History Recap / RedDwarfSeasonVIPsirens

** Kryten remarks that the Starbug crashes "more often than a [=ZX81=]".

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Lister notes a Psiren disguised as a weather girl is doing... ''something'' with her pointing stick.

* RipVanWinkle: Episode starts with Lister waking up to find he has been in statis for 200 years, with his hair and finger nail grown long.

A badly dishevelled Lister awakens on ''Starbug'', and finds he's got a touch of total amnesia. After a few minutes stumbling about, he's met by Kryten, who explains the amnesia is a side-effect of six hundred years in stasis (Kryten had ''tried'' to wake him up a few months ago, but he insisted on a few more months). Kryten quickly tries filling Lister in on himself; his fondness for vindaloo, his slobbyness, his desire to find and then have sex with Kochanski, and his "ability" to play the guitar. Lister isn't remotely impressed at his being a "barely human grossed-out slimeball". The reactivation of Rimmer at least kick-starts some of his memories.

Fortunately, ''Starbug'' is tough enough to survive the impact and the crash-landing. Only problem is the landing gear gets buried in rock, forcing Lister to go outside to fix it. The same outside filled with ravenous Psirens after his grey matter. The first tries appearing as his teenaged crush, and almost succeeds until another Psiren pretending to be Kryten saves him. Narrowly avoiding it and another Psiren pretending to be a TV weather girl, Lister makes his way back to the 'bug... as does Lister. Now there's two of them, and they can't leave one behind. On the other hand, if they do, they'll ''definitely'' have a Psiren on-board.

With no options left, Kryten lets the second Lister in. Soon, both Listers are asked to prove who they are. Trimming their toenails doesn't work, since the Psiren can match Lister in disgusting detail. They have to go nuclear: Someone has to play the guitar. The first Lister does so, effortlessly playing an amazing guitar riff... at which point Kryten and the Cat blow him away. The Psiren picked up on Lister's ''belief'' of how he could play, rather than the "talentless ten-toed, tone-deaf noise polluter" he actually is.

* AbnormalAmmo: Kryten manages to convert ''Starbug'''s waste disposal unit into a garbage cannon.
* AmnesiacDissonance: Lister, coming out of a several hundred year long nap, is disturbed by Kryten's description of him.

* AsteroidThicket: The crew are chasing the stolen ''Red Dwarf'' in the much smaller Starbug. They have an opportunity to catch it because it's had to make a detour around an asteroid field, which Starbug can go through. Even then they need the Cat, with his fast reflexes, as pilot to get safely through.

* DamnedByFaintPraise: The best example Kryten can think of when a distressed Lister asks him to give an example of some laudable quality of his is that Lister ''sometimes'' turns his underpants inside out, allowing him to wear them for a few months more.

* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: Inverted. Lister realises a Psiren isn't Kryten because it calls him "Dave", rather than "Mr. Lister".

* CouldntFindAPen: The first warning about the Psirens is written in blood. The Cat is mystified as to why the scribe went to the effort of using his small intenstine as a full stop. Rimmer suggests he probably ''didn't'', but it just "fell out".

Soon enough, the Cat's up too, and Lister is well on his way to recovery, enjoying a nice vindaloo with tabasco sauce, and convinced he can play the guitar. Rimmer tries to get down to business: What's happened to ''Red Dwarf'', which they've lost, for which he blames Lister forgetting where he parked it. Kryten fills him in: They didn't ''lose'' the Dwarf, it was stolen. They've been in stasis because ''Starbug'' couldn't keep up, but now it's had to make a massive detour around an asteroid field that the Bug doesn't, giving them a chance to head it off.

* {{Squick}}: Lister is snogging his fantasy girl, when the audience sees what he's ''really'' snogging.

** Rimmer's comment on the Kochanski illusion is that it's "as plain as a Bulgarian pin-up".

* {{Zeerust}}: In what universe does a robotics expert wear tinfoil silver go-go boots?

* OffTheShelfFX: The slime on the Psiren when Lister is snogging it was agricultural jelly used in inseminating cows.

Soon enough, the Cat's up too, and Lister is well on his way to recovery, enjoying a nice vindaloo with tabasco sauce, and convinced he can play the guitar. Rimmer tries to get down to business: What's happened to ''Red Dwarf'', which they've lost, for which he blames Lister forgetting where he parked it. Kryten fills him in: They didn't ''loose'' the Dwarf, it was stolen. They've been in stasis because ''Starbug'' couldn't keep up, but now it's had to make a massive detour around an asteroid field that the Bug doesn't, giving them a chance to head it off.

Of course, since this is ''Red Dwarf'', it's not so easy. Turns out the asteroid field is filled with dozens of crashed ships. Examining one finds a warning scrawled in blood (and a lower intestine): PSIRENS. They're [=GELFs=] that use psychic mirages to lure unsuspecting saps onto asteroids and suck their brains out, the scrawled message being an attempt at warning anyone from falling into the same trap.

The ''Starbug'' makes its way further in, only to find a flaming asteroid coming toward them, even though the readout says there isn't. Arguing successfully (with some help from his Lie Mode), Kryten argues on shooting it down with the waste disposal unit, which he and Lister have weaponized. It works, allowing Kryten to momentarily activate Smug Mode. As soon as he's gone, another flaming asteroid shows up. A thoroughly annoyed Rimmer argues that this time the asteroid is an illusion and the read-out is telling the truth. He's wrong, they crash on one of the asteroids.

* ArtEvolution: The Starbug sets get a beef-up. The cockpit now has seats for all four crew members, the back room is larger and has a staircase going up to a second level, and a adjoining back kitchen.

The ''Starbug'' makes its way further in, only to find a flaming asteroid coming toward them, even though the readout says there isn't. Arguingly successfully (with some help from his Lie Mode), Kryten argues on shooting it down with the waste disposal unit, which he and Lister have weaponized. It works, allowing Kryten to momentarily activate Smug Mode. As soon as he's gone, another flaming asteroid shows up. A thoroughly annoyed Rimmer argues that this time the asteroid is an illusion and the read-out is telling the truth. He's wrong, they crash on one of the asteroids.

With no options left, Kryten lets the second Lister in. Soon, both Listers are asked to prove who they are. Trimming their toenails doesn't work, since the Psiren can match Lister in disgusting detail. They have to go nuclear: Someone has to play the guitar. The first Lister does so, effortlessly playing an amazing guitar riff... at which point Kryten and the Cat blow him away. The Psiren picked up on Lister's ''belief'' of how he could play, rather than the "talentless, tone-deaf noise polluter" he actually is.

* TheCameo: Jenny Aguter as Kryten's creator, Dr. Mamet (or more accurately, the Psiren impersonating her).

** Kryten remarks that the Starbug crashes "more often than a ZX81".

* AmnesiacRessonance: It's seeing Rimmer's smug smile again that allows Lister to remember who he is.

* InMediaRes: The story already begins with ''Red Dwarf'' missing and the crew in pursuit. An explanation isn't given until several minutes in.

* {{Zerust}}: In what universe does a robotics expert wear tinfoil silver go-go boots?

With no options left, Kryten lets the second Lister in. Soon, both Listers are asked to prove who they are. Trimming their toenails doesn't work, since the Psiren can match Lister in disgusting detail. They have to go nuclear: Someone has to play the guitar. The first Lister does so, effortlessly playing an amazing guitar riff... at which point Kryten and the Cat blow him away. The Psiren picked up on Lister's ''belief'' of how he could play, rather than the "talentless, tone-deaf noise polluter" he actually is.