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Step 1
Familiarize yourself with the most classic genres of B-movies, the low-budget science fiction and horror films of the 1950s, in particular. MST 3000 made fun of many genres of film, but these are a great place to start.
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Step 2
Familiarize yourself with the characters of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Most importantly, get to know Joel Robinson, Mike Nelson, Crow T. Robot, Tom Servo, Gypsy, Cambot and Dr. Clayton Forrester.
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Step 3
Familiarize yourself with the premise. Dr. Forrester and his assistant launch janitor Joel Robinson into space to force him to watch B-movies to not only see how bad-movie watching affects a person, but to find the perfect B-movie to help in Dr. Forrester's plan for world domination. Lonely Joel creates four robots: Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo (who watch the movies with him) and Gypsy and Cambot. After season 5, Joel escapes from the space ship and Dr. Forrester replaces him with Mike Nelson.
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Step 4
Watch the movie. "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie" was released in the later years of the series when Mike Nelson had already replaced Joel. It is shorter than most episodes (only 74 minutes) and shorter than the movie they make fun of, "This Island Earth." It is a great introduction to the series and fun for anyone who already loves the show.
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Step 5
Watch the credits. There is a lot of hilarious potential is scrolling names, so pay attention when the characters comment on the end or beginning credits of the film. When you watch the movie version, be sure to sit through the credits as well.
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Step 6
Look up references you don't understand. While the series has a certain timeless quality to it, Mike, Joel or the robots might make references to people or events you don't connect with right away. Take the time to do a little research and the next time around you could be the only one in the room who gets that joke.
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Step 7
Try doing your own version of MST 3000 with your friends. Take a B-movie of your liking (there are plenty out in the theaters even today) and try coming up with some sly jokes in the manner of Mike, Joel and the robots. Don't get too discouraged if things don't come to you right away--after all, those guys do get scripts to read from.
