Travis comes to the Clone Masters with an unusual request…

As soon as it was announced that both Brian Croucher and Stephen Grief would be appearing in this episode, anticipation started to mount for the scenes between the two of them, and Tim Foley’s story doesn’t disappoint – to the extent that part of me doesn’t want to listen to part 3 of this set, in case it alters the status quo established at the end of this episode.

Foley picks up on the differences in characterisation between Grief and Croucher’s portrayal of the role – and there’s an in-universe explanation that covers some but not all of it. Putting the two of them in a room together isn’t like having two Doctors together, where the talents multiply rather than simply add; it’s more like the way James Goss posited multiple Masters earlier this year – they simply get in each other’s way! More than once I found myself grinning at the position that one or other found themselves in, and it sounds as if the actors enjoyed the sparring. Lucy Sheen’s Vast and Jade Gordon’s Mutoid make good foils for both, with a guest appearance by Jan Chappell making Croucher-Travis wonder about his sanity.

Verdict: One of those bucket list Blake’s 7 stories achieved well. 9/10

Paul Simpson

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