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Television Media Entertainment

Blakes Seven To Return 298

Posted by Hemos from the bad-acting-good-fun dept.
Clownfush writes "Blake's 7, magnificent UK low budget high drama Sci-Fi from the early 80's is to return, as a former star acquires rights to the show. "
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Blakes Seven To Return More

Blakes Seven To Return

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  • All puff... (Score:5, Funny)

    by perly-king-69 ( 580000 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:35AM (#6549553)
    According to the FAQ, essentially they have no money (yet), no script (yet), no cast (yet) and no broadcasting rights (yet).
    Trading on the nostalgia zeitgeist? The plan sounds as shaky as one of their sets!

    • How to make a TV programme (dummies edition)... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by WIAKywbfatw ( 307557 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:53AM (#6549616) Journal
      According to the FAQ, essentially they have no money (yet), no script (yet), no cast (yet) and no broadcasting rights (yet).
      Trading on the nostalgia zeitgeist? The plan sounds as shaky as one of their sets!

      No money?

      Well, I can think of a few fans who'd like to see a new series based in the Blake's Seven universe. And if there are fans willing to see it then there will be production companies and broadcasters willing to back it. %5-6 million for a TV show, especially one that already has a cult following, is peanuts - do you have any idea how much the rubbish that fills the channels right now even costs?

      If nothing else, it has a particular resonance right now, thanks to the Orwellian Federation, etc. Just like Star Trek's morality matched the 60's, the new Blakes Seven series is tailor-made for the times that we live in.

      No script?

      Well, jeez, that's the end of the world. How will they ever make anything?

      But wait, here's some news just in: apparently, there are these things called scriptwriters. Throw them some cash and give them some time and they'll write a script for you! What a stroke of luck!

      No cast?

      OMG, another disaster! How will they cope?

      Huh, what's that? There's an original cast member involved already? And there are these guys and gals out there - we'll call them actors - constantly looking for new work? And even people - let's call them casting agents - who'll pick the right actors for your production! Genius!

      No broadcasting rights?

      Well, perhaps you should RTFA. What bit of "Paul Darrow, who played the ruthless anti-hero Avon, is in a consortium that has acquired the rights to the show", didn't you get?

      Seriously, money, a script and a cast can be found. But the first step was always going to be getting the rights. If you have the rights you can find the money, a script and a cast. But if you have money, a script and a cast but no rights then you're screwed. It really is that simple.

      • Of course you're right that there are no obstacles to making a new Blake's 7 series.

        But as for making a worthy successor to one of the best science-fiction series ever ... heck, one of the best series ever, in any genre ... that's more difficult.

        I think it was the writers, especially Terry Nation, who made Blake's 7. (Terry Nation also wrote some of the best Dr Who episodes). The actors were OK, but nothing outstanding. The special effects ranged from pathetic to dire. The scenario, band of rebels against

    • Re:All puff... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by jd ( 1658 ) <imipakNO@SPAMyahoo.com> on Monday July 28, 2003 @08:29AM (#6550079) Homepage Journal
      None of that bothers me, as all of that can be fixed. What concerns me is that none of the Blake's 7 societies online are running this story.


      Think about it - these are people who monitor the every footstep of these actors, who attend every theatre performance, tape every television appearance. These are not the sort of people who would exactly miss a large-scale purchase of rights, the forming of a consortium, and the gearing-up to work on a mini-series.


      These fanzines have the inside scoop on many stories, long before they reach the mainstream media. Assuming the story is even thought worthy, by the mainstream media.


      That they say nothing - not even that there are rumors of negotiations - tells me that either the fans fell asleep waiting for the BBC to do anything, or that the BBC story is not entirely honest.

      • Re:All puff... (Score:3, Funny)

        by pmz ( 462998 )
        ...Blake's 7 societies.... ...these are people who monitor the every footstep of these actors....

        I'm sure there is a psychological term for this. And, whatever complex convoluted word it is, I offer this translation to us lay people: "not well".

    • Re:All puff... (Score:4, Interesting)

      by TomV ( 138637 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @10:09AM (#6550900)
      Nothing new here at all. Paul Darrow acquired the rights to make new B7 from Terry Nation about 15 years ago and has been media-pushing it in the hope of getting some funds about once a year ever since. It's been 'about to return' as a movie or TV series for a long time now.

