With the release of the Series XI trailer, while the reaction to it had been very good we we keen to point out that the show generally doesn’t clip well for trailers. While we enjoyed the brief gags within it, they were just that, and by it’s very nature the trailer didn’t allow time to set a gag up properly.
For that, we needed proper clips. And what’s this that landed this morning as promoted posts on Facebook from Dave? WHY IT’S PROPER CLIPS. Well, in which case let’s stop fannying about and watch the clips.
Let’s start with this clip; a genuinely good brief gag aboard Starbug that instantly feels very much like Series VI.
For a brief word on the set, we’ve now seen Starbug’s new cockpit in various shots or clips, but this is the best look we’ve gotten yet. My personal opinion is that it looks fantastic, and at this point I’m so used to the change in design that it seems the norm.
One particularly interesting thing is the way this new set allows for a different kind of shot. The pan through the cockpit following Lister entering is something we’ve not really seen before in this setting, and is a perfect example of what we talked about in the set reports with this series having a more interesting choice of shots than Series X.
This second clip meanwhile is much more classic in terms of shots and set up. A bunk scene that genuinely feels how a bunk scene should. We’ve written previously about how there is a great misconception that bunk scenes made the show good, but we are always pleased to see them provided they are executed well.
They should present us with a chance for the characters to bicker and discuss what makes them who they are, and this is very much on display in this clip. Picking petty points over Rimmer’s death hasn’t been absent from the show since the first series, but clearly it’s Series I that instantly comes to mind. It gives us a good funny exchange, and there is no good reason why the characters shouldn’t still be able to have this sort of argument all these years later given the situation they find themselves in.
A jealousy of Lister is a new element, and perhaps one that reminds us of Thanks for the Memory. Considering that a major point in the second novel was Rimmer’s realisation that Lister had much more mature and humble dreams than he did both embarrassed him and made him jealous, it’s almost surprising that we haven’t seen more of this before.
Both clips are clearly strong, and should easily ramp up your excitement for the show. We saw with the main trailer for Series XI that the show looks good, and these clips help to support that it’s also very funny as well.
With a screening of Twentica at BAFTA tomorrow followed by the episodes release on UKTV Play on Thursday, the series is tantalisingly close now.
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