people who “react” to RD on Youtube

[tombow]

I’ve really started enjoying watching UK comedy reaction videos on youtube (and Dailymotion, where some of them have a 2nd channel)

Cyborcat – American woman who is a huge RD fan, loves the cat and has done a reaction/recap of every episode up to Skipper as well as an in depth, multi part Cat analysis series

JimB media – just a British uni-student-aged guy who hasn’t seen most of the classic 70s-90s sitcoms and is watching Dwarf, Father Ted, Brittas etc. Interestingly he really enjoyed RD VIII after hating VII.

After Work Reactions – African American guy who isn’t actually watching Dwarf (but may do in future) but his joyful reactions to things like Harry Enfield, Father Ted, Only Fools, bottom etc really make me laugh.

[Flap Jack]

Oh yes, I think I recommended Cyborcat on here once before. Her Cat videos go over every outfit he wears as well as all his notable character beats in every episode. That’s G&T level dedication right there.

[tombow]

I like Jimb’s recaps, it’s interesting to see what a modern cool/young person makes of classic RD.

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

Interestingly he really enjoyed RD VIII after hating VII.

From experience, if you’re binge watching Red Dwarf in any capacity, VII is a slog after the highs of the previous six series and VIII is just so full of energy it’s hard not to have your spirits lifted by it.

On reflection there are bits to like about VII and a lot to dislike about VIII, but in the moment (whether it is a first viewing or just a quick sequential watching of the show) VIII definitely lifts the mood after the downer VII presents.

[tombow]

that’s a good point actually. I guess you could say the same about reactions to star wars movies. Like you have to consider the context of how long the fans had waited at the time.

[Ridley]

[Dax101]

Wasn’t that the reaction for most people with Series VIII? I think most people gave VIII praise for being better than VII. I just don’t think it held up well once people got over that praise of comparison.

[RunawayTrain]

{*facepalm* accidentally pressed ‘Submit’, ignore!}

[Dave]

It would be great if these youtubers looked at this thread, so that they could react to our reactions to people who react to RD on YouTube.

[Jonathan Capps]

I was expecting this thread to be withering about the reaction videos, actually. It’s funny the sort of thing that can grab you on YouTube, but personally I enjoy watching nerds clean out spiders’ nests from old C64s.

[International Debris]

I once read – and I think this was on Norm’s official website, of all places – that Red Dwarf lost its way a bit, particularly by VII, but VIII was it getting back to form again, and always found that baffling. I get that it’s a bright, colourful, energetic studio sitcom with Chris Barrie in it after the slightly more dour VII, but even on first broadcast I thought it really lacked something.

[Dax101]

Series VIII was the 3rd best series voted by fans in the fanclub magazine around 2001. in most polls now VIII has fallen to much lower.

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

Yeah but people voted for Hitler Dax, they can’t be trusted.

[Ridley]

And he got unpopular with Poles.

I was disappointed that Series VIII sidelined Cat and Kochanski what with with having started with Red Dwarf VII but my younger self enjoyed it.

[GlenTokyo]

I imagine series VIII was seen as better at the time due to the ignorance of youth. The average Red Dwarf fan was probably mid to late teens when VIII was on so may have enjoyed the nob gags etc and looked past the poorer elements/ not had the life experience to know why shower night live isn’t cool.

It’s like DS9 and Voyager, as a teen I preferred Voyager and couldn’t stand DS9, as an adult I can’t get past Neelix and Kes’s creepy relationship, turning into lizards when you go too fast etc and I now think DS9 is the best Star Trek ever made.

[Dave]

I was late teens when VIII showed up and even then I thought a lot of it was shite. But the disappointment of VII had hit harder because it was such a clear step down from what had come before. In comparison VIII wasn’t such a marked decline.

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

I feel I should apologise to turning what could have been a fun interesting thread about YouTube reactions into yet another discussion about VII and VIII.

[Ian Symes]

It’s not your fault, it’s Symes’s Law.

The most recent things will always over-perform to varying degrees in any poll, Dwarfy or otherwise. When things are fresher, reactions are more extreme. It takes time for people to look at things more objectively and placings to settle down.

[Dave]

I eagerly await the re-evaluation of Timewave when G&T runs the Gold Gradation.

[Ridley]

It takes time for people to look at things more objectively and placings to settle down.

Time lapse reaction video or it didn’t happen.

