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 | Only Gets Better with Age |
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| What: | Zagreus (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Paul Williams, New Brighton, United States |
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| Date: | Monday 9 June 2008 |
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| Rating: |  10 |
The first time I listened to the CD, I thought it was pretty good. The second time, I was surprised at how much I missed. The third time, I really enjoyed the word play and I realized that I misjudged the CD the first time. Its one of the few Big Finish audio adventures that are complex enough to hold up to repeated listenings. (Others that fall in that category--Holy Terror, Chimes of Midnight, Loups-Garoux, and Immortal Beloved.
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| Still the Best Big Finish CD Out There |
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| What: | The Chimes of Midnight (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Paul Williams, New Brighton, United States |
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| Date: | Monday 9 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
This audio adventure came out several years ago and although I've listened to dozens of other Big Finish audio adventures, this adventure continues to amaze me. Very well crafted. This audio only gets better with age.
| What: | Son of the Dragon (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Paul Williams, New Brighton, United States |
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| Date: | Monday 9 June 2008 |
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| Rating: |  6 |
This could have been a great story. It should have been a great story, but its marred by overacting Peri. Her voice is annoying--full of squeking and the Val girl habit of having statements sound like questions. I have loved Peri in the other Big Finish audios and television shows. But here, her portrayal of a companion worried about losing her friend to Vlad the Impaler does not ring true. Purchase this CD at your own risk.
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| Stop, stop, this is just too silly |
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| What: | Year of the Pig (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Friday 6 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 6 |
The "Year of the Pig" is 1913. The Great War is about to start, and well-dressed, well-mannered pig living like Proust in a secret part of a luxury hotel in Belgium seems to know all about it. This sort of thing is typical English fantasy of the Wind in the Willows variety, but just does not work for me in Doctor Who. Everybody acts waaaaaay over the top. I do not quite know why when Big Finish has former Doctor Who companion-actors as guest stars, it is almost always is some extravagant and flouncy and unbelievable personage. Maureen O'Brien, a very good actor indeed, gets reduced to over-prouncing big words. This is in line with Carolyn John's OTT performance in "Dust Breeding" and Deborah Watling's OTT performance in "Three's A Crowd." Katy Manning can be forgiven hers because, after all, what other kind of role are you going to give Katy Manning but Iris Wyldthyme? Only William Russell seems to have gotten a really good part, in "The Game." It is not that I blame the actors for this, but the producers for giving them nothing better to do. The origin of the all the events in this story, the who, what, where, why, are swiftly and rather vaguely passed over. Just who created Toby and Charly and why? What happened to him/her. For a while I though Miss Bultitude was really their creator busy trying to round them up again. But no. No rhyme or reason to it at all in the end. It would have made a good children's story, but just does not work as Doctor Who.
| What: | No Man's Land (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Friday 6 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 7 |
"No Man's Land" is decent enough Doctor Who. The Doctor and company land in secret British hospital in France in 1917. Something strange is going on. Investigations follow. There is plenty of chance for people to talk about life and death and war. There are some interesting conversations between Ace and Captain Dudgeon. That said, there are some major problems in the production. One is the stripped-down techno style soundtrack music that is totally out of sync with the dramatic situation and often sounds so much like a sound effect that one thinks, "ah, here is the monster at last." Another is that much of the story is blindingly obvious. The bad guys really are bad guys, and there is no attempt to hide it. And I had the Forge pegged for this one from about 10 minutes in.
(First review! Yay!)
Personally I really enjoyed this - the regulars (the Doctor especially) were very well captured by the author, and the storlyine was well realised - as the previous reviewer said there were several twists, which worked really well.
However it misses out on a 10 because some of the 'multiple Andrews' parts got overly complicated when they could have been much simpler. The 'changing time' also suffered similarly but I liked the idea of the alternate London created by WOTAN.
Overall very very good.
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| Best Cyberman Story Ever! |
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| What: | The Flood (Panini graphic novels) |
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| By: | Ron, Peru, USA |
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| Date: | Thursday 5 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
The Eighth Doctor got a good run in the comics, and this collection contains "The Flood," which is easily one of THE best Cyberman stories of any medium; so good that even the new TV series borrowed from it! Best of all the notes at the end show how a regeneration from McGann to Eccleston was planned in the comics. Excellent stuff!
