Had so many options, but went the predictable route and kicked off my challenge with Serenity, which I watched in last year's challenge for the "umpteenth" time, so I guess this must be umpteen and a couple.

It was after midnight and I needed to do a couple other things at the same time so I didn't want something that I'd have to focus on closely to understand (like my Inglorious Basterds fail the night before). Still love the movie.

I watched Predator 2 and Predators for the first time last night. I know people have mixed feelings on Predators but I loved it and it made Predator 2 look terrible in comparison. I honestly don't ever see myself revisiting Predator 2 but like the original Predator I'll be happy to return to Predators for more mindless fun.

Now time to go find out why everyone loves Doctor Who so much.

Predator 2 had it's moments but I never thought it was that great. Predators was silly but watchable.

How are we counting serials?

In this case 20 minute ones.

If it's short films that are 10 minutes or less, once you hit 23 minutes of watching them, you've reached one 30 minute show. This is based on the theory that the run time for a 30 minute show is between 22-24 minutes.

If it doesn't fit in exactly, you just adjust the fraction accordingly. I've always found it easier to have a temp entry where I just keep filling it up until I get enough for one entry.

Also what subgenre does Flash Gordon fall into?

Space Opera

How is this not a decent enough argument?

It's a Sci-Fi Show, with a Sci-Fi Theme & a Sci-Fi Premise, That's not my opinion it's a fact.

I'm not saying that The Sidehackers is Sci-Fi, of course it's not.

I'm saying that every single episode of MST3K IS Sci-Fi no matter what movie the characters on the show are forced to watch.

The problem is- I'm thinking of it as "Mystery Science Theater 3000" and you're thinking of it as "The Sidehackers"

Rifftrax & Cinematic Titanic are not Sci-Fi shows, they are 3 and 5 people making fun of movies as themselves. Some of them are Sci-Fi movies.

With a million different sci-fi or fantasy films you could potentially watch, why are you so obsessed with MST episodes, particularly those in which they don't even watch sci-fi or fantasy films? It seems like you're not really getting in the spirit of things.

Fine! Since no one else has a problem with someone forbidding SCI-FI SHOWS from a SCI-FI CHALLENGE I won't type another word about it!

I opened with THINGS TO COME (1936), the granddaddy of all futuristic sci-fi. I'd forgotten how great it is. I first saw it in 1970, which is when the whole middle third of the film takes place. One of the things I noticed this time is the similarity of the "wandering sickness" that afflicts the populace in the 1966 section to the zombie plague in NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Also, the first massive airships sent by Wings Over the World in 1970 to pacify the population with the "gas of peace" look a lot like airship designs in assorted "retro" anime of decades later (e.g. CASTLE IN THE SKY and LAST EXILE). The miniature work is some of the best I've ever seen. Hard to believe this came out the same year as the first Flash Gordon serial.

Wonderful film and extraordinarily influential. Oh, and check out the big-screen TVs of 2036!
In this shot, the people are waiting for a giant screen to be lowered into place so they can all watch an "anti-progress" speech:

I agree with you KaBluie.

The only other issue I have with it is that I'm also not allowing episodes of series that would normally count, Tales From the Darkside/Friday the 13th, if that episode doesn't fall within the scope of the challenge.

So far the argument has pretty much been that since the host of the show are robots and it takes place in outer space, it should count. My counter to that is a host in a unicorn costume hosting Casablanca isn't going to count as a Fantasy movie. The host segments can count as shorts but the majority of the show, the movie itself, isn't related to this challenge. When Elvira hosts a swords and sandals film, that's not something I'd expect to count during the horror challenge, simply because she's a horror hostess when the film has nothing to do with horror. At best, I'd consider it a use of a wildcard since it's borderline, to me anyway.

It's been the rule for 4 years without it being brought up but I'm more than willing to change it with a swaying argument or enough people don't mind it being allowed.

^I'm with you, Mister Peepers. I don't consider MST3K to qualify as a sci-fi show *unless* the film being riffed is sci-fi. They did peplum, horror, and other films that could qualify as "camp" but were *not* sci-fi. Your "Casablanca" and Elvira examples are spot on. IMHO the film being riffed has to qualify before the "episode" would qualify.

The MST3K question came up in the very first challenge. I was for including them all. My reasoning was that you're not so much watching the movie as you're watching these characters stuck in space lampooning it.

Can his co-host be a miniature dragon? Because I would totally watch that.

Yes. In my opinion, the actual movie being riffed in MST3K is inconsequential. The whole point of the show is the bots and their being trapped in space. Even the riffing during the film segments is not always centered on that film, but strays into them talking about their own situations.

Only as long as it can blow poorly generated cgi fire. Now I'm tempted to watch some cable access but I know it'll only end in a big pile of terrible.

I tried looking up the discussion on MST3K in the first year but couldn't find it. I was half expecting to find myself saying something else.

Does anyone else want to weigh in, even if you don't plan on watching any of that show?

Personally I agree with you, especially with the reference to Elvira hosting movies. People in the Horror challenge would throw a fit over that shit.

That being said, I could really care less if people wanted to watch non sci-fi MST3K episodes.

Lastly on a side note, god damn Popcorn. 10 entries in the first day, that's a hell of a start

I just put in a request to the mods.

You were a little ambivalent at the time, but pretty much consistent .

I wouldn't want to watch it for the challenge, but I certainly won't object if it is allowed. There appears to be a few people who agree with including it.

Just FYI, Netflix kept their promise to add all of Star Trek to Instant Streaming.

finally watching lost finished season 4 today...still enjoying it but its starting to get a ridiculous. gonna finish since only two seasons left and i really hoping this show wraps up properly.

i will say i have no clue how people kept up with this show weekly...im marathoning them and im still confused half the time.

The Deep Space Nine fan would like to object to this characterization.

Also, I totally missed the MST3K debate but for whatever it's worth, I too see it as a story about a group of misfits trapped aboard a space ship forced to endure bad movies. Is it merely a pretext to make fun of public domain movies? Of course. But the core characters carry on from episode to episode (switching hosts notwithstanding) which gives the series a narrative continuity.

Anyway, last night we saw Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Personally, I loved it. It was what I wanted in a Transformers movie all along, really. I can nitpick some stuff, but I was far more satisfied overall than I had been with either of its predecessors. Great alien invasion stuff, too, and it paid homage to some of the better known scenes and moments along the way.

re: MST3K...whatever...

The point is to have fun. duh.