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No! Not the MindPROBE!

@droho.bsky.social

190 followers 240 following 700 posts

A dude who reads & watches far too much sci-fi & cult TV/cinema. Massive Doctor Who, Blake’s 7, Star Trek, Star Wars & Bond fan & co-host of the Who Corner to Corner Doctor Who podcast.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 24d

Blake’s 7 series 2 blu ray out soon so now feels like a good time to catch up with series 1.
I’ve watched this a few times over the years but this is my first time on shiny BluRay with new FX and cleaned AV.
Given how bright & sharp the iconic intro looks (and sounds!), this is gonna be great!

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Reposted by No! Not the MindPROBE!

The Spaceshipper 🚀 @thespaceshipper.com · 1d

Return of the Jedi (1983): Unused ship design by Ralph McQuarrie ↙️

The Book of Boba Fett (2022): The hovertain, art by Anton Grandert ↗️

Grandert: "The design was inspired by an old Ralph McQuarrie sketch, and the final design was a collaboration between me, Christian Alzmann and Rene Garcia."

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Yeah I saw it - fun times 😆

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Duel is a very decent episode, pitting Blake & Travis head to head quite early on in their ongoing battle. It could’ve made for a pretty good finale.
However their story is not over just yet…

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

I’ve watched this story so many times it’s unreal. It was title of the second Blake’s 7 VHS when they were released as omnibus compilations of three stories to a tape back in the day. But this is the first time I noticed that it was directed by the wonderful Douglas Camfield!

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Blake stumbles in to help his friend and Travis springs forth! The two men fight!
But I’m not gonna tell you how it plays out, heh heh. If you know, you know, but if you don’t then you’ll just have to watch it yourself. Go on. It’s pretty good!

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

First thing the following morning, the Mutoid bat-blood-sucker hogties Jenna. Travis just about stops her gorging on Jenna’s life essence and the trap for Blake is set!

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Luvley new VFX shot of … um… Mars??
Actually it’d be pretty cool if the Duel was happening on one of the Martian moons…

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Avon is bored and turns himself in for some shuteye. Then Terry Nation gives him the best lines of the series so far 🙌

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Meant to say… The Liberator isn’t going anywhere. So to help pass the time, the crew are treated to watching the action unfold via the ship’s scanner.

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

Each of the duellists is ‘granted’ a companion to help raise the stakes. Blake has Jenna & they spend the night up a tree fending off carnivorous bats.
Travis gets his Mutoid pilot who spends the night up a tree draining blood from carnivorous bats.
(BTW is it wrong to find Mutoids just a tad sexy?)

Reposted by No! Not the MindPROBE!

Richard Binns @moralavenger.bsky.social · 4d

ON THIS DAY... 35 years ago, The novelisation of Survival, written by Rona Munro, was released by Target Books. Cover art by Alister Pearson.

#DoctorWho

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 3d

My kids have introduced me to Fable, which is sort of cool. Come find me in there if you have it too 🙂

fable.co/paul-laville...

fable.co

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 4d

NOW READING 📖
“The Hard Way” had just been published when I first started reading the Jack Reacher novels. I remember it being promoted everywhere but figured I needed to begin at the beginning and read them in order.
Nearly 20 years later I’ve finally caught up!

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

With the Liberator and Travis’ pursuit ship locked together, the two enemies are transported to the planet where they must duel to the death. Sinofar explains that her race was destroyed by warfare and that both men have a lesson to learn.

No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

And then Sinofar works her magic and everything on the ships gets a little trippy.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

Outgunned and low on power, Blake attempts a desperate manoeuvre.
Travis realises what he’s doing and he relishes it!

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

Meanwhile on the planet below, the mysterious Sinofar - Isla Blair, another popular face from 70s & 80s TV (wearing a somewhat figure-hugging outfit) and her companion Giroc - Patsy Smart “Ooh… Make an ‘orse sick that would” (The Talons of Weng Chiang) - watch the battle play out in the skies above…

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

There’s a fabulous moment during the action in which Blake literally falls into Avon’s arms, and Paul Darrow holds onto his leading man for just a little longer than he needs to….

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

The trap is set and the Liberator flies right into it. In a truly pulse-pounding sequence wonderfully scored by Dudley Simpson, Travis unleashes a hail of deadly plasma bolts which quickly cripple Blake’s new ship.
It’s a brilliant showcase for the BluRay’s new special effects.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

Carol Royle, who went on to feature in numerous UK TV shows, plays one of Travis’ genetically modified ‘Mutoid’ pilots with deadly intensity, plus a hint of tragedy and hatred of her fate powerfully expressed by the merest glance and change of inflection. So subtle it goes right over Travis’s head.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

In orbit around a nameless planet ravaged by atomic war (familiar Nation territory…) Travis sets a trap for Blake placing his three super high powered pursuit ships in a tactical formation. The new models for these btw are lovely - very true to the originals even down to their radar dishes.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

Duel begins with some weird, eerie stuff reminiscent of ‘Cygnus Alpha’. In fact I do sometimes get these two jumbled up, expecting to see bits of one in the other - if you know what I mean…

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

Next up on the Blake’s 7 rewatch, it’s … ‘Duel’. A story which pits Blake and Travis against each other in the most direct way possible, literally right at their throats.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

But it won’t be the only story in the run of B7 that you could lift out completely without affecting the ongoing narrative, or which isn’t necessarily and identifiably ‘Blake’s 7’
Nonetheless I find it entertaining enough. It’s a bit of fun between the two powerhouse stories either side of it.

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No! Not the MindPROBE! @droho.bsky.social · 6d

It’s a story full of archetypes, an expendable crew of people we won’t see again, which is maybe to be expected in the framework of a Whodunnit. And arguably it’s a story which could fit into any other show without much reworking.