Red Dwarf is a British sitcom that is considered a cult classic, despite receiving a prolific 12 series and a TV movie. However, like Futurama, Red Dwarf is also a sci-fi show which has had its many seasons significantly spread out, often with periods of hiatus in between.
The basic premise follows Craig Charles’ Dave Lister who unwittingly becomes the last known human in the universe. When a radiation leak happens on the titular mining spaceship he is a member of, Lister is protected from the deadly poison due to being in suspended animation — his punishment for the offense of smuggling a cat on board. When he emerges from suspended animation at the only time when the ship’s computer deems it is safe to do so, millions of years have passed and the entire crew is now dead.
However, Lister finds companionship in a humanoid feline creature that evolved from his pet cat, played by Danny John-Jules; the ship’s computer Holly, played by Norman Lovett and Hattie Hayridge; and a hologram of his bunkmate whom he disliked, Chris Barrie’s Arnold Rimmer. Together, the ragtag crew travels the universe looking for a way back to Earth or any signs of friendly life. An android named Kryten, played by Robert Llewellyn, would later join the cast as a series regular.
With the original series debuting in 1988 and the latest iteration of Red Dwarf, an original TV movie called The Promised Land, hitting the airwaves on BBC’s Dave network in 2020, the show has gone through a number of ups and downs over the years. However, after binge-watching all of the series and the movie, I can safely say it has remained entertaining throughout. Truly, there isn’t a bad series of Red Dwarf out there. But even still, let’s rank them all from worst to best to go with our lager and chicken vindaloo.
9. Red Dwarf VI
Even though Red Dwarf VI finds itself at the bottom of this list, that doesn’t mean the series is terrible by any means. In fact, it introduced some innovations to the show, such as the first series-long arc in the form of the crew trying to locate the Red Dwarf ship. There are some gems of episodes, as well, such as the cerebral “Legion” (episode 2) where the crew encounters an artificial creature who is an amalgamation of themselves. However, other episodes feel at once overly complex and yet forgettable at the same time compared to other series.
8. Red Dwarf VII & VIII
What Red Dwarf VII and VIII have going for them is switching up the typical formula in order to be more memorable, such as a parallel universe version of Lister’s long-deceased girlfriend Kristine Kochanski (Chloë Annett) being a welcome addition to the crew in VII and the entire deceased Red Dwarf population and ship getting resurrected in VIII. However, there are drawbacks to straying too far from the formula each time, such as the snarky Rimmer being sorely missed as a regular in VII and the presence of the Red Dwarf population in VIII making the stakes of the show seem softened.
7. Back to Earth & The Promised Land
Back to Earth is effectively the ninth series of Red Dwarf that came out in 2009 and consists of a three-part miniseries that essentially feels like a TV movie while The Promised Land is a 2020 TV movie that represents the latest iteration of the franchise. If you want a dollop of meta-humor about the impact of Red Dwarf on pop culture, definitely check out Back to Earth, which takes place on our planet as the title suggests. If you’re looking for more of a rollicking space adventure, a la Star Wars, that also delves into more of the lore of the Cat’s race of people and how they came to be, The Promised Land is the movie for you. They both have value and are unmissable for Red Dwarf fans. The only problem is, we only get essentially one Red Dwarf adventure each for the respective years they came out.
6. Red Dwarf XI & XII
Red Dwarf XI and XII, which were released in 2016-17, represent a welcome return to form that feels like classic episodes ripped straight from the mid-’90s. The production value is higher than it has ever been, and yet, the show has been taken back to its basics in some ways. Rimmer, Lister, the Cat, and Kryten are all here. XI’s “Twentica” (episode 1) is a standout adventure that sees the crew stranded on a version of 20th-century Earth where technology is banned while XII’s “Cured” (episode 1) has a hilarious set-up involving replications of historical dictators whose inner evil has been removed.
5. Red Dwarf X
Red Dwarf X, released in 2012, finds itself just a hair above XI and XII though it could similarly be considered a refreshing return to form with a stellar look to it and arguably set up the success of those later seasons. Once again, the core crew is here and the production value is high. But a couple of standout episodes make X the superior series. Specifically, ”Lemons” (episode 3) is a delightful misadventure where the crew find themselves encountering Jesus on ancient Earth. “Father & Suns” (episode 2) is also a quintessential Lister episode that explores his contradictory existence of being his own father.
4. Red Dwarf III
Red Dwarf III benefits from being the first season where Kryten is a regular character and a healthy variety of episode types. You have your monster of the week episodes (“Polymorph” episode 3), character development stories (“Marooned” episode 2), and mind-bending adventures such as “Timeslides” (episode 5) in which the crew is able to jump into the world found within still photographs thanks to a mutated developing chemical. “Backwards” (episode 1) may have gotten the jump on Tenet 30 years before Christopher Nolan’s action thriller since it centers on the gang going to a world where time is running in reverse, except for them.
3. Red Dwarf IV
Some needed character development for Krysten occurs in Red Dwarf IV’s “Camille” (episode 1) where the android experiences his first encounter with love and sacrifice. A couple of monster of the week episodes like “DNA” (episode 2) and “Justice (episode 3) provide the action you’d expect for a show like this in full swing, as well as brain-tickling puzzlers, like “White Hole” (episode 4). However, what really makes this series shine as one of the very best is the introduction of Rimmer’s alternative self from another dimension. Rather than the sniveling chicken soup repairman we’re used to, Ace Rimmer is a brave daredevil test pilot in the hilarious classic episode “Dimension Jump” (episode 5).
2. Red Dwarf I & II
Red Dwarf I and II surprisingly rank among the very best series in the entire franchise, all these years later. That is in large part due to the genuinely heartbreaking origin story of Lister, who finds himself stranded from the rest of humanity by millions of years. It’s still compelling to this day to watch the first appearance of the Cat and see how the crew riffs off the original Holly, played by Norman Lovett (especially in the episode “Queeg”). The undeniable chemistry between Rimmer and Lister was there right from the start as well as a tendency to craft truly thought-provoking episodes, such as one in which Lister discovers the Cat people believe him to be a God (“Waiting for God”) and another where an alternative dimension has the crew meeting their gender-swapped selves (“Parallel Universe”).
1. Red Dwarf V
We must give the crown for the all-time best series of the sci-fi comedy show to Red Dwarf V. Every one of the six episodes here are absolute all-time classics. You have Rimmer, for once, showing a glimmer of humanity in “Holoship” (episode 1) when he is forced to make a choice between love and everything he’s ever wanted. “The Inquisitor” (episode 2) also forces the crew to contemplate what value they’ve added to the universe through their deeds, which once again creates a great character study piece for Rimmer.
“Quarantine” (episode 4) has an iconic scene that sees Rimmer go insane in a farmer girl’s outfit thanks to a holo-virus. However, the stand out of them all has to be “Back to Reality,” which combines almost every element of the show that is most beloved — deep character study, mind-bending sci-fi, and an intimidating creature threat — into a plot that still stands the test of time as Red Dwarf’s very best episode. It’s got a lot of twists and turns, so the less said about “Back to Reality” the better, just go watch it!
If you want to get in on the fun, you can stream every series of Red Dwarf and the TV movie The Promised Land on Tubi. It also airs in the U.K. on the BBC network Dave.
