"I'll have a scotch with a Time Chaser."
"This is like NFL graphics here."
"This is like NFL graphics here."
Film watched: Time Chasers
The episode is available in the Gizmoplex here
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The Segments:
Prologue- Mike brings the audience up to speed by recapping the story so far, revealing that both the SOL and the Widowmaker have left the charred ruins of Ancient Rome and are now back inside the wormhole that brought them there. Servo prods Mike into admitting that he and the 'Bots are "Lost in Space" so he and Crow can launch into impressions of the Robot and Dr. Smith, respectively.
Segment 1
- As the Bots continue to be Dr. Smith and the Robot, Mike attempts to park the SOL with the Nanite-made control panel, but accidentally collides into the Widowmaker. He observes the damage and docks the Satellite, leaving the 'Bots occupied with videos while he drifts to the rocket van. He has an oddly neighborly talk with Pearl about her evil and wicked ways, though she's briefly interrupted by Bobo making noises in his sleep over a baby monitor, and Crow briefly interrupts Mike by complaining when Servo changes the channel. Furthermore, she lies about not sending Mike and his friends anymore bad movies because, of course, she's evil.
Segment 2
- Servo's dug up the time machine that the Nanites made for Mike, and suggests that Crow go back in time to prevent him from being shot into space, even under the threat of being erased from existence. Crow succeeds in traveling to 1985, where he finds Mike as an aimless, blonde-haired slacker temping at a cheese factory in Central Wisconsin. He tries to persuade Mike against working a string of low-paying temp jobs for a living, but Past!Mike is unconvinced and expounds the benefits of temping, frustrating Crow to no end. Commercial Sign unfortunately cuts the encounter short.
Segment 3
- Back in 1985, Crow (after a long bout of repressed rage) succeeds in turning Mike's life around by convincing him to focus on his musical career and his rock band, Sex Factory. When he returns to the present day, Crow finds that he's created a horrifying new timeline: Sex Factory was on the cusp of rock stardom, but Mike died onstage during a gig at the Cleveland Civic Center, being pelted to death with groupies' hotel room keys with huge keyfobs. As a result, Mike's beer-guzzling, chain-smoking, and short-tempered older brother Eddie was sent to the SOL in Mike's place, with Servo having become his obedient and snivelling yes-man/ashtray.
Segment 4
- Fed up with the abusive Eddie and his atrocious manners in the theater, Crow returns to 1985 and meets up with his past self, the two Crows getting into an argument about their choices for the timeline. Thankfully, Future!Crow gets through to his half-an-hour-ago self, who now tells Mike that he's a loser and that's all he'll ever be. As such, he continues the string of temp jobs that ultimately gets him shot into space, resulting in Mike returning to the SOL after the break.
Segment 5
- After an unusual in-theater interruption from Brain Guy, Crow and Servo dress themselves as Gilligan and the Skipper, trying to make Mike say "Gilligan's Island" for more impersonations. Mike doesn't fall for it, and steps out to have another chat with Pearl. The two talk about Crow's time travel misadventure, and eventually realize that there must be another Crow stuck in 1985, which Mike finds far-fetched. Sure enough, back in the 80s, Crow's temporal clone is now working at the cheese factory. The factory's TV plays over the credits.
The Mystery Science Theater 3000 presentation of Time Chasers has examples of:
- Accidental Aesop: Tom notes one In-Universe: "Go off with men you meet at the grocery store, and you'll find yourself being chased by gun-toting hooligans in the post-apocalyptic future."
- Actually Pretty Funny:
- After Brain Guy beats himself up over his Credits Pushback gag, thinking it failed, Mike and the Bots say that they actually enjoyed it and think he's being too hard on himself.
- The episode as a whole mostly got this from the original cast and crew. The line about the henchmen being the director's college friends who brought their own suits got a big laugh at the watch party because that's exactly who they were.
- Adaptation-Induced Plot Hole: The MST3K version cuts out most of Nick's adventures in New York City, or at least the part that established Nick had even visited New York to meet with Robertson, and 95% of the cabbie's lines, so the entire subplot of the NY cabbie driving Nick around is a complete Big-Lipped Alligator Moment.
