham-handed pass @ her sister’s boyfriend 
(& speaking of getting sick to one’s stomach, how ’bout his Quana shirt?). Leslie Parrish (who played Ev) surprised me one night while I was watching my favorite old TV drama series, Perry Mason (the early eps from the 1950s/60s). She’s on 3 eps, including http://tinyurl.com/ylc8mtb .
One of my all-time favorites. The return of Bill Rebane’s stupid synth (or whatever they are) sounds (The Brains make the same ELP Lucky Man riffs they did in Monster A-Go-Go!) and Steve Brodie from Wild World Of Batwoman (The Brains make the same Brodie Is Drunk In The Scene jokes!). I love this because you know they probably don’t remember the riffs they did in those episodes but it’s hilarious they made the same jokes, to me.
Yes, YES, YES! The episode we were all waiting for! In fact, I’m gonna go ahead and say that this episode started an AMAZING stretch of shows; the type of stretch not seen since late in season for that lasted until the middle of season five.
My favorite riffs are when the gang sing various love ballads immediatly after the Kesters yell at each other. Hilarious!!
I also love Crow’s highly caffeinated pre-theater cry of “SUUUURRRRGE!!!”
GIANT SPIDER INVASION is a personal favorite. The best episode in the Volume 10 pack. Either edition. Pure American white trash.
“Want a piece of milk?”
Re: #19. I always assumed Pearl was selling the experiment to whatever futuristic cable providers were picking it up. Likewise, when they were in Ancient Rome, she was sending the transmissions back through the wormhole.
“When the name Leslie Parrish came up in the opening credits, M&tBs didn’t know who she was. Didn’t they remember she was in one of the eps of Star Trek:TOS?
Wow, just looked this up. She was Lt. Palamas in “Who Mourns for Adonais?”. Yooowsa, she cleans up nice. Never would have spotted that without help.”
===========================
Yeah, that’s right. I guess Kester caught Bev on the rebound. Of course going from a Greek god to Kester would probably drive any woman to strong drink.
Is anyone else really grossed out when that spider falls into the blender and gets all mixed up in her vitamin shake or whatever it is she’s making?? ICK!! Makes me wanna hurl. Gross.
Oh, and PACKERRRRRRSSSSS!!!!
woo!
One of the best of the later episodes, without a doubt, one of my favorites.
First 5 star episode of the Sci-Fi era! Bad 1970′s scifi with nonsensical plot, bland characters & great riffing. Wow, and some really lame attempts at humor from Alan Hale. i can’t believe they (the movie writers, not the riffers) open the movie with a Gilligan’s Island reference! Alan Hale “Hi little buddy”
— “Not a joke, but an incredible simulation”
The host segments aren’t the funniest ever, but there are some good moments – ultra-caffeinated Crow is pretty funny and Tom’s proud description of his underwear collection to the pod-tom is classic.
The first time i saw this the crowd scenes with everyone yelling “PACKERS” cracked me up every time, but it’s kinda worn off after repeat viewings.
“Moses; move the bike!”
“I wanna see that pant-suit hit the floor”
“Ohh, McRib sandwich with McFlies”
“Johnny CRAPple-seed”
“Lion’s Club medium-rare chicken booth … pasted with sun-brewed mayonaise”
“Are we dead Mike?”
Mike: “Mr. Rebane you really can’t see anything” Tom: “just shut up and keep filming Mr. NYU film-pants”
“Audiences won’t soon forget when the thing we didn’t know what it was, was put in the helicopter by the guy we didn’t know.”
Suddenly, as if a switch had been thrown, as if a light has been lit, there was no trail, there was no Balloon Boy, no thing called Falcon to be tracked.
(Sorry, Off Topic, but had to do it.)
out-For-Snakes: “Watch-Is anyone else really grossed out when that spider falls into the blender and gets all mixed up in her vitamin shake or whatever it is she’s making?? ICK!! Makes me wanna hurl. Gross.