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| A 'joint effort' that paid off |
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| What: | The Ark in Space (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Huw Davies, Taunton, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Wednesday 4 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 9 |
This story could be described as a joint effort, being written mostly by Robert Holmes, but from an idea from John Lucarotti. Two great writers each offering chunks of this brilliant story, which is very good as the Fourth Doctor's first adventure away from present-day Earth. The only bad point is the particularly poor use of bubble wrap to simulate Noah turning into a Wirrn.
Apart from that, however, a brillant story.
Please tell me whats not to like about this story- I love it!
The Cybermen are some of the best the series has ever had, they look truely menacing- they were always meant to look that bit human- after all- thier of human shape and body and wires and metal. Thier home is Earths twin planet, I mean even the storys brill. How fans can dislike this episode is beyond me because as far as im concerned- an I do own this on video by the way- the plot is simple enough, the Doctor, Sarah and Harry along with all the cast are on top form and the episode sits amoung the seanson splendidly.
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| Creepy, but pretty damn good |
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| What: | Ghost Light (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Huw Davies, Taunton, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Wednesday 4 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 8 |
This title is certainly not the best Doctor Who story, and probably not the best of the McCoy era (that honour would probably go to Remebrance of the Daleks) but it is underrated as a story, and is definitely worth getting hold of a copy.
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| Boring, silly and a rubbish enemy |
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| What: | Vengeance on Varos (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Huw Davies, Taunton, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Tuesday 3 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 1 |
This is one of the worst serials of Doctor Who I have ever watched. The idea is stupid, the actual episodes boring, and Sil is one of the silliest enemies ever - if I were the Doctor I would have lobbed him on the floor and squished him!
| What: | Circular Time (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Monday 2 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 7 |
I am not nearly as impressed as the previous reviewers by Circular Time. The concept is nice enough. We get four vignettes, each representing a season, the cycle of the seasons themselves providing us with circular, mythic time. As I understand it, Paul Cornell supplied the outline of the idea and Mike Maddox turned it into a script. This circular time/seasons idea had already been in Cornell's head in his previous co-authored Big Finish "Seasons of Fear." This time, the idea is handled better than in that one. Still, to me there are flaws. These flaws are ones I find typical of Cornell's Doctor Who work. First, there is too much silliness in Part One. Second, there are some fan-wanky bits running throughout, especially in Part Four. Third, Isaac Newton is portrayed as a complete nutter quite contrary to almost everything known about him (he was loopy, but not in this maniacal way). And fourth, Nyssa's romantic interlude does not come off quite right, mainly because the 25 minute limitation does not give the writers enough time to develop the complexity of emotions between the three principals. Nevertheless, the piece is entertaining overall, nicely structured thematically, and each part stands well on its own.
| What: | Forever Autumn (BBC New Series Adventures novels) |
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| By: | Manny, Los Angeles, California |
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| Date: | Sunday 1 June 2008 |
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| Rating: | 8 |
The second Doctor Who book I’ve picked up…this week. And I wasn’t let down.
I’m really enjoying these books; the series of books so far has been a great deal of fun. I normally don’t read books aimed at younger readers, but the adventures the characters go on are fun. The books also act as trips to the TARDIS when the show isn’t on.
As for this book, if you like all things Halloween, then you won’t be let down. A nice quick read that you won’t find boring at all.
90% excellent but the bad episodes really bring it down. Still, very consistent (Unlike S2) and the special features are better than ever, so 8/10 from me.
Well, the first few episodes and the two-parters are ace, but the filler episodes later in the series are rubbish. Some episodes are 10/10 and some deserve 0/10, so it's a very incosistent series this time but in general a good one. So 6/10 for the series and an extra mark for the special features
A (as the 'ninth doctor' would say) fantastic series of Who. But it does have a couple of bummers, these are the 'Slitheen' episodes, but other than that it's quality. Unfortuanetly 'The Doctor doesn't go to any alien planets (But he does in S2). So 7/10 from me and an extra mark for the special features.
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| Doctor Who - Voyage of the Damned |
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Voyage of the Damned - Like last year's christmas special but on a much grander scale with 'Kylie' instead of 'Catherine Tate'
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| Doctor Who - Series 3: Volume 4 |
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Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Timelords - Great fun, but at times it does drag a little.
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| Doctor Who - Series 3: Volume 4 |
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Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Timelords - Can be a bit tedious at times, but other than that, great fun
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| Doctor Who - Series 3: Volume 3 |
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Human Nature/The Family of Blood - Different, but a nice gem for the collection
Blink - Like 'Love and Monsters', but dark and scary, I like it.