- Affably Evil: Pearl is amazingly affable when Mike visits, talking like old friends and even offering coffee, while still reminding him that she's evil- even though she doesn't actually do anything evil during the segment, making it more like an Informed Attribute.Pearl: Oh hey, Mike? I despise you, and all that you stand for, and you'll never ex-cape! (chuckles warmly) ...You know the rest!
Mike: Sure do. Buh-bye, Pearl! (floats away)
Pearl: (sighs) Ah, he's a good kid. - Aliens in Cardiff:Servo: Evidently, Vermont was the epicenter of the dystopia.
Crow: Ben & Jerry's was the key to the Armageddon! - Alternate Universe: Crow gets the idea from the movie and goes back in time to get Mike to stop temping so that he never gets shot up to the Satellite. This results in a future where the Bots get stuck with Mike's abusive brother Eddie and Mike himself dies right as his rock career is taking off from being pelted by hotel room keys thrown by groupies.
- Ambiguous Syntax:Nick: So, uh, you cooking dinner?
Lisa: Are you offering dinner?
Crow: "No, I'm saying, 'Make me dinner!'" - And There Was Much Rejoicing: When the wrecked plane falls on J.K. Robertson, crushing him, but only after he kills (one timeline's) Nick.Mike: Oh!... Well, thank you, movie!
- Artistic License – Geography: In the past, Mike is working at a dairy co-op in Burnett County, which Servo states is in central Wisconsin. It's actually in northwest Wisconsin on the Minnesota border. Close enough.
- Artistic License – Physics: Played for laughs: Pearl and Mike are able to breathe in space, and also not freeze to death.Pearl: It's supposed to get down to absolute zero later, that's why I always wear a sweater.
- Badass Bystander:Eddie: You didn't count on the assistant janitor!
- Berserk Button: For Eddie, puns. Don't insinuate his reality sucks, either.
- Continuity Nod:
- At one point, Mike remarks that Nick could use Chinderwear. Wait... how would he know?
- Pearl calls Crow "Art" again as well.
- The time machine Crow uses is the same one from Terror from the Year 5000.
- When Eddie is filling Crow in, he mentions how "those two guys shot me up into space when that sleepy-eyed guy left".
- Eddie also asks Servo (regarding Crow), "Do you get that guy?!" much like Gypsy upsetting Crow in Monster A-Go Go by telling him "I don't get you."
- And another one: in the first host segment of that episode the bots decide to open a cheese factory on the bridge of the Satellite of Love. In this episode, when Crow goes back in time Mike is temping at... a cheese factory.
- After Eddie punches Crow out of his seat as a Lame Pun Reaction, Crow says, "Rip my arms off, Eddie." In season 2, Joel would rip off Crow's arms in response to Crow's puns.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: J.K. Robertson all the way. Even when he finds out abusing time travel will destroy the world, he refuses to not destroy the world because legally the technology belongs to him, so he can do whatever he wants with it.Mike: (as Robertson) Hi, I'm Bob Evil!
- "I leave for twenty minutes, and Evil Co is in shambles!"
- Crack Fic: From a riff when Nick and Co. are discussing the possibilities of the time transport.Mike: You could send Bob Saget to meet Charlamagne.
- Credits Gag: In place of the usual "SOL Love Theme" is the goofy cartoon music from the TV that 1985 Crow is watching.
- Credits Pushback: When Brain Guy interrupts the end credits, he does so in this fashion, pretending to be a preview for the evening news. The SOL crew reacts with confusion and surprise.
- Curse Cut Short: This exchange:Eddie: Hey! What did I say about puns!?Servo: To shove them up my...?Eddie: That's right!
- A Day in the Limelight: Brain Guy makes a surprise appearance during the movie's credits to make his own riffs, but after a couple, he becomes too embarrassed to continue. Mike and the Bots admit that he was Actually Pretty Funny.
- Decoy Protagonist: Crow desperately wants Nick to be this.Crow: Hey, wait a minute, this isn't our star, is it? I will not accept this as our star, sorry.