Oh, and PACKERRRRRRSSSSS!!!!
woo!”
It’s a Bloody Mary.
Great episode. My stomach always turns when I see that oil stain at the head of Ev’s bed. You realize that it most likely was someone’s ACTUAL room, rather than a set, and that oil stain was from someone’s ACTUAL greasy hair. BLECH!
Oh, and I also remember seeing Robert Easton in a small role in Working Girl with Melanie Griffith and Harrison Ford. Had no idea that he was the Klingon judge in Star Trek VI–good call, Gummo #44!
About Tom’s “interesting” collection. I didn’t see The Movie riffed until much later. Was that the first refernce to Tom’s collection in MST3000 movies? And if The Movie’s visual picture of TS’s room was seen first I’d think it would take away from the skit in TGSI. Oh, and that fake Tom Servo can just be thankful TS’s crazy gramma didn’t get him.
Btw, given there’s an interociter in TS’s room, perhaps there are other escape pods? Or Packer Super Bowl tapes!
#71 Johnny Ryde – OUCH. Good one!
Gulliver:
Thank you, pearliemae (#32), for bringing up the oddness of M&TB failing to recognize Leslie Parrish — I remember feeling very sad about this because Trace, first-class STAR TREK fan that he is, would certainly have remembered her… to me it was just an added twist of the knife, a reminder that my favorite Brain had left the show.
There are many arguments to be made about Bill Corbett’s inferiority to Trace Beaulieu, some better than others, but lamenting Corbett’s failure to make one Trek-related comment about one actress is probably the silliest argument to date.
I love this episode. In many respects this movie is almost the perfect MST fodder. It has a profoundly horrible director who the crew has encountered before, a stupid plot, loathsome characters, recognizable actors, terrible effects, technical incompetence, a local connection, and an excuse to tee off on the host. What more could one ask for?
Bill Rebane is a seriously underrated bad director. He tends to get a pass on Monster a Go Go, but some of the major problems with that movie are replicated here. The guy has no idea on how to record sound, and there are many scenes on both movies where background noise (like the typewriter) drown out dialogue. You can never tell what is going on in the night scenes. If he provided any guidance to the actors, it does not really come across in either film, though in this film it works to his benefit. Say what you will about his technical proficiency, he evidently knew how to run a loose set. Everyone in this movie seems to be having a ball.
The actors in this movie are generally pretty good, especially Robert Easton. What was he thinking when he worked on the screenplay, and then agreed to play Dan Kester, though?
I’ll probably be alone on this, but I’d like to suggest that this episode might be Kevin Murphy’s best performance in the theater. It seems like almost all of his riffs slay me, particularly the wordless responses to the Alan Hale prune joke and Dan Kester turning on the light.
I hate to say it, but I’m with Rebane on Paul’s “summary.”
I’m going to start a band called Zucchini Throwpillow.
Oh, sorry, Sampo, forget to rate this one in my previous post. Five stars out of Five. Again, one of the best episodes in the show’s history.
Packers won the super boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwl!
Best episode ever!
Ev: “So when are ya gonna get off your butt and do something?!”
Robert Easton chewing repulsively: “Gotta keep mah strength up.”
Mike: “Tearin’ food stamps is hard!”
One of THE best episodes ever and as said before, the beginning of the golden era of MST3K’s sci fi years. I’ll never forget that Saturday afternoon back in ’97 when I first saw it, my sides hurt so hard from laughter. PACKERS! VAAAA-A-A-A-NCE! This, Final Sacrifice and Horror of Party Beach are my trifecta of sci fi favorites.
