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| What: | The Complete Third Series (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 16 October 2010 |
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| Rating: |   9 |
With the new arrival of Freema Agyeman came a Doctor Who series far better than the previous two overall. This season had far more going for it than the previous two. And it kept me entertained. David Tennant at last has some decent stories to get his teeth into in succession. I was glad the series picked up here, for up to this point I was disinterested in the series as a whole. This is the start of the big comeback. And we have our first coloured companion, which is an excellent and new move for the series.
About the only weak stories amidst this lot are the two dalek episodes. And even these are stronger than the weak ones in the two previous series. Even saying that this is a better two parter than the series two finale. For one the daleks are in it more, and that is rarely a bad thing. But again the story overall feels like nothing that new. The new dalek looks rather strange as well, if you know what I mean.
But stories like Human Nature/The Family of Blood and Blink are truly excellent tales. Fresh and imaginative and very vivid in the storytelling. They unravel surely and never lose coherence throughout. The characters are all likeable and the aliens are all suitably unsettling.
The Lazarus Experiment boasts perhaps the best monster of this series, followed by the Weeping Angels. And 42 is about one of the best of the new series stories over all. And Michelle Collins is in it, which is never a bad thing.
Smith and Jones got the series off to a flying start, in being better than the first two introductory episodes of the two series beforehand. And the Judoon are a pretty brilliant set of new aliens. One of the better new monsters to appear in the series.
The Shakespeare Code's ending too is highly original. Words as a defence have never been so effectively used within a story. Gareth really excelled himself here, as he does with the Lodger.
Gridlock is interesting as it brings back the Macra from long ago. They look brilliant here. And that hymn sung half way through is no light moment. This is the kind of story I would love to see a lot more of.
Of course though, it is the return of the MASTER that is this series best and most memorable moments. First Derek Jacobi, and then John Simm, both breath new life into the character first so wonderfully brought to life by Roger Delgado and then carried on by so many fine actors. I only wish Derek could have had a bit more time to develop as the Master before changing, but one cant have everything can they? And that old Doctor gave me the creeps. Such effective makeup and design work there. That old Doctor was the first real scene to truly unsettle me in the new series up to this point. So on the whole, this series was excellent. It finally had a run of top notch stories, with very few flaws and weak moments. Great stuff.
I always thought that Peter Cushing would have made a brilliant Doctor Who. He has the acting brilliance to have portrayed such a powerful time lord. I am just glad he did make the two dalek films. They are both pretty excellent at capturing the feel of the TV serials they were based upon, but are both better than their TV counterparts in the fact they are shorter, better paced, and the characters are all very believable and convincingly portrayed along the way. Its not just because its had more money spent on it. Very rarely is a programme suscessful just due to the money thrown at it.
Daleks Invasion Earth 2150 AD has it all. And it presents are a far more satisfying end to the story for the main reason is here it is actually explained. Peter Cushing leads the cast excellently as Doctor Who. His grandfatherly figure is at times more easy to accept than Will Hartnell's more terse time lord. And another person who shines again here in this film is Roberta Toovey. I always loved her character when I was younger and I saw this film.
And the daleks here are very impressive. No casing coming apart and all that. And they actually have grippers too. That makes sense. Daleks couldnt exactly do a whole lot with just plungers, well at least not until now anyway. The supporting cast here are of a very high calibre too. Andrew Keir gives as polished a performance as ever. Maybe the only slight quibble about this film is Jill Curzon's role. She doesnt actually really do much in the story except run around and fall over.
But Bernard Cribbins is brilliant. His character is so well defined and executed. And the final scene is one of the best endings to any type of Who story ever. Although with proper modern logic one could argue where his first persona was when he returned at exactly the same time. But science fiction may not have been as broadly horizoned in those days, so it doesnt really matter one little bit.
Those two deceitful women at the cottage too are a memorable duo. So, all in all this film was excellently done. Its sad they never did come to be able to do a film of the Chase, I would have loved to have seen that. These films and the classic series of Doctor Who are on the whole better than a sizeable percentage of the new series of stories. This goes to proove to me that the oldies are always the best.....
Some Spoilers Ahead
Paradise 5, when one looks at it in depth, really is very twisted indeed. In spite of this, I still find it brilliant. (Hmmm... what does that say about me?)