      Which isn't to say that I don't consider it worthy of a return, but it is hard to see how an Avon spin-off could reasonably be called Blake's 7. OK so in the original series, seasons 3 & 4 were missing Blake, right up until the final, wonderful, paranoid apocalypse in the final episode, but it was Blake's crew, still basically on Blake's mission, and wanted by the Federtaion because of their history with Blake.

      In any case, if you want a fix of Blake's 7 style grit and pessimism, I can strongly recommend Chris Boucher's "Kaldor City" [kaldorcity.com] audios, in which the Paul Darrow character could very easily be a post-Blake, in-hiding Avon, which also features various characters Boucher originally created for Blake's 7, all set in the society (and with some of the characters) he built for the Doctor Who classic "Robots of Death"

      I'd say, use B7 as an inspiration, sure, but it was effectively brought full-circle in 'Blake' and anything more would rather spoil the delicious uncompromising bleakness of that final showdown. How often DO the bad guys get to win?

      TomV

  • It was better than Cats... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by AndroidCat ( 229562 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:36AM (#6549554) Homepage
    Darrow said: "The programme had such a gritty and dramatic style that was every bit as great an influence on the genre as the original Star Trek."
    I know he's trying to pump his project, but that's really quite an overstatement of its importance.
      • Are you sure you didn't mean a SF drama about a rag tag bunch of renegades in a stolen ship on the run from a fascist police state? [imdb.com] :^P

        It's become a standard gimick to get away with a tiny cast. Even Herc in Space [andromedaascendant.com] sort of uses it, except they forgot the fascist police state or any excuse to still have a tiny crew. Oh well...

      • Funny you should say that (Score:5, Interesting)

        by Snaller ( 147050 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @09:42AM (#6550669) Journal
        I was actually thinking of Blakes 7 when i saw Farscape - don't know why really, its not that they have that much obviously in common - apart from a group of people on the run from the police state.

        Blakes 7 was also unusual in that our heros were usually dealing from a position of strengh. Usually writers hate to make their people to strong because then they can't write their way out of it later (bad writers perhaps?) - but the ship "The Liberator" was the fastest ship in known space (only its sister ship was as fast, and it was only see twice and quickly met an untimely end), the ship has regenerative properties and could restore itself even after the most heavy of attacks. It had teleportation ability over wast distances, something that the federation had never been able to work out. The (almost) sentient computer Zen had wast amounts of knowledge about most things they ran into, and the ship was well stocked with copious amounts of food, clothes and valuables (in the form of gems, precious medals, and currency) - and at the end of season one they manage to aquired "Orac" before the federation does. A supercomputer of a special kind, its dying inventor originally invented the chip and computer principles that all computers in exsistance are based on - because of this the sentient Orac is able to tap into any computer system at all and control it.
        But that didn't really stifle the creativity - perhaps because there was always a certain amount of internal strife.
    • actually it is not at all an overstatement. Blakes 7 was a far better show for "the rest of the world" than cheesy star trek. more camp, more down, more mystique and most important - enough dark humor to make the trekkies bowl cut geeks jump up and down on the spot :

      noooo noooo noooo (nasely geek voices inserted)

      severus snape would have been at home on the deck of the liberator - he would not have been allowed near the star treck set! nobody grew, noone got in touch with their feelings and most teenagers

  • If they're going to bring this back.. (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    ..they need to bring back another low budget sci-fi, that being Doctor Who.

  • Why bother (Score:5, Interesting)

    by jez_f ( 605776 ) <jeremy@jeremyfrench.co.uk> on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:37AM (#6549560) Homepage
    I was young and impressionable when Blake 7 first came out, I really liked it at the time, but why bother trying to revive it now.
    Anyone under 25 or most Americans will have no idea what it is. I can't remember much about it myself. So it is just playing on the sentimentality of a few.
    Considering the state of SF in general nowadays it would be nice to get something new rather than rehashes of old ideas, we have plenty of them already. As far as I can see this is just £7M down the pan.

