Background

[Retro Review] Everybody’s Dead, Dave. Red Dwarf (1988)

All    Features    Universe    Categories    Fleet Alert    Comms   

Article arrow_drop_down

Some people have lofty ambitions. Become rich, famous, the best in your field. Others just want something simple. Like buying a small farm, getting a sheep and a cow and breeding horses. Red Dwarf was the story of the man with the simple dream. There’s just one problem.

Everybody’s dead.

Dave Lister was just another guy, taking an easy job as a technician on a mining ship. The lowest ranking member of the crew, his most challenging job was unclogging the soup dispenser whilst dealing with the intellectual black hole that was his bunk mate and supervisor, Rimmer. Lister was a simple creatire. He liked a good curry, he liked to pretend he could play the guitar, he liked a few (dozen) pints with his mates and unfortunately, he liked cats.

Life was good until he was caught smuggling a cat aboard the ship against regulation. Refusing to release his pet for termination, his captain ordered him to spend the rest of the mission in stasis; losing out on the rest of the mission’s wage packet. While Rimmer tried to cheat his way into becoming an officer, Lister was frozen in time ready to wake up back on Earth to find a new way to start saving for his dream farm.

Unfortunately for Lister, he didn’t wake up on time.

Sci fi was going out of fashion thirty years ago for the BBC, who were at the time trying to punt Doctor Who off the air. And a sci fi show that was really a sitcom was an odd prospect for anyone to digest. Yet by a minor miracle, creators Rob Grant and Doug Naylor managed to capture the BBC’s attention enough to push out the first series in 1988; a low key, introspective bottle show that quickly became a cult hit that is still going strong to this day.

While later the show would find it’s groove with some weird and wonderful sci fi plots including travelling to a world where time ran in reverse, to the emotion stealing Polymorph, the show started on a much quieter level. Far from the mad-cap antics of the misfit crew, Red Dwarf started with the simple odd couple staple of comedy.

When Lister was released from Statis, the ships computer Holly told him there had been a disaster that had wiped out the crew. A radiation leak. Lister was released when the ship was safe for human life again. Unfortunately that meant he woke up three million years later, Red Dwarf itself adrift in space far from an Earth that more than likely didn’t exist any more.

Holly, after informing Lister that everyone had died, realised he needed to keep Lister sane and revived his former bunkmate Rimmer as a hologram. The polar opposite to the laid back and lazy Lister, Rimmer was an uptight, cantankerous and egotistical failure, bickering with Lister at every opportunity as he slapped his authority of being the only person higher in rank than Lister.

And of course, there was the smuggled cat, Frankenstein. The crew died before they could find her and, safely sealed in the ships hold, she gave birth to a litter of kittens that would be the starting point for three millions years of evolutionary progress that would result in a whole civilisation of Cats. By the time Lister was revived only one remained.

Unlike other sci fi shows, Red Dwarf made the point of Lister being pretty much alone in the universe. There were no aliens to bump into. No indication that humanity had survived that long and generally no hope. Lister was all that was left of us. Even when it ventured into Monster of the Week territory later on, the show made a point of those creatures being man made; such as the GELF’s and various Androids. But nothing emphasised that sense of lonliness more than the first season; especially when Rimmer spent an entire episode hoping to have finally made contact with Aliens only to realise he’d been trying to translate burned off paint on a garbage pod.

Lister and Rimmer’s antagonistic relationship would be the basis for the show, with Holly and The Cat providing additional comedic tones as they dropped in and out.

The premise itself didn’t seem like much on the surface, but it came with it’s own spark of genius. Sci fi was filled with overachieving heroes. Here we had the failures and the hopeless; the last shred of humanity being a defiant waster with the most capable companion he has being a senile computer who’d been left on his own for far too long. Working as both a comedy and a character piece, it had the elements of sadness that came with the gravity of the plot as well as the Hitchiker style wit thrown in. On a sci fi level, it did bring intriguing concepts particularly with the first season seeing Lister hallucinate very real versions of his inner fears – with it’s only down side being that the half hour format only allowing the comedy to be showcased over the sci fi.

Throughout the first series, Lister and the makeshift crew of the Dwarf experienced a time shifting phenomenon that let them glance into the future, explored Lister’s sense of loss as he tried to replace Rimmer with another revived crewmember and finished off with Rimmer’s desire to duplicate himself to create the perfect bunkmate; an episode that gave some oddly deep moments as Rimmer began to face the realities of his own unpleasantness and Lister touched on the morality of deleting one of the two holograms.

It was a small, cheap show. Unashamedly so. But with it’s character exploration, classic antagonistic dynamic and unique setting for a comedy, what could have been a footnote in British sci fi has become one of the UK’s longest running shows and the second longest running science fiction the country has produced next to Doctor Who. While most remember Red Dwarf for it’s season 3-5 adventures as they pushed the limits of adventure and storytelling while also stretching the budget as far as they could. But it all began with a few less laughs, and a lot more reflection and character.