First things first. Paradise 5 was eventually replaced by Terror of the Vervoids in the official Season 23, which really is a shame, because Paradise 5 offers such greater depth and interest, and a truly sinister situation. Mel's line about "feeling evil in this place" would have been much more appropriate in Paradise 5. For this story, the role of Mel was recast, with Peri taking her place.
This story was originally written by P.J. Hammond, writer of most of the old Sapphire & Steel TV episodes. Here, the story is much more understandable than most of those TV episodes were. Writer Andy Lane picked things up for the adaptation, adding an additional episode at the beginning of the story, and further developing the latter parts of it. The resulting audio play is a very interesting fusion of these different elements - it all works together seamlessly, and maintains a very 80s-ish feel to it, partly due to the incidental music soundtrack, and partly due to nods to 80s fashion and culture. I would very much rather have seen this on TV instead of Terror of the Vervoids, but this production really was made for audio, and would not have been done the way it was, had it been done for TV in the 80s.
Now onto the twisted bit. Firstly, the "Cherubs" featured in the story, which are sort of menial laborers on the luxury vacation space station of Paradise 5, which is being run by "Gabriel" and "Michael," are very eerie creatures, and it's not without reason that the listener may feel this way, as we eventually come to find out... but I will leave that part for you to discover on your own. The purpose of the "Paradise Machine" is kept a very suspenseful secret for much of the duration of the story, and when we are told what it's for, it's quite a far-out idea... very interesting - a recruitment device for a higher-dimensional war. The sinister "Elohim" are from a higher dimension. But the bit that may not be widely known is where the name "Elohim" comes from. In the biblical book of Genesis, the first instances, in the earliest parts of the book, where the word translated as "God" in English are found, are places you actually find the Hebrew word that transliterates as "Elohim," which is plural, by the way. To put it more simply, in the early parts of the book of Genesis, "God" is actually "Elohim," and it would be more properly translated as "gods" or "the gods." So in effect, this story turns the ancient Semitic God(s) into an evil collective that is conscripting humans as warriors in a higher dimension. None of the details about where the name "Elohim" comes from are included in the story, of course. It is apparently left to the educated listener to catch the literary jab.
Gabriel and Michael (also from Judeo-Christian biblical myth - they are archangels therein), are brilliantly and twistedly played by Alex Macqueen and James D'Arcy respectively. The script flows really well, and Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant give delightful performances. In addition, there are shades of Season 25 here... think along the lines of The Greatest Show in the Galaxy and The Happiness Patrol, but perhaps with somewhat better production values, if this had been done right on TV.
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 | See my review in Volume one. |
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Loved it!!!!
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| WOW! that was a fast 4 hours. |
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For anybody who is a fan of the classic series should get these two double CD's. This give a lot of insite in to the internal running of this series from the man who was in charge. He explanes in detail decitions he made and why he made then. Its also goes into the show hiatus 1985, Colin Bakers fireing, Even touches on a few of the shows contents that we fans find embarising ie The Candy man.
My only critisium of these CD's is that when the show is cancelled 1989 he doesn't even mention it. Also you can tell that he is reading from a book, there isnt a lot of emotion as he reads it.
But the 4 hours that these CD's run for goes by very fast,
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| This should be a 'must have' for any fan |
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This is wonderfull. It is very funny, and increadably interesting. It also made me think how luckey we were to have him at all considering how many times he almost died during WW2.
My only thing I didnt like about this was that it wasn't long enough. I could have happily listened to him for another hour. Things like Navy Lark, Wozel Gummadge (I loved both of those shows) just really get a quick mention. and that was it
This was a very small-scale story. Very tepid and uninvolving. Quite a few people have reviewed this book positively elsewhere. I just couldn't get into it.
It's not that it isn't well-written. It's just that it didn't have anything really unique to say.
Matthew Jones actually seems to be a fairly good writer, when he puts his determination to it. He penned the tenth doctor two-part episodes of The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit, respectively; two of the finest episodes of the new series I have yet witnessed. Wonderfully phobic and closed-in.
Both those episodes involved the Devil. This book, also, involves the Devil, but not so directly.
Jones seems to have a thing for the Devil. It's interesting how his concepts have evolved.
But apart from this angle, I found little else to appreciate.
