Parallel Universe is a fairly funny satire of gender stereotyping.
PLOT
Holly invents a new machine to teleport Red Dwarf back to Earth's solar system, but instead ends up taking the ship into an alternate reality where everyone's genders are switched around. Stranded there for 17 hours, the crew are forced to coexist with their feminine selves.
THOUGHTS
Gender is a touchy subject nowadays (and probably was back then as well), so I can see this episode not really going down well with a lot of people. I must admit, until this particular viewing, it never clicked with me either. Unlike Waiting for God, which railed against the negative side of organised religion without having to point at any particular type of it, Parallel Universe has no such shield to hide behind. Gender is universal, and the stereotypes are deeply rooted in most cultures. My point is, it comes off a lot less subtly. Red Dwarf is naturally cartoonish, and it approaches gender the same exact way it approaches everything else - with understanding, but also a very high degree of irreverence.
On the plus side, forcing the crew to confront their own misogynistic shortcomings in the shape of female misandrist versions of themselves is pretty good stuff. I'm not sure they actually learned anything, but it was nice of the show to shine a light on that aspect of them. The show has indulged and will continue to indulge in a fair amount of 'boys will be boys' type comedy, but here we see that the writers are very aware of the slightly unsavoury attitudes that their creations hold, and are capable of making fun of them for it.
What still doesn't work for me is the ending. It's just one contrivance on top of another. Somehow, the men give birth in this reality. Okay, maybe I can swallow that. If I squint really hard. And then Lister's biology is changed by the shift from one reality to another. ... Okay, but then why doesn't going back to his own reality switch him back?
(Probably because the writers didn't want to turn the Holly Hop Drive into an abortion parable)
And why do they need to go back anyway? Holly mentions that if they don't do it now, they never can. But it's never explained. It's just the writings railroading Lister back home with the babies so they can explain the babies from Future Echoes. Who are immediately written out again in the next episode. The ending is a big fat stain on the enjoyment of this episode.
CHARACTERS
The Dog was incredibly unfunny. What a wasted oppurtunity. Then again, the Cat used to be awful too, so maybe that's consistent.
We're introduced to Hattie Hayridge, who will go on to star as Holly in the next three seasons. It's difficult to judge Hayridge in comparison to Lovett, because of the vast differences in their acting style and the material they're given. Lovett had a huge presence in the show. He narrated the episodes, and brought a paternal presence to the crew. You got the impression that his Holly was looking after the crew in his own way. In a way, he was like a mascot.
Hayridge's Holly doesn't get to narrate (she did record snippets for Series III, but the idea was scrapped) and comes across more like a batty aunt that you briefly hug at birthday parties and only occasionally talk to when you have to. She's very sweet in her own way, and very funny, but the relevance of Holly is greatly diminished nonetheless.
Angela Bruce and Suzanne Bertish are stellar as the female Lister and Rimmer, respectively. They get a scene all on their own, and it was just remarkable watching them perfectly recreate Charles and Barrie's dynamic, complete with their physical demeanour and vocal tics. Bertish in particular I found hysterically funny. Her pompous confidence in seducing the male Rimmer made the entire episode for me.
NOTES
- Yes, I liked the Tongue Tied dance sequence. Especially Lovett's red ears and Charles' very obvious disgust of the whole thing.
- Lister seems to have picked up a knitting habit from the Cat.
- The bunkroom is just cluttered by this point. Probably why they moved out. Lazybones. A salute to it. As you'll find out in the next review, I have a dislike for the redesign.
- For some reason, Lovett's jumper seemed extra visible in this episode.
- Why does Holly not mention the giant planetoid that appears in all the outside shots?
- Somehow, the skutters are able to give birth as well??
- We finally discover how Lister was able to acquire Jim and Bexley in Future Echoes.
- The Cat compares the Dog's stink to Lister's moon boots (which we saw in Thanks for the Memory).
- The Cat's arrival to the parallel Red Dwarf mirrors his introduction in The End (claiming every bit as his, and making himself look big to scare off the Dog).
- We finally see the dream recorder that Lister mentioned in Confidence and Paranoia.
- Rimmer assumes the parallel Red Dwarf is... once again, aliens.
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