Short: (1951) Krog sends the thugs to bomb a volcano, which causes widespread flooding, for some reason. Cody tracks the thugs to a diner, where a fight ensues and Ted is kidnapped. He soon escapes and Cody is after them again.
Movie: (1964) A sportscaster/pilot flies into Los Angeles and finds it deserted. He soon learns that reptilian monsters from beneath the Earth have conquered the city. With the help of a scientist, his two daughters and a marine, he mounts a counter-offensive.

First shown: 12/30/89 (unconfirmed)
Opening: Joel and Tom are sleepy, but Crow is a morning bot; Joel explains the premise again
Invention exchange: Joel is playing three-card monty with the bots when the mads call. His invention is cartoon eyeglasses; theirs is screaming cotton candy
Host segment 1: Crow and Tom take Commando Cody to reality court
Host segment 2: J&tB discuss how dumb the movie is, and suggest ways to make it better
Host segment 3: Inspired by the movie, the Bots fill the SOL with smoke
End: Joel bakes a pie, letter, the Mads are sarcastically happy
(110 votes, average: 3.85 out of 5)
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• I’m not sure this one quite adds up to the sum of its parts. The riffing is about average for season one. The short, well, as you’ve been saying, Commando Cody is wearing thin. And then there’s the talky, foggy, completely nonsensical movie. I’d put this in the good-not-great column.
• References.
• This episode is included in Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Vol XXVII.
• This is the first episode in which they add a blue tint to a black-and-white movie, presumably to help shadowrama be more visible. It’s a practice that will continue into the fourth season. The previous time around, I said I couldn’t see it. But now that I am looking for it, it’s clear as day and I can’t imagine how I could have missed it. As one of the commenters noted, just look at the frame grabs at the top of the page, fer cryin’ out loud. The blue tint is obvious. Amazing.
• Joel is again in a robe (and so is Tom). They were going with the flow of a Saturday morning show.
• Joel calls Tom Servo “Crow” and Servo corrects him.
• Joel calls the Mads “quasi-evil.” Hmm.
• Again, both inventions are props from Joel’s standup act.
• The theater seats are black again and they stay that way, I believe, thanks to the blue tint.
• Crow and Joel again duck out of the way so people can read the text at the beginning of the short. Again, Tom doesn’t bother.
• Segment 1 is pretty much a continuation of the segment from the previous show where they again rail against the absurdity of the way Cody’s rocket belt supposedly works.
• Segments 2 and 3 do a good job of summing up most of what’s wrong with this stooopid movie. One thing they missed: The opening few minutes, with our hero flying in to L.A., do not in any way suggest that he is flying close to the surface of the ocean, which the characters later insist he MUST have done. Our hero also says he “came through something rough.” Again, the scene in which he approaching the airport in his plane does not show this at all.
• Joel does the “Love-ly…love-ly” riff for the second week in a row.
• One thing about first season episodes is that they seemed to be following the movie more closely than they would be in later seasons. At least Josh was. At one point in this episode, Servo points out: “Why are the guys carrying guns? They have no effect on the Slime People! We know that!” Leaving aside the fact that it’s a major state park riff, it’s hard to imagine that kind of a plot-intensive riff in later seasons.
• No Tom Servo in the closing segment.
• One of the dumbest lines of dialog ever: “Now, we’ve always known that there are fish in the ocean, haven’t we?”
• Stinger suggestion: The drunk looter in the theater.
• Cast and crew roundup: Producer ?Joseph F. Robertson also produced “The Crawling Hand” and “Agent For H.A.R.M.” Cinematographer William Troiano also worked on “Wild, Wild World of Batwoman.” Special effects guy Charles Duncan also worked on “The Crawling Hand” and “The Phantom Planet.” Sound Mixer Rod Sutton also worked on :Hangar 18,” “King Dinosaur” and “It Lives By Night.” In front of the camera, John Close was in “Beginning of the End” and “The Deadly Mantis.” Blair Robertson was also in “Agent for H.A.R.M.” Bob Herron was also in “Mole People.” Jock Putnam was also in “The Crawling Hand.” (106)
• CreditsWatch: Melanie Hartley was an additional production assistants and Jim Erickson was, again, the additional production staff.
• Fave riff from the short: “Come and get me! I’m a fuzzy little rabbit! I’m bring bad!” Honorable mention: “Hip? Not! Ick!”
• Fave riff from the movie: “Honestly, Bonnie, the slime you bring home.” Honorable mention: “What it is, Dr. Bro?!”