Mike Nelson (character)
Encyclopedia
Mike Nelson is a fictional character
in the comedy
science fiction
television series Mystery Science Theater 3000
. Portrayed by actor/head writer Michael J. Nelson
, Mike is a likable, sometimes dim temp worker from Wisconsin
who comes to work for the mad scientist
s ("Mads") Dr. Clayton Forrester
and TV's Frank
in Deep 13 while they prepare for an evil-scientist audit in episode 512, Mitchell
.
When Joel Robinson
escapes from the Satellite of Love at the end of this episode, the "Mads" knock Mike unconscious and shoot him up to the satellite to replace Joel as their experimental guinea pig. The hapless Mike finds himself forced to watch bad movies with robot companions Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot while interjecting humorous quips and cultural riffs based on the action and dialog of the films. Nelson's first full appearance was episode 513, The Brain That Wouldn't Die
. He typically wore either a green jumpsuit
or a blue jumpsuit.
Series creator Joel Hodgson
reportedly chose Nelson personally as his replacement, on the grounds that Nelson was a natural leader, a gifted comic and that he simply looked good standing next to the show's puppets. Prior to his tenure as host, Nelson played various parody "guest star" characters such as Torgo
from Manos: The Hands of Fate
, Morrissey
, body builder and Hercules
star Steve Reeves
, and continued to play the occasional side character even after he became host. He also occasionally appeared as "Jack Perkins
," and continued the persona as host of the Mystery Science Theater Hour.
) that were a staple of the show's first five years, ending some popular traditions but giving the writers much more freedom in creating the opening and closing sketches. As co-star and writer Kevin Murphy
explained, Nelson was many things "but he's not a tinkerer"; the invention exchanges had in any case been vehicles for Joel to engage in the sort of prop-based comedy he had specialised in before MST3K, and Nelson's strengths lay more in the portrayal of comic characters. Unlike Joel, who was resigned to his fate at being stranded in space, Mike is more desperate and proactive in trying to escape, making wild attempts during his run of the show. At one point, after seeing a bad Joe Don Baker
film, he assumed he would leave as Joel did and boxed himself in a case of Hamdingers.
Mike's relationship with the bots was very different from the one the bots had with Joel. Though the bots occasionally riffed on Joel, they generally respected him and his authority, often regarding him as a father figure (unsurprising, since he literally created them) who would espouse life defining lessons that could neither be questioned nor refuted. The bots never felt that way about Mike. Though they came to accept him as their friend and companion, they were often more cynical and merciless with him (particularly during the Sci-Fi Channel
era) when he screwed up or failed to pick up on something that was blatantly obvious to them, or on his past history, such as dropping out of college (Mike had attended the University of Wisconsin-Stout
). If Joel was a father figure, Mike was more like an older brother: while the bots were happy to make fun of him and play pranks on him, they were also willing to come to him when in need of comfort or advice. Mike was also different from Joel in personality and temperament. Joel tended to take his captivity in benign stride, often delivering his riffs in dead pan, holding no malice against his captors and affectionately calling them "the Mads". Mike tended to be more aggressive regarding his captivity and making fun of the films, and was forever scheming to escape the Satellite or at least make the Mads look like fools, though he and the bots did share moments of friendly recognition with later villains Pearl Forrester
, Professor Bobo
and Observer
.
According to The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Amazing Colossal Guide, Mike is "as intelligent as the average man", and often displays a comic unawareness of his limitations and foibles. In episode #602 Invasion U.S.A.
, he builds a robot whose only function appears to be to "destroy...destroy...destroy...". During the eighth season, he manages to contribute accidentally to the destruction of planets in three separate incidents. During Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie
, one of Mike's mistakes was trying to show off by piloting the Satellite of Love, and ended up crashing into the Hubble Space Telescope
before totally destroying it while attempting to get it off the ship. In episode #911 Devil Fish
, he believes his identity has been stolen by a secret government agency merely after misplacing his wallet. He has an older brother, Eddie, a rude, smoking and drinking bum who replaces him temporarily in the Time Chasers
episode due to Crow going back in time to prevent him from getting the temp jobs which eventually result in him ending up on the SOL. However, this also results in Mike dying a horrible death, which caused Crow to go back once more to fix things.
In the final episode of the series, Mike and the bots finally return to Earth, not by means of cunning escape but by the stupidity of their captors who accidentally send the Satellite tumbling back into Earth's atmosphere. The final scenes show Mike and his robot friends sometime later, now living together in a ground level apartment in Wisconsin, where Mike enjoys a bowl of rice as he sits down to watch The Crawling Eye
, which had been the featured movie for the very first nationally-syndicated episode of MST3K.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
. Portrayed by actor/head writer Michael J. Nelson
Michael J. Nelson
Michael John Nelson is a U.S. comedian and writer, most famous for his work on the cult television series Mystery Science Theater 3000 . Nelson was the head writer of the series for most of the show's 11-year run, and spent half of that time playing the on-air host, also named Mike Nelson...