Another fave line, as Hale drives away from the riot and (mostly self inflicted) bloodshed between the moronic townsfolk and the spider, Mike: “I’m goin’ to Taco John’s ’til this blows over!” lol
I’m the twin brother of Dutch!…. A MAN YOU MURDERED!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is one of only a couple episodes that I failed to acquire during the SciFi run. As such, I only saw it for the first time a couple of months ago on DVD. I can see how, at the time of its first airing, this was like a major departure from the show’s routine. After a series of black and white films with similar themes and settings, suddenly there’s this abomination from the seventies. All the movies used in Season 8 up to this point were filmed with at least a modicum of competence, then suddenly, WHAM! This utterly exremental film with no redeeming cinematic value. Not since LaserBlast and Incredible Melting Man had they suffered through a similarly incompetent and pointless film.
Nearly everyone in this film is revolting, but I think that Barbara Hale still managed to survive with some dignity intact. Despite the whole hill-rolling scene and her grating, gravelly shouting, her character still weathers the crisis in a mostly calm and analytical manner. Thus, Dr. Jenny Langer is my clear choice of favorite character for this film (and really the only possible sane choice). All of the other characters are horrible and I shudder at the very notion of being trapped anywhere with one of this greasy, oily bunch.
I think it’s all been said, except…
PACKERS!!!! WOOO!!!!
You can never say that too much.
#68: She’s making a Bloody Mary. Why on Earth she’s using a blender to do so is beyond me, and you really can see her very pointedly NOT looking at the blender while she’s making it.
Of course, Leslie Parrish’s Star Trek character, Lt. Palamas, is most memorable for the dress she wore, which is still legendary. The upper part was was basically a wide strip of cloth draped over one shoulder (and held in place with double-sided tape.) It was probably the best example of costume designer William Theiss’s Theory of Titillation: “The degree to which an outfit is considered sexy is directly proportional to the degree to which it appears to be about to fall off.”
As for Rebane’s movie here, I can say that if the characters were MEANT to be incredibly repulsive, then he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. I couldn’t suppress a groan of anguish every time Alan Hale busted out his “jokes.”
Another interesting point is the pointless “take that” against Jaws. Ha ha! How clever, Bill Rebane! You sure are a much better filmmaker than that Spielberg guy, I can tell you. I’m sure that Rebane expected all five of this movie’s theater patrons to cheer at that line. He must have inspired the makers of Laserblast to do their similar dig at Star Wars.
Obviously a very minority opinion here, but I really do not like this episode at all. The movie goes beyond being merely bad/inept, and into the realm of the truly repulsive, and nothing that the Brains do is enough to make it tolerable for me. Just one big Pthpthpthp! all around.
5 stars.
“Hey, it’s in color.” And what a movie it was. This episode has been a favorite of mine ever since it premiered on Sci-Fi. In the context of the order episodes, this one really is a refreshing change from the black & white movies.
Some favorite riffs:
Mike: “It’s a giant spider invasion of savings at MENARDS!”
Mike as Felix Unger as we see the bedroom. : “Oh, Oscar, Oscar, Oscar.”
I love the whole night time kitchen scene with Robert Easton and the sister-in-law. I really like Servo’s, “Don’t turn on that light!” Arggh!
This movie was like a color-version of Earth vs. The Spider… though, it was funny.
Pop-culture cyclically rehashes stuff from 2 decades prior, driven by our undying childhood nostalgia first coinciding with whenever we first acquire spending power. The textbook example of the ’70s revising the ’50s is ‘Happy Days, and in film, the ’50s general fixation on “space” mutated into ’2001′ and Star Wars.
But perhaps someone better versed than I in scifi/horror movies of the last 6 decades could confirm a trend I think I’ve noticed: Was there a school of thought in ’70s B movies that any hokey ol’ scifi flick that hit the screen 20 years prior could be “done right” simply by remaking it with new, state-of-the-art, “realistic” special effects, in spite of even less care being taken in the areas of story and scientific principles? Meltin’ Man’s been mentioned repeatedly in this thread, and I think this might be the main problem it shares with TGSI. Sure, there’s far worse garbage made for SyFy today, but this emphasis on just the FX led to it being more fluid-y, revolting, and to quote Mary Jo, masturbatory in the ’70s than in films of any other time. The trend may have continued through the ’80s, with ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ and ‘The Blob’.
