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blakes7-d Digest Volume 00 : Issue 95
Today's Topics:
Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
Re: [B7L] Re: Anna
Re: [B7L] Avon's skills
[B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
[B7L] Vera Cruz - make sure you see this film
Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
[B7L] Avon drool
[B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
[B7L] Re: Blakes Seven Action Figures
[B7L] UnAmerican Activities
Re: [B7L] UnAmerican Activities
Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Re [B7L] The bank fraud
Re: [B7L] What do we want from Horizon?
Re [B7L] Anna GRANT?
Re: [B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Re: [B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Re: [B7L] Vera Cruz - make sure you see this film
Re: [B7L] B7 Fan Fiction
Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
Re: Re [B7L] The bank fraud
[B7L] psudonyms
[B7L] Ring finger (was Re: Horizon discussion)
[B7L] Vila's taste in women
Re: [B7L] Offers of marriage
[B7L] Re: Time Squad - A Cally Perspective (long)
[B7L] Re: Anna's Name
Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 11:08:32 +0200
From: "Marian de Haan" <maya@multiweb.nl>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
Message-ID: <009201bf9c83$09dd2540$d6ee72c3@marian-de-haan.multiweb.nl>
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Andrew Ellis wrote:
>There is more to military service than being a squadie / space corp
trooper.
>There are numerous admin functions, scientific units etc etc.
>
>And, when push comes to shove. Avon takes orders from Blake when Blake
>actually issues them. He may protest, but he carries them out.
But Blake never requires a salute from him :-)
>When you have
>an asset as skilful as Avon, you don't worry about the odd bit of
>insubordination, provided the job gets done.
>
>So, for Avon to function in the military, he just needs a commanding
officer
>who understands him, and to not be on the front line.
Absolutely (especially that last condition)! <veg> Now this reminds me of
Carnell's remark in Weapon: "The Officer Corps will forgive anything it can
understand, which makes intelligence about the only sin." Does not look
very promising for a man like Avon, does it? :-)
Marian
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 11:23:29 +0200
From: "Marian de Haan" <maya@multiweb.nl>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Re: Anna
Message-ID: <00a301bf9c85$1d773bc0$d6ee72c3@marian-de-haan.multiweb.nl>
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Ellynne G. wrote:
>What's slowly driving me nuts is trying to
>figure out how much of the real Anna he knew. Did he fall for an
>illusion or the real person? And _why_ did he fall for her? What
>attracted him and made her the love of his life?
I think the real tragedy for Avon was that she was presumed dead when his
infatuation for her was at its highest. Had their relationship been given
the time to go on I think it likely he would have got tired of her very
quickly once his hormones had settled down. :-)
Marian (frantically trying to remember where she put that chain mail...)
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 02 Apr 2000 01:45:21 -0800
From: mistral@ptinet.net
To: B7 List <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Avon's skills
Message-ID: <38E716B0.49CDF672@ptinet.net>
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Additional thought:
> PatPat wrote:
>
> > It is interesting to note that Anna Grant actually achieved this
> > 'military coup' objective (well, almost). Perhaps she managed to get
> > away with the lion's share of the embezzlement, and left Avon holding
> > the bag.
>
> Ack! What a neat twist! I can see Anna doing this, if I could
> just square it with her dying declaration of love...
What if Anna didn't realise that she loved Avon until after she'd
taken the money? Maybe even after she'd seen him the last time?
And she had him captured and shipped away to cover her tracks,
but once he's gone she's sorry, but it's too late. This could explain
why she acts so contradictorily in Rumors. Ooh. Like it :-D
Mistral
--
"Consider it an adventure."--Galen, 'Crusade'
------------------------------
Date: 02 Apr 2000 12:00:45 +0200
From: Calle Dybedahl <calle@lysator.liu.se>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: [B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Message-ID: <86bt3s4yb6.fsf@tezcatlipoca.algonet.se>
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So, will there be anything? I'm leaving for London tomorrow, and I'm
not sure if I'll have any mail access until I come home again. So I'd
like to know really soon if the semi-planned Page's Bar event next
weekend (Saturday, wasn't it?) will happen or not. And if it will
happen, I want to know how to get to Page's Bar.
--
Calle Dybedahl, Vasav. 82, S-177 52 Jaerfaella,SWEDEN | calle@lysator.liu.se
"...a festering realization that all you do is no more than the futile
slapping of paint onto the rotting, decayed infrastructure of the
Information Superhighway." -- Jinx_tigr
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 02 Apr 2000 03:01:27 PDT
From: "Sally Manton" <smanton@hotmail.com>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
Message-ID: <20000402100128.42590.qmail@hotmail.com>
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Andrew wrote:
<When you have an asset as skilful as Avon, you don't worry about the odd
bit of insubordination, provided the job gets done.>
Love Avon as I do, I would baulk at calling it the *odd* bit of
insubordination...Blake's Liberator runs on the decidedly unmilitary 'say
what you like, then so what I say' principle. *Any* military-minded leader
would have probably had him shot or dumped by episode 6 at the very least
(and wouldn't we *love* to have seen Kasabi trying to deal with him and
Vila?)
