Red Dwarf To Return, Find Earth

Lawrence Person writes "Everyone's favorite live-action science fiction comedy series will finally return to TV, with Lister, Rimmer, Kryten and the Cat all making it to Earth. The new two-part series Red Dwarf: Back to Earth will appear on digital channel Dave, will be written and directed by Red Dwarf co-creator Doug Naylor, and will reunite the line-up. 'It will sit alongside two further new episodes — the improvised Red Dwarf: Unplugged, which will feature the cast dealing with no sets, effects or autocue, and Red Dwarf: the Making of Back to Earth, a behind the scenes look at the new production.' Personally, I think this is pretty smegging fantastic."

Comments

Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

This series aged badly. Watched a few episodes last year and found them deeply unfunny.

Re:Aged badly

[jollyreaper]

This series aged badly. Watched a few episodes last year and found them deeply unfunny.

It's a britcom so of course it'll be a bit campy, a bit odd, and not for everyone.

What really impressed me was how the Grant and Naylor team wrote the novels as well as the shows. The audiobooks based on the novels were also voice-acted by the original cast.

Humor is a difficult thing and prose and teleplays are two completely different environments to work in. There's so much to written humor that can simply never be translated to the screen, the classic example from the Hitchhiker's Guide -- "The huge golden space ship hung in the air in almost exactly the way a brick doesn't." How do you convey that visually? You can't, not well. And likewise there's more than just sight gags that simply cannot be done in prose. The easiest example to bring up is the Heath Ledger Joker. So much of that performance wasn't just what he said but how he said it, the mannerisms and expressions. It was both comedic and horrifying.

What I find impressive is when you have a writer or writers who can take a story and tell it in such diverse media and do it well. Adams was involved in all the HHGTTG variants and, as I said, Grant and Naylor did both the show and the books.

Anyway, looking forward to these new episodes! Between this and the final movie wrapping up Dead Like Me, looks like we're in for some good telly this year!

Re:Aged badly

[LordEd]

He would have stopped, but the king of the potato people wouldn't let him...

Re:Aged badly

[gnick]

Red Dwarf, like HHGTTG, is one of those things that just isn't for everyone. And, like HHGTTG, I'm not sure it can even be an acquired taste - If you read/watched a few and hated them, you'll probably hate the rest. Personally, I'm a big fan of both - A unique flavor of humor that just can't be duplicated. (Although in the case of HGTTG, I think the radio show out-shines the movie and, although maybe inferior, is more fun to revisit than the books.)

That said, I have to agree with GPP - It aged badly. When I go back to watch the episodes over, it's rare that I watch anything beyond the ship being reconstructed. It was still fun, but lacked a lot of the charm that the early episodes had. Still, I refuse to miss the Easter special - I'll be there front and center out of curiosity if nothing else...

Re:Aged badly

[Hatta]

It's a britcom so of course it'll be a bit campy, a bit odd, and not for everyone.

But you can't just lump all british comedies together that way. Some of them are just incredible works of comic art. Monty Python, Black Adder, the original HHGG, Fry & Laurie, The Office, and Spaced come to mind. And then there are british comedies that to my mind at least, have no redeeming value whatever. For example, Absolutely Fabulous, and Are You Being Served?. Red Dwarf to me, lies somewhere in the middle.

I'm not sure what it is that I don't like about some Britcoms, but it's not their Britishness. If that were the case, I wouldn't like any at all.

Re:Aged badly

[ezzzD55J]

"...several huge, yellow slab-like somethings. Huge as office blocks, silent as birds. They hung in the air exactly the same way that bricks don't."

http://xkcd.com/386/ ;)

Re:Aged badly

[ezzzD55J]

Although in the case of HGTTG, I think the radio show out-shines the movie

The what? ;)

That said, I have to agree with GPP - It aged badly. When I go back to watch the episodes over, it's rare that I watch anything beyond the ship being reconstructed. It was still fun, but lacked a lot of the charm that the early episodes had.

Not a matter of aging imho. Something weird happened after season 6. I still deeply love seasons 1-6.

Re:Aged badly

[ichthyoboy]

Mr. Flibble doesn't like it when you stop watching...

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

Unless you live in the country, the frame of reference for a lot of the gags is meaningless. Same ol' same slapstick translates to the US market very well. Although the so-called comedy shows we have are pretty tame compared to what BBC2 puts out. Anything we remake is always ridiculously watered down. You see, BBC2 doesn't have to worry about audience figures like BBC1, so almost anything goes. Huzzah! C4 used to go for the penis gags rather more than it should have, and ITV has never made a decent comedy other than The New Statesman.

Re:Aged badly

[NCG_Mike]

So, let me get this right... you want to visit the King of the Potato People? And you think I'm crazy?

Re:Aged badly

[jollyreaper]

And then there are british comedies that to my mind at least, have no redeeming value whatever. For example, Absolutely Fabulous, and Are You Being Served?.

I agree with you 100% on AbFab but Are You Being Served? You don't find that funny, not in the least bit, Hatta? I'm disappointed in you.

Re:Aged badly

[ArhcAngel]

That's why opinions are like....

You see you put Black Adder as an incredible work of comic art but I have painfully watched and scratched my head and said "Why do people think this is funny?" The same with The Office (admittedly I've only seen the version here in the colonies). Maybe it's because I know the idiots being portrayed and have no desire to watch them on the tele. OTOH I really like Are You Being Served. I've only ever worked retail in the restaurant industry as a teen so I never had to endure any of the personalities being parodied and thus find them funny. If I'd actually had to spend long hours/weeks/years working with some of these people I doubt it would be nearly as funny. I enjoyed watching Red Dwarf and look forward to the new endeavor but I know everyone's tastes are a little different.

Re:Aged badly

[pjt33]

I'm not sure that any of the examples you list fail to qualify as "a bit odd, and not for everyone", although I would agree that not all of them are campy. (By way of illustration of the "not for everyone": The Office would make my list of comedies with no inherent redeeming value whatever; it does have the single redeeming value that it enabled Gervais and Marshall to go on and make Extras).

Re:Aged badly

[DurendalMac]

I think it's your sense of humor that has aged badly. Red Dwarf is still great.

Re:Aged badly

[ceebee]

Gotta disagree on your take on AbFab and AYBS. The latter was pants then and now, whilst AbFab captured perfectly that whole era and has aged well...

Re:Aged badly

[YourExperiment]

If Ab Fab is the worst British sitcom you can think of, I can only assume that we don't export the really dire stuff over to you guys.

While the best of British comedy is (imo) the funniest in the world, we also produce a huge volume of crap. What's more, this crap is what seems to appeal to mainstream audiences, and it's what you have to put up with if you watch prime-time TV in the UK (when we're not showing American stuff instead).

Re:Aged badly

[Alonzo Meatman]

Actually, myself and a bunch of old friends re-watched almost the entire thing recently, all the way up through 6th season. I'd say that it mostly aged well. However, the one aspect of the show that *didn't* age well was The Cat. I think I found him mildly amusing back in the day, but now when I see him, I think "racist stereotype" at best, and "minstrelsy" at worst. Doesn't ruin the show, but does detract from it.

Re:Aged badly

[jabithew]

I find the biggest difference is that Britcoms are normally about losers. Compare with the US, say 'Friends'. The main characters are very successful; they have lovely flats near Central Park. I find it hard to have empathy with them. Whenever they have a 'problem' I wish they'd just shut up and catch themselves on. They seem like whiney, spoilt, brats.

Lister, on the other hand, is a slob who lives in an interstellar slum. Yet he always seems pretty chirpy about it. You should check out the US version of Red Dwarf, where some moron at the networks replaced Lister with a super-jock. None of the jokes made sense afterwards.

Of course, there are good US comedies (normally the cartoons) and there are *loads* of really, really bad Britcoms.

Re:Aged badly

[Dupple]

Smeg head

Re:Aged badly

[LandDolphin]

Absolutely Fabulous was hilarious.

And I don't see how any of those that you named do not fit into "a bit campy, a bit odd, and not for everyone"

Re:Aged badly

[Hatta]

"pants" is roughly equivalent to "lame" or "sucks" right? In which case you'd agree with me on that one.

AbFab probably did capture the spirit of its era. It's just not a particularly appealing era. To me at least.

Re:Aged badly

[VVrath]

Craig Charles got the part of Lister after Grant/Naylor ran the pilot past him to see if he thought casting Danny John Jules in the role of Cat would turn the role into a racist stereotype. He didn't think so then - I wonder if he does now?

Re:Aged badly

[bob.appleyard]

The thing is, Grant Naylor were a great comedy team. You can see what each provided to the mix -- when Grant left, the show lost a great deal.

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

You like parodies of things you aren't familiar with and don't like parodies of things you are. I think you don't understand parody.

Re:Aged badly

[Joe the Lesser]

I agree, Are You Being Served? was quite absurd, and hilarious.

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

If you've only seen the US version of The Office, you really aren't qualified to have an opinion of the original (which isn't to say you can't have one, this is the Internet after all). The two are extremely different (which is probably why the US version succeeded). Gone in the US version is the central conceit that it is not a sitcom, but a painfully awkward documentary. Watching the original wasn't about laughing, it was about cringing knowingly.

