Cinematic Titanic... what happened?

By the way, Tubi.tv currently have eight CT titles available for US-based viewers (or people elsewhere with VPNs).

Here’s the list:

  • Frankenstein’s Castle of Freaks
  • Legacy of Blood
  • Rattlers
  • Santa Claus conquers the Martians
  • The Alien Factor
  • The Doomsday Machine
  • The Wasp Woman
  • War of the Insects
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It’s too bad they don’t have my second favorite, East Meets Watts. (Doomsday Machine is my favorite.)

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If these get enough views, maybe they’ll add the rest of titles. Stuff comes and goes from Tubi all the time.

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The only special feature (other than trailers) that was on the CT DVDs was the Behind the Riffs mini doc that was was in Danger on Tiki Island.

So if you got the Shout release, you’re not missing out on anything. It even has a new J Elvis interview that wasn’t on the original discs.

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I just want to know how much booze and/or weed it took to get through multiple viewings of Legacy… without having a breakdown. :sweat: Even Eegah didn’t leave that much grimy scaly stuff caked to my mind afterwards.

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It’s kind of apples and oranges comparing Cinematic Titanic then and Rifftrax now. When CT started in 2007, services like Twitch, Pluto and Tubi weren’t a thing. Rifftrax’s own site didn’t allow you to stream at the time either. You would have to download their VODs and shorts to watch them.

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I watched that one on the Twitch stream before it got locked down. It was pretty slimy, and I tended to skip that one when it came up in the rotation. I imagine the writers’ room wasn’t pretty.

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The print was literally filthy enough to capture the inherent filth in the storyline. I award one very aged and remaindered ram chip for that. o_0

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East Meets Watts was the one I saw live for the farewell tour. By then, they’d had plenty of times to refine the jokes, and Frank had a fantastic running gag with a perfect payoff.

Words don't do it justice. You had to be there. But if you're curious...

One of the minor characters is a tall cop who moves stiffly, and it seems like this is not his first Blaxploitation film.

When he first shows up, Frank went “… Blackenstein?” And he really did look the part. It got a good laugh.

But then he keeps appearing for like 5 seconds in the background, without any dialog. And Frank just makes “Grrrr” noises for him. It only happens a couple of times, with plenty of other scenes in between. Just enough to remind you of the connection and build up a bit. The audience laughed slightly more each time.

And then, near the end of the movie, he nearly gets electrocuted by a wildly sparking electric fence and jumps back in fear. And Frank goes “FIRE BAD!!” and brings the house down.

It’s a simple joke, but it really works and the movie sets it up beautifully by having him on screen just enough to make it work.

I was really disappointed to find that the DVD version of the movie did not have that joke at all. It was recorded earlier, before the riffs evolved on the road. It makes me wonder how many other killer riffs we missed. And the audience’s natural laughter helps, too. I can’t watch East Meets Watts without feeling like it’s a shadow of what it should be. And it makes me wish that we had copies of everything from the farewell tour.

But still. Really cool to know that it’s on Tubi. For those not familiar, Tubi is rare in that it doesn’t require an account or subscription of any kind. No personal information. It’s all free, with some short ad breaks. (You can sign up for an account if you want to save your favorites or your viewing progress.) There’s even a Roku app so you can watch on your TV. They’ve got Greatest American Hero and the Incredible Hulk TV series and TV movies and all 3 seasons of Wonder Woman and the 90s The Flash and Superboy and some 40s serials like Green Hornet and so on. (Yes, I like superheroes. But it’s got an eclectic mix with some real gems if you dig around.) I had no idea they had CT. I’ll have to check that out.

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This came in while I was typing my above response, and I didn’t see it until now.

I realize CT and Rifftrax aren’t exactly the same. And, yes, video streaming technology and services have come a long way in the last 15 years. I just thought that the comparison was a good way to highlight the issues CT was facing. And why Rifftrax continued to grow while CT had trouble gaining more of an audience.

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This sounds too good to last for long. Will they allow me to delete my account once the inevitable You-Tube-if-ication happens?

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CT was fine, but a big ensemble cast has to have been hard to make touring work. Some ideas take flight. Some wither untimely. I’m just hoping the new Gizmoplex succeeds and doesn’t end up being one more in the list of failed attempts to return MST to a state where it can continue year to year.

The early CC years were a magical time for MST really. The CC channel needed to fill in space. An audience of young college age viewers were ready for it. A small niche concept of a show got a perfect storm of opportunity to get a national audience. It had a sugar daddy to keep it going and all was right with the world.

Then CC started to become more of a ‘thing’ and the little cow-town puppet show that had let them fill in their massive schedule holes was starting to take up too much space. At that point MST started having to fight for its place in the world and … let’s be honest … it had a tough time fitting in.

I really hope the Subscription / Streaming Age gives MST the place it needs to last for years without having to constantly struggle for oxygen.

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I really liked the Martians do-over, and I don’t usually favor the do-overs. Blood Of The Vampires is my favorite, though. (Of the ones I’ve seen, since they’re not all available.) I wish they had that one airing. Frank and Josh in particular are just on fire there. <3

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Ha, I actually like Legacy, it’s one of my favorite CT episodes (along with Wasp Woman, East Meets Watts, and my top fave, Alien Factor). But it is a sick and ugly movie.

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Like I said, Tubi doesn’t require an account at all. I watch on my Roku without an account. It’s just back to the days of broadcast TV, where the money comes from non-targeted ads. They’re able to do it because their content is mostly decades-old TV shows that aren’t popular enough to warrant licensing to Hulu or whatever. This way, instead of people pirating it, the owners can make a little ad money and maybe find a few more viewers who hadn’t heard of the show.

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This. I can vouch for both Tubi’s awesomeness and the fact that you don’t need an account to watch anything there.

In addition to some pretty solid movies, Tubi has one heck of a RiffTrax selection, too!

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When I had an itch to rewatch Father Ted a few weeks ago, I saw that it was on Tubi. I haven’t gotten around to watching it though.

But that’s off topic. I wish there was more CT, but I’m glad we got what we did. It felt like a nice return to MST with the Shadowrama and all the cast.

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Funny that East Meets Watts wasn’t a total knockout for me as it was for others. I saw it live and halfway through I’m realizing that while good, I wasn’t feeling it like the rest of the audience was.

My favorite is Alien Factor, it’s just drop dead funny, and the movies a kick, those monsters, and the guy who pops in to battle them.

I also enjoyed Blood of the Vampire, Legacy of Blood (the expert riffing kept me grime free, clean and fresh as a daisy). Santa was a fantastic re-riff and Wasp Woman, yeah that was a goodie.

Hell, I enjoyed them all to some degree. It was great project, with a supreme group of riffers, and like Frank, I wish we had more.

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While you don’t need an account for Tubi, an account is free, and also allows you to add content to your watch list on other devices.
They also have all five of Amir “Samurai Cop” Shervan’s US-made movies, tons of martial arts movies, exploitation flicks, Corman movies and much more wonderful, glorious trash. And they have some of Len Kabasinski’s movies, too!

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OT, but… Garth Vader? Hi.

I think I've been to your hometown.

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