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 11:15:19 +0100
From: "Alison Page" <alison@alisonpage.demon.co.uk>
To: "lysator" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>,
"freedom city" <freedom-city@blakes-7.org>
Subject: [B7L] Vera Cruz - make sure you see this film
Message-ID: <000d01bf9c8c$73e4eb40$ca8edec2@pre-installedco>
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A few years back I saw the last half hour of a film which I found extremely
reminiscent of the Avon/Blake relationship. How frustrated I was that I
hadn't seen the whole of it. The 'Avon' character was played by Burt
Lancaster, and the Blake character by Gary Cooper.
After watching it I learned that on the B7 set Paul Darrow was nicknamed
'Burt' because he was extremely fond of Mr L's morally ambiguous
sensitive/macho acting style. (Who isn't?)
And then to cap it all, at Deliverance, I heard Chris Boucher say that he
drew a lot of his inspiration for B7 from the morally ambiguous westerns of
the 50s. He mentioned just one film by name - yes it was 'Vera Cruz'.
I can't tell you how strongly I recommend that you see this film. It is on
today (Sunday) on BBC2, at 2.30. I hope the whole of it is as good as the
small bit I saw a few years ago. But certainly worth seeing by anyone who is
interested in the evolution of the Blake and Avon characters in the minds of
the actors and scriptwriters.
And, you will spot Servalan very easily :-)
Alison
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 11:32:05 +0100
From: Nicola Collie <nicola@dunedinite.free-online.co.uk>
To: Lysator <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
Message-Id: <l03130302b50cd19c609f@[212.159.69.49]>
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Trish said:
>How come no one suggested "Shiny Happy People?"
>
>Trish
><g>
Because the CD hadn't got that far yet? ;)
Or (closer to the truth) I didn't want to bring the wrath of the TN down
upon my head by making the first suggestion that came to mind...
Nicola
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 02 Apr 2000 04:11:13 PDT
From: "Sally Manton" <smanton@hotmail.com>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
Message-ID: <20000402111113.91143.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed
After Trish asked:
<How come no one suggested "Shiny Happy People?">
Nicola wrote
<<snip> Or (closer to the truth) I didn't want to bring the wrath of the TN
down upon my head by making the first suggestion that came to mind...>
Not just me, then...?
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 12:38:03 +0100
From: Julia Jones <julia.lysator@jajones.demon.co.uk>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Cc: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: [B7L] Avon drool
Message-ID: <Dgk3BpBbEz54EwjP@jajones.demon.co.uk>
In message <20000402065010.22881.qmail@hotmail.com>, Sally Manton
<smanton@hotmail.com> writes
>Lesseee...oh, to be different, let's make it black.. Very tight leather
>trousers, of course, with knee-length boots (hijackers in thigh-boots is a
>little hard to swallow, though I don't mind trying)
Must remember this isn't Freedom City... must... resist... temptation...
> and a black silk shirt like
>the one in Aftermath - or maybe white. Or cream. Or...
You're just doing this to tease me, because you know I'm not up to
extended typing at the moment...
--
Julia Jones
"Don't philosophise with me, you electronic moron!"
The Turing test - as interpreted by Kerr Avon.
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 13:18:01 +0100
From: "Ariana" <ariana@ndirect.co.uk>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>, "Judith Proctor" <Judith@blakes-7.com>
Subject: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Message-ID: <010301bf9ca3$07078980$ace407c3@ariana>
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Elementary, my dear Cally.
I thought this was excellent. OK, so it's a bit of a Blake's 7/Agatha
Christie crossover with Avon cast as Hercule Poirot, but on the whole, it
worked very well. I was certainly in the dark as to whodunnit right to the
final revelation. The numbers/letters thing was perhaps a bit pat, but it
was certainly a surprise.
On the other side of the plot, I wasn't so enthralled by the Liberator's
race to Destiny. There were so many plot holes in that part of the story
that the entire ship could have punched a path through them. See the nits
section for more details.
Fortunately, though, most of the focus was on the murder mystery on the
Ortega. As I said, I thought this worked really well. The right amount of
suspense and red herrings, and some good team work (!) between Avon and
Cally. I would have been terribly disappointed if Avon had been the only one
to find all the solutions. Cally's revelation about the homing beacon, for
instance, just stopped the episode from being Avon Reveals All.
But yes, on the whole, an excellent episode.
Character stuff:
================
It's the Avon and Cally show. Mr Wonderful is transformed into Sherlock
Holmes for an episode, and Cally actually gets to do some thinking and
fighting. After the last couple of episodes, I was beginning to wonder what
people saw in Cally. Now I see it.
In this episode, she proves to be intelligent and resourceful, and another
female who does not scream despite ample opportunity to do so. I think even
I might have let out a peep in that stock room. But the screaming was left
to Sara -- and was later revealed not to be the stereotypical reaction of
another hysterical sci-fi female, but a clever ploy to make herself look
innocent. It's always nice when a show does manage to avoid an obvious
stereotype.
