From: Sally Manton smanton@hotmail.com
A purely personal point - I have no problem hearing Avon use the word as a verb (describing the act) but any stories where he uses it as a swearword jars horribly - possibly because of how precise and careful I see the way
he
talks. I can hear Vila using 'bastard', and quite a few of the others as well, but probably not in anger (he gets very creatively angry - see
City).
My own, purely personal, take on how the various characters might use the more colourful corners of the lexicon (had the series not been made pre-watershed):
Blake - can be deliberately coarse and vulgar, but purely for effect. Leans more towards the earthy and the outright obscene.
Avon - saves it for when it's really needed, at which point he doesn't do things by halves. Expletives are razor sharp daggers to be hurled with intent to kill. (Though I also see him, as I once had him do in an unfinished story, use strong language ironically, to squish an OC who used it rather prolifically.)
Jenna - keeps it to herself until she can't keep it in any longer, at which point it erupts in a torrent. Jenna is one of those women (and it does seem to be a female talent) who can make a mid-range expletive sound absolutely shocking.
Vila - makes frequent and apparently casual use of expletives, but nowhere near as carelessly as they seem at first sight. Uses them to exagerrate the aura of stupidity, immaturity and emotional weakness that he hides behind.
Cally - keeps the naughty words in reserve, to maximise impact and shock value and throw people off balance.
Gan - Sporadic one-offs to let you know when he's *really* pissed off.
Dayna - hasn't a clue. Uses a fairly mild word when she's all worked up, so no one takes her seriously, and then goes over the top with the hottest of the hot in a totally inappropriate situation, after which she feels rather embarrassed and a bit guilty to boot.
Tarrant - if Avon's use of strong language is like a well-aimed sniper's rifle, then Tarrant's is more like a machine gun. Spit out enough bullets and one of them's bound to hit something eventually.
Soolin - Quick on the draw, hitting you right between the eyes when you least expect it.
Servalan - makes sure nobody's there to hear, then proceeds to paint the walls blue.
Travis - has to play the part to the lower ranks.
Neil