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Weekend Discussion Thread: The Many Faces of MikeAlert reader Scott observes:
. I talked about this in the episode guide entry for “Wild World of Batwoman” but his look of guileless delight as a clearly mustachioed Crow arrives with soup is one of my all-time favorite Mike faces. Yours? Please keep sending those WDT ideas! 77 Replies to “Weekend Discussion Thread: The Many Faces of Mike”Commenting at Satellite News
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his Captain Janeway was the best.
the ‘Full Metal Jacket: he-llo joker.’ riff on ‘Alien from LA.’
His Carol Channing was dead on. It was like she was right there – alive and in person. Marvelous, marvelous performance. ;)
He was great as Hugh Beaumont.
‘did You bRIng MATches for MIkey?’
Mike’s best was the “Gesture Professor” even though the bots didn’t like it and made Mike feel “Down, down, down…”
My first thought was the NPR style classical music host that Tom enraged in Starfighters, but someone with more Minnesota knowledge is going to have to put a name to him.
I always thought Mike was fabulous as a woman. He was lovely as the murmuring woman from Horrors of Spider Island, and as the ’50s girl group singer performing “Where, oh, Werewolf” (with that kicky scarf!).
Glenn Manning, of course, especially when he read a fan letter, along with that nearsighted thug in “Daddy-O”
Mike’s glasses-mediated transformation to wimpy Mikey in Teenage Strangler always cracks me up. I also like his reaction when the bots try to play “This is Your Life”.
“Hi Mike, how ya doin’?”
“I WAS doing fine…”
Pearl’s Couch –
“We just can’t have nice things”. MIke in footie pajamas jumping on Pearl’s new couch was such a hoot, but it was the look on his face of fear turning to unhappiness at getting caught that made the moment. A genuine little boy moment.
When he was the bunny and the bots were woodland creatures…
When he was listening to classical music and putting sugar in his tea when the bots were in the escape pods…
For me Mike turning into a Werecrow from Warwelf was absolutely fascinating.
I have two : him as Morrissey and his second visit as Hugh Beaumont in Eht Numah Srotacilpud
@8 I agree, his Valaria was stellar.
A lot of great ones, but he NAILED Jack Perkins.
Torgo. “They always do that”.
One word: “BOOOOLD?!!”
I too am a fan of his Jack Perkins. But for Good Old-Fashioned Nightmare Fuel, nothing compares to him dressing as Marie Antoinette in Kitten with a Whip.
Mike (wearing bald wig, rumpled jacket and tie) “Down, down,” as Dr Frank C. Baxter, The Mole People.
Urkel, did he really do that!?
Evil Mike in The Last of the Wild Horses. :-D :-D :-D
Call me easy to please, but I always loved his Torgo. Seems like that would be a hard impression to do without overdoing it.
Mike Nelson’s playing the piano (at a Turkey Day marathon?), including his touching
recreation of Cole Porter’s reaction to his horse falling on him and breaking his legs.
And he didn’t steal no bike, neither!
The first time I saw Mike do Jack Perkins I thought it really was Jack Perkins. He did an awesome Torgo too.
I love to watch the MST Hour episodes. His Jack Perkins is such a believable character that no matter how carefully I watch the performance, my mind cannot accept that this character is being played by Mike Nelson.
It’s like watching Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove: I have no problem at all seeing Mr. Sellers as Lionel Mandrake or Dr. Strangelove – and both of those are great performances. However, I find it impossible to detect that President Merkin Muffley is in fact being played by Peter Sellers.
Maybe it’s something about playing balding, milquetoast characters. It’s kind of the opposite of the usual tricks used in character acting.
That, on the other hand, was not good.
Yum! I’d also go with Glenn Manning, or the Lord of the Dance. Really, any time Mike was shirtless was a treat for me. :-)
Agua!!!
#19: But that red dress was so pretty on him! Also, when I showed my sister “Racket Girls”, she really liked Mike’s wrestler outfit that he wore at the end. I did too. [Wonder if Bridget asks him to wear it sometimes…]
His appearance at the end of “Escape 2000” as Toblerone.
Mike definitely OWNS Torgo.
Others have already mentioned him as Hugh Beaumont and Torgo, so I’ll go with one of my other favorites and say his portrayal of Winky. That bit of him in the basement always cracks me up.
I love the Torgo and Jack Perkins impressions but my favorite “Mike face” is from the opening credits where he’s spinning the clipboard on his finger. It’s such a smart-ass, “Yeah, I did that” look, that I always chuckle.
In the girl band singing “where-o-werewolf”.
Also, when he had grizzled old prospector syndrome. I loved the way he kept stroking his beard.
Nope, that was a surly truck farmer. Mighty darned good kisser though!
Much as I’ve always loved Will Farrel’s James Lipton from ‘Inside the Actor’s Studio,’ I have to say Mike’s was pretty great too. “Joe Pesci’s mother made you weep. HOW?”
Related to #11, Mike’s growing dismay as he realizes he’s been had in “Hamlet” is wonderfully pitiable, especially his stuttering “b-b-but we, the”…
On another note, as noted in the episode guide entry for “Sinbad”, Mike doesn’t sound like Old Blue Eyes necessarily, but embodies the ballsy authority in that voice. You don’t got movie sign til I say you got movie sign, and all.
One of my favorites is when he “finds the sweet spot” while listening to the theme from “The Creeping Terror”. To act as if there were a “sweet spot”, knowing he had heard that tune at least 100 times while writing the episode to the point that it had to be torture, amazing!
Oh, his best hands-down was Abe Vigoda.
No, I can’t lie. It’s really Jack Perkins for all-around nailing it. But I have to admit the increasingly off-the-wall Nick Nolte RiffTrax bits always make me laugh, as well as every time Mike imitates a cheesy hair band singer, like during the end credits of Megaforce.
Jack Perkins without question, though any time Mike went full-on crazy with the costuming and makeup was a sight to behold.
Let me just say, here and now, that Michael Nelson *IS* Lord Of The Dance.
It’s too bad that multiple split screens were just a little bit beyond their production values. I would have loved to see a Deep 13 party where Perkins, Toblerone, the Gesture Professor, and Morrissey all decided to show up.
Top Ten Best Mike Impressions
1. Torgo
2. Evil Mike
3. Hugh Beaumont
4. Captain Janeway
5. Jack Perkins
6. Michael Feinstein from ‘Gamera Vs Guiron’
7. Glen Manning
8. Toblerone
9. Mikey The Mike Sprite from ‘A Case Of Spring Fever’
10. Observer #3
Oh, and I almost forgot Winky and his incredibly hot girlfriend.
Mystos!
Most of my favorites have been mentioned, but two more I didn’t see…
The maudlin folk singer longing for Crow as the SOL burns in Girl in Gold Boots
The gas station attendent who is very…slowly…assaulted in Teenage Crime Wave (I still don’t know how he kept a straight face that long)
all the best ones already said. you guys should have to stick with ONE each!!! :p
Was going to say Janeway but of course it’s #1. LOVE that one so damn much. lmaa
My favorite was when he had issues with the baking soda. Classic!
Nobody’s mentioned Mike’s stern-faced Max von Sydow impression in ‘A Joke by Ingmar Bergman’.
I’d have to go with Mike as Michael Feinstein singing about Gamera:
‘It sort of sneaks up on you, “boo” it says.’
This is another one of my favorite Mike moments.
Every time I watch the delivery of this bit it kills me:
“It sort of sneaks up on you. ‘Boo!’ it says.”
:rotfl:
Who can forget his portrayal of his brother Eddie in Time Chasers?
Although I must admit, he had a great assist by Kevin as sycophant TOm Servo in that…