    • Re:Why bother (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Rogerborg ( 306625 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:51AM (#6549607) Homepage

      Given that Firefly is basically Blake's 7 with a budget but without the plot (rag tag bunch of renegades on a mission to, uh, uh...), that's rather harsh. Given that only Avon will be returning, I doubt that it will have that much connection to the original. I for one am interested to find out whether it's still possible to do a quality hard core SF series in the UK, rather than a dumbed down populist one. If it takes an old name to secure the money for doing that, then I'm prepared to give it the benefit of the doubt rather than writing it off before filming has even begun.

      • Re:Why bother (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Erasmus Darwin ( 183180 )
        "Given that Firefly is basically Blake's 7 with a budget but without the plot (rag tag bunch of renegades on a mission to, uh, uh...),"

        ...figure out just what the hell a secret government organization did to River and why they wanted her back?

        Beyond that, yeah they were just your typical space rogues doing anything for a buck. However, I think there was a good balance between episodic stories and long-running story arcs. The problem is that the longer plots didn't get a chance to play out before the se

    • Re:Why bother (Score:3, Interesting)

      by TwistedSpring ( 594284 )
      Does that really matter?

      If they haven't heard of it, then they may find it a refreshingly realist approach to a genre so overpopulated by flat and uninteresting characters. Just because somebody hasn't seen the original doesn't mean that they will immediately dispense with the remake.

      Remaking Blakes Seven has the potential to "play on the sentimentality of the few" and at the same time introduce a new generation to the show. So long as they play their cards right and don't get too nostalgic themselves

  • Avon (Score:5, Interesting)

    by sql*kitten ( 1359 ) * on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:37AM (#6549563)
    Avon (the character played by Paul Darrow) was a huge influence on me, altho' I was too young to realize it at the time. He was a dark and complex character, a technology expert who could clearly and rationally see that he could make the most money and wield the most power by betraying his comrades... but he could never quite bring himself to do it. He'd always set off with the intent of doing so, then change his mind at the last minute and use his superior intellect to save the day, then hate himself for it afterwards. He got most of the best lines [imdb.com] too. Oh, and he may or may not have been shagging Blake's arch-enemy, the head of the secret police. Certainly they were both up for it, and even avoided killing each other for that purpose while remaining nominal enemies otherwise.

    There simply aren't characters with this kind of depth in modern scifi, even in relatively intelligent shows like B5. I can't wait to see the new episodes.

    • But wasn't Blake's "worst enemy" in fact Avon's wife ? I distinctly remember an episode when Avon and whats-her-name came face to face and discussed this. Gives a whole new meaning to "fucking each other over".

    • Re:Avon (Score:5, Funny)

      by imipak ( 254310 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @07:18AM (#6549715) Journal
      And he invented ssh, in the episiode 'aftermath' where he uses Orac to run commands on liberator and pipe the output back to the beach he's standing on.

      This really is fantastic news, B7 was far far superior IMHO to Star Trek. In B7 the Federation are the baddies - an evil authoritarian fascist state ruled by a corrupt oligarchy, full of Borgia-esque backstabbing and politicing. The troopers are often sympathetic characters sketched in some depth (as opposed to disposable extras whose only role is saying "Arghhh!!!" and falling off something clutching their stomachs after getting shot. The crew are all highly imperfect; a lot of the drama comes from the dramatic tension between the imperfect rebels; Avon (untrustworhty, devious, very clever, arrogant as fsck) Blake the wannabe hero, cowardly drunk Vila, the moody Cally (ah! how I fancied Cally at the age of 10... me that is, not her), the stupid but amiable Gan, and so on. No shortage of 'dark'ness. The last episode features the entire crew but Avon dying in a brief shootout - much more realistic than 'small group of mercenaries overcomes entire galactic government'.

      And samples of Zen saying 'Confirmed' and Orac's "state your program requirements... they will be implemented when capacity is available" make great Windows sound effects. If you're a sad fanboy like me that is ;) (yes folks that's where my login iD comes from) Horizon [horizon.org.uk] has much more info.

      • Re:Avon (Score:2)

        by mgv ( 198488 )
        The last episode features the entire crew but Avon dying in a brief shootout - much more realistic than 'small group of mercenaries overcomes entire galactic government'.

