Red Dwarf: 10 ways the Brit sci-fi sitcom proved it was as smart as Star Trek
Red Dwarf: 10 ways the Brit sci-fi sitcom proved it was as smart as Star Trek
It may be engineered for gags, but the 35-year-old show has never shied away from sophisticated sci-fi ideas.
I mean, I love Star Trek, but I love it because it has heart unlike most other scifi, not because it is "smarter" than other scifi. 99% of other scifi shows/movies spend all their time trying to be "smart" about how war will mechanically work in space or the far future... and completely bungle representing the human condition with any degree of heart or depth.
Star trek can be as dumb as it wants, it will always be better than 99% of other scifi just for the reason that it has heart and isn't obsessed with technology for technologies sake.
I mean.. look at the current crop of techbros who watch dystopian scifi's and think "this looks COOOOL, lets make that!", it really speaks to how flawed most scifi is at actually engaging with humanity beyond a superficial, aesthetic or "big picture ideas" level.
Red Dwarf from this article does look like it has heart too though, I will definitely have to give it a try.
22Red Dwarf is great - series 2-6 were its peak for me. It played with sci-fi concepts in an intelligent way and the humour came from the people.
It was originally pitched as 'The Odd Couple in Space' I believe if that gives you a feeling for the dynamics between the main 2 characters, a stuck up deadpan snarker and a slobbish loveable rogue
7look at the current crop of techbros
I can't see your strawmen unless you give me more to work with. Go ahead and define your terms....bro.
Red Dwarf from this article does look like it has heart too though, I will definitely have to give it a try.
It is a cute show. A comedy. It ended and they brought it back again and I haven't seen the new episodes.
1I kept hearing about Red Dwarf and gave it a try. It's quirky and goofy at times, but endearing. The special effects suck and they know it. The nice thing since it's a British show, there's not a ton of them in relation to its age. Only 74 since it began in 1988!
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I think that one is the most significant differences between the shows is illustrated by how they handle escalating a yellow alert to a red alert. Star Trek does so almost unthinkingly, but in Red Dwarf Kryten first questions whether it is the right choice with "Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb."
13And then looking at the bulb mystified why that matters.
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If only the red dwarf writers hadn't split up. It's been a shadow of itself since then :(
8A white hole?
7So what is it?
6Only joking.
4
Smeg off Rimmer!
7Chicken vindaloo for breakfast. The cat. Rimmer. This show is hilarious, I like it so much.
6I've rewatched Red Dwarf so many times, very fun show. I've watched all of TNG but I've never been all that interested in star trek though.
3Loved this show when I was a kid
2Star Trek is smart now?
-7On the one hand you have TNGepisodes like Damok, Inner Light, DS9: Duet, etc.
Then there's episodes which defy any attempts to categorize them, like Threshold.
7Or Time's Arrow!
5You're right, there are several smart episodes, but on average Red Dwarf is way smarter.
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They had their moments. One thing I never liked about the show was how afraid the writers would get. They would stumble upon a horrible problem and just magic a solution sitcom style in under an hour. To be fair they did do it a few times. Borg and Picard. Nog and PTSD.
2