As to Cally, her "I believe you" scene with Sonnheim was excellent, with
just the right mix of slyness and coyness to make you wonder whether she did
believe him or not. She obviously doesn't pay too much attention to Avon's
biting remarks either -- I particularly loved the way she rolled her eyes
when he complained about her volunteering them as hostages. I gather the
general concensus on the Liberator by now is that Avon's bark is worse than
his bite.
Speaking of which, it was interesting to to see Avon do something else than
twiddle knobs and snarl a lot. He still does plenty of both, but also gets
to strut around with his hands behind his back, putting on a fine display of
Holmesian superciliousness. It does add a bit more depth to the character,
with the notion that he can be motivated by curiosity as well as greed and
self-interest. I suppose that's part of the reason he's still on the
Liberator and not living it up on some planet somewhere.
Aside from this, Blake gets to do his noble bit, Vila shows off his general
fecklessness, and Gan and Jenna are pretty much wallpaper.
Nitpicks and Preposterous Props:
================================
I wonder why this episode kept going into fuzzyvision. Blake and Avon start
off crisp and clear in a corridor, then they open a door and look as though
they've been filmed on home video. Maybe the BBC spent its film budget on
those shots of the Liberator in space -- which weren't too bad, IMHO.
I do have a few nits about the Liberator's trip to Destiny. If it would take
the Ortega five months to get back to Destiny at sub-light speed, doesn't
that mean they should be pretty much in Destiny's solar system?
Blake embarks on a mission to transport a crucial cargo to a planet, and he
doesn't even check to see that it's still in the box before leaving?
On its way to Destiny, the Liberator laboriously ploughs through an asteroid
field, nearly depleting its power. Then Blake decides to go back. Next thing
we know, the Liberator is back near the Ortega. Um, wouldn't the Liberator
have had to laboriously plough through the asteroid field again just in
order to go back?
On the props side, it looked a bit as if the doors on the Ortega were made
of cardboard or styrofoam -- but then this *is* Blake's 7 and I would expect
no less. The interior decor was screaming Seventies modern; my grandmother
had an awful lot of furniture that looked like that. But as the Seventies
are in these days, I thought the Ortega's recreation room ended up looking
rather stylish.
Dialogue Gems:
==============
KENDALL: [Putting neutrotope in the box] Yes, it's enough to tempt
anyone. There are men who would betray their companions for
a lot less.
AVON: [Appearing in doorway] What a very cynical thought, Doctor.
======
CALLY: Remember that Avon and I will be staying. We will regard
ourselves as hostages against Blake's return.
AVON: Well thank you Cally, what a clever idea.
CALLY: [telepathically] Blake will return.
AVON: You can bet your life on it, in fact you've just bet both
our lives on it.
======
CALLY: We must help these people. [She and Avon hand their teleport
bracelets to Blake]
AVON: Must we? Personally, I don't care if their whole planet turns
into a mushroom.
======
CALLY: My people have a saying, a man who trusts can never be betrayed,
only mistaken.
AVON: Life expectancy must be fairly short among your people.
[[I wonder if Avon remembered Cally's saying three and a half years
later...]]
======
VILA: [Entering with Blake] Where are Cally and Avon?
BLAKE: It's a long story.
VILA: Well what's in the box?
BLAKE: It's an even longer story.
VILA: I like stories!
======
CALLY: I agree. So who do you think it is?
AVON: Mandrian.
CALLY: Why?
AVON: Instinct. I discount Dr. Kendall.
CALLY: I thought you mistrusted instinct.
AVON: I do, so I am probably wrong.
======
ZEN: In one point zero three minutes, it will no longer be possible
to operate force wall and main drive simultaneously. Please
decide which to close down.
JENNA: Without main drive we'll never get out of this.
VILA: Without the force wall we'll be smashed to pieces.
[[Life is never simple on the Liberator]]
======
KENDALL: Five four one two four?
AVON: Precisely.
PASCO: What's it mean?
AVON: Absolutely nothing. As a number it has no significance at all,
but when I was in the filter plant just now, I noticed one of
the instruments. Liquid crystals show a number, and then the
confirmation circuit translates those numbers into the written
word. Right from the start, we thought that those were numbers.
They are not, they are letters.
CALLY: Letters?
AVON: Rafford was dying. It's difficult to be neat under those
circumstances. [he takes a marker pen and paper and draws] Let's
start with the one and the two... [The letters A R A appear] And
the first letter... [He puts an S in front, everyone looks at SARA]
[[Tada! Avon Reveals All (er, not to be misinterpreted by the Avon
enthusiasts out there ;)]]
======
VILA: I don't think I feel very well.
GAN: I hope nothing's been broken. [Retrieves box]
BLAKE: So do I. [Opens box - empty] It's still on the Ortega. We've
got to get back to them.
VILA: Now I know I don't feel very well.
[[But while you're at it, how about whacking Blake for not checking the
contents of the box before he left?!]]
======
AVON: [after fighting with Sara] You'd better get her out of here,
I really rather enjoyed that.
[[Ah, so that's why he takes up the black leather later on...]]