Thirty years on from it’s February 1988 launch, Red Dwarf has evolved into one of the most loved sci fi shows the UK has produced, standing the test of time, surviving certain death after a few format changes, and most importantly; despite ageing horribly in it’s looks and style, remains timeless in it’s underrated exploration of how normal people not heroes react in the worst of situations.

This article was originally posted in SFCQ2 Comms on Red Dwarf’s 30th anniversary in 2018. All former issues of Commms are archived for members in the Membership Hub.

About the author

About the author

ADM JT Marczynka, DoFA

Creator of things, writer of words, caffeine addict. Director of Communications for Starfleet Command Quadrant 2.

More posts Follow

trending_flat
Fleet Support Recruitment: Alpha Quarter 2025

Following SFC's 50th anniversary, and looking ahead to whats to come in 2025 and beyond, we've been working on bolstering our fleet-wide operational support and opening the floor for officers to take a larger role in our operations. As part of our redefining our Fleet Support department, five roles were opened up to give more room for members to contribute beyond their unit and help shape the next generation of the club. Our first recruitment event saw two members brought on board to the Fleet Support panel and as we race through our first quarter of the year, we have the final three roles ready for recruitment! FLEET SUPPORT SFCQ2's Fleet Support division has been designed to aid and supplement membership opportunities and solidify a helpful, informative and supportive structure. Each role acts as a secondment to allow members to […]

trending_flat
For The Uniform: The Muted Tones of The Motion Picture

Starfleet's wardrobe always seems to change. Different producers and designers always bring something new to the table, whether it's a need to create a more militarised uniform, something nice and simple for a more real-world feel, or sometimes – just sometimes – space pyjamas. In the 1960s, colour television was all the rage and Star Trek was at the forefront of that huge leap in visual technology. It's outfits and set design were crafted to be bold and brash, resulting in the bright paintwork, scenes lit with vibrant pinks and purples and of course the now iconic division coloured uniforms. In both the planned launch of Phase II in 1978 and the earlier animated series in 1973, the iconic look of Starfleet was retained in all its bright and colourful glory. But when plans were scrapped and Paramount opted to […]

trending_flat
A Fistful of Star Trek Online’s Best Bits!

This week marks fifteen years since the launch of whats become Star Trek's most consistent and longest reigning video game, Star Trek Online. Developed following the relaunch of a new movie franchise, STO told the other side of the story. While NEro went back in time and created the Kelvin Timeline offshoot, STO focused on the galactic politics following the collapse of the Hobus Star. Customising your player character, you begin at the Academy, get yourself a star ship and rank up as you balance exploration, politics and shooting a lot of things! Over the years the game has changed and developed with expansions, new additions, rotating Executive Producers - and now new owners! - using multiple guest appearances into the mix for story mission while allowing group events, developing annual traditions and generally letting us all play with cool […]

trending_flat
Upcoming Away Missions in Glasgow & Edinburgh for the Tesla!

As we enter 2025 (or... 2402...?) there's no rest for the crew of the Tesla as the team are already back in action making a return to two of the biggest events in Scotland! One of the most active and welcoming crew, the year is already off to a flying start with more to come through the year! The first events of the year include.... Capital Sci Fi Con February 15th & 16th, O2 Academy Edinburgh Always the best way to kick start the year, Tesla is once again heading to Edinburgh for their first away mission in 2025! This years guest line up is one for the Whovians! This year the Fifth Doctor himself Peter Davidson will be in attendance for photo and autograph opportunities alongside co-star Janet Fielding, better known in the TARDIS as Fifth Doctor Companion Tegan! […]

trending_flat
Across The Universe! Black Ops Missions & Lifetime Achievements!

The year begins with a New Trek bringing us to even strange new worlds while franchise - both old and new - celebrate upcoming awards ceremonies. Section 31 Released... After a long, long wait the potentially least anticipated project in the Star Trek Universe was released on January 25th as Section 31, starring Michelle Yeoh reprising her role as reformed (kinda) Emperor Georgiou displaced in time and recruited to rejoin Section 31 for a dangerous mission to protect the Federation in the most non Federation way possible. Initially developed as a full series exploring the nature of the organisation's questionable origins and motives, the project was placed in the hands of new writers to transform the concept into a made for streaming movie as a condensed action piece that limited the original intention and replaced it with something a little […]

trending_flat
Boldly Going Nowhere: Section 31 Quick Review

REVIEW SCORE   FLEET SCORE   Focused on the outliers of the Star Trek Universe, the idea of the Section 31 film was to go beyond Starfleet and present the universe from a different perspective and in a different way. An idea thats been done with some hit and miss success over the past ten years. Section 31's initial pitch and writing team was something that had the potential to be something we could enjoy and even with mild hesitation, we were eager to see where the once series would go now a new writer had condensed the vague idea into a one off experiment, a streaming based movie to add to the tapestry of different flavours Star Trek has offered in resent years. It was also an experiment in offering a first real glimpse at a batch of heroes […]

