Bongo was a high-ranking human counterpart of the mechanoid Kryten in the alternate dimension where Ace Rimmer was from.
Television Series[]
Admiral Sir James "Bongo" Tranter was the Admiral of the Fleet and Space Corps test base commander who oversaw Project: Wildfire at the Mimas test base.
When his top test pilot, Ace Rimmer, returned from a successful record-breaking flight, he headed for the admiral's office. After flirting with the admiral's secretary, Mellie, Ace reported for debriefing.
The admiral was a middle aged man with uncontrollable hair and bushy eyebrows. He wore the uniform of a Space Corps Admiral, but spoke identically to the mechanoid Kryten. Ace and Bongo obviously knew each other well enough to be comfortable using their nicknames. Bongo joked that he suspected Ace would be back when he saw that the price of rubbers had gone up.
Bongo gave Ace a briefing about the dimension-crossing ship built by his engineers. Ace volunteered immediately to go on a one-way mission into the multiverse, despite the dangers. Bongo then told Ace in an embarrassed tone that he would be in his quarters at lunchtime, covered in taramasalata. Ace was surprised, since Bongo had been happily married for thirty-five years, but Ace had turned his head. Ace politely declined and Bongo understood, declaring "What a guy."
Bongo later stood beside his secretary (and Ace's lover) Mellie, chief engineer Spanners and the Padre to see Ace off in the dimension ship, Wildfire. ("Dimension Jump", Series IV)
Novels[]
In the novel Backwards, the character's name is Peter Tranter and he is known as "Bungo", among several other nicknames. He is something of a drunk and less of a friend to Ace. He is still a good man and, due to a clerical error, is allowed to retire on full pay.
Trivia[]
- Given that Ace's companions on Mimas are alternate dimension counterparts to the Boys from the Dwarf (for example, Spanners is Ace's version of Dave Lister), Bongo is apparently the alternate version of Kryten in Ace's dimension. This is supported by the fact that Kryten and Bongo are played by the same actor, Robert Llewellyn.
- The relationship between Ace and Bongo is a parody of that between James Bond and his superior, M.
Behind the Scenes[]
- Bongo's name in the novel is "Pete Tranter". In the Series VI episode "Psirens", one of the namesake Psirens attempts to seduce Lister by appearing as one of Lister's pubescent fantasies, Pete Tranter's Sister. The significance of this connection is unclear, however. One possibility is that Lister was friends with a future admiral in his youth.
External Links[]
- An interview between Bongo and Talkie Toaster on the official Red Dwarf website.