Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context YMMV / Rifftrax

Go To

1* AccidentalInnuendo: This line from ''Film/TheForceAwakens'':
2-->'''[[{{Fangirl}} Rey]]:''' This is the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than fourteen parsecs!\
3'''Han Solo:''' ''Twelve!''\
4'''Bill (as Han):''' Don't make me come in there and {{Fanservice}} you, young lady!
5** They're riffing on a MythologyGag, but consider the common definition of fanservice and, well, this ''is'' Harrison Ford we're talking about.
6* BigLippedAlligatorMoment:
7** ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'': The guys latch onto an obscure Victorian English anti-Welsh rhyme [[https://allnurseryrhymes.com/taffy-was-a-welshman/ "Taffy Was a Welshman"]] for some absurd reason to the point where Disembaudio recites the entire rhyme during the credits.
8*** Mike's fondness for these rhymes is lampshaded during ''Film/{{Oblivion|1994}} 2''.
9** Joel's "Podium switch!" during the [=MST3K=] Reunion where he and Jonah randomly ran around on stage (invisible to anyone watching the broadcast). It ends as suddenly as it begins and is never brought up again.
10* CatharsisFactor: The riffers unloading on particularly hated scenes, characters or examples of ValuesDissonance can make them a lot easier to sit through. For example, after "Drawing for Beginners: The Triangle" shows how to draw a tipi/"wigwam" and its occupant:
11-->'''Narrator:''' Why, that's big chief Rain-in-the-Face!\
12'''Mike:''' "What's that he's holding? Why, it's General Custer's still-beating heart!"
13* CrossesTheLineTwice:
14** Some of the BlackComedy in ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}'' does this. Making jokes as people die or fall to their deaths can get that way.
15** When they refer to Creator/DonnieWahlberg's character in ''Film/TheSixthSense'' as [[spoiler:"Tighty Whitey Suicidey"]].
16** An especially nasty one was the claim during ''Film/TheLastJedi'' that Creator/CarrieFisher's untimely tragic death was the only way she could get out of continuing in the franchise.
17** For the ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate'' live, they give the Master's dog the line "I miss [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Vick#Dog_fighting_investigations Michael Vick]]." This drew groans from the live audience, which they claim they anticipated.
18** The guys seem to take particular delight in making fun of Creator/DavidCarradine's death. You'll be hard-pressed to find a commentary where they don't mention it at least once even if the movie has nothing to do with Carradine.
19** ''Santa's Summer House'': [[{{Jerkass}} Bryan]] is confronted by Santa about his miserable childhood, leading to this comment.
20--->"Please, Santa, I'm so tired of cutting myself."
21** In the last twenty minutes of ''Film/{{Grizzly}}'', there are numerous shots of characters on horseback. Mike complains the movie needs to pick up the pace and says it needs to either "[[CareerEndingInjury Christopher Reeve it]] or [[BestialityIsDepraved Catherine the Great it]]". Kevin goes "Wow." Mike doubles down: "I mean, come ''on''."
22* EvenBetterSequel: Is considered by many fans to be one to ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' due to less constraints and a wider range of riffing material. Of course, others consider it either a CreatorDrivenSuccessor with the trio merely moving forward.
23* FriendlyFandoms: With ''WebVideo/BestOfTheWorst''. It helps that the films they tend to cover often overlap.
24* GeniusBonus:
25** There are a handful of surprisingly high-brow references and jokes in each riff.
26--->"Welcome to Mandelbrot Station."\
27"There may be a test tomorrow, there may not be." "Ah! Schrödinger's Pop Quiz!"\
28"Uh, yeah, this [[Literature/TheHeroWithAThousandFaces Joseph Campbell]] crap's really derivative, you got any UsefulNotes/CarlJung?"
29** There are a surprisingly large number of tributes to [[Creator/AllenGinsberg "Howl"]] and ''Literature/OnTheRoad'', especially in the shorts.
30** ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'': Jar Jar is called the most embarrassing character since [[UncleTomfoolery Stepin Fetchit]]. Unless you're ninety years old or interested in African American cinema, you probably have no idea what that means, though they're hardly the first to make that comparison.
31** ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'': Obi-Wan says "So uncivilized" and the riffers say, complete with [[EvilBrit British accent]], "Sometimes I don't think these Coolies deserve the British Raj."
32** At one point, they compare the pauses in [[Literature/TheTwilightSaga Edward and Bella]]'s dialogue to "[[Literature/GulliversTravels Brobdingnagian]]".
33** ''Film/IAmLegend'' name-drops Danish physicist Niels Bohr.
34** In the short "The Day I Died", they crack a joke about Planck's constant, a reference that makes Niels Bohr sound mainstream.
35** MythologyGag: Bohr was referenced in ''[=MST3K=]'' many times, including one host segment.
36** "When a man threatens to poop on the drink cart, ''take him at his word''. [[http://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/13/nyregion/banker-admits-guilt-in-threat-on-plane.html Look it up.]]"
37** ''Film/TheBourneIdentity'': Kevin jokes about the sociological concepts of gemeinschaft and gesellschaft.
38** ''Film/CoolAsIce'': Kevin mentions the Trilateral Commission and the Reptilians. It's just one of several examples of them making jokes involving conspiracy theories.
39** In the "Drawing for Beginners: The Triangle" short, the narrator makes a rather awkward reference to "Chief Rain-in-the-Face" after drawing a tipi. Mike responds with a quip about killing General Custer--which is pretty good on its own, but a lot funnier if you know that Rain-in-the-Face was an actual Lakota chief, who was rumored to have killed Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
40** ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'': The guys riff an ad for a CBS showing of the 1966 film ''Film/{{The Bible|1966}}''. As the announcer reads out a LongList of Biblical names, such as Abraham, Noah's Ark, David, Sodom and Gomorrah, Bill throws out "Nimrod" and "Dorcas". While both are InherentlyFunnyWords, they ''are'' actual people in ''Literature/TheBible''.[[note]]"Nimrod" was a great hunter in the Old Testament -- it's thought that the use of the name as an insult stems from a WesternAnimation/BugsBunny cartoon where he ironically attaches the name to Elmer Fudd. The reference went over people's heads, who thought it was just an insult. And incidentally, Nimrod actually ''does'' appear in the advertised film, where he's played by Creator/StephenBoyd. "Dorcas", according to tradition, was the alternate name for "Tabitha", the 12-year-old girl Jesus raised from the dead in Mark 5:41. She's not in the film, as it only adapts material from the Literature/BookOfGenesis. It was actually supposed to be the start of a series, but it flopped so badly that it killed off the entire Biblical Epic genre for decades. And now you know.[[/note]]
41--->"I don't think they're in this."
42** Dovetailing with CrossesTheLineTwice, in ''Abraxas'', they make a joke about a classroom full of small children reenacting the Stanford Prison Experiment.
43** They mention the Lambada a couple times, such as in ''Film/{{Thor}}''. Unless you study South American dances, or are old enough to remember the media hyping it as "The Forbidden Dance" back in TheEighties, you probably have no idea what they're talking about.
44* GrowingTheBeard: In 2011, when ''The Crater Lake Monster'' was riffed, fans started to flock to the site as it started doing older, obscure films a la ''[=MST3K=]'', and not completely focusing on major film commentary.
45* HarsherInHindsight:
46** ''Film/IronMan1'':
47--->'''Creator/TerrenceHoward:''' "Next time, baby!"\
48"And Terrence locks up his role in the sequel!"
49*** In fact, a lot of listeners probably assumed it was an intentional reference -- the riff was released the same day Howard was dropped from the sequel.
50** ''Film/{{Red Dawn|1984}}'': As the film surveys some battle wreckage, they quip "Oh my gosh, they replaced our town with Detroit!" Guess where the [[Film/RedDawn2012 remake]] was filmed?
