Account 3 - A
Little Bit of Politics
The previous two accounts has placed emphasis on key moments, which made many episodes enjoyable, and the whole show was viewed as a series of vignettes, with the episode format a loose contained for these. In contrast, those articulating account 3 take the different view: episodes are seen primarily as self-contained units, and rewarded for being good or bad on their own terms, with much less emphasis on any over-arching continuity.
The criteria by which epsiodes are judged are straightforward enough - script (both plot and dialogue), and performances from cast and guests alike. Top-rating episodes are:
+5 Rumours of Death; Blake
+4 Gambit; Games; Gold
+3 Pressure Point; City at the Edge of the World; Star One; Orbit
Blake: 'A wonderfully-written episode. The best ending to any SF series ever.' And: 'Excellently-paced, full of tension and drama that draws you in and involves you with the fate of these people.'
Star One: 'The episode that got me hooked. The first scene on the Liberator is perhaps the defining moment for the series.' And: 'Best blend of action, suspense, characterization and plot.'
Deathwatch: 'A solid, gripping tale with some cracking one-liners. A rare instance of real SF in B7. Deeta's death is moving, Pacey gives two excellent performances, and Jackie Pearce is as sexy as hell. What more do you want?'
Particular plot themes are specifically highlighted as being preferred - these are plots which deal with the politics of the series:
Rumours of Death: 'I was surprised I rated this so high... My gut feeling is that Shrinker, the surveillance team and the return to politics make it all worthwhile.'
Seek-Locate-Destroy: 'I love the political wrangling and polite bitchiness in Servalan's scenes.'
The cynicism of the show is specifically mentioned: As one respondent put it: 'I like depressing! Though I tend to call it realism, being somewhat cynical. In the real world, small groups of rebels who take on the military government tend to die. It makes a refreshing change from the Star Wars ilk, and it's one of those things that makes B7 unique.' And: '[The Way Back and Space Fall] set up the dystopian universe beautifully, and have the right mixture of adventure and edgy, witty bickering I love about B7.'
What constitutes a bad episode? 'Awful standby clichéd Sf plots, and done badly at that. Suspension of disbelief is impossible, and the characters that I love so much are acting out of character. A stunning lack of thought and originality.' Low-rated episodes were:
-5 Ultraworld; Animals
-4 The Web; Dawn of the Gods; Headhunter
Animals: 'Poor script. Flat production. Two utterly shit central performances. No mercy.' And: 'Lousy acting, lousy plot, Justin stinks as a character.'
Ultraworld: '50 minutes of television with a few shit jokes.'
Volcano: 'It starts. Fifty minutes later it ends. A guest star does nothing.'
Again, the main criteria by which episodes are judged are plot, dialogue, acting - and the overall effect of these when making up the episode.
Travis was never pleased with his passport photos.
An interesting tension emerges in rating Trial. One respondent articulating this account placed it at +4. Another respondent placed it at 0, and its overall ranking for this account was +2. Comparing these respondents' reasons for placing this episode illustrates the key components of this account: the interest in politically-orientated plots and a dislike of tackiness:
'I wanted to place this in +5 so much. I love seeing the view of the Fed squaddies, the trial is genuinely tense, Croucher is good. The Blake and Zil stuff is a bit tacky, which is the reason this was the one of my top 3 to be relegated.' [Placed at +4].
'Placing Trial is a simple case of conflict between two plot strands - the trial scenes with all the political wrangling and infighting are fascinating. The stuff on the planet with Blake and Zil is utter tripe. So Trial ends up neutral when the whole thing is averaged out. [Placed at 0].
These quotations show clearly the mechanism by which episodes are rated, with points awarded for (preferably political) plot and good acting, and points deducted for bad effects - but the success of the episode as a whole is what is ultimately judged.
Nicked from Judith Proctor's website, designed by Richard Proctor
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