Back To Earth Part 3 Review

Once again the whole thing was cleverly done, with great sfx, cool sets and mattes, but spread thickly with self-referential, self-indulgent pap which left a nasty taste in the mouth and pitifully few gags in the belly.

The one that's had the fan-site servers running overtime - Red Dwarf - returned for a three-part special. Watching the first episode I thought there was something a little strange and airless about it, an odd hesitancy in the performances that suggested the comic muscles had stiffened during nine years of suspended animation. Then I realised that the laugh track was missing. I don't know whether one was added before transmission, but it had an odd effect on my viewing at first, as if the performers were leaving room for a reaction that was to be pasted in later. I did add some of my own sound effects though, first of all when Rimmer sentimentally sat down by Kochanski's headstone to read aloud to her departed spirit. "I pray God there's some car chases in this one," he said, splitting open a copy of Sense and Sensibility. And I was provoked to a question. How come Chris Barrie just crawls around on big machines these days, when he's such a good comic actor?

Pros and Cons of the 2009 Specials

There were some mirthful echoes from the past, but too much of this three-parter was caught up under the chattering wheels of films - The League of Gentlemen and the self-referenced Bladerunner - and its own history, with too much complicated plot and not enough jokes. On the other hand, there was enough to suggest we'd like to see more episodes.

Back To Earth Part 2 Review

Some of you may have even given up, and watched Britain's Got Talent instead of last night's episode - but that would have been a shame. Because there were green shoots, ladies and gentlemen, the green shoots of improvement...

Back To Earth (Part 3) Review

Smeg. Doug Naylor scratches a particularly irritating Blade Runner itch (references to which may be lost on younger fans), then restages the twist ending to Series V's "Back To Reality". The clue was there: he only changed one word in the title.

The boys are back in town! The middle part of the new trilogy that's sent sci-fi message boards into a frenzy sees Arnold Rimmer's holographic replacement Katerina (played by Claudia Winkleman's half-sister Sophie) determined to take Lister back home. Needless to say he crew are in for a big suprise on the Earth of 2009. And Rimmer has no intention of being replaced.

Back To Earth Part 1 Review

Slightly more than halfway through this first of the three-part revival of what was once voted Best Comedy Series, newly arrived hologram Katerina Bartikovsky delivers the official verdict on Rimmer. He's a bit crap. Sadly it's been ten years since Red Dwarf was Best Comedy, and those two words apply not just to Rimmer, but to this whole episode.

'Red Dwarf' stars are 'best mates'

Robert Llewellyn has revealed his joy at being reunited with his former Red Dwarf co-stars.

New 'Red Dwarf' pulls in over 2 million

The return of Red Dwarf for its first new episode in ten years was a huge hit for multichannel Dave last night, according to early ratings figures.

Back To Earth (Part 2) Review

Okay, that was poor. I could forgive part 1 for many things, but part 2 was unforgivably laughter-free and meandering. You're playing a dangerous game when you attempt meta-comedy and, while this actually did a decent job for the first ten minutes or so, it was too dull for words.