Red Dwarf: Season One
(Region 2)
(1988)
review by Billion$Baby

I caught the first episode of this show as a 14 year old kid trying desperately to find something half-decent to watch on UK television. From then on, I never missed a single episode until around series 5 or 6. IMHO, Red Dwarf and Blackadder were the only BBC
comedies to match the top-rate Fawlty Towers and Young Ones shows that had come before them.

The first two series of Red Dwarf always reminded me of a very British version of the heavily under-rated Dark Star feature, so it comes as no surprise to hear writers Rob Grant and Doug Naylor admit as such on this dvd package. The Kryten character was introd
uced at the very end of the second series, and whilst I can't say that it badly affected the future episodes, I have never warmed to the character.

The second series of Red Dwarf is my fave but this first series comes pretty damn close. It's difficult to make a good first episode for a comedy series. The Young One's first episode was a rather hit and miss affair and I was never very taken with the entire
first Blackadder series although it did have it's moments. That's why this series immediately caught my attention back in 1988. The first episode was an excellent mix of sci-fi and comedy, it made you hungry for more and it hinted of greater things to come.

This is definetly the best way to watch the show. Back in the 80's, it was always rather frustrating to wait a whole week for your measly half hour fix of sci-fi comedy. And as episodes such as Confidence & Paranoia and Me2 are directly linked together, it makes more sense to now watch them all put back-to-back. This now comes across as a three hour low budget movie, and often, almost like a stage play with it's minimal sets and the inspired conversations between Lister the unintelligent slob and Rimmer the bitter authoritarian loser.

What's so impressive is that you hardly notice how cheap the series looks in this early stage. The fascinating conversations and arguments hold your attention in the same way that the Tarantino tipping conversation did at the very start of Reservoir Dogs. And
whilst the series might have flagged somewhat later on, I respected the efforts to return to the scenario of Lister and a back-to-roots Rimmer being forced to share a confined space once more (this time in a prison cell rather than shared living quarters). Back in these earlier days of the show, the slob-like Lister also used to smoke on screen. This was before the BBC started to have serious concerns about it.

Quick episode rundowns:

The End - We're introduced to the living Red Dwarf vessel and crew and learn just how Lister became the last human being alive. We meet the heavily evolved "Cat" and the hologram incarnation of Rimmer.

Future Echoes - Excellent sci-fi story surrounding the drawbacks and comedic implications of travelling faster then light.

Balance Of Power - The ship's computer explains why out of the entire dead crew, he would have brought back Rimmer (to keep Lister sane), and we watch a possible power struggle emerge between Lister and Rimmer.

Waiting For God - Highly satirical episode with Lister discovering that he is "Cloister," the Cat's God (the Cat evolved from Lister's pet cat who he'd smuggled on board).

Confidence & Paranoia - The dangers of evolved diseases. Lister becomes ill and his hallucinations become reality, leading to the physical manifestations of those two aspects of his character.

Me2 - How would a person get on with themselves is the question asked here, with two Rimmer holograms aboard the ship. We also discover just why Rimmer's last words were "gazpacho soup". Lol!

BTW There's no cliffhanger at the very end of the series as this was still to become a regular feature of the show.

The extras are very impressive:

-Cast commentary (Charles, Barrie, John-Jules and Lovett) for all six episodes.
-Crew commentary (Grant, Naylor, Bye) on the first episode.
-20 mins of deleted or alternate scenes.
-25 min featurette on the metamorphosis of the show.
-Out-takes (3.5 mins).
-A BBC trailer.
-Isolated music cues.
-A Japanese version of the first episode.
-Photo gallery.
-Drunk featurette (Clips of alcohol consumption in the show set to a bad pop song. Actually, this annoying extra is shite!).
-5 mins of raw effects footage.
-Two chapters from a Grant Naylor novel (read by Chris Barrie).
-Animated menus & 2 easter eggs.
-12 page booklet with loads of info about this serie
s.

Obviously this two-disc dvd is full-frame and it's in 2.0 sound. The print is slightly grainy but otherwise, it's a flawless dvd release from the BBC. Thank you very, very much!

Now roll on the dvd release of series two...