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 | Reviews for The Lost Stories: The First Sontarans |
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There are 2 reviews so far. To add a review of your own for this item, visit the voting page.
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| At last, the clash of the titans!!!!!!!! |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Tuesday 25 September 2012 |
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| Rating: |  10 |
I always loved Horror of Fang Rock. It had atmosphere and the rutan just really did look out of this world. I still dont know what they used to create that blobby thing. And if they had to be brought back, for me it had to be just right, and suitably different so as not to be run of the mill.
And as a great fan of most of the Sontaran stories back in the classic series, its great to hear at last a full blown battle between the titans! This would have been a great visual spectacle back in the eighties. Lament the BBC for never making these brilliant tales.
But here at last it is. A battle between the Sontarans and Rutans. And it is done in brilliant fashion. Theres not just the climatic ending to affairs, but theres also the very interesting side story in the original inhabitants of Sontar. The story barely pauses for breath, and Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant of course are on robust form, and the Sontarans are as always well realised. Im very glad theyve finally had a battle, even if its just in audio format. And the fact that the reason for their ongoing battle is at last fully addressed, then one is more than satisfied. This is a very very strong lost story indeed. Cant wait for the next outting.
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Sunday 3 August 2014 |
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| Rating: |  8 |
"The First Sontarans" was scheduled for the 1985 season, but got set aside when Robert Holmes submitted "The Two Doctors." With all respect to Holmes, "The First Sontarans" is the better script. Andrew Smith, who wrote "Full Circle" in 1980, returns with another concept piece. Without giving away too much, I can say that Smith's title is both leading and misleading, and that is not a bad thing. You might think this is an origins story, and for two episodes it isn't, but then it is, but mainly as part of the background. The story itself would have fit well with 1985 Doctor Who. Like "Attack of the Cybermen," it starts small, then gets bigger and bigger. Part 4, though, would probably have blown the TV budget. Other good things in the story are the Doctor-Peri relationship and the characterization of Peri in general. In part 1, Doctor 6 and Peri start as the bickering couple typical of that season, but about 10 minutes in, that is all gone, and instead we see the trust and respect each accords the other. Peri is here played not as the wilting flower type of some of the TV stories, but as smart and even a little over-confident, as wanting to prove herself to the Doctor. With this Peri, one sees why the Doctor would accept her as a travelling companion. Finally, we get to experience a Sontaran vs. Rutan battle. One of the lesser aspects of the story is that once again everyone in the universe seems to know all about the Doctor and Time Lords. For some reason, the Sontarans have time corridor technology, which they do not have in the TV series. I think it is better to limit the numbers of time travellers. If everyone can time travel, there is nothing special about time travel. Those matters aside, "The First Sontarans" is a good example of what the 1985 TV series lacked.
