The Wilder Ride

We discussed the fact that Mel Brooks was able to track down Ken Strickfaden who created the original laboratory equipment for the 1931 Frankenstein movie, starring Boris Karloff. Back then, the Universal monster movie did not give Strickfaden any screen credit. Mel promised Ken if they could borrow the gear, which he had saved and stored in his own garage, Brooks would make sure to give him the credit he so rightly deserved. Mel k...

We finally get through the remaining credits and push into the sitting room of the Castle of Baron von Frankenstein where a coffin is setup in front of a roaring fireplace. The coffin is ripped open to reveal a corpse holding a box. A set of hands moves into the shot, trying to pull the box away from the fingers of the corpse, only to be denied by a supernatural death grip on the box. What's inside? Why is someone stealing it? And,...

A medical student played by Danny Goldman, who is also known for his voicing of Brainy Smurf, needles his professor about his family history. Doctor Frankenstein has to first start by correcting the pronunciation of his name and then goes on to dismiss the rambling question of the student. He then asks if there is another question, relevant to that day's lecture? The student asks for an explanation of the difference between volunta...

Our guest again today on The Wilder Ride was Dr. Tim Ryan, who mentioned that even though everything up to this point was mostly accurate, in this minute, the reality of medicine goes completely off the rails. We discussed the fact that it appears the elderly test subject may be a mental patient, based on how the orderlies act. This sets up an interesting premise that on one side of the screen, we have a mental patient and on the o...

We close out the week with the conclusion of the in-class demonstration on Mr. Hilltop, who, for just $1 more, apparently gets to find his family jewels desecrated. There is some discussion over how all of the information we have been given up to this point no longer holds any water whatsoever. Then, just when we think the class is about to be dismissed, it appears Brainy Smurf has yet another smarmy question he has to ask.

We are ...

It's obvious, after the demonstration asked for by the annoying medical student, Brainy Smurf is not yet willing to stop pushing Dr. Frankenstein about his family's history, specifically of his grandfather's work with reanimating dead tissue. Dr. Frankenstein tries to laugh off the question of the vermicelli worm but is pushed repeatedly to the point of frustrated anger.

Our guest on The Wilder Ride is personal trainer, Susan Delmo...

In an attempt to make a point to the annoying medical student, whom we have affectionately named, Brainy Smurf, he tries to explain it would easier to bring the scalpel to life rather than repair a dead or severed spinal cord. Without thinking and in his sheer frustration, he accidentally plunges the scalpel into his own thigh before doing all he can to act as though nothing is wrong and dismissing the class. As the students leave,...

After realizing there is no escape from his past, the young Dr. Frankenstein decides to travel to his family's estate in Transylvania to claim his inheritance. We are introduced to a new characters at the train station, Elizabeth, Dr. Frankenstein's fiance. It becomes clear, Elizabeth if much more worried about not ruffling her appearance than she is in showing Dr. Frankenstein any affection. The scene ends with her asking him if h...

Rebuffed at every opportunity, whether it's her makeup, her hair, her dress or her nails, as the conductor is calling for everyone to board the train, it appears all Dr. Frankenstein is going to be granted is a gentle rubbing of elbows. He boards the train and turns to throw a kiss to Elizabeth, who flinches out of the way as though he has thrown something disgusting at her. She recovers and decides to mime a couple of blown kisses...

After a rather funny train ride, where it appears American couples share the exact same argument to ones in Germany -- what is he doing everyday that the wife wants the husband to get him to stop. We have a pretty interesting discussion about what they might be discussing before we pull into the Transylvania Station. We are then introduced to a musical pun where we cannot help by end the episode singing just a little bit of the Cha...

Now that Dr. Frankenstein has debarked the train, he is all alone on a fog-filled platform in the dark of night. He hears a strange sound of something approaching. That something turns out to be a strange, hump-backed man with bulging eyes who has been sent to meet him at the station. However, before they can leave, a rather funny conversation ensues over how to pronounce Dr. Frankenstein's name.

Our guest today on The Wilder Ride ...

After Dr. Frankenstein gives his guest some dubious discussion over how to pronounce his name, Igor decides to change how his name is pronounced. They have an additional conversation over the going rate for henchmen and then they go to leave the station. There is an awkward moment as Dr. Frankenstein goes to pat Igor on the back and he realizes, he's tapped the strange looking fellow on his hump. However, when he offers to perform ...

We complete the well-known, "walk this way," bit before Dr. Frankenstein and Igor make their way to a hay wagon (not cart), which is their transportation from the Transylvania Station to the castle of Baron von Frankenstein. Dr. Frankenstein tosses his suitcase into the back of the wagon and is surprised to hear an, "Oomph!" He climbs up and looks down to meet Inga, the lab assistant hired to help him. The playful Inga invites the ...

Dr. Frankenstein helps reassure a startled Inga that lightning is merely atmospheric discharge. She admits she is easily frightened by lightning as their hay wagon (not cart) makes it's way through a dark and scary wood. Suddenly, we here a long and almost human-like howl (which is actually the voice of Mel Brooks) and after a moment, Inga says incredulously, "Werewolf." Dr. Frankenstein questions, "Werewolf?" After a very long pau...