Kerr Avon's costumes, rated
The sequel to Romana II's costumes, rated, here by popular* request! (*maybe not very popular.)
Screengrabs from here (copied rather than linked per their FAQs). Invaluable record of what Avon actually wears in which episode from here. I haven't included overcoats, spacesuits, or anything Avon doesn't actively choose to wear, like prison clothes. Which means that rating this monstrosity
is left as an exercise for the reader.
I've also not done every single variation on black jackets with studded panels, even when they are technically different black jackets with studded panels, because otherwise we'd be here all night.
As seen in Space Fall and Cygnus Alpha.
Ugh. It's fine. The heights of bonkersness that Blake's 7 costume design would reach are not even really hinted at here. It's a perfectly reasonable outfit - grey shirt, grey trousers, grey tabard-thing. Add a name badge and Avon could be stocking shelves in a fancy supermarket. I'll allow that it does look comfortable, which will not be a theme of much else on this list. 5/10.
I don't hate the brown patchwork thing (though brown is rightly Blake's colour), but what's going on with the larger square over his stomach? I feel like he's about to do some welding or something and it's there to protect his clothes, but it is his clothes. Avon only wore this outfit once, and who can blame him? 2/10.
As seen in The Web, Seek-Locate-Destroy, Mission to Destiny, Duel, Project Avalon, Breakdown, and Deliverance.
I think this one may have suffered from the passage of time. Because I look at it and think, why has Avon chosen to dress like an old-fashioned stereo system? But from the vantage point of 1978, I guess Avon had chosen to dress like a decidedly modern stereo system. Look at those rounded corners, he could be a first-gen iPod. And the matching grey of collar and cuffs is a nice touch. None of this answers the question of why he has buttons across his tits, but there are some things that are not for us to know. 8/10.
As seen in Bounty and Orac.
Oooh, green. Green is a nice change. And if you're watching Blake's 7 and you're enjoying those green sleeves, you'd better make the most of them, because other than one very notable exception, this is the last time that Avon wears an outfit that isn't brown, white, black or shades of grey for the entire rest of the series. The rest of it looks a bit like someone's Star Trek Discovery uniform cosplay got out of hand. 6/10, because green.
As seen in Redemption and Killer.
Obviously, this is a classic. And full marks to Paul Darrow for wearing a costume that was literally bought from a sex shop and making it look like something that anyone might wear to their normal day of fighting oppression and engaging in homoerotic tension. 10/10.
As seen in Shadow, Horizon, Gambit, and Children of Auron.
OK fine I threw away the term "classic" too soon, this is the true classic, the time Avon decided to dress as a thermal blanket and then pair that with thigh-high boots. ICONIC. What I love about this is aside from being batshit, it's actually kind of a nice outfit? I imagine that shiny fabric was absolute hell to work with but the gathering at the shoulders means it hangs surprisingly well.
It also gains at least 5 bonus points for featuring in this, one of my all-time favourite Blake's 7 moments:
I wish I could find it as a gif, but you'll just have to join me in pretending these images are moving instead. And in heaving a nostalgic sigh for the era when men were allowed to have normal bodies on TV. 15/10.
I've tried to go for just one main outfit per episode, because this is already very long and we're only about halfway through. But I had to make an exception for matching! outfits! And all the better for being an outfit that looks great on all three of them. I only wish that Avon could have had some silver boots like Jenna is wearing, I think it would really have completed the look. 9/10.
As seen in Weapon, Pressure Point, Countdown, and Dawn of the Gods.
In some ways, this costume is quite practical. Avon is wearing something not a million miles from bikers' leathers here, and the quilted part of the chest and back would presumably offer him a bit of protection if he got into a fight. But also, it's the colour and style of a brothel sofa, and there's no way in hell he could wear this and retain the ability to lift his arms above his head.
God, I love this show. 10/10.
As seen in Trial, Hostage, Voice From the Past, The Keeper, Star One, Aftermath, and Powerplay.
I have less to say about this because - and I mean this in full tribute to the Blake's 7 costume designers - it's just a nice jacket! It stays in keeping with the design trends we see throughout the series, with panels of different fabrics, and spacewear shiny silver bits, but ultimately you could wear this on the street today and no one would give you a second look. I quite like that about it. 8/10.
As seen Aftermath. (And the loose black shirt in Voice From the Past is similar too).
Maybe this is just my mid-00s goth-adjacent phase showing through, but I am, and always will be, a sucker for a man in this kind of shirt. 8/10, please don't make me justify this further.
As seen in Volcano and Rumours of Death.
The first of many similar black outfits, where I'm going to be selective or this will get tedious very quickly. I think this is the best of them; after this, the 80s started up in earnest, and Avon's shoulders were never allowed to be their natural width again. 9/10.
As seen in The Harvest of Kairos.
My parents haven't been camping in years, but somewhere in the attic they still have an old tent, which lives in a bag that looks a lot like this outfit. As if I needed any more reasons to dislike The Harvest of Kairos. 1/10.
Avon what are you doing. Brown is not your colour. I think I might headcanon that this is Blake's jacket, because aside from the brownness it also seems to be a fair bit too big for Avon. After a couple of seasons of squeezing him into the lobster outfit and other tight leather things, the costume designers seem to have swerved hard into boxy shapes from this point onwards. I disapprove. Honestly, I was going to skip this one except that I love what Dayna is wearing. Wish Avon could have some of that energy. 2/10.
Let's pause for a second, look to the left, and appreciate that Dayna is wearing another fabulous outfit. Now let's take a deep breath, and look at the utter monstrosity that Avon is wearing. Like a matador crossed with a bumper car. 0/10.
As seen in Rescue, Power, Traitor, Stardrive, Animals, Headhunter, Orbit, Warlord, and Blake.
Avon wears some kind of black jacket with studs for nearly all of season D, but I've picked this as the definitive one. I don't know if there's some kind of clever character development thing going on here with how big this costume is, like Avon is expanding into his leadership role, but weighed down by the responsibility too. It could be deliberate, it could just be what fashion was like in the early 80s.
What I do know is that however meaningful this costuming might be, it's not flattering. 5/10, and Avon finishes the series, sadly, no better dressed than he began it.
