Roj Blake
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Roj Blake is a fictional character from the British science fiction television series Blake's 7, played by Gareth Thomas.
A native of Earth, Roj Blake was a leading voice against the corrupt, oppressive Terran Federation approximately four years before the series begins. Captured by Federation forces, Blake is brainwashed into denouncing his resistance activities and stripped of his memory of these events.
In the first episode of the series, "The Way Back", Blake is approached by members of a new resistance organisation preparing to strike against the Federation once more. As Blake takes time to consider the revelations about his past, he witnesses the massacre of the group by Federation troops. Captured once again, the authorities hatch a plan to discredit him by framing him for child molestation, having him sentenced to life on the prison planet Cygnus Alpha. However, Blake escapes during the journey aboard a highly advanced spacecraft, the Liberator, backed by a group of fellow convicts.
Blake subsequently uses the resources at his disposal to initiate a war against the Federation. Initially committed to freedom with noble intentions, he becomes increasingly fanatical as the series goes on. Blake's later schemes appear to be morally ambiguous and threaten innocent lives. Blake's first major failure was his attack on Earth's computer central as the location publicly advertised as Control turned out to be an empty room. It was revealed that the real control was somewhere else secret and that this location was bait for potential rebels. This failure results in the death of Olag Gan.
Blake disappears during the Andromedan War and Avon assumes nominal command of the Seven. At the end of the series, they discover Blake is acting as a Federation bounty hunter. Blake encounters Del Tarrant but does not reveal that he is using the guise of a bounty hunter so that he can test those who claim to be against the Federation. However, Tarrant escapes Blake's custody before Blake can explain everything to him. Unfortunately, Tarrant informs Avon of what he believes to be Blake's betrayal. Avon, totally paranoid at this point in time, does not wait for an explanation and shoots Blake dead. Avon and the Seven are subsequently surrounded by Federation troops led by Arlen, Blake's confidant. Arlen explains that Blake "could no longer tell who was Federation and who wasn't. He was right. He couldn't." This revealed that Arlen herself was a Federation spy who secretly knew Blake's real agenda.
[edit] Blake's Death
Gareth Thomas wished to kill off Blake without any doubt. It was in his contract for that episode. At his request, Avon was to use a different type of gun, not a gun that could be mistaken for a stun ray. Also, upon being shot, lots of blood would be shown along with Blake's dead body. Blake's death was gorier than is normal for BBC television at the timeslot. Fan theories persist that this may have been the Blake clone seen in the second series episode Weapon, but Blake's actions and the fact that he knew about Jenna do not support this. The fate of the Blake clone, in fact, is unknown.
| Blake's 7 |
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| Blake's 7 – The Television Series |
| History of Blake's 7 | List of Blake's 7 episodes | Blake's 7 actors |
| The Blake's 7 Universe |
| Terran Federation | Liberator | Scorpio | Planets |
| Roj Blake | Kerr Avon | Vila Restal | Jenna Stannis | Olag Gan | Cally | Zen | Orac | Dayna Mellanby | Del Tarrant | Soolin | Slave | Servalan | Travis |
