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Had this one for some years - long since disappeared now, though...
Not the best of the bunch but nostalgia ups the value for me...
Picking up from where volume one left off, Peel's effort begins to sag a little in this second volume. Mind you, it does suffer from having to include the rather tedious Christmas episode...
I know a lot of people seem to slate John Peel's writing but here he does us a service - mind you the original scripts are great too. This one bears up rather better than the second volume. Great stuff.
| What: | The Savages (Target novelisations) |
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| By: | Quist, NZ |
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| Date: | Tuesday 25 September 2007 |
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| Rating: |   5 |
Not the worst by a long shot but seems a little pedestrian in delivery - I suspect the TV version (if we stil had it) would bear up rather better than the book. Such a shame as Ian Stuart Black would go on to do a fantastic job with "The Macra Terror".
| What: | Fury from the Deep (Target novelisations) |
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| By: | Quist, NZ |
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| Date: | Tuesday 25 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
This is definitely the best of the bunch. I haven't read this for years - it's been in storage for many years - but I still remember it vividly.
Victor Pemberton writes expertly, using repetition and aural description to paint the pictures that, sadly, no longer exist at the BBC. However, with Pemberton's book one is left feeing satisfied with the book and not lamenting the loss of the TV version (though it is still a great shame).
If there was a fire and I could only save one book from my collection - it'd be this one!
| What: | Marco Polo (Target novelisations) |
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| By: | Quist, NZ |
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| Date: | Tuesday 25 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 9 |
It's not hard to see why the absence of this one is so lamented. In the early days of Dr Who the producers had an idea that the series could be semi-educational when discussing history or things scientific. Here we have explanations for why water takes longer to boil at higher altitudes, how cooler temperatures produce condensation and other historical minutae concerning the historical Marco Polo and Asia in general.
One of the better ones.
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 | Nasty, Brutal and Violent - lovely! |
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Ian Marter had a penchant for nasty stuff. Target recognised this and rewarded him by giving some of the grittiest, violent Dr Who stories to work with. This one is no exception and the horror of Styre's attitude toward the torture he inflicts upon his "specimens" far surpasses the TV original.
Oh, and this is one of my all-time favourite covers too.
One of Chris Achilleos' best covers - this evokes strong memories of watching this when I was a kid. Unfortunately, the TV version is not nearly so scary to my adult eyes today as it was back in the 70s but entertaining nonetheless. I haven't read this one for years but remember it remaining quite faithful to the original - and contains some rather funny moments of incidental humour...
I wasn't old enough to see the Hartnell-style Dr Who. I saw this one on the shelves and went into the book knowing nothing of the TV version - and what a great little story it was: nothing too ambitious and a little naive but it was entertaining all the same.
This was my first Dr Who book and it's still one of my favourites. Terrance Dicks does a fantastic job in reinventing this story, begining with the Doctor's trial (from "The War Games") and re-captures the horrific nature of the television story with great flair.
The illustrations (as with all early Target novelisations) complement the story and help to add further information - in particular the first one. The scene between Channing and Hibbert discussing the former's origins is an exchange I still find chilling.
Great stuff.
Since the cover art (and a Big Finish audio promo) gives it away, it's no spoiler to say that Human Resources features the Cybermen, and that it does so in what is often the best way - sparingly. The Cybermen make their first actual appearance at the very end of Part 1, and the Doctor has unwittingly helped them by sabotaging their enemy. The voicing of these Cybermen is interesting, being a combination of the sing-songy voicing from the First Doctor story The Tenth Planet, and the voicing from the new t.v. series. The result works quite well, and makes it easy to believe that these are early Cybermen, from before they became established on Telos (though we should skip the twisted Cyber-history study).
In addition, the role of the Time Lords in Lucie's situation is finally brought to light, and everything is snapped into place quite nicely. A Time Lord weapon that is in play here is quite intriguing, and in addition to all of this, the script also manages to throw in some stinging criticisms of our present-day geo-political machinations without doing it too overtly. Some reviewers disagree with the ways in which the Time Lords are made to come off as being somewhat amateurishly petty here (in contrast to recent television portrayals), but I think it all works rather well. The Doctor also gives a brilliant little speech to the Cybermen about their inability to learn humility in the face of their own oppression - that because of this, they deserve to be oppressed.
