Comments on content posted here: http://cult.thedigitalfix.co.uk/content.php?contentid=151the high viewing figures were more as a result of viewer curiosity than evidence of quality. it cant be excused due to its low budget either as it hardly had any budget in the first few series either. Given the amount of time Doug has had to write good jokes and funny situations, not forgetting of course the film (which will never happen) it's clear that he does not have what it takes to carry the program alone. This is evident by the downward spiral the show has continued on since the gestalt entity parted company back in series 6. even more evidence, if any were needed, is Doug's utter lack of regard for what the show was ultimately about; two guys who hate each other forced together by circumstances outside of their control. the foundation of many of the BBC's most brilliant sit coms. not only did he write series 7 without Rimmer, when he brought him back he did so in a way that rendered the last 6 series of the show irrelevant but resetting Rimmer to his original self. that's a seriously large character development shaped knife in the fans back.I think you can sum up my feelings in once sentence: What's the point without Rob Grant?

slh