I'm not going to pass full judgement on this show until I've watched the entire series, but it may prove hard for me to do even that. I'm a massive fan of Nick Frost and the writers of this show, but they made the critical error that most sci-fi comedy seems to make: that science fiction is rarely funny.
Let me explain. When Red Dwarf began it was a massive success, not because it was a sitcom about a space ship, but it was a sitcom SET on a space ship. Only a few of the gags were about the futuristic setting, and those that were rarely worked. Don't get me wrong, there were moments of genius (such as Rimmer's parallel universe double Ace, a character who could only exist in this type of show) but the best jokes were stuff modern day audiences (and not only geeks) can relate to. As Red Dwarf continued into it's seventh and eighth series the focus shifted from the 'comedy' to the 'situation' and the laughs diminished. This is also why I found it difficult to love Futurama as opposed to liking it. Half the gags were about how the 30th century differed from the present, which I found tiresome before the first episode had finished.
The exceptions to this rule are Douglas Addams' seminal Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and John Carpenter's similar film 'Dark Star,' both of which somehow work perfectly, utilising their theological and sci-fi ideas to the fullest.
An example of how the first episode of Hyperdrive didn't work was in the section where two crew members of the H.M.S. Camden Lock decide to confuse the android pilot of the starship by giving conflicting commands. Not only does this feature the worst method of controlling a space ship I have ever seen (a sort of theremin mixed with an arcade dance mat, seemingly created specifically for this joke), but what follows it a 'shaking camera' sequence lifted from Star Trek that lasts three times too long and is about three times less funny than it should have been.
Sadly, while I hope that Hyperdrive will improve, I doubt the writers will see the error of their ways and follow the route of countless fallen sci-fi shows before it. A pity.
