Weapon (1979) Review

Weapon is well plotted, but I think it's let down by incompetent direction and poor dialogue.

WRITTEN BY

Chris Boucher, showcasing his skill at weaving an interesting story.

PLOT

With the help of a psychostrategist named Carnell, Servalan concocts a scheme to get her hands on an experimental new gun called IMIPAK and finish off Blake's crew once and for all.

ANALYSIS

What is the deal with the designs in this episode? Coser, Rashel and Clonemaster Fen are all garbed in the most ridiculous high-collared robes you can imagine. In particular, it's impossible to take the first two seriously as they nap on the dirty floor of a random mess hall(a ghastly set).

The direction is a joke, starting from the preposterously overtheatrical sequence where Travis kills the first Blake clone and ending with the Liberator crew all pausing conveniently so they can be marked with IMIPAK. I think my personal highlight, however, was the camera zooming into the stars outside Servalan's window so we can clearly see that they're just lamps.

Once you get over the terrible visuals, the episode's major flaw is the expository dialogue. There's a neverending series of scenes where characters explain things to one another that they should plainly know, purely for the benefit of the audience. I get that the storyline isn't the easiest to follow, but this is not the way to go.

If you can look past all of that, the script is actually very good. I love the idea of the psychostrategist, working out all the events before the episode's even started and let down only by the most minute detail. Once you figure out what's going on, it's awesome trying to see how Blake and the crew actually get out of a trap constructed this well.

CHARACTERS

Let's start with our new star - Brian Croucher as Travis. I think in order to truly enjoy Croucher's take on the role, we have to forget all about Stephen Greif, because he's essentially playing a completely different character only connected by a hatred of Blake and love for black leather.

I could be mistaken on this, but I remember reading from someplace that Greif and Croucher had different backstories in mind for Travis - Greif's version had him join the military by choice whilst Croucher's version had been taken as a child. It wouldn't surprise me if it were true, because I think that's where the distinction lies.

Greif's Travis was a professional and analytical veteran - an incredibly ruthless one, but still. Croucher's, however, is a resentful man who clearly hates his life, but is also unable to think outside of the box. He comes across as a younger man(despite the actor actually being older), whose promising career has been torn to tatters by Blake, not to mention his good looks. As a result, the hatred feels much more personal. Because this Travis really is nothing without his career.

Scott Fredericks plays the smug, shamelessly arrogant Carnell to the hilt, and is by far the highlight of the whole episode. Carnell is a character so confidently sure of himself that he doesn't even care about losing his career, and I simply have to admire that.

John Bennett as Coser is mostly just a grumpy pain in the neck. I wish Boucher had spent more time on the supposed mental breakdown he was supposed to be having, because that dude was only really interesting when Carnell was talking about him. I did find it ironic how Coser was unable to detect his superiors' influence in him as he passed their condescension onto his inferior. Which leads us to Candance Glendenning, who gives an endearing performance as the bond slave Rashel, only just now learning to be free.

The Liberator crew dynamic is more enjoyable than ever. After a lot of experimentation in Series A, they seem to have settled down into very specific roles here. David Jackson is far more suited to be the group's moral conscience, for example, than dealing with all that limiter nonsense he had back then. Avon also thrives under Boucher, and Darrow takes the performance up a notch, clearly delighting in his repartee with the other characters.

NOTES

*What exactly was the point in wasting a clone on Travis? To "confirm" he's just like the real Blake? Even though the Clonemasters say moments later that he isn't anyway? What a waste.

*I find it funny that Avon would agree never to argue with a computer, considering he argues with every computer he's ever laid eyes upon.

*Zen's voice has gotten a lot more echo-ey. Maybe to separate the Zen and Orac voices a little bit more?

*I adore that chess computer. I want one.

*So, after making a big fuss about Coser being psychotic and him rambling on about noises that aren't there, the dude doesn't care about the rats getting eaten by something?

*Another example of the terrible direction - the door to Servalan's office opens before the officer even takes a step towards it.

*So what exactly was Coser's plan? Carnell mentions he's committing "symbolic suicide", but that doesn't seem to fit with his delusions of grandeur.

*Travis's compliment to the Blake clone felt more like a Stephen Greif line than a Brian Croucher one.

*You'd think psychostrategists would be used more often than not. Even with Carnell's failure, they'd come in handy. After all, they nearly did beat Blake here.

*Both Scott Fredericks and Candance Glendenning have amazingly magnetic blue eyes.

*I'm surprised that nobody's picked up on the Blake clone as a chance to bring back the character after the events of Series D.

*Carnell would later be featured in Kaldor City - a Big Finish audio series based on the Doctor Who serial "The Robots Of Death". It also features Paul Darrow in a starring role, assumed to be Avon under a pseudonym.

INFORMATION!

*Travis's change in actor between seasons is subtly referenced by his mention of having seen a "retraining therapist", whose influence has left him feeling uncertain about himself.

*Coser is aware of Blake, the latter being a "folk hero". Blake's fame throughout Federation space was established in Seek-Locate-Destroy.

BEST QUOTE AVON QUOTE

"Auron may be different, Cally, but on Earth it is considered ill-mannered to kill your friends while committing suicide."

CONCLUSION

Could've been a bona fide classic in someone else's hands.