reddwarfslash | Reaction post: Can of Worms!

SPOILERS

Well, I wasn't really expecting that! Wow, RD has now had TWO m-preg storylines even if it was pretty brief.

I don't mind the female cat being another polymorph. Polymorphs are too good not to re-use and I knew something would be up with her. I feel a bit sorry for those who were naively expecting an actual romance for Cat though. That's really not how this show works.

Poor Cat. I didn't like Lister's virginity comment but at least he made up for it at the end with his little talk. (Which could have been "I don't mind if you're gay" until the "You haven't met the right girl yet" bit.) And we've finally seen Cat's bedroom. :)

I liked the polymorphs impersonating our Boyz but it was a bit weird that Cat just wandered off and then comes back to save the day and suddenly has no problem killing his "offspring". Although I suppose the protection hormones wore off because the polymorphs were fully grown.

Wow. I need to rewatch. But at least the sexism / transphobia people were worried about didn't really happen, unless I missed something.

Okay, I guess the premise isn't that bad for a fuck-or-die...:p

I like that in the Beta Corridor 12 scene, Lister and Rimmer each had a boneheaded moment. Seemed to balance things out somehow.

Oh my goodness, Cat's sparkly suit. It is a beauty.

Paging

felineranger! Some of this sounds rather familiar (http://archiveofourown.org/works/4661502)!

("Raddled" with polymorphs? Surely that was meant to be "riddled"?)

NOOO THE CUTE THINGS THEY'RE TOO CUTE

Ooh, a callback to Bodyswap, nice.

Overall, I...don't know how I feel. Good gags, interesting plot, nice uniforms (!), was definitely not expecting a Polymorph III...on the other hand, it felt like there was too much going on at once. Maybe I need to watch it again.

Sad to say that this might be the first episode I actively dislike since most of series 8. 😦 A lot of it felt like a bad 1980's/1990's teen movie ...

So we have two main male characters impregnated against their will by female counterparts.
Are the writers trying to work out some deep-rooted issues they have?

Also can anyone else see Rimmer getting really smegged off about Lister and Cat bonding over pregnancy things?

There's a lot of slash potential here, especially with the personality changey-thing (term I cannot word right now) and it's nice that they've carried on the virgin-Cat canon from the books (and point to Rimmer for not completely rubbing Cat's nose in it). Considering how boyish the show used to be, they could've easily teased the Cat worse.

Yes, I'm glad they avoided being too laddish about the whole thing, especially Rimmer who you might have expected to start boasting about his exploits with McGruder and Nirvanah. Instead he admits at the start that he's still aspiring to be a "stud".

It was nice to see the writing recognise that they have matured - to some extent and in some ways. In earlier series Rimmer would just have pretended he WAS a "stud". God, that word is so 70s. :p

Personally, I think the whole episode might just be one of Cat's dreams from beginning to end.

I'm leaning more and more towards that interpretation myself. If so, it's rather touching in some ways.

Hmmm, on a second watch I still enjoyed it, but there are some things which don't completely make sense such as making a big thing out of removing Lister's emotions and not doing much with that plot-wise.

I have seen a theory that the whole ep is Cat's dream which would actually make a lot of sense. But I'd like Lister's little chat at the end to be real.

Is it weird that the usage of the word "hoes" really annoyed me?

It wouldn't be, but it wasn't "hoes". I've seen this confusion on TOS too, but Cat quite clearly - to my ears - says "Don't you guys know cats always have two HOMES?" And the others chiming in "Z Deck!" would seem to support this.

I honestly don't think Cat said "hoes".

I thought one the dream girls at the end said it ... If they didn't use it would improve the episode a bit for me. ☺

Hmmm, I'd need to check the scene but I don't remember the word being used. Hopefully it wasn't. ;)

I've listened to that last scene over and over and can't tell which she says. However, given that Cat clearly says "homes" in the earlier scene and the others chime in "Z Deck" as though they've heard him say this before, plus the fact that the last scene is an obvious callback to the earlier one, I'm giving the show the benefit of the doubt on this one. Simply because it would make no sense for Cat to say one thing and the Cat Lady to say another.