51** During the announcement video of ''Literature/BreakingDawn'', [[ItMakesSenseInContext Kevin falls in love with Bill's recently passed kidney stone]], and after Bill "kills" it by throwing it away a heartbroken Kevin starts tearfully and loudly singing "[[Music/WhitneyHouston I Will Always Love You]]" while Mike makes an offhand comment about Kevin "mourning the death of his dearest love". However, barely two days later the joke got a HELL of a lot darker with Houston's death.
52** ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing The Return of the King]]'': They see a devastated, flooded city and say "The Jersey Shore, present day." A few years later, Hurricane Sandy hit.
53** ''Film/{{Alien}}'': They remark that "Ian's been chugging that [[UsefulNotes/TourDeFrance Lance Armstrong]] energy drink stuff!" Five years later, Armstrong admits to using steroids.
54** All the riffs about Creator/MatthewMcConaughey's acting skills are pretty ironic given his recent CareerResurrection. Hell, Mike is even a fan of ''Series/TrueDetective''. The riffers now emphasize the fact that [=McConaughey=] is TheStoner and a [[GranolaGirl Granola Guy]], such as their version of his eulogy to UsefulNotes/EvelKnievel.
55** ''Film/ANewHope'' has [[BlackComedy R2D2 telling Luke that]] [[Film/RevengeOfTheSith he stood by his mother as she died]]. [[spoiler:Flash forward to ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', where [=R2=] is by Leia's side as she dies.]]
56** The ''Film/{{Anaconda}}'' live listed "optimism for ''Ghostbusters 3''" as a movie mistake. Two years later, due to a variety of factors, the [[Film/Ghostbusters2016 2016 reboot]] ended up being one of the most controversial films in recent memory.
57** ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'' has Bill wondering if Poison Ivy was planning on bombing [=AnthroCon=] after saying she'll get rid of the "furred and feathered pests." Jump to 2014 when Midwest Furfest became the target of a chlorine attack.
58* HilariousInHindsight:
59** ''Iron Man'': While on a little tangent about how Creator/RobertDowneyJr can improve the type of hat he is wearing, they suggest a Literature/SherlockHolmes deerstalker. Cue the announcement for who plays the detective in [[Film/SherlockHolmes2009 the 2009 film]]...
60*** Also, during the scene where Tony's suit ices up and he tells Jarvis to deploy the flaps, Mike quips: "You said we didn't need flaps, you installed spinning rims instead". Come ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', when Jarvis claims that the new suit isn't ready yet, Tony actually says "Then skip the spinning rims."
61*** And given how much ThrowItIn was involved with Tony's dialogue, courtesy of the pop-culture-savvy [=RDJ=] being given a HarpoDoesSomethingFunny free hand... It MIGHT have actually been a shout-out to the riff on his part.
62** ''The Avengers'': The riffers spend some time pondering about Coulson's relationship with a cellist ... a character who later [[ADayInTheLimelight gets a whole episode]] of ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'', played by Creator/AmyAcker.
63*** In a [[BlackComedy much darker]] example, the riffers constantly tease Creator/SamuelLJackson for not being able to [[SirSwearsALot throw around "MF bombs"]] in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse like he can elsewhere. [[spoiler:In TheStinger of ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', Fury's last words before being dusted are a [[CurseCutShort cut-short]] "Motherf--!"]]
64** During shots of the Home Tree in ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', Bill references Disney's Animal Kingdom. Guess what's now getting its own land at the park?
65** During the podracing scene in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace;'' "It's like a live-action Anime/SpeedRacer!" The LiveActionAdaptation of ''Film/SpeedRacer'' came out a year and a half later.
66** ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'': The riffers tell Cap "Don't let ComicBook/AntMan become an Avenger." Cut a few years forward to a self aware DeadpanSnarker take on ''Film/AntMan1'' sparking one of the best received sub-series in the MCU and becoming an Avenger with few complaining after 2019's ''Film/AvengersEndgame''- that is, a character RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap by Rifftrax's own brand of humor.
