Hello and welcome back to the blog that exists. Much like in my Travis Ranking, today's list takes into account every episode that featured Servalan in some capacity and will consider the performance, the usage of the character and my personal feelings about the episode in general.
#29. Games (4x08)
I'm actually really fond of this episode, so I was surprised to see it rank at the bottom. But Games is the only episode of Blake's 7 where I genuinely forget that Servalan was even in it. She's only there as a minor obstacle between Avon and Belkov, has no memorable scenes and disappears after a short while. A total waste of the character as far as I'm concerned.
#28. Traitor (4x03)
A reintroduction so poorly handled that Sand had to play catch-up later. The commissioner storyline is clearly there to set up a new villain, so the fact that they inexplicably keep it in means the script has to jump through hoops to justify Servalan still being alive and in that position. Whilst Avon's initial reaction is great, the fact that nothing truly comes of it makes it feel incredibly pointless and just an overcomplicated excuse to keep a popular character around.
#27. The Keeper (2x12)
This entire episode is just a poorly made appetizer for Star One, and Servalan's appearance is part of that. For some godforsaken reason, she's teamed up with Travis again and tags along for the trip to Goth to eat some grapes and throw sassy lines at Jenna. And that's pretty much it. However, I've ranked it above the previous two because I do like Servalan's casual dismissal of Gola, and her scene with Travis.
#26. Powerplay (3x02)
It's fun seeing Servalan and Cally together, and she has a fabulous scene near the end where she reveals the episode's dark twist involving the hospital of Chenga. Her appearance is also very slightly relevant to the overarching storyline as it explains how she escaped and returned to the Federation. Still a very minor role for her, though, which is why this is so low.
#25. Warlord (4x12)
Servalan's final episode isn't the grand sendoff she deserved (arguably that was Terminal), but she does play a vital role in destroying Xenon Base and wrecking Avon's anti-Federation alliance. Being the clever minx that she is, she also ends up stabbing her partner Zukan in the back and cleaning her hands of both threats to her rule. Not a great Servalan story by any means, but she's still a good villain in this.
#24. Assassin (4x07)
You'd think Servalan would have hired thieves, killers, mercenaries, psychopaths to wipe out our heroes long before this, but oh well. It's a reasonable evil plan, slightly overshadowed by Avon's intention to turn the tables and finally hunt her down (which would have made a far better episode). This is another story where Servalan pulls the strings from afar, but it's fun and Pearce gets to camp it up alongside Betty Marsden. And she prefers her slaves to address her as 'mistress'. What's not to like?
#23. Animals (4x05)
I love Series D and I love Servalan, and yet these are two things that don't go very well together. By this point, she'd mostly devolved into a shallow cartoon villain. Animals, however, is an example of a writer who still remembers how this character is supposed to work. She works behind the scenes, uses the Federation system to her own agenda and profits. It's a crap episode, but not a bad use of Servalan.
#22. Volcano (3x03)
It's cool seeing Servalan lead a fleet for the first time in the series. Her ascendance to the presidency is still fresh, and it feels new and dynamic to have her on the field instead of at Space Command. The scheme to draw in the Liberator with rumours of Blake is clever enough (and nice foreshadowing of the series C finale). What lets this one down is that there's really nothing else going on with the character. It's just two-dimensional.
#21. Hostage (2x08)
Pearce and Kevin Stoney are great to watch together (even if their scene is a shameless ripoff of a similar scene in Seek-Locate-Destroy), and the fact that it's still the 'Supreme Commander era' elevates things as well. I enjoy her reunion with Travis on Exbar.
#20. The Harvest of Kairos (3x05)
The camp value is strong with this one. If I was being purely objective, this would be at the bottom of this list as the story basically makes a mockery of everything Servalan stands for and what made her such a unique and interesting villain in the first place. But I guess in a nihilistic way it's fun watching them completely burn down her character. Also, the fact that Steed uses her to complain about people being on the computer too often is hilarious. If this was made nowadays, Servalan would be on her iPhone the entire episode and driving Jarvik mad by googling everything.