Personally, I can be entertained by The Office (UK) in short bursts and I respect the concept, but it wouldn't make my top ten. Black Adder would, and if we are going to talk about comic art, we really need to mention Fawlty Towers. I enjoy AYBS as well - it takes formulaic and predictable to a new level and still entertains me.

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

The audiobooks were not acted by the original cast - that was all Chris Barrie (Rimmer)! He's a phenomenal impressionist.

Re:Aged badly

[slashmojo]

Are You Being Served has no redeeming value whatever?

There was Mrs Slocums pussy you insensitive clod!

Re:Aged badly

[JasterBobaMereel]

..Although in the case of HGTTG, I think the radio show out-shines the movie

I preferred the Towel ....

Re:Aged badly

[Rude Turnip]

I am unanimous in that!

Re:Aged badly

[Rude Turnip]

A racist stereotype of...a cat? In all the years Red Dwarf has been around, I have heard *not one* complaint from the cat community, yet you claim to have some greater insight?

Re:Aged badly

[JasterBobaMereel]

This is summed up by the never made Red Dwarf USA .... ...Rewritten by Grant and Naylor .. and a team of American writers and producers ...Lister is heroic, and handsome (but still a slob)

Most British comedies are still written by a very small team (usually 2 or 3) people rather than the joke committee system they have in the states, it is noticeable that the US comedy shows that work in the UK are the ones with the smaller teams of writers ....

Re:Aged badly

[jeffhoy]

Comparing Red Dwarf to Monty Python, HHGG or The Office is an insult to Red Dwarf. The Office is best watched on a weekday evening after a hard day of work. Monty Python is great entertainment with friends on a Saturday afternoon. Red Dwarf is something entirely different.

Like many Americans I first encountered Red Dwarf on PBS late Saturday evenings. After seeing one episode (Demons & Angels) I was hooked. I was thrilled when Season 1 released on DVD and I watched it through that Saturday afternoon. However, it didn't seem to hold up over the years. I was watching a mediocre British comedy, and quite confused.

Eventually I realized that Red Dwarf needs to be enjoyed late at night. Like ATHF, it's bizarrely hysterical but only when in a certain mood. Red Dwarf is not meant to be analyzed for plot holes or comedic merit. It's meant to be watched in a dark room, late at night, and alone. Only then does it become a spectacle of incomprehensible British slang, something far greater than it was meant to be.

Red Dwarf is the only TV series I've purchased on DVD. I've seen the episodes so many times that I remember the audience's laughter. It's no exaggeration to say that it's the best show I've ever seen. But, I can understand that many consider it a mediocre sci-fi comedy. It needs to come with a warning label, "Only watch after 10:00 PM".

Re:Aged badly

[penguinstorm]

There are people that HHGTTG isn't fun for?

Re:Aged badly

[Drantin]

eh, that's from Keeping Up Appearances, not Are You Being Served.

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

I am unanimous in that!

I am anonymous in that!

Re:Aged badly

[bytesex]

ITV made 'the IT crowd', right ?

Re:Aged badly

[MattBD]

No. ITV is notoriously lacking in any kind of comedy whatsoever. Or if they do come up with something another channel steals it, as happened with Men Behaving Badly. Channel 4 were responsible for The IT Crowd. Graham Linehan, the creator, has worked with Channel 4 before, as he was co-creator with Arthur Matthews of Father Ted (genius comedy!), and also created Black Books.

Re:Aged badly

[jaavaaguru]

It's a britcom so of course it'll be a bit campy, a bit odd, and not for everyone.

Doesn't that put it in the same category as US comedies then, for most of the world?

Re:Aged badly

[zdickinson]

I would disagree that Friends is full of successful characters. For much of the show Joey is a bad, unemployed actor. Chandler is so unknown at work that his coworkers call him by the wrong name. Rachel went through an assortment of jobs and was fired often. And while Ross was a professional success, he was a social loser. Monica is the one character that is a success in most aspects of her life, but I'm sure that's to highlight the other characters' flaws. And yes, I'm surprised I just broke Friends down to that degree.

Re:Aged badly

[Dogtanian]

ITV is notoriously lacking in any kind of comedy whatsoever. Or if they do come up with something another channel steals it, as happened with Men Behaving Badly.

ITV axed Men Behaving Badly after two series and the BBC picked it up after that- they didn't "steal" it. Plus, it only really took off after the BBC got it and had the guts to put it on later (I might be wrong, but I'm sure that ITV used to show it before the 9PM watershed).

Re:Aged badly

[Adam Hazzlebank]

Channel 4

Re:Aged badly

[Dogtanian]

After seeing one episode (Demons & Angels) I was hooked. I was thrilled when Season 1 released on DVD and I watched it through that Saturday afternoon. However, it didn't seem to hold up over the years. I was watching a mediocre British comedy, and quite confused.

Funny that you mentioned it was the first series. I don't know what it is, but it feels way older than the ones that follow, even series 2 which was (apparently) broadcast within six months of the first finishing.

It has a noticably different look and feel; very minimalist and studio based with battleship-grey sets. Now, to be fair, this is the only series I didn't see at the time, and the others probably have the benefit of that. Still, I can watch stuff from even the early 1980s and though I can rationally see it's of its time, it clicks with me.

Whereas the first series of Red Dwarf... I wouldn't say it looks dated or cheap so much as it reminds you that actually, yes this is 20 years old and 20 years is a *long* time... in a way that the not-much-newer series 2 doesn't. In some ways the first series feels even older than it is.

Another aspect is that although there's some good comedy there, it hasn't quite settled in to the comfortable groove yet.

Re:Aged badly

[Wandering Wombat]

We call them "Americans". It's not their fault.

Re:Aged badly

[dow]

Damn right you are on that one... its perfect to watch on returning from the pub, a little merry but not so that you're tired. The state that if you hit the computer you're just going to say something that you later regret on Facebook, Slashdot or wherever you end up. Red Dwarf, or Southpark I find perfect for these situations.

Re:Aged badly

[TooMuchToDo]

You're very right. I watched the original Office on Netflix, and thought the dry humor was fantastic. Tried to watch the US version of the Office. Very disappointing.

Re:Aged badly

[Dues]

I think it's funny how you mentioned "Friends" and the US version of "Red Dwarf" in the same post. That "super jock" you mentioned was actually offered the roll of Joey on friends, but he turned it down and took the gig as Lister instead because he didn't think friends had any chance of success...

Re:Aged badly

[lgw]

Don't you mean "speciest"? Sure, the normal behaviour of a cat-transformed-into-a-human was exaggerated and stereotyped a bit for comedic effect, but no offensively so.

Or are you on some unhinged "liberal" (wish there was a better word) rant about the fact that the character was played by a black actor? It's very sad that you're so obsessed with skin color that it detracts from your enjoyment of good comedy.

Re:Aged badly

[hobbit]

Why? What's the stereotype?

Re:Aged badly

[LingNoi]

man, you're so damn old.. :P

Re:Aged badly

[Bitsy Boffin]

No it's not.

Mrs Slocum says this phrase often.

Mrs Bucket does not.

Re:Aged badly

[Richy_T]

ITV axed Men Behaving Badly

What did they axe them?

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

Although I agree with you that quite a few Britcoms are about "Losers"(Porridge, Only Fools and Horses) They are many great Britcoms that are nothing like this. Yes (Prime)Minister, Keeping Up Appearances, My Hero and To The Manor Born are all shining examples of what Britcoms do that US Sitcoms very rarely do.

Re:Aged badly

[Latinhypercube]

so unrealistic. If friends was real they'd all be doing drugs living in the Lower East Side

Re:Aged badly

[multisync]

Some of them are just incredible works of comic art. Monty Python, Black Adder, the original HHGG, Fry & Laurie, The Office, and Spaced come to mind.

Don't forget On the Buses, Benny Hill, The Two Ronnies and Are You Being Served.

Okay, I was kidding about The Two Ronnies.

Re:Aged badly

[ian_from_brisbane]

How on earth could you leave Fawlty Towers out of that list?!

Re:Aged badly

[mikael]

ITV did produce Spitting Image which featured satirical sketches on Job Redundancies and Falling house prices.

Re:Aged badly

[mikael]

You see you put Black Adder as an incredible work of comic art but I have painfully watched and scratched my head and said "Why do people think this is funny?"

Perhaps British audiences had to sit through boring History lessons where everything that had to be memorized was chronological lists of famous people, lists of Kings and Queens, lists of famous events, and lists of eras. Even school textbooks on the architectures and fashions of each era would only have hand-sketched pictures of everything.

Black Adder really made all that stand out by having episodes in color with insane characters. I had always hoped that they would have made a series in the future like "Black Adder in the 25th Century", which would have covered the events leading up to the "Christmas Special" where BlackAdder sees the future of his descendents.

Some of the education school programming copied that idea, and would have Elizabethan characters trying to navigate the London Underground using a 1700's map of London (highlighting the importance of keeping maps up to date or something similar).

Re:Aged badly

[mattack2]

Get a Tivo, err, I guess they don't sell them in the UK anymore.. so get any other DVR (or DVD recorder, or heck, VCR) and you won't have to "put up with" anything anytime even if you want to "waste time" watching TV. (Don't get me wrong, *I* don't think it's a waste of time, but a lot of other people think any TV watching is a waste of time.)

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps it was to complex for him. He should try the simplified version.

Re:Aged badly

[dangitman]

Some of them are just incredible works of comic art. Monty Python, Black Adder, the original HHGG, Fry & Laurie, The Office, and Spaced come to mind.

