Red Dwarf/Waiting for God

Waiting for God
Season 1, Episode 4
Airdate	March 7, 1988
Written by	Rob Grant, Doug Naylor
Directed by	Ed Bye
← 1x03 Balance of Power	1x05 → Confidence and Paranoia
Red Dwarf — Season One

Waiting for God is the fourth episode of the first season of Red Dwarf.

Guest Stars: Noel Coleman (Cat Priest), John Lenahan (Talkie Toaster)

Plot Overview

We discover in the prologue that Lister lied about having passed the Chef's exam, so technically Rimmer still outranks him.

As Rimmer is in the drive room prying into confidential computer records, an unidentified object approaches the ship. It turns out to be a Red Dwarf garbage pod. But despite Lister's repeated attempts to tell him otherwise, Rimmer believes that it is aliens.

Meanwhile Lister has been discussing cat religion with the cat; trying to convince him that he is Cloister the Stupid. Lister folows the Cat to the cargo decks, and discovers that there is one other cat-creature aboard: a blind, old preiest of the Red Cat Religion. Lister decides to play the part of Cloister for the sake of the priest, and ends up restoring the old man's faith. But alas, even as the old man was at the happiest moment of his life, he died suddenly.

Meanwhile Rimmer's obsession with aliens has led him to give them a name: "Quagaars". He believes that the "Quagaars" have the means to give him a new body.

When the time finally comes to open the pod, and Lister pulls out a piece of garbage, Rimmer is still slow to understand the implications, because he believes that this is a stupendous moment in his own personal history. He expects the perfectly preserved remains of a Quagaar warrior!

With Lister holding a carcass in one hand and holding his nose with the other, Rimmer says "They must have looked something like ... a roast chicken." As the credits roll the indignity can be heard in Rimmer's voice: "It's a smegging garbage pod!"

Arc Advancement

Characters

This episode gives us quite a back-story on the Cat, his people, and why Cat is alone.

Trivia

Memorable Moments

• As the episode opens Rimmer is forcing Holly to pry into Captain Hollister's confidential crewmember reviews. First he listens to Lister's review ... promotion prospects: zero. Rimmer is full of praise for Hollister as a reader of men, etc. Then he has Holly read the notes for Arnold Rimmer! That changes his opinion of Captain Hollister a bit.
• After having spent tremendous time and effort analysing what he believes to be an alien pod, Rimmer watches as Lister pulls a roast chicken out of the (garbage) pod and holds it up. It is only then that Rimmer realizes what a fool he has been!

Quotes

• Rimmer: (dictating to Holly) After intensive investigation comma of the markings on the alien pod comma it has become clear comma that we are dealing comma with a species of awesome intellect colon.

Holly: Good! Perhaps they might be able to give you a hand with your punctuation.

• Rimmer: It's a smegging garbage pod!