Blackadder meeting between Richard Curtis and comedian Ben Elton led to the decision to collaborate on a new series of Blackadder. Recognising the main faults of the first series, Curtis and Elton agreed that "Blackadder II" would be a studio-only production (along with the inclusion of a live audience during recording, instead of showing the episodes to an audience after taping). Besides adding a greater comedy focus, Elton suggested a major change in character emphasis: Baldrick would become the stupid sidekick, while Edmund Blackadder evolved into a cunning sycophant. This led to the familiar set-up that was maintained in the following
Blackadder: Back & Forth Baldrick escape just ahead of a charging Scotsmen. Baldrick mentions that dying people have their lives flash before them and that if Blackadder was about to drown, he might see how the dials were originally set. Blackadder agrees with this but puts Baldrick head first into the time machine toilet. The plan succeeds and Baldrick remembers how to set the dials to return home. On the way back, Baldrick suggests that anyone can change the world for the better, though Blackadder is sure that all most people can do is make a bit of money. Returning to 1999, the party