Things we WOULD like to see in the New Dwarf Specials.

[Paul Muller]

Right.

Now I don’t want to get involved in any forum bitchfests that may or may not be occuring elsewhere on this site, so let’s put all that to one side.

What sort of things WOULD you like to see included in the new specials? ie. plotlines, writing styles, characters, special fx etc.

What would be in your ideal episodes?

It’s a purely hypothetical question, I’m not suggesting that this is any sort of definitive clarion call from the fan community to Doug Naylor – it’s just a bit of fun.

Ok so….

GO.

Topic

[Paul Muller]

OK me first.

I’m going to say.

More of the Series VIII style Kryten costume – they finally got it right. His head looked normal-ish, and the dull grey suit looked good on camera and didn’t reflect the studio lights too much.

Some refreshing new redesigned sets. It’s been 10 years, what the hell, I think it’s about time Red Dwarf got a new look, a la the Series III continuity busting makeover.

[John Hoare]

A studio audience!

Well, not *see* them, obviously.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

Yep, a fresh new look to things. Agee that’d be very nice…though I think I preferred Kryten’s head in Series 6. Something about it in 8 just looked…soft. Like a melted crayon.

I’d like to see the characters more in tune with their selves in earlier series – i.e. Kryten being intelligent, acerbic, still lacking some confidence but growing as he breaks his programming….rather than a cleaning-obsessed idiot.

Again, Cat as a simple-minded and self-obsessed creature who could nevertheless hold his own against Rimmer and give as good as he got…and not a style-obsessed idiot.

Lister as a slobby guy with a good soul and dreams of being something greater…rather than a curry-obsessed idiot.

[Pete Part Three]

A story-line based on a clever, funny, intriguing idea that couldn’t be done any other show (like Future Echoes, Thanks for the Memory, Bodyswap, Justice, Back to Reality, Legion, Epideme).

Model-shots.

New costumes for the Cat! (rather than just reprisals of the old ones)

[Phil]

Our friends the genitals.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

There’s always room for knackers.

[Almighty_crj]

On the topic of things we?d like to see, I?d rather see more budget spent on model effects. CGI is really getting over used, nowadays, particularly by Doctor Who.

Sets could use a bit of money to explore the universe. Mainly, a lack of wood on principle sets.

Filming in High Definition. I know Dave isn’t in HD, but for the purposes of HD DVD and overseas sales, I’d say it would be worth the money on BBC Worldwide’s part.

>, I think it?s about time Red Dwarf got a new look, a la the Series III continuity busting makeover.
A third type of RD interior wouldn’t look odd as the ship is modular – you’ve just entered a different module!

[Zombie Jim Undead]

> A third type of RD interior wouldn?t look odd as the ship is modular – you?ve just entered a different module!

It’s be cool to see it as more of a Nostromo – oily, dank, dirty and grimy – like a mining ship should be.

[Pete Part Three]

>It?s be cool to see it as more of a Nostromo – oily, dank, dirty and grimy – like a mining ship should be.

They’ve kinda done this. Series III-V.

[Paul Muller]

This is fun.

An ‘outdoor’ shot – a spacewalk or exploring a moon or asteroid without an atmosphere.

They’ve only done it a handful of times in the whole of Red Dwarf (Confidence and Paranoia, Thanks for the Memory…um..) and it’s such a cool idea and could be really well achieved at a reasonable budget with today’s FX advances.

Also, model shots mixed with CGI – the best of both worlds.

[Almighty_crj]

If the uniform from series 8 has to return, some of those ‘alien’esque grey jackets to match it. Somehow I think the costumes are a bit monotone at times. Oh and with both patches on either arm sleeves.

>um..

Blue – the golf flashback.

Come on, another quarry!

[Zombie Jim Undead]

> (Confidence and Paranoia, Thanks for the Memory?um..)

The flashback in Blue when they were playing golf. That was pretty cool.

> They?ve kinda done this. Series III-V.

Sort of… though I was thinking more along the lines of dilapidated steampunk-style. Closest I can think is the ship in Serenity / Firefly.

