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Post by burrunjor on Aug 30, 2024 21:16:47 GMT
Made it to Series VI on my rewatch. I used to trash this season a lot for its repetitive humour, but I feel much more positive towards it now. The setup of the crew having lost Red Dwarf both injects new excitement and also feels like a natural evolution. In Series IV and V they already began to increasingly rely on Starbug as the main setting. So removing the main ship feels like they're just getting rid of what had become merely a convenient safety net for the crew. Finding the ship is also the first coherent objective they've had in ages, and there's some actual attempts at worldbuilding with the GELFs and the Simulants. Glad you've come round to series 6. It's my favourite for all those reasons you listed. It's the perfect blend of adventure, sci fi and humour. |
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Post by rushy on Aug 30, 2024 21:22:44 GMT
I still think Series I and II completely overshadow the rest of the show, but if the rest of Series VI holds up to Psirens quality, then it's in my comfort viewing tier for sure.
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Post by rushy on Aug 30, 2024 21:27:16 GMT
I've heard people say that the show couldn't have continued in its original form, but I firmly disagree. There was so much to mine from that "Odd Couple/Steptoe and Son in Space" formula. The Rimmer/Lister/Cat/Holly dynamic of those first two years was absolute gold and in a way feels much more real than the later hijinks. There were all those little personality quirks, like Rimmer's obsession with staying fit and making Lister do his job, Holly doing the pranks, Cat being a cat, all of which kinda melted away.
I'm not bad, because the other seasons are still great, but I wish there was more than just 12 episodes of that magical run. It's like if Fawlty Towers had later seasons, but Basil and co went on a neverending road trip and became friends.
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Post by Cherry Pepsi Maxil on Aug 30, 2024 21:30:59 GMT
I've heard people say that the show couldn't have continued in its original form, but I firmly disagree. There was so much to mine from that "Odd Couple/Steptoe and Son in Space" formula. The Rimmer/Lister/Cat/Holly dynamic of those first two years was absolute gold and in a way feels much more real than the later hijinks. There were all those little personality quirks, like Rimmer's obsession with staying fit and making Lister do his job, Holly doing the pranks, Cat being a cat, all of which kinda melted away. I'm not bad, because the other seasons are still great, but I wish there was more than just 12 episodes of that magical run. It's like if Fawlty Towers had later seasons, but Basil and co went on a neverending road trip and became friends. I often feel the likes of "Dear Dave" are an extension of those early years. You could easily imagine that episode being part of the first series obviously if you remove Kryten. That's what I love about the Dave years. They seemed to want to move on from the 1988 stuff with Series 3 resulting in retcons in Series 4 involving Kochanski. The Dave era seems to embrace the older shows. |
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Post by rushy on Aug 30, 2024 21:42:54 GMT
Yeah, the Dave era is very much a marriage of all the different styles the show's done.
Doug Naylor's journey as sole manager of the franchise has been very interesting to watch. Series 7 and the Last Human novel seem to represent his vision at its purest.
Series 8 was pretty much only made to get the show in syndication, to raise interest for a movie. Which is perhaps why they went so heavy on the nostalgia.
Back to Earth exists as a statement of "I know we f*cked up, but Red Dwarf still has a place on television".
And then 10-12 feels like Doug trying to be both himself and Rob Grant at the same time, and make everybody happy. Which sounds kinda bad and pandering on paper, but I think it's actually made him a better writer.
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Post by rushy on Aug 30, 2024 23:52:51 GMT
Never get between a Legion and his light switch. He needs it to turn the lights on and off!
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Post by rushy on Aug 31, 2024 0:07:54 GMT
It's a bit mad that they chose not to stay at Legion's place, given that he pretty much offered them Better Than Life without any of the drawbacks. Plus they've still got each other if they need genuine people to talk to.
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Post by Cherry Pepsi Maxil on Aug 31, 2024 9:16:23 GMT
It's a bit mad that they chose not to stay at Legion's place, given that he pretty much offered them Better Than Life without any of the drawbacks. Plus they've still got each other if they need genuine people to talk to. I kind of thought that too. The Cyber Park would have been the clincher for me. |
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Post by rushy on Sept 2, 2024 20:13:15 GMT
Gunmen of the Apocalypse - I've always liked this one well enough, but I'll never understand why this one in particular won an Emmy. It's a fun, frivolous western parody. Why is it in the conversation of "best episode ever"?
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Post by Cherry Pepsi Maxil on Sept 2, 2024 20:56:10 GMT
Gunmen of the Apocalypse - I've always liked this one well enough, but I'll never understand why this one in particular won an Emmy. It's a fun, frivolous western parody. Why is it in the conversation of "best episode ever"? I like it a lot although it may be my least favourite of Series 6. I'd still give it a 9, though. The whole idea of it is gold. |
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Post by burrunjor on Sept 3, 2024 20:48:57 GMT
I think the best episode of series 6 is probably the last. They all get a chance to shine in that one.
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Post by rushy on Sept 4, 2024 19:47:21 GMT
I had a double viewing of Emohawk and Rimmerworld.
Emohawk improved very slightly on second viewing in that I no longer think it's the show's worst episode. It's still very weak, though. The whole GELF tribe sequence is painfully unfunny (aside from Craig's amazing "Change of plan, guys! LEG IT!!"), and the rest of it turns into a diluted retread of Polymorph, Dimension Jump and Back to Reality. Not for me.
Rimmerworld is very okay. Nothing great, nothing bad, just surface level Red Dwarf stuff. My favourite bit was Rimmer's little captain's log as he explores the planet. I kinda wish that was just the whole episode. Him wandering around and being a fussy camper.
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Post by burrunjor on Sept 4, 2024 19:50:58 GMT
I had a double viewing of Emohawk and Rimmerworld. Emohawk improved very slightly on second viewing in that I no longer think it's the show's worst episode. It's still very weak, though. The whole GELF tribe sequence is painfully unfunny (aside from Craig's amazing "Change of plan, guys! LEG IT!!"), and the rest of it turns into a diluted retread of Polymorph, Dimension Jump and Back to Reality. Not for me. Rimmerworld is very okay. Nothing great, nothing bad, just surface level Red Dwarf stuff. My favourite bit was Rimmer's little captain's log as he explores the planet. I kinda wish that was just the whole episode. Him wandering around and being a fussy camper. You are a total, total, total, total, total, total complete and utter total. |
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Post by rushy on Sept 4, 2024 19:52:22 GMT
SMEEEEEEEEE
SMUUUUUUU-HEEEEEEE
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Post by Cherry Pepsi Maxil on Sept 4, 2024 21:58:14 GMT
Love Rimmerworld. I can see why some don't like Emohawk, but production wise it's one of the best of the series. The GELF village looks great. That's a pretty rare night shoot for the BBC series. I don't recall there being too many of those apart from Back to Reality and Tikka to Ride.
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