Captain V (2002) Online

...which is something of a problem for a show that professes to be a comedy. In actual fact, Captain V seems mostly to be a spoof of low-budget Canadian sci-fi show Lexx. The captain is dressed identically, there's a talking robot head (though it's attached to a body here), and most of the effects seem to be deliberately similar, though even lower in budget. What the show lacks however, is even a fraction of the comedy that it's supposedly 'straight' parent show has. And to have a spoof that is less funny than the show it's spoofing is to not really have a spoof at all. Maybe. It probably doesn't help that very few people will actually have heard of the show it is so clearly trying to laugh at. Might be best to just leave it alone then.

An intergalactic cargo ship is manned by Captain V with his trusty crew of a zog (Mr Zog) and an android (VPR). With each cargo comes adventure and action, although mostly it is misadventure brought about by the incompetence of Captain V.

I caught this late night on channel 4 television. Unsure of what it was I very, very quickly realised that this was a Red Dwarf clone which much lower standards. The comedy is very basic and relies on lazy sarcasm from Mr Zog more than any other source. It is quite amusing occasionally but it can't sustain this for more than a few moments at a time. For this reason the episodes are 15 minutes long tops - each being self contained and baring no relation (other than the principles) to the next episode, they just set up and deliver one sketch and then are finished. This doesn't mean it is rubbish but just means it is limited in it's appeal.

The low grade comedy also extends to other areas too. The effects are pretty poor and sets are very cheap looking. It was very hard to watch this and not remember Red Dwarf - from the sarcasm-rich humour to the android character to the incompetent leader-type it had clearly been inspired by RD to some extent.

Overall this is worth a few smiles in a short running time. But to be honest - don't we already have a much better series in this vein in the shape of the Red Dwarf? Why not go and watch that instead?