Red Dwarf was first aired on the BBC in the late Eighties. Riding a wave of new British comedy, think The Young Ones and Saturday Night Live, it brought a new take on the sitcom. Although the 'odd couple' dynamics of the show is a well worn comedy path the scripts and plot lines were refreshing and new.
Just in case you're not familiar with the premise of the show, here is a brief summary:
Dave Lister and Arnold Rimmer are two vending machine repairmen on a huge interstellar spaceship called Red Dwarf. Out of a crew of several hundred Lister is the lowest ranked member of the crew and Rimmer is his immediate superior. Returning from planet leave Lister smuggles aboard a pregnant cat, breaching ships quarantine laws. When the captain demands the cat be given up Lister refuses and is placed in stasis as punishment. While Lister is in stasis Rimmer incorrectly replaces a drive plate and a radiation leak kills all aboard except for the cat and Lister, who is protected by the stasis field. Three million years later Holly, the ships computer, releases Lister from the stasis field having allowed enough time for the radiation to dissipate. Lister finds that not only is he the last human being alive but that Holly has decided to bring back Rimmer, as a hologram, to keep him company. While touring the now empty ship they encounter a humanoid creature that has evolved from Lister's cat, too lazy to give him a name he is thereafter known only as The Cat.
And there you have it, the four main characters have been introduced, the scene set and we're ready to launch into the series.
The cast of relative unknowns would have been vaguely familiar to viewers of Channel 4. Craig Charles (Lister) had been a political poet on The Tube and Chris Barrie (Rimmer) had done various comedy shows, including voices on Spitting Image. Norman Lovett (Holly) was a fairly successful stand up comedian although I didn't know him at the time. Danny John Jules (The Cat) was the only truly new face. Of the supporting cast there are several actors who would go on to appear on Eastenders and a young Mark Williams, later of the Fast Show. The stand out supporting actor, especially for guys my age, would have been Clare Grogan as Kochansky. A familiar face from TV and films (Gregory's Girl) and forays into the charts with her band 'Altered Images'.
Like The Young Ones there is a naïve charm about the clunky sets and do-it-yourself special effects but this was more to do with a limited budget than any comic artifice. Later series with more money to spend have far better sets and effects.
In this first series, screen time and gags are evenly shared among the four actors and although Rimmer and Lister are the clear leads no one spends too much time feeding straight lines. Holly in particular gets a lot of great gags and Norman Lovett's experience in stand up means that he never misses a beat.
The Episodes
The End~ A good starting episode that sets the tone very well. The lead characters are introduced and we quickly get a feel for the dynamics between them. Some of the acting is a bit off and Craig Charles timing is out on many gags, but for newcomers it is as good a start as you would want. By the end everything is in place and you are definitely hooked.
Future Echoes~ A bit of a Star Trek episode this one. As Red Dwarf approaches light speed we see the crew experiencing events in the future. You therefore get to see Lister and Rimmer having two conversations at once, or one conversation twice or …. Well it makes sense when you watch it. The cast probably had a lot of fun making it and again Holly gets the best gags.
Balance of Power~ A so-so episode. Tired of Rimmer out ranking him, Lister attempts to get promotion any way he can. A high point is the re-appearance of Clare Grogan as Kochansky. The show is more a vehicle for developing the Rimmer character as he desperately clings to his superiority over Lister. We can, however, see how the actors are growing into their roles and the creakiness of the first episode is long gone.
Waiting for God~ A twin plotted episode where we see Rimmer's obsession with aliens for the first time after Holly detects a strange pod floating in space. We also learn how Lister has been transformed into a God by the cat people. You get the feeling that this 'Lister as God' line was one the writers were very keen on getting in the show. I don't think it really works and seems anomalous with the rest of the series; it is an idea that is rarely returned to. There are a few top drawer gags in this episode that make it worth revisiting but not one of my favourites.
Confidence and Paranoia~ Another excellent, original episode. Lister contracts a virus whereby his conflicting personalities, Confidence and Paranoia, take human form in an attempt to gain control of him. Red Dwarf doesn't have many guest stars but Craig Ferguson and Lee Cornes, both accomplished comic actors, are very good.
ME² This is my favourite episode of Series 1. In trying to find a better companion than Lister, Rimmer creates a copy of his favourite person - himself. Chris Barrie really excels in this episode and the mean, bullying, cowardly Rimmer character is further developed.
And there you have it. As a British sitcom you only get six episodes in a series rather the 20-odd you get from the US.
Being a DVD there are a host of extras, and I have to say the BBC have pulled out all the stops here as the extras are of a superb quality and probably worth the purchase price alone. Too often on DVD's the extras are a sorry group of old trailers and promo slots, basically anything the production company has lying around the archives and you can't help feeling a little cheated.
Here, though, alongside the faithful out-takes (smeg ups) and deleted scenes there is a good hours worth of original material.
Extras: Writers and director commentary for Episode 1 - The creatives provide a commentary track for the opening episode. Some interesting things come up but not one you'll return to.
Deleted scenes - Normal fare, don't often bother looking at these if I'm honest.
Smeg Ups - As you'd expect from a bunch of comedians in front of a live audience these are quite funny and well worth a look.
Original Trailer - This is interesting only because the BBC did not have any original trailers in their library. Instead, they have used one sent in by a fan who had recorded it on VHS back in 1988. Image quality is awful as you'd expect but as a novelty item has value.
Launching Red Dwarf documentary - Now this is really, really good. A new documentary that features contributions from all the key players both on and off screen that tracks the shows history from conception, through pitch, casting and into production. To a man they are open and honest and this is very revealing and entertaining.
Drunk Featurette - A collage of clips from all eight series featuring drinking and drunkenness. Entertaining in itself and commendable of the production company to take the bother to produce this. Similar featurettes appear on later DVD's as well.
Other extras include a Japanese version of The End, a special effects feature, photo gallery and musical cues.
The final clincher for this DVD is the cast commentary for all the episodes. All four actors are involved and the banter between them is honest, funny and very entertaining. Danny John Jules in particular is very good. In fact, more often than not, when I watch these episodes I do it with the commentary turned on.
Red Dwarf is often called a cult comedy, not because it is in any way exclusive but because a few people take it very seriously indeed with conventions and so on. There are, however, a large number of people who quite enjoyed it first time round but lost touch with it over the years. I'm in that second camp and this DVD is perfect for me. The shows haven't really dated, apart from the odd topical gag that slips in, and the extras give it a very contemporary feel. You can get this for between £15-20 on Amazon (the price changes weekly) and I think that's excellent value.
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Soundtrack
Good
How does it compare to others by the same director?
Good
Value for Money
Good
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Grant's comedy SF series Red Dwarf was sketched on the back of a beer mat. When it finally appeared on our television screens in 1988 the show had clearly stayed true...
Grant's comedy SF seriesRed Dwarfwas sketched on the back of a beer mat. When it finally appeared on our television screens in 1988 the show had clearly stayed true t...
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