Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2017/08/23/red-dwarf-xii-slated-for-octob.html
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It’s been a while since i’ve seen Red Dwarf, i don’t recall where i’ve left off any more. But i rather like the series because it subverts a lot of expectations one might have of a typical sci-fi show. There’s a lot of playing around with time, multiple realities, and other high concepts but also deals with fairly mundane or even deeply personal topics for their characters. Not sure if i would recommend it to everyone but it’s definitely worth checking out. Looking forward to this new season 
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I really don’t think that matters. It’s not a show where continuity plays a strong role. The last bit of the show I saw was their special that was an extended riff on Bladerunner, where they find out they’re fictional characters and decide to go to Earth to find their creators (and the actors that play them). I don’t remember how it was resolved (again, not that it matters), but I recollect there were only two actual jokes in the whole thing, a bit that took the Bladerunner scene where Zhora smashes through some plate glass windows by having one of the characters smash through an absurd number of windows, and this:
http://dai.ly/x2qlmuy
Hopefully the new episodes are better…
I still like being able to watch shows in order, if i were to go back to this show i’d likely rewatch it from the start until i caught up with what i haven’t seen yet. I do worry that the new episodes will have lost something from what the show was in its prime, but i do hope for the best as you do.
Fabulous! One of my favorite shows, where they got the blend of humor & sf right.
A great joke, sampled from many:
Rimmer: “Go to red alert!”
Kryten: “Sir, you do realize that means changing the bulb.”
That’s an understatement.
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I’m sure it will be just as good as arrested development season 4.
Was that the one where they went to the set of Coronation Street? That was painful - really put me off the show. Still, I’ll check out season 11, which I am only learning about now!
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Yeah, it put me off the show, too, so when I heard about a plan to restart the show I didn’t pay much attention. But maybe it’s worth another chance, if it was well received and actually got another season (which I wasn’t expecting after that special).
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Oh good, more adventures of the shipwrecked and comatose.
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Man, that pic reminds me of just how long ago 1988 was. (At least the Simpsons cast can hide behind the animation)
Though the series synopsis suggests they’ll be playing around with the idea that their cast are a bunch of geezers now so maybe there’s some hope they can hobble around the shark.
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Having watched the stuff that comes after Back To Earth… it’s not as good as the stuff from the show’s glory days, but it’s a definite improvement over BTE.
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Is The Brittas Empire coming back too?
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Old smeghead here. Series X was great; I didn’t know they made an XI, so delighted and pumped to hear that there are at least two more series to watch with my son.
We’re currently on series VII, which has some brilliant bits (first two episodes: Rimmer removes Kryten’s inhibition chip; Arnie becomes Ace Rimmer) and I expect the boy’s going to be a bit disappointed with the mediocrity of VIII and BTE, so I’m looking forward to the return to form that follows them.
Smoke me a kipper, etc.
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Meh. I once binge watched all the series (up through 11 IIRC) on the advice of a friend who raved about it. I held on right through, hoping it would get better, but it never did. It’s just more bad, poorly written British television that people say they love for some inexplicable reason.
It’s a fair opinion, you did at least watch it rather than say you don’t get it without having even seen it. I quite like the show but it becomes less interesting for me in the last few seasons i saw (think i made it to 8), however i enjoy the show overall for being a non-typical sci-fi show that isn’t afraid to use plot lines that you wouldn’t expect. It doesn’t always work but i respect them for it. If you don’t like it i have no problem with that 
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It’s also poorly written British television that people say they do not love, for some inexplicable reason.
If being good and well written had anything to do with love, my dog would need a better writer!
More seriously, I think binging that show would totally kill it for me. It’s always been about timing. I first came across it on NH Public TV, when I lived in a remote area, and it became my appointment TV (because honestly, PBS was the only station that came in half decent). Did I mention I had just recently encountered a flowering bud for the first time? Good times. I’ve also enjoyed it as at the end of the night, hanging out with old nerdy friends and having it on in the background for people to stare at. It’s not Game of Thrones level fascinating - and that’s good. Some fluffy nonsense is necessary in every full life.
I don’t think it’s badly written. I think it’s poorly conceived and amateurishly executed. But really pretty well written when compared to some of what is made for TV. It’s supposed to NOT be shakespeare.
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No, it’s not supposed to be Shakespeare, but it IS the BBC. I also wouldn’t characterize it as Sci-fi. Maybe a gross-out buddy sitcom set on a spaceship.
I do suspect being chemically altered might enhance one’s appreciation of the gags. But then I’ve known folks to laugh uproariously for hours watching a looped 5 minute cat video…
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If you want highbrow, call a Doctor. 
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Don’t get me started!
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that too.