- Even Nick's choice of bicycle evokes derision.
- Dope Slap: Eddie is far more physical with Crow and Servo than Mike was.
- Dressed to Plunder:
- During the Bad Future scene, Servo notes that a raider, standing on a car and wearing an eyepatch, looks like a pirate and chants, "Arrr! Sixteen men on a dead Dodge Dart!"
- During the 1777 sequence, one of the characters is accused of not actually being in Revolutionary War garb, but posing as a pirate instead.
- Expendable Clone: After Future!Nick dies in 1777, Tom begrudgingly admits Nick is still fine regardless:Tom Servo: (as the camera pans away from Future!Nick's corpse; annoyed) He's dead, but don't worry. They have a spare...
- Empty Fridge, Empty Life: Twice in the film, Nick opens his nearly empty fridge.Crow: Loser status confirmed.
- Funny Background Event: During the latter part of the experiment, Eddie is smoking and tossing several beer cans at the screen.
- Go-Karting with Bowser: Pearl and Mike have a nice porchside chat as evening sets in just before the experiment.Mike: So, Pearl...how come you're so evil?
Pearl: (thoughtfully) Hmmm... I'm filled with hate, I'm not sure that helps.- And when Mike departs:Pearl: Oh hey, Mike? I despise you, and all that you stand for, and you'll never ex-cape! (chuckles warmly) ...You know the rest!
Mike: Sure do. Buh-bye, Pearl! (floats away)
Pearl: (sighs) Ah, he's a good kid.
- And when Mike departs:
- A Good Name for a Rock Band: Mike used to play for a band named Sex Factory.
- Great Way to Go: In the altered timeline, Mike became a huge rock star (well, he was on his way, opening for Motörhead) to the point where women were throwing their hotel keys on stage for him. One night in Cleveland someone threw a key with a large keyfob, hitting Mike in the head; he went down and never got back up. Eddie sobs that he's proud of his little brother for this.Eddie: He died like a mangy dog, right on stage! ...Excellent death...
- Gross-Up Close-Up: Crow accuses the film of this in one shot where Robertson runs up to the camera.Crow: Okay, if you can see a character's eye boogers, you're too close.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: After Crow makes a bad pun, Eddie punches him to the floor:Eddie: You're all right, get up here.
Crow: Goll-lee, Edward... - I Hate Past Me: "Man, was I a jerk a half hour ago."
- I Lied: In the previous episode (Space Mutiny), Mike and the 'Bots helped Pearl, Brain Guy and Bobo escape from Ancient Rome, with the promise that it meant no more bad movies.Pearl: Y'know, sometimes I think I lie because I'm evil.
- Informal Eulogy: When one of the Nicks is shot and killed:Crow: He died as he lived: Mud-stained and splaying.
- Irony: While Crow is in 1985, Tom suggests he "kill [Mike] or something". Crow instead tells Mike to pursue his dreams of becoming a rock star. Mike agrees and this ultimately results in him getting bludgeoned to death by hotel keys. So in a way Crow did kill Mike.
- Jerkass: Mike's brother Eddie is obnoxious and bullies the 'Bots, even while they watch the film.
- Lame Pun Reaction: In-universe example: Eddie really hates them - threatening Servo after he makes one, then smacking Crow hard for making one.Lisa: Did you bring your ray gun?
Mike: (as Ronald Reagan): Weeell, noo, I... - Left Hanging: Parodied when Pearl gets Mike to realize that there's a second Crow still hanging out at the cheese factory in 1985 Wisconsin. Cut to Crow mindlessly watching TV with Mike's co-worker.
- Literalist Snarking: When Nick's plane is shot down and the camera focuses on the altimeter and speedometer.Servo: They're running out of ALT!
Eddie: And their MIFFNOTSnote are going down! - Low Count Gag: The week's movie was filmed and set in Rutland, Vermont. Upon seeing an Establishing Shot resembling a Vermont tourism commercial, one of the SOL crew says, "Vermont: city on the go!"
- Man Versus Machine: When our hero is trying to escape being crushed by the falling plane. The robots begin cheering for the machine.
