Red Dwarf : ``Back to Earth’’

My friend Miss Misery was talking about Nirvana, the other day.

It was the 15th anniversary of the tragic death of Kurt Cobain

http://missmiseryxo.blogspot.com/2009/04/15-years.html

When other people were listening to music. I was watching TV. One of the things I was watching was Red Dwarf, I remember Marek P, talking about it during recess at primary school. I remember Chris D, saying he had waited years for that. When the series was revived with`` Tika for ride’’ in 1997. My Freshman year at Uni

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikka_to_Ride

I remember sending You tube clips of  the end of

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Only_the_Good...

to my ex

The repeats have been a fixture on the British TV channel Dave.

Well, Dave, the BBC have reunited the original writers Rob Grant and Doug Naylor. Reassembled the Cast,

Its something of a Ret Con. The action takes place 9 years later. The ship looks a bit different. (Which is inevitable)

The first scene in the credits is curiously the palace of Westminister

 

Lister the last human, is carrying some tomatoes to the rec room.  Lister loathes Tomatoes. He eats one, to make him sneeze. So he can use the moisture to Iron.

Rimmer, is getting the skutters (Ship robots) to hang his vending machine repairman of the month picture

The continuity is there. There hundreds of floors. The skutters. The reference to vending machines. Lister and Rimmer repaired vending machines and drive plates, on the ship. Before an accident, killed the crewed

It seems to be, a bit rehashed. We remember Rimmer going on holiday with the skutters.  Its a bit like Fan Fic.

There is the first good joke of the night.

``Hours of planning for 8 seconds of pleasure’’ 

Rimmer sighing at Lister’s practical joke. Gets the retort:

`` sounds like the last time you had sex’’

That said there has been loss. Lister has lost his GF, Kristine Kochanski. ( Who was resurrected in the last few series)

Lister dresses up in a tuxedo, and goes to his loves grave to read to her, Jane Austen. He trips up over the authors name. In a quiet voice he hopes there would be a car chase.

Its quiet a touching scene. Its interesting Red Dwarf, was always a young show. Lister was a 20 something slob. Now he is dealing with middle age. Playing pranks on Rimmer is fine. Rimmer is now just a little to old to rise to it. He does not. Its notable, that none of the cast need to mention the fact that Lister is going to the grave. He must spend some time there. Curries and Beer and pranks, are second place to mourning.

Que the Cat.  Who sets up the premise of the episode. The Cat, an evolved feline. Was walking by the ships water tank,

The second good joke of the day:

``A massive testicle grabbed me’’

``He means tentacle’’

``I hope so’’

The cat, makes some standard jokes, about his vanity. He wants revenge on the squid, for wrecking his hair, and causing him a fortune in dry cleaning.

Its alright. I don’t mind Danny Don Jules getting lines or screen time. Problem was is the cat is so one dimensional. It gets boring.

So Rimmer, proposes a plan. They would take a diving bell into the tank. From there attack the squid. They can’t drain the water or indeed dose it . As that would poison Cat and Lister

Lister actually  says we can’t mickey the water. Which is interesting slang. Mickey Finn, to spike someone’s drink. Lister is one of the few characters left on British TV, who does not necessarily speak standard. ``Don’t Nixon, me man’’

I don’t normally comment on costume. Cat is wearing a purple wetsuit, with flared legs. You may never see another on TV. On and Kryten is wearing water wings. Inflatable armbands.

The series 500 isn’t waterproof. (Ace Rimmer, in Dimension Jump. I can quote this all day)

Rimmer is cowardly. Yet his cowardice now invokes pity rather then humour. Rimmer, talking about having to see his colleagues die and never being able to get the image out of his head.

Rimmer in this case acts when he sees his colleagues in danger. He panicked first, when they were not. Compare this to his actions in Rimmerworld where he did cut and run

Anyway our heroes prevail over the squid.

One scene is worth commenting. Red Dwarf despite being tongue in cheek, worked in a more realistic universe then most other TV shows. Lister attempts to shoot the attacking squid.

The bullet ricochets about the titanium diving bell, and is still dangerous

With the dimension jumping squid killed. There is a flash of light and Sophie Winkleman appears as Dr Katarina (Eastern European surname)

She announces she is going to take charge. Replacing Rimmer, who is a bit crap. The scanners confirm this

 

Rimmer is the flat chested one

The continuity point about Red Dwarf being able to support two holograms. That’s why the two have a H on there foreheads.

Dr K, does not like Rimmer. She demands, why the space ship is so untidy. What does Lister do all day? She points out that Rimmer has in fact failed in his mission. He has let Lister die inside. Rimmer was revived as a hologram, to keep Lister sane.

Dr K then comes up with a plan, to get back to Earth. Using the dimension jumping squid’s DNA. The ships laser and DNA reseqencers

Rimmer, will be deleted and his files, sent into space and nuked.

The last good joke, is Kryten description of the Dr. After she has summed up Rimmer

She is so right and perceptive. Its so refreshing

Part two is on tonight. Smoke me a kipper. Red Dwarf and then the pub. If I stay true to the 1990s if I will get drunk and call Kirsten again.