Queen Of The Bankalls is a splendid action-adventure story with several fun twists, that fits perfectly into this particular era of the show.
WRITTEN BY
No specific credit.
PLOT
After "old friends" of Dorian land on Xenon to kidnap Soolin, Avon pursues them to the Androxa system, with the intent of teaching the galaxy a lesson about who they can and can't mess with. However, he is unaware that the Bankalls are counting on it...
ANALYSIS
I genuinely had a great time with this, and so far it seems like the short stories are head and shoulders above the comics. There was a lot of variety, everybody felt true to their TV personas and we got to see them doing stuff that we hadn't in the show, which is the most important thing.
Rather than focus on the Federation(the continuation of Blake's struggle is the weakest aspect of Avon's era by far), here the crew are engaged with another band of space pirates for well-defined reasons, and manage to defeat them purely by using their wits. It makes for a fantastic read.
CHARACTERS
Almost everyone get a chance to shine. Avon has a desire to prove there's nobody who can touch him and get away with it, because he knows his personality makes it impossible for him to be protected by anything other than intimidation is very true to the show. I also liked seeing his empathetic reactions to Dayna being attacked. One could argue his good bedside manner came from needing the information she had, but he did threaten Vila to give her some space even after he got it.
Vila is rather cantankerous and cowardly(though not overly so as in Credit Transfer) and gets the best lines. He's also uniquely characterised as a reader, as he references both Treasure Island and Dead-Eye Dick to give Avon and Tarrant derogative nicknames.
We get some insight into how much of a role instinct plays into Dayna's skills as a gunslinger, before she's shot(a very well described sequence that really puts you into her shoes). She also proves to be loyal enough to either Avon or Tarrant or both to be willing to die trying to rescue them.
Soolin gets to play the Cally part - getting brainwashed! So I guess that's not a moment to shine, but I'm sure Glynis Barber would've played it well, at least. And Tarrant gets to hug her at the end(okay, maybe saying "everybody gets to shine" was getting ahead of myself).
Gangal makes for a pretty fun villain - I like that he's not just in control of his people, he has to appease them and work to stay in favor. Gangal must have the most bizarrely sexual physical description I've ever seen - he was "rubbing his horny hand through his greasy beard." Yikes.
NOTES
*This story was published in the Blake's 7 Marvel Monthly issue 2.
*How does a shuttle landing near Xenon Base cause a power failure within it(as far as I remember, wasn't the base within a mountain or something)?
*Avon orders Dayna and Vila to inspect the cargo areas(as in Mission Of Mercy, it seems like more of the ship is pressurised than just the flight deck) and the hull just as they're entering the Androxa system, which seems a little strategically unwise. Ironically, though, it proves to be what saves them since Vila and Dayna were outside in spacesuits whilst the Bankalls' boarding party got on the Scorpio.
*How did the Bankalls boarding party got on the Scorpio anyway? Avon and Tarrant's capture was extremely rushed in my opinion - the ship gets attacked and then boom, they're prisoners.
*As I already said, Vila refers to Tarrant as Dead-Eye Dick because of his habit of rushing into action with a gun, but that book by Kurt Vonnegut was published in 1982, presumably mere months after this magazine. That must've been a nice tease for whoever read both this and Vonnegut.
*You have to love how Avon quietly admits Dorian's girlfriend basically came with the ship.
*Why would Avon assume that Vila and Dayna are dead just because they were outside when the ship was boarded? As we see, they survived just fine.
*Isn't the Scorpio supposed to be full of cracks when they're leaving? I guess if only the flight deck is pressurised, that wouldn't be too much of a problem. Maybe they put Vila in a spacesuit mid-flight again...
*Interestingly, Avon describes the Bankalls and Dorian as space pirates, but not his own crew. I guess he sees himself as something greater.
INFORMATION!
*Dayna claims Avon took Orac's key to prevent Vila from teaching it new riddles and tricks again, which we saw in Ultraworld.
*Because the space pirates are old foes of Dorian, there's several callbacks to the events of Rescue, where our crew assumed control of Xenon Base and Scorpio, and teamed up with his girlfriend Soolin.
BEST QUOTE AVON QUOTE
"I just want to teach those space thugs a lesson. They've got to learn they can't go around kidnapping anyone they feel like. Who knows, next time it could be me... and who would rescue me, eh?"
CONCLUSION
A short, sweet read with more than enough to keep you hooked.
*Avon orders Dayna and Vila to inspect the cargo areas(as in Mission Of Mercy, it seems like more of the ship is pressurised than just the flight deck) and the hull just as they're entering the Androxa system, which seems a little strategically unwise. Ironically, though, it proves to be what saves them since Vila and Dayna were outside in spacesuits whilst the Bankalls' boarding party got on the Scorpio.
*How did the Bankalls boarding party got on the Scorpio anyway? Avon and Tarrant's capture was extremely rushed in my opinion - the ship gets attacked and then boom, they're prisoners.
*As I already said, Vila refers to Tarrant as Dead-Eye Dick because of his habit of rushing into action with a gun, but that book by Kurt Vonnegut was published in 1982, presumably mere months after this magazine. That must've been a nice tease for whoever read both this and Vonnegut.
*You have to love how Avon quietly admits Dorian's girlfriend basically came with the ship.
*Why would Avon assume that Vila and Dayna are dead just because they were outside when the ship was boarded? As we see, they survived just fine.
*Isn't the Scorpio supposed to be full of cracks when they're leaving? I guess if only the flight deck is pressurised, that wouldn't be too much of a problem. Maybe they put Vila in a spacesuit mid-flight again...
*Interestingly, Avon describes the Bankalls and Dorian as space pirates, but not his own crew. I guess he sees himself as something greater.
INFORMATION!
*Dayna claims Avon took Orac's key to prevent Vila from teaching it new riddles and tricks again, which we saw in Ultraworld.
*Because the space pirates are old foes of Dorian, there's several callbacks to the events of Rescue, where our crew assumed control of Xenon Base and Scorpio, and teamed up with his girlfriend Soolin.
"I just want to teach those space thugs a lesson. They've got to learn they can't go around kidnapping anyone they feel like. Who knows, next time it could be me... and who would rescue me, eh?"
CONCLUSION
A short, sweet read with more than enough to keep you hooked.
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