Blakes 7
I'll believe it when I see it. They've been saying there would be more episodes on Dave since the three Easter episodes a couple of years ago, but nothing has come of it. No more than the film version, which has been about to go into production any day now for the last 20 years.
The same applies to Blake's 7, which has been poised for a comeback for just as long.
I thought, given the budget, the recent Red Dwarf production was not only great, but highlighted how good for its time the original series was. However, the story or direction was a bit weak and it wasn't as funny as it should be. Episode 2 was the best but let down by a slow start in episode 1 and a disappointing resolution in 3.
I liked the idea that Lister had become so bored in the intervening years that he was passing his time spending *days* setting up the 'tomato sneeze' ironing scene just to get a simple sneer out of Rimmer, but the direction meant it dragged too long on-screen.
Perhaps the remaining bloke behind it now needs to take a back seat as an executive producer and allow other writers and producers to provide up-to-date comedy and plots, while he ensures it remains faithful to the original and maintains its relatively high production values?
I thought the way they faked elaborate corridors on the ship by putting intricate scaled models in front of the camera and then using a huge depth of field as the actors did their stuff further away was inspired! Obviously it limits the shot to a fixed camera angle, but it's better than a moving camera showing a set that looks cheap.
It'll be nice if it comes back again, but it needs to build on the last three specials. Otherwise, it'll turn into a Norman Wisdom of a TV show, where a small set of people just cheer for the sake of it, knowing deep down inside that what they're seeing is a pale shadow of what once was.