        Actually if you read afterlife, the book sequel to the TV series, you realise that two of the crew survive the final shootout.

        Michael
        • Hmmm, I hadn't heard of this; surely 'canon' for B7 means only the 52 broadcast TV episodes? I realise there was a nice ambiguity about Avon with the fade to black, roll credits (with no theme, just silence) followed by a brief burst of firing. Left me utterly shell-shocked when I first saw it, I couldn't believe they'd all *died*! Come to think of it I can't think of that being used as the ending of *any* TV or movie, in any genre... oh wait, Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid. Any others? Not in sf anyw
    • I disagree about B5. I'm currently watching the Season 2 DVD's, and I have to say that G'Kar and Londo are two of the most interesting characters I've come across in Sci-FI TV. Kosh's riddles are always fun to try and figure out too.
    • Avon got most of the best lines, you say?


      Demonstrably.

    • Re:Avon (Score:2)

      by Vryl ( 31994 )
      He was always snogging her on some neutral planet or whatever. A bit like kirk.

  • Characterisation (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Haileri$ ( 672536 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:38AM (#6549566)
    This programme was so cool! Not for the fact that it was a top notch sci-fi soap but that it had great characterisation. The first anti-hero in Avon. The D&D rogue character in Villa. Now obviously, its almost certain that the new show will be a pile of steaming... but let me just wallow in dreams that it will be good... P.S. Not nostalgia, got all the vids!!

  • I hope (Score:5, Funny)

    by Timesprout ( 579035 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:38AM (#6549568)
    the rights were not purchased by that perspex box with the flashing lights or they may have trouble getting the project off the ground

    • Re:I hope (Score:5, Funny)

      by suss ( 158993 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @07:07AM (#6549673)
      the rights were not purchased by that perspex box with the flashing lights or they may have trouble getting the project off the ground

      ORAC was the inspiration for today's generation of casemodders!

      He will, ofcourse, be returning with shiny fans and watercooling in the new series.

  • Finally! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Lutherx ( 575245 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:40AM (#6549574)
    When the show ended there were arguments over whether or not Avon actually dies in the final scene. He is surrounded by guards, it cuts to black and there is a lot of gunfire....

    Presumably he is gunned down like the rest of his crew BUT he could have survived... Somehow? Surely? Maybe?

    According to the article the actor that played Avon (Paul Darrow) will be the only actor to return. Set 25 years after the last series hopefully the question of Avon's survival will be answered.

    Apologises to anyone that didn't no what happened to Avon at the end and has been slowly working their way through the series :)

  • Paul Darrow - top bloke (Score:5, Informative)

    by Rogerborg ( 306625 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:42AM (#6549580) Homepage

    Sigh of relief when I saw that it was Paul Darrow. To be honest, I'm not really a fan of Blake's 7, but I worked with Paul on the CGI voiceover that he did for Deathtrap Dungeon [culttv.net] and I was impressed with his professionalism and enthusiasm. He seems genuinely to care about the projects he works on, and I'm content that this will be a labour of love rather than a cash-in. Huzzah.

    • Re:Paul Darrow - top bloke (Score:3, Interesting)

      by jd ( 1658 )
      All that's true. (Seen him at conventions.) But he can't write. His script (Man of Iron) and his book are absolutely horrible.

      Having said that, he accepted a lot of user input on how to fix the problems. Unfortunately, after publication, and the publisher refused the alterations.

      Paul Darrow is a classic example of a person who would work best in an Open Source environment - good ideas, willing to listen, willing to accept good patches, willling to do follow-on research - but is in a media that all but p

  • One simple request... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:43AM (#6549581)
    Don't give them too big a budget, otherwise it'll turn out like Red Dwarf series 7...

    Humour, good characters and a neat set of sub-plots is all it take to make a good, fun Sci -Fi romp. CGI special effects and shiny costumes? Naaah!

    • Re:One simple request... (Score:3, Informative)

      by G-funk ( 22712 )
      It wasn't budget that killed series 7, it was the lack of rimmer. When rimmer came back it was good again. Not series 1 good, but pretty darned good nonetheless.
  • I watched and enjoyed the original show back when I was a kid, but frankly I can't see the point of this new project, particularly if it's going to have only a tenuous link to the original (what, no Servalan? *grin*) Sounds to me like a blatant attempt to extract money from die-hard fans, rather like what the BBC have been doing with Dr Who for the last decade...