Which were all... a bit campy, a bit odd, and not for everyone.

For example, Absolutely Fabulous, and Are You Being Served?. Red Dwarf to me, lies somewhere in the middle.

Ab Fab had some hilarious episodes, the chemistry between Saunders and Lumley was great. It was very much of its time though, the little bubbles and echoes of social change in 1990s Britain.

Re:Aged badly

[bogjobber]

Friends is supposed to be about losers, too. It's just that the writers never bothered with making the show realistic, which is why they can spend all their time together and they all can afford large Manhattan apartments while working part time in a coffee shop.

Re:Aged badly

[dangitman]

In an NBC promo for Red Dwarf USA, the Cat was recast as a tall, blonde white woman.

Re:Aged badly

[Spacejock]

I hope you didn't watch Blackadder series I. That pile of crap should be expunged from the record and never seen again. Start with BlackAdder the Second. Trust me.

As for The Office - hate it. I'm all for British comedy but I didn't get a single chuckle out of this one.

Re:Aged badly

[Rude Turnip]

The "t" is silent...

Re:Aged badly

[Mr. Flibble]

You are wrong.

Now I am angry, very angry.

Re:Aged badly

[jfanning]

And what's even worse is it made me laugh.

Of course my little brothers nickname was Mr Humphries...

Re:Aged badly

[jfanning]

Young Ones, Filthy Rich and Catflap, and Bottom.

Need I say more.

Re:Aged badly

[Anonymous Coward]

It needs to come with a warning label, "Only watch after 10:00 PM".

... and baked out of your skull ;)

Re:Aged badly

[Sobrique]

Post pub, with triple-fried-egg-chilli-chutney-sandwiches.

Re:Aged badly

[SkunkPussy]

friends is quite popular in teh UK and thats got a large joke committee

Re:Aged badly

[Falconhell]

Good Shot!

Re:Aged badly

[Monty Worm]

That said, I have to agree with GPP - It aged badly. When I go back to watch the episodes over, it's rare that I watch anything beyond the ship being reconstructed. It was still fun, but lacked a lot of the charm that the early episodes had.

Not a matter of aging imho. Something weird happened after season 6. I still deeply love seasons 1-6.

This is something I really don't agree with.
Some things can be said to age or go downhill, others simply change.

Believe it or not (and I hope you would, given the demographic of the SD crowd), people don't like doing the same stuff all the time. They like change. They like to be challenged. They like to learn new things.

Sometimes, new things aren't quite the same as the old. Some better, some worse. You have to allow for possible failure if you want the good stuff.

Early Dwarf was primarily an odd-couple comedy, the inter-relation between diametrically opposed characters in a confined environment. After a while (series 3?) it became an ensemble piece. Then it veered in another difference for a while.

Seriously, if Rob + Doug had wanted to do the same thing, they'd be writing for soaps.

Yech, I sound like some of my old teachers.

Re:Aged badly

[Falconhell]

Ooh yeh, I can think of much worse, like

On the buses.

Love thy Neighbour.

Benny Hill.

Anything by Frankie Howard.

And Great shows like.

Tommy Cooper.

Morecombe and Wise.

Two Ronnies, and Ronnine Barkers stuff.

Re:Aged badly

[Falconhell]

A valuable lesson learned grasshopper, I have called the phenomena "technology for the sake of having technology" for years (Back before I even had a computer).

  Sometimes a simple plain thing is better than a whiz bang hitech solution. Not a POV that would be popular in these parts though!

Re:Aged badly

[NudeAvenger]

actually I think Black Adder Reverse-Aged. The first series he was a bumbling incompetent, but in the next few series he got smarter and more evil and it was so much more satisfying to watch

Re:Aged badly

[Hamish910]

eh, that's from Keeping Up Appearances, not Are You Being Served.

No, its from Are You Being Served.
Have you even watched these shows?

Re:Aged badly

[6foothobbit]

I'm british and I don't know anyone who laughed at the office. It's a different kind of comedy. There's a saying among stand up comedians that a groan is as good as a laugh. The office is kind of a meta-comedy, the stuff David Brent says is often very close to funny but he always delivers his jokes badly or at inappropriate moments. Having said all this I don't really like it either.

Re:Aged badly

[JasterBobaMereel]

Friends is a soap with jokes not a sitcom ... we have homegrown versions of these as well and they are mostly written by committee here as well ...

They are popular not for the jokes but for the people, if they were not funny, people would still watch ...

Re:Aged badly

[Kugrian]

For the uninitiated.

My 2c though, I think it'll suck. It has since [Rob] Grant left (just read the books if you want to taste the suckyness). The big budget it got in recent (the last two?) series' screwed it up as well. My biggest attraction to the show was the character driven plot, and special effects lessened that a huge amount (especially after the unattainable goal of Kochanski got thrown in).

I'll watch it, but I'll be bitching about it for years.

Re:Aged badly

[Kugrian]

Need I say more.

Yep, you should.

Father Ted, Men Behaving Badly, Fawlty Towers, The I.T Crowd, Allo Allo, Coupling, Extras, One Foot in the Grave, Only Fools and Houses...

I should say more.

Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[VShael]

Season 7 and 8 levels of crap.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Blue Stone]

When Rob Grant left, it all went to hell.
It was a real shame to see a show I loved, grow from very humble beginnings, develop into something delightful (despite its still significant budget restraints) and then have to watch through two agonisingly bad series of death throws.

It looks like it wasn't quite dead though.

Quick! Someone get a shovel!

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[VShael]

When it aired, I didn't manage to make it through season 7. It was just too painful. Never saw season 8 when it was airing, but borrowed the DVD's from a mate. Tried to watch some of them but... in the end settled for seeing how it ended. And it ended BADLY.

Rimmer kicking the anthropomorphic version of Death in the nuts? WTF?

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[ezzzD55J]

I'm a huge fan of red dwarf, so I somehow feel like I suddenly have the authority to post spelling/grammar corrections in this story.

death throws.

That's death throes. http://xkcd.com/386/

BTW I actually totally agree with you - I only watch seasons 7 and 8 out of loyalty. 1-6 still really rule hard.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[prelelat]

Even if it's crap it's not worth missing. Even when the stories got a little stale I thought that it was still good I liked that caliber of dedication by the actors and the fact that they are all excited to come back so many years later to finish it off is great. Though I thought that it wasn't going to be written by just doug nailer in the coffin :(

But it will be a good farewell I think, and I won't have to sit around thinking "but what next" for the next 40 years(even if it's not like the original I still sit down and watch the whole series some weekends). Hands down on of my top 5 favorite shows.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[rhyder128k]

"even if it's not like the original I still sit down and watch the whole series some weekends"

What I wouldn't give to have a machine that erases the memory of things like RD, so that I could sit and watch it all again. Sometimes it would be nice to be like Holly in that regard.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[drinkypoo]

I thought Rimmer kicking death in the yabos was a great moment. The show was always corny. What makes it great is the interplay between the actors. There have always been times in the show when the writing wasn't what carried it. Not the same show? Okay. Still funny for most of the same reasons? Yes. Looking forward to this new stuff? Ab-so-smegging-lutely.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Impy the Impiuos Imp]

> Red Dwarf To Return, Find Earth
>
> "Everyone's favorite live-action science fiction comedy series will
> finally return to TV, with Lister, Rimmer, Kryten

Oh yeah! News for Nerds. Stuff that Matters.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[93 Escort Wagon]

But it will be a good farewell I think, and I won't have to sit around thinking "but what next" for the next 40 years(even if it's not like the original I still sit down and watch the whole series some weekends). Hands down on of my top 5 favorite shows.

I agree. While the last two seasons definitely weren't up to the level of the first six, I still found them enjoyable - and I'm still hoping to learn how they survive that final episode.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Wildfire Darkstar]

With the exception of maybe one or two episodes (like the one where they wind up going back in time and preventing JFK's assassination while looking for a good Indian restaurant), I found little worthwhile in season 7.

Season 8 was a vast improvement, though, in that it actually bothered to be funny. True, by this point the series had drifted so far from the original premise that it was hardly the same show, but at least it was still amusing. And I enjoyed the addition of Mac McDonald (Captain Hollister) as a semi-regular character.

The ending of "Only the Good...", though, was a brilliant moment. If you ask me, I couldn't have thought of a better way to end the show, the upcoming new episodes notwithstanding.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[thetartanavenger]

Agreed, further butchering of a classic.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[HTH NE1]

Rimmer kicking the anthropomorphic version of Death in the nuts? WTF?

It's a great counter to his (original self's) earlier exchange with Lister in "Future Echoes":

Lister: Come in number 169, your time is up. OK, what was I wearing?
Rimmer: Ahhh... that jacket, and that red T-shirt.
[Lister pulls out his hat and replaces it on his head, then yanks a hefty length of piping off the wall.]
Lister: You said yourself, I can't stop it. Let's get it over with.
Rimmer: Ah, Lister, what's that for?
Lister: I'm goin' out like I came in: screaming and kicking.
Rimmer: You can't whack death on the head!
Lister: If he comes near me I'm gonna rip his nipples off!

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Hucko]

Stuff that Matters.

yes.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Trillan]

Season 8 had a really weak opening, as they tried to explain all of the changes -- deliberately or accidentally incoherently, and with as little humor as possible -- instead of just embrace them. And yeah, the last episode's "cliffhanger" was just stupid.