Not that there aren’t good reasons for remakes/updates: Just watch ‘The Last Man on Earth’ and ‘The Omega Man’, 2 different takes on ‘I Am Legend’, both worthwhile enough to enhance each other and the original novel, shaming only Will Smith’s fresh take.
Maybe the key to screwing up a revamp/remake is going into it without carefully weighing preservation of the original’s integrity against the need to update it for current audiences, and just intending to “do it right by fixing that one element”. A more recent example would be all the comic book revamps of ’80s cartoon properites, which seemed to think they were going to fix them by removing kiddie elements and making them more “mature”. This led to a Thundercats series with mountains of corpses, a main character killed in a totally uncaring manner, cute/annoying comic reliefers being dismembered by dinosaurs, most of the female protaganists being the bad-guys’ sex slaves for a few years, and the upstanding hero snapping necks once he learned of all this. Once the shock-value wore off, it just made fans appreciate the subtlety and nuance of the original material, and see their storytelling as truly compelling in ways other than compelling kids to buy toys.
The full effect of this was felt when 810 ended the string of ’50s b&w: similar cheesy monster concept that frequented the last 9, only in color, wow! Now we can clearly see…every greasy fluid coating everyone and everything in this town, even before the spider sprays his own all over them…and then disintigrates enough to show us how many flavors of ice cream it has inside its body. I think this is what made TGSI seem so much worse than the movies in early Season 8, and therefore far better riffing fodder.
This never fails to make me laugh. A classic as far as schlock movies go. I liked the intentional humor of Vance talking to his plant. “Have I ever told you I love you?” Other NASA guy: “Not Recently.”
“How was your day at the WHORE?!”
“It’s befuddlin’ mah dumb cracker mind!”
This whole episode is freaking beautiful, start to finish.
PACKERS WON THE SUPERBOWL! WHOOOOOO!
I’ve seen/met people who made the Kesters look like the Nelsons (Ozzie, not Mike)…
There are so many funny lines in this episode, yet, as with every SFC episode, I can’t help thinking they’d be even funnier if Trace Beaulieu had been there to voice his share…
#41: That reminds me. In the scene where Brodie and Barbara sit down with the skipper and the kid reporter in the restaurant, at one point the skipper calls the kid away for little private sidebar. We never find out what this was about, do we? Or did it get cut by the Brains?
Maybe he thought that Dave looked more intelligent than the sheriff and was asking “Is this guy for real or what?”
Or he just figured a reporter (although Dave seems young to be a reporter, the dialogue states that his father RUNS the newspaper, so it’s sort of an obvious part-time job for him to have) would have better insight?
MRxL!
#41: About that scene in the restaurant when Steve Brodie and the kid go off on a private conversation – I just got it! Steve is giving his kid some acting tips. “Ok now son, that last line had too much energy. Make your delivery more wooden. Just follow my lead.”
I forgot to mention that Pearl’s sending them the movie a second time is the ultimate proof that she is and always has been far more evil than her son.
As far as I’m concerned, when Alan Hale Jr., nearly at the beginning of the movie, calls somebody “little buddy”, it’s the movie’s equivalent of Abandon All Hope, Ye Who Enter Here. Very funny experiment, though. And it’s pretty cool that Mike has a Darth Vader mug.
Great episode. Being from Wisconsin this movie does make us look kind of bad. Oh well we still have the PACKERS!!!
By the way do they still make Surge? It was kind of gross.
According to wikipedia, Surge is no more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surge_(soft_drink)
I don’t think Surge is still made. What ingredient was it that made it different than other sodas? It had some sort of stimulant other than caffeine, but I can’t recall what that was now. Between that and those dumb commercials where teenagers would be charging through some sort of EXTREEEEEEEEEEEE obstacle course for a can, SUUUUURGE! was the butt of so many jokes when I was in high school, like that there should have been cans of it along with the cigarettes and “S-meat” on the Smokers’ ship in ‘Waterworld’, since there’d be millions of cans of it left over that no one would resort to drinking until after the apocalypse.
