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Scheduling Victorious III

November 12, 2020 0 Comments

Cpt 3

She crumples the paper into a compact wad and throws for the wastebasket, (both as anachronistic as can be: an Osirian Pyramid ship from the 35th century—one of the most technologically advanced pieces of starcraft ever created—and sitting in its gleaming white, high-tech, fully automated control room, an honest to goodness piece of paper and cylindrical metal can) sending it in a near-perfect arc across the room. The makeshift ball bounced once on the rim and out, skittering across the floor making that noise that was both satisfying and strangely unnerving.

She rolls her eyes. “Really? You couldn’t let me have that one?”

She melts upright off the couch and into a stretch, her lithe body arching beneath her white silk robes. Paradoxes aside, it was getting annoying to have to reschedule things every other week, even if she was just the mouthpiece. Sauntering over to the wastebasket, she nimbly plucks the wad of paper up and unsmooths it, re-reading the characters on the page. She shakes her head, inputs a few sequences on the panel before her, and hits the transmit button.

TTV #473 –Tales of the Dark Times #3 (Comic Maker), The Enemy of My Enemy (Big Finish Audio), Monstrous Beauty #3 (Comic)

Thanksgiving – OFF

TTV #474 – TLV: Daleks! #1 “The Archive of Islos”, #2 (Animated Series)

TTV #475 – TLV: Daleks! #3, #4 (Animated Series)

TTV #476 – TLV: Daleks! #5 (Animated Series), The Minds of Magnox (Audio Book)

That finished, (again), she crumples the paper and drops it without fanfare into the trash.

“You realize this is wrong, right?” She shakes her head. “I mean, you are aware of the inaccuracies here.” She hooks a thumb over her shoulder toward the platform she spoke from not all that long ago. “I mean, aside from the fact that there is a ruined city outside that looks like it barely survived a nuclear blast—and granted, that may just be 2020 doing its thing—there’s a golden Pyramid ship sitting on top of it. Weird, right?”

She begins to pace, waving her hand around the room. “A 35th century Pyramid ship, you described it as. But the Osirians, are from the DARK TIMES. With one or two notable exceptions, they do not still exist today, and they certainly won’t exist in the 35th century to create this technological marvel that I’m currently shooting hoops in.” She moves back to the wastebasket and digs out the printout. “And look at this!” She cries out, holding the page aloft. “It’s ye ol’ green and white striped, tractor fed, DOT MATRIX paper!?! Could you get any more analog? WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!?”

She collapses back on the couch, a sense of genuine worry about her.

“Are you off your game? I mean, I thought something was afoot last week when you named the post ‘Scheduling Victorious II’ and didn’t tag it with ‘Electric Boogaloo’ at the end. I know how you love that joke.” She pauses, the wheels in her sharp mind turning. “Unless… the Time Lord Victorious paradoxes… are they affecting you too? Is that even possible? I mean, you’re the author. The Narrator. You should be outside of these fictional events, but…” Her eyes travel skyward as if looking for god. “Hell, I’m self-aware, so who knows what your game plan is.”

Somewhere, the loud and abrasive grinding of the dot matrix printer started its insecticide chewing noise. It was only one line, and so mercifully short. She rose to pull the just printed page.

AS ALWAYS, THE SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.

She re-reads the words several times as if imposing her own will on the text would cause it to change. But of course, it doesn’t. Instead, she wads the paper up and tosses it into the trash, where it makes a perfect basket, (nothing but net) thudding on the bottom of the can with a small echo.

“That isn’t reassuring.” She tells the author.

Fiction, Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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Scheduling Victorious

August 21, 2020 0 Comments

Dawn.

The sun’s rays have just begun to crest the horizon, illuminating a towering pyramid that looms over the desolate cityscape below. ‘Scenes from an apocalypse’ might be one way to describe the city. If it were a boxer, it would be beaten, bruised, and bloodied. The sprawling metropolis certainly had seen better days, but it was the people who still cowered in it that should be the focus. They too were broken and haunted, mere shadowy reflections of their former selves, for their eyes had seen horrors.

And yet they survived.

Atop the pyramid, a cloaked figure appears, gliding up to a stone podium that stands near the edge. Soft robes billow about her form as she lifts her hands aloft. The silence, which in reality was merely quiet, now becomes an eerie sound vacuum in anticipation of the words to follow. Breaths are held in that pause for attention, and she certainly has it.  Time stretches out into a thin stream of nothing in that heartbeat before she begins to orate, leaning into the strange device that can only be a microphone sending her voice booming into the valley below:

“Is this thing on?”