67** One of the riffers has Red Skull express shock that his {{death ray}} kills people instead of shrinking them. ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'' would use a similar joke when The Vulture uses a similar weapon to vaporize [[YouHaveFailedMe a flunky who screwed up]]...and then chewing out his other subordinates for handing him the death ray because he "only" wanted to make him float around for a bit.
68** ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'': They tease Padmé waiting for Anakin in one scene by saying "Mickey Mouse is waiting for him," to which Kevin says as Mickey Mouse "*chuckles* Hi, Anakin! *chuckles again*". [[Creator/{{Disney}} Guess who]] bought Lucasfilm five years later and made ''[[Film/StarWarsTheForceAwakens Star Wars Episode VII]]''?
69** A man went to court after throwing [[RunningGag sand]] into [[http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/local-news/man-in-court-for-punching-darth-vaders-219233#t Darth Vader's face]].
70** ''Film/{{Daredevil}}'': Mike continues [[Creator/BenAffleck Matt Murdock]]'s narration by stating that he would become a hero called Comicbook/{{Batman}} until a rich kid from Gotham sued him for the copyright. Well, guess who [[Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice played the]] [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 rich kid]] [[Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague from Gotham]] in the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse?
71*** Creator/JaredLeto is named as one of the "charisma-free actors" Elektra has beaten up. [[Film/SuicideSquad2016 He plays the Joker]] [[Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague opposite Affleck.]]
72** ''Film/DrWhoAndTheDaleks'': Kevin jokes about how the Daleks are made to shoot each other. ("You shot me! You knew it was me, Carl! You looked me in the eye!") That was funny enough. Then, it got funnier when what the Doctor ''really'' did to the Dalek fleet around Gallifrey was revealed in [[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor "The Day of the Doctor"]].
73*** Also, at one point they riff about the inside of one Dalek's armor being covered with posters of [[Creator/MaisieWilliams "the chick who plays Arya Stark"]]. A few years later, ''Series/DoctorWho'' introduced a character named Ashildr...
74*** And again in a riff where Bill and Kevin discuss Dalek... waste management... issues. We would eventually see the Dalek city's sewer in ''The Magician's Assistant''/''The Witch's Familiar''. Crosses into HarsherInHindsight when we find out what the Dalek sewer actually ''is''...
75** ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'': Bill raises the possibility of three more sequels during the aftermath of Mace Windu's death. [[Film/TheForceAwakens Two]] [[Film/TheLastJedi years]] [[Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker later...]]
76** Some of the pre-show cards for the ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' live had movie titles to unscramble. The answer card for one for ''WesternAnimation/MonstersUniversity'' commented "At least it's not ''Cars 3''". Months later, Pixar announces ''WesternAnimation/Cars3''.
77** ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheFellowshipOfTheRing'': Kevin is disappointed and frustrated that the film doesn't include Radagast the Brown, among other characters. Radagast would later appear as a supporting character in ''Film/TheHobbit'' trilogy.
78** ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers'': When we first meet Gollum, Kevin quips, "Still, I'd take him over [[Film/ThePhantomMenace Jar Jar]] in a heartbeat!" which Mike replies, "Meesa, too.". On April 29, 2014, Disney and Lucasfilm announced that Creator/AndySerkis will be in the next ''Franchise/StarWars'' film.
79** ''Film/X2XMenUnited'': One of the gags has one of the guys call Iceman "gay" and says "Same difference" when corrected as "mutant". A few years later, the comic character is actually revealed ''to be'' gay.
80** ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'': At Jean's death, Mike says "Yes, the bliss of freedom from the ''X-Men'' franchise". Since then, Creator/FamkeJanssen has appeared in [[Film/TheWolverine not just one]], [[Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast but two more]] ''X-Men'' films.
81** Their jokes about the [[{{UsefulNotes/Baseball}} Kansas City Royals]] qualify now that [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_World_Series they've made it to the World Series for the first time since 1985]].