And one more random thought that’s been rolling through my subconscious for years: If some entrepreneur ever produced a Mystery Science Theater 3000 pinball machine, the sound clip for when you either launch an extra ball or win a free game should be: “Brain Guy, send them the movie…AGAIN!”, with the next ball launch being accompanied by, “Movie sign?!? NOOOOooooo…”
The extra ball/game should be triggered by acquiring the penny and busted cigarette, and…
Yes, I know that with the decline of arcades in favor of personalized content for home systems this’ll never happen. Just, if it DID…
I love this movie ! I can watch it MST3K, NoN MST3k..
I have the Retromedia and Syngery DVDs of this..
MST made the movie really famous though
Bolem – I liked your comments in post #89. I hadn’t realize what a dupe I’ve been all these years. It made me a little embarrassed about all the cheezy crap strewn throughout my home, from my DEVO hat to the Superfriends dvd I’m currently watching. Ah, well. GO PACKERS! WHOOOOOOO!
About the giant spider in this movie. As bad as the whole movie is, I think it doesn’t get silly until the giant spider makes its first appearance. Even the medium-sized fake spider is okay. It’s clearly fake but not enough to take me out of the movie.
The giant spider is essentially a parade float. It’s not even shaped like a spider. Had there been at least one smaller body segment at the front, it would have gone a long way to make the spider look decent. But no, it’s just one round body with a face and but that look the same. It’s sad when even the monster in The Creeping Terror outshines you.
Elvis@#101: Errr…you mean the 20-year cycle of pop-culture rehash being timed to make us buy stuff? I certainly didn’t mean to make anyone else feel like a dupe, since my basement and spare bedroom have probably got 3 or 4 dupes-worth of comparable stuff.
And about that wiki-link in #98: There’s still an active fan-movement to bring back SURGE!? Man, I should’ve never given up my campaign to have Dr. Slice resurrected just because it was hopeless and silly. Now THAT was a unique pop that only lasted about a month.
“There are many arguments to be made about Bill Corbett’s inferiority to Trace Beaulieu, some better than others, but lamenting Corbett’s failure to make one Trek-related comment about one actress is probably the silliest argument to date.”
What about my argument that Trace was better because he had plumper eyebrows?
Yes, that’s what I was talking about, Willis. I don’t take any personal offense. But if they are pandering to my sense of nostalgia and buying power, where the hell are my Thundarr the Barbarian and (Adam West)Batman dvds already!!! No, I’m just gazing into the deep, dark, truthful mirror. And I look FANTASTIC. One memory of Surge: I work with a guy who, when it was available, would buy and drink Surge soley so that he could use a Sharpie and write a P into the logo to make it say Spurge, then drink it in front of someone to see who thought he was clever. I think he may still be waiting…
Err… the Willis I’m talking about is the Bolem #103.
This episode was fun and I have watched it multiple times over the years. Landmark episode? I can’t agree with that. Enjoyable, though.
Leslie Parrish (Ev Kester) is the soulmate of writer Richard Bach, most famous for “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” and “Illusions”. She was featured prominently in “The Bridge Across Forever: A Love Story” and “One”.
I liked “Illusions” so much that I read it in one evening well over 10 years ago, and I enjoyed “The Bridge Across Forever” a lot, too.
What always sticks out to me is how both Robert Easton movies feature conspicuous jabs at “Holy Rollers.”
They are almost the only MST’d movies that do this, apart from “The Dead Talk Back.”
One memory of seeing this for the first time that I can’t believe I forgot until now:
Leech Woman was my first SciFi ep, and it was just such a letdown that she never actually turned into some sort of leech monster. While I eventually got over it, I was still so disillusioned by halfway through my first viewing of #810 (probably the late July rerun) I was convinced that all those tarantulas meant it was a giant invasion of slightly-larger-than-average spiders. I therefore cannot describe the joy I felt as that dresser drawer opened, prompting, “We’re your dirty socks! Wash Us!” It just kinda’ made me believe again, y’know?