But for the episodes in the middle, I thought it was one of the stronger seasons.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[dangitman]

That's easy. Just wait until you get dementia. Maybe there's some way you can encourage it along.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Spacejock]

I used to think that and then age caught up with me. Now I can happily re-read books I enjoyed 20 years ago without remembering the plot or the ending. Soon I won't even remember whether I've read a book before or not. After that's it's 'what's a book?' and then it's game over.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[ConceptJunkie]

Thanks for saving me from having to point that out.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Nesman64]

He's dead, Dave. Everybody's dead, Dave.

Re:Written by Doug Naylor. So expect crap.

[Anonymous Coward]

Wrong.

Indeed

[Technopaladin]

One of my all time favorite SCI-fi series. I thought Earth was destroyed and Lister the last human being in the universe(well until the nanites brought back the crew?) So lets hope they arent going to go BACK through time. Or have another BTL episode.

Re:Indeed

[gnick]

I don't recall the Earth being destroyed. Lister was in stasis for a long, long time as the ship drifted further and further away, but IIRC, Earth was still there - just unreachable in any reasonable length of time (kind of like Dark Star). (Feel free to correct my bad memory.)

But, there was at least one episode where the crew does go back in time to visit Earth. I liked it just because it was so terribly un-P.C. to suggest that JFK needed to be assassinated in order to save the U.S. (Not unrealistic, just not P.C.)

Re:Indeed

[mrsquid0]

>But, there was at least one episode where the crew does go back
>in time to visit Earth. I liked it just because it was so terribly un-
>P.C. to suggest that JFK needed to be assassinated in order to
>save the U.S. (Not unrealistic, just not P.C.)

Why is that un-PC? The idea that the Kennedy assassination was actually a suicide is perhaps the most innovative theory about the Kennedy assassination. The only other one that I know of is the "second lone nut" theory.

Re:Indeed

[NCG_Mike]

BTL: Are you telling me you didn't visit the planet of the nymphomaniacs?

Re:Indeed

[gnick]

I don't know whether or not you're in the U.S. Here, suggesting that JFK was anything but a superb president will inspire violent responses from a large portion of the populace that was alive when he was assassinated. The anger, grief, confusion, confused patriotism, and fear that gripped the nation after that event has, in many minds, overshadowed the debacle that was his presidency. He was popular, good looking, and died in office - Many people have heroized him. I've talked to people that actually blame Johnson (or even Nixon!?!) for the Bay of Pigs invasion & the Cuban Missile Crisis...

Suggesting that JFK was at all flawed or responsible for anything that might have negatively impacted America would be like suggesting that Columbus may not have been a genius hero-explorer who single handedly discovered America and brought civilization and cake to the poor ignorant savages living here who welcomed him as a liberator.

Re:Indeed

[Hognoxious]

In the book (and it's a long time since I read it) the Earth still exists bit it's been turned into huge garbage dump. At some point, Lister returns and becomes friends with the new dominant species - cockroaches.

Re:Indeed

[mrsquid0]

I have been living in the US since 2000. My experience has been that JFK has been raised to the level of a minor god in the minds of many baby boomers. Suggest to them that JFK was anything less than the perfect and many of them get very upset, but that is just those baby boomers being out of touch with reality. It has nothing to do with political correctness. In many ways the adoration of JFK is very similar to the adoration of Reagan. It is largely a generational thing, and those who came after don't seem to buy into it much. It's still a little early to know how the post-Reagan generation will think of Reagan; they are only just entering adulthood now. However, from what I have seen he does seem to be following the same broad popularity arc that Kennedy did.

Re:Indeed

[Anonymous Coward]

If you read the Books (i know the books and the series are not he same) youll find earth was a garbage planet they cam across and lister was stuck there for years just prior to the reverse time universe plot.

Re:Indeed

[Anonymous Coward]

This is news that sci-fi fans needed, after losing Tennant as the Doctor and the changes in scripting at the top of Doctor Who, and the way that Battlestar Galactica and the StarGate series have collapsed upon themselves. Even if BSG was supposed to end in Season 5 from the start as per the director.

SG-1 and SGA were both killed without rhyme or reason, SGA was killed after promising that it was the successor to keep the StarGate universe alive after SG-1 fell.

SciFi is an evil channel, so hopefully they won't get their hands on red dwarf and try to milk it for value like they've done with other series that they killed.

Re:Indeed

[Thumper_SVX]

So what you're saying is Dave Lister is Wall-E?

Re:Indeed

[Golias]

This is news that sci-fi fans needed, after losing Tennant as the Doctor and the changes in scripting at the top of Doctor Who, and the way that Battlestar Galactica and the StarGate series have collapsed upon themselves. Even if BSG was supposed to end in Season 5 from the start as per the director.

SG-1 and SGA were both killed without rhyme or reason, SGA was killed after promising that it was the successor to keep the StarGate universe alive after SG-1 fell.

SciFi is an evil channel, so hopefully they won't get their hands on red dwarf and try to milk it for value like they've done with other series that they killed.

BSG is still awesome. All the whiners about "All Along the Watchtower" seeming to shatter the forth wall can chill the hell out now. The last couple episodes explained why it made PERFECT sense that the cylons had a 1960's pop tune stuck in their heads.

While Tennant was a brilliant Doctor, the constant regenerations is part of the joy of the show for those of us who have loved it since we were kids. Also, the news that Peter Moffit is taking over as head writer has been greeted by most fans of the show with wild enthusiam. He penned some of the very best episodes of the new series (including "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances" and "Blink.)

And then there's "Lost", which is already the second-best US Sci-Fi show ever made (after "Firefly")

So there's plenty of good sci-fi out there. Certainly much more than in my younger days, when there was nothing but "Buck Rogers" and the original run of Galactica.

Re:Indeed

[Tony Hoyle]

The books kinda sucked though... Not sure I'd want those considered as canon.

Re:Indeed

[Trillan]

Yes. Kennedy killed him a barr when he was only three.

Re:Indeed

[mattack2]

But, there was at least one episode where the crew does go back in time to visit Earth. I liked it just because it was so terribly un-P.C. to suggest that JFK needed to be assassinated in order to save the U.S. (Not unrealistic, just not P.C.)

There was an episode of the 1985 Twilight Zone revival, "Profile in Silver" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0734727/, which also contained one of the other great episodes of the revival, "Button, Button" which is being made into a new movie). I don't remember all of the details, but in that episode, the prevention of the assassination causes tons of repercussions. That sounds very similar to that Red Dwarf episode, which I saw long ago, but don't remember exact specifics of (I thought they had *caused* his assassination, but someone else corrected me on that recently).

Re:Indeed

[Anonymous Coward]

Suggest to them that JFK was anything less than the perfect and many of them get very upset, but that is just those baby boomers being out of touch with reality. It has nothing to do with political correctness.

Political correctness is not much more than a formalised codified system for being out of touch with reality.

Re:Indeed

[Anonymous Coward]

Everything was destroyed by the radiation leak, including earth. (Apparently)

Time travel was possible into the past because the leak had not yet occurred.

Re:Indeed

[SkunkPussy]

the book of the first series or so was very good I thought

Re:Indeed

[Zixia]

The crew of Red Dwarf were killed in a radiation leak whilst Lister was in stasis as a punishment. To protect Lister the ship's computer, Holly, kept him in stasis and piloted Red Dwarf out of the solar system so that the irradiated ship would not cause a threat to Earth or anyone who might come looking for them.

It took 3 million years for the radiation to drop to a safe level, after which Holly revived Lister, which is why it is assumed the Lister is the last human alive. Red Dwarf had been travelling away from Earth for those 3 million years, which is why it would take so long to get back.

Re:Indeed

[Anonymous Coward]

It is also a term that has been badly abused by the political and social right. The way they use the phrase is downright Orwellian compared to the way that the left use (and abuse) it.

They did the same thing on Lexx

[elrous0]

Usually these sort of "and then they came to earth..." plotlines are cost-cutting measures (so they can shoot in "regular" locations instead of on elaborate sets). They also often represent "jump the shark" moments for a series. When they did this on Lexx, the show (which had already begun to go way downhill in the previous season) went from bad to ABYSMAL.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

Red Dwarf jumped the shark when they brought back the old crew.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

Are you really talking about elaborate sets in conjunction with Red Dwarf?

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[elrous0]

Point takenb. The BBC doesn't exactly throw big piles of money at their shows to begin with.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[AlterRNow]

I'm re-watching the Lexx series and I have to agree with this. Once it gets to the "Fire & Water" season, I find it almost painful to watch.

Perhaps in part that I find Prince ( and Zev's attraction to him ) damn annoying. And 790's "switch" to loving Kai bizarre.. wouldn't his brain matter be unaffected by being powered off and therefore not reset to falling in love with the first thing he saw?

Anyways, the first time I saw them on Earth I thought "What a cop-out". Same with Stargate SG-1 actually..

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Ed Avis]

For a counterexample, I quite liked the Doctor Who series set on Earth with Jon Pertwee, UNIT and the Brigadier. (Shown as repeats - I'm not that old!)

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[UnknownSoldier]

Is that in season 3 or 4 when they got more money, and you can tell by the brand spank'n new logo?