82*** In the ''Film/SantaClausConquersTheMartians'' live, Santa makes three baseball bats, with the riffers commenting; "One for each hit the Royals will get, next season!". The Royals made it to the World Series, the following year! Which they won.
83** ''Film/TheLastAirbender'' becomes this as one of its guest riffers, Janet Varney, would later star in the [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra sequel to]] [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender the show the movie was based on]].
84*** Especially after the GrandFinale of the aforementioned show, at least with regards to these lines: [[spoiler:"So do you think they mean 'bender' the way British people use it?" "Google it, folks!"]]
85** Their gag in ''Film/Transformers2007'' about Creator/AnthonyAnderson being "the whitest black guy in the world" is even more appropriate since he became the star of a show called ''{{Series/Blackish}}''.
86** A walrus was born at Sea World [[http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/theme-park-rangers-blog/os-seaworld-baby-walrus-ginger-20170816-story.html and named Ginger]]. She even looks like the main character from "Get That Job"!
87** A RunningGag during ''Film/JurassicWorld'' involves insinuating that Zach and Gray’s actors (Creator/NickRobinson and [[Film/IronMan3 Ty Simpkins]]) aren’t especially invested in their performance or acting in general and plan to ditch the business as soon as the film is wrapped. Naturally, both continued acting in real life, but Robinson’s career in particular took off and he soon garnered critical acclaim and popularity for his lead role in ''Film/LoveSimon'', which can make the riff hilarious for those recognizing Robinson via RetroactiveRecognition.
88*** One of the first riffs is Kevin hoping that the "monster under the bed" that the boys' mom mentions will be played by Creator/JeffGoldblum in a cameo. This was released at the end of 2016, a few months before it was revealed that Goldblum would RoleReprise Dr. Ian Malcolm in what turned out to be a glorified cameo in ''[[Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom Fallen Kingdom]]''.
89** The "Red Wedding" joke in ''Film/FunInBalloonLand'' becomes even funnier knowing the crew would riff [[Recap/GameOfThronesS3E9TheRainsOfCastamere the infamous episode]].
90** ''Film/TheWizard'': The "give Bowser an erection" joke becomes oddly prophetic in the wake of the [[Rule63 Bowsette]] [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowsette meme]].
91** ''Film/HighSchoolMusical'': One of the riffers ask [[Film/{{The Room|2003}} "Didn't Chris R. threaten Denny up here?"]] This becomes even more hilarious when you realize that Creator/ZacEfron (Troy), later played Dan Janjigian (the actor who played Chris R.) in ''Film/TheDisasterArtist''.
92** ''{{Film/Cloverfield}}'' (recorded in 2008): The riffers urge the monster to knock down [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump Trump Tower]]. Flash forward a decade or so later, and they're ''still'' making jokes at ex-President Trump's expense.
93** ''Film/AttackOfThePuppetPeople'': At one point, a man suddenly walks in on Franz. One of the riffers, as Franz, shouts "For God's sake, no coffee!" This brings to mind a similar gag six years later in ''Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|2020}}'', where Agent Stone interrupts Robotnik to offer him a latte. Unlike the riff of Franz, though, Robotnik actually wants the drink.
94** ''Film/SantaAndTheIceCreamBunny'': When the grandmother being [[DrivingADesk rear projected]] onto the background as Thumbelina looks at her, with Bill remarking that she was "[[Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz the great and powerful Oz]]". Enter 2017, around six years after they first riffed it, and they riffed on an adaptation of ''Literature/TheMarvelousLandOfOz'', directed by the same exact person who made Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny, ''Barry Mahon''.
95** During the 2016 ''[=MST3K=] Reunion'' show, they riff a short called "A Talking Car". Kevin misreads the title as "A Talking Cat" and gets excited at the idea of watching a film about a talking cat. Flash forward to 2018 where they actually do end up riffing the family film ''Film/ATalkingCat'', Kevin wasn't as thrilled this time around.
