VILLAGE OF THE GIANTS tests on MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATRE 3000 for WORLD DOMINATION (IT FAILS!).

(The following quotes correspond to the scenes shown on the MST3K airing of Village of the Giants)

If you grew up in the 90's, and had the cable channel Comedy Central, more than likely you latched on to that crazy show about bad movies, Mystery Science Theatre 3000. The show, over it's 10-year run, covered the stories of Joel Robinson, and later Mike Nelson, who at certain points in the show were stuck on the 'Satellite of Love,' and forced to watch 'cheesy movies,' for the scientific studies of Dr Clayton Forrester, and later for his mother, Pearl Forrester. However, Joel & Mike did not suffer alone. Joel created some 'robot friends, such as Tom Servo (a gumball machine-headed fellow), Crow (a sarcastic little gold robot), and even Gypsy, a large, one-eyed robot in charge of ship repair. Joel created his sidekicks and the crew endured many a bad movie, but after Experiment #512, Joel managed to escape from the SOL. Fearing for his experiment (and funding), Dr Forrester and his assistant TV's Frank didn't give up. They sent a temp worker named Mike up and the experiments resumed. Mike was to encounter Village of the Giants just 11 films into his tortuous tenure on the SOL. By this time, his rapport with the bots was getting better, and they found some great things to quip about. Crow is constantly refuting Tom and Mike's remarks on 'Willow,' which young Ronnie Howard would later go on to direct. At one point, to their abject horror, they are subjected to Tommy Kirk in tiny shorts, causing them to cringe in pain. And if that wasn't enough, how does H.G. Wells' 'Food of the Gods' fit into the story, they wonder throughout. Even at one point in the opening, as the teens are dancing in the rain and mud, Crow asks Mike 'Do you think this scene is providing characterization and establishing narrative?' Mike can only mutter 'No, but who cares?' Obviously, the Bert I Gordon camerawork of the girls in wet shirts taking ahold on him. This MST3K'ing of the show also contains small references to actor Johnny Crawford's role in the TV series The Rifleman, and Beau Bridges role in SeaHunt. Sadly, there weren't any segments outside of the theatre where Mike & the bots performed any skits based on the film. Previously, when Joel and the bots were bombarded with former Bert I Gordon productions The Amazing Colossal Man and Tormented, hilarious skits abounded, one involving the Amazing Colossal Man, now so huge that he dropped by the Satellite, munching a tiny cow. The skits in between Village of the Giants on MST3K instead involved Dr Forrester planning to fire TV's Frank, and almost replacing him with Torgo, the servant of The Master from Manos: The Hands of Fate, one of MST3k's most reviled roasts. Up above, are 30 shots of some quotes that made me laugh and love...again. In our transcripts section, you'll find a transcript of Mike and the Bots' riffing on Bert I's 60's magnum opus (and for those who prefer their film 'raw,' we have the un-MST3k'ed version there as well). Enjoy.

The References of Mystery Science Theater 3000's Experiment #523 Village of the Giants

Mike Nelson, Crowe T Robot and Tom Servo served up some incredibly witty quips when they sat down to watch this film. However, like most people, some quotes and references had me at a loss. Some dealing with products that have not been made in years, and some dealing with celebrities that we may not even know anymore. Originally, I was planning to make an extensive catalogue of the references. Little did I realize that someone else had beaten me to the punch. The Annotated MST was just the page. Along with Village of the Giants, they're also cataloguing references to many other MST3K-reviewed films, such as Manos: The Hands of Fate. Click on the banner below to find references to our favorite giant teen film.