Blakes7 April 2001

blakes7@lists.lysator.liu.se

70 participants
295 discussions

Re: [B7L] Writer and Director
by Tavia 09 Apr '01

09 Apr '01

>The expectation that audiences in other countries will speak your >language is more realistic if your language is English than if it is Polish. To be fair, the shorts I'm thinking of were communist hack promotional stuff about hospitals and bricklaying and such, which no-one would have cared two hoots about if the film-maker hadn't turned into one of the better-known directors of the 20th C -- and changed his language of choice to French. I doubt if Kieslowski ever intended them to be shown outside Poland, and they came as a bit of a shock to someone who'd previously seen stuff like 'Trois Couleurs: Bleu', with Juliet Binoche strutting her stuff and lots of rather good fake classical music. Ob-B7, I can just imagine Servalan, immaculate in her spotless white, commissioning 5 short films on the Joys of Bricklaying. Tavia

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Re: [B7L] Which Question(s) Would You Ask the Script Editor? (Hypothetical)
by Tavia 09 Apr '01

09 Apr '01

This didn't seem to go through, so apologies if everyone now gets it twice... David (Seven) asked: >If you, Tavia or Fiona, had the chance to spend >quiet time with the B7 Script Editor, what would >you ask him? I fear I'd be the one cowering away at the back waiting for all the people who know what they're talking about to ask the sensible interesting questions. But some random issues that interest me with regard to Chris Boucher as both scriptwriter and editor (tempered by the fact he's probably forgotten totally)... what were his influences as a B7 scriptwriter (other television, film, literature, real-life issues); did he see B7 as science fiction, and if not, what genre did he see it as; did he see B7 as a groundbreaking series or as a hack rehash of, say, Star Trek; how much leeway did the writer get on producing scripts; what were the major constraints on scripts (budget / BBC interpretation of audience expectations); who was the ultimate arbiter on character or background; did he compile a Sevencyclopaedia-like facts database; how much did he discuss the Federation &c background with Nation and/or the directors; how much did he discuss characters with the actors; did he agree with the direction the series took in season 4, especially with regard to the changes in Avon's character; and how much of the latter was actually driven by Paul Darrow; did he feel a tension between his/Holmes' scripts and Nation's scripts; which scriptwriter was the hardest to edit; which is his favourite of those episodes he wrote, and the least favourite; was he expecting the mass fan outrage/upset at the episode 'Blake'; is he surprised that there are still active fans of B7; what (if anything) does he think of fanfiction... I fear that it might actually be more interesting to present the guy with a written series of questions rather than a live Q&A session. Tavia

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Re: Redemption report
by David and/or Lesley McIntee 09 Apr '01

09 Apr '01

> From: Jacqueline Thijsen <jacqueline.lyst(a)jthijsen.demon.nl> > Subject: Re: [B7L] Redemption report > When I got in, the panel was already in full swing, with four panelists > having a great time discussing all sorts of weaponry with the audience. My > favorite moment was when Judith's son (don't remember his first name, but > it wasn't Kelvin) asked about what kind of weapons the Shadow vessels in B5 > would use, since they're supposed to be organic. The consensus of the panel > was that they farted plasma and loaded up by eating beans. Hee. > Ah, that was me causing trouble nice and early to bring the tone down... But it is a logical explanation. > drool a little. It almost made up for the ongoing lack of Buffy on Dutch TV. Something to do with "Buffy" sounding *awfully* like the Dutch word for oral sex, I imagine.... > That might be because I'm not really used to > the Scottish accent, which is a shame, because I really like it. And so you should. > They ought > to use it far more often on TV, so that I can get used to it. Maybe they > could put in a rule that all chief engineers have to have a Scottish > accent. I'd like to hear B'Elanna Torres use one. I wonder who'd have to > have speak Scottish in B7 then, Avon or Zen. "Iz far iz ah'm concern't, ye can stir up a thoosan't revolutions, wade in blood up tae yer oxters, and lead the rabble tae victory- whit'ever tha' is...." >They also > told us quite sternly that if we saw someone walking around with weapons, > such as bat'telhs, we weren't allowed to test the safety of those weapons > by trying them out on the owner. Some stewards seemed quite disappointed > about that... Probably for the best, since the Stratmanns had several practice swords and staffs with them, and I had a live katana... > It had been extremely tiring, but also a lot of fun. I liked meeting all > those lystians most of all. Next time I'm definitely going there again, and > since I should be over the being overworked thing by then, it'll probably > be even more fun. I've already decided that I'm going to stay until monday > next time, so that I won't have to miss the closing ceremony or the > interesting panels that come after it. Also, I hope to be fit enough to go > to the Freedom City party. Good, good. DM

