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Thread: Red Dwarf

  1. #1
    Simon
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    Red Dwarf

    I've been rewatching this over the past few weeks and thought it deserves its own thread - it's in danger of becoming a Simpsons-lite, as it's arguably been crap for longer than it was ever good, but those first few series are so good.

    It's interesting watching them back-to-back to see how the show develops - the first series is almost unrecognisable from everything post-series 3, focusing more or less entirely on the bleakness of the situation, with Lister essentially alone forever, exploring the emptiness of life and how it affects him. As the show goes on they (understandably) add more characters and it becomes a lot less dark, gradually adding more sci-fi ideas such as Better Than Life, Bodyswap and Backwards...for me the turning point is Polymorph in series 3, which is probably (?) the most celebrated episode but is also the point at which they arrived on the plot structure of introducing a new monster enemy to be defeated each week, which is when it starts going downhill IMO. Not that it isn't still good for a long while; everything up to series 6 is mostly great IMO, with fantastic episodes like The Inquisitor, Quarantine and Gunmen of the Apocalypse.

    Not really sure where I'm going with this thread, it's a bit of a ramble about a show that I'm watching and loving all over again. Does anyone like the later episodes? Where did you think it started heading south?

  2. #2
    Football manager? Peter Griffin's Avatar
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    I would argue that Gunmen of the apocalypse was the most celebrated episode but that's by the by. I mean it's all subjective, I mean obviously the first few series were the peak, But I enjoyed everything else on it's own merit (well Back to Earth was a pile of toss). The first actual series on Dave was very meh but watchable, But last years series was good I feel, Sort of back to 'how it used to be' if that makes any sense to anyone.

  3. #3
    Football manager? Peter Griffin's Avatar
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    I think I probably enjoyed 7 and 8 more because I was a little in love with Chloe Annett as a teen

  4. #4
    AWOL
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    Loved this when I was early teens and just started rewatching it myself at the weekend, fell asleep watching Polymorph last night. Didn't have much of an appreciation of series 1 and 2 when I was younger - don't think I really got it to be honest but now I liked how dark and bleak they are.
    The shift in tone to series 3 is pretty jarring - there's the "lost episode" that was meant to resolve the series 2 cliffhanger and explain Kryten coming back but it was scrapped and replaced with the Star Wars screencrawl at the start of series 3.
    It's probably pretty consistently good/funny until the series they bring back all the old crew and the main cast get put in the ship's prison and the newer ones are decent enough - there's certainly been worse sitcom comebacks.

  5. #5
    Football manager? Peter Griffin's Avatar
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  6. #6
    83% Insane Rip's Avatar
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    Only a one off though

  7. #7
    Simon
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    Holly was so good in the early episodes the whole Queeg episode is brilliant but his reveal at the end is amazing. "We are talking April, May, June, July and August fool"

  8. #8
    Ironclad Contract RuneEdge's Avatar
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    Saw the tweet about Holly being back, which is great to hear. Looks almost weird to see him in HD.
    Regarding the old shows, I think what I missed the most in the latter seasons was the way the characters interacted with each other. It started with Lister as the charismatic space bum, winding up the boring Rimmer who's desperately wants respect and authority. Then everything post "Ace Rimmer" and that snog, they sort of get along almost too well like best buds. That changed the show too much IMO. I still enjoy it, but instead of being about the characters interaction and Lister trying to get back to Earth, its now about a team of friends going through space and time, dealing with the various challenges that come their way, with no real sense of direction.
    What is the point of everything right now? Where are they trying to get to? To me it would've made sense if everything post Season 8 was supposed to be about Lister travelling through space and time to try and get back to Kochanski.

  9. #9
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    I absolutely loved seasons 1-6 but they should have left it here. It was utter shit after that. Shame.

  10. #10
    Give me the World Belt, dammit Zarius's Avatar
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    Series Ten was a return to form, then it went right down the toilet again.

  11. #11
    Simon
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    I've never seen anything beyond series 8 so I'm quite looking forward to the later episodes just to see what they're like. I'm up to series 6 at the moment, forgot how good Legion is.

  12. #12
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    Love that episode. The light switch gag "not, really, I need it to turn the lights on and off". Plus that was the one with the red alert bulb wasn't it?

  13. #13
    Simon
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    Depends which one you mean - it has a gag where Rimmer demands that they go to blue alert, with the reveal being that this amounts to nothing more than turning the bulb on...basically the exact same joke as the more well-known one where he says they should go up to red alert and Kryten replies "are you sure, it does mean changing the bulb"...weird that they have two jokes that are almost identical. Reminds me of Only Fools And Horses doing the famous 'There's A Rhino Loose In The City' movie idea scene in an early episode, then doing the very similar, but far inferior, movie script in the last episode when Del and Rodney get pissed and devise a scene on a desert island.

  14. #14
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    I'm certain both those gags are in the same scene, Simon. Separated just by the one about broadcasting in all known languages, including Welsh. The second joke is the callback to the first one.

  15. #15
    Simon
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    Ah yes sorry I must have been distracted for that second part I've been watching them at work so I miss bits here and there.

  16. #16
    Not asleep The Beer Monster's Avatar
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    Just watching Passengers, aka good looking Red Dwarf.
    As for real Red Dwarf is all about series 1-6,everything after that is shit.

  17. #17
    Ironclad Contract RuneEdge's Avatar
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    What's everyone's favourite episode? I personally can't think of one better than "Marooned".

  18. #18
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    Quarantine

  19. #19
    Not asleep The Beer Monster's Avatar
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    Back to Reality.
    Although I was just looking at the episode lists on IMDb and it was a tougher choice than I thought it would be.
    In school I read the books, I liked how they took ideas from the episodes and took them much further than they could ever do on the show.

  20. #20
    Ironclad Contract RuneEdge's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Beefy View Post
    Quarantine
    Yeah, on second thoughts that might be the best. "Marooned" was more of a two man show with Lister and Rimmer taking up 90% of the episode alone.

  21. #21
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    Marooned is great. Probably the best script they ever shot.

  22. #22
    Football manager? Peter Griffin's Avatar
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    Never mind Holly, The true big return was last night


  23. #23
    Legend Mik's Avatar
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    Cool. Didn't know that there was a new season out.

  24. #24
    83% Insane Rip's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mik View Post
    Cool. Didn't know that there was a new season out.
    Yup.

    And it’s bloody good

  25. #25
    Football manager? Peter Griffin's Avatar
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    I said last year that 11 seemed like a true return to the 'old school' and 12 has carried it on well.

  26. #26
    Give me the World Belt, dammit Zarius's Avatar
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    I thought series 11 was shite, and 12 ain't that good either.

    "M-Corp" was the best episode in ages though. Proper 'Dwarf.

  27. #27
    Simone turdpower's Avatar
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    I find the first few series of Red Dwarf unwatchable because of how old they feel.

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