Miscellaneous:
==============
Since comments about Avon's wardrobe seem de rigueur, can I just mention at
this point that in this episode he looks as if he's wearing a sailor suit
that's been dyed black? I know we've seen the outfit before, but it's only
now that I've finally put my finger on what was bugging me about it. That
and the computer switches on the front, of course.
The Ortega crew seems to all have collars made out of that thick material
you put under table cloths to protect your table. I'd certainly swear that
their collars had the same pattern on them.
JENNA: Zen says it's a Mark Three Galaxy Class cruiser.
BLAKE: Galaxy Class? What, like the Enterprise-D?
[[Well, you knew I wouldn't resist *that*]]
Comments and discussion welcome!
Ariana
======
"You'd better get her out of here, I really rather enjoyed that."
-- Avon, after fighting Sara in "Mission to Destiny"
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 14:00:53 +0100
From: "Ebony" <ebonyben@indigo.ie>
To: "Lysator" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] Re: Blakes Seven Action Figures
Message-ID: <004801bf9cb7$0f8e5e80$44ad7dc2@default>
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Trish wrote:
>The Kerr (I don't really ever use a first name) Avon doll <cut bit>
>Intermittant conscience optional
Hee hee. Great line.
>The Del Tarrant doll
>A set of 64 oversized very white teeth rather than the normal 32
>Personality optional
ROFL!
>The Anna Grant doll
>Just turn her head to see the multiple faces
>To see the original Anna Grant, it is necessary to purchase the optional
rose
>colored glasses available as part of the Avon accessories.
Thank you Trish, it's ages since my sides hurt from laughing so much!
Ebony - who won't quote her real name on an archived list. If it matters,
those on the Other List know who I am :-)
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 11:28:31 -0400
From: "Dana Shilling" <dshilling@worldnet.att.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] UnAmerican Activities
Message-ID: <000501bf9cb8$1c428420$e0614e0c@dshilling>
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One of the compelling qualities of B7 is its utter estrangement from the
norms of American TV (and, as an American, I have far more exposure to the
US than the British product). Although there have been U.S. series that have
killed sympathetic characters, American shows find it necessary to _have_
sympathetic characters, and it would be considered rude to wipe out the
entire cast.
Although an American version of B7 would gain in some ways (American actors
don't go to the pub, they go to the gym; Americans wait until they have
enough money to produce a TV show before producing a TV show...) it would
never be able to achieve the wonderfully disconcerting quality of the
original.
Paradigmatically, US shows are about a house and a family, and any initial
conflict is resolved by incorporating the outsiders into the family. In a US
series, Rumours of Death would be much earlier in the series, and would be
the turning point for uniting the crew into a cohesive and affectionate
unit. At the end of Children of Auron, everyone would be "sharing a
laugh"--in the British product, note that Vila, Tarrant, and Dayna are
sitting on one couch, eating popcorn or the functional equivalent. Avon is
on the other couch.
An American show would feel compelled to adopt the Blakean worldview: that
not only is it worth fighting Federation tyranny, but that a scrappy little
band of outsiders can achieve a decisive victory. In the American version,
Anna would succeed at her coup d'etat, surrender power to Blake, and she and
Avon would go off into the sunset (and he would be able to suppress any
momentary tendencies toward Extreme Emotional Disturbance homicide).
Or, again in light of Casablanca affinities, the politically unaffiliated
anti-hero would opt for activism and "beautiful friendship" and abandon
adulterous romance.
The disconcerting thing about the "real" B7 is that, if anything, the show
punishes Avon for excessive optimism. Instead of teaching Avon that trust
and cohesion are essential, it affirms his perception that trusting Anna and
Blake was a mistake and a weakness. In fact, it shows him that the
consequences were even worse than he imagined.
-(Y)
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 02 Apr 2000 08:07:00 -0700
From: mistral@ptinet.net
To: B7 List <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] UnAmerican Activities
Message-ID: <38E76213.7D48B8B8@ptinet.net>
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Dana Shilling wrote:
> The disconcerting thing about the "real" B7 is that, if anything, the show
> punishes Avon for excessive optimism.
Yes.
Great post all through, thank you, Dana.
Mistral
--
"Consider it an adventure."--Galen, 'Crusade'
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 18:09:22 +0100
From: "Una McCormack" <una@q-research.connectfree.co.uk>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Message-ID: <045a01bf9cc6$d1af5690$0d01a8c0@codex>
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Ariana wondered:
> I wonder why this episode kept going into fuzzyvision. Blake and Avon
start
> off crisp and clear in a corridor, then they open a door and look as
though
> they've been filmed on home video. Maybe the BBC spent its film budget on
> those shots of the Liberator in space -- which weren't too bad, IMHO.
It's switching from video to film. Classic mark of 70s TV. Can't understand
why those particular bits in the corridors are on film, as it's usually
location work done on film. It could be something to do with
filming/shooting schedules. Anyone?
Una
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 02:44:04 +0100
From: "Neil Faulkner" <N.Faulkner@tesco.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re [B7L] The bank fraud
Message-ID: <000601bf9cca$e9236100$e535fea9@neilfaulkner>
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Muddy Mildred, actually talking about the series again...
