Red Dwarf (TV Series) Twentica (2016) User Reviews

Amusing episode with some clever and quite funny moments

[snoozejonc · 8/10 · 5 January 2021]

Starbug travels back to 1950s USA where the Simulants have inhabited Earth.

I found this one to be consistently amusing with a handful of moments that made me laugh.

The story uses a pretty good sci-fi formula seen in various movies and Star Trek episodes in a spoof style.

I enjoyed the humour, mainly during the banter that pokes fun of its own overused plot and cliched dialogue. In fact the tone of it all hits the perfect balance between clever sci-fi content and not taking itself the slightest bit seriously. The science themed speakeasy was a great idea.

Performances from everyone are great, particularly Craig Charles and some of the guest actors.

The visuals and effects seem to be of a higher standard for series 11, but it doesn't distract with obvious fake CGI as in previous episodes.

Overall I thought this was a 7.5/10, but I round upwards.

Twentica

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 22 September 2016]

Since UKTV got the rights to make new Red Dwarf. The opener for series 11 is the one that is more reminiscent to the later series shown on the BBC almost 20 decades ago.

The budget is bigger than the previous two series and it shows on screen and the writing was sharper and funnier parodying Star Trek with a cyborg named similar to that of 7 of 9 from ST: Voyager.

The crew of Red Dwarf going to what looks like Prohibition era 1920s America only to find out that it is the 1950s where science has been made illegal. Singing, dancing and drinking is fine though. The cyborgs known as Simulants are holding back technology for the benefit of mankind.

The episode is tightly directed, every crew member gets a little bit of the spotlight and there are several laughs to be had. It is a long time since I laughed at a new episode of Red Dwarf.

Twentica

[MrFilmAndTelevisionShow · 8/10 · 2 September 2021]

A nice little episode with plenty of elements and references to previous series, good jokes and an all round great story, it's not quite in my opinion on the same level as classic Red Dwarf but it is close.

Clever, witty, funny...nerdy... and with a hidden message for our future selves!

[steven-taplin · 10/10 · 11 March 2021]

Being somewhat 'into' science; relativity, quantum physics and my own wacky theories of mixed-up space-time-multi-verse stuff (don't get me started), I admit to having watched this episode so many times I could probably annoy the hell out of the cast at a sci-fi convension! The episode brings in clever ideas and different ways of using old cliche plots. The cast work it very well - especially Lucie Pohl who plays Harmony. She pulls off a wonderful stereotyped twenties New Yorker brilliantly and manages a fantastic line about "Copenhagen interpretation theory!"

"So ya wanna grab a drink first or go somewhere quiet and discuss relativity? For an extra ten bucks I'll do both - general and special." Classic.

Mind you, you may end up googling stuff about quantum theories and relativity for hours!

A welcome return

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 24 September 2016]

This episode sees the crew of the Red Dwarf meeting a group of androids known as 'Exponoids'. They want something known as the Casket of Cronus and if they aren't given it they will kill their hostage… Arnold Rimmer. Odd given that he is aboard the Red Dwarf! Concerned that this could be his future self Rimmer insists on giving the device to the Exponoids. It turns out that it is a time machine and the Exponoids use it to travel to Earth before vital technology was invented. The Red Dwarf crew follow in their slipstream and discover themselves in what looks like prohibition America… only it is science that is prohibited not booze. If they are to return history to how it should be they will have to work with a group of underground scientists.

After a few years away it was great to see this classic sci-fi sitcom return. Often when shows return after a long time away it is a bit of a disappointment but here it felt as though they hadn't been away. The script could have been from series five or six and the cast are as good as ever. The story is such that anybody who hasn't watched the series before will quickly get to know each of the protagonists without seeming like obvious introductions that would bore long-time fans. The budget is clearly a bit higher than the previous series that was made for Dave (the TV channel not Lister!); this shows best in the science-speakeasy… an impressive set for any UK sitcom. Overall a solid opener with plenty of laughs that left me keen to watch more new Red Dwarf.