The black man-eating street cab threatened and menaced effectively. But this was the only other thing. Perhaps it was all the character work. It was a bizarre take.
I personally find sexuality of any kind rather irritating in Doctor Who. People look at me oddly when I say this, but I don't care. I've been described as rather emotionless, which may or may not be true.
Perhaps I'm too much of a rationalist. Too analytical. Too much like the Doctor. Whatever.
The in-depth descriptions of Jack's 16-year old lusts simply dragged with me (no pun intended.) I couldn't see the point of them. Which wouldn't be much of a problem, except they take up most of the book. They seem to be the author's rationale for writing.
I just kept waiting for something deeper to happen. Some clever fathom-plunging logic or creative strangeness. But there was nothing. A low-key, strange little document. It didn't seem to have much point at all.
In fairness, I *suppose* that this book is meant for gay people. Those who can see the point of musing on a teenager's weird emotions. I wasn't much of a teenager, even when I was one. So I guess this book isn't for me.
I try to see things from everybody's perspective. But for those who are not of that (sexual) persuasion, it simply seems baffling to write a novel this way.
I've always regarded Doctor Who as a vehicle for rationalism, twisted with adventure. The resulting spiral was remarkably enthralling. Very successful. Call me a traditionalist, but I enjoy the clear intellectualism of the Target range.
Maybe I should read something else? May I'll just raise chickens.
Tasteless. Flat. An experiment in dissociation. And very boring, too.
The continuity references were not graceful. Too many, too often. And frightfully little story, as if the book had been constructed from a spreadsheet. Very machine-like. I'm genuinely surprised at how little engagement this novel provoked in me.
My major sense during my reading was one of confusion; a sense of watching a pastiche, of I knew not what. Who was doing what? What was occurring or ending? What was motivating the characters? And do paper-flat, badly-illuminated stereotypes count as characters?
I skimmed most of this book. I only stopped when I saw a word or sentiment that I recognized. TARDIS. A conversation. Something straightforward actually happening. Some human interest.
Most of the book was built on veiled references, and the earth-bound Time Lord was an idea I had seen before, elsewhere. Unoriginal.
In light of the new series' explanation of the Time Wars, this seems very trite. A bad notion, not fully-worked out. Notable as a curiosity, I suppose. Not a very interesting one.
Sad.
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| The finest series in Who history. |
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| What: | The Key To Time (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
The Ribos Operation may not be well liked by some, as it is more a character piece than an action piece. But Robert Holmes again delivers some cracking good matierial. The comic duo of Garron and Unstoffe after Jago and Litefoot have to be the best double act in the series history. They really seem to enjoy working together and clearly relish the script. Paul Seed is also brilliant, as the bad tempered soldier Graff Vynda K. And even Prentis Hancock delivers again with his Captain. The shrivenale isnt quite as bad as many people make out either. This story is a brilliant start to the best single season in Who history.
The Pirate Planet again boasts mega performances, Mary Tamm already becoming one of my favourite companions for a long time. i love her Romana far better than Lalla, and Lalla is brilliant enough. And Bruce Purchase shines as the Captain, the best maniac in the whole of the Who series. He is so over the top and camp and brilliant. And the Queen Xanxia is particularly evil. A well scripted character. And Tom's appreciate it scene is an excellent bit of moralising, played to perfection.
The Stones of Blood boasts some of the best female characters of the series. Susan Engel and Beatrix Leahmann are simply unbelievable. And the Ogri arent all that bad either. Even if one can see a bloke pushing it into shot in one scene. Thats part of the character of Doctor Who anyway. De Vries is another good character too. And that camper scene is frankly very vivid and gruesome. All the right ingredients. And the Magara are simply fantastic creations.
The Androids of Tara may be prisoner of Zenda, yes that is true. But this isnt a hindrance in the slightest. Yet again this story has a brilliant central villain. And Mary gets a little more to do as Romana. She has such charm that she steals all the scenes shes in. And her Princess Strella is totally different from Romana too. I love the final scene with K9 out in the moat! And the sword fight is one of the best of the series.
The Power Of kroll is wrongly called weak. Kroll is excellently realised. Rohm Dutt is another Bob Holmes brillant character. And so are all the inhabitants of the refinery. John Leeson is seen for the first and only time of the series. And the swampies are a good alien race. And the sets arent actually all that bad either. The back stretching is original.
The Armageddon Factor ends this perfect season on an excellent high note. Valentine Dyall is brilliant in the final episode, managing to make his presence felt for the small time he has on screen. And William Squire is terrific and coolly evil. Lalla Ward plays Astra well too. Tom is at his best. And Drax is a revelation! Never thought we'd have this silly a character in the series, its excellent! This season was faultless. It is the best season overall in the history of the show. Yes, and its produced by Graham Williams! That brilliant bloke! Thanks mate for seeing these stories come to fruition!
| What: | Carnival of Monsters (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
Carnival of Monsters has it all:
a: Bob Holmes typical well rounded and wonderful characters. These range from the devious and psychotic Kalik to the more refined Pletrac, the dippy Orum and all the characters on board the SS Bernice.
b: an excellent central monster. The Drashigs are one of the finest monsters of Jon's time in the show. They dont look like puppets at all, which is a credit to the puppets creators. They are shot brilliantly on film, and look massive. One of the better uses of CSO in the series.
c; the duo of Vorg and Shirna too are just so delightful and comedic. I love these sorts of characters. Comedy is a vital part of Doctor Who. Things that are too serious often fail to be memorable, except for unpleasant reasons. But here we have this renowned double act that lights up the Inter Minor scenes.
The fact that the whole thing is set nearly all inside a scope is fascinating and original. This is one of Bob's strongest stories for the series. He kept on going from strength to strength and only staggered slightly twice. Not bad in about 20 stories.
Jon and Katy are so good together too, they are a double act themselves. Jo is often bumbling but fiercely brave and loyal to the Doctor, well up until the Green Death anyway, and always strongly performed by Katy. Even the weaker plaiseosaurus and lack of cloudy skies some scenes outside the door of the saloon cant stop me from giving this story a ten. Its definitely a classic story with a mountain of stuff going for it.
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| Fails to get motivated.... |
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| What: | The Ark in Space (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 4 |
This is a story that looks a tiny bit on the cheap side. the Wirrn arent the most convincing monster to grace the Doctor Who universe. And the characters here are rather strangely vaguely characterised, strange considering this was a largely rewritten segment by Rob Holmes. Bob's two weak moments were this and Pyramids of Mars. But all his other tales are almost beyond parallel.
But here there are no titan views and no titan laughs that are always present in other Bob tales. It seems he was bored doing this story.
Even Tom Baker's humanity scene cant save this. And again the brilliant Ian Marter is direly underused. He was a great oppurtunity missed as far as Im concerned. And the same goes for Liz Sladen. After her first season with Jon where she was very strong in every story, now she is just becoming that run of the mill companion that a story doesnt really even need. After the brilliance of Robot, this really is dissapointing.
But remember that bubble wrap was just coming out in the seventies, so it isnt as bad looking if you look at it in the time it was made. Rather innovative actually. And the head of Noah when he appears behind Harry and the crewmember is excellently done. The end too may just lift up the ratings, as it is rather neat and touching. Human spirit coming through. But on the whole scale, a sore let down...
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| Takes too long to get going... |
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| What: | The Tomb of the Cybermen (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 5 |
But Tomb Of The Cybermen is not a total failure. The touching scene of the Doctor recalling his family is one of the best scenes in Doctor Who ever. It is so wonderfully acted, Pat and Debbie just gel so well. But aside from this the action is slow to begin. The characters may be well defined, pity they dont wet my appetite.
Judging by the first two parts, This is not the classic that so many people call it. George Pastell is really very good as Kleig, and he has the best final line of a psychopath ever. Cyril Shaps tries hard too, but aside from that all the characters (except maybe Hopper) are just in the background and dont seem to do a huge amount and dont add much to the story. The cybermen still look good, but thats no substitute for the bland storytelling.
But at least the story does pick up very well after part two. But even so, its no Timelash or Time And The Rani. Those stories for me are far more thrilling and watchable. This is the weakest Patrick Troughton story in my view.
(Yes, I know the cybermen are far more sparsely appearing in the Wheel In Space, but that story is far better paced and the story is still excellent!)
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| Fear Her is excellent but... |
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| What: | Series 2 Volume 5: (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 5 |
Fear Her is the third story of the second series that is actually anything bordering on watchable. This story is very interesting to watch, and the characters again are well performed and come across as sympathetic and believable. This story has a good central theme too, and the pencil squiggle is well utilised, if its only in one scene! And Rise gets to do something for once. And she takes the lead well here, not being that brat that she cant escape from being for long. There is real drama in here, and the Isolus is a wonderful looking little sad creature. Its not often we get a story with a creature that isnt actually evil, just misguided. And the end of this story forecasts doom coiming...but does it?
In short the answer is no. For a start the first episode of the finale is boring and doesnt get motivated until right at the very end. And the cybermen are killed far too easily. Just one Dalek blast lays them down! How damn stupid can you get? These poor cybermen have so many weaknesses for such an apparently strong race. In the beginning it was only radiation, then gold...when is it going to end for these brill monsters? They have been badly written for in the new series as a whole. Whilst the action may rise in Doomsday, it is enough. It is all so very predictable. The Rose goodbye may well be emotional, and extremely well acted, but this one scene alone cant stop the fact that this finale isnt all that much to write home about. But that final scene with Catherine Tate aboard the TARDIS holds a lot of promise...maybe we're in for some fun in the near future...I hope so. I need it.
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| This isnt very original....except no 3 |
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| What: | Series 2 Volume 4: (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 6 |
One cant escape the fact that The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit is just a rehash. The Robots of Death and Pyramids of Mars is all this modern tale is. The ood act like the voc robots, and the Devil is just Sutekh again. Whilst this story doesnt feature the floppy ending of Pyramids, its still far from original. The ood may be one of the finest alien designs of the series so far, but it would have helped if their debut was a more original tale. Im glad that once again Matt Jones has written Rose to be a bit more likeable than usual. For once she isnt overly annoying and catty. The sets do look really good and Gabriel Woolf gives another memorable voice. But thats all I have to say on this rehash. Another dissapoint. David's first season isnt up to all that much at all which is a big shame.
One of the three stories that does manage to be excellent though is Love and Monsters. Yes, it may well be very adult in theme and the kids might not grasp the meatier elements of the script, but this story is still of a very high quality indeed. The character depth is excellent, and the ending is sad and moving. And again, Rose for once isnt too catty. This is one of the most satisfying stories of David's time as the Doctor. Thats sad, as its one where he's hardly in it. That doesnt say much thats good does it? David is a brilliant Doctor, its not his fault his stories are overall very much a letdown of the first degree...
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| This trio must be upgraded! |
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| What: | Series 2 Volume 3: (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 4 |
Consdiering this first two parter to feature the cybermen borrows elements from the big finish audio production Spare Parts, this tale has none of the impact of that excellent audio story. This story is so boring its unbelievable. The presence of the cybermen is secondary to Roger Lloyd Pack, although Roger's performance is one of the only saving graces of this otherwise dull as ditchwater tale. The Cybermen may be a brilliant design here, pity they dont hardly even appear in the first episode. Even the second part scene with the fused Cyberman isnt as effective as the original in Spare Parts. And yet again that Rose is getting on my nerves. Its a shame Billie has been lumbered with scripts that make her so brash and catty and unlikeable all along the way. But at the end of the day at least Mickey gets more to do, even if that more to do is boring as henry. And Camille is rather sidelined here too, and isnt her usual brilliant self. Even if she is a parrallel universe Jackie and all that. This is definitely the very worst Cyberman story ever. It just never ever gets going. And that scene with the two "Mickeys" is obviously fake. You can tell this is a classic case of overlaying. This is the worst story of the new series too bar The Pandorica Opens and The Big Bang. Very much a letdown. Sorry to do a demolishion job, but its just my view of this bland two parter.
The Idiots Lantern isnt all that much better either. It looks like all the characters noses are trying to burst out from those featureless faces. The Wire may be one of the more well portrayed aliens of the series, but that alone doesnt stop this story from not being all that original. And its not nice when youre glad that Rose is silent and faceless for the bulk of the episode, because her character is so catty that its a relief to be reprieved from her having speech. And the characters here all seem just that little bit over the top and melodramatic. Yes, this story is better than the two part cyber tale, but not much better. Overall these three stories come as such a dissappointment.
