Red Dwarf, Series IV

Ace:
Skipper, I've decided I'm not going to stay.

Lister:
Why?

Ace:
Him and me. It would never work. I just can't stand to be near the man. To see myself so warped, so bitter, so weasely. The man's a maggot.

Lister:
So where're you going to go?

Ace:
Just out there. I can't go back. But there's a billion other realities to explore. A billion other Arnold Rimmers to meet. Maybe somewhere there's one who's more of a pain in the butt than him. But I doubt it.

Lister:
Well, good luck, man. And, look, don't be too hard on Rimmer. You got the break, he didn't. He's just bitter.

Ace:
D'you know what that break was? At the age of seven, one of us was kept back a year, the other one wasn't. (Gestures to knot on his arm stitches) Put your finger on that, would you, Skipper? (Tugs sharply on thread and breaks it)

Lister:
And that's the only difference? Rimmer went down a year, and you stayed up?

Ace (delivering the surprise):
No. I was the one who went down a year. By his terms, he got the break. But being kept down a year made me. The humiliation...being the tallest boy in the class by a clear foot. It changed me, made me buckle down, made me fight back. And I've been fighting back ever since.

Lister:
While he spent the rest of his life making excuses.

Ace:
Maybe he's right. Maybe I did get the lucky break.