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Re: [B7L] Redemption report
by Steve Kilbane 09 Apr '01

09 Apr '01

Jacqueline wondered: > Is anyone on the lyst still interested > in reading it? Hell, yes.

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Re: [B7L] Star One
by Jenny Kaye 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

Marian wrote: >Jacqui wrote: > >Watching Star One again Avon, after shooting Travis, very briefly stands >over him. Any symbolic connection to the end of 'Blake'? (Or is Travis just >in the way?)< > >It looks to me as if Avon wants to check whether Travis is dead, but Cally >distracts him. I think both are true. I think Avon was checking that Travis was dead, but later on in "Blake," his standing over Blake could be a conscious reference to that-- it's the same writer on both scripts and remember Blake has that eye scar which might refer back to Travis. So I think the first time's an accident but the second time's a deliberate reference. Jenny _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com.

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Re: [B7L] writer and director
by J MacQueen 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

>From: Tavia <tavia(a)btinternet.com> >Hey, watch who you're insulting! I used to use a Betamax, and I've never >had a single grey hair! Lucky so-and-so... Regards Joanne (damning Dad's DNA) _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com.

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Re: [B7L] Mad Gan
by Jenny Kaye 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

Neil wrote: > >From: Fiona Moore <nydersdyner(a)yahoo.co.uk> > > > > > This is going to be my last post to Lysator for a few weeks, I'm afraid. > > > I've got a heavy term ahead of me and I've taken on a few too many > >outside > > > things as well. > > > >Very cunning of you to flee the Lyst before anyone might point out that (a) > >your theories about Gan are all very interesting, but that doesn't mean you > >can go and retcon it back into the series, I don't think she is. She's arguing from evidence in the series itself-- check it for yourself if you don't believe her. She's certainly convinced me, and I *like* Gan. and (b) if Gan really was Ed > >Bundy In Space, then maybe it would have got a mention in the numerous > >interviews with e.g. Terry Nation, Chris Boucher, and David Jackson. Boucher once said "Actors act, writers write." So perhaps David didn't know, but as for the rest, well, the simple answer is: if the idea was never developed into a final script, would anyone other than Nation have known? And he's dead. Jenny _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com.

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Redemption report
by Jacqueline Thijsen 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

While I was feeling less than well, I did finally find the time to write one and sent it off to some friends. Is anyone on the lyst still interested in reading it? Jacqueline

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Re: [B7L] Mad Gan
by Fiona Moore 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