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[RiotingPacifist]

I would hardly call the red dwarf sets elaborate, they look like they are about to fall apart most of the time

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Selfbain]

Well the entire point of the show was returning to Earth so I don't think it's a cost cutting measure.

That being said, the last two seasons of the show were sub-par at best.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Bemopolis]

Clearly you have forgotten the brilliance that was BATTLESTAR GALACTICA 1980.

And I would be a lot better off if you tell me how you managed it.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[listen]

No, its season 7&8. 1&2 were the real thing, 3-6 were ok. 7&8 were unwatchable.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[evilbessie]

Sorry 'cost cutting' measure, what?!?!?! It only cost them 47p to make the sets (possibly an overestimate) so I don't see how location work would be any cheaper.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[YourExperiment]

I'm glad someone else remembers this, it's exactly what came to mind when I read the summary.

My memory of it is slightly different, however. The first season (the four two-hour movies) showed a lot of promise, it had a weird European feel to it, and it was pretty dark and overall quite interesting.

Right away, the second series was absolute garbage in comparison. It consisted of the Lexx visiting a series of improbable locations while Stan tried desperately to find something to shag. The plot arc was virtually non-existent.

The third season seemed like a minor recovery to me, with the Fire and Ice story getting almost interesting at times.

The final season was, as you say, truly abysmal. But I have to say, after the first season I only watched the whole thing to laugh at how bad it was, which was a great shame after the show's promising beginnings. It's a long time since I've seen it, however - perhaps even the first season isn't as good as I remember.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[YourExperiment]

Absolutely - classic era Who, though I haven't seen it since I was a kid, so I've no idea how well it's aged. It's certainly better than the current series, at least through the rosy glow of fond memories.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[kannibal_klown]

Anyways, the first time I saw them on Earth I thought "What a cop-out". Same with Stargate SG-1 actually..

What do you mean about SG-1? The squad was always based on Earth since its creation. Sure there were the occasional episodes/missions that took place on Earth but that kind of makes sense as they were defending their planet from invasion. Besides, the offword sets were never that elaborate... maybe a CGI shot of a building and then a modified corridor with curved metal and some flashing screens.

If you mean Stargate Atlantis, it was only a matter of time before they were able to make contact with Earth again; and even then Earth episodes were pretty rare.

The u[recent]u Battlestar Galactica is alright, as it's the end of the series and signifies what they thought/hoped was the end of their journey. Meanwhile you don't see any real buildings/landscapes.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[AlterRNow]

Sorry, I meant that the majority ( 90%+ ) of the episode is on Earth. I'm not purposely watching SG-1 ( my other half is ) so I am only getting bits of the stories but I do recall a distinct period where a long line of episodes take place nearly exclusively on Earth. One that comes to mind is when Baal first creates his clones.

Apologies if I got that wrong, as I said, I'm not really watching the seasons properly.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Sobrique]

I had forgotten. You reminded me. I must now hate you forever.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[CohibaVancouver]

The squad was always based on Earth since its creation.

What I enjoy is the fact that in the 60s, 70s and 80s, all alien worlds resembled southern California. Today, with most TV SciFi shot in Vancouver, alien worlds resemble the Pacific Northwest.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[kannibal_klown]

No problem, looking back I can see what you mean.

I was thinking of the early seasons where Earth-based episodes were rare one-shots; they'd occur maybe once or twice per season. IE they find a relic on Earth, or discover an ancient imprisoned alien, or follow around an amnesiac alien that's writing an SG-1 TV show, or find an experiment gone wrong, etc.

The beginning of the Ba'al clone storyline and "The Trust" storylines were pretty weak. It was one thing to be on Earth but they just weren't really that interesting. Oh no! He's going to blow up his building... But I don't recall either storyline last too long as the primary threat.

As for the Ba'al clones, I did enjoy 2 moments. The first where the capture a whole bunch and the second is the direct-to-DVD movie Continuum.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Inda]

Wasn't that part of the humour too? You could see the wires holding up the spaceship sometimes!

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[JustNilt]

I would hardly call the red dwarf sets elaborate, they look like they are about to fall apart most of the time

That's such a core part of the show's premise, though. For example, when they did the hologram ship, the sets were quite well done.

Wasn't that part of the humour too? You could see the wires holding up the spaceship sometimes!

I always thought that was intentional as well. Sort of a "screw it; nobody has to worry about suspension of disbelief here" moment to poke fun at the special effects based shows/movies.

Not directed at either parent or GP here but I've often wondered how much shows like Red Dwarf spend on the shabby look. Do they have to spend less because it's not "finished" or perhaps more because that un-finished look takes more effort or what?

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Sockatume]

Red Dwarf's traditional picture of earth in 1M BC (from the novels) is a giant trash ball ruled by mutant shapeshifting horrors. Quite how that reduces the budget I'm not sure.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

No, classic era Who is when they play My Generation while orbiting the Sun (well, they're not actually on the spaceship orbiting the sun, but, well, you know...).

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[JasterBobaMereel]

If the plot is good, the script is good, the actors are good, then why did you notice the sets?

The costumes in series 1 were terrible as well ... but I only noticed that the third time I saw it ...

This is the point with special effects, using CGI to cover up a thin plot and bad acting does not work .... special effects can only enhance a good show not save a bad one ...

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Aneurysm]

Usually these sort of "and then they came to earth..." plotlines are cost-cutting measures (so they can shoot in "regular" locations instead of on elaborate sets).

Not sure this really matters. Red Dwarf has always been low budget, and the later series (7+8 and to a lesser extent 6) where more money was thrown at it also corresponded with a huge dip in funniness. Generally speaking the same few rooms are used on the ship or often just Starbug. Growing up in the UK you get used to low budget comedies and high budget stuff just doesn't have quite the right feel; Red Dwarf always used to be perfect, incredibly low budget and relying just on script and actors to make it enjoyable. My favourite Red Dwarf episode ever was Marooned and that's just Lister and Rimmer in a single part of Starbug for the whole episode (with a Thunderbirds style crash at the beginning).

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Thumper_SVX]

I was never an avid fan of SG-1, but having seen most of the episodes ever made (though not necessarily in order), I think some episodes based on Earth were actually necessary. There were a couple of moments into the 6-7th season where they became so isolated from Earth and even to some extent disenfranchised the viewer. I mean, what's the point of watching this team save the Earth if you have no connection with what it is they're trying to save?

For all their flaws, the Earth episodes almost always filled out the world they came from, and gave you (the viewer) an understanding of their motives.

Remember, SG-1 ran for longer than just about any other series on TV (Dr. Who notwithstanding). Every now and again it's valuable to "prod" the viewer into reconnecting with the characters so that they don't become horribly stale. I think it's a testament to the writers and cast that even over 10 years they had high and low points, but rarely felt very stale. And I think they ended just when they needed to... unfortunately they made that last season with the Ori which I almost consider a completely different series because of the changes. Call it "Stargate SG-1B"

And actually, I enjoyed Continuum... though some of it was ruined for me because I'd seen it before in Bender's Big Score... ;)

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Pope]

Tom Baker-era, he went to Earth with Romana II (fap fap)

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[sorak]

I would hardly call the red dwarf sets elaborate, they look like they are about to fall apart most of the time

So how do we make the earth look like that? Oh, wait, problem solved...

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Paranatural]

Lexx was always abysmal. I never understood how they managed to keep any funding at all. I didn't hate the show, I'm all for any sci-fi show, even something is horribly campy and just flat-out bad as Lexx. But saying that it got worse was like saying 'Showgirls' really started to go downhill after the halfway point.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

Lexx went from awesome to ABYSMAL when they wrote the script for season 2, turning it from a sci-fi mini-series into a sex farce sitcom set on a spaceship.

Red dwarf started out as a farce/sitcom set on spaceship. It should still be pretty cool.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Mista2]

Now the thing with Battlestar 80 is that as an 8 year old, I loved it, but as an adult I dont like it anywhere near as much as the orginal 2 series.

The bikes were pretty cool though 8)

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

alt.binaries.drwho is pretty active and you can get lots of old stuff there

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

Elaborate sets? You mean like when it was pointed out by Kryten that they would have had to change the light bulb to go from yellow alert to red alert? :-D

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

You're not kidding - it took Doctor Who years before the BBC gave them enough budget to make it in colour!!!11one

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[elrous0]

I thought most of the first season was pretty awful (except the first storyline). I actually felt bad for Rutger Hauer that he was in such an embarrassing storyline (it didn't help that he had obviously showed up to the set drunk). And if I never again in my life see Barry Bostwick in a WAY-too-revealing kilt, I can die a happy man (and I bet he thought the gold lamé costume in Megaforce would be the worst wardrobe of his career).

I thought the second season was the best by far. "Brigadoom" was actually remarkably dramatic for such a simple idea--easily my favorite episode of the whole run. And "791" and "White Trash" were hilarious.

The third season was just a slog to watch. Like the early second season of Battlestar Galactica, it was like the writers just suddenly decided to spend an entire season seeing how much abuse they could poor on both the characters and the audience. I was glad so glad when they left it behind. Much as I loved Nigel Bennett in Forever Knight, by the end of that season I just wanted his character dead.

The fourth season was pure satire, and it did have a few funny moments (VERY few), but for the most part it was an abysmal mess--an exercise in how NOT to be funny. About the only good thing I can say about it was that Patricia Zentilli was kind of cute.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[elrous0]

Would you prefer they brought back Barry Bostwick in the kilt?

