Red Dwarf-related stories
Posted Oct 5th 2009 6:00PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD, Reality-Free
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
Not only is
The Lola Falana Show on DVD now, I didn't even know there
was a
Lola Falana Show. I knew that there was a Lola Falana (that's a fun name to say: Lola Falana Lola Falana Lola Falana). She was a dancer and actress who was pretty well known back in the 70s, but her TV show escaped my radar. This set includes guest stars Dick Van Dyke, Bill Cosby, Sonny and Cher, and Muhammad Ali.
There's also a
Heeere's Johnny: The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson "Holiday Set." It looks like the same set that I've owned for a couple of years (several DVDs split up into different categories: Timeless Moments, Standup Comedians, Carson Country, and the original Ultimate Collection disc), but with a special Christmas disc thrown in, with three classic episodes.
- Ally McBeal - Season 1 and Complete Series
- Astroboy - Vols 1 and 2
- Blood Ties - Season 2
Continue reading New TV on DVD releases this week
Posted Apr 25th 2009 2:15PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, British TV
I managed to obtain a copy of
Red Dwarf: Back to Earth, the first original
Red Dwarf series (albeit mini-series) in nine years, and I have to say I was somewhat disappointed.
As I mentioned before, it was nice to see the crew back and their usual callow banter. The episode, however, seemed more of an attempt at a relaunch of the franchise than a conclusion to the series. Nothing seems to actually get resolved.
Spoilers follow...
Continue reading Red Dwarf: Back to Earth - a mini-review
Posted Mar 25th 2009 12:07PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Programming, OpEd, Reality-Free
The following promotional video contains a few scene snippets of the upcoming
Red Dwarf special/conclusion (called
Back to Earth) and is mostly interviews, but simply seeing the conversation between Kryten and Rimmer sets my heart all pitter-pattery.
I wasn't a big fan of Season 8 of
Red Dwarf (or the previous few seasons before that, but mostly Season 8) which changed the whole premise and I'm hoping this television special will wrap up the series in a way that is more personally satisfying.
There are spoilers and video after the jump, so if you're not interested in either I recommend to stop reading now.
Continue reading A Red Dwarf preview - VIDEO
Posted Sep 2nd 2008 7:02PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free
There is a
marvelous article on CNN about the origins of the word "Frak", the replacement curse word used heavily in the series
Battlestar Galactica. It seems that the word was invented in the original 70's version of the show by creator Glen A. Larson but it was seldom used.
It got me thinking about other replacement profanities used by scripted television to replace the normal curse words that the FCC bans from televised broadcasts. We have previously posted about
made-up words on television (including the profanities "Smeg" from
Red Dwarf and "Frell" from
Farscape), but I have a few to add to that list:
Continue reading Frak and other fictional curse words
Posted Aug 26th 2008 12:02PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Programming, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
Robert Llewelyn, best known to
Red Dwarf fans as the android Kryten, has confessed on KTSC-TV in Seattle that the BBC
has commissioned a one-hour special of Red Dwarf to film in October. For those keeping track,
Red Dwarf hasn't been on television since 1999.
This may be a mistake. On one hand, eight seasons of the show was beating a dead horse. It stopped being good after season three. On the other hand, nine years is certainly enough time for creators Rob Grant and Doug Naylor (or whomever they designate) to write an hour's worth of new quality material.
It's also possible that enough of a nostalgia vibe would exist to make the one-hour special successful. I call it the
Star Wars effect. It is where bad entertainment is accepted as good and sells like mad because a certain name is attached to it (see
Star Wars Episode IV: The Phantom Menace for a good example. Or better yet, don't).
Posted Sep 5th 2006 8:33AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
The Abbott and Costello Show - 100th Anniversary Collection - ALF - Season 4
- The Bob Newhart Show - Season 4
- Broken Trail
- Buffy The Vampire Slayer - Curse of the Hellmouth
- Charlie and Lola - Volumes 1 and 2
- Combat! Best of Espionage and Best of the Color Episodes
- Commander-In-Chief - Season 1, Volume 2
- Doctor Who - The Web Planet and Inferno
- Family - Seasons 1 and 2
- The Flintstones - Season 6
- Fraggle Rock - Season 2
- Hustle - Season 1
- Lost - Season 2
- Oz - Season 6
- Red Dwarf - The Complete Collection
- Silk Stalkings - Season 5
- Supernatural - Season 1
Posted Jul 12th 2006 6:04PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, NBC
TV Squad readers tend to know a lot about the inner workings of the television industry, so it's not a surprise to many of you that some shows we grew up with were actually retoolings of British sitcoms.
Three's Company,
Sanford and Son, and
All in the Family are all based on shows that first aired across the pond. Sometimes, however, networks will try to turn a popular British series into a popular American series and fail miserably, and such was the case with
Red Dwarf. I was a pretty big fan of the original
Red Dwarf, and I would hear occasional rumblings that an American version was being planned. It turns out a pilot was actually shot with American actors, as well as Robert Llewellyn reprising his role as the android Kryten. NBC passed on the pilot but still wanted to try to turn it into a series. In the end, though, an Americanized
Red Dwarf never came to fruition.
Television Obscurities has a wonderful history of this failed attempt, complete with video clips of the unaired pilot.
Posted Jun 19th 2006 8:01AM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, OpEd, The Five
Okay, this one is for the sci-fi geeks. There's a few "space" shows I've watched and enjoyed, but there's far more I haven't seen, so help me out and let me know what your favorite television spaceships are. Below are five television spacecrafts I wouldn't mind being beamed onto, as long as they gave me a laser gun to protect myself, and maybe a large bucket of deep-fried tribbles ( I hear they taste like shrimp). Let's cruise:
The USS Swinetrek: This was the pig-shaped spacecraft from one of my favorite Muppet Show segments, "Pigs in Space." I always found myself intrigued by the adventures of Link Hogthrob, Doctor Strangepork, and first mate Miss Piggy. The episode with Mark Hamill where he appears on the spaceship as Luke Skywalker and Miss Piggy won't let him leave until he "rescues" her is one of my all-time favorite Muppet episodes.
Continue reading The Five: Best spaceships on TV
Posted May 2nd 2006 12:26PM by Keith McDuffee
Filed under: TV on DVD, Video
Every Tuesday here on TV Squad , we will highlight the week's TV-on-DVD releases. Some noteworthy releases today,
May 2, 2006:
3rd Rock from the Sun
- Season 4- Andromeda - Vol 5.5
- Dinosaurs - The Complete 1st
and 2nd Seasons
- A Fall of Eagles (mini-series)
- Hee Haw - Collection
Vol 6
- I Love Lucy - The Complete 6th Season
- Kate & Allie
- The Complete 1st Season
- King of the Hill - Complete 6th Season
- Leave
It to Beaver - The Complete 2nd Season
- Life in the Undergrowth (mini-series)
- The Nanny - The Complete 2nd Season
- The Omega Factor
- Red
Dwarf - Series 8
- The Red Green Show - 1997 Season
The TV Squad Podcast: Vik Sahay of Chuck, Oprah talk, brutal timeslots, and more!
TV Squad Ten: Top Ten ESPN shows from worst to first
Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
