To get into somewhere apparently impenetrable, Avalon and Madison need help from Bayban the Butcher…

This first story from Niel Bushnell sees Avalon meet up with another guest character from a later era of Blake’s 7, Colin Baker’s Bayban the Butcher, who made his appearance in City at the Edge of the World in Series C. Never knowingly underplayed by Baker on screen, the character has quite a bit more to him for this tale – which bodes well for his own box set that’s coming in the not too distant future – but Baker can still let rip when required (his final scene is about as maniacal as they come).

To an extent, this is a heist caper, and those elements play out well; it’s also an interesting study of Avalon and Madison’s relationship, and the end of the episode gives us a different viewpoint on Avalon compared with the conclusion of the previous box set, where basically Avalon warned Fay not to put her trust in anyone, even her.

Olivia Poulet, Cliff Chapman, Colin Baker and Graham Seed’s Noral have a good rhythm in their various scenes, with John Ainsworth keeping a tight rein on the level of melodrama, and Simon Power’s sound design and score working well. I’m hoping that we’ve not heard the last of Charlotte Strevens’ Winter…

Verdict: A nicely plotted caper. 8/10

Paul Simpson

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