Maybe I should say something to get the ball rolling on this thread again. My name is Russell, I'm 39, I have had bipolar type 2 for the past few years now, and I'm just here to associate with some other people who share the same interests. I've been coming here on and off over the past 11 years or so and while it's taken time, I've slowly matured into a better and more respectful person in spite of my mental illness.
I think it's safe to say we were all drawn here by our intense love for MST3K. After all, without Mystery Science Theater 3000, there would be no Rifftrax. I'm saying this in this thread because I think being able to laugh is important for maintaining our sanity. Of course, you could also be insane and laugh like crazy, but those of us who suffer from things like bipolar, depression, or losing somebody, being able to laugh again is very important because it allows us to cope with all the bad stuff in our lives. It is by no means a cure but if you're a fan of MST at all, then watching other people making fun of bad movies or old shorts is just a part of our lives. There's an underlying emotional bond to those who make us laugh because personally, for me it fills an empty space in my life. Maybe that's just sad, or maybe not, but I hope you get the point. It's important to laugh, because sometimes we take life too seriously and it's important to be reminded to calm down because things aren't always as seriously bad as they seem.
Of course there are many, many other things out there that can make you laugh, but there's something special about both MST3K and Rifftrax. We didn't just laugh at the antics of Joel Hodgson, Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett, but we could relate to the jokes and the characters. I see people who want us not just to laugh, but to laugh at ourselves for some of the ways in which we see not just our lives but the world too. That's important, and I don't know of anybody who makes fun of movies and shorts quite as well as our MST3K Alums.
I won't be free of being mentally ill for the rest of my life, but I still owe a great debt to MST3K and Rifftrax for helping me maintain at least a shred of my sanity and coping with my disabilities.