The format of two fifty-minute episodes is used perfectly here in Human Resources. It gives good structure to the story, allowing for nice development without making the story feel rushed, while also demanding a certain economy that doesn't allow for unnecessary padding. And in Part 2, the pitch perfect wit continues.
I would have to say that Big Finish has never been better than Human Resources.
Human Resources could be used as an example of how to produce excellent Big Finish audio plays. Everything works perfectly here, in my opinion. Every member of the cast is outstanding, it would be difficult to improve on the music and sound effects, the overall mix and sound realization is superb, and the script is top-notch.
I won't go into the story much, because this is one that should not be spoiled. What I will say is that the action picks up directly from the end of No More Lies, in a very odd sort of way, and it becomes clear early on that all is not as it seems. Midway through this episode, we get a shocker revelation that abruptly shifts the storyline, similar in type to the ending of episode 1 of the classic t.v. story Enlightenment, in which we are suddenly shown that the Doctor and friends are not, in fact, on a yacht, but on a space ship in deep space.
This story is so much fun, and it's made even better by the nicely written and well-played wit that is written into it. And the best part is that Part 2 plays out nicely and doesn't disappoint...
| What: | No Man's Land (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 22 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
Doctor Who is best known for the monsters of course. Doctor who is always remembered for the monsters. But to find a story with just normal people as the monsters, which is as true as you can get really isnt it,is hard to find these days. No Mans Land is a fantastic and memorable story and one of my personal favourites of all the range. The thought behind every scene is great and imaginative. This is not just a run of the mill war story with all the usual bombs and guns and blood. This instead is a very gripping and at times shocking story that really makes you think. I wish more of the big finish range were like this outstanding entry. Sylvester Mccoy is definitely at his best squaring off to the generals and evil in this story. a neat little twist at the end as well with the forge mentioned. Great little ending that really makes you think....
"What are you thinking, Doctor?" "What am I thinking... Well, I've got a TARDIS full of strangers, and ah... yes - the TARDIS has been locked off to an undisclosed destination by a couple of toy Daleks. That's what I'm thinking, Nyssa."
In Renaissance of the Daleks, we are treated to nonsensical technobabble terms like "pan-temporal ambience," and concepts like "nanodaleks" that are spawned from a humanoid "seed-dalek" who is largely a mental construct of the Daleks who seems to exist on an "island of time."
"This expanse is not space at all, but time - an island of time - carved out of the dimensional nullity."
Is writer Christopher H. Bidmead getting a bit batty, or did this kind of linguistic rubbish come from the script editor? It's been messed with so much that the writer's credit says the story is, "From a story by Christopher H. Bidmead." Good luck, Chris. If it was me, I would've tried to find a way to get my name off of this completely.
"This is the place where all time tracks meet. To come here once is to come here... always. You have always been here, Doctor." Yet, there is no justification given for this statement - in no sense are we shown how this is true. It's like these asinine statements are liberally splashed throughout the script with wanton abandon.
Doctor: "This must be the point where all the time tracks converge."
Wilton: "Like a... a kind of North Pole of time?
Ummm...
Other questions: When, exactly, did Nyssa start hearing the "voices"? How does the new zero room instantaneously heal any injury or disease in the universe (apparently)?
And so, the Daleks doubled back after being repelled (by the First Doctor in 2067 - 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth') and tried again, only they didn't (yet). Dear oh dear. Didn't you fellas learn from Lawrence Miles that this sort of thing doesn't tend to work out very well?
The bottom line is that Renaissance of the Daleks is about communication across time and space (and all of the cast give it a good go). Other than that, have fun putting all of the pieces together. It sure is quite a spectacle.
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| What happened after...... |
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| What: | The Eight Doctors (BBC Eighth Doctor novels) |
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| By: | C G Harwood, Dunedin, NZ, New Zealand |
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| Date: | Thursday 20 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 9 |
Ok bad things first, I throught the end with the Doctor and Sam was rushed. Also the revolt on Gallifrey was a little long.
