Me:

...

The first characteristic might make Avon elegible, but the last doesn't

IMHO. Despite what Avon says in "The Syndeton Experiment", I don't see any evidence in canon of him enjoying inflicting pain.<<

Tavia:

While I agree in general, I've always been worried by that 'Next!' bit in

Shadow...<

Yes, that feels out of character. My take is that he's been practising very hard on his shooting and unarmed combat, and now is elated to find he's passed the test :-)

Marian