Liberation is an excellent way to reboot the audios, it has the feel of a pilot episode.
WRITTEN BY
Steve Lyons, a safe pair of hands if ever there was one.
PLOT
The Liberator crew track Jenna to the planet Morphenniel. There, Tarrant and Cally pose as Federation officers to search the colony's prison while Dayna and Vila seek out the rebel leader Aquila. Learning that Aquila has been captured, a vengeful Dayna stirs up a revolution in the remaining rebel movement and launches an attack on the prison...
ANALYSIS
Although this is series 3 of the audios, you can tell it was intended as something of a fresh start. Grant's gone, Gareth Thomas has sadly passed, the Chronicles are finished and so now they're introducing this new run with Yasmin Bannerman's Dayna by going right back to the beginning of Series C and seeing how the crew got comfortable with each other. It's quite clever. I like the meta-ness of Avon's subplot where he's trying to figure out whether or not he truly needs the crew now that Blake is gone. The answer's predictable (if you've seen Horizon, you know), but I can forgive it. This is a reboot and Avon's shadiness is his main character trait.
In fact, Liberation is all about seeing what each character brings to the table. I especially liked Dayna's storyline. I've never found Dayna very interesting, (partly because of Josette Simon's flat acting and partly because she doesn't get much to do) so to see her talents and attributes fully utilised was a refreshing change. It made sense that she would be bullheaded enough to lead a rebellion and get wrapped up in Blake's cause. She probably would've been his staunchest supporter had they actually met! I also enjoyed Tarrant's charade as a Federation officer, and how he got almost a little too much into character, a subtle reminder that it's not been too long since he was the enemy.
If there's anything that didn't work so well (and this is only a minor critique), it's that giving everyone their own storylines meant that the episode felt a little cluttered. There were a few bits where I was like "wait, how did we get here?". Nothing too serious, but still a bit of a drawback. Overall I enjoyed it though. It was almost like the audio drama equivalent of a team-building exercise.
CHARACTERS
Avon is portrayed very cartoonishly here, purring over his newfound riches like a cat with cream. Darrow greatly enjoyed hamming it up. It's not my favourite take on the character, but again, it works as an introduction to what kind of person and leader he is.
Vila is given a relatively minor role, but I still enjoyed the sequence of him playing cards with some guards. Mainly because there were no actors for the guards, so Keating had to carry the entire scene on his own, which he of course did wonderfully. I do wish we could've seen him overcome the guards onscreen, though. Having him explain how he did it was a little disappointing.
I've heard Yasmin Bannerman's performance as Dayna before, but here she really impressed me. She has a much more mature voice than Simon's (probably because she's only eight years younger than Simon is right now), which gives the character more gravitas and focus. And with the way she takes charge of the entire rebel faction, it makes Dayna seem more of a force to be reckoned with. Still very youthful in her perspective and decisionmaking, but more fleshed out and interesting.
The guests weren't as memorable as some have been, but I think they were just good enough for what they had to be. Stephen Boxer in particular brought a nice gravelly voice for the rebel leader Tarkol, and was very convincing as this worn-down fighter past his prime. And Sara Powell is enjoyably nasty as the overwrought but merciless Federation leader trying to keep the colony under control. Her neverending tirades over not getting any help from High Command were very amusing.
NOTES
- I might be mistaken, but there were several instances where I felt like the audio effects people mistook the sound of the Federation handgun with that of the Liberator handguns.
- The constant whispering noises as Dayna makes her speech to the rebels were very distracting. Particularly when half of them are just Michael Keating.
- Dayna claims to prefer Vila to Tarrant. That didn't last long, did it?
- The music's a bit weird. It sounds very modern, like I'm watching a contemporary drama. Doesn't fit the 1970s recreation at all.
- Although the cards scene was great, it is a bit odd that the guards would choose to be mutes for no reason. Couldn't Alistair Lock voice a few lines?
- One of the Federation troopers is named Galloway, which feels like a reference to something, but I have no idea what.
- I like how Dayna inadvertently mimics Blake by breaking into a high security facility only to find the prize was worthless all along.
- Apparently 'Del Tarrant' is as ordinary a name as John Smith. Apparently John Smith is a name people still use in the Federation.
- The way Avon relates to Dayna's awkwardness with having to account with other people was a nice way for them to bond.
- This story is set three days after the events of Powerplay. Avon reuses his fake identity as "Chevron" to contact Tarrant on the surface. The planet Morphenniel was first mentioned in that episode. Section Leader Klegg previously visited the planet. Servalan has returned home and announced the end of the Intergalactic War.
- Dayna is still bitter over the deaths of her father and sister, which occurred three days prior during the events of Aftermath. She misses fighting the Sarrans on her own.
- Cally reminds the group that they failed to destroy Star One in the episode of the same name. She also reassures Vila that Blake would not have handed Avon control over the Liberator if he did not trust him (which Blake himself stated).
- Vila refutes Dayna's statement that Blake would have helped the Morphenniel colony by reminding her that he knew Blake before anyone else currently onboard the Liberator, referencing The Way Back. The Dome cities on the planet also call back to that episode.
- Blake and Jenna contacted Aquila before the Intergalactic War, presumably to prepare for the fallout of Star One's destruction.
- Avon orders Orac to calculate the necessity of keeping the crew onboard, which also happened in Horizon.
- The security robot seen in Seek-Locate-Destroy and Project Avalon makes a reappearance.
- Vila briefly tells the guards about his visit to Space City in Shadow.
DAYNA: "This is what Blake was working towards. And you, from the moment you threw your lot in with him! You must have known it would come to this eventually!"
VILA: "I did, I always did. I knew it'd end in tears, most probably mine. I just hoped by then I'd have as much wine, women and song as I can stand! I haven't even managed the song..."
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