[Paul Muller]

>Blue – the golf flashback

*winces*

Oh yeah, forgot about that.

Well a spacewalk then.

And agree the uniforms should be interesting to look at, maybe colour coded flightsuits or something, would look a bit snazzy.

https://sisleyclothing.com.au/catalog2/images/flightS_1piece&Fabric.jpg

[Paul Muller]

And yeah – agree with Jim on the sets. It would be cool to have a kind of dirtied down, gritty look ie. Aliens, Outland or something similar.

[Kris ‘Drivaaar’ Carter]

Well, the sets will get their own amended style anyways – Mel Bibby passed away some years ago, god rest his soul.

Personally I’d like a return to single camera shooting – what can I say, I liked the glossy production values of it.

I would also like to see a return to a show more focussed on the core cast alone. I’ve no interest in seeing the whole Dwarf crew outside of flashbacks.

I’d prefer to see modelwork as opposed to CGI, but I don’t mind the look of the ReMastered Dwarf design.

Finally I’d like to see a mix of good character gags and some sharp comedy one liners and observations – a toning down of the physical and slapstick humour really.

I guess in essence (in my mind) I’m looking for Red Dwarf III with Red Dwarf VII production values.

I would also like the moon on a stick.

[Paul Muller]

Definitely agree that single camera filmised production values would help. I think VII had by far the best picture quality and lighting of all the series, whatever your reservations about the writing etc.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

Yeah…I reckon that something that looked like VII which was as funny as V would be superb.

I quite like the grading they use for Doctor Who. Looks quite filmic…but not overly so.

[John Hoare]

I think the thing is for me is that part of what I love about Dwarf is the fusion of audience sitcom and SF. Which is why I’m not especially keen to see it go back to shooting like a drama.

[Kris ‘Drivaaar’ Carter]

I’d love to see a boom mike in shot. :)

[Zombie Jim Undead]

As long as Craig is visibly mouthing other people’s lines I’ll be happy.

[Antipodean]

Plotwise, a quick resolution of the “Only the Good” cliffhanger (even if only in the form of a scrolly-thing) followed by an unrelated story set a decade later.

[Pete Part Three]

>I think the thing is for me is that part of what I love about Dwarf is the fusion of audience sitcom and SF.

I don’t really like the laugh-track in VII (sorry, I know this is “What We Would Like to See”, but part of that boils down to what they may have strayed away from in the past) and that would be my main bug-bear about single-camera.

But that’s it, really. I think VII looks very nice and, were Red Dwarf any other type of show, it would be fine. Unfortunately, Red Dwarf needs a studio audience.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

> I don?t really like the laugh-track in VII

I know what you mean…it did seem out of place / divorced from the single-camera stuff. Couldn’t get past the idea that it was a bunch of folks watching a screening of the finihsed programme, going into hysterics over stuff that didn’t really warrant hysterics.

It worked better without a laugh-track. I would like to see a laugh-track in the new shows, but only if the humour suits it.

[Pete Part Three]

>I know what you mean?it did seem out of place / divorced from the single-camera stuff. Couldn?t get past the idea that it was a bunch of folks watching a screening of the finihsed programme, going into hysterics over stuff that didn?t really warrant hysterics.

Argh! Back to the other thread with us!

[Paul Muller]

Ooh another thing.

A sense of scale when it comes to model/CGI shots.

Red Dwarf needs to look like it’s five miles long. This was really well conveyed in the early series with ‘beauty passes’, but went missing round about the time of remastering – understandably because you had to zoom the camera quite far back just to fit the whole ship in the shot.

And maybe some new shuttlecraft – White Giants or something, I think they got a mention in the Better Than Life novel.

But I can’t be bothered to check so feel free to correct me.

[Dave]

The return of the Holly Hop Drive

[pfm]

My name in the credits.

[p2p_productions]

> The return of the Holly Hop Drive

:-))

Personally, I’d prefer a return to Series VII’s shooting style.

Also…

Humour.
Insightful pathos.
Some high-octane action sequences.
Ace (with original wig).
Starbug 2.
Hattie (and Norman).
Claire Grogan (and Chloe).

