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After several years without anything new, we FINALLY get some new material. It may be only 13 episodes running about 45 minutes each, but its GOOD to finally get some new material!!!! Now, lets see how Tennent works out, since Eccleston has moved on.
| What: | The Last (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Doug, Pocono Summit, PA, USA |
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| Date: | Wednesday 11 October 2006 |
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| Rating: |   9 |
A bleak but very suspenseful story, with an equally bleak soundtrack.
The story appears to be a very stark commentary on our present geopolitical situation, but as we head into the fourth episode, we slowly begin to realize that all is not as it seems - we begin to feel a creeping, radical shift occurring. The planet where this is all taking place is revealed to be far more alien than we've been led to believe, and the final resolution changes this from a good story into a great one. (From the other reviews, I guess that's *really* a matter of opinion...)
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 | Satisfying, Solid Production |
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| What: | Faith Stealer (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Doug, Pocono Summit, PA, USA |
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| Date: | Tuesday 10 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 8 |
In Faith Stealer, we finally get another story that hits on all cylinders, so to speak. This production is well-written and flows nicely, all of the characters are well-acted, and Conrad Westmaas' C'rizz is finally given some likeable substance. All of the cast is in top form here, making the production very believable and engaging. There are even some genuinely laugh out loud funny scenes, particularly in the church of the Serendipitists ("Oops be praised!") What stopped me from giving this one a 9 or 10 is only that the story itself seemed a bit sparse. Faith Stealer is thoroughly enjoyable, but somehow sort of more like a light dessert than a full meal. Perhaps this is partly because of the ending. The ending is surprising, makes sense and is rather thought-provoking, but is pretty quick.
oh my god these episodes were brilliant i give them 10 out of 10 but then they are quite depressing but cool at the same time
This script book clears up a few confusing points in the episode, and the section of the book written especiallt by Martin Platt explaining some of the less clear points includes scenes cut from the finished serial. It is deffinalty worth buying if you are a fan.
| What: | The Game (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Doug, Pocono Summit, PA, USA |
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| Date: | Sunday 8 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 3 |
Death hockey! Wolf soldiers! Narcotic pheromones! Oh my!
This particular Big Finish entry begins with abundant ultra-violence as sport, like 'Vengeance on Varos' on steroids, and proceeds to pull a "dramatic" turnaround halfway through to make the story an even more horrible mess. The only reason I actually kept listening is because I was stuck somewhere with nothing else to do. However, I must give some credit to the sort of twisty 'Back to the Future' style timewarped relationship that is revealed at that point.
Credit must also be given to Peter Davison and Sarah Sutton for giving this script their best efforts. They obviously took the task seriously, which is commendable.
Why spend three entire episodes focusing on the Naxy game and the story surrounding that, and then shift abruptly to a sudden rampage of "bornoxes" - werewolf-like things with laser pistols (for Pete's sake!)? And did I miss something? Where did Morian pop out from? Suddenly he's all "mwoo ha ha!" out of nowhere. Ambassador Faye has a worse American accent than Peri ("Daacter!"), and William Russell's Lord Carlisle sounds uncannily like Slarty Bardfarst (from the original Hitchhiker's Guide).
I don't know. This one just leaves me shaking my head. Representative of the Davison era? I disagree.
| What: | The Stone Rose (BBC New Series Adventures novels) |
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| By: | vicky , carlisle |
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| Date: | Sunday 8 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
i really loved the book and each chapter makes you want to read on ore and more.
A very tired production. Not a good story for any of the regulars, and the supporting cast are nothing to shout about either. The plot is dull and we’ve been here before with Troughton so many times that its like deja vu – big control room...in the future...global catastrophe...shouty leader...plucky young female...blah blah blah. The Ice Warriors are unthreatening and clunky, and the incidental music is horrible. The score is repetitive, loud and all over the episodes. Dudley Simpson was clearly either very unhappy in early 1969 or was on very strong ampetamines. Maybe he was just trying to distract the viewer from this loveless escapade.
A pacy, enjoyable story but not without its faults. The odd effect fails to convince (particularly Sutekh’s final form) and there are some stagey moments (the opening TARDIS scene, some of Sheard’s playing), but what compensates is the sheer class of the cast, all giving top-notch performances and all totally committed to the story. There are several highlights; Gabriel Woolf’s Sutekh is extraordinarily good, Baker and Sladen are just hitting their stride and clearly relish their scenes together, the location shooting is lovely to look at and very effective – the weird juxtaposition of the Edwardian and the alien is highly unsettling, and the design department work wonders. A solid, assured and satisfying story.
| What: | Ghost Light (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew B, Cardiff, Wales |
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| Date: | Monday 2 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 9 |
Truly wondrous. A glorious mixture of musty Victoriana, breathtaking science fiction and a strong central theme of evolution and change, Ghost Light is an unqualified success from top to toe. Only Sophie Aldred disappoints in a cast that make Marc Platt’s script sing. Sylvia Sims and Ian Hogg in particular are stunningly good, closely followed by Michael Cochrane, who brings a wonderful sympathy to Redvers, a Victorian explorer driven mad by things beyond his comprehension. Add to this the beautiful sets and Mark Ayres’ finest score and you have a near-perfect Doctor Who story.
