Last Chance Saloon

The background to the Series VI DVD cover is the front of the Last Chance Saloon

The Last Chance Saloon was the bar in the fictional town of Existence, a Wild West-inspired electronic fever dream of Kryten.

History

When Kryten contracted the Armageddon Virus so that he could analyze it and work on an antidote, he hallucinated himself as the Sheriff in the Wild West town of Existence. Sheriff Kryten was a drunkard, and spent a lot of his time in the Last Chance Saloon.

The saloon was a small, wooden structure with swing doors and a long bar. There were animal heads mounted on the wall and it was populated by a group of typical lowdown Western gunslingers, drinking and playing poker.

Sheriff Kryten went in there for a drink, but was ridiculed by the patrons for being a drunk. One of the customers, Jimmy, tripped him and nearly started a gun battle before Kryten backed down. He then went to the bar and asked the barmaid, Miss Lola, for her "best sipping likker", the smooth stuff, where you get your eyesight back after two days.

The Apocalypse Boys then arrived outside and demanded the sheriff present himself. After downing a few of the patron's leftover drinks and grabbing a bottle, Kryten went outside. The Boys demanded he leave town and shot the ground around him as motivation.

Dave Lister, Cat, and Arnold Rimmer were watching this on the screens aboard Starbug and decided to help. They used the AR console to join him as Western characters from the game Streets of Laredo. They found Kryten in the saloon, trying to sell his possessions for whiskey. Jimmy tried to taunt Kryten with a whiskey bottle on the end of a whip, until Brett Riverboat (Lister) cut the whip and pinned Jimmy to the wall with his knife throwing.

Jimmy demanded vengeance, ordering his cronies Frank and Nuke to shoot Lister. The Riviera Kid (Cat) stepped forward and shot the bullets out of the air. As Kryten tried to flee the mayhem, the angry patrons turned on the Dwarfers, but Dangerous Dan McGrew (Rimmer) was able to beat them all aside.

After dragging Kryten back into the saloon, they forced him to eat a half dozen bowls of Lola's raw coffee until he was sober. His memory of the real world began to return and he was ready to face the Apocalypse Boys out in the street. Although Brother Death erased their special skills during the showdown, forcing them to flee, Kryten's companions had gained him enough him to complete the Dove Antidote Program. Kryten released it, erasing the Apocalypse Boys / Virus, and waking Kryten up from the dream. ("Gunmen of the Apocalypse", Series VI)

Gallery

The boys from the Dwarf mosey on into town

A wanted poster for the Apocalypse Boys outside the saloon

The Dwarfers approach the saloon

Entering the saloon

Miss Lola

Bear Strangler McGee

Jimmy

Jimmy pinned up against the wall by the knives of Brett Riverboat (Dave Lister)

Frank and Nuke

Cat (a.k.a. The Riviera Kid) faces Frank and Nuke before shooting their bullets out of the air

Sobering up Sheriff Kryten

These guns have little doves carved on them...

We got company...

The Dwarfers prepare for a showdown with the Apocalypse Boys

Trivia

• The swinging doors to the Last Chance Saloon were the background and artwork to the Series VI DVD.

Background Information

• The episode was filmed at Laredo, a small Western-themed town run by cowboy enthusiasts located in Kent, south-east England. Although Laredo had its own bar - the Lone Star - it was deemed too small to film in. The exterior shots of the Last Chance Saloon were actually of the Laredo liquor store, which was deemed to be a better look for it. The interior scenes of the Last Chance Saloon were filmed at a set made up at Shepperton Studios. However, many of the Laredo residents also went there to be extras in the saloon scenes, including the Laredo hotel owner, who played the piano in the Saloon scenes.