Line #28 Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S10E12Squirm


1	[[quoteright:360:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1012sjpg.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:360:"Me? I'd rather have a case of Bass Ale."]]
3
4	[[quoteright:360:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_258.png]]
5	[[caption-width-right:360:Well... I dunno why, [[LiteralistSnarking but okay!]]]]
6
7	Films watched: ''Film/ACaseOfSpringFever'' (short) and ''Film/{{Squirm}}''
8
9	Being the final short riffed on the Satellite of Love (on cable TV), ''Film/ACaseOfSpringFever'' is the nuttiest by far. In the short, the grumpy Gilbert can't go golfing with his friends because he has to repair the springs in his sofa, angrily wishing to never see another spring so long as he lives. In pops "Coily the Spring Sprite", an animated critter who grants his wish, and makes all the springs in the world disappear. Gilbert gradually discovers that springs are vital for everyday objects to work, as he finds that he can't make calls, check his watch, or even start his car. He apologizes to Coily for his wish, prompting the little Spring Sprite to bring all the springs back. From there, the short turns educational as Gilbert preaches to his friends everything there is to know about springs, much to their frustration.
10
11	!!The Segments:
12	[[AC:Prologue]]
13	* The crew goes through the list for their annual safety check and are reassured at their likelihood to die due to the 'Bots using all their emergency supplies for pranks.
14
15	[[AC:Segment 1]]
16	* Pearl is hosting a local fair in Castle Forrester with plans to conquer every fairground in the universe. The 'Bots enter a 5,000-pound pig into the livestock contest, and Pearl shows Brain Guy her secret recipe for pickles.
17
18	[[AC:Segment 2]]
19	* Crow wishes Mike never existed, which summons Mikey the Mike Sprite to grant that exact wish. Mikey expects the 'Bots to take back the wish, but they really don't care that he's gone and he has to beg them for Mike's return to existence.
20
21	[[AC:Segment 3]]
22	* Servo is afflicted with severe Southern Belle-ness. Mike and Crow administer Yankee behavior modification to snap him out of it.
23
24	[[AC:Segment 4]]
25	* Mike tries his hand at raising earthworms into giant mutant killers through electrical stimulation. It doesn't pan out, but on the plus side, the fried worms make for a tasty snack.
26
27	[[AC:Segment 5]]
28	* Crow dresses up as the sister from the film, complete with mile-high high-heels that he stumbles and falls in. Pearl puts a three-foot bungee jump attraction in her fair.
29
30	!!The ''[=MST3K=]'' presentation of ''Film/ACaseOfSpringFever'' has examples of:
31	* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: In-universe, Mike and the Bots interpret Coily as an all-powerful EldritchAbomination.
32	* BrickJoke: Early on, Crow asks where Coily fits into God's plan. Later, as Gilbert won't shut up about springs.
33	-->'''Gilbert:''' Why, it's practically impossible to name a single thing in which some sort of spring isn't essential in one way or another. ''(looks up)''\
34	'''Crow:''' Oh look, God has a spring!
35	* CallBack, RunningGag: Coily was the inspiration for Willy the Waffle way back in [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S03E17VikingWomenAndTheSeaSerpent Season 3]]; they'd been wanting to riff the short since back then and simply weren't able to get the rights until the show's final season. Also, references to Coily (along with his spring sound) are imitated in a host segment ("Mikey the Mike Sprite, they call me") and in ''Squirm'' itself.
36	** Kevin even quotes the "No springs!" after a goofy spring sound effect in the short ''Film/OneGotFat'' released through ''Podcast/RiffTrax''.
37	* DisproportionateRetribution: Coily removing all springs from the world just because of what Gilbert said.
38	-->'''Mike:''' So, ''one'' clod says ''one'' thing and the whole world pays?
39	* EasilyForgiven: Coily reversing the wish.
40	-->'''Servo:''' So, Coily waited all eternity for this moment, and he backs down almost instantly?
41	* EvilLaugh: Coily's laugh comes off this way.
42	-->'''Servo:''' ''(as Coily)'' You'll be the first to die!