I'm wondering whether Lister's little chat is part of Cat's dream or not. Either way that scene is quite touching, either because Lister's trying to make up for his earlier thoughtless comment or because Cat subconsciously wants him to.

Finally, my cat icon is relevant to use in this comm.

Well, it's a mashup of "Identity Within" and "Dad," isn't it? But not really like either one of them in terms of what each of those scripts chose to address. "Dad" wanted to examine impending parenthood and pregnancy itself, neither of which was an issue in this one since (a) Cat is not Lister and does not carry in him human values and priorities (indeed, I saw someone saying they were surprised Cat could kill his own progeny - well, they weren't kittens for one thing and for another, it sort of plays on the idea that a tomcat CAN kill its own young under certain circumstances ... granted, that's usually to free the mother cat from maternal responsibilities for mating, but you take what you get with RD); and (b) Cat was not impregnated with kittens but with a potentially harmful organism. It's like Ripley killing an alien. And of course, "Identity Within" would have examined the "sex or die" trope inherent in being an adult Cat, sort of like Vulcan Pon Farr ... but not only was that not a thing, we didn't even get a lady Cat long enough for it to be.

The birth scene had some humor playing on the polymorph ability to shapeshift, as well as the young ones having enough sense to shift into adorable things nobody should want to kill or destroy. (Puppy! Bunny! An actual kitten!) Also, it's totally plausible Rimmer would absent himself from the proceedings (I would too). And on slash watch, there were a couple of nice moments of Rimmer showing concern for Lister - sure, maybe it's just that he knows when Lister goes, he goes too, but we operate on a higher level than that around here. ;-)

I'm actually sad the two lady cats at the end weren't real, in one way, because it would be more character possibilities. On the other hand, the fact they're not real is probably better since it means Cat hasn't actively tried to suppress two female characters in the bowels of the ship for all these years. Can you imagine? Yikes!

Yes, someone pointed out that given the ages of the lady Cats, it would render Cat unbelievably creepy if they were real, so good thing it's just a dream. ;)

Still lukewarm after a second viewing. I did enjoy the boys being a family again as they've been during most of this series (Officer Rimmer being the exception, obviously), but yeah — too much going on all at once. I think Krysis would have been a better finale, although I get that we didn't need a big resolution or cliffhanger finale this time around because we know there's another series coming.

Finally, FINALLY getting to watch Can of Worms! Damn you UKTVPlay! Luckily someone on Tumblr had managed to get a copy uploaded to vimeo and shared it with me. :-) Going to "live" comment again.

Chris seems particularly on-form as Rimmer in this episode. In general, he feels more Rimmeresque than he did in series X when he felt a bit over-the-top at times. Even his mannerisms and movements just scream Rimmer this time around.

Ok, the Kryten sitting on a screwdriver bit made me giggle. GELFs again though? But I suppose in the original “Cat meets a lady Cat” episode, she was going to be a prisoner of GELFs, wasn’t she?

Danny’s face when he learns about the vampire GELFs who feed on virgins. He must have been rubbing his hands together with glee when he got this script.

*laughs* Back on Z-deck is apparently the Red Dwarf equivalent of, “she lives in Canada”. Awww, poor Cat. What else could he do, since the only other cats he’s ever known were his crippled mother and his jelly-brain father?

Ahhh, Listy taking charge and kitting up, getting ready to swoop in and either save someone or possibly get them all killed. That’s my boy. I’ll admit, when he cocked that bazookoid, I had to fan myself a bit. ;-)

The hell is up with Cat’s boots? He looks like he’s waded through a pool of dust bunnies.

