Shout! Factory's Next MST3K Set to Include Agent For H.A.R.M.

According to Shout! Factory's website, Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XXXIII will include the 1966 poverty row spy flick Agent for H.A.R.M., starring Peter Mark Richman (a frequent guest star on Sixties spy series like Mission: Impossible and The Man From U.N.C.L.E.) as sweater-fancying not-so-special agent Adam Chance and Barbara Bouchet (Casino Royale) as the requisite professor's daughter. Agent for H.A.R.M. was reportedly a failed TV pilot (an attempted U.N.C.L.E. rip-off) turned into a sort of "American Eurospy" movie and released to drive-ins. Unlike Mario Bava's brilliant Danger: Diabolik (review here), which I will probably never forgive MST3K for riffing, Agent for H.A.R.M. definitely deserves this treatment. In fact, there's a good argument that Mike and the 'Bots (it was a 9th season episode) make it far more watchable. Which is just as well, since it's never been officially released on DVD on its own, making this MST3K set will be the only way, for now, to see it easily at home. (Weirdly, it does sometimes turn up on Time Warner's On Demand movie listings, though.) Among the special features (including the hilarious Mystery Science Theater Hour host wraps) is the new interview "Peter Mark Richman: In H.A.R.M.'s Way," presumably featuring the actor discussing Agent for H.A.R.M. (Perhaps he'll confirm that it was indeed shot as a TV pilot.) I think I'm probably safe in supposing that this is the only documentary material that's ever been devoted to this particular title. The DVD set also includes original theatrical trailers for all the films skewered, and the usual exclusive mini-posters by artist Steve Vance. (I look forward to seeing Vance's H.A.R.M. artwork.) This is a pretty great set overall; besides Agent for H.A.R.M., it also includes the classic episodes Daddy-O and Earth Vs. The Spider, as well as Teen-Age Crime Wave.

While Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XXXIII is available at a substantial discount from Amazon, if you order directly from the Shout! Factory website, then you'll get your discs two weeks earlier than everyone else and you'll also receive an exclusive set of MST3K coasters.

Read my review of Agent For H.A.R.M. here.

And, if you're so inclined, also check out my reviews for similar "American Eurospy" poverty row spy flicks like A Man Called Dagger and Dimension 5.