Now the good stuff, It was nice to see Terrance Dicks be given a free licence to do what ever he wanted. I think if he had been given it a lot sooner a few of his Target novels would have been a lot better (eg Planet of the Giants.) It was a stroke of genius to get him to write the first book in the series. I'm hoping he is going to do something for the new series soon.
My fav 'What Happened After...' Moment was the 4th Doctor's because I was always scepticle that they were the only vampires on the whole planet. but nice to see that occasinaly he does stick around to do the mopping up.
I also liked the fact that Burosa was given a chance to redeam himself, as his turning bad never sat well with me.
But my fav pert of the whole book was the bit with the Raston Warrior Robot and the Sontarans (I actualy felt sorry for them).
This was a good book because it was fun to read and go back and remonice. Ok the plot was a little bit nonexcistant, but the long time fans of the show get to say "yes I remember that story" and now when we watch Unearthly Child and War Games we can say 'time froze and he spoke to the 8th Doctor right there.' Also because it explaned a few things about the TV movie
In conclution i took off a point because of Sam, it would have been a beter book if Dicks had left her out and introduced her in the next one. Great work Mr Dicks i look forward to reading more of your work and other BBC books.
| What: | The Time Warrior (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Trevor Smith, Nottingham, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Thursday 20 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 9 |
I havent seen this story since it was first broadcast. It took me back to when I was much younger & it was love at first sight with Sarah Jane. Not only is it Sarah Jane's first story but the first sighting of Sontaran's ! This is a great story, great acting & wonderful sets. Also a chance to see June Brown, Dot Cotton from Eastenders, with a very cut glass, posh BBC voice. They only thing that is a let down is the special effects, but luckily this DVD gives you the chance to watch the story with new CGI effects. This really enhances the story, espically the explosion at the end. Really intersting "Making of" documentary as well filmed at the castle where the original story was filmed. Highly reccomended.
| What: | The Power of the Daleks (TV episode audio soundtracks) |
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| By: | Trevor Smith, Nottingham, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Wednesday 19 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
I have have just brought the MP3 reconstructed version of this CD. It is fantastic. The picture & soundtrack combined give you the nearest you will get to seeing this "missing" adventure. I can not recommend this disc high enough.
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| Interesting but Highly Flawed |
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The Tomb of the Cybermen is too important and too full of great concepts to give it a low rating, but there are many weaknesses throughout the script. The idea of the Cyber tombs on Telos is fantastic, and endured to re-emerge quite a bit later in future seasons, when it would continue to develop. The design of the interior of the Tomb is quite interesting, and makes for a great setting and some great plot devices. The concept of the archeological expedition from Earth works well, and the design of the Cybermen is excellent again here, in spite of their less than perfect voicing.
Among the troubles is the character of Klieg - he is simply not a realistic character. He starts out well enough, but by the second half of the story, he has degenerated into an impossible contradiction of genius and ignoramus. Another poorly realized character is Toberman. His state of mind and the motivations for his actions in the later parts of the story are not at all clear, and he is given a very shallow characterization throughout.
There are other script troubles, like the question of how Victoria would be so easily adept at firing a pistol she certainly could never have even seen before, let alone become skilled at firing (unless there are some missing adventures between the opening scenes in the TARDIS and the arrival on Telos), and the exteme carelessness on the part of both Klieg and Jamie with the very powerful Cyber gun, each quite nonchalantly setting it down to make it all too available to be picked up by an enemy. In addition to these bits, there was the horrible-looking tossing of the Controller by Toberman, the Controller clearly being just an empty dummy-suit, the unanswered question of why the Controller did not need a chest unit like the other Cybermen, and the unanswered question of why the revitalization unit would be so far away from the Tomb units.