Basically, everything Dwarf does/did best. Oh, and one hell of a cliffhanger at the end, naturally.

…Failing that, Rob Grant’s name in the credits wouldn’t be too bad, I suppose.

[ChrisM]

For me, all the original crew including Kochanski. (I liked some of the new characters in series 8 but I’m not too fussed about them returning for this.)

The series 7 style shooting certainly (that really did look lovely.)

Funny, but with a decent sci-fi story too. People sometimes complain about it becoming more sci-fi and less funny as time went on, but I don’t see these two things as mutually exclusive. And I certainly found the mixture between series 3-7 inclusive worked well.

Also, modern affects. I’m not against CGI if it’s done well. Model shots would be great but often nowadays it’s cheaper to go the CG route, but a mixture would be wonderful if possible. I’d actually like to see what strange creatures they would come up with now considering the advances since the last Dwarf was shown, i.e. gelfs etc. (They don’t have to be entirely CGI mind, again a mixture would be great.)

That might be something to save for a full series rather than the specials though but you never know. (I’ve often thought the missing Cat episode (Identity Within?) gelf village Mos Eisley style scene would have looked great.)

[ChrisM]

Oh, and some resolution to the cliff-hanger too. It doesn’t necessarily need be shown on screen, but if they did the age difference wouldn’t bother me. That’s what imaginations are for. ;) Besides, we don’t know how long it might have taken them to establish another portal back from the mirror universe do we?

[mick]

>The series 7 style shooting certainly (that really did look lovely.)

So you want it to look like an episode of friends?

I would like these new episodes to follow on from the end of series VI *insert alternate timeline bollocks* and totally disregard the bowel churning car crash that was series VII, a series which has a level of enjoyment that I would liken to having Ian rip off my cock with a fish hook and smoke it.

[Phil]

>a level of enjoyment that I would liken to having Ian rip off my cock with a fish hook and smoke it.

So THAT’s Junior Angler…

[Pete Part Three]

>I would like these new episodes to follow on from the end of series VI *insert alternate timeline bollocks* and totally disregard the bowel churning car crash that was series VII…

Shhh, Mick. We’re not allowed.

[John Hoare]

So you want it to look like an episode of friends?

I think Friends looks better than VII. Or, at least, it suits the show more, so it feels better. The main Central Perk set is great.

Anyway: I dunno. I get how people would like the look of VII, and there *is* stuff there that’s great (a lot of Tikka is very nicely shot), but… I don’t warm to it. At all. It’s all a bit cold and clinical, unlike the previous six series (and yes, I include 1 and 2 in that). I just don’t think it suits the comedy. It doesn’t make me love the programme.

But even forgetting that, I think most of 1-VI – and especially III and V – looks fabulous, and actually a lot more interesting than the majority of VII. It’s a beautiful blend of audience sitcom and SF, which is hugely unusual, gives the programme a unique feel, and is part of what makes Dwarf special to me.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

> the bowel churning car crash that was series VII, a series which has a level of enjoyment that I would liken to having Ian rip off my cock with a fish hook and smoke it.

He certainly has a handle on it there, bud.

[Pete Part Three]

>I think most of 1-VI – and especially III and V – looks fabulous,

I’ve always thought III looks a bit crummy. Dodgier picture quality than 1&2.

[Zombie Jim Undead]

Always thought 3 looked really blurry / muddy.

[locusceruleus]

>Lister as a slobby guy with a good soul and dreams of being something greater?rather than a curry-obsessed idiot.

Oh yes.

[ChrisM]

>So you want it to look like an episode of friends?

It didn’t look like Friends to me. I was referring the 3 degree sets really, the feel of being in an actual craft. The filmic style didn’t look bad either, but it’s not a bigee…

If they had a similar style to the other series I certainly wouldn’t complain though. As long as the story is good, and we get a few laughs that’s the main thing.

[John Hoare]

Series 3 *is* a bit… weird with the picture quality, I must admit. I’ve always wondered what it is – it was shot in the same studio as the first two series, and as you say Pete, they don’t have the same problem. But… I love it anyway. It adds a very odd feeling to the picture, no doubt, but I like it.

