The Make More ‘MST3K’ Kickstarter Campaign Hits First Funding Goal In Just Over 24 Hours
by Erik Amaya
Never doubt the MSTies. They funded a second Mystery Science Theater 3000 Kickstarter campaign in roughly one day.
After a year of uncertainty, a couple of special appearances for good causes, and the end of MST3K’s time on Netflix, show creator Joel Hodgson is back with a new Kickstarter campaign to Make More MST3K. This time, the plan is to make Season 13 — with returning castmembers Jonah Ray, Baron Vaughn, and Hampton Yount — and build a digital “theater” to premiere new episodes as they are completed. Hodgson calls it the “Gizmoplex” and it will be a story point in the program’s fictional set-up as mad scientists Kinga Forrester (Felicia Day) and Max (Patton Oswalt) return to force Jonah and the Bots to endure a new batch of cheesy movies.
Of course, the initial funding just covers start-up costs for the new season, the Gizmoplex, and three episodes. With additional stretch goals, Hodgson hopes to fund twelve feature-length episodes, twelve shorts, and a number of live events simulcast via the Gizmoplex app, which will be made available on major streaming devices should all go as planned. Total cost: $5.5 million. Considering the previous Bring Back MST3K campaign raised around $5.75 million, it is not outside the realm of possibility. And this time, fans will not have to wait a year for new episodes as Hodgson claims they can set up an early version of the Gizmoplex and produce new episodes before the year is out.
As we love cheesy movies and the practice of riffing on them, more MST3K will always be something we want. Additionally, building out a platform to keep the program independent is, in our estimation, a good cause. Also, as Hodgson pointed out in his interview with the AV Club, going back to a broadcast-style release pattern will be good for viewers and the production. “It’s a little richer experience for the people making it and doing it that traditional way,” he explained. “It’s better for watching, too, having them paced out one at a time. It’s really the style that built our show — we really ignored the way TV was made back then and just kind of made it work for us.”
In fact, as Hodgson alludes to, going independent like this returns the show to its Eden Prairie, Minnesota roots as the little UHF show that could. Just this time, MST3K will own the TV station.
The Make More MST3K campaign continues through May 7th.
