It’s hard to believe that the British sci-fi comedy series red dwarf It celebrates its thirty-fifth anniversary this year. The chaotic adventures of the universe’s least heroic space crew—perpetual slobber Lester (Craig Charles), out-of-position Rimmer (Chris Barry, who replaced first-choice Alfred Molina), designed-to-cat-human hybrid cat (Danny John-Jules), and outstretched Kryten (Robert). Llewellyn) which grips clean-up over 12 series and a feature-length special, and has gained a fan following in dozens of countries.
However, not all was well in red dwarf the universe lately. Production of a new series has been suspended for more than two years due to a legal dispute between series creators, Rob Grant and Doug Naylor. Grant walked away from the series in the mid-1990s, leaving Naylor as the main force behind later seasons. However, both men remained on the board of directors for the production company responsible for the show, and in 2021 Naylor claimed to have been removed from his position with the company. As a result, all work on the show ceased.
This week, however, news broke that the legal row had been resolved, and now it appears that the thirteenth series of red dwarf on the cards. However, the question is simple: After more than 70 episodes, what are the troll boys left to do?
Kochanski’s return?
the premise behind red dwarf It’s simple. Trapped in a menial job aboard the eponymous mining ship, Dave Lister breaks a bylaw regulation and is sentenced to a period of stagnation. However, when he is allowed out, the ship’s computer, Holly, informs him that three million years have passed, the entire crew is dead, killed by a radiation leak, and the ship is now in deep space. Lester decides to return to Earth and save it. Holly creates a holographic version of the person most likely to keep him sane–his commanding officer, the power-hungry, annoying, and arrogant Arnold Rimmer. There’s also the Cat – a feline-human hybrid descended from Lister’s pet cat.
The crew’s final version came out at a later date. In the second season opener, “Kryten”, the crew encounters a crashed spaceship with only one surviving occupant – the ship’s robot, Kryten. The character was intended as a one-off but proved so popular that he was made a full cast member by the following season.
Over the past 30 years or so, dwarves have battled monsters that bear more than a passing resemblance to those in the Aliens franchise, climbed inside Kryten’s dreams in an international Emmy-winning SF-meet-Western episode, and visited an inhabited world. with millions of Rimmer clones; travel back and forth in time; A collective hallucination is experienced. Almost every science fiction trope was used, leaving the main characters’ story arcs as the only realistic way to avoid repeating themes. Lester’s story is inextricably intertwined with one person – Kristin Kochanski.
Played by CP Grogan until 1993 and thereafter by Chloe Annett, Lister is still a love interest for his one time girlfriend. But she last appeared in 2009, and resolving the question of what happened to her would bring to an end one of the show’s most poignant storylines.
What about Holly?
red dwarfThe hottest character on the AI ​​ship, Holly, was a mainstay of the show’s early seasons. First played by comedians Norman Lovett and Hattie Hayridge, the character has been a fan favorite.
However, after Season 8 ended in 1999, Holly was relegated to outings as occasional guests. This changed in 2020 when the character returned for the feature film-length episode Promised Land. And despite the story’s mixed critical reception, Holly’s appearance was a welcome one. Making a worn-out computer a permanent device again would be a good move.
Back to earth
This will be reserved for the series finale whenever possible. But, of course, the crew has already done this several times. As long ago as Season 3, they traveled through a time hole and visited a version of Earth in the late 20th century where time goes backwards. And in season 7 opener “Tikka To Ride,” the boys end up in Dallas in November 1963 — inadvertently knocking Lee Harvey Oswald out of a tower window, with all the changes to the timeline pointing to. They even once found themselves in India in the first century.
However, what we’re talking about is the possibility of the crew making it to Earth for real and surviving. After all, that was the assumption made in the first episode – that Red Dwarf will come home, and the crew will finally find out what happened to the human race in the meantime. There could be no more fitting way to end the extraordinary adventures of the boys than with a troll.