The cacophony of sudden noise startles her, and the bombastic feedback of her words causes a crumbling tower to finally give up its fight against gravity and collapse to the earth.

“Right. Here we go…

BEHOLD MORTALS:

A NEW DAY DAWNS.

A NEW FORMAT BEGINS.

TRAVELING THE VORTEX RETURNS.”

She pauses, looking thoughtful.

“Really? Is that it? Isn’t this an awful lot of pomp and circumstance just to announce your silly little podcast is coming back? I mean, I get it, you’ve been doing this pretty much non-stop, week after week for YEARS.” She draws out the word, adding more syllables to it than should be phonetically possible. “And then you take a little hiatus for a breather and suddenly that turns into a long hiatus because of a pandemic and…”

The author stares hard at her, projecting his will onto the flashing words that form on the screen. The meaning is clear.

“Oh fine, I’ll get on with it,” She mutters, not at all convinced the author wouldn’t carry out his threat to feed her to some horrible abomination in his next story. She coughs, attempting to get back into character.

“JOIN THE VORTEX BOYS IN THEIR NEW BI-WEEKLY FORMAT AS THEY REVIEW WHAT MAY BE THE MOST AMBITIOUS PROJECT IN DOCTOR WHO HISTORY:

THE MULTI-PART, MULTI-FORMAT TIME LORD VICTORIOUS!”

Words appear at the bottom of the screen, spelling out the upcoming schedule dates and topics:

Aug
8/31 TTV #465 – LOCKDOWN continued…

Sep
9/21 TTV #466 – Lost in Time: The Myth Makers (Recon and Novelization)

Oct
10/5 TTV #467 – TLV: A Dalek Awakens (Escape Room), Defender of the Daleks #1 (Comic), The Guide to the Dark Times (Annual 2021)

10/19 TTV #468 – TLV: Monstrous Beauty #1 (Comic), The Knight, The Fool and The Dead (Book)

and more to come!

“AS ALWAYS,” She concludes, looking rather exasperated by the whole ordeal, “THE SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE, BUT WE’LL TRY AND LET YOU KNOW!” With that, she turns in a flutter of robes and strides from the dais, muttering something about “real authors like Andy Frankham-Allen”.

And in the ruined city below, a faint sound reaches back up to the top of the pyramid. She could not be certain, of course, but it sounds like applause.

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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The Timeless Schedule

February 24, 2020 0 Comments

March

TTV #463 – S12x10 The Timeless Children

Then a return to the literary worlds of Doctor Who in TTV #464 with a Book Review: Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Havoc Files.

Hiatus – A break in the action here, as Keith and Sarah celebrate the arrival of Little Liam. Glenn and Shaun plan on recording something to fill the empty void in your lives, not sure yet what it will be!

We’ll return in April with more Big Finish as we delve into the War Doctor in TTV #465 with the Series 1 boxset: The Innocent, The Thousand Worlds, The Heart of the Battle

TTV #466 is Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Rise of the Dominator by Robert Mammone

And back to where we left off with the 8th Doctor in TTV #467 as we review Big Finish 8th Doctor Adventures #4.2 Situation Vacant, and #4.3 Nevermore

The 4th Doctor and Leela grace our ears with Big Finish 4th Doctor Adventures Series #3.3 The Crooked Man, and #3.4 The Evil One in TTV #468

and the first arc of Titan Comics Thirteenth Doctor Season 2 is the topic of TTV #469 (#1-4)

The Laughing Gnome continues in May in TTV #470 with Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Lucy Wilson & The Bledoe Cadets by Tim Gambrell

Beyond that? Only time will tell!

Misc

No Time To Schedule

February 7, 2020 0 Comments

Been a while since we let you know what was up, so here we are… letting you know what is up.

Our march through the new season of WHO continues over the next four weeks…

TTV #460 – Can You Hear Me?

TTV #461 – The Haunting of Villa Diodati

TTV #462 – (S12x09)

March

TTV #463 – (S12x10)

Then a return to the literary worlds of Doctor Who in TTV #464 with a Book Review: Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Rise of the Dominator by Robert Mammone

Hiatus – A break in the action here, as Keith and Sarah celebrate the arrival of Little Liam. Glenn and Shaun plan on recording something to fill the empty void in your lives, not sure yet what it will be!

We’ll return in April with more Big Finish as we delve into the War Doctor in TTV #465 with the Series 1 boxset: The Innocent, The Thousand Worlds, The Heart of the Battle

TTV #466 is Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Lucy Wilson & The Bledoe Cadets by Tim Gambrell

And back to where we left off with the 8th Doctor in TTV #467 as we review Big Finish 8th Doctor Adventures #4.2 Situation Vacant, and #4.3 Nevermore

The 4th Doctor and Leela grace our ears with Big Finish 4th Doctor Adventures Series #3.3 The Crooked Man, and #3.4 The Evil One in TTV #468

and the first arc of Titan Comics Thirteenth Doctor Season 2 is the topic of TTV #469 (#1-4)

Plans are to draw the Laughing Gnome series to a close in May in TTV #470 with On His Majesty’s National Service by John Peel.

Beyond that? Only time will tell!

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

Big Finish Reviews – Gallifrey Series 1

December 16, 2019 0 Comments

Hello there my fellow Vortex travelers,
My name is Jamie and I will be your guide through the Worlds of Big Finish. In this installment I’m switching things up. To give myself a break from the Main/Monthly Range, I’m going to start delving into other ranges from Big Finish.
In this installment I will give my thoughts on Series 1 of the Gallifrey series. This features Leela and Romana II after the events of Zagreus and deals with events on Gallifrey. The first three seasons tend to flow from one to the next and tell one large story. The next three tell another long arc. Series 7 and 8 are semi-stand alone and then Series 9 onwards is Gallifrey: Time War.
These are available from the Big Finish website on Download for $5.00. Stories #2-3 are still available on CD for $6.20.
Disclaimer: All of the opinions expressed hereafter are my own. There are stories that I love that others may hate, and vice versa. I am not responsible for any reactions others might have to my comments and opinions.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

 

1.1 Weapon of Choice
Written by: Alan Barnes TTV Episode: 450
My Thoughts: We open with a mission to investigate a possibly threatening piece of time technology on the Third Moon of Kikrit. This team is lead by Commander Torvald of the CIA (Celestial Intervention Agency) and includes a Monan, a Nekestan and a Warpsmith of Phaidon (who are non-corporeal and use slaves to take a corporeal form). In the hut they’re investigating, they find a briefcase. The Phaidon (Napenthe) grabs the case, which she declares is a Timonic Fusion Device and ranting something about “Free Time” vanishes with the case.
We then move to Gallifrey proper and are introduced to Cardinal Braxiatel and CIA Coordinator Narvin (successor to Vansell who bit the dust in Main Range #33 Neverland), and we’re reintroduced to President Romana and K-9 Mk II as they discuss what happened on the moon. A call from the High Monan reveals that Napenthe and the Free Time resistance movement are on Gryben, a temporal enclave that acts as a Time Lord processing center for wayward time travelers.
Leela meanwhile is trying to join the Outsiders. Andred has disappeared and is presumed dead and so there is nothing for Leela in the Capitol. However, the arrival of K-9 Mk I followed by Brax with a summons from Romana ruin her chances. In the Capitol, Romana recruits Leela for a mission to Gryben where she, K-9 Mk I and Torvald, will attempt to make contact with Napenthe and the Free Time movement. The mission to Gryben gets underway. While Leela gets in a fight in the market K-9 seeks information in the local pub. Here we meet Mephistopheles Arkadian, an arms dealer and purveyor of information. Arkadian is a fun character. Scum, but high-class scum. As I listen, having heard all of these (except Series 8 – Enemy Lines), I find it interesting as hints to future events are inserted early. One of these comes when Arkadian is brought to Gallifrey to meet with Romana whom he addresses as “Imperiatrix”. This term will come to mean more in Series 2.
Leela, Torvald and K-9 meanwhile go to the human enclave to seek Napenthe. They find her, or rather she finds them, and Leela attempts to win her trust. Ordered
to kill Torvald, she manages to avoid doing so by revealing a Monan spy which prompts a small-scale Monan invasion of Gryben. However, the Monan actions force Napenthe to arm the Timonic Fusion Device. This forces a mad scramble on both Gallifrey and Gryben.
Romana hatches a plan that gets her to Gryben with Arkadian. She manages to get on Napenthe’s good side before the Monans burst in. The Monan intrusion damages the device accelerating the countdown. A definition from K-9 gives Romana the key while on Gallifrey, Narvin sets the ball rolling on an inquiry and possible impeachment.
The countdown reaches zero and instead of detonating, it just vanishes. Romana explains the purpose of the whole exercise but Napenthe commits suicide before revealing the mastermind behind this. Everything wraps up, though with no real answers, and Romana moves on to the next crisis. She invites Leela back to Gallifrey as her Presidential Bodyguard with K-9 Mk I as her Security Advisor.
A really enjoyable start to the series. It introduces the main characters well, both the ones we already know (Romana II, Leela, the K-9s) and the ones we don’t (Narvin, and Brax). There’s the politics that one expects from Gallifrey but also action, intrigue and surprisingly, humor. It’s plot-driven, but also very character-driven. Overall, a very good start. Rating: 10/10

 

 

1.2 Square One
Written by: Stephen Cole TTV Episode: 450
My Thoughts: This time, we open with Romana, Leela and K-9 in a TARDIS attempting to escape some sort of temporal distortion or some such. Then we jump back to where a temporal summit, the first since Archetryx (see “The Apocalypse Element”), is being planned. Narvin is selected as the Gallifreyan delegate and Leela and K-9 are sent along as Romana’s eyes and ears.
Leela is sent in undercover as an exotic dancer. We get bits of the summit and various bits of gossip that help flesh out some of the non-Gallifreyan temporal powers. Everybody gets at least a little to do. However, this is very much very much Leela’s story.It isn’t long before she finds the body of one of the other dancers and is arrested for the murder. Then, while in her cell, time resets itself. What follows is essentially a Doctor Who meets Groundhog Day as Leela and K-9, and later Romana, work to discover who is looping time in an effort to ensure that the summit is successful without any negative events. And, each time the summit loops, a different problem occurs.A good use of time when the series is all about the Time Lords. It’s not a horrible story. In fact it’s rather good. It doesn’t really drag, and the acting, writing and effects are done well. It’s just not my favorite. Rating: 7/10

 

 

 

1.3 The Inquiry
Written by: Justin Richards TTV Episode: 451
My Thoughts: So, as the title implies, we have the Inquiry. With Darkel (Lynda Bellingham), the Inquisitor from the Trail of a Time Lord presiding, we investigate whether the Gryben incident with the Timonic Fusion Device was handled properly and whether Romana did the right thing. We also delve into Project: Alpha, of which Narvin and Braxiatel were a part of, and whether it actually created a Timonic Fusion Device or if such a device is purely hypothetical.
Whereas Weapon of Choice was an action thriller and Square One was a Timey-Wimey murder mystery of sorts, The Inquiry is a trial, and very much a political story. It is revealed that Project: Alpha did build a Timonic Fusion Device and was on its way to detonating the device before it was halted by Narvin. It was then dismantled and destroyed. Or was it?
Both Narvin and Romana delve into the Matrix for information on Project: Alpha, at the same time. Narvin quickly pulls out but not before discovering a data bomb which K-9 then activates by accident. This causes a bit of panic as the data bomb could potentially destroy the Matrix. The data bomb seems to indicate that there was an explosion in the vortex, but that can’t be as the device never actually went off. However, using the information from the Matrix, they find the device from Gryben and prepare to retrieve it.
The device is recovered having been guarded by Servitor Robots that had gone missing during the last story. Back in the Capitol, Narvin and Torvald track the artron imprint attached to the data bomb. Narvin goes to Romana with their findings and she in turn prepares to meet with mystery individual to get some answers. Leela meanwhile, enters the archives in hopes of finding out the fate of Andred and ends up finding it missing, though Torvald seems to be involved somehow.
The answers about the data bomb are well done. I won’t spoil the rest. It’s good, go listen to it. It helps make Underworld a little more relevant in that story’s background, tying it in to Gallifrey. The ending is superb as everyone something to sink their teeth into. Romana especially gets to shout and be forceful and it sounds brilliant.
After the relatively self-contained Square One, here we get back into season arc and into the political drama of Gallifrey. All of our leads get things to do and time to shine. Romana is a nice standout here as she throws around her presidential weight in the climax. The Timonic Fusion Device plot is mostly wrapped up, though there are a few lingering threads. The mystery over what happened to Andred is still a major plot-point to be expanded upon and wrapped up in a future installment. The Inquiry was fun and keeps you invested as did Weapon of Choice, whereas Square One left a little bored in places, this didn’t. Really looking forward to the next installment. Rating: 10/10

 

 

