At long last, Comedy Central gives the series its due by returning Turkey Day to the show that spawned it. They finally come to an agreement with the folks at Best Brains to create a whole new set of bumpers for Thanksgiving 1995. Mystery Science Theater 3000's final Turkey Day on Comedy Central is actually a pretty special one as it's the only Turkey Day to actually be interactive within the show itself. The bumpers this year are a lead-up to the episode premiere of Night of the Blood Beast, which was filmed with specialized host segments that conclude the storyline of the Turkey Day bumpers that were played throughout the day.
The actual storyline itself isn't too different than the storyline of the 1991 Turkey Day, as Dr. Forrester seeks to rule the world but Frank invited too many guests over for Thanksgiving. This year changes it up a little bit in that Dr. F is now trying to rule the world to impress his mother, while Frank sent out the invites before he passed away to Second Banana Heaven and Dr. F has to deal with the mess without him. Guest this year include Jack Perkins (Mike Nelson), Mr. B Natural (Bridget Jones), Pitch (Paul Chaplin), Kitten with a Whip (Kevin Murphy), and Michael Feinstein (Mike Nelson again). The segments go on as the party gets more unruly, to the point where an intoxicated Jack Perkins finds himself sexually confused by Mr. B Natural.
The festivities actually began before this the Turkey Day did this year, as Comedy Central gifts the fans with a special airing of first season episodes which hadn't been in episode rotation for five years, giving newer fans a glimpse at what the series was like with Josh Weinstein. The first three episodes were presented without bumpers, but from The Crawling Hand on, the festivities begin. The first season episode selection is mostly fair but few standouts. I favor Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy, though some might tend to prefer one of the others. More familiar episodes begin with a whiz bang triple feature of solid classics Manos, Mitchell, and Outlaw, before cruising at a lower altitude with Skydivers, and almost crashing with Starfighters. There was a slight break for the Poopie Parade of Values commercial for blooper reel tapes before our final episode feast begins, which is one of the best episodes of the night.
The Corpse Vanishes
Robot Monster
The Crawling Hand
"Manos" The Hands of Fate (2nd Turkey Day)
Mitchell (3rd Turkey Day)
Outlaw
The Skydivers
The Starfighters
Poopie Parade of Values
Night of the Blood Beast - Turkey Day Version (Episode Premiere)
Average Rating (out of 4): 3
1995 was a Turkey Day to remember, and Mystery Science Theater 3000's tradition left that channel with a bang. I would have selected some better first season episodes to show off, but those rare selections were a treat for people who had never seen them. This is a swell example of a Turkey Day, and it gave us Night of the Blood Beast, which is a must on any Thanksgiving.
Goodbye Turkey Day! You will be missed!
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