Corners of the Mind is... well, it's something alright.
WRITTEN BY
Andy Lane, who's done a fair few Doctor Who audios, but this is his one and only entry for Blake's 7 at the time of writing.
PLOT
Avon joins a Federation research team in uncovering "the greatest treasure in the universe", concealed inside a mysterious pyramid full of traps. He soon discovers that the deeper he goes, the more memories are wiped from his mind, and has to rely on Cally to learn the truth behind the treasure...
ANALYSIS
I don't think this drama really worked for me the way it was intended. Much of the story focuses on Avon solving various logical puzzles. I thought it was a neat idea at first, but what it comes down to is listening to someone describe different chess matches, mathematical quizzes and room layouts rather like an out of touch professor detailing an Indiana Jones movie. It's a bit dry is what I'm saying. The excitement obviously comes from trying to figure out the puzzles for yourself. So if you have the time and patience to constantly pause the story and think things over, then it might be improved. I wanted to, but my faulty video player reset the whole thing every time I tried to pause, so I didn't get to experience this in the ideal conditions. That being said, I don't think it's unfair to say that an audio drama should be gripping without having to pause every five minutes to deliberate.
The most intriguing mystery in the story concerned Avon's amnesia, and the labyrinth forcing him to relive certain painful memories. I can't help but think that if the puzzles were somehow tied to his past, it might have held my attention better and been more cohesive. For example, if the flashbacks to Avon's adventures at Space Command hinted at some of the chess moves he had to make, or the numerical puzzle was based on a number relevant to him in some way. Suggesting that the pyramid tailored its traps based on the personality of whoever entered it. Making the entire labyrinth an extension of his personality. Maybe that is what was actually intended and it flew over my head. That's possible. As is, I felt very detached from it. Avon solved a bunch of high school tier dilemmas and rambled a lot about mostly random moments from his life. Well, okay then.
I did greatly appreciate the final twist regarding the pyramid's occupants. The darker consequences of immortality have been explored several times in Blake's 7 (Sarcophagus, Mindset), but it's done well here. I especially loved the notion that Avon isn't actually interested in living forever... just living as long as he can. That's very true to who he is.
CHARACTERS
Paul Darrow veers wildly from complete disinterest to moments of extravagant pathos (It's downright odd to hear him begging for the Liberator's return like a lost child). I'm not convinced he really knew what to make of this. It's always good fun to hear him and Jan Chappell together, though, and they have some great banter.
NOTES
- The notion of a hyper-intelligent biological computer that collects victims and forces them to live in a VR world is extremely similar to the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Dead Stop".
- I really enjoyed the scene where Avon lectures Cally about his worldview. "Survival, then comfort in survival. Past that, I've never bothered to look". Great stuff.
- Cally enjoying Avon's rambling was rather cute, although it does make me wonder if she just wants to hook up with a more attractive and emotionally aware version of Vila.
- I love that they mention the computer is biological so Cally could have an excuse for being able to use telepathy to hack it. Technobabble at its finest.
- Have the Federation troopers ever been referred to as "stormtroopers" before? Feels oddly... Star Wars-y.
- Having Cally constantly tell Avon what the crew are saying in the background was really clunky. Could've cut that out.
INFORMATION!
- The robot bug that follows Avon around seems to be an advancement of the technology seen in Drones.
- We learn quite a few things about Avon's past: he once visited Space Command to perform a heist, but failed. He also travelled to Freedom City with Tynus (whom we met in Killer) and once again failed to make money because of his poor choice of associate.
- Avon continues to believe that Blake is still alive and might lead an attack on Earth.
- Avon and Cally mistake the Shakespearean phrase "How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child" (from King Lear) for a quote from the Holy Bible.
- The Terra Nostra (seen in Shadow) are mentioned in passing.
- Avon references the security robots seen in Seek-Locate-Destroy and Project Avalon.
- The events of Gambit are wiped from Avon's mind.
- Avon paraphrases the Chinese curse "may you live in interesting times". The Chinese government are associated with him in the sequel novel Lucifer.
- Avon's former employer Dortmunn shares her name with a character from Mission to Destiny.
- The treasure in the pyramid is suggested to be a planet-destroying weapon, foreshadowing the return of the Armageddon Storm in the next two stories of this box set.
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