43	* EndingFatigue: Discussed InUniverse, as the short keeps going after Coily reverses Gilbert's wish.
44	-->'''Servo:''' Shouldn't this be over?
45	** According to Mary Jo Pehl, this is one of the reasons why they put off featuring this short on ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' for so long, because they weren't sure if the 2nd half provided enough riffing material.
46	* EndOfAnEra: The final short film riffed before the main feature. Shorts are still riffed on the Gizmoplex, but separate from the films.
47	* FanDisservice:
48	-->'''Servo:''' ''(amused and disgusted at the same time)'' More gray asses!
49	* IndecisiveParody: Sort of. The first half of the short is teaching the main character how important springs are, but then the second half has him preaching non-stop about how important springs are to his friends, who are clearly annoyed by him.
50	* ItsAWonderfulPlot: Both the short itself ("Merry Christmas, you wonderful old couch!") and the following host segment it inspires, where Mikey the Mike Sprite tries to show the Bots the horror of a world without Mike. It backfires -- Tom and Crow aren't really too bothered by life without Mike. Eventually Mikey starts badgering the bots into at least half-heartedly pretend they have learned their lesson and wish for Mike to come back.
51	** Mike does care about his socks, though. "No Mike's socks!" ''(whistle)''
52	* OddJobGods: Parodied when the trio invoke Mikey, the Mike sprite, and Mike's Socksy, the Mike's socks sprite. (Each one is credited separately to Patrick Brantseg at the end.)
53	* SoundtrackDissonance: When Coily returns the universe to normal, "Perpetuum Mobile" by Johann Strauss II plays. Mike and the bots wonder if a circus is next door.
54	* TechnologyMarchesOn: Invoked in the riffing itself -- [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hooke%27s_law Hooke's Law]] aside[[note]]Coily thankfully only seems to have dominion over mechanical springs, not fundamental properties of elasticity[[/note]], a decent number of the mentioned uses for springs have since been made obsolete thanks to computer technology, so the lack of them wouldn't be ''quite'' as inconvenient as it would in the 1950s.
55	-->'''Servo:''' ''(as Gilbert)'' I'll show Coily. I'm gonna digitize everything.
56	* UnfortunateNames:
57	** "Coily? Eww."
58	** The rough cut of ''Film/ItLivesByNight'' combines this with SerialEscalation: Mike, Kevin, and Bill come up with TheLongList of scatological sprites like "Fecey", "[=BMey=]", and many more.
59	** They also get into ProductPlacement problems. "I'm Coily with a Y." "I'm Coilee with an EE."
60	----
61
62	!!The [=MST3K=] treatment of ''Film/{{Squirm}}'' provides examples of:
63	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: [[invoked]] According to Mike and the Bots, Mick isn't just interested in antiques as a hobby, he's obsessed with them.
64	-->'''Crow:''' ''(As Mick)'' "''Guh-hod, I love '''antiques!!'''''"
65	** Also, Roger as Ed Gein.
66	* AscendedMeme: The of "Shot him in his face" from the theme song makes it into a host segment, when Servo and Crow say that the flares and fire extinguishers were all shot off in Mike's face.
67	* BatDeduction: After Mick announces he thinks Roger's father is off the hook for the murders:
68	-->'''Mike:''' "I deduced that by ''not'' opening the door."
69	* BehindTheBlack: Geri walks straight into [[StandardFemaleGrabArea Roger's arms]] "Oh, I didn't see you."
70	* {{Bowdlerize}}: The [=MST3K=] cut removes some of the more graphic scenes from the movie, including close-ups of the worms burrowing into Roger's face and the shot of Naomi's form covered in worms.
71	* BrickJoke: "Sufficient springs!" and "No springs!"
72	* CallBack: When the fried worms turn out to be a hit with the [=SoL=] crew, Mike turns to Crow and says they need a dipping sauce (like he made to go with Servo's blossomed and fried head [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S10E07TrackOfTheMoonBeast a few episodes back]]), to which Crow gives an enthusiastic "Check!"