But in spite of these troubles, The Tomb of the Cybermen remains essential viewing, a very interesting production, and an important story within the Doctor Who mythos.
| What: | The Faceless Ones (TV episode audio soundtracks) |
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| By: | Doug, Pocono Summit, PA, USA |
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| Date: | Tuesday 18 September 2007 |
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| Rating: | 8 |
The Faceless Ones seems to be a nearly perfect mix of writing, mood, pacing and suspense for Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor. At six episodes in length, it could seem stretched, but doesn't, and the present day setting of Gatwick Airport (in 1966) works quite well, giving the story a feeling of innovation at this point in the development of the series. This story sees the departure of Ben and Polly, and it must be said that this was handled a bit sloppily. They both disappear rather suddenly after episode 2, as it was apparently hastily decided that Michael Craze's and Anneke Wills' contracts would be ended then rather than a few episodes later on. Their goodbyes at the end of the story were shot out of sequence and inserted into the final episode, and that makes for a somewhat disjointed script there. But other than that issue, The Faceless Ones, with its eerily strange and unsettlingly realistic aliens covertly at work in Gatwick Airport abducting planeloads of young travelers is an intriguing, moody story that keeps one's attention fairly well.
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| Son of the Dragon - Woooo! |
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This is the most eagerly awaited story of the year. Written by Steve Lyons this marks his fourth contribution to the range and Son of the Dragon proves to be his most successful attempt so far. In the past Lyons stories tended to be quite complex and difficult to understand but this story was quite simple compared to these stories. One of the biggest compliments that I can give to this story is that it has an epic feel to it like The Keys of Marinus.
The characters in this story are all very strong roles. Erimem returns to the type of role which she was best at in her opening story 'The Eye of the Scorpion' and more recently 'The Council of Nicaea. In this story she seems to sacrifice her future happiness and travels with the Doctor and Peri. I prefer the role when she is in this situation because she is been stubborn or sacrifices herself because she feels that is the right thing to do. The Doctor does feel like he is in the background and when he is resting then you forget he's there. In this story he becomes a victim of circumstances whereas in most stories you know this but it is never admitted, in this story he does mention it and at that point you begin to accept it. It falls to Peri and Erimem to pick up the story and Steve Lyons does this by putting a lot more emphasis on Peri. Peri is very good in this story as she spends most of the story trying to contact Erimem from Count Dracula but obviously she doesn't want to leave. The sisterly bond has been one of the main strengths of this combination but it is in this story that it shines as Peri has genuine distress when she thinks that Erimem is going to stay with Dracula. You genuinely think that Erimem is going to leave the TARDIS crew and even at the end you are still unsure but thankfully the writer didn't go down the shocked route.
James Purefoy is the guest star of this story and he is given a starring role. Like Daphne Ashbrook in The Next Life (2004) and William Russell in The Game (2005), Purefoy's presence is what stands out in this story. The way that he portrays Count Dracula is absolutely fantastic, his nice side and nasty rather gruesome moods are what strikes you most about the role. The way that he is willing to punish or torture someone without a moment of hesitation was quite similar to most bad guys in Doctor Who but yet is somewhat better than all of them. His role in the TV show Rome was Mark Anthony who was a man who did what he wanted to do and was able to snap for no reason but at the same time he manages to make the character of Dracula likeable. I had high expectations of James Purefoy from the moment that I found out that he was going to be in Son of the Dragon and I have to say that I wasn't disappointed. Another credible role was Douglas Hodge who played the brother of Count Dracula Radu. The way that the role was written by Lyons made a perfect opponent to Dracula and the fact that their brothers only adds to the tension that both actors give to the role. Radu's friendship with the Doctor seems heartfelt but ultimately only does a little in helping the story move along. When the Doctor leaves the camp that Radu's men have temporally set up it then seems to lose momentum.
Whilst I loved this story there were a few things that could have been done. First of all there could have been a more obvious threat, the war between Radu and Dracula was good as a starter but after a while it just seems to lose a bit of momentum. There was no real menace, they could have done what they did in The Time Warrior and include a futuristic threat that didn't seem too much like The Time Warrior. The ending was also a let down, because they didn't have a attempt to change history or take over the world it seemed that the ending was a bit flat and it was like the Doctor and Peri turn up to the castle, rescue Erimem and give her the opportunity to stay with them or live a life with Count Dracula. Apart from those points there isnt really anything wrong with the story.
Overall this has to be one of the strongest stories of the year, not quite beating Nocturne or Exotron this is Peter Davisons second strong story in a row and it is proving to be his year for Big Finish stories with only The Minds Eye and Return to the Web Planet to come in 2007 this story has to go into the Top 3 of best 2007 stories.
