Something I've been thinking about concerning "Entangled"

[zara2148.livejournal.com]

Alright, I'm a fairly new to the Red Dwarf fandom, but don't hold that against me. Anyway, my mind has been pondering on and off concerning Kryten's quick infodump in "Entangled" to Rimmer, and I'd thought it could make a good discussion (roughly paraphrased from memory):

"Have you forgotten? If Mister Lister dies, then the computer automatically shuts you down."

Now here's what I'm wondering (and let's pretend for a moment Naylor is not most likely making this up as he goes) - did Rimmer really already know about this, or was it something he was 'conveniently' never told. And if he was told about it at some point, how does this revelation change the previous nine and half series worth of Rimmer/Lister interaction?

Personally, I can see it as perfectly reasonable for Holly to not mention this little detail to Rimmer (assuming the automatic shut-down isn't brought on by a lack of Holly, who might have been able to stop it if s/he wanted to). Not to overly project, but if I was told my life was dependent on someone who shows all the self-preservational skills of a lemming practicing amateur cliff-jumping, I'd be tempted to lock that person in a room indefinitely. So Rimmer's ignorance could have been necessary for the as-normal-as-possible interaction needed to keep Lister sane.

I also have difficulty reading too many mercenary intentions into his previous shows of concerns - Rimmer may be a goit, but he's fairly open about being one. He rarely bothers masking any less-than-savory intentions - actually, if he knew his life was tied to Lister's, I can't see him not complaining about it at some point (aka "You're endangering your life deliberately, aren't you? You want to see me dead that badly?").

Comments

[zara2148.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm beginning to think the "The rules were different under Holly" theory is the explanation that makes the most sense, even if it might not be the most narratively satisfying. Would "Timeslides" even be possible if Rimmer was programmed to shut down when Lister died/ceased to exist as we knew him, even if there was no reason for Rimmer to exist to begin with... and oh dear, I've gone cross-eyed.

That theory about the by-the-book JMC computer only makes Queeg even more funny in hindsight. I suppose it makes sense Holly got the idea for Queeg from somewhere.

Now, because I have a need to play devil's advocate and spark discussion, let me just give the bit of reasoning I came up with as to WHY Holly might have tied Rimmer's life to Lister:

I can see the automatic shutdown as being, in the beginning of the series at least, an act of kindness, if an unwanted one – Holly had no way of knowing how close the Cat would grow to them or that Kryten would come along. Really, the status quo as Holly intended was to be only Rimmer and Lister – so when Rimmer’s only company eventually died, it could be argued that the kindest thing would be to switch him off before he goes mad from loneliness. Certainly Rimmer never relishes the prospect of being alone, as “Future Echoes” and “Rimmerworld” showed.

My heart's not really in that theory anymore, though, so feel free to poke it full of holes!

I think BTE sounds like a reasonable time frame. Now I'm wondering as to what the boys' reaction was to that the first time they found out...

Cat to Lister: "Quick man, hold your breath! You can breathe again once goal post head is gone!"

(Mmm, my Cat voice might need work).

[janamelie.livejournal.com]

I still don't think Rimmer knew in the early days, but you make a good case for why Holly might have done that. It makes no sense in the light of eps like "Stoke", but that's down to Rob and Doug's famously lackadaisical attitude to continuity. ;)

I agree that you should write a fic if it inspires you. It's certainly fertile ground for character development. :)