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Dogtanian]

Wasn't that part of the humour too? You could see the wires holding up the spaceship sometimes!

I always thought that was intentional as well. Sort of a "screw it; nobody has to worry about suspension of disbelief here" moment to poke fun at the special effects based shows/movies.

While they may have done something like that on occasion- probably to poke fun at an old monster movie they were parodying as you imply, for the most part it was just a symptom of the budget and I'm sure they did their best without worrying excessively about it.

Red Dwarf was never *that* bad by the standards of the time (except possibly in the first series, and even that was more minimalist than cheap because they weren't *trying* to do expensive effects). It probably just looked like it to Americans spoiled by Battlestar Galactica type budgeted shows.

I know a lot of people find the low-budget look to shows like Doctor Who amusing in retrospect, but while they were probably on a visibly low budget even then, that wasn't the point at the time. Certainly wasn't when I was watching it as a kid- it was only during the original series' final year or two when a combination of me growing up and the budget being cut even further (apparently) made at least one cheap prop obvious, and it wasn't that funny.

Colin Baker said pretty much the same thing, that all the smartasses going on about how they loved the cheap effects and stuff never thought that at the time.

Do they have to spend less because it's not "finished" or perhaps more because that un-finished look takes more effort or what?

No, that's a BBC sci-fi budget for you. Seriously.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Anonymous Coward]

Ahahahaha. You think they want to move Red Dwarf to Earth so they can use cheaper sets.

Cheaper sets.

Clearly, you have never seen the show.

Anyway, IIRC they wanted to do a return-to-Earth bit in the last series, but rejected it because it would have been far too expensive.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[YourExperiment]

I'm glad you mentioned Brigadoom - I'd completely forgotten that happened. It was indeed a masterful episode, and you've reminded me that the second season didn't entirely consist of Stan visiting brothel-planets (yet still somehow never getting laid). At least we agree that the fourth season was truly horrific, and should never have happened.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[nategoose]

I enjoyed the on Earth Lexx episodes, but unless the Red Dwarf crew went back in time (or they adopt the circular time line from the Lexx universes) your argument is not relevant. The Red Dwarf is supposed to have left our solar system in our future and by the time they get back elaborate sets and props should be needed.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[mattack2]

I realize they weren't trying to do expensive effects, and I am one of those who defend these shows with cheap sets/effects. (It's a lot like video games -- a lot of video games nowadays concentrate on flashy graphics and full motion video rather than gameplay, it's noticeable.)

I can see the argument though. It is kind of amusing that Star Trek TOS looks more sophisticated than "Blake's 7", which was made over 10 years later. (BTW, "Blake's 7" is one of my favorite shows ever. I like it as much as Trek, and would love for it to come out in the US on DVD so I can buy it -- and I haven't bought any of the Trek DVDs.) Along the same lines as this thread, we need another "Blake's 7" season more than we need more "Red Dwarf".

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[mattack2]

Wow, it's out on DVD. Will add to my Netflix queue. (I watched the orig BG only a few years ago on DVD.)

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[Spacejock]

Entire seasons of Doctor Who used to (and still do) rely on all the alien terrors heading for the nearest Welsh quarry as soon as they arrive on planet Earth.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[speedtux]

I dunno why people keep complaining... I actually liked all four seasons of Lexx

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[hughk]

You also have to remember that the BBC had to fill in for the low-budgets with plot and character development.

With good actors and a reasonable script you can act with a minimalist stage. Most British actors have theatre experience so this is easy for them.

Re:They did the same thing on Lexx

[ArhcAngel]

Lexx "jumped the shark" the minute it was conceived. The fact that it got written down, presented to a producer, and greenlighted are truly amazing feats of daring. I remember thinking how cool the special effects were and hoping at some point I would figure out what was going on. Then they went to the alternate reality and I gave up all hope.

Returning to Earth?

[Minwee]

Neat. Does this mean that there will be flying motorcycles and super-powered boy scouts too?

Re:Returning to Earth?

[MRe_nl]

And what about Fiji?

Re:Returning to Earth?

[bigattichouse]

According to the series, it's all under water... and he'd have to get waterwings for the sheep.

Re:Returning to Earth?

[MRe_nl]

Or better yet, you could cross breed them with dolphins and have leaping mutton.

Re:Returning to Earth?

[Anonymous Coward]

baaaaaa *ploosh* baaaaaaa *ploosh*

Re:Returning to Earth?

[Ragzouken]

You can get a drainage grant these days.

Re:Returning to Earth?

[HTH NE1]

Why bother when you can be the first to market wet-look knitwear.

Re:Returning to Earth?

[soccerisgod]

Pinkles, Squirmy. Flib Flab Flubber!

Holly = Ninnle?

[Anonymous Coward]

Maybe they'll replace Holly's head with the new NinWM desktop!

Smegging Fantastic?

[dmomo]

My faith isn't so strong. I loved the first few seasons of Red Dwarf. When it was a sit-com, I thought it was hillarious. Then, it started to turn into a space adventure when they ran out of "situations" for comedy on the ship and started visiting planets. I'm not sure the later seasons were bad, but it just felt like a different show.

Finding Earth? This has the potential to be something entirely different. Maybe having the same director and line-up will ensure something good. Even if it's not the same, well... the people that made one great thing may possibly make a different great thing! I'm not going to tune in expecting "the same old show I used to love". Hopefully it will be good. I mean, revisiting Battlestar hit gold. Fingers crossed. I guess if I am not expecting much I cannot be disappointed.

Did anyone watch the failed American pilot for Red Dwarf? Eww.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[gnick]

Did anyone watch the failed American pilot for Red Dwarf? Eww.

I watched it - Be fair. It was as good as the American pilot for Coupling. =)

Seriously, why take a perfectly good series and re-make it only changing the actors' accents and replacing "chips" with "fries" and "loo" with "bathroom"? British humor is a little bit different than American humor - And anyone who is going to enjoy it will be willing to infer from context what a "loo" is when somebody's had too much to drink and needs to pop off to one.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[Moryath]

Try asking the average American to tell you what a "bog roll" is and watch the steam come out of their ears thinking about it.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[drinkypoo]

Is that like a hay roll, except that instead of getting laid you get stinky and go down to live with little lights?

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[Anonymous Coward]

I watched it - Be fair. It was as good as the American pilot for Coupling. =)

Holy shit. The American version of "Coupling" sucked so badly it warped the very fabric of time and space. It took NBC Studios years to recover from it.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[LandDolphin]

Those minor changes are important. The Average American is not going ot understand all of the British slang, nor be willing to learn it to start to enjoy the show. Switch from British to American actors/slang can work well (The Office).

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[kannibal_klown]

So far, the only direct UK->US remake that I thoroughly enjoy is "Life on Mars." I think it's a great show and they're doing a wonderful job. That being said I only saw a few minutes of the UK version so I can't say that I like the US version more... just that I think it's excellent. However I'd imagine that I'd "get" the 70's US styles/culture/references more than the 70's UK styles/culture/references.

The America version of "The Office" is... alright. The British version only had a few episodes (quality episodes, but too few). I have to say I'm finding Steve Carell to be too over-the-top-annoying. I pretty much only watch the show now for the B-story, which is pretty much what the rest of the office is doing when Michael isn't around.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[gnick]

I'm not convinced that The Office's success was really a factor of a switch in slang as it was good (and different) writing and great work from the cast (Steve Carell of course stands out, but there are several star performers there). Also, Steve Carell plays the manager much differently than his UK counterpart - A little sillier & stupider which I think plays well here. With Coupling (at least from what I saw), they didn't even bother writing new episodes or even re-writing the existing ones. It was nearly word-for-word the original except for the slang.

I mean really, if a character is finishing off a glass of beer, looks at his glass, remarks "Need to make a quick run to the loo," and we next see him standing in front of a urinal, how much of a learning curve is there? He could call the "loo" pretty much anything he wanted and I'd figure it out without too much brain-strain. And I don't find the accents at all distracting - In fact it kind of helps set the tone and let you know that you're in British-humor land rather than American-humor land.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[merchant_x]

This reminds me of a scene from the Clerks animated series. Randal and Dante are in a clerks exchange program and are working in an English shop.

        [Dante and Randal are working in Ye Olde Quick Stoppe in England.]
        Customer: Pack of fags.
        Randal: You're a fag!
        Customer: It's a cigarette, mate.
        Randal: I'm not your mate, fag!
        [Randal jumps over counter and tackles the customer.]
        Dante: It wasn't until years later that we found out what "fag" really means. Right, mate?
        Randal: You're a fag!
        Dante: N-no, it's a cigarette!
        Randal: You're a cigarette!

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[LandDolphin]

Sure, there are words like "loo" that can be easily figured out. But there are other times when someone says a complete sentence, and you have no idea what they said. Not every conversation inculdes such easy to spot visual clues as someone walking to the bathroom.

Plus, I think you over estimate the average Americans willingness to watch something the have to "figure out". People like to related to the characters on TV. Listening to them speak with an accent, and use terms they do not use and sometimes even understand will turn people off.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[JasterBobaMereel]

Red Dwarf USA had some good points ... mostly the fact that it was rewritten mostly by Grant+Naylor and not mangled too heavily by the American producers, but also they had a totally different Cat (Female played by Terry Farrell (Dax)) which might have been interesting ?