The next minute must’ve been the first time I actually heard, “I’m a Woozle, and my name is Peanut”, after reading the explaination in ACEG. Jeff Dunham riffs are becoming more topical than ever now that he’s getting his own show. ACEG expresses confusion over just what a woozle is, but I’d just assume he means the woozles from Winnie the Pooh. However those woozles were just mispronounced weasels, and Dunham’s puppet is some sort of primate with a humanish purple head. The only thing I remember from seeing his bits when I was 8 are the jalapeno on a stick.
In fact, the bit I most clearly remember is it crying from the prop box, “Help! There’s a big, black, hairy tarantula…on a stiiiiick.” Wow. Circle of life.
fathermushroom says:
October 16th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
“What always sticks out to me is how both Robert Easton movies feature conspicuous jabs at “Holy Rollers.”
They are almost the only MST’d movies that do this, apart from “The Dead Talk Back.” ”
Good observation. Robert Easton is also in the movie Paint Your Wagon, an over-budget musical starring Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin. That movie also has a frontier preacher that no one takes seriously.
Cabbage Patch Elvis #105: But if they are pandering to my sense of nostalgia and buying power, where the hell are my Thundarr the Barbarian and (Adam West)Batman dvds already!!!
I have no idea about Thundarr, but if you go to TV Shows on DVD and look up the news items for Batman, you’ll find an article detailing all the legal issues that prevent it from being released on DVD.
“Sounds like a nice place, wish we could see it.”
The lighting in this stinkburger WAS quite dreadful.
I wasn’t too thrilled with this episode. I wasn’t bored to tears, but I wasn’t really laughing alot, either. A few giggles here and there. Overall, I could mostly leave it.
Host segments were boring. MRxL? (Kevin DID do a spot-on impression of an annoying cheerleader though).
One of the better lines: “And somewhere in the world, a helicopter exists.” – Mike.
Sitting Duck @111. Excellent suggestion, thx.
Just watched this again, and here are my favorite lines:
1.Don Juan DeStinko.
2.I just caught a glimpse of myself in the hallway mirror.
3.Ev: Looks like you could use a drink.
Tom Servo: “And a shower and a job”
4.Im heading over to Taco John’s until this blows over.
5. Pancakes? Ill be right over!
6. Woo, he stood up, he should get hazzard pay for this.
7. Maybe If I kill myself, people will remember me fondly.
8. They keep their garbage in the refridgrator?
9. An afternoon with Sandra Locke.
10. My toenail finaly fell off.
Finally! A film in color! Slimy, greasy, puke-inducing ’70′s style color, but color nonetheless. As Sampo noted, this experiment is a radical departure from the usual fare of movies MST had been doing, and I think the jolt of doing something different inspired the writers in a big way. This is truly a Season 8 gem, and the season really takes off from here imo.
I should mention that this is an ep that took its time growing on me. When I first watched it, I was so sickened by several of the characters and the plot, I purposely avoided watching it for afew years afterwards. Then I gave it a chance about three months ago, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! The riffing is lively and constant, and the host segments parody one of my fave sci-fi/horror movies. I particularly loved Gypsy’s little ditty, very unlike her to sing something so dark.
One personal note: during the sketch with Bobo trying to take the zuccini away from Pearl, she screeches in a high-pitched tone. My cat was in the room with me at the time, and the sound freaked him out! He jumped out of the chair he was resting on, ears pricked up, looking around the room confused. It added an extra dab of comedy to the viewing experience.
The whole “Packers!” thing is something I can’t really enjoy. It was those same Packers that beat my beloved New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI, so whenever that joke springs up, bad memories come flooding back of Brett “I’m retired…no wait! I’m not!” Favre running to the sidelines celebrating. Sorry.
