Entertainment Weekly has cranked out another list: The 26 Best Cult TV Shows. Guess what show came in at number 4?
I forget where I first read it, but some commentator has a rule of thumb about newspaper/magazine stories and comedy, which states, roughly: “Any time a piece tries to give an example of something that is supposedly humorous, the example will never be funny.” I think “Cruelty to small animals is one of little Bobby’s few outlets,” (which I can’t even place in an episode) is a pristine example of that rule.
Thanks to Robert for the heads up.
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The Bobby comment isn’t ringing a bell here either. What shows had a Bobby? Which one had the fat “father” that took his son fishing at the beginning then stumbled along in the woods shouting for him “BOBBY!” The Creeping Terror?
Is that right?
Yes, I believe it’s from ‘The Creeping Terror,’ when Bobby was stalking the little lizard (while, of course, being slowly stalked by the eponymous Terror).
Yes, it was the Creeping Terror. Bobby’s grandpa had taken him fishing, and Bobby went off to play in the underbrush.
The point of unfunniness is made profoundly (again and again) in the single-release Rhino discs – jokes depicted on front and back are crippled by delivery and choice of line. The rule of thumb for MST3K is generally that you had to be there, because translating a joke takes 3 dimensions of setup (the movie’s context, the show’s context on top of it, and what was said (which, by then, isn’t going to be funny, no matter what.)). That’s a tall order for a box to sell all by itself.
It’s nice that MST ranked so high, but some of the shows on the list have me wondering if I understand the concept of “cult” the same way the writers do?
There are so many “secret handshakes” for MST3K, I can’t even begin to count them.
Yeah, it’s so lame when a national magazine praises MST3K in a way that’s different from the way you would have praised it. And who the hell are they to think a line is funny that you don’t think is funny?
Yeah, given how insular fandom can get, I think we should just be happy that the show is still pretty well-respected in circles broader than our own.
Frank, I’m sorry my observation rubbed you the wrong way, I truly am. I apologize for offending you. What can I do to make this up to you?
I was fairly impressed that they knew about Deep Hurting.
Ok, I can accept Dr Who can rank higher than MST3k in any and every one’s estimation. That had cult status in the 60’s. I’m not a vampire person, and the Buffy thing, I never understood.
Kitty:
I have a friend who’s a rabid Buffy fan–and she’s far from alone. I also remember a lot of people being rabid Buffy fans when the show was first on. It’s not my thing, either, although it doesn’t surprise me to see it placed where it is. Instead of quibbling about the order of the top 5, we should marvel that MST, a show that’s been off the air for 13 years and which you can’t get “complete seasons” on DVD, still ranks so highly–unlike, say, “Twin Peaks,” which burned much brighter in the public eye when it was on, and extinguished far more quickly. And if this list gets even one new person to want to experience Deep Hurting, I’ll be happy.
Kitty it may be blasphemy to say on this board but Buffy is the only show I love more than MST3K. I actually just finished watching an episode before coming here. Point being Blast Hardcheese is right. I’ve never seen an episode of Dr. Who and can’t stand Twin Peaks, but it doesn’t matter. It’s EW’s opinion and even if the show didn’t make their list would we enjoy it any less? Still, it’s amazing there’s so much interest in MST all these years later. I loved 1997-1999 when my two favorite shows were on at the same time!
Dude I told Sampo about this weeks ago when the issue came out. And I thought Our secret handshake was Hikeeba.
MST3K: The show that keeps on giving,even after it’s no longer on the air..Thanks EW! We may not be number 1,but at least we’re in the Top 10..What other shows have had spin-offs or tributes/homages? We have Cinematic Titanic,Riffrax,Josh Way,Incognito Cinema Warriors XP and countless others.Take that Buffy!! LOL. ;-) :laugh: :-))
Well, I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief for beating out Farscape.
And MST3K is the only show on the list to have it’s origins on UHF!
Farscape should be above Battlestar Gallactica, and Lost should be banished from everybody’s lists forever more. And here I thought our secret handshake was “Watch out for snakes!” No wonder I always got those strange looks.
I never got how Arrested Development was so highly cultisized (trademakr pending) but Community and it’s first 3 seasons are absolute classic, I highly recommend that show
So glad to see that my two all time favorite shows have ET cult status- MST and The Wire. Shed a tear last week at the rifftrax show at the Wire riff, as well as Mike and Richard Cheese (another cult fav) had a Wire riff in “Ocean’s Eleven”
The good – Two of my favorite shows are in the top five.
The bad – Where the heck is The Prisoner? I figure a show with deadly white balloons would pretty much be a definite cult type thing?
Tobal-That got me, too. I can only guess that the list was limited to the last 25 years, which would explain other omissions, such as The Twilight Zone.