Feeling like a rogue Hinchcliffe, Horror of Fang Rock is gorgeously written, acted and directed (Paddy Russell again), and is as tightly produced as anything in seasons 13 and 14. It is a wonderful Leela story, Terrance Dicks showing a real flair in writing for her. It’s hard to say anything new about this really. The lighthouse is an inspired setting for a ‘pick em off one by one’ story, and the design of both it and the island on which it stands is very, very effective. Chilling and amusing in all the right places, Horror of Fang Rock is one of the very best Tom Baker stories. Smashing.
Much is often made of The Mind Robber’s ‘imagination’ and ‘cleverness’ when in fact there is little evidence of either on display. I would guess that its lofty reputation is at least partly because it exists in a season so formulaic and dull that it benefits by comparison alone. Having said that, there are a few bright moments – the white TARDIS, Jamie and Zoe trapped in a giant book, Rapunzel, etc. But, unusual though these motifs are, they fail to ignite because they’re embedded in a plodding unimaginative non-story that labours every aspect of its script and its poorly constructed plot. The whole thing leaves one feeling patronised by the writer rather than entertained. Troughton gives it a lot of quality as usual, but of the rest of the cast only Bernard Horsfall matches him. Tedious and rather too pleased with itself.
Excellent. What is clearly a very cheap production manages to feel “large” due to the sheer quality of the script, cast and direction. Skaro is a dark, foggy, unpleasant place and the Kaled military are Nazi analogues. Peter Miles’ Nyder is an astonishing performance, topping a cast where everyone gets it just right. Tom Baker is nicely understated in this and yet is potent when required. The whole thing has an urgency and sense of threat that had been largely absent since 1970.
| What: | Inferno (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew B, Cardiff, Wales |
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| Date: | Monday 2 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
Easily the superior story of Season Seven, Inferno benefits from being told over seven episodes – the usual padding and drag just isn’t present here, and the plot device of a parallel Earth warrants a couple of extra episodes, even though the same story is essentially being told twice over. There are so many good things – Pertwee is excellent (as is usual in this season), indeed all the cast are top notch, Olaf Pooley, Nicholas Courtney and Derek Newark in particular. John Levene gives a small role some real punch, too. The effects are fine, Camfield is as wondrous as ever, and the dialogue is a joy to listen to. The kind of powerful story that would suddenly become very rare under Letts and Pertwee.
Lovely tin. Let me say that first of all.
THE TENTH PLANET
A taste of things to come. The Tenth Planet was the first story that embodied Innes Lloyd’s misguided attempt to make Doctor Who more “gritty” and “believable” (a preoccupation that would later reach its formulaic nadir in Season Five), managing to achieve neither of these things throughout its four episodes. If it weren’t for the fact that it was the first Cyberman story and William Hartnell’s last crack of the whip, there would be nothing to make this farrago memorable. The regulars are badly served and the guest cast are generally dreadful. The script is dull as dishwater and is riddled with terrible dialogue. The Tenth Planet could be fairly described as little more a roomful of people shouting at each other for ninety minutes, something we would see a lot more of in the next few seasons. The Cybermen themselves are reasonably well designed, and are quite sinister – until they speak. Not only are their voices absurd but they often display emotion even though they claim not to have any. Daft rather than terrifying. The only things that make The Tenth Planet worth watching are Craze and Wills (as usual) and the impressive regeneration sequence. A shameful end for Hartnell.
ATTACK OF THE CYBERMEN
An improvement on the preceding story (faint praise, given that the preceding story was The Twin Dilemma), Attack of the Cybermen is typical of Season 22 in that its good parts are usually scuppered by its bad parts. There are some great things here; Matthew Robinson's direction, great design work, Brian Glover and Maurice Colbourne, Lytton's conversion (finally we are allowed to see how monstrous the Cybermen can actually be), and plenty of action sequences. Unfortunately, just when you're enjoying one or more of the above, along comes one of the following to put you off; uneven performances from the regulars, the dreadful Saward dialogue, Malcolm Clarke's unpleasant score, a plot that doesn't really make sense, and some highly bizarre hand movements from the Cryons (reminiscent of the "choreographed" Fish People from "The Underwater Menace"). Annoyingly inconsistent in every way, Attack of the Cybermen is by turns entertaining and annoying, but it is still the superior production of this box set.