| What: | Series 2 Volume 1: (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 6 |
Every other Doctor had a good story to start with. They all immediately got deep into the role of the Time Lord, and immediately were a big part of the action. So for me, The Christmas Invasion just doesnt work at all im afraid. To have David sidelined and lying in bed may be reminiscent of Jon Pertwees debut, but at least Jon got to do some good stuff before the end of Spearhead from Space. A single sword fight doesnt save the Doc from seeming to be just a spare part, almost a secondary character. And Rose's attitude to the Doctor here doesnt warm me up either. Just shut up and get on with it. Even the Sycorax design isnt particularly blindingly brilliant. This is one of those new series instances where they just dont convince, and its clear they are all just costumes. David really deserved a better debut than this. About the only good scene is when half the population stand right on the end of the roof, but thats just one scene. A very boring and bland debut. It doesnt help either when the Daddy Christmasses are more memorable than the sycorax!
New Earth is funny and engaging. Russell T Davies witty little script sparkles. And at last we get to the heart of the character of Cassandra, who wants to escape her skin prison. Funny that she was the one that made herself like this. I thought flatness was beautiful last time? But aside from this one slip, this story is brilliant. Shes probably finally realised that being just a trampoline doesnt aid mobility all that much! The Cat nurses are a good race of aliens, devious and totally unscrupulous. And Billie's acting here for once doesnt annoy me. As shes basically someone else for the whole story, and that is a relief for me. And David Tennant finally gets to lead and show us what a good Doctor he can be. And the ending of this story is good, touching and light. This lifts the series up a bit, as most of the rest of this season is totally forgettable and stagnated. Old Doctor Who was NEVER as up and down as the new series has been.
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| Only one jewel amid the rough... |
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| What: | Series 2 Volume 2: (BBC new series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Saturday 9 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 6 |
Tooth And Claw brings nothing new to the mythos of werewolves. This story is actually hardly even scary. its stilted and boring and Id rather watch paint dry than carry on watching this. And the Doctor's rather course and very out of character remark about the Elephant man was for me very offensive and unnecessary. And above all else very out of character for someone who usually sides with the underdog. The werewolf isnt even all that impressive either, and the character of Queen Victoria may be spot on, pity about her treatment of the Doctor at the end. And a real shame about the totally over the top final scene. If this is Doctor Who trying to be funny it doesnt succeed at all. And for once, not even David Tennant saves this. And Rose is as annoying a character as ever. Sorry, but the old classic series was never as tedious as this.
School Reunion is maybe a little bit better. But this is mainly due to the appearance of Li Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith. Although the bbc team seem to have forgotten that Sarah met the doctor again after being left in that street at the end of the Hand of Fear, so that pretty hefty discontinuity and I hate it. Considering the heads of these serials claimed to have looked closely at all the happenings in Doctor Who history. This is nothing brilliant, its just more watchable than Tooth and Claw. And Anthony Head's character seems so wasted here. His part isnt big enough. Another let down overall with a frankly absurd central plot with an idiotic Skasus Paradigm. To think that a code could write the universe. As if man.
The only jewel here is the brilliant The Girl In the Fireplace. This is a Doctor Who story that really shines. The characters are all very well realised and brought to life. Madam de Pompadour is one of my favourite new series characters. The sadness of the Time Lord at the conclusion of this tale is excellently done by David, and finally he really has a decent story to get his teeth into. The bits of bodies littered through the ship is unsettling and slightly sick, and original too. At least the first David Tennant series is going somewhere in the right direction. And even Rose isnt quite as annoying or mouthy as she usually is, which for me is a big relief. I liked Billie Piper for one or two episodes and this is one of those rarities. Maybe the only slight quibble with this story is Noel as Mickey, he seems to be sidelined with no decent involvement in the plot as a whole. But the design work too here is excellent, and the clock work robots really are incredible looking. Pity this story is the only one of note in this three story dvd. Sad.
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| "Woo hoo! Woo hoo Wo ho ho ho!!" |
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| What: | The Invasion (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Thursday 7 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
The Invasion is one of those extraordinary stories that works well on so many different levels. The whole production is seemlessly polished and very well presented. The acting is of a very very high calibre indeed, indeed some of the finest acting in the series. Kevin Stoney as Vaughan is a revelation. The man just exudes menace and charm in equal amounts. He has his quiet moments too, so the character is not just a run of the mill characature villain. And Packer as his sadistic underling is wonderfully portrayed by Peter Halliday. These two work so well together on screen its almost like a Rob Holmes duo all over again.
