I know we're not doing the Synchro-watch, but I needed to rewatch an episode to recapture the 'voices' of the characters, and I thought it might as well be one of the ones I missed in the original run-through...
Series 1, Episode 9 'Project Avalon' =======================================================================
We see a good deal of the Federation in this early episode, and what we
see is unusually competent and confident. Blake claims here that
Federation troops are efficient and highly trained, and at least so far
as mutoids are concerned, this appears to be the case. Travis is
evidently relying entirely on mutoids to do his dirty work - although
standard troops are seen in the underground complex, they take no part
in the destruction of the Subterron resistance - and it seems to be a
good choice. Judging by the amount of heavy outdoor clothing Travis is
wearing, having soldiers who are immune to the cold (a point nicely
established by the opening shot of a muffled Travis accompanied on the
surface by a completely unconcerned mutoid in standard gear) is a major
advantage. Servalan, of course, takes advantage of the climate to model
an all-enveloping (and apparently foil-lined - a high-tech touch) fur
coat
We also see an apparent ability for mutoids to communicate amongst themselves by non-verbal transmissions. Having neutralised the guard, one mutoid mobilises reinforcements at a distance simply by sending out signals of a varying pitch; it's unclear whether precise commands are being conveyed, or whether it is simply a non-specific summons. One of them, it transpires, is credited as Glynis Barber, later to be resurrected as the fourth-season newcomer Soolin. I have to say that I haven't the faintest idea which!
The ethics of the Federation are made quite clear in this episode, whether executing unarmed captives (Blake, on finding the bodies, suggests that they were probably trying to surrender - a flashback to the circumstances of his own capture, perhaps?), genetically engineering a lethal, fast-acting virus, requisitioning a prisoner (with the suggestion that one be created, if no offenders currently exist) for testing germ warfare, or simply sacrificing its own loyal troops for added realism in a faked prison breakout. The Federation guns may have been carefully downgraded to avoid damaging the escapers - but the Liberator weapons are all too genuine...
Travis actually has quite a good plan on this occasion - and he gets to defend himself against accusations of incompetence, pointing out that on two occasions (Seek-Locate-Destroy and Duel?) he was forced to pass up a chance successfully to kill Blake because of his superiors' insistence in obtaining the Liberator intact as well. This time, he has worked out a sure-fire method of getting an agent on board his enemy's ship: appeal to his sense of chivalry by getting him to pull off a daring rescue! One wonders if he remembers the success of this scheme later on, when he manages to pull off a solo infiltration of Blake's crew using a very similar method, posing as the rebel 'Shivan'. The emphasis on pre-determination and predicting your enemy's precise movements (right down to the timing) also made me wonder if Travis employed a psycho-strategist for this one?
One interesting point is Servalan's and Travis's differing reactions to the unpleasant death of the test subject in their experiment. Servalan appears impressed and a little shocked and repulsed, as one would expect. But Travis looks not only excited but exultant, as if he is deriving the greatest pleasure from the spectacle. I suspect he is picturing Blake in his prisoner's place.
As a screenplay, it's quite cleverly constructed, with various clues that something is wrong (the reference to 'new weapons' drawn from the armoury, Travis' confidence that everything is going according to plan, Avalon's strange insistence on her prison tunic) to unsettle the audience even when Blake appears to be winning. However, there's no way that the Avalon switch can be guessed, even with hindsight. If the Federation can really produce robots that sophisticated (it's perhaps the most impressive piece of equipment we see from them throughout the show) then one wonders why they bother dealing with the Clonemasters to produce a replica Blake in Weapon. The obvious answer is that in that case they don't have a captive Blake whose personality can be transferred - but since Coser isn't acquainted with Blake, that is less of a problem. As it is, the clone Blake's behaviour wouldn't fool anyone who knows his original.
The other robot we see in this episode is of a much more traditional
design. In fact, isn't it the same model that was seen in
Seek-Locate-Destroy? If so, it's certainly much more effective when
seen in half-light or driving snow; and the flame-thrower effect is
quite nasty, especially as it's unexpected (I assumed it was going to
attempt to machine-gun them...)
However, as a security robot it doesn't seem to be that efficient, since it fails to detect motionless intruders only a few yards away - even when Blake's bracelet goes off! It's not clear whether the initial pause and scan is because it has detected something, or whether it's part of a standard surveillance pattern.
We see a lot of hand-held data devices in this episode, both in the
Federation complex and onboard the Liberator, and they are all
different. The one that particularly puzzles me is the box attached to
a pair of viewing goggles, through which Servalan appears to be
watching a series of computerised patterns on a monitor screen (Travis
motions the mutoid to stand out of the Supreme Commander's field of
view!) My immediate reaction was to wonder if it was some kind of
stereoscopic data which only made sense through a filter; but given that
Servalan is seen to tap buttons on the box, I wonder if she could be
amusing herself with some kind of computer game
We also learn various things about the Liberator. Her sensors can track Federation 'interceptors' even through the mass of a planet (Gan states that when first seen they are below the planet's horizon), but her teleport system doesn't appear to have a cargo capability - a bit of a drawback one would have thought! Judging by Vila's behaviour, only items actually being held by an individual wearing a bracelet will get transported; Vila certainly wouldn't have picked up both those boxes if he didn't have to (he hands off the heavier one to Jenna as soon as possible...)