Re the bank fraud and whether Avon or not was working for some unspecified
third party. Spacefall has Vila citing a figure of 5 million credits,
whereas the Ultra up that to 500 million. It's possible that the 5 million
Vila referred to was Avon's pay-off, and it was the whopping great 500 mill
figure that had the great Bartolomew assigned to him. A fraud on that scale
would be something Central Security couldn't afford to ignore.
Anyone who was relying on Avon to cook the books that much could probably
arrange to get him safely out of the way when it was all over. Yet he had
to arrange his own escape. So maybe he was duped over the sheer scale of
the thing, and then got a bit miffed to discover that he was getting just a
measly 1 per cent for himself and/or that he was being treated as an
expendable pawn.
Or maybe the man with the exit visas was the pre-arranged escape route, but
Avon (rightly) suspected a double cross.
I see him as playing just one, albeit crucial, role in an operation that
involved a fair number of people. One of whom might have been Bartolomew,
who had not been directly assigned to Avon but met him in the course of
infiltrating the scam.
Just who Avon was working for is an open question, though.
Neil
"I am not a man, I am a free number."
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 03:13:13 +0100
From: "Neil Faulkner" <N.Faulkner@tesco.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] What do we want from Horizon?
Message-ID: <000801bf9cca$f2450680$e535fea9@neilfaulkner>
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Judith wrote:
> What I would like to see is the following:
>
> 1. Clear, public policy statements.
Definitely. Furthermore, I would like to see policy determined by the
consensus (or at least majority vote) of committee members who explicitly
hold responsibility for determining club policy.
I doubt if all matters of editorial policy could be decided beforehand.
Obvious things like levels of profanity and explicitness of artwork could be
agreed on (bearing in mind that the NLs are going to be read by some very
young members), but there will always be a need to adapt and improvise on
specific items of content. This should not be the province of just one
person.
> 2. Published annual accounts. (This is *not* meant to imply that I
suspect any
> dishonesty. It's simply that I'd like to have a better idea of how the
club
> functions.)
Agreed. I have no grounds to suspect that Horizon have ever acted
dishonestly with members' money.
> 3. Elections.
> If the members don't like Horizon's policies, then they should have the
option
> to vote in new committee members. If they support the policies then they
should
> be able to express this support.
The only problem there is (a) getting people to stand and (b) getting
members to vote. Kathryn last year pointed out, IIRC, that elections to
club committees often turn out to be a formality, single candidates elected
on a handful of votes. Nevertheless, the principle is important.
> That's all I want.
Bring in (1) and (3) and I'd certainly consider rejoining. Point (2) I'm
not particularly bothered about. I trust them where my money's concerned.
Neil
"I am not a man, I am a free number."
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 03:27:51 +0100
From: "Neil Faulkner" <N.Faulkner@tesco.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re [B7L] Anna GRANT?
Message-ID: <000901bf9cca$f3732640$e535fea9@neilfaulkner>
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I know you all think I'm mad and deluded, but consider this:
'Sula' is not just any old name, it is the scientific name of a bird.
Specifically, the Gannet.
Think about it. Black and white. Eats fish. Long spikey beak. Webbed
feet.
Anna Grant? No, I fear not. She is Anna Gannet, she whose name is a byword
for gluttony, a greed that knows no bounds and will engulf us all in its
insatiable quest for the enslavement of all humankind. Here at last is the
final proof, the last shred of damning evidence that
<remainder snipped to keep post under 25k>
What further warning do we need?
Neil
"I am not a man, I am a free number."
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:02:19 +0100
From: "Una McCormack" <una@q-research.connectfree.co.uk>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Message-ID: <047401bf9ccd$a8e26020$0d01a8c0@codex>
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Calle:
> So, will there be anything? I'm leaving for London tomorrow, and I'm
> not sure if I'll have any mail access until I come home again. So I'd
> like to know really soon if the semi-planned Page's Bar event next
> weekend (Saturday, wasn't it?) will happen or not. And if it will
> happen, I want to know how to get to Page's Bar.
I'm definitely going to be there, and Carol and Teri are planning to be
there as well.
I'm not brilliant on London directions so someone leap in if I'm giving a
really crap route.
Pages is on Page St. Take the Victoria line on the tube to Pimlico, come out
onto Rampayne St and turn right. You'll reach a big main road (Vauxhall
Bridge Road); cross this and head directly down the road opposite (Regency
Street). This bends away to the left. Page Street is about five minutes walk
on the right, Pages Bar is a short walk, again on the right, on a corner.
Someone please leap in if this is wrong: I once got lost in my home town
(only lived there for 20 years) so I suffer from extreme anxiety when
handing out directions. If all goes pear-shaped, Calle, I'll have my mobile
with me: 07968 759319.
Did we fix a time? I think Carol and Teri were planning to get there around
6:30 / 7pm.
Una
------------------------------
Date: 02 Apr 2000 20:11:29 +0200
From: Calle Dybedahl <calle@lysator.liu.se>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Page's Bar next weekend?
Message-ID: <86n1nc1ige.fsf@tezcatlipoca.algonet.se>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>>>>> "Una" == Una McCormack <una@q-research.connectfree.co.uk> writes:
> I'm definitely going to be there, and Carol and Teri are planning to be
> there as well.
