Mystery Science Theater 3000 is hosting a Thanksgiving day marathon filled with the cast’s favorite episodes in celebration of its 35th anniversary. Accompanying the campy movie marathon is a telethon that could save the future of the series.
The Mega Turkey Day Marathon Telethon will showcase 24 classic MST3K episodes selected by the series’ writers, including Viking Women and the Sea Serpent. Some episodes’ visuals have been “surgically enhanced” from the original 480p to 1080p, such as The Pumaman. Fans can also check out episodes from the show’s latest season, like The Bubble, and three holiday shows, including the fan-favorite season 13 episode, The Christmas Dragon.
The conclusion of the marathon is in tandem with the end of MST3K’s 14th season crowdfunding campaign. The telethon strives to raise $4.8 million to begin production of the 14th season, which teases fans with movies like Plan 9 From Outer Space, Demon Squad, and The Million Eyes of Sumuru. The show has run crowdfunding campaigns to keep the show alive after a 15-year break.
After completing season 13, the series moved to its own independent streaming platform. It no longer depends on a network to keep the show running but relies on fans’ contributions to continue creating new episodes.
MST3K debuted on Thanksgiving day in 1988. Hosted by Joel Robinson, then Mike Nelson, Crow T. Robot, voiced by Trace Beaulieu, and Tom Servo, voiced by Kevin Murphy, the series ran for 11 seasons, ending in 1999. Jonah Heston and Emily Connor are the most recent additions to the series.
The show became one of the most beloved cult TV shows of all time for riffing on campy movies like A Touch of Satan, to the point fans took to Kickstarter to revive the show for an additional two seasons in 2015. In 2021, MST3K fans once again brought the show back from cancellation through another round of crowdfunding.
The Mega Turkey Day Marathon Telethon will stream on MST3K’s Gizmoplex channel, Shout! TV, Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire. Fans can also find MST3K on Twitch, YouTube, Pluto TV, Sling, Samsung, LG, Fubo, and VIZIO.
Image credit: Shout! TV