Cally has been learning how to pilot the ship, and not only manages a
competent arrival in orbit, but some fairly nifty evasion tactics as
well. In fact, judging by Avon's close-space manoeuvres as early on as
Time Squad, the Liberator clearly isn't that difficult to learn to
fly...
There are some nice effects in this episode. I don't normally notice background music, but I was struck by the eerie and rather memorable little interlude that accompanies Blake and Jenna's search through the deserted caves after the massacre. I was also impressed by the 'fizzling' phial of virus (even after the fragments are shattered), the cutaway shots of the inside of 'Avalon's head (although the inside does give the impression of being bigger than the outside, judging by the scale of the moving circuitry within), and the side-by-side shots of Avalon and the robot duplicate at the end. I don't know if that's actually trick photography, or simply proof of the fact that any actor of similar height and sex to the original can act as a stunt double, given an appropriate wig!
Gan, as usual, doesn't have much of a part to play this time. Neither, more surprisingly, does Avon. If this had been a second-season episode, I suspect that Avon would have taken Jenna's role, running round killing lots of troopers, and Jenna would have been doing the evasive manoeuvres in orbit - but since this is still the first season, the women get to do the fighting. In fact, in the case of Avalon, they get to beat up Gan single-handed...
(I suspect Avalon's sex was supposed to be a surprise. I don't think it's specified anywhere before we first see her.)
Demonstrating the robot's inhuman strength seems to be Gan's main plot
function here. (I notice that when they lose touch with the Liberator,
Blake calls "Avon - Cally-", whereas it is Jenna who bothers to call
"Avon - Cally - Gan-"!) We also see him apparently dosing himself with
some form of medication. Perhaps he is attempting to ward off the
symptoms of his imminent Breakdown? (He does the same again later,
in the episode 'Orac' - but in that case he turns out to be suffering
from incipient radiation sickness.)
I couldn't help wondering why, after overpowering Gan, the Avalon
replica drops her phial carefully onto a padded surface instead of
simply breaking it open to kill the whole crew. My best guess would be
that the very short lifespan of the virus means that it becomes
necessary to have all the victims assembled together before it can be
released - otherwise it simply neutralises itself before those in other
parts of the ship can be exposed. If so, this over-cautious design
decision is directly responsible for the failure of Travis' plan 
Avon makes a poor showing here both as bodyguard and sick-nurse. Having been instructed to take care of Cally and checked her pulse, he then apparently leaves her propped up in a chair and goes off on his own affairs. He certainly doesn't seem to be in evidence when Jenna comes in to check on Cally and is surprised by the lurching, mortally injured Chevner! If the man had been the attacker, as they had reason to believe, Cally could have been in big trouble...
In reference to recent newsgroup discussion, I note that Blake does a "Captain Kirk" in this episode as well as in 'Horizon', offering to sacrifice his own life. I'm not sure how genuine the intent is in this instance. While killing the Federation Supreme Commander would be an undoubted coup, it wouldn't really achieve much for Blake's long-term aims, and I think it's almost certainly a bluff. So does Travis - but Servalan certainly isn't prepared to risk it. (A prescient echo of 'Pressure Point' - "My life was in danger and you hesitated"?) When the situations are reversed, in 'Seek-Locate-Destroy', Travis doesn't hesitate to order his own men to fire on him if they can only destroy Blake in the process.
Instead, Travis pulls off a last-minute save of the deadly phial (why does the robot drop it rather than crushing it, as she has been ordered?) and gets promised a fresh suspension from duty for his pains. In fact, this episode marks the effective end of his resuscitated career. From now on he will be Servalan's private and somewhat unofficial poodle... no wonder he vows vengeance, from his undignified position on the floor!
This isn't really an outstanding episode. There is little memorable dialogue, and even Avon isn't on his usual dry form (the best he can manages is "Does the planet support intelligent life?" - "Does the Liberator?") Perhaps the most darkly effective line comes from Blake, when he and Jenna discover the massacred Subterrons, as he retorts that it is precisely because the bodies were unarmed that the deaths look like the work of Federation Security.
Par of the trouble, I think, is that the concept of transferring a prisoner's personality into a perfect robot duplicate is simply too much to swallow, even in a futuristic dictatorship. A human impersonator would have made more sense (and given the audience a chance to suspect the substitution ahead of time, thus heightening the tension!) Although, under the circumstances, it would have been a suicide mission...
The episode has the same basic themes and implausibilities as 'Weapon', but doesn't benefit from the clever cross-cutting and greater character development that help to elevate the latter into something more than a potential sow's ear. 'Project Avalon' is no silk purse either, and while the concept of a rescue that's actually a trap - playing on Blake's basic psychology - is an interesting one, the final result is a little too action-filled for any real creation of suspense.
