Shorts, Volume 3 is a compilation release from Rhino Entertainment featuring seven popular shorts from Mystery Science Theater 3000. It was originally released on VHS and later as a limited bonus with The Essentials DVD set if the set was ordered through a special website offer. Shorts, Volume 3 has since been re-released by Shout! Factory in The Singles Collection. The seven shorts featured are: Speech: Using Your Voice (Episode #313), Aquatic Wizards (Episode #315), Is This Love? (Episode #514), Design for Dreaming (Episode #524), The Selling Wizard (Episode #603), Out of This World (Episode #618) and Once Upon a Honeymoon (Episode #701).
In the first national broadcast of Mystery Science Theater 3000, the Mads have moved into Deep 13, Joel has spruced up the Bots, and Forrest Tucker sleepwalks his way through this week's literally eye-popping film.
American spies discover the Chinese have built a weapon capable of destroying planet Earth, a "doomsday machine" if you will, and that they plan to use it within a matter of days. Will the human race survive?
In the far-off land of Kalid, President Amir lies on his deathbed. If this revered head-of-state dies, the brutal dictatorship that he has so lovingly cultivated will fall into a dark age of uncertainty and chaos. And so, in this moment of crisis, his loyal staff are left with no alternative but to choose the only logical and sensible course of action—to transfer Amir's brain into a younger, healthier, and most importantly, living body. Enter Doctor Robert Trenton, a mad scientist of the traditional 'they all laughed at me and now I'll show them' school. He, along with his assistant, Dorro, a little man with a big appetite for evil, and Tracy, a conniving beauty with a heart that's harder than her leathery, over-tanned skin, concoct a deliriously diabolical plan involving murder, body-napping, skullduggery, and oozy, gooey brains.
In the show's first-ever Halloween special and first-ever 3D episode, Jonah and the 'Bots watch The Mask (1961).
Watch Mike, Bill, Kevin, and an all-star crew of hilarious guest riffers take on seven classic less-than-educational shorts, filmed LIVE onstage at San Francisco’s Castro Theatre in January of this year, in all its gritty, low-light, shakey-cam glory! Show includes: Welcome Back Norman Perc! Pop! Sprinkle! - with Cole Stratton (Pop My Culture Podcast) and Janet Varney (The Legend of Korra) Choking: To Save a Life - with Kevin McDonald (The Kids in the Hall) Cooking Terms More Dangerous Than Dynamite - with Adam Savage (Mythbusters) If Mirrors Could Speak - with Kristen Schaal (30 Rock, Bob’s Burgers, Flight of the Conchords) At Your Fingertips: Cylinders - with Paul F. Tompkins (Best Week Ever, Mr. Show, Tangled)
Mike, Kevin, and Bill take on some of the funniest, most unbelievable vintage shorts we've ever found, live in the beautiful Castro Theatre with a crew of hilarious guest riffers! Shorts performed during this event include One Turkey Two Turkey, Setting Up a Room, Writing Better Social Letters, Live and Learn, Making Sense with Sentences, and Safety - In Danger Out of Doors.
Mike, Kevin, and Bill were joined onstage at SF SKetchfest Live 2016 by very special guest riffers Bridget Nelson, Mary Jo Pehl, Cole Stratton, Janet Varney, Adam Savage, Paul F. Tompkins, and John Hodgman including a gigantic, possible world record TEN PERSON riffing grand finale!
Crow is a frozen Christmas tree and Tom is busy, so Joel has to watch the original Gamera film all by himself.
The Mads present the satellite people a film so bad that apologies are sent, and Tom Servo goes off his nut from it.
In between tending to some sick vacuum-flowers, Joel Hodgson and his robot buddy Crow begin their first movie-riffing experiment aboard the Satellite of Love.
Joel and his faithful robot companions celebrate Thanksgiving by scarfing down a chopped up Captain Scarlet serial repackaged as a TV film.
Today's experiment features real humans from Japan and a budget that must've been tens of dollars.
The historic first meeting between Gamera and the crew of the Satellite of Love.
For the Invention Exchange, Joel presents a safety device for motorcyclists. The Mads, anticipating the Mad Scientists' Convention, show off their device for getting rid of unwanted guests. For the day's experiment, Joel and the bots are forced to watch the first tedious chapter of "Radar Men from the Moon" (1952), with Commander Cody, as Joel explains to Tom Servo what a serial is. Their feature film is the cheesy Mexican horror flick, "The Robot vs the Aztec Mummy" (1958). Meanwhile, the threesome do their best to fend off an attack on the Satellite of Love by demon dogs, who are attracted to the spaceship's bone-like shape.
Santa’s sleigh is stuck on the beach, and only one creature can help him: The Ice Cream Bunny! Unfortunately, the fire truck that the Ice Cream Bunny drives needs repairs, so he’ll be a little late coming from Pirates World, the run-down theme park that he lives in. We’d like to take this moment to remind you that, yes, this is a REAL movie that people ACTUALLY made. Filmed in front of a live audience at the historic Belcourt Theatre in Nashville, Mike, Kevin and Bill are delighted to inflict, er, present it LIVE for the very first time!
Mike and the Bots learn the ins and outs of the thrilling world of grocery store refrigeration in The Selling Wizard (1954). Afterward, a scientist claims to have invented a machine that allows him to communicate with a recently murdered socialite in The Dead Talk Back (1994). Mike and the Bots host their own radio show called "The Dead Talk Back," and Gypsy starts a fire drill on the SOL.
Bill and Kevin are joined onstage by the great Paul F. Tompkins, and together they host and riff an amazing set of bizarre short films. The shorts cover every subject under the sun (y’know, because “Day”), from workplace safety to childhood safety to sentient talking pillow safety. And that’s not all - we’ve got more guests, riffing teams and legends galore! John Hodgman, Frank Conniff & Trace Beaulieu, Cole Stratton & Janet Varney, and Bridget Nelson with Sean Thomason, RiffTrax Senior Writer, making his live riffing debut.
The children of Mars are in a funk, and nothing on the red planet seems to be able to cheer them up. Martian King Kimar comes up with the only reasonable solution: kidnap Santa Claus from Earth's North Pole and bring him to their planet to make toys for their joyless, listless little green kids. Meanwhile, two Earth children get wise to the plan and are abducted along with Santa to prevent them from talking to the authorities. Luckily for them, Dropo, the Jerry Lewis of the fourth planet from the sun, is there to help them. The fiendish plot doesn't go according to plan, and there's plenty of intrigue, double-crossing, mistaken identity and stock footage for kids of all ages and planets to enjoy. Poorly conceived, sloppily made, and unfailingly bizarre, "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians" is the ultimate Christmas movie-riffing classic (as fans of MST3K know) which is why Cinematic Titanic chose to revisit, re-riff, and release this holiday hamfest with all new jokes. Merry Crap-mas!
The power goes out on the SOL, to which Servo and Crow take full advantage of by looting the satellite. Pearl unveils her plan to take over the world one person at a time and spontaneously starts off with Servo. While dealing with bad cases of Hockey Hair (to which Mike is conveniently immune), Servo defends Canada's honor with a song of tribute, which eventually turns violent when Mike and Crow join in. Mike's immunity to Hockey Hair leads to a case of Grizzled Old Prospector Syndrome and the bots form a muffin-based sewing circle cult while still remembering the need for human sacrifices. Meanwhile, Pearl almost takes over her first follower before he's suddenly taken over by the Traveler's Group.