Red Dwarf X

[andraste]

So, a mere thirteen years after the last full series, we finally get more Red Dwarf. And it's pretty good! It may not always hit the heights of the first six seasons, and it may have regularly reminded me that the show is better at female characters when it doesn't have any, but crucially, it IS a proper series of Red Dwarf. It returns to the classic formula of the last living human stranded on a derelict mining ship three million years into deep space with a hologram of his dead bunkmate, a cat and a mechanical lifeform for company. It's the first time since 1997 that they've attempted that, and arguably the first time since 1993 that they've actually succeeded.

Also, I'm delighted to say that Red Dwarf X has the best writing for the Cat since Kryten showed up. He's been consistently hilarious, and the scripts have remembered to include all his personality traits. (Yes, he has more than one.) Really nice to see after so many years of him being an afterthought.

I thought the first and last episodes were the strongest, although that might be the Rimmer fangirl talking in the case of Trojan. Episodes two through four had some good ideas but didn't always execute them effectively, and episode five was pretty terrible. The Beginning, though, was good stuff that I wouldn't hesitate to put on a list of my favourite Red Dwarf episodes ever.



The model work is fantastic throughout (thank goodness they ditched the cheap CGI) and Hogey the Roguey is a cute idea, but the episode really belongs to Rimmer.

Philip Labey is adorable as young Arnold, and manages to pack a lot of performance into a couple of minutes of screen time. (I just want to pinch his cheek and pat him on the head. I'd attempt to ruffle his hair, but I'm not sure that's actually possible for hair like Rimmer's.) I really hope for a return appearance in a future Series XI - find someone to play a young Lister, and we could finally get the story of how Our Heroes met on screen.

Once again we get proof that Rimmer is a useless git 99% of the time and a stone cold hero the other 1%. I love the battle plan timetable, I love his reaction to his father's message, and I love that for the first time ever he takes charge of the crew and inspires them to follow his plan ALL WHILE REMAINING COMPLETELY IN CHARACTER. The strongly worded letter and calling the Simulant commander 'meladdo' were classic Rimmer.

I think my favourite bit, though, was the scene between Cat and Rimmer, where Cat gives the most intelligent advice he's offered in twenty-five years ... while playing with a piece of string attached to a stick. Oh, Cat.

Also: "But sometimes you live, you die, and then you live again. I know. I've done it myself." Rimmer has achieved so much more growth post-mortem than he ever did when he was breathing, and it's wonderful to hear him say it.

I gather some fans are annoyed with the mocking non-resolution of the Series VIII cliffhanger, but I thought it was one of the funniest parts of the episode. And at this point, who the smeg cares? I have even made peace with not knowing exactly where this version of Rimmer comes from. (He seems to remember both dying in the radiation leak and the events of Series VIII, so maybe he's an amalgam of some kind. The important thing is that he's Rimmer and I want to draw sparkly pink hearts around him.)



All in all, Back to Earth worked as a tribute, but this is proper Red Dwarf. Here's hoping it actually is The Beginning.