Series V is probably the best the series managed to achieve in terms of visual look though, in my opinion. (I just wish the original Dwarf model existed at that point – the replacement smaller model doesn’t look as good.)

[ChrisM]

>3 degree sets

That should read 360 degree sets. I won’t edit it, save moving posts out of order.

[Kris ‘Drivaaar’ Carter]

Got to agree with the Series V visuals – I’d single Back To Reality and The Inquisitor out as episodes that visually are very striking indeed.

[Mr Flibble]

Series 3 *is* a bit? weird with the picture quality, I must admit. I?ve always wondered what it is – it was shot in the same studio as the first two series, and as you say Pete, they don?t have the same problem.

Perhaps with the new sets, they were lit more creatively, which made them darker which made them look worse as the cameras couldn’t cope.

Am I not right in saying that the cameras in use in Manchester were really really old at this time?

[James]

Who with comedy, fast paced, dialog a plenty and stuffed with jokes. I didn’t mind how VII was shot, but for a tv show with cost being a decisive issue it’s going to be CGI isn’t it? I don’t think I would like it to resemble any of the previous 52. It’s been 10ish years, now is the time to bring it up to date with shows like Who, I know using Who again, but it’s the set standard. It doesn’t have to be sets does it? Location would work just as well. There back on Earth in London of course. 28 Days Later did it without a soul in sight, if they want to follow the human race is dead story.

[ChrisM]

>28 Days Later did it without a soul in sight, if they want to follow the human race is dead story.

It’d probably need to be in the country though, at least somewhere without lodging ins site. Bearing in mind its not just a case of the human race being dead, but likely being extinct for millions of years. (Mind you the carious space ships were in quite good nick for that old… but I guess you can put that down to vacuum on the outside and automated upkeep on the inside.)

I’d like the return to earth certainly, but with all the rest they’ll be covering (and bearing in mind they’ve only got an hour to do it) I think it might be best at the end of the second episode. That way you’d get some kind of finale, “They got to Earth!” but there would be the prospect (if the specials do well) of more (i.e. what will they find there?”) It’d be good if they at least showed something of what was on Earth of course, to avoid the big cliff-hanger, just in case a new series isn’t green-lit.

[Almighty_crj]

>for a tv show with cost being a decisive issue it?s going to be CGI isn?t it?
Not necessarily, Doctor Who itself had a model budget until they used the money to film the christmas specials.Besides we know from the DVD commentaries Doug is critical of CGI. He may make the room for the budget.

Though yeah, likely
>I don?t think I would like it to resemble any of the previous 52
I don’t think Red Dwarf would lend itself to reinvention like Doctor Who has. Besides, the only time Red Dwarf tried to reinvent itself (Remastered) and it got criticised by everyone.

>now is the time to bring it up to date with shows like Who
Not that I’m putting people off ‘Mini coopering’ the show, mind you. I’d be all for that.

[locusceruleus]

I must admit, I’m curious what sort of budget the new shows will have compared to the old.

[Jonsmad]

>I don?t think Red Dwarf would lend itself to reinvention like Doctor Who has. >Besides, the only time Red Dwarf tried to reinvent itself (Remastered) and it got >criticised by everyone.

So you dont see the changes between the first two series and III or the further differences in VI or more startling changes in VII and VIII as reinvention then?

[pfm]

The change between V and VI is just as jarring as VI to VII, and VII to VIII. Not even Doctor Who went through a period of such volatility.

[ChrisM]

Good point there… it’s the negative changes that stick in one’s mind.

Actually a guy on another forum (I’ve been spreading the news, hee hee.) said he didn’t like the way the show changed with series 3. A lot of people don’t. Maybe some people find the marriage of sitcom and sci-fi uneasy…

Or maybe they just like the claustrophobia of the first two series, the three guys bouncing off each other. (Not in that way. They hadn’t been together in space that long. ;) ).

As for me, I liked series 2, but 3 was when I felt it really took off.

[Author]

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