The Mark Of Kane (1996) Review

The Mark Of Kane has a melancholy touch to it, even if it just exists for fan service.

WRITTEN BY

Fan writers Alan Stevens and David Tulley. I do find myself wishing they aimed for something more original, but at least they manage to effectively tug on the heartstrings.

PLOT

Years after Travis has scarred him, bounty hunter Kane is still obsessed with him. He'll just have to settle for the man who killed Travis...

ANALYSIS

There are two segments, one which deals with Kane's encounter with Travis and the other with Blake. Travis's segment is easily the weaker of the two, mainly because the star power of Brian Croucher domineers over the actual story. The idea is that Travis unknowingly has a huge impact on somebody he doesn't think twice about, but that would work so much better if we got to know Kane beforehand and only had a brief appearance from Travis. Instead, most of the segment is spent basically on fanwank.

It's the Blake segment that really makes Mark Of Kane stand out, as Kane is a much more prevalent character in it and also because it's set during Blake's exile on Gauda Prime, which is far more interesting than Travis's antics. It hits that sweet spot between Shakespearean and plain absurd that made the original show so great.

The audio quality is quite good, although you can tell it wasn't quite 100% professional(particularly during the fight scenes). Still, the creators are just as aware of their limitations as we are and so the majority of the story is very dialogue-based, which I also like as it made it easier to follow than some other audio dramas I've heard.

As with The Logic Of Empire, you have to be a well-versed Blake's 7 fanatic to get the most out of it, as it's almost entirely centred around continuity references, some obvious and some obscure.

CHARACTERS

Let's start with the main draws - Gareth Thomas and Brian Croucher. Thomas is just fantastic as the more weathered version of Blake, and I loved seeing more of his bounty hunter era, having to deal with all kinds of scum and trying to keep what little's left of his humanity intact.

Croucher is also cool, though he sounds awfully grumpy even for Travis. His interactions with Kane and the bartender were awesome, and really sold Travis as a force to be reckoned with, even without Federation backup. Why couldn't the show have this kind of Travis more often?

Terry Molloy(of Doctor Who fame) portrays the eponymous Kane. He starts off as something of a disappointment given the premise - just some Welsh nobody. But after the time jump, I started to see the brilliance of Molloy's portrayal. Kane basically is a nobody, but now he's an insane nobody and there's a big difference. He's a good depiction of the effect that the show's events had on the ordinary person. The main flaw is that despite being the character the story revolves around, he doesn't get as much focus as he should, because the writers are clearly having more fun with Blake and Travis.

Tracy Russell played my favourite character, Valisha the Mutoid. Much like Spock in Star Trek, you'd think that an unemotional role wouldn't demand much effort, but like Nimoy, Russell manages to convey a good deal of subtext between the lines. She's also aided by some fantastic writing.

NOTES

*At one and a half minutes, the musical intro drags on for far too long.

*Croucher stumbles over his lines at one point, even touching his mic as if expecting a retake.

*I really like how they tied the Auros massacre into the Andromedan invasion. It makes Travis's actions less black and white.

*Apparently, Docholli was a drunk even before his escape, as Travis recognises it as his primary habit.

*Travis refusing to turn in Docholli to the Federation because he used to be one of them doesn't really seem in-character for him, especially if he knew how valuable Docholli's information is. Also, I don't really see him as the kind of guy who'd leave a bounty hunter alive, scum or otherwise. Hurting Kane's arm and eye seems a bit overly symbolic for a straightforward madman like Travis.

*I love the development of the Mutoids(that they do in fact remember their past and simply refuse to talk about it unless absolutely necessary). It makes what's happened to them that much more tragic. Mutoids have been absurdly underutilized by this franchise.

*The idea that Servalan deliberately planted Maryatt's wife on Travis is a bit absurd, given that she expected him to be executed.

*The bartender(Peter Halliday) sounds like Dean Harris's version of Vila.

*The twist that Gan was actually a rapist and a notorious murderer before being given the limiter is brilliant.

*The "Boucher rifle". Lol.

*The final fight was a bit hard to follow, mainly because it's hard to tell who screams where and for what. But then again, fights are always difficult to do on audio.

*Travis having to ask the Mutoids where he put his sleeping pills was comedy gold.

INFORMATION!

*The first segment is set between Voice From The Past and Gambit, and follows Travis as he locates Docholli and simultaneously makes first contact with the Andromedans from Star One. He is travelling with the Mutoids and pursuit ship given to him by Servalan in Trial.

*The second segment takes place somewhere between Traitor and Blake. As in The Logic Of Empire, it's stated that five years have passed since the events of the Intergalactic War.

*Travis dreams of the massacre that cost him his eye and arm, which was first detailed in Seek-Locate-Destroy.

*Travis threatens the Andromedans with the Federation's development of the intergalactic drive, using the monopasium-239 ore. This was established in Horizon.

*It's revealed that Travis massacred the civilians on Auros as a method of uncovering concealed Andromedans, which led to his temporary suspension. The massacre of Zircaster is also mentioned, although its connection to Auros, if one exists, is not elaborated on.

*The Mutoids' dependence on blood serum and their nature(both explained in Duel) get a great deal of focus.

*There are multiple references to Bayban the Butcher/Berserker from City At The Edge Of The World.

*Travis tracks Docholli to Disentastra, a planet mentioned in Terminal.

*Kane recognises Travis from "visplays", a type of video featured in Hostage(vistapes are also mentioned in The Way Back).

*Travis outwits Valisha by pointing out that the Federation cannot erase the past - merely block it. This was established in The Way Back during Blake's brainwashing.

*Valisha is the wife of Maryatt, whose "desertion" occurred in Deliverance. Blake also recognises her, having briefly seen her photograph amongst Maryatt's belongings.

*Blake's sidekick Tando is briefly mentioned in Blake, by which point he's killed the latter(adding another lovely touch of gloom).

*Blake uses "Dev Varon" as his pseudonym, a mixture of Dev Tarrant and Tel Varon, both of whom he met in The Way Back.

*Jenna's death at the hands of Lafayette(mentioned in Blake) is his main motivation for joining Kane.

*Lafayette is accompanied by "trekkers", a name for space travellers used in Gambit.

*Tando's partnership with Blake is born out of their mutual acquintance Olag Gan, whose backstory, limiter and exile on Cygnus Alpha are discussed.

*Kane found Travis's Mutoid when he tracked Travis to Goth, which we saw the latter on in The Keeper.

*Lafayette takes credit for Blake's supposed death on Jevron, mentioned in Terminal.

*Servalan's supposed death and the Scorpio crew are briefly mentioned.

*Blake still has his handgun from the Liberator.

*Kane got his "Boucher rifle" from Outer Gal, a planet mentioned in Voice From The Past.

*Kane has visited Zondor, where zombies(aka pacified citizens) are shot off escalators, as seen in Warlord.

*Blake receives the facial injury we see him with in Blake.

BEST QUOTE

KANE: "What did they used to call him now?"
BLAKE: "The Cat Strangler."
KANE: "You've kept some strange company, Varon."
BLAKE: "I only got to know Olag after the limiter had been fitted."
KANE: "Bet he was like a kitten, wasn't he?"

CONCLUSION

I had a good time with this, but much like Logic Of Empire, it does feel like fanfiction. Kane and the Mutoid(aka the original characters) are by far the best part of this. It'd have worked much better as a story in the Blake's 7 universe rather than an oppurtunity to just see more of Travis and Blake.