The End is a clunky but sufficiently intriguing start to what would become a comedy TV legend.
PLOT
Workman Dave Lister of the mining spacecraft Red Dwarf finds himself stranded three million years in the future, with nothing but a computer, a hologram and an anthropomorphic cat for company.
THOUGHTS
The beginning is... rough. Some ideas make an immediate impact, like the Rimmer/Lister banter, which is just delightful in how ridiculous and inane the two get around each other. Seeing their life before the radiation leak is probably the main positive takeaway from this episode, and Grant Naylor were smart to capitalise on that for their novelisation (the chapter where Rimmer studies for his exam is an isolated masterpiece). However, the inexperience of almost everyone involved is very apparent. A lot of the jokes are hammy and overcooked, and Lister's total non-reaction to being stranded in the future is particularly bizarre. This is another thing that gets fixed in the book, where Lister struggles with alcoholism for a while. I do like the idea that Lister and Rimmer try to recreate their former life to a certain extent in order to stay sane, but at the very least, the scene of Lister finding himself in the future should have been written and played with pathos.
25 minutes isn't a lot of time to establish a setting, dispense with it and then set up an entirely new status quo. But I felt Grant Naylor actually handled that aspect relatively well. I don't remember being confused or thrown off. The only real issue is that the comedy surrounding the situation is much more childish than it would eventually become. Not that Red Dwarf ever abandons its silliness, quite the opposite, but it generally has a cutting wit to it, and better timing.
CHARACTERS
Holly is our earliest standout. Norman Lovett was already a comedy veteran by the time the show began in 1988, and his perfectly calculated deadpan presence helps to ground an episode that is - and let's be honest here - kind of flailing around, trying to figure itself out. Holly comes off very much like the crew's bemused father, who hopes they think he's cool. I think he's cool.
Chris Barrie is off to a pretty strong start. His inexperience shines through in a few misjudged line deliveries, but he's instantly the most engaging crewmember on the ship. The exam scene was a particular highlight.
Craig Charles comes off endearingly simple-minded, which is a plus when Lister has to show some emotion, but a negative when he's trying to be funny. Lister's interactions with his friends are excruciatingly awful, but he makes for a solid straight man to Rimmer's antics.
Danny John-Jules... I don't want to sound mean, because I think he and everyone else go on to greatness, but Danny is fucking awful here. It's probably more the fault of the script than anything, but the Cat comes across like a tacky CBBC character rather than a genuinely interesting and unique person. The concept is there and there's a few funny bits. I love that he irons his suit the second he gets a crease, whenever he actually acts like a cat, it's fine. But the idea of having him talk and sing to the camera is fucking awful. I felt embarrassed. It's so stupid.
I've always been ambivalent towards Mac McDonald. It's not like he's ever unwatchable as Hollister, but I feel the character could be done better by somebody else. There's something consistently awkward about McDonald's line deliveries.
The rest of the performances are split between the inspired (Todhunter and especially McIntyre) and the godawful (Mark Williams and Lister's other friends).
NOTES
- I thought Lister genuinely wishing Rimmer good luck on his exams was quite a nice understated moment. It felt real.
- Why was Lister eating piles of white dust even before he realised they were the crew?
- Craig desperately clutching on to a very uncooperative Frankenstein to try to finish the scene is very funny.
- The show would later retcon the crew from 169 members to 1169. I think I actually prefer it with fewer people onboard. It might make less sense, but it also makes the ship seem less important and more claustrophobic. Everyone knows everyone far too well.
- I'd be very curious to know the sequence of events that led to a janitor having to repair the ship's drive plate.
FUNNIEST MOMENT
- "Is that a cigarette, Lister?" "No, it's a chicken."
SMEG OFF!
- The Cat's first appearance is so dreadful that I can't show this episode to anyone as an introduction to Red Dwarf.
CONCLUSION
Now that we got the exposition and the stumbles out of the way, hopefully the show will settle down. We have some iconic adventures to get to.
Comments
Post a Comment