Finally, I’m alittle embarassed to admit this, but I think Leslie Parrish is pretty hot as a white trash woman in this movie. She portrays a redneck woman very well in this. I’d definitely buy her a Bloody Mary (minus the furry spider) anytime. She’s not as hot a white trash lady as “Liz Baby” from Attack of the Giant Leeches, but the actress is easy on the eyes.
“With this episode you can sense that the channel begins to trust BBI more, and the result is the first of a memorable stretch of episodes”
Sorry, Sampo, but I’m not sure what the above quote means. Are you saying that at this point the Sci-Fi channel (not the SyFy channel or the Sigh-Figh channel yet) let the BBI more freely chose their films? I’ve heard that before but never that this is the point of departure, at least officially. Can you confirm for this geek?
Well, it’s not from the 50′s and yes why not have a break from the McCarthy/Freud/Jitterbug era? It’s a fun movie and a fun ep but just a solid one that does lose its momentum at times. I really love the redneck scenes. When the Brains do redneck it’s gonna be fun, as in Incredible Melting Man (which is much better).
I think folks are way more enthusiastic about this one, than this here me, but, yep, that might just be the moonshine talkin’
See ya all later this week fer some Clonin’!
B+
Bill Rebane is selling autographed copies of his Special Edition DVD on the official Giant Spider Invasion site.
http://www.giantspiderinvasion.com
This episode has contributed to my life in an indelible way – every time (and I do mean every time) I hear a friend or a family member make a lame joke, I reply with “Not a joke, but an incredible simulation!” I even use it as a saver whenever I tell a joke that doesn’t go over well!
“Well, m’ thumb’s clean off now…” I don’t know why, but that makes me laugh so hard I wheeze. Actually, a lot of this episode does that to me. “Aw, right in the middle of my heart attack!”
I’m not a huge SciFi era fan, but this episode is definitely up there with my favorites from Seasons 5, 6, and 7. There’s a playful energy coursing through the theater that results in the strongest riffing of any Season 8 episode so far. “I found another body…” “Well good, ’cause yours was gettin’ kinda gross.”
Oh, and PACKERS!
I also like this episode for the fact that it makes fun of Packers fans. As a humble Chicago Bears fan, it was a lot of fun.
I’m generalizing here but I think one of the reasons this episode stands out in the Season 8 chronology is that this incarnation of the MST crew does a better job riffing the more modern-era films. The string of B&W Universal films preceding this might have been more lively and memorable had Joel, Trace and Frank been present in the writing room.
This is the first of the great “Hick Horror” Quadrilogy of the Sci-Fi years: 810 – The Giant Spider Invasion, 908 – The Touch Of Satan, 1006 – Boggy Creek II , and 1012 – Squirm. For whatever reason, the comedic chemistry of Mike, Bill, and Kevin (along with the other writers) is just right for skewering these supernatural redneck stories.
Fav riff’s:
Crow- “A showered person, thank god!”
Tom- “Honey, MIT called!”
And of course, the endless cries of “Packers!”
Something just occurred to me about the end; after the pods are killed and the real bots emerge, Crow says, “They had us tied up”, to explain how they just immediately walked back onto the bridge. That doesn’t explain why Pearl and Observer don’t remember the last 2 hours, but it may also have been an intentional shot at what was left unexplained in ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’. (I haven’t seen either remake) The original classic never explained what happens to original human after they’re replaced by a pod (a mass grave would’ve warranted mention), and when Becky falls asleep near the end, she simply wakes up a second later in allegiance with the pods, apparently not replaced as much as assimilated!
Don’t get me wrong, the original IOTBS is probably the most disturbing and timeless of all movies fueled by cold-war paranoia…despite the fact that it doesn’t seem to have its own rules straight, which is even more impressive.
And for that matter, the spare Observer robe indicates that they duplicated his “body” as well, but wouldn’t it make more sense for a pod replicating him to just become a copy of his brain and control the same host/symbiote body?
Yeah, yeah, it’s just a show. One with enough layers to be worth dissecting.
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