TV Review - Blake's 7: S4E01 Rescue

Blake's 7 didn't so much continue after the unexpected announcement of a fourth series as stop and restart (notably switching from the spring to autumn seasons for broadcast), with Chris Boucher among those noting it should really be considered the start of some sort of second generation sequel show. The production office shut down at the end of the third series and some of the crew moved on, notably producer David Maloney. His role was taken over by Vere Lorrimer, who had directed a dozen episodes, while Boucher returned and hurriedly they began to patch together a season, with Boucher himself writing the opening episode setting up the new format (beyond collecting his creator's cheques for the show Terry Nation had no further involvement). Of the main cast Paul Darrow, Michael Keating, Josette Simon, Steven Pacey, Jacqueline Pearce (once she'd seen off a nasty illness) and Peter Tuddenham all returned, the only decline coming from Jan Chappell - who had apparently already privately decided to leave during Season 3 anyway and refused offers to come back for 13, 6, 3 and then 1 episode, finally agreeing to a brief vocal cameo.

The result of this running on the spot was "Rescue". The episode has been criticised for rapidly getting the crew out of trouble; despite seasonal snow on the location footage it's clear the intention is to pick up the story not long after the events of "Terminal" as it surely wouldn't have taken the crew long to scope out the knackered transport left for them by Servalan. Upon arrival Avon and Dayna find it booby-trapped and make their way back to the base (also rigged) in relatively short order before all four surviving crew members meet with Dorian, who takes them off-planet, if not out of danger. So at best you're talking a day or so. However, "Rescue" clearly is intended to be a functional script picking everyone up and getting things back to business, something required for other script-writers and possibly to enable the use of older stories involving space scenes. The space stuff, while never exactly Star Wars, was always part of the show's appeal to younger viewers anyway and three episodes slumming it on Terminal would have got the series off to a rocky start with the audience.

Cally of course is killed in the bunker explosion. There's nothing wrong with that really, it's as good a way as overcoming the problem as any other; it perhaps strains credibility that Vila would rescue the larger and more disliked Tarrant first but it's probably best to assume he had to move him out of the way or thought Cally was already dead. I do like the way he gets out when the bunker door starts to close; he likes Cally but he's not going to kill himself needlessly. Jan Chappell's voice cameo is pointless, though - it adds nothing really and her last word being "Blake!" is perplexing to the point of meaninglessness; hopefully they didn't pay her a lot for that. Avon's sombre reaction to her death is well-played, though - even if going down to get Orac was the reason for revisiting the bunker that he checked is probably about as sweet as the guy gets, and his desire to move on and survive himself is well-illustrated, while Cally gets to be the first actual death for a crew member since Gan. 

Dayna being impulsive is a not unpromising start for her but within a few minutes she needs to be rescued by Avon and then by Dorian shortly afterwards after falling down a gorge; Season 4 will not be kind to her and before the end of this one she's blubbing away and clinging to Tarrant. Vila, as the only other long-termer with Avon, gets a bigger role - his drinking is really played up but he's surprisingly astute in places and gets to more or less save the day. Tarrant is more subdued; having been threatened by Avon in "Terminal" he seems to relinquish any attempt to challenge for top dog status (not to mention that he's injured badly in the bunker explosion). Indeed, from hereon in the show very much moves in the direction of Avon as the sole lead and the other three/four as a unit, only really standing out if the writer of each episode gives them a good bit.

Dorian starts off as a very interesting character thanks to Geoffrey Burridge's performance; his attempt to bluff things out early on is well done and he's got considerable charisma, pulling off the switch to being in charge when he gets everyone back to Xenon Base. The character sadly goes to pot soon afterwards; for someone who's hidden his nature for so long he sure lets a lot slip to Avon in general conversation, which just makes Soolin look dumb. Naming him Dorian was pretty stupid as well considering the whole ripping off Dorian Grey thing (at least Terry Nation would have used an anagram like Rodian) and it's all rather lost in the rush; in an ideal world I'd be up for the crew escaping Terminal quickly and then having Dorian kept on for 2-3 episodes before betraying everyone and getting his comeuppance; the dynamic of having him as an uneasy ally with unclear motives but being the crew's only option would have been interesting. Ah well; Burridge is good value anyway (and the script seems to slip a reference to his then-still rare public homosexuality in by implying his original partner - the same term he uses for Soolin - was another man). Everyone's acting in the last couple of scenes is a bit suspect though.

The whole Dorian plotline is terrible with the Sea Devil in the basement; it seems to be Boucher trying to justify why a ship turns up so rapidly on Terminal (because Dorian somehow knows they'll be there as grist for the creature). It's the weakest area of the script and really you wonder if it wouldn't be better left as some huge convenience - it's not like the show's been low on them before now. The problem is his extended lifespan is needed to set up Scorpio, Xenon Base and the new clipguns plus hint at a return for teleport, so convenience is running wild (even if unfettered access will take another episode). Soolin meanwhile makes a low-key debut; aside from flagging up her quick draw (and, unlike poor Josette Simon, Glynnis Barber can actually handle a prop gun convincingly) she's not really in it much, the only real clue being that unlike most guest characters over the past year or so she isn't killed off in the last five minutes.

There's not a huge amount to comment about with Slave, though he will get annoying as the year goes on - the attempt to turn him into more of a character than Zen will be something of a failure. Scorpio is kind-of alright; obviously another battlecruiser would be too much of a stretch but both the design of the ship and its' flight deck are just a mite too conventional. It smacks of being okayed by a director for ease of filming and it undoubtedly costs the show something as a result, while the interiors of Xenon Base are no different than basically every other base we've been in the past three years. If anything, it's even more overlit; considering it was directed by Mary Ridge (who also did "Terminal") how jarringly cheap and gaudy "Rescue" looks is not a great thing, and the snake-things are crap (if they wanted some cheap jeopardy why not the Links? They even took one on location, it sets off the charges!). Money was even tighter for the year but the Quantel model shots are better than most of the old models even with the matte lines and while the new title sequence is more professional it's also boring and very weird - what even is it showing? Scorpio doesn't have a land mode...

"Rescue" is up against it in a way, having to do what is an even bigger format change than the third season hand-over in less time (really most of the work is done here even if the crew's possession of Scorpio and the addition of Soolin is rubber-stamped in the next episode). But that only forgives the speed at which it happens and there are still plenty of things which could and should have been done better and it's a huge drop in quality from the second half of Season 3. Of course, much of this would be more forgivable if Season 4 hit the ground running from hereon in; on rewatches especially "Rescue" seems better than it is; while it's not much good things will get worse before they get better.