Mundane observation dome

[Warbodog]

Do you have any miscellaneous insights on the series that may be worth contemplating for a few seconds before moving on with our lives? Here are some of mine.

1. The four regulars have names that can work any way around, though this would have been more obvious if David Ross had stayed and wouldn’t work if Chris Barrie used his real name.

2. The series’ lax attitude to continuity extends to the setting. Outside of Holly’s distress calls, I don’t think three million years is mentioned all that much after series I and before VI (not sure about later years). Instead, we get the extremely fudged “dead for centuries” and “travelling for thousands of years” – not actual retcons, but suggesting a more conventional setting for casual viewers tuning in and the sort of stories they’re telling. It’s only millions when they need it to be.

3. 200 years of stasis between series V and VI means that the earlier series took place in their equivalent of the early 19th century by comparison (e.g. Blackadder the Third). Since they didn’t run into a long-lived Camille or one of her great-great-etc grandchildren, it didn’t come up.

4. Although Lister is routinely slagged off in the series, he’s spared the level of seemingly authoritative character assassination that Rimmer gets, because the audience is aligned with Lister’s viewpoint most of the time. For example, we see Kochanski Camille belittling Rimmer’s interests, but we don’t get the equivalent of Hologram Camille reacting to Lister’s pickup lines, we’re left to form our own opinions on those. This flimsy point has not been considered much beyond this single example.

5. Cat’s costumes are overwhelmingly referenced more than anyone else’s in the series, but the least discussed by fans.

6. Ace Rimmer and Duane Dibbley were so seemingly ubiquitous in canon and tie-in merchandise through the 90s (Smegazine strips, T-shirts) that they still feel overused today, even though it’s been over 20 years since they appeared. Maybe they’re allowed back after all.

7. Only series III & V and maybe XI & XII (not as familiar with those) don’t have any sense of an arc whatsoever (though IV’s minor Kryten disobedience arc was already fucked up by episode shuffling). Series III is just about the only series where no episode directly references any previous episode, but it still has the Backwards scrolling text and general references to Rimmer having died and stuff.

8. One of the series’ most famous and quoted scenes – everybody’s dead, Dave – is a straight-up 2001: A Space Odyssey homage and would have been received that way at the time, but doesn’t work like that for most people coming to the episode later on or new viewers who are young or don’t watch old films.

9. Sometimes dismissed as lightweight and gimmicky today, Backwards was designed as an innovative interactive experience to reward extracurricular effort. As well as inviting fans to work out the backwards events and filming logistics, Arthur Smith’s eugolonom is teasingly long and “you scoundrels” is clearly a cleaned-up translation gag even before you’ve heard it. Unfortunately, by the time technology caught up with the intent and the ability to reverse media files properly on home computers became commonplace, Backwards Forwards came out and everyone just cheated with the walkthrough.

Imagine the quality of the musings I left out!

Topic

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

[Professor Flibble]

I watched the ever-loving shit out of X-XII in the 2010s so I remember them all pretty well. There was actually a period I was watching mostly XI and XII just because they were fresh.

I still regularly revisit XI and XII because while they’re not as good as the bubble episodes, I still get a similar kind of comfort from them, but yeah also it’a cause they’re still quite fresh. I don’t even mind a lot of the jokes, I just don’t find them quite as memorable as the bubble era.

[Moonlight]

XI and XII were in regular rotation with the Bubble for a while on my end.

[Technopeasant]

It’ll be up to 6000 replies when I click “Submit” on this one

Were being a bit presumptuous no one would beat you to it.

XI and XII were in regular rotation with the Bubble for a while on my end.

I’ve still probably seen X more than XI and definitely XII.

[Professor Flibble]

Recently revisited X, I still enjoy it a lot but there’s something about XI and XII that feels a bit closer to classic Dwarf. I honestly think part of it might just be the greater use of Starbug and how much more dynamic the locations are. It felt like Series X tried to make a point of having Blue Midget be the more prominent ship but I’ve always been more of a Starbug kind of guy.

[Rushy]

It felt like Series X tried to make a point of having Blue Midget be the more prominent ship.

It was just a budget thing. Redressing the drive room to be Starbug wouldn’t work, partially because Starbug is so established and also because it was more cramped than even the Series III Starbug, nevermind VI and onwards. 
Whereas Blue Midget has always been a broom closet. 

[Warbodog]

I was already out of the habit of repeatedly rewatching things by the time the Dave era came out, but I’ve probably seen each of X and BTE about one more time than XI, XII & TPL, with the exception of Fathers and Suns which I only made myself rewatch for the Coral Canvass along with Timewave.

I’ll also throw in most of non-Xtended VII as similarly lesser watched because I never bought or taped those. I taped VIII and watched them a lot when they were fresh.

[Professor Flibble]

It was just a budget thing. Redressing the drive room to be Starbug wouldn’t work, partially because Starbug is so established and also because it was more cramped than even the Series III Starbug, nevermind VI and onwards. 
Whereas Blue Midget has always been a broom closet. 

Never really considered that, especially given X’s fraught production. Still though, I’m glad they were able to knock up a Starbug set eventually. 

[Unrumble]

I was already out of the habit of repeatedly rewatching things by the time the Dave era came out

Same. I put it down to a mixture of life (being busier) and there being so much stuff available that I want to watch via streaming etc.

As opposed to my teens, when it was 4 channels (though I upgraded to freeview later on) or what you had taped or could afford to buy on video/DVD and endlessly rewarch. 

[International Debris]

I think age is a thing too. It’s much easier to repeatedly rewatch something when you’re younger. I did put a couple of XI/XII episodes on a second time, but for the most part didn’t rewatch them until I got the DVD. Seen them maybe three or four times since. As opposed to the ‘90s episodes which I’ve seen many, many dozens of times, quite probably more than a hundred in some cases.

[Dave]

I think age is a thing too. It’s much easier to repeatedly rewatch something when you’re younger. I did put a couple of XI/XII episodes on a second time, but for the most part didn’t rewatch them until I got the DVD. Seen them maybe three or four times since. As opposed to the ‘90s episodes which I’ve seen many, many dozens of times, quite probably more than a hundred in some cases.

Yeah, free time is a huge factor. I have very little time to watch TV these days and I tend to prioritise new stuff over rewatches.

[International Debris]

Not even free time, I’m stuck in bed most of the time so I have plenty of that. I just think younger brains take to watching the same things over and over better than older ones. Same with most things: toys, albums, books. I get bored of stuff as an adult in a way I didn’t when I was a kid.

[Podey]

Don’t you find though that as you get older it’s harder to find the mental bandwidth to watch something new? Quite often I’ll be so intimidated by the prospect of starting a new show that I’ll just rewatch something old instead because it’s quite comforting knowing exactly what’s going to happen and not having to concentrate too much.

I have found a partial solution to this, however, which is to watch more movies at home instead of shows… I find knowing I only have to pay attention for a few hours at a time and not across multiple eps is OK.

[Warbodog]

I always like to have new things on the go, but a new thing from the 20th century is generally more appealing than an actually new thing (with the exception of board games that had their sweet spot in the early 21st). Titan is an anomaly.

[Ben Saunders]

I do the opposite – I’m much more likely to watch a show than a movie because it means I only have to pay attention for ~50 minutes at a time as opposed to ~2 hours. I do find it harder and harder to jump into new stuff, though. I play a lot of games anyway and there’s always a new Persona or Yakuza for me to dump hundreds of hours into, or Old School Runescape as I’m doing now. I did watch all the Xmen films last year though in an unprecedented spurt of “productivity”.

[MANI506]

I always like to have new things on the go, but a new thing from the 20th century is generally more appealing than an actually new thing (with the exception of board games that had their sweet spot in the early 21st). Titan is an anomaly.

Same. I’m getting into lots of new-to-me things from mostly the 20th century. Recently me and a friend made playlists for every year from 2008 to the present day. As soon as it hit 2016 I lost all interest and I think that’s across the board.

Back on topic, i rewatched the living shit out of X. Rinsed XI and XII plenty but not as much and have seen The Promised Land around ten times (the least of the Dave batches). Back To Earth probably level with XI and XII.

[Podey]

I definitely have seen The Promised Land more than the rest of the Dave era. 

[RunawayTrain]

Not even free time, I’m stuck in bed most of the time so I have plenty of that. I just think younger brains take to watching the same things over and over better than older ones. Same with most things: toys, albums, books. I get bored of stuff as an adult in a way I didn’t when I was a kid.

I’m no longer stuck in bed but I’m still stuck upstairs *on* my bed most of the time, and I’m the opposite with rewatches.  It takes me a lot to watch something new and if I like something I will rewatch it to death.  I’ve always been like that though, regardless of free time or level or health. 

Weirdly though I don’t think I’ve watched Red Dwarf since the rewatch for the last community poll; it might have been not long after that that I found Taskmaster and the extended Horneiverse and that has occupied a lot of my brain. 

(Also finding out CB held such insulting views didn’t help – it sounds pathetic and maybe it is but I consciously didn’t watch for a while because I didn’t want it tarnished by my disappointment and other emotions at the time.  I’ve been able to watch a bit of The Brittas Empire fairly recently and that’s been okay, I’ve just not felt like watching Red Dwarf just yet.)

[Dave]

A long Guardian article all about Esperanto:

https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2026/jul/28/nudists-peaceniks-freeloading-travellers-esperanto

No mention of Red Dwarf, sadly.

[Asclepius]

A long Guardian article all about Esperanto:
https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2026/jul/28/nudists-peaceniks-freeloading-travellers-esperanto
No mention of Red Dwarf, sadly.

Cerys Matthews was playing songs in Esperanto on her Sunday show. Again, no RD mention, sadly!

[Unrumble]

[Nick R]

A long Guardian article all about Esperanto:
https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2026/jul/28/nudists-peaceniks-freeloading-travellers-esperanto
No mention of Red Dwarf, sadly.

I saw this link to that article, and was going to post it as a line from something else that sounds like it’s from Red Dwarf:

Is this:

A) Tony Hawks’s follow-up to Playing the Moldovans at Tennis?

B) An article in Starbug’s in-flight magazine?

3) Rimmer’s attempted insult to Holly?

[Dave]

[Professor Flibble]

I definitely have seen The Promised Land more than the rest of the Dave era. 

I think I’ve actually seen it less than the rest of the Dave era. Probably on account of it both being a movie and it being the very latest TV Red Dwarf thing.

[Rushy]

I’m glad that for the Promised Land, they chose to give us Holly and not nightmare fuel. Seriously, what the smeg was this?

[Technopeasant]

What’s sad is I think they thought they were making him look younger.

[Moonlight]

The lighting and the grade are 90% of what makes him look corpsey in Skipper.

[Rushy]

It just bugs me, because Norman Lovett kind of is Red Dwarf for me (not to take anything away from the others), and I hate not enjoying anything about his appearance in Skipper. Especially for such a grand return. By all rights, this should be the best part of XII for me. 

He looks terrible, his jokes are crap and his line delivery is the worst it’s ever been. The fact that Promised Land ended up being his greatest show since Parallel Universe is nothing short of miraculous. 

[Moonlight]

His key scene toward the end is probably the comedic highlight of the whole special considering how novel it was just to have an extended sequence of really good new Norman shtick on the show.

[Technopeasant]

Bringing back Holly properly, actually addressing the other cats, and the moonlight scene actually paying off all the Cat hates Rimmer gags goes a long way to patching over the earlier flaws of the Dave era. Just needed Snacky.

[gerrydelasel]

I didn’t even know Promised Land was a film when I saw people mention it on t’internet, I kept thinking it was a book or something. Finally watched it a couple of weeks ago. I was underwhelmed. 
And wtf was the sacred stone all about? It does nothing to propel the plot, no one knows what it does, and no one cares that it is made from dung. Is it a reference to something?

[Warbodog]

I saw the very early news reports about the special, but when it was accidentally leaked that it featured “the Cat fleet” (via enhancing a shooting script page to read the ink bleeding through from overleaf) I avoided learning any more, besides checking up on the release date and title (which also suggested Cats). I thought it was great.

[tombow]

 (via enhancing a shooting script page to read the ink bleeding through from overleaf) 

“zoom – need another reflecting surface across the street”

[Podey]

Yeah, ‘The Promised Land’ to me is the closest that post-bubble Dwarf ever got to bubble Dwarf. I think it’s great, also.

[Rushy]

And wtf was the sacred stone all about? It does nothing to propel the plot, no one knows what it does, and no one cares that it is made from dung. Is it a reference to something?

Rodon wants to be seen as the god of the cats. 

“According to the scriptures, he who possesses the sacred Stone shall fend off his enemies and lead his people to the promised land.”

It’s basically a religious artifact that legitimises his rule. The only reason Rodon is chasing after them is to get it back. The fact that it’s made from dung makes him believe that it’s a forgery and that Lister is still hoarding the real one. 

[Technopeasant]

And it actually is a real power source which is why it allows Rimmer to return to diamond light and then revive Kryten.

[Asclepius]

Absolutely love Promised Land. The Dave era had its ups and downs, but this episode was its gem.

[gerrydelasel]

A gem made of dung

[gerrydelasel]

Sorry, that was mean of me. It’s better than a lot of Dave era stuff, but that’s a low bar

[Podey]

Imagine how casual a fan you’d have to be to see this AI slop and think “yes, this accurately represents the show I once saw 5 minutes of from a different room”.

[Rushy]

(I’d wear it)

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

Why does Lister look like Michael Tucci in Grease?

[Dave]

Imagine how casual a fan you’d have to be to see this AI slop and think “yes, this accurately represents the show I once saw 5 minutes of from a different room”.

If Starbug fathered a child with Thunderbird 2.

[sleepey]

“Boys From The Dwarf Dread Clothing” don’t we all this summer

[Technopeasant]

A gem made of dung

No, encased in dung.

[Moonlight]

No, encased in dung.

As opposed to the Dave era, which is encased in Doug.

[gerrydelasel]

[Podey]

[gerrydelasel]

*chuckle guffaw giggle*

Anyway I just noticed in this scene Lister’s t-shirt appears to be cut away into a kind of bib, I’m guessing it was hot under those studio lights?

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

what you’re seeing here is the inner lining of the jacket, not Craig’s skin

[Author]

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