    As Slave would have put it - `I'm sorry to report, sir, this project is going to bomb!!!` :-)
    • "what, no Servalan?"

      My god , have you seen what the actress who played her looks like now? I won't be so rude as
      to say what I think she looks like now , suffice to say she won't be winning any beauty prizes
      these days and if I were her I'd get my money back from the plastic surgeon!
      • Jacqueline Pierce.

        That role did her in. I listened to a BBC radio doc about her a while back; AFAIR she apparently got into the role so deeply she became more Servalan than herself and the character took over her life. I think she's had a nervous breakdown or three in the intervening years, all caused by this, so you can't be too harsh on her. Respect - if you were into dominant babes in the 80s, she's still an icon.

        No Virginia, Mrs. Thatcher wasn't a babe. Never liked her, did we precious?
    • Sounds to me like a blatant attempt to extract money from die-hard fans

      Paul Darrow is a die-hard fan so there's some hope...

      TWW

  • The official web site (Score:5, Informative)

    by JohnGrahamCumming ( 684871 ) * <slashdot@ j g c . o rg> on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:48AM (#6549601) Homepage Journal
    They've set up an official web site for the revival here [blakes7.com].

    Unfortunately it uses Flash but there's more information about the plans and there's a cool new Blake's 7 logo.

    John.

  • Myth Reinvented (Score:5, Informative)

    by awol ( 98751 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:48AM (#6549603) Journal
    C'mon, surely you realise that Blakes 7 is just the legend of Arthur (and the classic medieval character cast) relocated to the future? I mean they "stumble" on The Liberator (Excalibur) and it is only Blakes "purity" that enables him to defend against Zens defences (ie pull the sword from the stone). The other characters start with the basics, the giant, the maiden (originally Dayna), the rougue the anti-hero and then the wicked witch )Servelan.

    Having said that, love the show, and the best settings are always ripe for a revisit. IMHO, the Liberator must be involved for it to succeed.
    • Some problems with that: Arthur is not a rebel/outlaw story, the anti-hero isn't in the same camp as the hero in Arthur, where is Parsival in B7? etc. etc.

      Yes, there are some similarities, but that's unavoidable, there is a lot of stores and myths around. What's really interresting about B7 is how Avon, the anti-hero, comes out to be the most popular character in the series. In fact Terri Nation (the author) was aware of this and adapted the storyline conformingly.

    • I don't see it as the Arthurian theme. If anything, it was more of the Robin Hood theme.

      The problem with either of those comparisions is that Blake is not in a lot of the episodes.

      I guess you could make a "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" comparision. But that has problems because there isn't an original story for the characters to be from. Just a theme.

      I liked it because it was different. In Star Trek, the crew is always right and good and more enlightened than everyone else in the universe.

      In Bl

  • a few points (Score:3, Interesting)

    by boogy nightmare ( 207669 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @06:53AM (#6549614) Homepage
    Yes let us remember the heady days gone by, remember if you will the playground and chatting with your mates about how good blakes 7 was....

    then remember things like thunderbirds 2017 and all the other failed programmes that tried to make a triumphant return.

    If it does come back (i sort of hope is does not) the only way it will survive is if it gets real good real fast, i mean lets face it the first season of ST:TNG was bollox (bad acting, wobly sets terrible sfx) but look how great it was in the end.

    I think i agree with one of the earlier postings, i think a new twist on Dr Who would be a lot better.

    just my two pence worth (3.2 cents)
  • This was simply the coolest show: not the decor or effects, which were brutally minimalistic, but the characterisation and writing, which was so good that it felt real, every time.
    The day that the series was killed was so traumatic that I almost kicked off TV: the show's producers simply, and without warning, arranged for the entire cast to be killed in one gruesome and bloody ambush.
    After years of arranging narrow escapes for our favourite characters, this was just incredibly insensitive.
    Glad to see the show will be back.
    • the show's producers simply, and without warning, arranged for the entire cast to be killed in one gruesome and bloody ambush.
      After years of arranging narrow escapes for our favourite characters, this was just incredibly insensitive