And dont even get me started on the brilliant Pat Troughton. "Well thats simple Jamie, we get squashed" is a line that always cracks me up. And that cyberman falling off the roof may well be just a suit but boy, that booinng still gives me stitches. But the best bit is Pat's wonderful dancing to escape the cyberman firing on him. That is the single best bit of comic input by an actor themselves that Ive ever witnessed.
And we get a very good double set of animated episodes! What an absolutely awesome idea! And just add to this the brilliant music score by Don Harper and you have all the ingredients of an all time classic story...
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| A tiny bit less than enthralling... |
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| What: | The Ice Warriors (TV episode audio soundtracks) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Thursday 7 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 5 |
The fact that for the bulk of the story the Ice Warriors do little other than bully Victoria like lily livered hard nuts, and shoot one man. Well, it just doesnt really make for a totally awesome and brilliant tale. Whilst all the warriors may possess characters that are defined properly for once, in all other respects this is weak.
And thats a shame when one sees the cast list for this story. Because all the human cast are excellent. The sparks between Clent and Penley are amusing and some golden dialogue emerges from these two characters mouths.
Also though, the fact that aside from episode one nothing major happens to the glacier is hard to believe. What with Varga cutting such big holes out of it to his warriors!!! Flipping silly stuff. The snow mountain surely would have wobbled at least a little bit.
Pat Troughton again gives a brilliant performance though, with his hating of computers in the Doctor's mind coming through on screen very well indeed. And poor Frazer doesnt get too much to do either though. And to top it all off, Victoria is told to go back to the TARDIS half way through the last part!! Really nice! And Id like to know how the Doctor and co got the TARDIS back up properly when they arrived and toppled over...
So altogether, the Ice Warriors werent really needed for this story. Whilst their design is formidably brilliant and memorable, their standing around being bossy green prats isnt. The human characters are all that save this, and even then theres a few who dont get to really shine....
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| Not too long at all mate... |
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| What: | Marco Polo (TV episode audio soundtracks) |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Thursday 7 October 2010 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
When Doctor Who premiered, it must have been quite a revelation. I will give the production team of that time their full due, at least they had the sense to let historical stories come thick and fast and brilliantly. They had a show which was so memorable back then not just for the Daleks and the sci-fi, but also for shows very tightly done and brilliantly realised. For me, Will Hartnell's historicals are some of the very finest shows in Doctor Who history. We got so many in his time, and for me this was never ever a bad thing. When I first watched Doctor Who i thought all the monsters were brilliant and some highly original, but most of the sci fi is not too high on emotion or character definition. But character definition is highly rife through these brilliant Will Hartnell historicals. Not only are the supporting cast of an excellent calibre, but the main cast members are at their peak, acting to perfection whatever story comes along. The first line up of the series remains for me one of the very strongest ever. They beat Rose into a copped hat to say the very least.
Marco Polo is the story for me where all the characters come into their own. Ping Cho and Susan's friendship for a start is awesomely done, realised to the full. It feels like one that really is believable and firm, and one wouldnt have been surprised if Susan had decided to stay with her too, but no, she went off with that wet fish David instead. But one cant always have everything. The plot threads these two alone share within the story are brilliant and make the tale shine. Then we come to Derren Nesbitt as Tegana, as fine a portrayal of a Who nasty as I have ever seen, devious and cunning and totally without scruples of any kind. And yet still his presentation is 3D, and very believable.
And the fact that the story is literally narrated by Marco Polo is an innovative and different approach that sadly was to never be contemplated again. The journey to Cathay is long and arduous and perilous. This story feels far more like a film than a tv serial. It is that good. The sand storm and fights along the way seem very well directed too, Waris Hussein really does his utmost to bring the whole thing alive off the page. And the sets are of a very high standard indeed. One grips the feel that this is ancient China in almost every aspect. And just to top it all off, William Russell's narration is informative and very well delivered all along the way.
I lament the notion to end pure historical tales in Doctor Who, Im glad Big Finish at least had the sense to do them in audio format. But woe to the BBC, what shortsightedness. Especially when they originally came out with The Massacre, The Reign of Terror, the Aztecs, The Highlanders, The Smugglers, The Gunfighters and Marco Polo....