#19. Pressure Point (2x05)
That outfit is worth a few points on its own. The scene between her and Kasabi is really interesting, and sheds some light on Servalan's background and rise to power. It's fun watching her relationship with Travis finally disintegrate in this episode, when Travis quite literally blows it up with a strontium grenade. Why does she have a lizard clamped onto her nipples?
#18. Weapon (2x03)
Pearce and Scott Fredericks have a superb chemistry, which carries a lot of the episode for me. It's great to see her scheme with somebody other than Travis for once (especially since Stephen Greif is a distant memory), and this is also the first time we've seen her properly hold her own in the field. In Orac, she still seemed to be letting Travis take the lead, but now she's solidified herself as the villain to look out for the most.
#17. Star One (2x13)
All hail the new President! Star One is a transitional episode in many ways, and this includes Servalan's character. From this point forward, she stops being a cog in a larger machine and becomes answerable to no one. In effect, this makes her a cartoon villain with limitless resources (with a few exceptions like Sand). It's not a shift I'm entirely happy with, but it does at least take the character into a different direction. And I'd argue that Star One is the most interesting depiction of Servalan's presidency, as we see her actually forced to deal with the immense crisis of the Intergalactic War. I wish we had more oppurtunities to see her handle various problems in office as opposed to chasing the Liberator down all the time.
#16. Moloch (3x11)
I adore Pearce and Michael Keating together. That little subplot is gold tier. I think the basic idea of Servalan being forced to recruit mutineers and the worst scum in the Federation to try and put her wrecked fleet back together again is interesting and a good example of the Intergalactic War continuing to have an effect on thing. There is a scene in which Servalan murders a ton of guards and steals a ship all on her own. That's awesome, but for some reason it happens entirely offscreen. The episode itself is crappy, which brings it down to this number.
#15. Children of Auron (3x07)
Pearce gives a solid performance and seemed to consider this episode noteworthy enough to justify an entire costume design change. Auron also has arguably her most cold-blooded scheme ever, as she infects a whole planet with plague just to get her hands on the Liberator. However, I find the notion of her wanting clone children at the same time to be rather ridiculous, and I'm not impressed with her henchmen this week.
#14. Orbit (4x11)
Servalan's interactions with Egrorian are incredibly funny. It's one of the rare examples of the character being played for laughs. She's kind of a joke in Series D anyway, so I didn't mind. Pearce looks like she's having fun, and the reaction Servalan's presence induces in Avon is the stuff of legend ("like SERVALAN FOR INSTANCE!!!").
#13. Trial (2x06)
We always knew that Servalan would stab Travis in the back if it suited her, but the fact that we get to see this play out and the two of them turn against each other is terrific. Although it's mainly a Travis episode, the role Servalan plays in his downfall shouldn't be overlooked. This is arguably the last time their dynamic is interesting.
#12. Project Avalon (1x09)
Avalon is not a particularly noteworthy appearance, but I value Pearce's performances in Series A very highly, as well as her chemistry with Stephen Greif. She's much more subtle and snakey in her first year, and I just enjoy watching her act out her scenes. You can see her constantly stare at Greif's eyes, checking for his reactions, preparing every word she says in the calculated manner of an exemplary politician. This is Servalan at the peak of her portrayal.
#11. Orac (1x13)
Once again, the fact that it's Series A gives it a big boost. However, I find Orac interesting because it's the first time we see Servalan on another planet. And it's clearly a big moment. The writing makes it clear that this is not something she does often. She can get scared and has to rely on Travis to cope with some of the more dangerous elements. She's also dressed for the occasion, adding to the sense of vulnerability (as opposed to her defiant cocktail dresses in the later episodes).
