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Oh, it’s that time again, when we ruthlessly pick apart magazine reviews. If I were you, I’d go and read something actually worth reading elsewhere on the site. I swear, there’s at least one interesting article if you look hard enough. On the other hand, if you do read the following, a couple of disclaimers: I’m not saying people can’t give their opinion, I’m just giving mine, and feel free to disagree with me heartily below.

TV Zone first, then:

Red Dwarf VII: Season Seven
Released by BBC DVD, £19.99. Reviewed by Anthony Brown.

This is the run of Red Dwarf that many fans thought would never happen, partly because of the time Craig Charles was unavailable while on remand, facing charges that were ultimately proved false,

RAPE

Seriously, the the slightly coy way people refer to this just annoys me.

and partly because Red Dwarf VI had left people feeling that the show had run its course, and had become over-reliant on variations of the same catchphrases, jokes, or set-pieces.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: yes, VI was quite formulaic. But if the formula is that good, it doesn’t matter. And we’re talking about six episodes - some shows run for hundreds of episodes like that. I don’t think six episodes is long enough to complain too much about it…

So, it’s goodbye to co-creator Rob Grant, with a handful of jobbing guest writers joining Doug Naylor in a less than entirely successful attempt to mimic the American writers’ room system. Chris Barrie, having become increasingly frustrated by the lack of rehearsal time on the last series, also drops out after two episodes and a few cameos, with Chloe Annett joining as an alternate reality Kochanski (in the process abandoning the last remnants of the show’s original concept - no women, just two guys who hate each other).

Oh, hooray, more bleating on about “the show’s original concept”. Series V is far, far removed from Series 1 - but that doesn’t stop it being fantastic. Oh, see this article and this article for more. Kochanski was badly introduced, in my opinion, in all sorts of ways (I can’t help thinking the basic concept of the character is wrong - it needs to be something more like Last Human) - but as an idea, its fine. And certainly not against the spirit of the show. Since when did it have a “no wimmin” mantra? It was “no other humans”. (I can’t help thinking that, without Rimmer, the show was effectively stuffed, though - I can’t see a way round that.)

Gone too, at least for some of the time, are the award-winning FX team, unwisely replaced by distinctly primitive CGI.

Erm, it’s nothing to do with wisdom - production problems caused it. Have you seen the documentary? (On the other hand, I can’t help but feel some of the more appalling generic shots should have been replaced with earlier model stock footage.)

On the other hand, original director Ed Bye returns, bringing with him audience-free recording and (unfortunately) the abomination that is ‘filmized’ video.

That’s rather unfair. These days, filmized video, when done well, is nearly indistinguishable to film for all but technical audiences. Indeed, less and less drama is being shot on film - for instance, Casanova was shot on 16mm, but the new Doctor Who was shot on video, then treated to look like film. When done well, with decent lenses and lighting setups, it looks fine.

Whether it’s suitable for Red Dwarf is another matter - and I personally can’t stand it being plastered all over pretty much every sitcom these days (see Black Books) - but I don’t see anything wrong with the technique when used on the right kind of programme.

It’s only a borderline success - the cast swaps go as well as could have been hoped and there’s something rather wonderful about Ouroboros,

Now there’s a sentence I never expected to see.

but for every area that’s been an improvement, there’s a balancing weakness (Blue and Beyond A Joke both settle too easily for lazy jokes and set-pieces).

The problem with Beyond A Joke is that it settles for having no jokes at all, beyond the opening Jane Austen World sequence. I still maintain Blue is a more successful episode than Stoke Me A Clipper, though. Must. Write. Episode. Reviews.

But there’s no complaints to be made about the massively comprehensive extras - there’s the previously released ‘Xtended’ versions of three episodes, an option to watch both versions of Tikka to Ride with new and better CGI, a full show of all six of the cast for the commentaries… Documentaries, promo spots from the time, video diaries, even the original Dave Hollins sketches from Son of Cliché. Plus, Chris Barrie performs an abandonded script, complete with storyboards. An average season then, but a class package. 10 (for the extras)

Excellent summing up of the extras. Well done. Give yourself a good pat on the back.

Starburst, then:

Red Dwarf - Series VII
Starring: Craig Charles, Chloe Annett, Danny John-Jules

Poor Robert. And poor Chloë too - neither review spelt her name correctly.

Director: Ed Bye
Picture: 1.33:1
Sound: DD 2.0
Cert: 12
Year 1997
Released: November 7th
Price: £22.99
Distributor: BBC

The Verdict
Red Dwarf lives on, minus co-creator Doug Naylor, with Rob Grant now partnered with new writers.

Erm, sorry?

Red Dwarf lives on, minus co-creator Doug Naylor, with Rob Grant now partnered with new writers.

…?

Red Dwarf lives on, minus co-creator Doug Naylor, with Rob Grant now partnered with new writers.

SDFIOJKSDFOIJASDFOIJAS

Red Dwarf lives on, minus co-creator Doug Naylor, with Rob Grant now partnered with new writers.

Well, I’ll be sure to take this reviewer very seriously then, having made such a stupid mistake in the opening sentence. As you will see, this stance shall prove useful.

The BBC’s confidence clearly hasn’t been dented - it commissioned a longer run of eight episodes - but this is a very patchy year indeed. Key player Chris Barrie takes his leave in Stoke Me a Clipper and his replacement (Chloe Annett) struggles to fill the void, the show is now shot without a live studio audience and feels a little hollow, and the scripts really aren’t all that funny.

Sadly, I can’t disagree with any of that. I always baulk slightly at criticism of Dwarf in reviews - not because I hate people criticising the show, but because I think the criticisms of the previous six series in reviews have been nearly all wrong and unfair - but I’m afraid with VII I can’t disagree with any of that. (Having said that, the fact that Body Swap worked perfectly without a studio audience whilst some problems with VII are blamed on it indicates it would have been less of a problem if everything else had worked.)

Bad taste jokes (the Dwarfers involvement with Kennedy’s assassination, Lister’s loss of an arm) and inevitable costume gags indicate a series nearing the end of its creative life. 2/5

Bull pats. The lack of good jokes and some dodgy characterisation is the problem. But none of the above is.

I don’t know - maybe I’ve just watched enough disgusting stuff to be desensitized. But the only slightly “bad taste” stuff to do with Kennedy’s assasination in Tikka is how they kill Lee Harvey Oswald. The main assasination scene is done completely straight. And as Doug says in Back From The Dead, the only complaint the local Dallas PBS station got is about… the cannabilism scene. And besides, the amount of what could be considered tasteless jokes compared to everything else in the show is tiny. But no, as always in these reviews, they just pounce on odd scenes and try and judge an entire series on them.

And even if you don’t buy any of that… since when was “bad taste” stuff indicative of a show at the end of its life anyway? If it’s done well, since when was it anything other than… erm… funny? See: Python.

As for costume gags… this complaint has been made before in Starburst. I didn’t understand it then, and I don’t understand it now. Is it simply referring to Cat gags, or about the cast dressing up in different costumes? BE CLEAR! If it’s the former, I admit they’re getting tedious by now (although “Co-ordinates! Thank-you!” is still one of the best jokes in the series); if it’s the latter, I fail to see what’s wrong with them. Although I am the kind of person who laughs at Are You Being Served?, so, erm, errr, argh.

Having said all of that - I can’t really disagree with the series’ final rating.

Viewing Options
An astonishing commitment to restoration sees some episodes presented in as many as four different versions. Tikka to Ride, for example, can be seen as an Xtended edition, remastered edition… or both!

Commentary
The gang’s all here, on every episode.

Deleted Scenes
Lost sequences amounting to 45 minutes of new material.

Don’t sound too excited, please. A fantastic extra, tossed off in nine words. Even just an added “excellent” would have done.

Behind the Scenes
The documentary Back from the Dead looks back over a turbulent year, with surprisingly candid discussion of the Grant/Naylor split.

Indeed. Although it’s hardly surprising - the Juliet May stuff on the V disc gave a pretty clear indication they would deal with it properly.

Other Extras
The ‘lost’ script Identity Within, written by John McKay, is presented with illustrations, with all parts played by Chris Barrie. Plus raw effects, video diary, music featurette, still, and the inevitable ‘Smeg Ups’. The fan films are just as excruciatingly embarrassing as you’d expect. 5/5

Wah! See now why I’m happy they made that ridiculous mistake at the start of the review? Still, a thoroughly-deserved rating for the extras.

Many apologies for all that. I now return you to normal broadcasting. But be warned: the new SFX is released next Wednesday…

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