      Yeah, but it was realistic. Let's face it, if you're a dissident under a totalitarian regime, and there's no outside power with enough strength or influence to make your government think you might be worth keeping on ice for a while, that's exactly>/b> what will happen t
  • Didn't they call it "Farscape" of something?
  • Just a slight correction, Blake's 7 does not date from the early 80's, it dates from 1978. I remember watching the first season at age 9, but unfortunately never saw any of the other seasons as we moved back to the States at the end of 1978.
    A pity because the big sci-fi show in the States when I got back was Battlestar Galactica, which I thought was much inferior, even if the effects were a lot better.
  • or they'll make a movie out of it. The idea well has dried up, and anything with even a modest fan base and opportunities for lots of CGI will be seized upon immediately.

  • All I ever needed to know I learned from (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Cally ( 10873 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @07:58AM (#6549914) Homepage
    Blake's 7

    From [ox.ac.uk]
    this page - so good it had to be posted.



    * Trust is only dangerous when you have to rely on it.
    * Reality is a dangerous concept.
    * There is no logical reason why aliens should be hairy.
    * I am not stupid, I'm not expendable, and I'm not going.
    * No good deed goes unpunished.
    * It is frequently easier to be honest when you have nothing to lose.
    * Civilization has always depended on courtesy rather than truth.
    * On Earth it is considered ill-mannered to kill your friends while committing suicide.
    * The art of leadership is delegation.
    * All that patience gets you is older.
    * Show me someone who believes in something, and I will show you a fool.
    * Regret is part of being alive -- but keep it a small part.
    * He who trusts can never be betrayed, only mistaken.
    * Infallibility depends on your point of view.
    * There are times when even the most cynical must trust in luck.
    * Heroics seldom run to schedule.
    * Dignity, at all costs, dignity.
    * The choice is very simple -- either you can fight, or you can die.
    * In the end, winning is the only safety.
    * Power usually makes its own rules.
    * Some days are better than others, Section Leader.
    * It is not necessary to become irrational in order to prove that one cares; indeed, it is not necessary to prove it at all.
    * While there's life, there's threat.
    * Luck has nothing to do with it.
    * Strategic withdrawl is running away, but with dignity.
    * Idealism is a wonderful thing; all you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use.
    * Nobody is indispensible.
    * Everyone's entitled to one really bad mistake.
    * In the end, your word is all there is, really.
    * There are other rules, but you'll find out what those are when you break them.

  • If they want to re-make it, it is imperative that they not try to continue where they left off.... If I recall correctly, Sevalan (the villain) was the only survivor.

    Oh, while I'm at it, let me add to the chorus: Avon rocks!

  • Blakes 7 was unique (Score:3, Interesting)

    by simong ( 32944 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @08:04AM (#6549950) Homepage
    as British SF goes, because apart from the shaky sets and dated effects (great at the time though) and some weak stories, it actually had an adult plot, well formed characters and genuine tension.

    However, Paul Darrow has been pitching this around for a couple of years now (the original plan was for a movie, and then it became a pilot and now it seems to be a treatment) and I really hope he keeps behind the cameras as he seems to have become an old luvvie in the ensuing years.

    • >I really hope [Paul Darrow] keeps behind the cameras as he seems to have become an old luvvie in the ensuing years.

      See also Sir Ian McKellan and Patrick Stewart. The thing about British luvvies is that they can actually act. Also, Avon wouldn't have to have that much screen time, as there's no reason to assume that he'd be one of the protagonists.

  • B5 came out several years after B7.

    Just a note to the producers: if they use the godawful theme music from the fourth series, violence will ensue, if I have to hunt down Paul Darrow myself.
  • "Blake 7" is NOT returning. A new mini-series set in the "Blake 7" is being considered. Not the same thing.

    Now, Paul Darrow is a fine actor and Avon is a complex character and I do wish him well in this project. But still, I would look to the original series again, digitally restored in all of it's low budget glory. I would mourn Cally once again.

    And I always suspect that Avon would have survived the finale!