Related

trending_flat
[Sci Fi Sunday] Quantum Leap Season 2 on Paramount+

Returning to an old classic can be a mixed bag. Especially when the ideas a revival of a cult classic without any of the original stars returning. Quantum Leap was one of several of those shows to dip back into an old idea and give it a new life to modern audiences and in it's first season it was a surprise hit thanks in part to being a next chapter for the government funded time travel project that mixed the old theme with new ideas.

trending_flat
Sci Fi Sunday: The Matrix 20 Years Later…

Most people have had moments where they doubt their surroundings. Where they look all around them and wonder what they feel, what they experience is actually real. Or if it's all an illusion. What would we do if we learned that everything we know was a lie. The world we knew may not be perfect, but it's stable, reliable. Imagine being told that underneath that it was an illusion masking a future where the world was in ruins, where no hope was left?   Sci Fi Sunday: The Matrix 20 Years Later...   That was the basis of the Matrix. A films where the protagonist, Neo, was given a choice. Take a blue pill and return to his average, normal and safe life within a digital reality, or take the red pill and awaken from a slumber he never knew […]

trending_flat
Sci Fi Sunday: Get Ready For The OA Season 2 (Comms Highlights)

Appearing from nowhere without any promotional efforts, the OA was a weird experiment from Netflix to just drop a show into it's line up and see what happened. As people tuned in to scroll through their library, they'd stumble upon the supernatural sci fi mystery and as a young girl who'd been missing for years sat a group of strangers down to tell them her story, viewers were captivated by the weird tale of finding the space between life and death. After being missing for years, Prairie returned home a completely different person. She was seasoned, tough, and despite being blind when she vanished, she could now see perfectly. It's hard to get into specifics without spoiling it for anyone who hasn't seen the mystery, but as she returns to her home town under the careful supervision of her parents, […]

trending_flat
Sci Fi Sunday: New Blade Runner Series In Development (Comms Highlights)

Back in 2017 we were introduced to Officer K as he began to uncover a long buried secret and revived the world of Blade Runner. In a world of tired reboots and sequels, Blade Runner 2049 was \ refreshingly worthy update to the original that brought something new whilst advancing the building blocks laid by the original. Following it's success, the on screen mythology of the Philip K Dick adaption is about to receive another expansion with an animated prequel series in the works. Taking place in 2032, the as yet untitled Blade Runner series will consist of 13 half hour episodes aired through Adult Swim in partnership with Crunchyroll and Alcon Television. The series is said to feature some pre-established chatacters earlier in their lives and take inspiration from the visual cues of the 2049 sequel. “I first saw […]

trending_flat
Star Trek Horizon Sequel Cancelled

In the latest edition of Comms, we had a small plug for Star Trek: Horizons and we had scheduled a supplemental update regarding a recently announced sequel as soon as the kickstarter went live this weekend. Unfortunately the sequel will not be going ahead as planned as Horizon producer Tommy Kraft announced that there will be no more Horizon after contact with CBS. Late last year CBS/Paramount issued legal action against another fan film and it's producer after raising more than a million dollars to fund their project as a full time gig. With that legal dispute ongoing CBS has reached out to Kraft before Horizon's sequel, Federation Rising, could launch it's $250,000 kickstarter goal. Kraft posted the news on the Star Trek Horizon Facebook page; Earlier today, executives from CBS reached out to me and advised me that their […]

site2025m

Serving the fan community since 1974, SFC is an international not for profit fan organisation bringing together collective of fans collectively enjoying strange new worlds in science fiction media.

Star Trek and all related, derived or inferred ideas are the intellectual property of Paramount and Paramount Global. No infringement is intended in the use of this material. Starfleet Command Quadrant 2 (SFCQ2) does not generate any income or profit from their endeavours as a fan organisation, no part of which is sanctioned by the Paramount Global group or any sub-division of the legitimate copyright holders.

Core Website layout by Ghostpool. Managed and Maintained by Aim to Misbehave on behalf of Starfleet Command  Quadrant 2

© 2401 Starfleet  Command Quadrant 2 (SFCQ2)

Login to enjoy full advantages

Please login or subscribe to continue.

Go Premium!

Enjoy the full advantage of the premium access.

Stop following

Unfollow Cancel

Cancel subscription

Are you sure you want to cancel your subscription? You will lose your Premium access and stored playlists.

Go back Confirm cancellation