Excellent. I'll try to get there, then. I got an off-list message from
Rob Clother saying that he'll try to come too. I don't know if
Harriet'll come, but it's not impossible that she might.
> Did we fix a time? I think Carol and Teri were planning to get there
> around 6:30 / 7pm.
I'll aim for that, then.
--
Calle Dybedahl, Vasav. 82, S-177 52 Jaerfaella,SWEDEN | calle@lysator.liu.se
"Then I dream of a world where idiots are hunted like wild pigs"
-- Stephen Edwards, scary.devil.monastery
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 16:41:10 +0100
From: "Ariana" <ariana@ndirect.co.uk>
To: "lysator" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>,
"freedom city" <freedom-city@blakes-7.org>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Vera Cruz - make sure you see this film
Message-ID: <00a401bf9cd3$ecfb7c00$b6e407c3@ariana>
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From: Alison Page <alison@alisonpage.demon.co.uk>
> A few years back I saw the last half hour of a film which I found
extremely
> reminiscent of the Avon/Blake relationship.
Yep. It had been on about ten minutes and I could see exactly what you
mean... :) Thanks for the head's up!
> And, you will spot Servalan very easily :-)
Ah yes. Now, who's up to writing some fic where Avon and Blake find
themselves in the unenviable position of escorting *Servalan* somewhere?
I must admit it had been a while since I watched a 50s movie. Having watched
Vera Cruz, I kept to the same time period and switched over to watch
Forbidden Planet. Boy did that movie ever terrify me the first time I saw
it. It's still amazing now, with special effects that still stand the test
of time. Despite a few obvious matte paintings, I'd even go so far as to say
they hold up pretty well against say, "Farscape" and the new "Randall and
Hopkirk (Deceased)", another couple of things I've watched this week-end...
hmm, does that sound as if I've been watching way too much TV in the last 24
hours? I even threw in "Easy Rider" last night, for good measure!
Ariana
http://www.alpha.ndirect.co.uk
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:59:11 +0100
From: "Una McCormack" <una@q-research.connectfree.co.uk>
To: "'B7 Lysator'" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] B7 Fan Fiction
Message-ID: <04a301bf9cd5$90ad8040$0d01a8c0@codex>
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What do I like in fanfic? Louise summed the basic up pretty well:
> I think it's safe to
> say we all like well-written stories where the characters fit our own
> personal idea of the characters.
and went on:
> I have read stories that the majority of
> fandom raves about as "classics" that I just found dull because these
> weren't _my_ characters.
Yes, I've had that experience as well <shrug>. That's half the fun of it
really, I suppose, exploring different interpretations.
Here are a few of my favourite things...
1. Avon and Blake arguing politics and morality. The whole point of B7 to me
is the tension between idealism and pragmatism. OK, and the whole justifying
rebellion debate as well.
2. Insights into the workings of the Federation, preferably those which
muddy the waters a bit, making the rebels as bad as the enemy they fight.
3. Raindrops, roses, whiskers, penguins.
4. Loss, betrayal, angst, preferably Avon-flavoured. I like Anna as a
character and I like exploring her motivations.
5. Not slash (in this fandom, at least) - again, as Louise summed up, for
credibility reasons.
6. If we're going for a crew runaround type of story, season 2 bunch please.
Una
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 20:28:48 +0100
From: "Una McCormack" <una@q-research.connectfree.co.uk>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] REM lyrics
Message-ID: <04c801bf9cd9$b25b7e00$0d01a8c0@codex>
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Stretching this one a bit, but it's quite fourth season Vila (it's 'Sad
Professor' off the last album):
If we're talking about love
then I have to tell you,
dear readers, I'm not sure where I'm headed.
I've got lost before.
I've woke up stone drunk
face down on the floor.
Late afternoon, the house is hot.
I started, I jumped up.
Everyone hates a bore.
Everybody hates a drunk.
I hate where I wound up.
I hate where I wound up.
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 09:30:19 +0100
From: "Andrew Ellis" <Andrew.D.Ellis@btinternet.com>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Message-ID: <00da01bf9c84$fea36340$e46201d5@leanet.futures.bt.co.uk>
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From: Ariana
Subject: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny".
More interesting reading.
Going back to an old post......
>I was certainly in the dark as to whodunnit right to the
>final revelation. The numbers/letters thing was perhaps a bit pat, but it
>was certainly a surprise.
Need I say more.
>Nitpicks and Preposterous Props:
>================================
>I do have a few nits about the Liberator's trip to Destiny. If it would
take
>the Ortega five months to get back to Destiny at sub-light speed, doesn't
>that mean they should be pretty much in Destiny's solar system?
Erm. Yes.
>On its way to Destiny, the Liberator laboriously ploughs through an
asteroid
>field, nearly depleting its power. Then Blake decides to go back. Next
thing
>we know, the Liberator is back near the Ortega. Um, wouldn't the Liberator
>have had to laboriously plough through the asteroid field again just in
>order to go back?