- And when the plane actually does fall and crush Robertson:Mike: (pleasantly surprised) Oh! Well, thank you, movie!
- And when the plane actually does fall and crush Robertson:
- Magic Countdown: As the villain's time transport counts down to sending them back into the future during the final battle, Servo counts resolutely along, having to reset several times.Servo: "Five...four...three...two...one...uh, FOUR...three...two...THREE... two...(plane crashes) One."
- Minnesota Nice: Pearl's version of Affably Evil.
- Mook Chivalry: The riff from when Nick switches to a bike and his pursuers follow suit.Tom: So it's bicycles! We accept your choice of vehicle!
- Mundane Made Awesome: When Nick describes what could be done with further testing of the time machine:Crow: You could send an egg into the future!
- Mundane Utility: When Nick tells Matt that the potential for the time machine to change history is not why Nick brought him and Lisa into the future:Mike: (as Nick) I want you to buy me an Orange Julius.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: When Crow finally convinces Mike to quit temp work (by encouraging him to focus on his rock band Sex Factory), he creates a Bad Future where Mike became famous, only to get killed on stage (see Great Way to Go above), resulting in Mike's sleazy Jerkass brother Eddie being sent to the SOL instead.
- Servo can count too, as it was his idea to have Crow travel to the past and convince Mike to change his life in the first place.
- Non-Action Guy: Crow stubbornly refuses to accept Nick as the movie's hero.Crow: This... is not our star, is it? I will not accept this as our star, sorry. See, he's coming up the stairs right now, going inside to meet the real hero, real hero coming up, and — [Nick enters] — D'oh!
- Noodle Incident: Hinted at, when Lisa shows up to help Nick against the security guard at the airport. Just what was he referring to with this?Eddie: Oh, he's got a strong girlfriend, that helps. Trust me.
- No, You: When Nick confronts J.K. about misusing the time machine:Nick: Wait a minute, you read my contract! I can change anything anytime I want to!
J.K.: No, you read it.
Mike: (whiny) "No, YOU read it!" - Obviously Evil: J.K. Robertson, the film's villain, when he appears in a black suit and blood red tie, and practically oozing smarm.Mike: (as Robertson) Hi! I'm Bob Evil!
- Oh, Crap!: 30 Minutes Ago!Crow realizes things got royally screwed when Present!Crow appears.
- One-Word Vocabulary: 1985 Mike's coworker at the cheese factory only ever says the word "Dude".
- Overly Long Gag:
- Lisa "dropping shorts" on the runway.
- Observer's "news segment" - so much so that he gives up in frustration.
- Potty Failure: Nick is accused of this when he stands up and the back of his pants are muddy."No monologues with poopy pants, please."
- Raging Stiffie: In a plane scene.Lisa: (pointing down) What's that?
Crow: (as Nick) That means I like you! - Remember the New Guy?: In the alternate timeline, Mike is replaced by his never-previously-mentioned brother Eddie.
- Rooting for the Empire: In-Universe, Mike/Eddie and the bots cheer on every person—and object—that injuries or endangers Nick.Servo: I find myself suggesting other places he could hit him. Probably not what they wanted, huh?
- Running Gag:
- The Crew gets a lot of mileage that the film takes place in Vermont, as well as the dropping price of syrup as the film goes on.
- Lisa's apparent love of plaid and resemblance to Toni Tennille.
- GenCorp HQ's stunning resemblance to a public library. note
- Saying that various characters in the film are played by the director's friend or relative.
Mike: Let's go, director's college buds who brought their own suits to the shoot!- Nick's big chin.
- Mike and the bots wondering what became of Lisa's groceries.
- Self-Deprecation: The producers and actors loved being lampooned... well, most of them.
- The actor who played Matthew Paul ("Pinkboy") was reportedly mad, but director Giancola blamed it on the alcohol at the viewing party. He's apparently gotten over it, either way.
- George Woodard (J.K. Robertson) said that the episode was "an irritation" because the film "is better than they say it is."note
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: Tom sends Crow back in time to 1980s Wisconsin in the hopes of preventing Mike from taking the string of temp jobs that would ultimately result in him getting shot into space.
