wildw

I had high hopes for this having heard about it a while back. Finally got hold of the DVD release and was left somewhat non-plussed. I love the premise of the Liberator crew still on the run, by now reduced to a beat-up old car. I like motorway service stations too, they're odd, surreal places, particularly late at night. But somehow I found this short lacking.

Besides the costumes and props, which are excellent, there's very little that's very "Blake's 7" about it. For a homage to a show loved for its dialog and characters, the script is really lacking - the characters don't interact or have dialog anything like those they're emulating, and there's pretty much zero plot. I got to the end feeling "is that it?" They could've done something so much better with a 15 minute short like this, considering the effort gone to, if only the writers and cast had taken some interest in the subject matter.

The BBC went mad with the effects budget, and there were good ideas, but somehow it didn't all fit together. There were funny moments, some of comedy genius, but they were put together almost like a sketch show. The episodes didn't flow logically through much of a plot, more like a bunch of funny things that happen in space.

Kevin Eldon is a funny guy, and I've loved his work since the old Lee and Herring shows he did, but he only really has one character - the insane freak, and he just doesn't fit here. Nobody that bizarre would end up as chief of security on a spaceship. Yes, I know its a comedy, but its a sit-com, and the situation should at least be believable and consistent for it to work.

If it returns, and it does deserve another chance, I hope it improves, and decides what it wants to be.