Blake's 7: Orbit

If Blake's 7 has any particular failing, it's in the characterisations. There were a lot of writers on the show over the years, and none of them seem to have got together to discuss what the characters were supposed to be like. The worst victim of this is Vila. Depending on who's writing, he can be a deeply irritating idiot, a hopeless coward, a Machiavellian genius, a ridiculously infantilised, childlike figure, or nothing but the comic relief. Sometimes he can manage more than one of those in the space of an episode. Then there's Avon, a ruthless genius all the time, but occasionally - apparently depending on what Paul Darrow had eaten for breakfast on any particular morning - a completely unhinged lunatic who should certainly never be allowed possession of a firearm. This episode is one of those. It seems to be a fan favourite, although I've never really understood why.

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