By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
The two most popular sci-fi franchises in the world, Star Trek and Star Wars, tackle the genre from opposite directions; the former envisions a utopian future, while the latter is more of a fantasy, but both include clear distinctions between good and evil.
A third way emerged thanks to the influential British series, Blake’s 7, which made the heroes criminals and rough around the edges, showing a sci-fi universe in which the line between good and evil is blurred. With a focus on multi-episode storylines and a dark, gritty tone to its world, the BBC series also laid the groundwork for later shows like Babylon 5, Firefly, Farscape, and the Battlestar Galactica remake.
Not Good Guys, Not Bad Guys
The Blake of Blake’s 7 is Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas), leader of the rebellion against the Federation, brainwashed, unbrainwashed, and then framed for crimes he didn’t commit and sent to a prison planet. A born leader, Blake helps other prisoners escape by commandeering The Liberator, a mysterious vessel run by an advanced A.I. computer named Zen. The thing is, though Blake is the Captain by default, he has his hands full keeping his rowdy compatriots in line as they try to take down the Federation.
Alongside Blake are Avon, the computer genius who lives by a code of logic and reason, which sounds Spock-like, except he’s also greedy and willing to sacrifice his shipmates to save his own skin, Vila, the cowardly thief with a fondness for booze, Jenna Stannis, a smuggler and skilled pilot, is the closest thing to a loyal crewmember, and even that takes a few episodes. The other half includes Cally, a telepath with a death wish, Olag the giant bruiser with a device implanted in his brain to keep him calm and docile, and Zen, the sentient computer. The crew in Blake’s 7 would never be confused for the officers of the Enterprise, or even the Rebel Alliance, but they are, arguably, a precursor to the crew of the Moya in Farscape.
Laying The Groundwork For A New Way Forward
Blake’s 7 follows the usual format of British television, with four shortened seasons of 13 episodes each, but in an unusual twist for sci-fi, the entire first season was written by the show’s creator, Terry Nation, a feat that would not be topped until J. Michael Straczynski wrote Babylon 5. The first two seasons play out like the precursor to another modern classic, Battlestar Galactica, with the Federation constantly at the heels of The Liberator and the ragtag crew dealing with a foe that has them outnumbered and outgunned. This is why even though the British series debuted in 1978 with a budget that today would be viewed as nonexistent, it’s still a beloved fan favorite hailed as being decades ahead of its time.
Watch 30 seconds of the show and you can tell that it had no budget, but it did have a strong sense of its characters, putting the emphasis not on spectacular special effects, but how all seven abrasive personalities bounce off one another in different combinations to the point where it seems every few episodes, someone threatens to leave the Liberator for good. Terry Nation wrote a space opera about horrible people that’s steeped in the same cynicism and anti-government attitude roiling England during the 70s, and yet, it manages to retain a sense of fun throughout. No matter the decade it was released, Blake’s 7 would be hailed for being a creative, bold new take on sci-fi.
The most impressive part of the show is how it manages to pull everything together for one of the most jaw-dropping finales of any series. In a world with shows that end on cliffhangers and others that are set up to launch spin-offs or revivals, it’s refreshing to know that Blake’s 7 finishes the story. If you’re bored with Star Trek’s Federation and have seen too many Star Wars characters whoa re supposedly the worst of the galaxy turn out to be teddy bears, then it’s well worth your time to fire up Britbox (available on its own or as part of Amazon Prime Video), and enjoy a sci-fi series that broke the mold and proved to sci-fi fans there’s more than one way to explore a glaaxy far, far away.