[Flap Jack]

Recency bias is interesting, because it can go both ways. People will often ruthlessly scrutinise something as it first comes out – especially if they’re obsessive followers of whatever series or genre it’s in – but over time will tend to chill out about it, and occasionally even have nostalgia for it.

Like for every person who loved The Phantom Menace when it came out and through rewatching and hindsight now thinks it’s shit, there’s probably another person who was posting lengths of angry forum text in release week and now thinks it was more or less an OK movie.

[Quinn: Clochebusters World Champion]

Do you think that would have happened with Star Wars and Red Dwarf if it hadn’t been for the long hiatus between outing?

Would we be scrutinising and criticising Dave era Dwarf as much if these shows had come in 2000?

Granted they wouldn’t have been the same shows of course, but had the show changed channels shortly after VIII aired we’d still be more inclined to see them as part of the original run of shows and less likely to look for fault/change/difference in them other than surface level stuff like you get with VII and VIII.

[International Debris]

I’d say that hiati definitely come into assessments. Once something becomes noticeably separate from an earlier version, the difference can become more obvious; similarly, the creators tend to be a bit more self-aware of what they’re doing. When Rob and Doug were involved in the creation of 1-VI, they probably didn’t have <i>too</i> much time to naval gaze. Doug’s series do seem to be a little bit more focused on the idea of what Red Dwarf ‘is’ (or, indeed, ‘isn’t’), to the extent that there are some moments in VIII and the Dave era which feel like he’s self-consciously trying to make something feel like classic Dwarf, rather than it simply flowing naturally. Couple the fan perspective and re-emergences after hiati can feel very unnatural. It happens all the time with bands who take time off after an unpopular album.

(Yes, I know it’s hiatuses, shush.)

[Pete Part Three]

>Like for every person who loved The Phantom Menace when it came out and through rewatching and hindsight now thinks it’s shit, there’s probably another person who was posting lengths of angry forum text in release week and now thinks it was more or less an OK movie.

As someone who posted lengths of angry forum text about The Phantom Menace in 1999, I can state that this had nothing to do with recency bias and everything to do with the fact that it’s a fucking terrible movie.

[Pete Part Three]

I’ve clearly matured a lot in the last 21 years.

[Jonathan Capps]

I’ve clearly matured a lot in the last 21 years.

[Flap Jack]

Do you think that would have happened with Star Wars and Red Dwarf if it hadn’t been for the long hiatus between outing?

Would we be scrutinising and criticising Dave era Dwarf as much if these shows had come in 2000?

I think that definitely plays a part, but it’s not a requirement. Look at Doctor Who. There’s been a new series every year or 2 since 2005, but people are as discerning about new episodes as that as ever. I’d even say that people were way less harsh about Series 1 after the 16 year hiatus, but I probably just wasn’t tuned into the super fan circles at that time.

Doctor Who is a classic example of how it goes both ways too. You get a lot of hate – recency… animus? – but Jodie Whitaker still got voted the 2nd best Doctor anyway.

Though yes, I am aware that you can’t really quantify recency bias anecdotally like this, because there are also genuine fluctuations in quality happening alongside it, and fully separating the two would require you to objectively measure the quality of art, which you can’t. It’s interesting to ponder anyway.

As someone who posted lengths of angry forum text about The Phantom Menace in 1999, I can state that this had nothing to do with recency bias and everything to do with the fact that it’s a fucking terrible movie.

Don’t worry Pete, if I ever reference people changing their minds about movies or TV shows over time, I’m not talking about you. ;-)

[Ian Symes]

Doctor Who is a classic example of how it goes both ways too. You get a lot of hate – recency… animus?

Let’s leave The Web Planet out of this.

[Flap Jack]

I can’t believe I accidentally named ‘having a stronger negative reaction to something’ after the villain in a Doctor Who story which is 100% perfect and beloved by fans. Embarrassing.

[Ian Symes]

Oh shit, have I “that’s the joke”d you? I apologise.

[Flap Jack]

Haha, no way. I had no idea of the coincidental Doctor Who connection to the word “animus”, so you noticing it and pointing it out was an excellent reply. All good.

Though now you’ve said that my last post does read more sarcastic than I intended, but it was just exaggeration.

[Flap Jack]

While we’re on the subject of The Web Planet… for a long time that serial had a reputation of being unambiguously shit. Unrealistic giant moth costumes, overdone dialogue, Vaseline on the lens etc. But over time classic Who fandom has built up much more fondness for its weird approach, particularly after the Twitch Classic Who marathon accidentally didn’t play it when it was supposed to, and everyone was chanting “WE WANT ZARBI” in the chat.