96** In the riff for ''Film/TheKarateKidPartIII'' they joke about Terry Silver bribing the judges at the All-Valley Karate Championships. Years later, Silver would return as a character in ''Series/CobraKai'' and do exactly that.
97* HoYay: They're not above commenting on it when they see it. And hell, even when they ''don't'' see it.
98-->'''[[Film/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone Snape]]:''' ''[shoving Quirrell against a wall]'' You don't want me as your enemy, Quirrell.\
99'''Bill:''' Now shut up and kiss me.
100* HypeBacklash
101** The intro and outro to ''Film/TheDarkKnight'' is all about how a VocalMinority, especially on the Internet, were proclaiming it to be the Greatest Film Ever Made. Bill ties a rope around his ankle, like priests in the book of Exodus, in case the splendor literally kills him and they have to yank his corpse out of the recording booth. Kevin warns the others that he may weep openly, [[SubvertedTrope though]] it later turns out he thinks they were going to watch ''Film/FirstKnight'', and says that ''The Dark Knight'' [[HypeAversion sucked]].
102** This was Bill's opinion of ''Film/ANewHope'', if his rant at the end is any indication.
103* MemeticMutation:
104** From the "Grass" short shown at the ''Film/ReeferMadness'' live, "IS CORN GRASS?" and "IS BAMBOO CORN?" are both making the rounds.[[note]]And for those who were wondering: Yes, corn is a type of grass, as is bamboo.[[/note]]
105** From "Get That Job!": "Ginger walrus!"
106** ''Your friend Palpatine...'' "And your [[{{Spoonerism}} pal, Friendpatine]]" from ''Revenge of the Sith'' has been making the rounds on Website/{{Reddit}} and Website/{{tumblr}}.
107** After the ''Film/SpaceMutiny'' Website/{{Kickstarter}} began, fans started putting David Ryder's infamous screaming face everywhere, which the crew [[https://twitter.com/RiffTrax/status/968986170469306368 highly encourages to keep doing]].
108* RetroactiveRecognition: [[{{WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra}} Janet Varney]] provides guest commentary in certain episodes, namely ''Film/DirtyDancing'', ''Film/{{Dreamscape}}'', ''Film/{{Footloose}}'' and ''Film/TheLostBoys''. She's also featured in the Sketchfest live shows.
109* SacredCow: The group doesn't just tackle bad movies; they have also riffed on ''Film/{{Casablanca}}'', ''Film/ItsAWonderfulLife'', and the original ''Franchise/StarWars'' trilogy.
110* TheScrappy: Disembaudio, if only because of his voice. They {{Lampshade}} this in the commentary for ''Film/{{The Room|2003}}''. Dis shows up with a few of his friends, who have similar voices. The riffers ask if they find that annoying.
111* TearJerker:
112** The '''29 minute''' short ''David and Hazel: A Story in Communication'' is ''profoundly'' depressing. Lampshaded constantly by the riffers.
113** The ''Friends'' short manages to be even more so. The riffers even compare it to the former.
114** The segment in the first "National Geographic Total Riff-Off", wherein an Irish veterinarian cares for a stranded baby seal named Sally for eight years until her death. The description of his reaction and subsequent HeroicBSOD is extremely appropriate for anyone who lost a pet they were extremely close to. The riffers immediately call it out as a DownerEnding.
115** The ''Each Child Is Different'' short has some surprisingly sad moments (due to most of the students being TheWoobie). Luckily, there are many CrossesTheLineTwice riffs.
116** ''[[DarkerAndEdgier GrimTrax]]'' was made in part because the subject matters of some of the shorts featured were too depressing to release on their own.
117* [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot They Wasted a Perfectly Good Joke]]: Some longtime viewers were surprised that the gang didn't use a "Utini" gag or even comment on it being used by the Jawas who briefly appear at the end of ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', considering its status as a major RunningGag in other riffs.

Top