Release Date: November 18, 2008
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Episodes Featured:
First Spaceship on Venus
Laserblast
Werewolf
Future War
In many ways the 20th Anniversary Edition DVD set (which is also officially Volume 13 of the box sets) is one of the most important events in Mystery Science Theater history. With this set MST jumps ship from Rhino Home Video to Shout Factory, who pulled out all the stops and released more episodes of the show than we fans ever expected. These sets sold so well that Shout eventually took it upon themselves to buy the rights to the series and have it relaunched in 2017. It all started with this little DVD release with these four little episodes.
Though technically most who nurtured MST at Shout started work on the series at Rhino, so this is not to belittle the releases that they did.
The episode selection was a little bit controversial when it was announced, since it was touted as an anniversary celebration but it only featured one episode with the show's original host, Joel Hodgson. Making things a little more tepid is it's not a very strong Joel episode either. The Mike episodes do pick up the slack, with Werewolf being the set's standout and Future War being an all out blast. Laserblast is pretty good too, though not up to snuff with the Sci-Fi episodes featured. However it was the first episode of the seventh season to be released on DVD, not to mention the final episode of the Comedy Central era, so it's inclusion here is well earned.
Ideally though I'd say this set probably should have been more all-encompassing. As much as I enjoy Future War maybe it would have been best switched out with an episode featuring Josh Weinstein so we could have a taste of all eras. The Crawling Eye would have been a good choice, being the first episode produced of the national series. Or maybe Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy, for being the first episode aired. However film rights are tricky business, so I can't ride a set too hard for not having a more diverse selection.
Average Rating: 3
The video and audio on all the episodes are quite exceptional, and the special features are highlighted by the multi-part The History of MST3K documentary that span the first three discs, featuring interviews with Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy, Bill Corbett, J. Elvis (Josh) Weinstein, Frank Connif, Jim Mallon, Mary Jo Pehl, and several others. In total the doc runs a bit over an hour and has most of the juicy tidbits you want to hear from the creators. However the documentary can be a bit irritating at times since every time they switch to a clip of the show it's from the four episodes on this set (it's especially weird because every time they need a Joel clip it's always from First Spaceship on Venus). Maybe they were a little weary of what clips they could show this early on, but that's the only flaw in this great doc. Also included is the 20th Anniversary Comic-Con panel, hosted by future Max AKA TV's Son of TV's Frank, Patton Oswalt (he had no idea he'd be apart of the show when he filmed this, the poor dope). A lot of what is said here is covered in The History of MST3K, but it's neat to have it. There is also Variations on a Theme Song, which collects the various versions of the MST theme that had been made up until that date. Rounding out the set are trailers for First Spaceship on Venus, Laserblast, and Werewolf.
Also, during the set's initial limited run, it also included a bulky tin and a Crow T. Robot figurine. The Crow toy is pretty neat, very well detailed with the exception of it only being a bust. The toy ends at his torso, where he sits on a pedestal. Out of the figures released with these box sets, Crow is a bit of an odd man out since he's the only one who does sit on a pedestal.
The box art (which is pretty much the same for both the tin and the regular box) is simple but effective. The MST logo sits in the middle of the front cover against a starry backdrop as the theater seat silhouettes gaze up at it. Underneath the logo are the words "20th Anniversary Edition." It's one of my favorite covers of the Shout Factory releases. This is also the first set with custom art by Steve Vance and cases for each episode included, including mini-posters, which would be a staple for future releases. First Spaceship on Venus features Crow and Servo being chased by Venus goo back to their spaceship. Laserblast features Crow holding the film's lasergun and blasting Servo. Werewolf has Crow and Servo being chased by the title beast. Future War has Crow and Servo gazing up at a cyborg an a pair of dinosaurs.
The disc art is a departure from Rhino's creative efforts. Instead it's been simplified to just an episode title logo against a starry backdrop. While I quite liked some of the stuff Rhino did, there is something delightfully uniform about these discs that I quite like. It's too bad that their re-release discs deviate to an even more simplified version. Disc menus dump the theater doors and theater seats that dominated Rhino's discs, instead offering 3D animation of Crow and Servo inserted in various settings. First Spaceship on Venus features the duo exploring Venus, while stills from the movie play in the left hand corner. Laserblast has them on the Satellite of Love bridge, while Crow blasts a laser in various directions before finally blowing up Servo and stills from the movie play on the Hexfield. Werewolf has the Bots exploring the expedition site while listening to wolf howls, and stills from the movie play in the left center of the screen. Future War has them back on the SOL bridge among cardboard boxes and occasionally dodging a dinosaur shadow, while stills from the movie play on the Hexfield.
There are minor imperfections about the 20th Anniversary Edition that may trouble some, but the fact remains that the set is a must-own for any MST enthusiast. The extras are must sees and the Mike episodes are pretty great. Joel's one outing might be a bummer for most, though I think it should be on every MSTie's shelf.
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