Recency animus in action, for the actual Animus.

[Dax101]

The Starwars prequels have actually been reevaluated. there are a generation that grew up with them and love them perhaps more so than the original.

[tombow]

Jimb’s reaction to Back in the Red Part 1 complete with an extra 20 mins of him talking to his live chat about RD, and lots of pro-VIII comments under the video –

[Jonathan Capps]

Haha, no way. I had no idea of the coincidental Doctor Who connection to the word “animus”, so you noticing it and pointing it out was an excellent reply. All good.

Well, I still think he’s a cunt.

[Dax101]

Comedy is subjective. everyone finds something funny. so the idea that some may like Series 8 isn’t shocking. but is it good Red Dwarf? if you seen the first 6 series and then find Series 8 just as good or even better… that makes me sad.

[Lily]

Jodie Whitaker still got voted the 2nd best Doctor anyway

Who the fuck voted that?

[Ben Kirkham]

It’s not your fault, it’s Symes’s Law.

The most recent things will always over-perform to varying degrees in any poll, Dwarfy or otherwise. When things are fresher, reactions are more extreme. It takes time for people to look at things more objectively and placings to settle down.

This is exactly the reason ‘The Day of the Doctor’ came first place in the DWM Poll.

[Ben Kirkham]

Jodie Whitaker still got voted the 2nd best Doctor anyway

What the actual fuck???

[si]

Jodie Whitaker still got voted the 2nd best Doctor anyway

What the actual fuck???

Worth noting that it was a poll of Favourite Doctors, not Doctors being rated.
Like I said at the time, it depends on who’s voting – under-30s are going to vote Tennant/Smith, 50-somethings will vote Pertwee/Baker, and youngsters will always vote for The Current Doctor, who, of course, is Jodie. It’s a (re)generational thing.

[Ben Kirkham]

Jodie Whitaker still got voted the 2nd best Doctor anyway

What the actual fuck???
Worth noting that it was a poll of Favourite Doctors, not Doctors being rated.
Like I said at the time, it depends on who’s voting – under-30s are going to vote Tennant/Smith, 50-somethings will vote Pertwee/Baker, and youngsters will always vote for The Current Doctor, who, of course, is Jodie. It’s a (re)generational thing.

It’s fair enough, I suppose. I’m one of the Wilderness years kids, so I never really had a sustained, current Doctor. I suppose it’d be Paul McGann but he wasn’t around long enough (on TV, at least).

His performance through Big Finish has cemented McGann as *my* Doctor, but I think that Tom Baker is the definitive Doctor. Love them all in their own way, though. Except Whittaker, for reasons that would take up an essay.

[Flap Jack]

Here’s the mentioned ‘favourite Doctor’ poll:

https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2020-09-20/david-tennant-best-doctor-who/

Tennant and Whitaker both got 21%, so he only inched ahead.

Not surprising that Whitaker ranked so highly. Recency bias is in play, but also people tend to criticise the writing of the Chibnall era more than the lead actor. I’ve seen plenty who hate the former but really like the latter anyway.

It’s also worth noting that when the Tennant and Smith eras were underway, they probably both got #1 from similar polls easily (I’m too lazy to search for those polls right now of course), so you can potentially take Jodie only being #2 as a very mild backlash of sorts.

[International Debris]

McCoy won a best Doctor poll once.

[Flap Jack]

McCoy won a best Doctor poll once.

[Hamish]

[tombow]

Jim Briggs is hugely impressed with Trojan after almost giving up on BTE – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0f9IDWzh-8

[Moonlight]

My favorite reaction videos are the ones where people just watch the whole thing verbatim, laugh at the jokes, and then provide absolutely zero commentary or analysis afterward.

That kind of reaction vid is just the lowest possible effort content.

[unclerubbish]

After Work Reactions – African American guy who isn’t actually watching Dwarf (but may do in future) but his joyful reactions to things like Harry Enfield, Father Ted, Only Fools, bottom etc really make me laugh.

Never been one for reaction videos but i stubbled across his videos and they are great. It’s like enjoying the humour all over again vicariously.

[Jonathan Capps]

people just watch the whole thing verbatim, laugh at the jokes, and then provide absolutely zero commentary or analysis afterward.

That reminds me, remember to get your Waffle Men topics in for this weekend’s recording of our Krysis commentary!!!

[International Debris]

Aren’t we due a book club first?

[Author]

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