There are just some things I find myself rewatching a lot. Perhaps it’s for comforting background noise, perhaps the smile it puts on my face in hard times. Regardless I will often, when in need of something to have on, default to these. Perhaps it’s the giant deadly mantis episode of MST3K? Perhaps it’s Fantasia? Several years ago it was volumes of American Dad or Family Guy. But today we look at one of these, an adaptation from an old Japanese TV series called Prince of Space.

I should say for this much like the Mantis movie, I use the MST3K episode. I stumbled on it randomly and often find myself just putting it on for fun, probably thanks to the villain. Also helps that episode has the fun wormhole sequences where while traveling through one all sorts of weird time and space problems occur.

The movie is actually two compilation movies, as first Japan made 2 theatrical adaptations of the TV series, then when brought over to America they smashed those two together. So we have a merger of… skipping that it’s beginning to hurt my head.

We open up as a family including some orphans adopted by a man named Wally are looking out in space and watching TV. A professor is talking about his new fuel he has invented when suddenly the TV feed is taken over showing a strange spacecraft, with its leader, the phantom dictator of Crankor in all his big nosed somewhat chicken looking-ness and signature laugh all on display proclaiming world domination.

As the people of Earth… or at least Japan, prepare for his attack, with their soldiers at the landing sight taken out by a death ray, they are saved by the mysterious Prince of Space who is immune to their weapons… something he keeps saying to them despite the villains keeping on trying only to repeatedly fail.

As with most MST3K movies, very often the riffing is what makes the weaker elements of the movie more bearable, so it is up to the viewer how much they can handle a movie with some annoying kids who despite a clear alien invasion going on are still quite insufferable and mostly just get in danger. Thankfully in the second half of the movie, which I assume is the second movie, they are much less prevalent. No instead that’s the Phantom kidnapping scientists so they can tell mankind to surrender.

This does mean that, yes, the second half of this movie is the more actiony and less insufferable, outside of the continuing fact of the villains refusing to understand their weapons aren’t working.

The Season 8 episode is one of the ones on the Gizmoplex so it’s easy for streaming. Whether it’s for the riffing, or just to enjoy the campiness of a 1950s Japanese superhero film, as I said before it’s one I often end up rewatching. Unlike the extremely similar in concept film “Invasion of the Neptune Men”.

Rating: 🎥🎥🎥