Cipher is entertainingly written, but full of contrivances.
WRITTEN BY
No specific credit.
PLOT
Upon discovering an unusually well-protected painting on the flight deck of an abandoned Federation ship, Avon becomes obsessed with discovering its significance. Meanwhile, Servalan prepares an ambush for the Scorpio crew...
ANALYSIS
I enjoy a good treasure hunt as much as the next man. The Sevenfold Crown, for example, is amongst my favourite Blake's 7 stories. When executed well, such stories can be delightful pulpy masterpieces of entertainment, engaging the audience's minds on an unraveling mystery whilst also keeping the tension high with action and suspense. It's one of the oldest and most enduring tropes. Who doesn't want treasure? Who hasn't sought some out as a kid? The trope's been refined to a fine art by now, and combining it with the sharp wit and western dramatics of Blake's 7 is a match made in heaven. As Crown has already proven.
But unfortunately, Cipher does not live up to the standard. Now, it is a short story so of course expectations must be lowered. But I feel like it had enough potential to where it could have been a lot better than what it is. The mysterious painting is a great starting hook, and something different from the usual shenanigans of the Series D era. And up to the confrontation with Servalan's ships above Alekos, I felt that things were going well. It was fast-paced, certainly, but exciting and mostly made sense. But then it all comes crashing down with the ludicrous leaps in logic that Avon makes based on the paltry information they possess about the painting's creator. Matters only worsen when the truth about Jarvic's fate is revealed and none of it makes sense. Why did Jarvic create a map in the first place? How did he become trapped within his own vault? By failing to adequately answer these questions and not solving the previous riddles in a believable way, Cipher loses all credibility. And with a treasure hunt story, that is a vital aspect. It's a shame.
I'll give them a point for subverting expectations and letting the crew actually get away with the treasure though.
CHARACTERS
For some reason, Avon is the best at everything in this. He's a superior pilot to Tarrant, knocking him aside during an ambush to execute a complex maneuever on his own. He's a superior locksmith to Vila, letting him just stand and watch as he breaks into a vault. What's even the point of the rest of the crew then?
Servalan, to her credit, gets to show off her skills as a strategist by adapting her plans on multiple occasions in reaction to the Scorpio crew's actions. The fact that she ends up losing in the end is more down to circumstances than her own failure.
Interestingly, the depiction of the crew as an overall unit seems to be closer to that of Series C, with the passionate Tarrant playing a more active role in decision-making and Avon being willing to accept a democratic overrule of his authority (something that seemed to be a thing of the past after Terminal). It makes little difference though, since Avon is still ultimately proven right.
I rather enjoyed the minor character of the hapless Captain (conceivably Vledka from the Letts audios) who hates his job. I wish they gave Servalan someone like that to play off of in the show, to fill in the gap left behind by Travis's death. It definitely would've helped prevent her from becoming stale.
NOTES
- This story was originally published in the 1982 Blake's 7 Marvel Monthly winter special.
- Tarrant's snarky imitation of Slave is hilarious. I wish I could've seen Pacey do that lol.
- A moment of silence for the poor artist who gets completely roasted by the entire crew.
- I love how Tarrant insists on showing off even though he clearly has no clue about art.
- The fact that Avon has kept an eye on the Federation's expansion to the point where he knows what planet they're likely to conquer next by heart is a nice touch.
- Apparently, crossword puzzles have survived in the future.
- Given the love bestowed on Jarvik from The Harvest of Kairos, it is somewhat amusing to have the crew praise this Jarvic person in just the same way.
- Vila calls Avon "Mastermind", a reference to the Marvel supervillain from the X-Men comics.
- Jarvic escaped with 20 million credits, which Soolin claims makes him the most successful thief in history.
- Part of Servalan's subterfuge is taking containers of Pylene-50 to Alekos.
- Servalan reminisces about the Liberator as she prepares to attack the crew's new ship, Scorpio.
- Avon solves a mystery by analysing the configuration of the stars, just as he did in Redemption.
- Upon hearing that Jarvic was a political dissident, Vila compares him to Blake.
- Avon refers to Servalan by her old title, "Supreme Commander".
AVON: "They're the safest kind, Vila."
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