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[Golias]

"Sanford and Son" was a significant upgrade of "Steptoe and Son." Likewise, "All in the Family" was a brilliant transplant job. Both were distinctly American shows in spite of their BBC roots.

Oh, and the Drew Carey-run "Whose Line" was good, but then again the only real changes made were the host and the audience. Otherwise you could almost treat Season 1 of the US show as if it was Season 11 of the British one.

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[largesnike]

and if they get that, ask them if they'd like a bogwash

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[Falconhell]

The original Life on Mars was excellent, with a fantastic final episode, best ending ever!

I shudder seeing the teasers from the US version that have been playing lately.

Do yourself a favour and the the original!

Re:Smegging Fantastic?

[Anonymous Coward]

The average American will correctly answer:

"Who cares? You're no longer relevant in the world."

:)

Fan-smegging-tastic!

[hack slash]

I don't care what people think about the latter series of RD, I loved them all but the first series is still my favourite. Looking forward to more of the Smegs In Space!

P.S. Would anyone like any toast?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

Look, I don't want any toast. In fact, no one around here wants any toast. Not now, not ever. NO TOAST.

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How 'bout a muffin?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a muffin?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

so a bagel then?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Toast10101]

Look, I don't want any toast. In fact, no one around here wants any toast. Not now, not ever. NO TOAST.

Nobody likes me.

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

Twenty seven minutes late! Smeeeeeeg Heeeeeeeeeead.

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Stele]

How about a crumpet?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How 'bout some muffins?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Doctor_Jest]

Let's just hope it's not the Bolivian Navy on maneuvers.

Otherwise, we'll just have to watch "What's my Fruit?"

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a waffle?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a bagel?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Bullet-Dodger]

Aah, so you're a waffle man!

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Tony Hoyle]

I love all the series... yeah the early ones were better, but it's still one of the few programmes I don't mind watching repeats of.

I can understand Americans not following it - it was *full* of cultural references - the norweb federation joke for instance, is funniest when you're form north west england.

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[RincewindTVD]

Ah, so you're a waffle man!

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

Look, I don't want any toast. In fact, no one around here wants any toast. Not now, not ever. NO TOAST.

Oi! I wrote the Flying Toasters part of afterdark screensaver you insensitive clod!! The good news is I am working on the latest "after dark" which will feature Red Dwarfs, black holes, and the "Rimmer experience" which will feature plenty Rimming action shots! There may even be some Kristine Kochanski smegging easter eggs too!!

It will shortly be available for free from our listersa.tv and rimmerexperience.cx websites.... :)

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a toasted tea cake then ?

Re:Fan-smegging-tastic!

[raap]

I toast, therefore I am!

cue flame war over which Kochanski is best/hottest

[advocate_one]

in 3, 2, 1... actually I like them both...

Holy shit.

[neokushan]

I know it'll probably be a disappointment, but this is like...the Sci-fi/comedy equivelant to Duke Nukem Forever!

Pinch me!

They find Earth a radioactive ruin

[Anonymous Coward]

The cat is so upset he pisses on the hologram.

ummm, spoiler? maybe? Kinda. YOU KNOW.

[CKW]

SPOILER ffs! Thankyou!! Bastards.

fantastic?

[Anonymous Coward]

Personally, I think this is pretty smegging fantastic.

Why is resurrecting Red Dwarf fantastic but resurrecting Blade Runner an abomination?

Re:fantastic?

[Ogive17]

neither as bad as the Karate Kid remake that is apparently going to happen. Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith.... ugh.

Re:fantastic?

[genner]

neither as bad as the Karate Kid remake that is apparently going to happen. Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith.... ugh.

Hey lets not even joke about that. You are joking.......they would never green light .....this can't possibly be good.

Re:fantastic?

[AKAImBatman]

Why is resurrecting Red Dwarf fantastic but resurrecting Blade Runner an abomination?

Because the creator of Red Dwarf is alive and well, and is coming back to revive a universe that was created for the purpose of an episodal series.

The author responsible for Blade Runner (Philip K. Dick) died during production of a standalone movie based on his standalone book. Given that the story (originally "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep") was an exploration of what it means to be human and NOT an exploration of a fantasy future (ala Star Trek, Star Wars, etc.), expanding the universe would only detract from the original creation.

Besides, Olmos is too old to play Gaff again. He just wouldn't have that same menace about him. ;-)

Re:fantastic?

[Ogive17]

I heard it from a friend last night, went to IMDB.com and it is listed on there, set to begin production sometime soon. It makes me want to cry.

Re:fantastic?

[Canazza]

Because Red Dwarf got absolutly no closure from the final episode, and there has ALWAYS been talk of doing more (either another series, or a film) - They were in talks with the same company that made Farscape in order to film a possible movie in Australia. That was a few years back now and nothing came of it.
Whereas Blade Runner was a one off piece of genius based on a book which was also a stand-alone one off piece of genius. (which have spawned 'cannonical fan sequels'
here
here
and here'

Re:fantastic?

[mike9989]

Olmos is perfect to play Gaff, even at his age. Just check out his portrayal of Adama. He gives the "LOOK" and you know it's go time!

Re:fantastic?

[Sockatume]

Red Dwarf can hardly get any worse than it had become, for one thing.

Re:fantastic?

[Anonymous Coward]

Blade Runner 2: Electric Sheep Boogaloo?

(or was that already said in another thread?)

Re:fantastic?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yea, not really seeing it there. Was it called something else?

Re:fantastic?

[Ogive17]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1155076/

Re:fantastic?

[Duds]

Or more accurately, one of them is. Rob Grant is still not involved.

Rimmer is back!

[DarthBender]

Puncture repair kit on standby.

Re:cue flame war over which Kochanski is best/hott

[Skreems]

The best one is not the hottest one.

The War is Over - Chloe Won

[Anonymous Coward]

No there's no doubt it's thisone and this one.

Books

[daw1234]

Although I'm a big fan of the TV show, the first novel "Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers" was a brilliant book. I could never understand why the second book (Better than life) was just a re-telling of the end of the first.

Re:Books

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, it wasnt.
Im pretty sure the first one ended with them going into the "game". and Better than life was about them in the game.

Re:Books

[daw1234]

The ending of the first book had quite a long section about the happenings within the game and I believe it ended with Lister imagining an exit but deciding he couldn't leave at christmas, but it was always christmas in Bedford Falls. Or is my memory mixing the first and second books together?

Re:Books

[Canazza]

that's correct.
you MAY have been reading the omnibus edition, which had IWCD and BTL in the one book, and then went out and bought BTL again.

Announced on twitter

[Tryfen]

...well, actually, Robert Llewellyn (Kryten) announced it on Llewtube quite some time ago.

You can also get regular updates from him by following @bobbyllew on twitter.

He's a really good user of social media - he's very active on YouTube and twitter.

t

Re:Announced on twitter

[Anonymous Coward]

He's a really good user of social media - he's very active on YouTube and twitter.

Kryten 2.0?
...I'm sorry

Re:Announced on twitter

[mahju]

In a sort of circular reference, he's actually linked here from Twitter... http://twitter.com/bobbyllew

bobbyllew RT @jonnywatson: @bobbyllew You should be very proud.Red Dwarf has made it to the big leagues.. on slash.dot!! http://tinyurl.com/d73jtt about 9 hours ago from TweetDeck

have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[SuperBanana]

They also often represent "jump the shark" moments for a series.

Did you ever watch the show? They jumped the shark at least once an episode. That's part of what made it so great.

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[mrsquid0]

>Did you ever watch the show? They jumped the shark at least
>once an episode. That's part of what made it so great.

That is not what jumping the shark means. Jumping the shark is when a show does something so out of character that the basic premise of the show is destroyed. This is usually done to either boost ratings or because the writers have run out of ideas. It usually marks the point where a series turns from being clever and innovative to being trite and predictable.

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[jdgeorge]

>Did you ever watch the show? They jumped the shark at least
>once an episode. That's part of what made it so great.

That is not what jumping the shark means. Jumping the shark is when a show does something so out of character that the basic premise of the show is destroyed. This is usually done to either boost ratings or because the writers have run out of ideas. It usually marks the point where a series turns from being clever and innovative to being trite and predictable.

Precisely. Thus, as the GP stated, Red Dwarf seemed to jump the shark in every episode. The only thing missing was Henry Winkler in waterskis and a motorboat. But now, with finding Earth, maybe.... [crosses fingers]

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[Dogtanian]

That is not what jumping the shark means. Jumping the shark is when a show does something so out of character that the basic premise of the show is destroyed.

I don't know that it isn't often more subtle than that. Sometimes the JTS moment isn't obvious as such at the time; it's only clear in retrospect as the inflection point at which the show changed direction for the worse and began a downward spiral.

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[DMUTPeregrine]

Especially if they go to Fiji.

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[mrsquid0]

Flame bait, eh? It seems like someone doesn't know what flame bait means.

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[SoddOffBaldrick]

Pronounced Fushal by Cat-kind. I never did see any hotdog or doughnut stands when I was there

Re:have you actually watched Red Dwarf?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why was this modded down? It should have been modded informative because it states what jumping the shark means.

Battlestar spoofing

[Burz]

How much you wanna bet they'll be sending-up Battlestar Galactica every chance they get? With a title like "Back to Earth"...