The Power of Kroll traditonally gets the worst press of season 16 but it’s a far superior story to this. Tired from start to finish, The Armageddon Factor is repetitive, overlong, and poorly written. There are a few positives – the first one and a half episodes are rather fun, with K9 getting some good lines and Davyd Harries and John Woodvine turning in enjoyable performances, but this quickly gives way to endless running around corridors and really not much else. Baker and Tamm look bored (and so do we), the former livening up a little when Barry Jackson’s Drax appears. A really flat ending to a lively season.
I wanted to like The Space Pirates. It's almost universally forgotten about, lurking at the fag end of Season 6. I wanted to be the one who "discovered" it's brilliance. With only one of it's episodes in existence it's a difficult one to judge. I've yet to work up the motivation to listen to the soundtrack, so recently decided to give the novelisation a go, hoping that it will be the best and fairest way of judging the story. So what do I think? Well, The Space Pirates is not dreadful, it's not great, it's just...uninteresting. The opening chapters are reasonably entertaining, but things become so lifeless so very quickly that it is hard to stick with the book until the end. The plot and dialogue are flat and cliched, the villains are obvious from the outset, and Milo Clancey (to whom Robert Holmes seems to devote more screen time than The Doctor, Zoe and Jamie) is downright irritating. The Space Pirates feels like what it is - six episodes of filler runaround designed to bridge a gap until the final story of the season. As a faithful recreation of the TV production, the novel is as dull, and offers nothing new. Move on to The War Games...
| What: | Venusian Lullaby (Missing Adventures novels) |
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| By: | Francis, reno, nv |
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| Date: | Sunday 1 October 2006 |
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| Rating: | 1 |
Of the hundreds of Doctor Who books I own, this is the first and only (to date) one I have put down without finishing. Creating a totally alien civilization is a daunting task in which the author fails miserably. It's one thing to have characters that need a good deal of describing to be able to imagine their physical appearance, but when you have a multitude of key characters with names so alien as to be nearly unpronouncable, it makes for a very difficult read. Continually asking if this character is involved or that other one. And then, to top it of, the author goes on to give equally unpronouncable names to the various extraneous flora and fauna in the environment. Why do we need to know what the Venusian name for pine tree is?!?! There is not a paragraph that goes by where some name or another has to be decrypted
If you're a linguist or enjoy deciphering almost indecipherable puzzles, then this book is for you. If you're like the majority of us, don't even bother
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| Interesting, unconventional story |
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| What: | Dust Breeding (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Doug, Pocono Summit, PA, USA |
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| Date: | Friday 29 September 2006 |
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| Rating: | 8 |
After listening to this once before, a few years back, I just went back and listened to it again. I remember that this one was my favorite Big Finish story for some time. I can't quite give it a 9, because the production didn't do so well with helping me visualize what was going on most of the time, but it's an interesting story that's really different. The pieces are slowly weaved together as the story progresses, and by the final "episode," we see just how much has really been going on. And the Doctor is about as much in the dark as we are.
Another problem with the story is that an understanding of just what this "warp core" creature was eluded me, even the second time I listened to it. But this is more than made up for by Johnson Willis' fantastic, demented performance as Damien, and the return of Geoffrey Beevers' truly sinister and dangerous Master. With the exception of Caroline John's rather grotesque accent, all of the actors' performances are excellent.
The story of what happened to the Master to return him to the state he's in here is fascinating - by itself it makes the whole production worth listening to. The fact that this would be written into the Big Finish continuity is quite unexpected and very cool. Of course, it also is a complete departure from 8th Doctor continuity, but given a choice, I'd go with this storyline over what we got in the Fox telefilm. If Dust Breeding was further developed for television and scenes were written into the story to actually portray what Ainley's Master did and what happened to him, this could be a really epic and gripping, if horrific t.v. story or feature. (Imagine season 26 ending with that instead of Survival!)
Overall, Dust Breeding is a real standout in the early Big Finish line of audio productions. Its reach extends far beyond the average Big Finish story, it takes some chances and pulls them off well, and we get a memorable, potentially cinematic story out of it.
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| Playing On The Doctor's Vulnerabilities |
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| What: | Her Final Flight (Big Finish subscriber bonuses) |
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| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Friday 29 September 2006 |
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| Rating: | 6 |
Her Final Flight gets a little frustrating because we know the whole thing is a dream, it is obviously a dream, and the Doctor's inability to figure this out for so long is nerve wracking. Additionally, this turns the listener's attitude away from the characters, whom we know to be unreal, so not worth our emotional investment. Still, the story follows its initial premises quite logically, remains consistent, and proves yet again that Colin Baker was a far better actor than he was allowed to be playing the Doctor on TV.
