Red Dwarf Series X

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

Now that all the episodes have been broadcast and I assume there has been time for people to see the repeats as well, what did everyone think? I thought the last episode in particular (The Beginning) was a corker.

Rob Grant and Doug Naylor had obviously decided to play it safe by incorporating elements from the most popular series, but that makes sense when you're bringing back something that hasn't shown any life for nearly a decade.

My impression of Series X upon first viewing was very distinct - in each episode, an awful lot seemed to happen very quickly. I was kind of surprised when I checked the episode running times for the earlier series and discovered they were more less the same as the new series. I think it may be a case of being more familiar with the episodes from older series, which makes them seem longer.

Weakest episode? For me, it has to be Lemons. While ripping on religion has an inherent appeal to me as an anti-theist, in this case the execution didn't feel quite right, although I liked the little twist at the end. That said, the quality of this series was good enough that even it's weakest episode is still worth watching.

Also, the Red Dwarf (http://www.revleft.com/vb/group.php?groupid=990) group on this forum needs some more love.

[Sperm-Doll Setsuna]

I've been waiting to download and watch X, I didn't know it had finished. I have to get around to that, then...

[zoot_allures]

Loved eps 1 & 2 and 5 & 6.

The weakest in my opinion was probably episode 4. I felt like they had too many ideas and it wasn't organized or paced very well. Really there was enough material there for two or even three episodes.

Re "Lemons", just compare the ripping on the religion there with the gentler, but still very critical, approach in series 3's "The Last Day" ("but where would all the calculators go?"). One has the impression that "Lemons" was written specifically to take the piss out of religion, whereas "The Last Day" weaved some anti-religious themes into a fairly original plot. It just seemed much smarter, and much more appropriate to RD.

Anyway, the series as a whole was great - very impressive after the absolute disaster that was "Back to Earth". Not as good as series 1-6 or even 7 & 8, but they definitely captured some of the magic of those earlier series.

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

Loved eps 1 & 2 and 5 & 6.

The weakest in my opinion was probably episode 4. I felt like they had too many ideas and it wasn't organized or paced very well. Really there was enough material there for two or even three episodes.

Now that you mention it, it does seem that Entangled could have been two episodes instead of one, perhaps if the whole "entanglement" concept had been put across in a more clear manner.


Re "Lemons", just compare the ripping on the religion there with the gentler, but still very critical, approach in series 3's "The Last Day" ("but where would all the calculators go?"). One has the impression that "Lemons" was written specifically to take the piss out of religion, whereas "The Last Day" weaved some anti-religious themes into a fairly original plot. It just seemed much smarter, and much more appropriate to RD.

Compare also the episode Waiting for God, which also took a jab at UFO believers, at least in my interpretation.


Anyway, the series as a whole was great - very impressive after the absolute disaster that was "Back to Earth". Not as good as series 1-6 or even 7 & 8, but they definitely captured some of the magic of those earlier series.

What was wrong with Back to Earth? For me it leaned more towards drama than comedy, and it wasn't recorded in front of a studio audience.

As for Series 7 and 8, I think they contained the right balance of having a more cinematic style while still retaining the essence of being a science fiction sitcom. My impression of the fan reaction is that Series X was overall better received than Series 7 & 8, which some fans have banished from their personal canon.

[LeonJWilliams]

Very happy with series X.

Before I watched them I was a bit apprehensive that after so many years that it would have lost something, the spark.

Although I can't name a worst or poor episode I did feel that in general each episode had too much going on and each story in each episode didn't get the full attention it deserved, it could have easily been span out into either two series or just more episodes in the series.

Very impressed though and hope to see more from the boys from the dwarf!

[zoot_allures]

Now that you mention it, it does seem that Entangled could have been two episodes instead of one, perhaps if the whole "entanglement" concept had been put across in a more clear manner.
It was especially disappointing because I thought that that concept was one of the more interesting in the series. Unfortunately, the episode as a whole seemed too jumbled to me.


What was wrong with Back to Earth? For me it leaned more towards drama than comedy, and it wasn't recorded in front of a studio audience.

As for Series 7 and 8, I think they contained the right balance of having a more cinematic style while still retaining the essence of being a science fiction sitcom. My impression of the fan reaction is that Series X was overall better received than Series 7 & 8, which some fans have banished from their personal canon.
Re "Back to Earth" - for me, the jokes fell flat, I didn't like the storyline, and even the characters didn't work. Ep 1 was disappointing, 2 & 3 were depressingly bad. I'm afraid I can't provide details because I don't remember it very well (I'll watch it again one day).

I love series 8, and I think series 7 is, despite a few notable flaws, excellent overall. I don't understand why they receive so much derision. I know 7's largely Rimmerless, which kinda sucks, but I think Kochanski was a reasonable replacement. My girlfriend hates 7 because she doesn't like Annett's Kochanski, which from what I've read is a fairly common complaint. Personally, I just don't see Grogan's Kochanski as being nearly dysfunctional enough to work as a major character on RD. Her personality had to be changed.

[LeonJWilliams]

I agree that back to Earth was the worst though I have a feeling that the mini-series was made to see if the public still had an appetite for Red Dwarf.

Who knows, if Back to Earth's ratings had of been poor then potentially there would be no Series X.