The Keeper (1979) Review

The Keeper is a load of old nonsense, although the performers seem to be having a lot of fun.

WRITTEN BY

Allan Prior, king of the mediocre.

PLOT

Following Docholli's cryptic rumors, the Liberator travels to the medieval planet Goth, where they, Travis and Servalan search for the next clue to the location of Star One...

ANALYSIS

Much of the runtime seems to exist as nothing but an excuse for the actors to camp it up, particularly Bruce Purchase. It's a vaguely funny, but goes on for what feels like an eternity. And when it comes to the Star One arc, The Keeper drops the ball just as hard as Gambit did with its ridiculously confusing non sequiturs.

Servalan and Travis just happen to be working together again as if Freedom City never happened, Lurgen just happens to have disappeared without trace, but before he left, he just happened to leave the location of Star One embedded into the mind of the fool for some godforsaken reason. It's just lazy writing, or a serious lack of proper script editing. And it makes the show feel tired, like it's just given up trying to make much sense and is in need of a serious overhaul, which of course is beckoning. Just get them to Star One, who cares about the other episodes anymore, eh?

The direction is pretty rubbish too, with terrible fight choreography and a very slow pace.

CHARACTERS

I'll grant the actors this, they're all good sports. Bruce Purchase has a blast playing the same kind of loudmouth lord he did on Doctor Who just a year earlier. He has great chemistry with Sally Knyvette and Michael Keating, and the trio play off of each other in really amusing ways.

Freda Jackson is also a hoot as the conniving and possibly supernatural witch Tara, openly mocking the others for not knowing what she does. I love the fact that even though she denounces her brothers for deposing the king, she's quite happy to sit in the big chair herself and cackle maniacally, showing herself to be as vicious as the rest.

I have no idea why Travis is looking for Star One. I mean, last I checked, Travis just wanted to kill Blake. Here, he has the oppurtunity, but completely ignores it in favor of sending the Federation to do the deed. That's just not very Travis at all.

The fact that he offered to share the power with Servalan is also bizarre, given how distrustful of her he's been throughout the entire season. My theory is that he just wants her to think he trusts her so as to avoid being her enemy for the time being. Or maybe he's just lonely. Who knows? I feel like this episode would've just worked better without Travis or Servalan in it at all. Just have them mention Travis stopped by and got the brain print before the Liberator crew and that's it.

I also have to praise Cengiz Saner as the fool, who managed to be convincingly endearing, villainous, melancholy and just plain creepy in the same episode, which is quite a feat of acting.

NOTES

*Servalan could only have found Goth if Travis passed on Docholli's information, which is ridiculous. We know Travis still had his own pursuit ship, so why would he bother dragging her along only to leave her behind once he got the brain print anyway?

*It's also confusing how Travis even knew about Goth. He could've just been standing there the entire time when Docholli explained to Blake about it, but later in this episode, Travis tells Servalan that he didn't know how much Blake knew.

*Apparently, Travis's ship is supposed to be of a specific, recognisable design.

*I like that the burn marks on the fool are never explained. It's a neat detail.

*Travis's giant radio is hilarious.

*Vila's ability to do magic tricks is a bit convenient, given that he's never shown himself to be anything but a pickpocket before.

*What makes Jenna assume the witch wants her to leave?

*I rather fancy the board game prop. It looks much better than the ones they usually have on the Liberator.

*The "pair-bond partner" is a really awkward fake alien term for wife.

*Rod and Gola's spiky maces are obviously made of rubber.

*I don't know if it's intentional, but I do love the subtle irony of Gola refusing a drink from his sister earlier with the declaration "he is the fool, not I!", only to accept it from her later when he's drunk with victory and then dying of poison.

*So... Tara can just take over Goth? Even though she's clearly not a warrior?

INFORMATION!

*The Liberator(and presumably Travis and Servalan) arrive to Goth based on information they collected in Gambit.

*Blake's flashlight is the same type that Cally used in Mission To Destiny, and one of Krantor's men in Gambit.

*Travis still appears to have the ship that Servalan gave him in Trial.

BEST QUOTE AVON QUOTE

"I have no objection to shooting him in the back."

(God, even the Avon lines are incredibly weak this episode)

CONCLUSION

It's mildly watchable fluff, if you ignore the fiasco of continuity issues.