, Mike is a likable, sometimes dim temp worker from Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
who comes to work for the mad scientist
Mad scientist
A mad scientist is a stock character of popular fiction, specifically science fiction. The mad scientist may be villainous or antagonistic, benign or neutral, and whether insane, eccentric, or simply bumbling, mad scientists often work with fictional technology in order to forward their schemes, if...
s ("Mads") Dr. Clayton Forrester
Doctor Clayton Forrester (MST3K)
Dr. Clayton Deborah Susan Forrester is a fictional character on the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000 . Named for the hero of the 1953 film The War of the Worlds, Dr. Forrester was the chief mad scientist on the show from its inception in 1988 through the seventh season in 1996, and...
and TV's Frank
TV's Frank
TV's Frank, played by Frank Conniff, is a fictional character, mad scientist Dr. Clayton Forrester's lab assistant in the television comedy series Mystery Science Theater 3000. He appears at the beginning of Season 2, with the departure of Forrester's earlier co-scientist Dr. Laurence Erhardt, and...
in Deep 13 while they prepare for an evil-scientist audit in episode 512, Mitchell
Mitchell (film)
Mitchell is a 1975 film starring Joe Don Baker as an abrasive, alcoholic police detective, released by Allied Artists Pictures Corporation in the USA on September 10, 1975....
.
When Joel Robinson
Joel Robinson
Joel Robinson is a fictional character featured in the American science fiction comedy television series Mystery Science Theater 3000...
escapes from the Satellite of Love at the end of this episode, the "Mads" knock Mike unconscious and shoot him up to the satellite to replace Joel as their experimental guinea pig. The hapless Mike finds himself forced to watch bad movies with robot companions Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot while interjecting humorous quips and cultural riffs based on the action and dialog of the films. Nelson's first full appearance was episode 513, The Brain That Wouldn't Die
The Brain That Wouldn't Die
The Brain That Wouldn't Die, also known as The Head That Wouldn't Die, is a 1962 science-fiction/horror film directed by Joseph Green and written by Green and Rex Carlton. The film was completed in 1959 under the title The Black Door, but was not released until May 3, 1962, when it was renamed...
. He typically wore either a green jumpsuit
Jumpsuit
Jumpsuit originally referred to the utilitarian one-piece garments used by parachuters/skydivers, but has come to be used as a common term for any one-piece garment with sleeves and legs.-Use:...
or a blue jumpsuit.
Series creator Joel Hodgson
Joel Hodgson
Joel Gordon Hodgson is an American writer, comedian and television actor. He is best known for creating Mystery Science Theater 3000 and starring in it as the character Joel Robinson. In 2007 MST3K was listed as "one of the top 100 television shows of all time" by Time.com...
reportedly chose Nelson personally as his replacement, on the grounds that Nelson was a natural leader, a gifted comic and that he simply looked good standing next to the show's puppets. Prior to his tenure as host, Nelson played various parody "guest star" characters such as Torgo
Torgo
Torgo may refer to:*Torgo , a vampire in the Marvel Comics universe*Torgo , an alien robot in the Marvel Comics universe*Torgo, a character in the 1966 horror film Manos: The Hands of Fate...
from Manos: The Hands of Fate
Manos: The Hands of Fate
Manos: The Hands of Fate is an American horror film written, directed, produced by, and starring Harold P. Warren. It is widely recognized to be one of the worst films ever made...
, Morrissey
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...
, body builder and Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
star Steve Reeves
Steve Reeves
Stephen L. Reeves was an American bodybuilder and actor. At the peak of his career, he was the highest-paid actor in Europe.-Childhood:...
, and continued to play the occasional side character even after he became host. He also occasionally appeared as "Jack Perkins
Jack Perkins
Jack Perkins is an American reporter, commentator, war correspondent, and anchorman. He has been dubbed "America's most literate correspondent" by the Associated Press....
," and continued the persona as host of the Mystery Science Theater Hour.
Overview
During his tenure as the show's host, Nelson terminated the invention exchanges (last exchange during episode 519, Outlaw) and letter readings (episode 705, Escape 2000Escape from the Bronx
Escape from the Bronx is a 1983 Italian action film directed by Enzo G. Castellari. Also known as Escape 2000 and Bronx Warriors 2 it was featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 under the Escape 2000 name...
) that were a staple of the show's first five years, ending some popular traditions but giving the writers much more freedom in creating the opening and closing sketches. As co-star and writer Kevin Murphy
Kevin Murphy (actor)
Kevin Wagner Murphy is an American actor and writer best known as the voice and puppeteer of Tom Servo on the Peabody Award-winning comedy series Mystery Science Theater 3000.- Early career :...
explained, Nelson was many things "but he's not a tinkerer"; the invention exchanges had in any case been vehicles for Joel to engage in the sort of prop-based comedy he had specialised in before MST3K, and Nelson's strengths lay more in the portrayal of comic characters. Unlike Joel, who was resigned to his fate at being stranded in space, Mike is more desperate and proactive in trying to escape, making wild attempts during his run of the show. At one point, after seeing a bad Joe Don Baker
Joe Don Baker
Joe Don Baker is an American film actor, perhaps best known for his roles as a Mafia hitman in Charley Varrick, deputy sheriff Thomas Jefferson Geronimo III in Final Justice, real-life Tennessee Sheriff Buford Pusser in Walking Tall, brute force with a badge detective Mitchell in Mitchell, James...
film, he assumed he would leave as Joel did and boxed himself in a case of Hamdingers.
