Customer Reviews

Blake's 7: The Complete Collection (20-disc set) [Region 2 Import]

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4 star:		(1)
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NOTE: Distributor made it very clear this dvd set is in PAL/region-2 format - which will NOT play on MOST US NTSC/region-1 dvd players/tvs(must have PAL-to-NTSC converter). While it will play on my PC, can only change region formats 4 times before the dvd drive firmware will permanently lock into the last mode used. To avoid this, I also purchased a Pioneer Elite 49dv region free/code free dvd player ($239-not found on amazon) to view this and other BBC/European dvd sets I may buy in the future.

While this BBC series is from a couple of decades ago (special effects are nothing like newer sci-fi, but character development is worth watching - IMHO), I truly enjoy being able to watch it in DVD clarity. I first discovered Blakes when I lived in Connecticut, but could only get the PBS station over the air and most episodes were extremely poor reception, hardly worth taping.

Thanks Amazon for carrying this item for the sci-fi nostalgia buffs in the audience!

Been looking for this for a long time ( Ex UK, living in USA now ). It never did appear in the USA and the last three times I've tried to buy it from the UK something went wrong.

Best SCI-FI series ever made, and delivered in 10 days. All disks new, plays perfectly - what can I say??? Magic !

"Blake's 7" will never be remembered for its sweeping cinematography, cutting-edge production values or sophisticated special effects, so what makes the show great? The stories were for the most part consistently good and there was great acting from the regular cast with the often camp theatrics of guest roles to enliven the proceedings. Colin Baker as "Bayban the Butcher" in Season 3 springs to mind here!

Like all shows "Blake's 7" stands or falls on its ability to entertain and engage. On that basis it never fails, but attempts to compare it to the other well-known giants of sci-fi television drama don't work. It really is too different. Dark, intelligent, painfully comical and cyncial the show leaves all the others behind.

At its core "Blake's 7" is a deeply cyncial show. There is no idealism here. While freedom fighting is a noble and heroic enterprise it is mostly futile. The crew's efforts to strike back at the Federation are usually unsuccessful and at best only make a small difference. It is difficult to watch just how ineffectual their attacks and counter attacks were over the course of the 4 seasons. And you do see it from both perspectives. Yes the Federation is a brutal regime, but it is also a unifying force of order in a universe torn apart by petty conflicts and galactic wars. Ambitious opportunists like Servalan and Travis flourish in this universe.

The characters are a departure from formula with anti-heroes Avon and Vila, flawed Blake and the wonderful Jacqueline Pearce in a groundbreaking role as the malevolent and dangerous Servalan. The regular female cast were strong with hard-as-nails Jenna, warrior Dayna, gutsy Soolin and alien telepath, Cally providing credibility as women who don't need to be rescued. Orac, irascible portable computer and Zen, the sometimes obsequious and gentle ship's computer are beautifully voiced by Peter Tuddenham and are important characters in their own right. However, Orac has definitely met his match in Avon!

Of course Paul Darrow as Avon is the standout. Acerbic, unlikeable, but unforgettable his character is the lynchpin of the show. The fact that the show survived without Blake for 2 seasons is a credit to all the actors, but Paul Darrow carried the momentum of events right up to the very last episode. Avon is the great anti-hero, no moralising or heroic posturing, it is all about saving his own skin and allowing nothing or no one to dent his cold armour. However, he does get physically and emotionally hurt many times. In season 3's "Rumours of death" where he searches for his presumed dead lover only to realise that she betrayed him the stark cynicism of the show prevails. In an agonising finale Avon comes full circle. Whatever Blake-like idealism remained is gone and these events are a dismal lead-up to the unrelenting and grim season 4.

Michael Keating is brilliant as unashamed coward and talented thief, Vila. Not just a fool on the hill Vila's cowardice sharply distils the moral ambiguities of the show. His chemistry with Paul Darrow sparks and their characters exchange some hilarious dialogue. Avon's biting sarcasm is a perfect foil for Vila, whose carefully constructed veneer of stupidity results in some very telling observations about other characters.

Season 1 is a little slow, but creates the background and events so well that you can't wait for Season 2. Seasons 2 and 3 are the best in my opinion. Season 3 exemplified what is great about the show with good stories and interesting character developments. Season 2 has my favourite episode, "Gambit". "Blakes's 7" let its hair down here and indulged in some high-camp and very funny hijinks guaranteed to have you laughing out loud. The serious undertones are present, but it is Vila and Avon who have the most fun! Servalan draped in a glittering off the shoulder red dress is at her most manipulative and deadly. Jacqueline Pearce must have relished this performance!

The much maligned season 4 does have some bad stories. The quality of the storytelling declined and the behaviour of some characters was changed so much that they became unrecognizable. However, my introduction to "Blake's 7" was the 4th season way back in 1982 and I still am very fond of it. I know some fans may disagree, but "Sand" is a favourite episode only because it dared to do something different with two central characters. As for the famous or infamous final episode of season 4 ... in many ways the ending makes perfect sense, but it is still very visceral and shocking and sad.

Blake's 7 is really like no other sci-fi drama. The story arc remains constant and while characters come and go, the Shakespearian Avon/Blake relationship keeps you watching. It succeeded so well because it was different and unflinching in its observations of human behaviour. There is no black and white certainty in this universe. By the 3rd season Avon is bone weary of all the pursuits and attacks culminating in his tired response to Tarrant, "Why not? It is something else to chase ..."

After some 30 years I can still go back and get something new every viewing. You have to accept that it was made in the 70s/early 80s, so things can be cheesy, but you won't regret the experience of watching "Blake's 7" for the first time.

Blake's 7!

This show will always be my favorite. It's meaty and dark and rich and witty, too. I wouldn't call it cynical, but realistic rather. Okay, not the sci-fi plots, but the fighting-the-good-fight, and losing, and fighting again....

And, as I sometimes forget to say about Blake's 7, it's entertaining. The relationship among the characters, especially between Blake and Avon, is complicated and intriguing. Blake is gone after the first two seasons, but the show never stops being about him, about his quest. Avon is his cynical counterfoil , but the characters are deeper than this. Does Avon actually admire Blake, envy him his idealism, his sense of purpose? Has Blake gone too far, sacrificed too many, taken on the methods of the enemy? The issue of trust is ever in the background. (When it's not in the foreground.)

And Blake's 7 is funny. The dialogue is intelligent and sparkling. Vila is an endless source of amusement; though he is a fully rounded character, as well. And the women are independent and strong (cf. ST-classic on this).

So, why hasn't this DVD package been produced for Region 1 audiences? Whey can't I even get a hold of the UK set? Why, why, why?? And how much money do you think I could get for my VCR tapes? (Just kidding; I would never part with them, but they are fading away...)
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[Full disclosure: Our PBS station aired this several times in the 80's, sometimes stripped, sometimes by week. It got me through the bleak years of graduate studies (its being even bleaker, but funnier). And also through a year of scary medical stuff (ditto, only more so--and scarier). So, I believe everything I just wrote, but I'll cop to a possible bias pro.]

It would have been of interest as much as 2001 - A Space Odyssey (Two-Disc Special Edition)recently if no Babylon 5 - The Complete Television Series (5-Pack), Star Trek Movie Set (The Motion Picture/ The Wrath of Khan/ The Search for Spock/ The Voyage Home/ The Final Frontier/ The Undiscovered Country/ Generations/ First Contact/ Insurrection/ Nemesis), Star Wars Trilogy (Full Screen Edition with Bonus Disc)are nearby.