I always detect a certain smugness in Blake right at the very end. A, "bet
you thought I couldn't do it" type of smugness. The only explanation I can
think of, and it is weak weak weak - is that they went through once, and Zen
noted the position and velocity of all of the meteorites. On the way back,
Zen knew where they would all be, and plotted a course through, at standard
by gosh, and sailed right through with no force wall. Not as silly as it
sounds. If anybody else tried to program up their own version of Asteroids,
and forgot to make the actual asteroids random, you could easily learn how
to zip around the screen all day on just thrusters.
Gnog.
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 09:49:22 +0100
From: "Andrew Ellis" <Andrew.D.Ellis@btinternet.com>
To: <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] Avon's skills and Blake knowing about them
Message-ID: <00db01bf9c85$00363840$e46201d5@leanet.futures.bt.co.uk>
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From: Sally Manton
> and wouldn't we *love* to have seen Kasabi trying to deal with him [Avon]
and
>Vila?
Yes.
Actually, the main problem would be that, in the series, Avon is coming into
the relationship from a position of power, and might believe, as Blake's
second in command, that he outranks her. So as the series played out, she
wouldn't stand a chance. But consider an alternative, Kasabi intercepts the
London and rescues the more able prisoners (say). She now potentially has a
position of authority over both Blake and Avon (this is the assumption I
want to start from, done;t matter how we get there). So the question is.....
would she have the ability ? On the plus side, she has lead a rebel force on
the home planet for a long time, comes across as a strong character. On the
minus side, her team do seem, shall we say, intellectually challenged. She
failed to bring a gifted cadet into line (Servalan), a task equal to
bringing Avon into line. I don't know, could Kasabi have been able to lead
Avon ?
Gnog
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 10:11:08 +0100
From: "Andrew Ellis" <Andrew.D.Ellis@btinternet.com>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: Re [B7L] The bank fraud
Message-ID: <00dc01bf9c85$0290f120$e46201d5@leanet.futures.bt.co.uk>
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From: Neil Faulkner
>Re the bank fraud and whether Avon or not was working for some unspecified
>third party. Spacefall has Vila citing a figure of 5 million credits,
>whereas the Ultra up that to 500 million. It's possible that the 5 million
>Vila referred to was Avon's pay-off, and it was the whopping great 500 mill
>figure that had the great Bartolomew assigned to him. A fraud on that
scale
>would be something Central Security couldn't afford to ignore.
Good one.
>I see him as playing just one, albeit crucial, role in an operation that
>involved a fair number of people. One of whom might have been Bartolomew,
>who had not been directly assigned to Avon but met him in the course of
>infiltrating the scam.
And so we come back to Bartholomew. And for me the key is still why she used
her real name.
Plot....
Perhaps (as inspired by another post which suggested the ending) she was
actually behind the whole thing. She met Avon at college / academy and
thought, he's good, I'll stay close to him. She works her way through the
secret service, and becomes the latest incarnation of Bartholomew. She has
access to everything, and can't be traced. She marries Chesku for political
power but used one of her assumed names, but still stays close to Avon - he
will be useful eventually. The plot for a military coup evolves. Everything
is in place, but she needs mercenaries. She calls on Avon. Avon loves/trusts
no one but Anna (he is mistaken !). The Fraud fails. To shift suspicion
Bartholomew arranges for Anna to be recorded as dead. She realises she has
grown to love Avon, nearly as much as power and so manages to get Avons
death sentence commuted to transportation. Only Bartholomew's immediate
commander knows (Servalan), and knows why. Servalan blackmails Anna into
using Chesku to support her ambitions for Supreme Commander.
2 series of B7 pass. Anna re positions herself. She has some political power
(through Chesku), some money (through Avon) and her position (as
Bartholomew), and a great deal of resentment (for Servalan). THIS time, she
obtains mercenaries by aligning with the revolutionaries, and but for Donald
Douglas's portrayal of a loyal captain, nearly gets away with it. Then Avon
returns to her life just before victory is snatched away from her,
completing her total psychological defeat.
Sevalan realises how she has obtained power from Anna and Avon, and takes
great pleasure in repeating the feat in series 4, and Avon knows it.
Well, there it is, probably conflicts with about 15 aspects of canon, which
I am sure will be pointed out to me very quickly indeed.
Gnog.
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 01 Apr 2000 21:02:54 -0800
From: Pat Patera <patpatera@netzero.net>
To: B7 Lysator <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] psudonyms
Message-ID: <38E6D47E.8BFBCB97@netzero.net>
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Margaret wrote:
>On psudonyms and real names and the like. I really don't think it matters unless
>one is doing it to be anonymously nasty.
If the B7 crew were on the lyst, and needed to hide their identity from
the Federation snoops, what email pseuds would they take?
Vila: Fingers
Blake: Pinky
Avon: The Brain
Jenna: LadyHawke
Cally: Psychic Hotline
Dayna: Maid Marion
Tarrant: FlyBoy
Soolin: Annie Oakley
Zen: Dali Llama
Orac: Evil Overlord
Slave: Spartacus
PatPat (aka Puss'nBoots)
--
"Never give up. Never surrender."
