Gunmen of the Apocalypse
| "Gunmen of the Apocalypse" | |
|---|---|
| 6 episode | |
.jpg) |
|
| Directed by | Andy de Emmony |
| Original air date | 21 October 1993 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
|
|
"Gunmen of the Apocalypse" is the third episode of series VI of the science fiction sitcom Red Dwarf. It was first broadcast on 21 October 1993, on BBC Two, and went on to win an International Emmy Award. The episode was written by Rob Grant & Doug Naylor, and directed by Andy de Emmony. In the episode, the regular cast find themselves in a computer simulation of a Wild West town, facing a gunfight against the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
Starbug strays into a Rogue Simulant hunting zone and is detected by a battle-cruiser whose xenophobic mechanoid occupants despise humanity. The Starbug crew are captured, but instead of killing them the Simulants upgrade the systems, weapons and armour of Starbug, intending to battle them for sport.
By a fluke the Starbug crew cripple the Simulant ship, but before their destruction the Simulants transmit an "Armageddon Virus" into Starbug's navigation computer, locking the ship on a suicide course toward a large volcanic moon. Kryten deliberately infects himself with the virus in order to try to formulate a software antidote.
Kryten's battle with the virus manifests itself as a Wild West–flavoured dream; he is the cowardly, drunken and burnt-out Sheriff of a town called Existence, who is standing against four outlaws known as the Apocalypse Boys: Famine, Pestilence, War, and Death. The crew use an artificial reality machine to enter Kryten's dream, taking the roles of characters from a wild west video game with various skills: Lister with knife throwing, Cat with expert shooting skills, and Rimmer with hand-to-hand combat.
...
Wikipedia