Hadn't noticed a thread but this week marks Red Dwarf's 25th Anniversary (15th Feb to be exact). It's had it's ups and downs over those years, but has managed some 10 series (61 episodes). And hopefully we'll get a Red Dwarf XI announcment on the actual anniversary. Dave it would seem is doing a Red Dwarf weekend. So which episodes have we enjoyed or not?
I'm one of those who can enjoy any episode, just to varying degrees. My favorites are in the S3-S6 range. Hell, I've kept this AV longer than any others I've had.
Quarantine is certainly among and might very well be the best. Mr. Flibble rocks! Also, hounourable mention goes to Stoke Me a Clipper just for that scene of Ace Rimmer riding the alligator as a surf board through the sky. Finally, the oepning scene of The End really is great, with Lister complaining that the ship's repair drones should be doing repairs and Rimmer telling him their union won't allow it.
It's been ages since I've done a run of the show. It's too bad I don't have the DVDs with me though. I'm quite fond of 3-6, but I'd be okay with watching whatever episode really.
Legion was the first episode of Red Dwarf I ever saw. PBS was doing a run through of the whole series before airing the new series seven. I laughed all the way through and was immediately hooked.
I have to confess that although it should be the kind of thing I'd enjoy, I've never seen a single episode of Red Dwarf I liked. I didn't find it funny, it just didn't appeal to me on any level.
^Best not let Mr. Flibble hear you say that lest he fries you with his Hex Vision. Red Dwarf like any show has it's good episodes and bad episodes, some episodes will have aged better over the 25 years it has been on (and off) the air. Though like many shows, I suspect the creators didn't think it would still be going after 25 years, (True there is no announcement that a Red Dwarf XI has been commisioned but if reports are true Dave was happy with the ratings.)
If you go into them with an open mind then they're quite good, yes. Some people seem determined to be negative about them before they'd even aired but the general consensus is they're the best Dwarf since series 6.
Season X's pretty damn good. Particularly the finale, that's Red Dwarf at its finest. And yeah, the season as a whole is much better than Back to Earth.
Red Dwarf X has it moments, and it's definatly better than BtE but then it would really have to try hard to be worse than BtE. Though is not quite as good as when RD was at it's hieght of quality.
Hey I got no horse in this race. I tried to like it, I swear, and I like all kinds of things that should be reasonably similar. Just not "Red Dwarf".
After checking out Season 10 last year on Blu, I got myself the first 8 seasons on DVD as a Christmas present. Didn't realise it was the anniversary year, but have been rewatching them gradually this year and so far have got up to Series 3. It's rare for me to enjoy a comedy twice. The second time around most shows are just cheesy and cause my teeth to grind at the predictability of the gags, and the constructed by committee feel. But watching Red Dwarf again after some ten or more years, I really think it's funnier than when I first watched it. I liked Series 10, but Series 1 and 2 are still my favourites, mostly because of the claustrophobic sitcom feel to them. Series 3 onwards changed the character balance and opened the premise out, and they are fundamentally just as good, if not better than the first two series, but they are also fundamentally different from the shows I first watched, which is why I like them a little less. But everything up to Series 6 is still comic genius. I'm not looking forward to watching Series 7 and 8 again though.
Admittedly, I probably like the look of sesasons 1 and 2 the best. It feels real, or as real as a miles long mining starship with a crew that consists of a hologram and a man who evolved from cats can be. The set design and costumes have a realistic look to them. Season 3 onward the sets have a more "sci-fi" look as do the costumes. Or, at the very least, Rimmer's outfits becomes more "spacey" compared to his uniform from S1 and S2. Season 7 really isn't that bad, overall it's pretty decent. Season 8 has its moments, though, yeah it really doesn't feel like the same show very much at all.
25 years is quite the milestone. I'm probably fondest of Season V: every single episode is uproariously funny in its own way, with Quarantine probably being my favourite episode overall. But really, I enjoy every episode in series 1-6. They're all brilliant. 7 & 8 are both pretty weak, Back to Earth was dreadful and the most recent series was patchy but decent. Hopefully, they'll keep going a bit longer. Still wish Rob Grant would chip in with a few new gags though...