Gambit (211)

[vilakins]

While the fearless leader's away, the thieves will play.

This is a fun but surprisingly complicated plot. It's part of the Star One arc, but there's also Federation conniving to take over the unnamed planet that Freedom City is on, and of course Vila and Avon's excellent adventure.

Vila and Avon
I can see why Vila gets left behind after his bad behaviour on Space City, and Jenna rubs it in with her grin and wave when she says "Bye!" But why is Avon there? To keep an eye on Vila, or is he being punished too? They're both very resentful and quick to abandon the others without teleport while they have some fun.
Avon's reaction to Thrylce's death by speed chess is interesting. He says that risking money isn't always enough, and that it's the biggest gamble, the "real kick". Does he egg Vila on to play the Klute because of the thrill of betting his life? On the other hand he spits out his ice-cream when Vila chooses to continue playing the big wheel beyond what Avon thought was safe. I suppose one could assume that Avon relishes the ultimate gamble--at no risk to himself--or perhaps there's no risk anyway. Avon has Orac, Vila's wearing a bracelet, and he knows he could get Vila teleported before the Klute could press his button. Because I like to think there's some liking there, I'm going for the latter interpretation.
I wish we'd seen the cut scene where they gorge themselves on ice-cream on the Rink, but I still like the way they lie to Blake at the end, working so well together inthat too.

Krantor and Toise
Krantor is fun to watch; he and Servalan are well matched. I do the way they both insult and threaten each other while remaining full of charm and oily politeness--and the look of affront he gives Toise for daring to wear headgear that might outshine his own costume. Yet when Avon and Vila take them for ten million credits and he turns to Toise in shock, Toise forces him to his knees. That relationship may not be as one-sided as one thinks.

Travis
This is a very good episode for Travis 2. He cares about Docholli and protects him, and I don't think it's because of Docholli's knowledge. He looks genuinely offended and hurt when Chenie sneers at his noble nature, and if I didn't know what was coming at Star One, I'd feel quite sorry for him. I wonder how much it would have taken to deflect him from his plan to revenge himself on the whole human race.

Others
I like Chenie and rather hope that one day she and Docholli meet up again, and I even enjoy the raddled Marlene Dietrich croupier. She looks rather like someone from Cabaret or a  Weimar Republic night club, and the drag nun is a nice touch.

Tech
Krantor's mirror comms is a huge advance on Servalan's small and often B&W screens, and the one photo Blake has of Docholli is a grainy, B&W one. I regard this as proof of the Federation's stagnancy; they are so reactionary and rigid that innovation and creativity are stifled and they rely on huge fleets and massive numbers of troops rather than anything Krantor's planet would regard as state of the art.

Convoluted plotting
Servalan doesn't just want to stop Blake getting to Docholli, she also uses the bug on Travis in the hope of inducing Krantor to kill Travis before he can blow Docholli up with his booby-trapped arm. If this works, she can then have Krantor killed for presumably getting the location of  Star One out of Travis, also a good excuse for the Federation to move in and clean out "this pestilential rat-hole" so close to their borders.
So far so good.
But I'm as puzzled as Jarriere who asks what will happen if Travis evades Krantor and reaches Docholli. Servalan says, "Even then, it won't go wrong. You see, I've allowed for that possibility too, Jarriere." I had thought that they were enacting an elaborate ruse with the grenade in the arm for Krantor's benefit, but that remark implies that  there really is a bomb--and there is indeed but Blake says it isn't primed. Why not? Is Jarriere, behind his air of gentle befuddlement, a clever explosives expert with rebel sympathies who gets away with not in fact arming the arm?

A fun and entertaining episode with interesting and likeable (though not always both) guest characters, and the most depth we've seen from Travis 2.

Comments

[vandonovan.livejournal.com]

and the most depth we've seen from Travis 2

And yet on rewatches, I envitably end up FFing through his scenes. Sigh.


I can't believe you didn't mention the girls though! And Cally's dress, ahahaha.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I found the catfight scene rather embarrassing. I bet Jenna made Cally flash her thigh at Vila while she put the photo in her gold lame boot though, just to rub it in that he was staying.

