Ep 1. Act Your Age (Emotional Maturity)

RiffTrax Shorts season 3 episode 1, Act Your Age (Emotional Maturity), is a hilarious take on a vintage educational film that attempts to educate teenagers on navigating the complex world of emotions and relationships. The episode features Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy, and Bill Corbett, the masters of comedic commentary, as they poke fun at the film's outdated and often absurd advice.

The episode starts with the three riffers introducing the film, noting its cringe-worthy title and the fact that it was made in the 1950s. The film's narrator, a stern and overly confident man, sets the tone by explaining that the film will teach teenagers how to act their age and become emotionally mature. The riffers quickly latch onto the contradiction, noting that acting your age and being emotionally mature are not necessarily the same thing.

As the film progresses, the riffers gleefully poke fun at its outdated ideas about gender roles and relationships. They point out the film's sexist assertion that women are naturally more emotional and prone to crying than men, and they ridicule its simplistic advice about how to handle romantic rejection. At one point, the film shows a teenage boy getting over a breakup by joining a basketball team, prompting the riffers to joke that the next logical step would be to start shooting hoops with a hoop on fire.

The riffers also take aim at the film's overly simplistic models of emotional responses, noting that real life is far more complex than the film suggests. They point out that the film's suggested approach to dealing with negative emotions, which involves simply "snapping out of it," is not helpful or realistic. The riffers use their comedy to highlight how ridiculous the film's approach to emotional maturity is and how constrained it is by the hypertraditional views of the 1950s.

Throughout the episode, the riffers are in top form, using their trademark mix of snarky commentary and absurd jokes to turn a boring educational film into a laugh-out-loud comedy. They never let up, filling every moment with witty observations and hilarious asides.

Overall, Act Your Age (Emotional Maturity) is a fantastic start to season 3 of RiffTrax Shorts. It's a perfect example of the team's ability to take a dry, outdated educational film and turn it into a hilarious comedic masterpiece. If you're looking for a good laugh or just want to relive some of the ridiculousness of old educational films, this episode is a must-watch.