Re:Battlestar spoofing

[HTH NE1]

How much you wanna bet they'll be sending-up Battlestar Galactica every chance they get? With a title like "Back to Earth"...

What, like it's a cat colony?

YES!!

[dkarma]

i've been waiting years for this

Craig Charles == drug problem

[Yuioup]

I wonder if Craig Charles has dealt with his serious drug problem

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Goffee71]

Come on, the Mirror made it a serious drugs problem to sell papers - more than likely he was no more or less off his head than any other TV actor

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[jrothwell97]

It's the Mirror. You'd get more reliable information from a weegie board.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Canazza]

it's Ouija, what you described is a board with a nail in it, wielded by a Glaswegien (AKA a Weegie)

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[acedotcom]

weegie? is that like squeegee?

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Canazza]

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Weegie

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[acedotcom]

i lol...but it could be...Weegee

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Inda]

He's a smack head. It doesn't get any lower than that.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[jrothwell97]

yes, but 'weegie' looks more silly than 'ouija', which sounds like a Web 2.0 service. In short, the silliness of the actual concept is best described using the 'weegie' spelling, which can at least be misread as 'wedgie'.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Anonymous Coward]

You mean a crack head of course, since crack is the drug mentioned in the article.

Lots of celebrities use crack, or at least cocaine, and Craig Charles had been a user for many, many years - since before the early success of Red Dwarf, most probably. It is very sad.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Thumper_SVX]

God I hope not. I remember watching a documentary once about Red Dwarf, and Craig Charles admitted that for most of the first two seasons, he and Danny John Jules were pretty much baked out of their skulls. Those were also the best in my opinion :)

Seriously, does it really matter that much? What my choice of actors does in their spare time is of no concern to me. I like their work and therefore I appreciate their work.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Rune69]

Also, Craig Charles and Chris Barrie admitted to hating one another for most of the series. They didn't even speak off-camera until Series 7.

hmm...let's bring back that hate!

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[SkunkPussy]

maybe thats what made the banter between them so good

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[SkunkPussy]

well today is naughty friday so I wonder (at least for me, as I'm posting this)

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Loki_666]

Don't know about crack head but i used to drink in the same pub where he used to frequent (White Horse in Harpenden). He liked a tipple he did.

I think i upset him one night because we were talking about Robot Wars with friends and i shouted 'Activate'. He grabbed his drink, downed it, and left the pub.

He was probably thinking 'bunch of loosers'.

Re:Craig Charles == drug problem

[Anonymous Coward]

If its crack he has a problem.... As a former drug user tells me 'you either are a crack head or not, and the way you become one is to smoke it there is no in between'.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Charles#Scandals

Sounds like he dabbles a bit. Judging from pictures not too much though. You never see a fat crack head.

Exciting development

[Lord Bitman]

When I was in America, I saw complaints that Slashdot was too America-centric, never any nerd news for the English. The response was always something along the lines of "Fuck off, we don't care about your stupid British TV shows coming back or being canceled."

Okay, I live in England now, and I still don't care. Why am I suddenly seeing articles about things that involve countries I live in?

Re:Exciting development

[Paradigm_Complex]

My parents pointed out that, as I approached college age, they started seeing and hearing things about college everywhere.

People are wired to notice things more relevant to their situation. For what it's worth I haven't noticed any change in the number of English-related articles. Monty Python and the English Police State both get plenty of time 'round here.

Re:Exciting development

[not-my-real-name]

Sssshhhh. I'm not suppose to tell you this, but slashdot is really a research project and you're the subject. All the other posts are made by grad students or scripts.

Re:Exciting development

[pimpimpim]

The fact that it is written in perl should have rang some bells with him. I really wonder why they've chosen such a slow person for the experiment. Oh well, back to work, there will be a thread about UK CCTV cameras that he's supposed to read soon, hope I can finish it on time.

gestalt entity fissioned

[junkgoof]

The Gestalt entity Grant Naylor fissioned, both Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, came out with crappy books, and, in spite of (or because of) the contributions of Robert Llewellyn the series went from amazing to crap.

Re:cue flame war over which Kochanski is best/hott

[Hognoxious]

At the same time?

MST3K treatment

[British]

I'm reminded of how MST3K went whereas the show died, and was resurrected, and it changed so much, it wasn't entertaining anymore.

Re:MST3K treatment

[Timberwolf0122]

what? Series 10 of MST3K was one of it's strongest seasons! Why it was ever axed is a mystery.

See? I Knew It!!! Planet Niburu Is Returning!!!

[CyberSlammer]

Oh wait..this is about a TV show?? DAMN YOU SLASHDOT!!!

Lloyd!! Noooo!!!

[PinkyDead]

Does this mean Lloyd's leaving Corrie? What about Liz, he'll break her heart? And what about Steve, the feckless rogue? Mark my words he'll run Streetcars into the ground.

WTF

Re:Lloyd!! Noooo!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

If you watch that shit you have no place on slashdot. Begone.

Red Dwarf....

[PrimordialSoup]

Gimli, is that you ?

Re:Red Dwarf....

[Anonymous Coward]

In Soviet Khazad-dum, Comrade Gimli asks if that is you!

Re-live the brilliance!

[PPCAvenger]

You know you want to.

This will be ... economical

[Attila the Bun]

So they're back on Earth, and what do you know, the year is 2009. This is going to be cheap to produce...

Red Dwarf: Unplugged, which will feature the cast dealing with no sets, effects or autocue

...and getting cheaper all the time. Or should I say, it will have a minimal carbon-footprint, and be compatible with the current economic climate. Even the script will probably be recycled. Printed on recycled paper, I mean.

Re: Blade Runner

[Anonymous Coward]

Why is resurrecting Red Dwarf fantastic but resurrecting Blade Runner an abomination?

Because the writer of the book (Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep) that Blade Runner is based on - Philip K Dick, is dead and he didn't write a sequel. How good can this film be?

Quotes

[Anonymous Coward]

"On a mining ship, three million years into deep space, can someone explain to me where the smeg I got this traffic cone?!"
- Lister, Red Dwarf

"Kryten personal black box recording. Time: unknown. Location: unknown. Cause of accident: unknown. Should someone find this recording, perhaps it will shed light as to what happened here."
- Kryten, Red Dwarf

More Red Dwarf quotes here:
http://www.quoteaddict.com/quotes.php?search=red+dwarf

You must be a waffles man!

[wfstanle]

You must be a waffles man!

short term memory

[junkgoof]

To continue Kryten's quote:

My short-term memory has been erased. This, I ascribe to the proximity of the magnetic coils from Starbug's rear engine. Secondly, due to the proximity of the magnetic coils, my short term memory appears to have been erased. This, combined with the erasure of my short-term memory, has left me a little disoriented, disoriented, disoriented.

Movie?

[TheSimkin]

What about the movie!?

Please don't mess it up!!

[Anonymous Coward]

TBH, the things that killed the later series was:

a) Rimmer leaving
b) Kochanski arriving

If this is the beginning of a new series, it will not go well; A major part of the very flimsy and token 'plot' is them trying to get back to Earth; If they get there... well... that's it. Finito. End of.

However, if this is meant as closure for us 'Dwarfers, then it could go very well!

And because this isn't some retarded 'prequel', we don't need to worry about them all looking older!

But my overiding wish is that it has the wit of the earlier series and not the lameness of the later ones!

Re:cue flame war over which Kochanski is best/hott

[Anonymous Coward]

Chloe Annett - hands down - not even close! :-D

First pictures from the screen tests on Jan 23:

[Anonymous Coward]

http://dave.uktv.co.uk/library/red-dwarf/guess-whos-back/

Enjoy ;-)

They already found earth

[Dunbal]

...sdrawkcab saw ti ylnO

Red Dwarf Movie?

[Anonymous Coward]

Maybe the movie will finally be made?

Showing in America?

[Conductor_Zak]

Does anybody know if this will be aired in the US on BBCA or any other channel? Can't wait to see it!

RED ALERT!

[sproketboy]

Are you sure sir? It does mean changing the bulb.

Ab Fab

[PylonHead]

If you are a straight man, Ab Fab wasn't really designed with you in mind.

stupid headline

[Anonymous Coward]

And here i thought i was about to get hit by a red dwarf: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_dwarf

Nodnol?

[speedtux]

I thoght they had already been back to Nodnol dlo doog.

Yap...

[thrill12]

...I hope they bring back the Commodore 64 board computer ;=)

re: fantasy future

[Anonymous Coward]

"an exploration of a fantasy future (ala Star Trek, Star Wars, etc.)"

I thought Star Wars took place A Long Time Ago

Please Kroll no

[dugeen]

If this turns out to be anything like as bad as series 7 and 8, they needn't bother. It'll make Russell T Davies comic parody remake of Doctor Who look like a faithful homage to the original.

"Everyone's favorite live-action science fiction"

[Anonymous Coward]

No it's not

Earth!?

[Anonymous Coward]

Doesn't anybody else have a problem with Rimmer making it back to Earth? A large part of this show's chemistry, for me, was that the comedy was set against the tragedy that there was no way around Rimmer dying on the ship alone (except for a "cat" that ignores him, a hologram that dislikes him, and a ship computer that barely notices him).

The only proper way to end this is if he can get to Earth orbit but not be allowed down to the surface for bureaucratic reasons.