- Set Wrong What Was Once Made Right: When Crow's trip back to 1980s Wisconsin just makes the present worse (Mike is now dead, and his abusive brother Eddie is on the SOL with Servo and Crow), Crow goes back to the 80s again, to talk his own past self out of changing the past. This does restore the present to the status quo, but leaves past Crow stuck in 1980s Wisconsin as a permanent resident.
- Shout-Out:
- The show that the robots all liked is apparently "Dr. Jane Seymour, Medicine Quinn".
- Mike's band seems to be a reference to the This is Spın̈al Tap song "Sex Farm".
- When Nick and and Lisa are shushed by one of the survivors in the Bad Future, Crow adds "Big boys don't cry.", quoting the bridge to "I'm Not In Love" by 10cc.
- Stock Sound Effects: Courtesy of the TV in the cheese factory, which plays over the credits.
- Story Arc: The SOL is still Time Traveling, one of the few times when the subject matter of the current arc lined up with the movie (rather than just individual host segments reacting to the movie directly).
- Suicide as Comedy: As part of the running gag of
rooting against the film's hero. At the end, as Nick destroys all his time travel research to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands, Mike and the bots point out that Nick still remembers how to build the time machine, so if he really wants to get rid of all the research, he needs to kill himself as well. - Take Our Word for It: Invoked by name when Nick and Lisa make a return trip to the future and discover it in supposed ruins.Lisa: Looks like there was a war!
Servo: (as Lisa) You're gonna have to take our word for it, we can't afford to show it! - Take That!:
- When Matthew Paul brings up the possibility of changing the future:
- The Bots realize just how pathetic 1985 Mike's life is when they see he's a Journey fan. They also seem to equate working at a cheese factory as failing at life.
- When the end credits note the movie was filmed in Vermont, Crow snarks, "Filmed in Vermont: the other, smaller Wisconsin."
- Temporal Paradox: In order to fix his own mistake, Crow goes back to warn his half-hour-ago self not to change Mike's life. At the end of the episode, Pearl wonders if that means there's another Crow running around in the 1980s; cut to show Crow in a hairnet and apron, "working" at the cheese factory. Nobody seems to notice or care.
- There Are No Girls on the Internet: At the end, when Nick is on the computer, deleting all his time travel research, Crow instead interprets that he's on an internet chat room, introducing himself as a 17-year-old girl named Stephanie.
- They Copied It, So It Sucks!: Invoked: Mike accused Jurassic Park of ripping off the scene in Time Chasers where Nick climbs down a tree that's barely holding the crashed plane.
- Toilet Humour: During a fight scene, Nick does a backflip and his butt briefly faces the camera. Crow dubs in a fart noise, which Eddie immediately criticizes. (Eddie himself makes the same joke much later when Nick bends down.)
- When Nick is stuck in a tree:
Mike: (sweetly) Oh, he's looking for honey, like Pooh.
Crow: Oh, he's "like poo" all right. - Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: Servo acting like an excited little kid when told he can watch Mondo Cane.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Mike Nelson's brother Eddie is played by... Michael J. Nelson.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Servo's advice to Crow before he left for the past was to "blend in". No one in 1985 Wisconsin finds Crow's appearances the slightest bit odd or worth commenting on, even when Crow travels back and confronts his past self. ("Hey, robot from the future, there's another one of you guys to see you.") Justified in that everyone at the factory seems to be stoners.
- WTH, Costuming Department?: Tom's reaction to Lisa.Servo: Ugh, two different plaids? I'm a naked robot and even I know that's a fashion no-no.
- With Lyrics: Servo superimposes the lyrics to soft-rock songs like "At Seventeen" and the theme from Arthur over the film's easy-listening soundtrack.
- Wunza Plot: Observer's fictional Sitcom, Which Is Witch?
- Yes-Man: Servo is this to Eddie in the alternate reality.
- Zee Rust: "So, fifty years from now it'll be three years from now."
J.K. Robertson: "Matt, it's time for you decide if you're going to be one of my team players or not."