[vandonovan.livejournal.com]

Oh, it is embarrassing. It's also hilarious! I about fell out of my seat at the "slut" line too!

And, awww, that's just mean! Still, I'm sure Vila's thoughts are, "I got to see Cally's thigh. How's that punishment?"

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

I'm not so sure that Avon was at all convinced that he could get Vila out in time. First of all, Orac tends to get rather willful at the worst possible moments, so Avon might still be arguing with it to get Vila teleported up already when the button was pushed. Second, the management knew they were together, so if Vila suddenly disappeared in plain sight, Avon might have suddenly found himself surrounded with casino guards who wouldn't have let him have a leisurely talk with Orac about getting himself teleported out as well. And what with the distance between Vila and Avon, I'm also not sure that the both of them could have been teleported at once.

So I read that scene as Avon really believing that they're in seriously deep caca.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I assumed they'd both teleport, but even if it was just Vila, no one but the Klute would know as Thrylce (who must have been as drugged as Vila was) disappeared completely.

Avon does say to play while Orac gives the moves so he seems fairly confident, but yes, he was shocked when Krantor says that Vila is challenging the Klute. I don't think he'd risk Vila's life for a kick, not going by other actions, but I'm pretty sure the writers wanted us to suspect that he might.

[kalinda001.livejournal.com]

First of all, Orac tends to get rather willful at the worst possible moments
But the one person who can get ORAC to behave is Avon. It wouldn't have taken him more than a few seconds to point out that ORAC might end up as spare parts if it didn't teleport them up quickly. One thing ORAC is good at is saving its own futuristic plastic skin as well. Another thing, there never was any indication in the show that proximity was required in order for people to be teleported up. Besides, Avon would only have to walk closer to Vila. Were there any guards to prevent him from doing that? And assuming that they had to be teleported up separately, all he would have to do was tell ORAC to teleport Vila and then himself. Wouldn't take that long, esp if Avon makes no overt hostile moves himself which would draw attention.

[the-summoning-d.livejournal.com]

Hee, I love this ep. Not only is this about the only episode other than Trial where Travis II isn't a cardboard cut-out villain, Avon and Vila conning the Big Wheel always makes my day.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

They're so cute at the end too when they act all innocent with Blake. It's obvious that they know each other well enough to seamlessly concoct a story without looking at each other.

[the-summoning-d.livejournal.com]

I couldn't agree more, they're quite adorable when they work together like that.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Yes! Nico, I love your remark about the atmosphere like Weimar republic. Vila and Avon are the cream of it.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

It's funny; they're not in it that much and were probably meant to be a side story, but they are the stars. For me anyway. :-)

[kalinda001.livejournal.com]

Yes. Definitely for me as well. From the way they are both resentful together, then concocting a scheme together to trick ORAC...wonderful. They are the stars. When watching this episode, I just keep fast forwarding to the parts with Avon and Vila in them.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

The other parts are entertaining too, but for me it's all about their scam and how well they work together.

[hafren.livejournal.com]

I think one reason for Avon's resentment is that this is the ep after VftP. I suppose he knows, objectively, that Blake's mind wasn't under his own control at the time, but Blake does have a history of mistrusting him (Horizon, Project Avalon) and while Avon gives him plenty of cause verbally, his actions have never given any cause.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

So true. Perhaps they didn't get to Del 10 and Avon argued with Blake about it (and I don't blame him one bit; Blake is an utter prick after VftP) and Vila certainly would, so Blake is leaving the two troublemakers behind.

That crew was very much in need of some R&R before let alone after VftP, so that's a good explanation for Avon and Vila grabbing what they considered theirs by tight. I'm sure the defiance and victory were worth a lot more to them than the money, though I always like to have it come in useful after GP.

[kalinda001.livejournal.com]

That is the direction I'm moving towards in my stories ;)
And I am going to do something with some of those god awful episodes in S4 which were completely out of character for both Avon and Vila.