The Last Day is as close to a perfect episode as you can get. Possibly Red Dwarf's best.
PLOT
Kryten's replacement finally catches up with him, prompting the mechanoid to declare it's time to deactivate. In response, Lister organises a party to celebrate Kryten's life, which dissuades the latter from his suicidal notions. However, the new mechanoid, Hudzen-10, will not take no for an answer...
ANALYSIS
I felt like I got pretty much everything I love about Red Dwarf in this episode. The character drama is front and center, with Llewelyn's Kryten finally receiving some much-needed focus (surprising that it took them until the end of the season, but it's a nice capper). All of the action is self-contained on the ship, which is always the coziest version of the show. But there's also a phenomenal villain, and a sequence dripping in atmosphere. We really are firing on all cylinders today.
Kryten's robotic nature enables the show to parody such complex themes such as suicide and religion, giving the whole thing a tragicomic vibe that is just... chef's kiss. It's an intensely funny script. One scene stands out in particular: when Kryten informs Lister about his upcoming demise, there's about four or five legitimate laugh-out-loud punchlines. All packed into one itty-bitty scene. Really masterful work from Grant Naylor.
I also like that we got another bunkbed scene between Rimmer and Lister. The reason I'm pointing this out is because they're a staple of the series 1-2 era that eventually got phased out due to the then-rivalry between Chris Barrie and Craig Charles. So I'm treasuring the few that do appear in series 3 as we transition into this new era. It's funny - I always thought of series 3 as being unforgivingly different, but on this particular rewatch, it does feel very much like a blending of two different takes on the show. The sets and dynamics have changed, but some of the old formula keeps turning up.
Apparently, the Hudzen-10 ending was tacked on at the last minute. It does kind of show, because it doesn't make much sense (why would anyone design a mechanoid to force humans to accept him, and how could he do that without hurting them? Also, how did he track Kryten to Red Dwarf? Does Kryten have a transmitter?). But it's such an iconic scene that it doesn't matter at all. It, along with the entirety of Polymorph, would become the new formula for Red Dwarf going forward. And now that the quality has finally been sorted out, I'm ready for it.
CHARACTERS
The crew all coming together for Kryten has to be one of the sweetest and most nakedly empathetic things they've ever done. They all rise to the occasion in a sincere and earnest way that you don't see very often at all. Especially from the Cat and Rimmer. Sure, the Cat gifts him an earring he doesn't like, but that's probably the cat species equivalent to a loving cuddle. And he did agree to turn up and everything. Rimmer doesn't even pretend to be cynical. He gifts Kryten a vial of 1000 dollarpound-worthy military merchandise. As silly as the gift is (General Patton's sinus fluid), it would have to be of enormous value to someone like Rimmer and thus a very meaningful yet wisely downplayed gesture. It's a bit of a pity that Holly's gift is left deliberately vague, because there's a missed oppurtunity for development there as well. Hattie's cute little tiara makes up for it, though.
Lister is at his very best here. There's a strong harkening back to his attitude in Kryten, where he similarly kicked up a huge fuss about the mechanoid's mistreatment, leading to Kryten finding a reason to live for his own sake. But The Last Day has so much more time to play with that concept. We explore Kryten's beliefs, his past and future, how Lister affects him and perhaps most importantly: how Kryten affects the crew.
I mentioned in a previous review that the crew had become a well-oiled machine by series 2, until the arrival of Kryten disrupts everything. And I still stand by that. That brotherhood between the Cat, Lister and Rimmer dies. But I was wrong to think of it as a downgrade. Here, we see how Kryten actually brings out the best in each and every one of them, being the only innocent member of the crew. In a way, it's like everyone matured. Kryten replaces the Cat as the new baby brother, only he really is a baby. And everyone sort of comes together in protecting him. Beautiful.
Gordon Kennedy guest stars as the ultimate upgrade, Hudzen-10. Kennedy is best known to me as a perfectly respectable Little John from the BBC Robin Hood series (he was also apparently in T2 Trainspotting, a movie I quite like). Kennedy's fantastic in this role, menacing and funny in equal parts. I love the sheer absurdity of designing a home cleaning tool as some kind of hyper-masculine Boba Fett knockoff. Feels realistic somehow.
NOTES
- I wonder if Kryten being a "Series 3 mechanoid" (later known as a series 4000) was a reference to Llewelyn first appearing in this series?
- Rimmer's description of human death being (in total deadpan) "mind that bus what bus splat" is hysterically funny.
- I'd love to know how Rimmer convinced the cricket score guy to commit suicide.
- Keeping with his more empathetic side in this episode, Rimmer displays an unusual level of tolerance for other religions and is the one to jump to Kryten's defense in regards to Silicon Heaven. Whatever happened to Bodyswap Rimmer?
- I adore the disco variation of the main theme.
- Kryten's tux makes him resemble the David Ross version a little.
- I wonder why the Cat hates his earring. Maybe he doesn't, and is just pretending? I mean, he was wearing it in a previous episode and it looks like a fish skeleton!
- I know that the joke in the Hudzen advert is that he's got an amazing dick (in contrast to Kryten, who has none), but I like to think the fact that we never see it is in fact a hint towards the fact that the advertisement is lying. And yes, I realise that obviously we'd never see a dick on the telly.
- This is the first episode of an unofficial 'Kryten trilogy', with the first two episodes of series 4 both being centered around his character as well.
- The malfunctioning Marilyn Monroe robot was bought by Petersen on Callisto.
There's countless lines and bits that could easily fit here, but I'll settle for this exchange.
LISTER: "There is no such thing as "silicon heaven."
KRYTEN: "Then where do all the calculators go?"
LISTER: "They don't go anywhere! They just die."
KRYTEN: Surely you believe that God is in all things? Aren't you a pantheist?
LISTER: Yeah, but I just don't think it applies to kitchen utensils! I'm not a frying pan-theist!"
SMEG OFF!
The Uncle Frank story - whilst amusing - is pretty gross when you think about it.
CONCLUSION
What a day!
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