Blakes 7 fans, help me understand!

[NakedMoleRat]

Okay, I finally got to the last episode yesterday! It was rough, I almost gave up during the first year as each episode was 50 minutes of standing around talking the whole time! :lol But it got better in year two and I even liked when Avon became the main lead and took over.

Here is my question, the final episode where Blake came back, what was the purpose of him being there? Why did Avon kill him? Avon asks, "Have you betrayed us, betrayed me?" then fires three shots before Blake can answer.

This seems strange since he several times tried to track Blake down and get him back?

Help me understand the dynamic here, please!

Thanks

 

[brandomack]

It was created as a cliffhanger that was never explained.

I'm sorry to say, the BBC left you holding the bag.

As its been way too long to ever go back to it, I'm afraid thats all theres ever going to be. Unless some young enterprising individuals convince BBC to reboot. (Hell, they keep doing it with Dr. Who)

 

[Kerr Avon]

Well the actor playing Blake was asked to come back, and one of the requirements he made for the episode is that it needed to be very clearly and certainly the death of Blake. That's why it was so gory compared to most BBC shows at the time, you would normally rarely see any blood with violence, but they made those three very bloody squibs for his stomach.

As for the in character reason, go back to the start of the episode where they talk about Gauda Prime and who all you would find there. What word was used to describe the kind of person when the camera focused on Kerr Avon?

BTW, there's a continuation to the series in the form of a paperback book called "Blakes 7: Afterlife" which picks up after the series ended.

 

[Treadwell]

When the Feds arrived, Avon thought Blake had lured him there to turn him over to them, but in actuality the Federation had followed Avon there to capture Blake. Blake was trying to explain that he was trying to orchestrate a revolution and wanted Avon at his side, but was being too oblique and Avon shot him before he could properly explain.

 

[NakedMoleRat]

So, Avon was scared, confused and just plain out jumped the gun? Sucked to be Blake!

 

[Treadwell]

Avon was paranoid and trusted no one, and blake saw more in avon than was actually there. Two fatal flaws that proved themselves so at the same moment.

 

[NakedMoleRat]

That's actually brilliant writing. The ultimate trajedy!

 

[Colin Droidmilk]

Okay, I finally got to the last episode yesterday! It was rough, I almost gave up during the first year as each episode was 50 minutes of standing around talking the whole time! :lol But it got better in year two

I like all the standing around talking in Blake's 7. Just love watching Royal Shakespeare Company actors like Darrow and Thomas delivering some good Terry Nation dialogue. It's better than the action and the effects that's for sure!

 

[Kennyd]

I like all the standing around talking in Blake's 7. !

Same here. I saw these when they first showed, even as a kiddo I loved the talking

 

[Colin Droidmilk]

It's a good thing it was just talking too, because I just got the series 1 DVD from Amazon and all the old FX shots have been replaced with cgi, like they did with the Star Trek DVDs. Getting very annoyed now with this type of behaviour.

EDIT: False alarm, hooray! I jumped the gun. The box art has a credit for some CGI company, which, now I'm watching the discs, turns out to have only done cgi sequences for the menus. The reason I panicked was because of this CG credit and the fact that the box has 'remastered' splurged all over it, like the ST OS DVD,which IS full of cgi fx replacement shots.

 

[micdavis]

Is there still no US release of this?

 

[Angelight J]

...

...Here is my question, the final episode where Blake came back, what was the purpose of him being there? Why did Avon kill him? Avon asks, "Have you betrayed us, betrayed me?" then fires three shots before Blake can answer.

This seems strange since he several times tried to track Blake down and get him back?

Help me understand the dynamic here, please!

Thanks

NakedMoleRat- Hi! I'm Jeanette, an old B7 fan here from back in the days when the show aired. The show started out with Blake as a "leader" of sorts, with plenty static from Avon along the way. But when Blake left, the crew pretty much spent much of the rest of the time looking for him. The show was a Blake's 7 without a Blake. So it was right for the writers to bring him back, for Avon to find him after the long seemingly hopeless search, in this last episode.
But as others stated, Avon was confused, on the defensive and needed exacting clarity to make the right decision. So of course, Blake was horribly unclear when he should have just answered Kerr Avon with a "No, I did not /would not betray you!"
And so of course it went terribly wrong. And in true BBC style; they kill off a main character. :unsure Then in the last closing scene, Avon sees that he is surrounded and about to die so he stands over his fallen friend, "defending him to the end." Sweet ending and true to the Avon character.
Now if you listen closely to the closing credits background sounds of gunfire, you will hear that Avon's gun is the last one to fire!
So Avon survived. It sort of wraps up the series with the goal of finding Blake finished. The books carry on from there.
I loved this series and had the honor and pleasure of meeting Paul Darrow many times as well as most of the rest of the crew and Terry Nation (may he RIP...I have a B7 communicator prop story to tell one day about Terry Nation and me :thumbsup) The last episode was brought up many times by other fans at B7 events and the above was the basic explanation if my memory serves me right. The last 5 minutes of this show was the most emotional sci fi scene I had ever seen to that point, thanks to the talented writing and awesome acting skills of both Mr. Darrow and Mr. Thomas. :cool A great show that ended before it's time.

 

[Angelight J]

Micdavis- I wish it would air over here in the states.What I watched in late 1979 to 1982 or so were some PAL conversions on VCR (not so good quality) but I think you can purchase the official boxed set online. I keep hoping Netflix gets it someday soon.