#10. Voice from the Past (2x10)
Pearce has two scenes, and she makes the most of both. In the first, we see her face off with Frieda Knorr, the only other woman in the galaxy who's as camp and petty as she is - a catfight always feels like a breath away when the two of them are talking. In the second, she has an amazing appearance in the cinema hall where she's prepared a trap for the Federation traitors. Her eyes projected on the screen are incredibly dramatic.
#9. Sand (4x09)
I don't think I really need to justify this ranking, given how important this episode is to the character. This is the show's biggest dive into who Servalan is as a person, and the fact that it comes in the final season is very important to why I think it's so successful. Making her so overtly sympathetic robs her of whatever intimidation factor she would have had left. If this had aired in an earlier season, we might not felt as much (if any) tension when the crew encountered a lady who deep down just wants a hug and some therapy.
But by Series D, Servalan's presence had eroded so much (and the show was coming to an end anyway) that doing this sort of storyline provides a neat coda to the character. Servalan could have remained on Virn, and it'd have been a fairly satisfying end. Oh well.
Although the pairing doesn't entirely make sense to me, it's fun seeing Pearce partner up with Steven Pacey. They have quite an electric chemistry that's just as powerful yet entirely different from the one Pearce shared with Paul Darrow.
#8. Seek-Locate-Destroy (1x06)
Every time I watch this one, I'm struck by just how striking and ahead-of-time Servalan is. This doesn't at all feel like a character from 1970s TV. David Maloney and Terry Nation struck gold by changing Servalan's gender to female, and casting an actress with the screen presence Pearce has. She brings such a controlling, devious presence right from the get go that it's no surprise Servalan became the hit that she eventually did.
#7. Deliverance (1x12)
I've said before that Series A is my favourite season for Servalan, and this is my favourite episode for her. We join up with Travis as he discovers the true depths of her depravity and greed, and realizes his fate is now shackled to hers. Pearce introduces her crocodile smile, cementing Servalan as the embodiment of evil in this show.
#6. Gold (4x10)
Although she only appears briefly at the end, it's one of those iconic Avon/Servalan moments you just have to love (it's also the last time they appear together). But what I really adore is how the episode redefines her 'nothing more than a greedy gangster'. It's like an acknowledgment of how far she's fallen whilst also being accurate to who she always has been.
#5. Aftermath (3x01)
Servalan is removed entirely from the Federation in this episode, which allows us to examine her and Avon purely based on their personalities, something we might have never seen otherwise. In a way, she's almost recruiting for a new Travis (as she is left to her own devices now). The tension is high as there's really no telling what decision Avon will make. Servalan is, after all, so charismatic that one almost wants to see her win Avon over.
#4. Rumours of Death (3x08)
What I find really funny about Servalan's role in Rumours is how last minute it is. She is barely a presence in the episode for the vast majority of the runtime and suddenly she brings this huge emotional gut punch by bringing to light the truth about Anna's background, not to mention having a massive identity crisis of her own (which is somewhat overshadowed by Avon's drama). Servalan is never brought as low as she is in this episode, beaten and locked away in her own cellar. Pearce plays it with an uncharacteristically earnest bitterness, which we only ever see again in Sand.
#3. Gambit (2x11)
It's Gambit. Literally everyone are on top form in this masterpiece.
#2. Death-Watch (3x12)
My favourite of the Avon/Servalan scenes is in this episode. But that aside, I think that Servalan's scheme to interfere with the Teal-Vandor conflict and drive both sides into war whilst playing as an impartial judge is her most cunning of the entire series. It's Servalan at her most admirably villainous, to the point where even Avon is impressed.
#1. Terminal (3x13)
Well, she wins, innit. Servalan finally gets the Liberator, and it's hardly her fault Avon wrecked it earlier. If it wasn't for that, she would have won, period. Her devastating speech about Blake's death and how she used it to play Avon like a puppet on strings is a highlight of the entire series. There's no other contender for the best Servalan story. This one is on...
MAXIMUM POWER!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment