TV Gold

Haven't seen any for a good three months so went back to the first season and had a look at "Mission To Destiny". Great mystery premise both on the stranded ship and also on the Liberator although some of the lighting on the cargo ship was overtly bright.

Also last night had a look at "Duel" which sadly I found rather slow and lifeless although the essential premise of two combidants fighting against each other (with an accompanying friend) very strong.

Sunday afternoon I took another look at "Project Avalon" which IMO is probably the strongest story from the first season. I thought it was is certainly an intriguingly clever plan of Travis to substitue the young lady rebel leader for an android coupled with a very expensive disease capsule hidden in its tunic. The demonstration seems particularly chilling regarding the fate of the 'detained labour grade'. Love the interplay between Travis and Severlan.

After watching the Doctor Who story "Dragonfire" (which I thought was a particularly strong story for McCoy's doctor, plus a good vehicle for departing Mel, arriving Ace and returning Glitz) I returned to Season One later that evening to watch "Breakdown".

For me it is the Liberator's journey across dangerous, potentially hostile space towards XK-72 which is the most memorable aspect. A great performance from Julian Glover as deranged, unscrupulous surgeon Kayne, both in delaying our heroes until the Federation arrive and then his anger at dealing with the station administrator.

Don't know when I'll be getting back to this series as there seems to be a lot of other things that command my attention at present but certainly would welcome getting back to Blake's Seven sometime in the future.

After three double episode weeks of watching 'Blott On The Landscape', Tuesday of this week led me to have another look at 'Bounty' and 'Deliverence'...

As usual enjoyed very much 'Bounty' with TP McKenna as the exiled President surrounding himself with antique objects, an old car and decked out in an Edwardian attired costume. Certainly seems like a story of two halves with Blake and Cally down on the planet attempting to persuade this reclusive character to come with them. The second portion centered around the ship being captured by hired mercenaries was an interesting development, not least because of leader Tarvin's past association with Jenna... sounds like an intriguing bit of character history and it started me wondering just what else lurks in the Liberator pilot's past... maybe this will be something that Big Finish will be picking up in 2012 and beyond.

I felt less positive about 'Deliverence' probably as it was one of those episodes initially offered on the early VHS tapes so I would have watching innumerable times due to the (then) lack of a full series release. Having said that I liked the interplay between Severlan and Travis and our landing party brawling with the savages down on the planet. Doesn't seem that the limiter slows down Gan much in a supposed life or death battle with, at one point, three of the hairy, fur covered brutes. Yeah it's great that the chemical rocket with the future of the inhabitants is launched thanks to 'Lord' Avon but it got me wondering what happened to the doting female Meegat. Presumably she didn't go into the rocket and didn't got with our heroes on the Liberator spacecraft so I suppose she is still skulking around on the planet behind the locked door or perhaps she's left and gone to live with the savages... maybe now that her lifetime task has been completed she 'fancies a bit of rough'???

I feel fairly ambivalent regarding “Orac” and “Redemption” which I watched on Sunday morning but certainly had a better double on Tuesday evening beginning with what is for me quite possibly my favourite story of the entire fifty-two that were made…

The main strength of “Shadow” is that it is a fantastic use of the regular alien character of Cally and the sequences where she is looking for and telepathically talking with Orac which for me seem as fresh, chilling and dynamically effective now as it was when I originally watched it on its initial transmission back in the late seventies. tackling the subject of drug addiction in a prime time weekday series within a science fiction concept seems, in my opinion, a brave venture particularly with such memorable characters as Bek and Hannah, the former played so effectively by future BBC sit com star (for “Brushstrokes”) Karl Howman. It also succeeds in underlying the evil nature of the Federation to be involved in the drug trafficking operation. I know it is only the standard quarry setting that typifies the corporations science fiction output however the surface of the ‘Shadow’ planet is I think very effective thanks to silver discs on sticks above the moon discs, slight incidental music, our heroes decked out in white outfits and the similarly silver fabric wearing guards patrolling the area.

Also gaining a repeat viewing on Tuesday evening, which is probably the last I’ll be watching for some time, is Chris Boucher’s “Weapon” story which similarly sparkles with memorable aspects to this second season story. A great outing for Servalan (replete in a beautiful costume finished off with an ornate and rather memorable ‘chicken wire’ type neck adornment) whose initial dialogue with Travis offers suitable emotive passion in the respective character performances, particularly when the supreme commander is grabbed by the throat by her obsessed charge. The ethereal atmosphere of the cloning facility and Clone master Fenn’s entry is effective and despite Servalan’s outward indication that she understands and subscribes to the precepts of ‘the rule of life’ it seems apparent to we viewers that the reverent woman clearly sees through the Supreme Commander’s pretence. There is also the worthy playfully romantic undercurrent between Servalan and Carnell whom has a classic final line regarding about his opinion of the Supreme Commander on the message he leaves recorded on her computer terminal. John Bennett is also worthy of praise for imbuing the character of weapons technician Cozer with grouchy and obsessed aspects particularly when talking with the bond slave whom accompanies him to the deserted facility. As for the weapon IMIPAC I guess it is a fairly good concept for a weapon.

Got a couple of new DVD series titles I want to watch starting in December