73	* CrowdSurfing: A couple in a restaurant become aware that the floor is covered in worms. The guy immediately grabs his girl and falls off the stool with her.
74	-->'''Crow:''' Let's worm-surf!
75	* DeepSouth: A major source of their humor. It helps that most of the cast have ''painfully'' exaggerated fake accents.
76	-->'''Geri:''' "I'd nevah seen s'much thundin' and lahtnin' in mah life!"
77	-->'''Servo:''' "Come on, no one's ''that'' Southern!"
78	* EyeScream: Mick suggests the worms did something to Roger's eyes.
79	-->'''Crow:''' "If Roger can see?" Do worms routinely blind people?
80	* FailedASpotCheck: Mike somehow never noticed that the Bots were raising an enormous pig on the SOL to enter into Pearl's livestock competition, complete with all necessary accommodations, such as a silo.
81	-->'''Mike:''' Where've you been keeping him?
82	-->'''Servo:''' Around the feed lot. He was our biggest!
83	-->'''Mike:''' Wait, we have a feed lot?
84	-->'''Crow:''' Do you even ''live'' here?
85	* [[IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight I Know You're Not Southern!]]: Mike and Crow trying to shake Servo out of extreme Southern Belle-ness.
86	* LethalChef: Pearl's recipe for pickles involves cucumbers and Windex. Bobo's Ape Hair is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin, battered and fried. Brain Guy only learns these facts after consuming the foodstuffs in question.
87	** Subverted with Mike's electrically fried worms. The Bots react with disgust as he tries one, but it turns out they are ''delicious''.
88	*** Much better than fresh worms.
89	* NoisyNature: "Steven Tyler worm!"
90	* PreppyName: When editor Brian Smedley-Aston's name comes up, Mike chimes in with "Oh, of the 'failed career' Smedley-Astons?"
91	* RunningGag:
92	** "Mr. Beardsley?"
93	** "Southern Maaaaan!"
94	** The jokes about Mick's supposed fondness for antiques.
95	** Pearl's "Come to the fair!"
96	* ShoutOut: When Alma and Mick are at the dentist's office looking thorough the records to identify a skull, a worm crawls out of it. Tom comments "Come on down to the snout. We got a pinochle game going!" This is a reference to a line in an old school yard jump rope chant. "''The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, the worms play pinochle on your snout.''" The rhyme was also used in a poem from Literature/ScaryStoriesToTellInTheDark.
97	** Also during the identification process, Crow says [[Theatre/{{Hamlet}} "It belongs to a guy named Al P. Yorick."]]
98	* SouthernBelle: The whole point of Naomi's character seems to be an attempt at this. Later becomes an actual ''affliction'' on the SOL, as Servo comes down with "severe Southern Belle-ness" (amazingly not [[Literature/GoneWithTheWind "Scarlett fever"]]) and has to be subjected to "Yankee behavior modification" to snap him out of it.
99	* SpoofAesop: As the movie ends.
100	-->'''Servo:''' Please, folks, remember to worm your dog.\
101	'''Mike:''' And if you do start a worm farm, do not raise flesh-eating, intelligent millipedes by mistake.\
102	'''Crow:''' And if you have red hair, do not mate. Ever.
103	* ThatCloudLooksLike: The patches on the rear of the sister's pants as she climbs through a window prompts them to point out that it looks like a face with a mustache.
104	-->'''Crow:''' "The Pringles guy!"
105	* TheUnsmile: "''ANYWAY'' YOU CAN'T BOTHER ME TODAY BECAUSE I'M ''VERY'' HAPPY!"
106	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:
107	-->'''Crow:''' Now, whatever happened with guy running around with a newspaper on his head in the rain? That was kind of a loose end.\
108	'''Mike:''' Yeah, that went nowhere.
109	* TheWormThatWalks: What becomes of Roger.
110	-->"Yes, I'm fully a worm now, but they let me keep my arms and legs."
111
112	----
113	->[[TheStinger "Now you gon' be da wormface!"]]

Context Recap / MysteryScienceTheater3000S10E12Squirm