-- Galaxy Quest
_____________________________________________
NetZero - Defenders of the Free World
Click here for FREE Internet Access and Email
http://www.netzero.net/download/index.html
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:18:14 -0400
From: Harriet Monkhouse <101637.2064@compuserve.com>
To: "INTERNET:blakes7@lysator.liu.se" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] Ring finger (was Re: Horizon discussion)
Message-ID: <200004021918_MC2-9F7D-DFC6@compuserve.com>
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Sally wrote:
> <anguished wail> but Russ, we can't stop now,
> we've only done Avon's *left* ring finger...
Have we done "Is Avon married, based on the evidence of said finger?"
recently?
Harriet
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 03 Apr 2000 09:31:22 EST
From: "J MacQueen" <j_macqueen@hotmail.com>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: [B7L] Vila's taste in women
Message-ID: <20000402233122.58010.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed
>From: Helen Krummenacker <avona@jps.net>
> > >Vila, OTOH, is not that discriminating, is he? ;-)
> > You have to ask? <grin>
>More so than Tarrant, though. Never tried to have a go at Servalan.
Hm. There are times when one wonders if Tarrant knows the meaning of fear.
One also wonders if Soolin is fluffier than she looks, given Vila's interest
in her. Servalan, however, is a seriously scary woman.
Regards
Joanne
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 03 Apr 2000 09:34:56 EST
From: "J MacQueen" <j_macqueen@hotmail.com>
To: blakes7@lysator.liu.se
Subject: Re: [B7L] Offers of marriage
Message-ID: <20000402233456.44767.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed
>From: "Neil Faulkner" <N.Faulkner@tesco.net>
>Much as I hate to disappoint the pair of you, Ms Right in this pair of eyes
>must be a fanatical atheist with rabid Marxist inclinations.
<hands a copy each of Das Kapital to Una and Trish, after checking that each
is fully consistent with the rules of duelling, thereby fulfilling the rabid
and the Marxist conditions, at least>
Right, now I settle back to watch this. Should be interesting...
Regards
Joanne
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:18:05 -0400
From: Harriet Monkhouse <101637.2064@compuserve.com>
To: "INTERNET:blakes7@lysator.liu.se" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] Re: Time Squad - A Cally Perspective (long)
Message-ID: <200004021918_MC2-9F7D-DFC1@compuserve.com>
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Russ wrote, in his extremely interesting Cally perspective:
>Her last shot is in response to Jenna's comment as to the
>wisdom of bringing aliens aboard. She shows no reaction.
Oh, go on, she smirks broadly. I've got a lovely picture of it from Paul
James's site.
Harriet
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:55:59 -0400
From: "Dana Shilling" <dshilling@worldnet.att.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: [B7L] Re: Anna's Name
Message-ID: <000501bf9cff$00d955a0$d1614e0c@dshilling>
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In Casablanca, Captain Renaud says that he knows that Rick can't return to
the United States, and he likes to think that Rick "robbed a bank...or slept
with a Senator's wife." We can think of someone who did both, n'est-ce pas?
(Amazing prescience alert: Rick then looks at the dossier Major Strasser is
holding and says "Are my eyes really brown?"--definitely not one of his
better efforts. But it would make perfect sense for Avon to look down at his
dossier and say, "Are my eyes really black?".)
There are at least two reasons why the Federation would be so upset about a
crummy five million credit hack. (In "Ultraworld," one of the Ultras refers
to "five hundred million credits," and Avon refrains from correcting him.
Emily Post would be glad.)
For one thing, it's not a bank _fraud_ that's the problem, but _bank_
fraud. The Federation certainly doesn't want to give factory tours of the
Mint and give out free samples to the citizenry. We have been furnished
little information for materialist analysis, but I assume it was the
Federation Central Bank, simply because I assume that the Federation owned
everything.
For another thing, the fastest way to get into trouble was getting a
bureaucrat mad at you. Federation Civil Service probably had special Post-It
Notes printed for attachment to dossiers, with a check-box for "He's
stuffing my wife, so bury him."
Anyway, the Federation would probably send you to a penal colony planet for
life for unpaid parking tickets--if they were really angry, they'd do
something _unpleasant_.
-(Y)
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 3 Apr 2000 07:00:56 +0100
From: "Neil Faulkner" <N.Faulkner@tesco.net>
To: "b7" <blakes7@lysator.liu.se>
Subject: Re: [B7L] First impressions: "Mission to Destiny"
Message-ID: <000701bf9d32$fd782ba0$e535fea9@neilfaulkner>
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Una wondered
> It's switching from video to film. Classic mark of 70s TV. Can't
understand
> why those particular bits in the corridors are on film, as it's usually
> location work done on film. It could be something to do with
> filming/shooting schedules. Anyone?
I believe it's because they were filmed at Ealing (?) studios, where for
some reason using tape wasn't possible.
Wish they'd shot the whole bloody series on film, coz it looks *so* much
better.
Neil (typing one handed while he scoffs his muesli)
"I am not a man, I am a free number."
--------------------------------
End of blakes7-d Digest V00 Issue #95
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