The Body Stealers completely wastes a classic concept.
WRITTEN BY
No specific credit.
PLOT
Blake and Cally return to the Liberator with freedom fighter Duncan Rask, only for the teleport to go horribly wrong and transpose the minds of Blake and Rask. Now in Blake's body, Rask assumes command of the Liberator.
ANALYSIS
Literally everything that could go wrong, did. It is never really explained what caused the incident. The characters display abilities they never did on the show. Rask's motivations and the setup for his meeting with Blake go unexplained. Zen somehow makes tea for Avon, with sugar of course. The resolution is rushed and how Blake is able to reverse the incident makes absolutely no sense.
It's a shambles. A pity, because the setup of a more depraved individual using Blake's body to force his will on the Liberator crew sounds genuinely interesting. The scene where Rask threatens the crew and declares them obsolete to his cause is pretty intense. But all of it is wasted in a story that has very little idea how the show works and isn't really interested in exploring the differences between Rask and Blake, or indeed Rask's character at all. He is simply a problem that is very easily circumvented.
CHARACTERS
Apparently, Rask has managed to build up a Blake-esque reputation for Robin Hood heroics, but how or why is left unclear. He displays hatred towards Federation bureaucracy, so it's possible he's similar to Coser from Weapon - simply doing this out of spite. It would've been interesting to see Blake in another body, but this obviously would've been better conveyed through physical acting than descriptions.
Cally again displays uncharacteristic empathic abilities, which come vital to the resolution this time around.
NOTES
*This story was published in the 1979 Blake's 7 annual.
*Why is Cally unaffected by the lightning bolt during the teleport?
*Shouldn't Blake and Rask teleport together like they did the first time, instead of beaming Rask down at the same time as they beam Blake up?
*"Blake stares at his hand for nearly a minute" is one of those lines that sound good on paper, but are completely idiotic when you think about it.
*Zen providing tea is as insane as it sounds. And I still have no idea how he does it, it just says "Zen produced a steaming cup". Ok. Sure.
*As in Revenge of the Mutoes, Zen displays an ability to control the teleport system, which he does not in the show.
*The Liberator crew possess stun weapons unseen in the show.
BEST QUOTE AVON QUOTE
"There's five of us here apart from you, and we prefer to discuss projects that might endanger our lives."
CONCLUSION
Utter nonsense.
*Shouldn't Blake and Rask teleport together like they did the first time, instead of beaming Rask down at the same time as they beam Blake up?
*"Blake stares at his hand for nearly a minute" is one of those lines that sound good on paper, but are completely idiotic when you think about it.
*Zen providing tea is as insane as it sounds. And I still have no idea how he does it, it just says "Zen produced a steaming cup". Ok. Sure.
*As in Revenge of the Mutoes, Zen displays an ability to control the teleport system, which he does not in the show.
*The Liberator crew possess stun weapons unseen in the show.
"There's five of us here apart from you, and we prefer to discuss projects that might endanger our lives."
CONCLUSION
Utter nonsense.
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