Some people do not 'get' this show and I'm not sure why. I always think that they haven't watched enough to get to know the characters or they can't quite relate to the abstract brilliance of it all. Well I'm not one of them for sure, as this show has provided me with more laughs than any other. From the disgusting habits of Lister to the delightful cheekiness of The Cat to the smug remarks from Rimmer the comic moments just go on and on. And yes, the Grant-Naylor partnership was possibly key in maintaining the subtlety of the gags. Yet, I do not necessarily agree that Series 7 and 8 were a pointless waste of time. For me, these two series were worth it just for Kryten alone. His eccentricity and corruption sort of 'blossomed' in a way and I felt Robert Llewlelyn took his character in the right direction. This is a point that will probably be hounded but you only need to see the psychiatrist scenes from the final series to see what I mean.
Sadly, the other characters in the latter series seem to lose some of the magic they so brilliantly weaved in front of a live audience. However, the stories were still good enough to entice my viewing throughout all 8. My personal favourite series is series two. Even though this was when they were still (pretty much) confined to the Red Dwarf ship, the scripts and dialogues were absolutely fantastic. 'Thanks for the Memory' is so brilliantly constructed I think of it as the best half hour of comedy ever written. The way it begins with the drunken starbug flight back and ends with the discovery of what Lister has done with Rimmer's memory is pure genius. Then you have that brilliant moment where Danny John-Jules nails a one-liner so sublimely that you just have to cackle. Rimmer (played by the ace Chris Barrie) attempts a ridiculous explanation to how they've ended up with unusual predicaments after a late night party (for example broken legs) and tries to ease everyone's worries by suggesting it was alien communication. Then Cat (Danny John Jules) simply says "I wouldn't want to be around when one of these suckers is making a speech".
Anyway, I could go on and on with the praise, so I'd just like to say to everyone involved in the show.............. thanks for the memories!!
Sadly, the other characters in the latter series seem to lose some of the magic they so brilliantly weaved in front of a live audience. However, the stories were still good enough to entice my viewing throughout all 8. My personal favourite series is series two. Even though this was when they were still (pretty much) confined to the Red Dwarf ship, the scripts and dialogues were absolutely fantastic. 'Thanks for the Memory' is so brilliantly constructed I think of it as the best half hour of comedy ever written. The way it begins with the drunken starbug flight back and ends with the discovery of what Lister has done with Rimmer's memory is pure genius. Then you have that brilliant moment where Danny John-Jules nails a one-liner so sublimely that you just have to cackle. Rimmer (played by the ace Chris Barrie) attempts a ridiculous explanation to how they've ended up with unusual predicaments after a late night party (for example broken legs) and tries to ease everyone's worries by suggesting it was alien communication. Then Cat (Danny John Jules) simply says "I wouldn't want to be around when one of these suckers is making a speech".
Anyway, I could go on and on with the praise, so I'd just like to say to everyone involved in the show.............. thanks for the memories!!