Master Ninja 1&2 (blu-ray upgrade)

[billythefist]

Get ready for a double dose of Cleef! This was a fun one, episode 4 is a snoozer but the first 3 are top tier riffing. The extra video quality and restored edits really add to the "what?" and "why?" and "how?" that we've all come to know and love. Famously, Master Ninja 1&2 were just 4 episodes of the failed TV show The Master smashed together like we wouldnt notice. We got Van Patten and Van Cleef, one the nepo baby on his way up in the industry (eventually ending up behind the camera, seriously Timmy's got credits) and one the old timer on his way out looking for a paycheck. Poor old Lee didn't even make it another 5 years after this, sad to see after such an insanely varied career. Keep an eye out for our old swampy pal Dick Durock in episode 2. Anyway, on to the technical details.

The TV show is available on Blu from Kino Lorber, no HD source of the "movies" exists so we are using the TV show. The MST version was sped up around 4% like typical PAL shenanigans but i'm not sure if they actually used a PAL source or they just wanted to get through the movies faster. Slowed down the MST audio to match up to the TV show.

I tried a little experiment on this one since "movie" Master Ninja 1 and 2 have typical Film Ventures International crap credit sequences (film negative karate guy) in place of the TV show credits. Since the TV show episodes are jammed together, this means the riffing during credit sequences only occurs for the intro credits of episodes 1 and 3, and the outro credits of episodes 2 and 4. The outro credits of 2/4 could remain intact with the FVI outro music and riffs since they line up fine with what is happening on the screen. The intro credits are a completely different story.

This is my first use of it, but I tried a little "AI" whatever to separate the MST3K riffing voices from the FVI intro credit music to isolate just the riffing so i could move those riffs around freely and keep the TV show intro music. This sounds weird when i explain it, but if you watch the intros to episodes 1/3 here and compare to the movie intro credits on the MST episodes you will see what i mean. I did have to change the context of a few of the riffs for them to make sense with the TV show intro, but i think they work pretty good. Check em out!

Episode 1:
https://mega.nz/file/Vd9DwLYC#8nvaeQYKMY...ME0lqFf5Vo

Epsiode 2:
https://mega.nz/file/FFdBAZqI#bM_KEdFD8q...Slv7W77pNw

Episode 3:
https://mega.nz/file/YMFxkIQR#fCrJ5sRlok...odZFhoqpvk

Episode 4:
https://mega.nz/file/NIlRRBpB#VZ_kNd-BmJ...q9eZI5Ez_o

[Meat Trademark]

Thanks for these. Watching epsode one right now and it looks great. (Well, as great as these two Vans in a van CAN look...)

[NexusWraith]

Astounding. Thank you so much.

[Taddghostal]

right on ol chap!

[jhs39]

Thanks!

[I Want To Go Faster]

"Timothy Van Patten has received numerous accolades including two Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, and two Directors Guild of America Awards as well as nominations for two BAFTA Awards."

His director's credits include;

Homicide: Life on the Street
The Sopranos (20 episodes! and he also wrote 2)
The Wire
Deadwood
Rome
Game of Thrones
Boardwalk Empire
Black Mirror
Masters of the Air

... wow ...

ps - thanks for your hard work, billy.

[KinoQueen13]

I saw that doofuses name on Masters of the Air recently. I was like "Well... just as long as he's not in front of the camera." THanks Billy.

[billythefist]

Thanks for these. Watching epsode one right now and it looks great. (Well, as great as these two Vans in a van CAN look...)

New rule for my threads, no one is allowed to make better puns than me

[tripletap006]

Mannnnn I absolutely love these original MST3Ks...and on blu-ray?!?!?

[eskaton]

This, like the recent Pod People blu-ray look almost wrong. To be clear, I greatly appreciate and applaud the effort to provide these....it's just that I've watched them so many times with crummy resolution that it's almost part of the movie and experience. Seeing these gems look clean is just so out of place.