Mike's relationship with the bots was very different from the one the bots had with Joel. Though the bots occasionally riffed on Joel, they generally respected him and his authority, often regarding him as a father figure (unsurprising, since he literally created them) who would espouse life defining lessons that could neither be questioned nor refuted. The bots never felt that way about Mike. Though they came to accept him as their friend and companion, they were often more cynical and merciless with him (particularly during the Sci-Fi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
era) when he screwed up or failed to pick up on something that was blatantly obvious to them, or on his past history, such as dropping out of college (Mike had attended the University of Wisconsin-Stout
University of Wisconsin-Stout
The University of Wisconsin–Stout is a member campus of the University of Wisconsin System. The school was founded in 1891 in Menomonie, Wisconsin and enrolls more than 9,300 students...
). If Joel was a father figure, Mike was more like an older brother: while the bots were happy to make fun of him and play pranks on him, they were also willing to come to him when in need of comfort or advice. Mike was also different from Joel in personality and temperament. Joel tended to take his captivity in benign stride, often delivering his riffs in dead pan, holding no malice against his captors and affectionately calling them "the Mads". Mike tended to be more aggressive regarding his captivity and making fun of the films, and was forever scheming to escape the Satellite or at least make the Mads look like fools, though he and the bots did share moments of friendly recognition with later villains Pearl Forrester
Pearl Forrester
Pearl Forrester is a character on the Mystery Science Theater 3000 television series, played by Mary Jo Pehl. Forrester was the mother of Dr. Clayton Forrester...
, Professor Bobo
Professor Bobo
Professor Bobo is a fictional character who appeared in the final three seasons of Mystery Science Theater 3000, a comedy television series that mocks B-movies...
and Observer
Observer (MST3K)
Observer is a fictional character on the Mystery Science Theater 3000 television series. He was played by Bill Corbett, and appeared on the eighth through tenth seasons of the series...
.
According to The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Amazing Colossal Guide, Mike is "as intelligent as the average man", and often displays a comic unawareness of his limitations and foibles. In episode #602 Invasion U.S.A.
Invasion U.S.A. (1952 film)
Invasion U.S.A. is a 1952 motion picture set during the Cold War and portraying the invasion of the United States by an unnamed Communist enemy meant to be taken as the Soviet Union....
, he builds a robot whose only function appears to be to "destroy...destroy...destroy...". During the eighth season, he manages to contribute accidentally to the destruction of planets in three separate incidents. During Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie is a 1996 theatrical adaptation of the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000, produced and set between seasons 6 and 7 of the show. It was released by Gramercy Pictures and Best Brains with distribution held by Universal Pictures...
, one of Mike's mistakes was trying to show off by piloting the Satellite of Love, and ended up crashing into the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
before totally destroying it while attempting to get it off the ship. In episode #911 Devil Fish
Devil fish
The devil fish or giant devil ray is a species of eagle ray, family Myliobatidae. They are most common in the Mediterranean Sea and can be found elsewhere in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean, off the southwest coast of Ireland and south of Portugal.It is larger than the lesser devil ray, growing to a...
, he believes his identity has been stolen by a secret government agency merely after misplacing his wallet. He has an older brother, Eddie, a rude, smoking and drinking bum who replaces him temporarily in the Time Chasers
Time Chasers
Time Chasers is a 1994 science fiction film directed by David Giancola and starring Matthew Bruch, George Woodard, and Bonnie Pritchard. The film follows the adventures of an amateur inventor who goes through time with his female accomplice to stop an evil megacorporation intent on changing...
episode due to Crow going back in time to prevent him from getting the temp jobs which eventually result in him ending up on the SOL. However, this also results in Mike dying a horrible death, which caused Crow to go back once more to fix things.
In the final episode of the series, Mike and the bots finally return to Earth, not by means of cunning escape but by the stupidity of their captors who accidentally send the Satellite tumbling back into Earth's atmosphere. The final scenes show Mike and his robot friends sometime later, now living together in a ground level apartment in Wisconsin, where Mike enjoys a bowl of rice as he sits down to watch The Crawling Eye
The Trollenberg Terror
The Trollenberg Terror is the title of both a 1956 "Saturday Serial" ITV UK television programme and a better-known 1958 black and white science fiction film. The latter is also known as The Crawling Eye, Creature from Another World, The Creeping Eye, and The Flying Eye...
, which had been the featured movie for the very first nationally-syndicated episode of MST3K.