  • The Perfect ending (Score:3, Insightful)

    by LoFreQ ( 658847 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @09:06AM (#6550345)
    B7 challenged TV viewers by constantly focusing on the dark themes surrounding unbeatable opression. And in the end they had the guts to finish it on a minor chord which solidified its distopian vision. With that ending it became a noir classic, and I don't want to see that screwed up by adding a "Phantom Menace" years later
  • you can remember with fondness the original "Dr. Who" and think that William Hartnell was the only "true" doctor. After that, even the original "Star Trek" series pales into insignificance.

    I remember racing home from school each afternoon to see what trouble the Doctor would get himself into or whether he would recover the key to his Tardis (the original Doctor lost the key quite a lot).

    "Dr. Who" is real science fiction. "Star Trek" is future history. Everything else doesn't count.
  • I haven't seen Blake's 7 on TV in over a decade. (I even have a Tivo search for it). Maybe the sequel miniseries will prompt someone to reair the original series. BBC America at 2am? Anyone???

  • Premise of the Series (Score:3, Informative)

    by SailorBob ( 146385 ) on Monday July 28, 2003 @09:26AM (#6550531) Homepage Journal
    From the website:

    A Rebellion Reborn

    Paul 'Avon' Darrow remembers Terry Nation's early ideas for a revival and sets the scene for a Rebellion Reborn.

    As we have established against all odds; nobody wins, and if Blake's 7 in the 1980's ended with the triumph of 'Establishment Terror' and the least likely of a hopeful group of dissidents left to oppose it, then Blake's 7 three decades later, must spring forward from that unpromising base.

    The good/bad guy is beaten. All's wrong with the World/Universe. When has this been the case before? In Earth's history, many times.

    Terry's idea for a later reworking of his Blake's 7 concept was, as before, inspired by his previous work(s). A bleak Universe where if you're rich and powerful - or useful to those who are - you're in a kind of corrupt paradise. Then, out of nowhere, comes one man, then another and another and so on. Hope springs eternal, but (and it's a big but) are these new heroes truly heroic? Not in Terry Nation's Universe. They are, as before, recognisable misfits... Colin Wilson's Outsiders.

    Having said that, outsiders are those who trigger, either by default or design, the greatest of changes for those on the 'inside'. There is such a thing as a one-man (or in this case seven man) army and armchair enthusiasts will cheer them on, win or lose. In fact, it makes the enthusiasts feel a lot better if 'they' lose. It saves the insiders collective conscience and excuses them from taking up the mantle of outsiders. Until, of course, the next adventure.

    Therefore, Terry's concept for a TV Movie/Mini-Series with a view to develop into another series of Blake's 7, was as follows;

    The basic storyline was that the Federation, while still seeming all-powerful, would be rotting from within (cf, collapse of the Soviet Empire). Out of the past comes yesterday's man. But all our yesterdays are viewed with nostalgic affection. So, through no fault or will of his own the sole survivor of the original Blake's 7 becomes the catalyst for the creation of its successor. Terry likened this to Napoleon emerging from Elba and fighting his last hundred days. He was always going to lose, but he'd put up one hell of a fight. Glorious defiance is very appealing.

    Avon, imprisoned for 25-years, has in the minds of the average citizen essentially 'disappeared'. The Federation's propaganda machine has gone to great lengths to ensure that Blake and his compatriots are remembered simply as outlaws and certainly not hailed as martyrs. Information suppression plus the amount of physical time passed makes Avon a forgotten man. That said there is of course an underground network of dissidents for whom he represents the voice and potency of resistance and in many ways Avon will become the unwitting figurehead to their movement a reluctant El Cid.

    The new seven are like a wind, divine or not. Sometimes welcome, sometimes not, the wind is never static, it always moves on.

    Whereas, the mores and values of the TV audience of the time tempered Terry's vision of 'The Dirty Dozen in Space' playing more like 'Robin Hood in Space' the new series must be grittier, more believable, and possess an almost epic and mythic feel to it that will raise it above the 'SF bubblegum' that often predominates our screens.

    A good analogy for the series going forward would be West Wing meets The Dirty Dozen where the gloves are off and the rules of engagement ill-defined and thereby the outcome of any conflict either in battle, emotionally or politically, unpredictable!

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