As I first watched this as an adult, on DVD, fully aware that it was the last episode EVER and vaguely spoiled that it was going to be upsetting (though THAT wouldn't have been too difficult to guess anyway) it never really shocked me, not the way 'Orbit' did. Which is not to say that it's not painful, but if anything I find rewatching it now, when I know exactly what's in store, to be a more harrowing experience. It's not just the ending, it's right there from the start, and throughout the whole thing, knowing that these are their last hours - and watching them not knowing it themselves.
It's such a good ep, though. It's hard to decide which bits to comment on - every scene's got something worthy of discussion! A more or less random selection:
I find it very hard to believe Avon's explanation about wanting another figurehead. He if anyone should know that Blake is an uncontrollable force. My guess would be that after a few failures too many he is simply hoping for a chance to shed the responsibilities of leadership, back onto the one who started it all. The ultimate "running away with dignity" strategic withdrawal....
Slave is being positively rude to Orac with that "I wasn't talking to you." Jealousy, computer-racism or just good judgement of character? After all, with all the things Orac knows and all his powers of prediction, it's hard to believe he doesn't have a hunch about what's to come. It's a pity they put so much trust in him, when there really isn't a whole lot of evidence to suggest he is even on their side - while Slave almost certainly is. (Also being quite resourceful in trying to warn them despite being told to be silent. I liked the agitated spinning back and forth!)
Deva seems such a decent character. And there seems to be an echo of S1 Avon with that "Do I have a choice?" suggesting a nice bit continuity in the ambivalent effect Blake has on the people close to him.
That scene where Vila keeps asking Avon about what happened to Tarrant, one, two, three times... And Avon just won't answer... It's gut-wrenchingly well acted, and I suppose the closest we get to an 'Orbit'-related confrontation between them, not to mention a well placed early warning about Avon's mental state: that by this point there are some things that affect him badly enough that he can't even face them openly.
I still find the brief scene between Avon and Blake difficult to watch. Too much raw feeling.
I realise that it's not the least bit reasonable to expect someone who has just been shot three times in the gut and who is dying to have control of his tone of voice, and that just because Blake sounds absolutely furious to me doesn't mean that he is. But I still could absolutely believe that he might well react that way. Angry to the last.
I love that Vila gets the strongest ending of them all, that he is the one who acts first and most effectively, using his 'harmless' act to get past Arlen's guard and then taking her out. He is so close to changing their fates. (well, for those that are not already dead, anyway.)
I am not fond of the slow motion deaths, but I suppose there is a narrative need for it to tell the viewers that yes, we really mean it this time.
And I have to admit, that as much as I would have wanted better fates for the individual characters that I care for; from a storytelling POV, in terms of plot fulfilment, I think what we get is very nearly as perfect as can be. I don't think there could have been a happy ending that would not have felt false. There's always been a feeling that they were heading for disaster, both in personal (for Avon and Blake) and general terms, and that is exactly what we get. While I'm all for happy endings in the fanfiction, as far as the canon goes, I would not have wanted more to follow, or a different ending.
Oh absolutely! The ending seems to fit the series so well, in retrospect, that it's interesting to rewatch the whole thing and realize that they weren't obviously heading for disaster from the start. But it somehow feels so right that they end up like this. For me it turns Blakes 7 from good to great - just as the ending of Babylon 5 (my other great sci-fi love) always feels like a letdown. And this is a wonderful episode too, for just about all the cast.
I first saw it when it first aired, as a teenager, with my family. About two minutes before the end, I expected it to work out - Blake would catch up with Tarrant and explain, and they would all fight the Federation together. And then everything just went wrong, so horribly plausibly, and we were left sitting with our mouths open as the gunshots rang out over the closing credits. One of the most memorable pieces of TV ever - for me.
Absolutely. That last episode was painfully sentimental and added almost nothing, IMO - it would have been much better to finish with the penultimate one.
I've not watched Babylon 5 but I'm getting increasingly exasperated with Doctor Who these days, where endings (be it companion replacements or regenerations) seem to just become an excuse for an overload of self-referential sentimentality, piling good-bye speeches and symbolical gestures on top of each other. In my view that is actually a betrayal - surely the best send-off for any character (or show) will always be to give them a really good story to go out on, not just a load of flag-waving. It makes me treasure the lack of sentimentality in 'Blake' all the more. And, as you say, having such a powerful ending lends a kind of retrospective poignancy to all that has gone before, adding to the greatness of the show in its entirety.
I could not agree with you more! 'Landmark' episodes of Dr Who are becoming almost unwatchable these days. As you say, it makes 'Blake' all the better by contrast.
It's such a good ep, though. It's hard to decide which bits to comment on - every scene's got something worthy of discussion! A more or less random selection:
I find it very hard to believe Avon's explanation about wanting another figurehead. He if anyone should know that Blake is an uncontrollable force. My guess would be that after a few failures too many he is simply hoping for a chance to shed the responsibilities of leadership, back onto the one who started it all. The ultimate "running away with dignity" strategic withdrawal....
Slave is being positively rude to Orac with that "I wasn't talking to you." Jealousy, computer-racism or just good judgement of character? After all, with all the things Orac knows and all his powers of prediction, it's hard to believe he doesn't have a hunch about what's to come. It's a pity they put so much trust in him, when there really isn't a whole lot of evidence to suggest he is even on their side - while Slave almost certainly is. (Also being quite resourceful in trying to warn them despite being told to be silent. I liked the agitated spinning back and forth!)
Deva seems such a decent character. And there seems to be an echo of S1 Avon with that "Do I have a choice?" suggesting a nice bit continuity in the ambivalent effect Blake has on the people close to him.
That scene where Vila keeps asking Avon about what happened to Tarrant, one, two, three times... And Avon just won't answer... It's gut-wrenchingly well acted, and I suppose the closest we get to an 'Orbit'-related confrontation between them, not to mention a well placed early warning about Avon's mental state: that by this point there are some things that affect him badly enough that he can't even face them openly.
I still find the brief scene between Avon and Blake difficult to watch. Too much raw feeling.
I realise that it's not the least bit reasonable to expect someone who has just been shot three times in the gut and who is dying to have control of his tone of voice, and that just because Blake sounds absolutely furious to me doesn't mean that he is. But I still could absolutely believe that he might well react that way. Angry to the last.
I love that Vila gets the strongest ending of them all, that he is the one who acts first and most effectively, using his 'harmless' act to get past Arlen's guard and then taking her out. He is so close to changing their fates. (well, for those that are not already dead, anyway.)
I am not fond of the slow motion deaths, but I suppose there is a narrative need for it to tell the viewers that yes, we really mean it this time.
And I have to admit, that as much as I would have wanted better fates for the individual characters that I care for; from a storytelling POV, in terms of plot fulfilment, I think what we get is very nearly as perfect as can be. I don't think there could have been a happy ending that would not have felt false. There's always been a feeling that they were heading for disaster, both in personal (for Avon and Blake) and general terms, and that is exactly what we get. While I'm all for happy endings in the fanfiction, as far as the canon goes, I would not have wanted more to follow, or a different ending.
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I first saw it when it first aired, as a teenager, with my family. About two minutes before the end, I expected it to work out - Blake would catch up with Tarrant and explain, and they would all fight the Federation together. And then everything just went wrong, so horribly plausibly, and we were left sitting with our mouths open as the gunshots rang out over the closing credits. One of the most memorable pieces of TV ever - for me.
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I agree - I still thought they would work it out right up until the continuity announcer came on!
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