Episode 506: Eegah

MST3K one-line description: A giant caveman stumbles across modern civilization, then kidnaps a teenage girl and her father.

Overall Notes:

Rob: Eegah, the movie so good (??), Joel used it twice, once in the show proper and once as part of the first-ever MST3K live tour. The latter featured a near-pristine print of the movie, making Arch Hall, Jr. all the more frightening. This one is notable for featuring Richard "Jaws" Kiehl as the giant-like prehistoric throwback. And when they shave off the fake hair, he's not bad looking, actually. Also, for disc-less folks, this one appears to be staying on Netflix, though that's always subject to change.

Erica: This is one of the earliest episodes released on DVD, and I can see why they released it early: Eegah is one of the best MST3K episodes (and does make my personal top ten list). Built around a not-totally-horrible movie with some of the best riffing from the Joel years, Eegah is both a perfect gateway film for new MSTies and one that diehards will return to often.

The Movie:


Rob: B+
Laugh all you want at Arch Hall, Sr., but he actually casts his teen-infused movies with people who are credible in the roles. They may not be able to act, mind you, but they do look younger, in an era
where people older than me (I'm 40 as I write this) played teen heartthrobs. I struggled with where to rank this--part of the fun of this site is not having a specific rubric--and in the end, Kiehl is a good
antagonist, the plot flows well, and the horror of the young girl does work. It's the poor acting of everyone but Kiehl and some sketchy direction that makes it bad. Eegah is a riff on King Kong, and it
works on that level, minus a ton of vague (or overt) racism in the Kong films.

Erica: B+
It's a bad movie, but it's a fun bad movie. Arch Hall Jr. stars as Tom, a musical teen heartthrob straight out of the Uncanny Valley. He and his girlfriend Roxy (subject of the song "Vickie") search the California mountains for her dashing archaeologist single father. They run into Richard Kiel as Eegah, a seemingly immortal caveman with a bushy fake beard. Hilarity ensues as Roxy gets felt up by Eegah with the seeming permission of her father, and Arch Hall Jr. plays some of that rock and roll music the kids really dig these days. This is a well-paced teen flick that doesn't take itself too seriously, and Kiel is always a delight in whatever he does.

Believe it or not, this is not the Monster of the film

The Riffs: 

Rob: A
From the opening credits on, this one is full of great jokes, including a Crow-as-Crypt Keeper moment, many many comments on Arch Hall, Jr.'s looks, the great "Tequila" running gag, and of course, the immortal first appearance of "watch out for snakes." Sometimes Joel episodes don't pack the theater with gag-lines, but as we approach the end of his run, the pace here is very Mike-like. I'm a huge fan of the riffs in this episode.

Erica: A+
The riffing on this episode is solid from beginning to end, and contains some of the most oft-repeated ones among fans ("watch out for snakes," "tequila!"), as well as some deep cuts which will appeal to those of us from a certain time period. ("It's the breast show on TV.") Seriously, there isn't a misstep in this whole script, and the Mike pacing combined with the obscure Joel riffs (as Rob references above) is something I really wish we would have seen a bit more often.

The Segments: 

Rob: B
Erica likes the segments of this one better than I do, I think. Joel's sarcastic nostalgia for the good old days isn't really my thing, and Dr. F's plan to drain Frank's blood is a little too cold-blooded (literally) for my taste. But it does have the "Turn Joel into Arch Hall, Jr." part, and that carries a lot of weight for me.

Erica: A-
Rob is correct that I liked these sketches better than him, and the reason why boils down to one word: PORKARINA. Joel's opening invention, an instrument that replicates the pig-based incidental music heard in old episodes of rural sitcoms like Green Acres and Petticoat Junction, is possibly my favorite invention out of all the exchanges. I'm not sure why this one is so hilarious to me, but it never gets old, especially when Gypsy arrives as "the efficient Miss Hathaway" in a flurry of oinks. The remainder of the sketches don't shine quite as brightly, but Joel's smushed-up Arch Hall Jr. face is a nice spot of nightmare fuel.

Crow is not impressed by the Porkarina. Neither was Rob

Overall Score: 

Rob: A-
Eegah was on my long-list for the preliminary Top 10, and it's easy to see why. A big name star (Kiehl), amazing riff work, and a pretty decent movie I'd watch unriffed (though I'd still make fun of it). But the segments don't pull their weight into making this a top of the line film, so I'm putting it in A- territory. On another day or viewing, it might rise to a full A. That's the nature of subjective
rankings! I expect Eegah to finish somewhere in my top 25, however, very easily, and I'd bet that's true for almost everyone who's a fan of the show. Eegah is a classic, and one I'd screen for anyone who isn't familiar with the concept.

Erica: A
WATCH OUT FOR SNAKES!

Watch out for a running gag!