Red Dwarf: Back to Earth

[Zac]

Just watched this and it was pretty good. The first part was kinda weak but after that it got going really well. Hopefully this does really well and we see a few more specials.

[Mzo]

Laugh track or forced laughter from studio audience; same shit. No one laughs out loud at most of those jokes.

[Netwurked]

Never heard of this but is sounds good. Thanks for the info.

[icarusfall]

It's not a laugh track, it's an audience. It's kind of sad to me that we've gotten so cynical from fake laugh tracks we can't watch comedy with a real audience without feeling lied to. I think this phenomenon killed Lucky Louie, too.

No, that show was killed because it's terrible.

Louis CK is a great comedian, but his TV work is just bad.

[Frogacuda]

The show was killed because of what the critics said about it, and their particular complaints had a lot to do with retro style choices. It got good ratings, it had an audience, and I liked it personally. But it's a throwback and it's a weird sort of thing where I think people don't get that subgenre of sitcom anymore. That whole thing died in the 70s with those old Norman Lear shows, and a lot of people don't even appreciate those anymore like they used to. Some people think they aren't funny anymore.

Which isn't to say Lucky Louie is quite All in the Family at its peak, either, but I think a LOT of what the critics wrote about it in particular (the set looks fake, there's a "laugh track", the actors don't sound natural/realistic) were legitimate style choices to bring back the sitcom as a live performance with that kind of energy, and I liked that about the show.

[BerringerX]

Series X starts Oct. 4th.

[bbobb]

Do not want

[ChaoofNee]

I lost interest in this show after the episode with the reverse time gimmick. It seemed like they didn't know what to do with a bigger budget so they focused on camera tricks instead of jokes.

Shame is, I LOVED the show up til then.

[Mzo]

I lost interest in this show after the episode with the reverse time gimmick. It seemed like they didn't know what to do with a bigger budget so they focused on camera tricks instead of jokes.

Shame is, I LOVED the show up til then.

The reverse time universe was a big plot point in the books. I don't think it was created for the show specifically as a gimmick.

[MechDeus]

I remember really liking that episode, but by this point I might find the whole series too forced. Not sure I want to find out.