----- Original Message ----- > >From: "Jenny Kaye" <jennycat55(a)hotmail.com> > >So what you're saying is that Gan is using the guardians to > >terrorise Jenna? Yes. > >But she didn't seem very terrorised, does she? No, but then she couldn't very well at 7 at night twenty years ago :). Frequently programmes of the era do pull their punches, owing to television conventions-- Doctor Who, around the same time, had gotten into trouble for ignoring these and being "too dark." Directed with fewer restrictions by somebody like Douglas Camfield, "Time Squad" could conceivably have had the air of a stalker flick, but the conventions of the time prevented this. > >Jenna is on the surface of the planet, and Gan is with her-- so > >you're > >saying he wants to kill her and that's why he sees the women? Makes sense, doesn't it? > >when he > >>does, he says "I hope my limiter hasn't malfunctioned." In "Project > >>Avalon," > >>we see Gan washing down a pill with water, after Avalon's appeared > >>on the > >>ship, and fairly shortly before he attacks her. > > > >That's right-- he goes for her throat with both hands, doesn't he? > >But the > >android looks like a woman, so how is it he can do that? Following my scenario, because of the way it acts. When he attacks the android, it doesn't act scared, or react like a real person would. Hence no emotional response from Gan, and no limiter kick-in. > >People on their own, OK, but in Breakdown he attacks Avon. Doesn't > >fit. He attacks Avon because Avon has up until this point been very insulting and dismissive of him. Notice that when attacking Avon, Gan goes for the computers-- this is a bit like Blake going for Sarkoff's records, attacking something which he knows is important to him. He doesn't consider the danger to the ship, because Gan is not the brightest of sparks at the best of times, and can think from A to B, but not from B to C. > >In "Time Squad," Jenna gives Gan a gun and tells him to deal with > >the > >guardians, and he takes it, but doesn't do it. Isn't that a bit > >against the > >grain? No-- she tells him to do it, but there's nothing in the rules that says he *has* to follow orders, just that he can't unless he's been told to or the group approves. Instead of doing what she says, a more likely scenario is that he waited until the Guardians had gone and hid in the ship, having opened the door and let them out. It's unlikely that they would fight him there, as they wouldn't risk damage to the brood units. Notice that she calls into the ship, and we see his hand move-- he's conscious, but he doesn't groan or cry out (interestingly, too, it's his *left* hand, here and when we see it twitching in Breakdown-- the left hand, of course, literally meaning "sinister") His intention, presumably, is to draw her out where she will be attacked and listen to the resulting fight. This does happen-- but his limiter kicks in. Interestingly, after this he starts becoming protective of her-- possibly because her terror sparks his limiter and puts him in pain, so he wants to avoid that. The next scene though might seem to contradict that. Jenna enters the teleport bay and is attacked by the Guardian; they fight. Gan enters a minute later and tries to shoot the Guardian and can't. However, there's two things going on. First of all, Jenna never calls out to him or asks for his help, so he hasn't been ordered to kill. Second of all, he doesn't enter straight away but apparently hangs back a bit, and presumably (intentionally?) hears Jenna in trouble. As I said above, this undoubtedly puts him in a lot of pain, and he knows the only way this can go away is if he shoots the Guardian. However, the limiter is active, and is preventing him from killing-- so, ironically, he can't kill the Guardian, even though if he did so it would save Jenna. > >I don't know about that, though, Fiona. I remember "Survivors," and > >IIRc, > >the tramp acted pretty lascivious before that, and then it built to > >a climax > >with the murder, and then it built up again when he was found out > >and then > >he dies a couple of episodes later. So there's hints along the way, > >a climax > >and a resolution. You don't get that with Gan in B7-- what you're > >saying is > >you get the flagging, but no resolution. Ah, but you might have. As I think I've demonstrated, all of Nation's stories for B7 are tightly plotted and are internally consistent, all, that is except Pressure Point. Strange, that... This is going to be my last post to Lysator for a few weeks, I'm afraid. I've got a heavy term ahead of me and I've taken on a few too many outside things as well. I'll resubscribe when things aren't so hairy-- but for now, please keep in touch and send any exciting gossip to the above address :). See you later, Fiona The Posthumous Memoirs of Secretary Rontane Dark deeds in the crypt at http://nyder.r67.net _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

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Recasting again
by Jacqueline Thijsen 08 Apr '01

08 Apr '01

It's always a fun game, and I feel playful. So here goes: Travis: Rutger Hauer. Servalan: Hmm, tough one. Brigitte Nielsen comes close for sheer self possession, but not for style. Blake: Linda Hamilton. Avon: Alan Rickman. Vila: John Inman. Jenna: Dwight Schultz. Cally: Cher (obvious, I know.) Gan: Olivier Gruner (had a crush on him for a while after watching Automatic.) Orac: The guy that did KITT's voice in Knight Rider. Zen: Dwight Schultz. Dunno about later season cast members, though. Maybe Julia Roberts would make a good Dayna. Jacqueline

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Blakes7 April 2001