Hee, I liked the lens cap gag. And Rimmer being impressed by Lister’s technical know how. ;-)

Even though the “life signs” gag was spoiled by the trailer, it still made me laugh.

The mercinoid design is pretty cool. The costuming/makeup department has really outdone themselves with this series.

Aww poor Rimmer, telling himself that “size doesn’t matter”. That’s what happens when you date a fellow hung like Lister. ;-)

I’m not sure how I feel about the lady who’s playing the lady Cat, but I lover her interactions with Cat and his sheer glee. “This is mine, and that’s mine!” And the mention of the string game!

I genuinely laughed out loud at the Kinder Eggs joke. Ha! But seriously though, another Polymorph? ANOTHER ONE? This “monster” has already featured in two episodes, I really wish they’d come up with something original instead.

Cat singing Frankie Valli with his Frankie Avalon hair, is just too much for me. Aww, poor Cat though. Couldn’t they have given the poor guy a proper sexual encounter?

Kryten’s reaction during the ultrasound scene. I’m dying.

OMG, “It’s not a salad you gimboid!” Gimboid again! Yay for the old insults having a revival!

Again the special effects guys are outdoing themselves. The dead polymorph in the bed looked fantastic. I wonder how much KY jelly they used this time?

...

Edited 2016-10-24 15:24 (UTC)

Can I maybe somehow please get that link for the episode?

...

All the guys in hospital gowns and surgical caps. This is just too funny.

Pregnant cat, in a pink velour track suit. That is something I NEVER thought I’d ever see. Doug may have outdone himself this time.

OMG, that Cat giving birth scene, did they shoot that live with Danny in the birthing tank thing? People must have been falling into the aisles. I have a terrible cold and that sent me into a bad coughing fit!

A hedgehog wearing a top hat in a shopping trolley. I am dead. Of course Lister is the one the most smitten with the adorable baby Polymorphs.

Wait, so not only are they retreading the Polymorph for the THIRD time, they’re also retreading Bodyswap? Ehhhh… I mean, it’s classic dwarf so sort of nice to see, but…? I dunno, just seems like an odd choice for the end of a series that’s had lots of nice NEW stuff.

Multiple Rimmers, Listers and Krytens all facing off now, it’s funny, but it’s like Psirens all over again, just x 3.

So Cat just… kills them all like that? A bit anticlimactic, eh? Ah well.

Wow, our first look at Cat’s quarters! Amazing that we’ve never seen this before. Cat’s always kept as something of a mystery. We knew he had closets for his clothes, but I always kind of imagined him seeing the whole ship as his quarters and sleeping wherever and whenever he felt and not having a proper “room” of his own. I wonder what Danny thought about them finally making a set for him? Oh wait, but it’s a dream, so still a mystery then I guess!

Well that was fun I suppose. I’m not quite sure how I feel about it being a retread of so many classic episodes though. I mean it wasn’t badly done, but it did feel like a pretty weak way to end a series that had been so good and full of lots of original stuff. I mean, they essentially met God earlier in the series, so maybe this just felt like a step back in comparison? I don’t know.

I'll just add my agreement that Lister being the most smitten with the cute things is totally IC. And Rimmer's self-help tape was hilarious. *Hugs them both for once* :)

I think I know what was with the inconsistency of character for Cat in the end. Kryten said that Polymorphs drained Cat but as they would be killed emotions who is killed be back in Cat. So before the lift scene Lister killed two of them. So we saw two emotions of Cat - when he was down there and when he killed Polymorphs. He wasn't himself, he was just two emotions and the second one switched on when he was coming back up - so he waited the lift and killed Polymorphs. That's why it was so abrupt.

Edited 2016-10-26 19:47 (UTC)

Also can we bask in the joy that it is canon that the Cat enjoys being deep-throated/piped?

That's the main thing I'm taking away from this.

I shrieked 'OH NOOOO' when the word 'polymorph' came up.

Reaction post: Can of Worms!

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"No, Kinder eggs!"

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