1.4 A Blind Eye
Written by: Alan Barnes TTV Episode: 451
My Thoughts: So, we find oursleves on a train in Europe in September 1939 as Romana meets with Arkadian (the arms dealer from Weapon of Choice) who wants to make a deal. Arkadian wants free reign for a couple hours to work out some plot involving Nazi sympathizer Cecilia ‘Sissy’ Pollard (played by India Fisher), the sister of Eighth Doctor companion Charley Pollard, in exchange for information on the Timonic Fusion Device.
It seems that everyone is on the train. Romana and Leela who are guarding Sissy, and Narvin and Torvald who are tracking time disturbances. As they all meet and run into each other, another train, or rather the same train, approaches from behind and crashes with the train we’re on. But it doesn’t crash, there’s not a trainwreck, at least in the traditional sense. Instead, the train is existing in two different times.
The joys of this are the characters, and that’s not to say that the plot isn’t good, it is. That said, the interactions between the leads are very good, and the guest cast does well too. Arkadian is a joy and Sissy Pollard is so different from Charley. Where Charley is brave and adventurous, Sissy is a fascist who doesn’t see anything wrong with racism or eugenics while still being very prim and proper.
While Romana and Narvin attempt to understand things, Leela and Sissy (ina separate timeline (or some such) run into Erich, Sissy’s boyfriend. Erich isn’t a Nazi, instead he’s a Time Lord, a member of the CIA. In short, Torvald. There’s also a shape-shifter disguised as an old woman who wishes to collect Sissy as a souvenir. We do get the answers as to what happened to Andred, and it’s very well done. Romana once again gets to show her teeth. Again, everyone gets something to do both the main and guest casts. Erich’s plot revolves around the whole Charley paradox and is resolved nicely. The Gryben incident is wrapped up, but with no true proof because of the events of the conclusion of this story.
An enjoyable story that wraps up the season. It’s a solid story that doesn’t really drag and is enjoyable all while wrapping up some of the plot threads that have been hanging around all season. Rating: 8.5/10
My thoughts on the season as a whole? I’ve made it clear that I really like the Gallifrey series. Sure there are episodes that aren’t my favorites, but you get that with any series. I’m really enjoying Gallifrey, its serialized nature though means that you can’t skip around. All the main characters are great, well-acted and well-written. Romana, Leela, K-9 (both of them), Narvin, Brax, Torvald. And it’s really funny in places without being written as comedy. It all stems from the characters.
A strong opening season, Series 1 hit the ground running, grabbed you by the shirt collar and dragged you along. And the great thing, at least for me, is that I wanted to keep going. Series 2 and 3 are also really good. If you like politics and/or the characters of Romana, Leela and K-9, then you should definitely listen to Gallifrey.
So, that’s my assessment of Gallifrey Series 1. At some point, I’ll have another Series listened to, and can supply another guide for those interested in dipping their toes into Big Finish. Again, this is not a fast process so the next installment might be a while. Happy travels,
Jamie.

Misc, Reviews

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A Christmas Schedule Story

November 10, 2019 0 Comments

In keeping with our desire to let you know what’s coming up… here’s what’s coming up!

TTV #448 – Titan Comics Torchwood Vol 3, Big Finish Torchwood: Forgotten Lives

TTV #449 – Big Finish: Gallifrey Series 1: Weapon of Choice, Square One

TTV #450 – Big Finish: Gallifrey Series 1: The Inquiry, A Blind Eye

TTV #451 – The Macra Terror (with Animation)

TTV #452 – Big Finish: The War Doctor Series 1: The Innocent, The Thousand Worlds, The Heart of the Battle

TTV #452 – Big Finish Classic Doctors, New Monsters Series 1: Fallen Angels, Judon in Chains

TTV #453 – Big Finish Classic Doctors, New Monsters Series 1: Harvest of the Sycorax, The Sontaran Ordeal

TTV #454 – CHRISTMAS – Big Finish Companion Chronicle 5.3 Find and Replace, Big Finish Short Trips 6.12 The Hesitation Deviation

TTV #455 – New Years’ – Something special!

Yes, lots of Big Finish as we close out our celebration of their 20th Anniversary year. No, we don’t really know what the New Years’ special will be, WATCH THIS SPACE as they say. And yes, I have an inkling of what’s to come in 2020.

Misc, Upcoming Events

Scheduling The Return of Podcast Mysterio

September 18, 2019 0 Comments

Well, we’re done with our hiatus. We’re back, we’re tan, and we’re raring to go. Without further ado, here’s a look at what’s coming up in the vortex…

Our soon-to-be-released episode #441 will conclude our look at Big Finish “The Legacy of Time” with episodes 4.1 “Relative Time”, 5.1 “The Avenues of Possibility”, and 6.1 “Collision Course”. 

Returning to a fun theme from the 50th anniversary, we go BEYOND THE DOCTOR, but with a twist as we are coming up on spooky time. So we’re focusing on all horror/thriller and suspense films starring your favorite actors.

TTV #442 features the fourth Doctor Tom Baker in the tales from the crypt Esq. “The Vault of Horror” (free on Shudder) and Christopher Eccleston in the zombie flick “28 Days Later”.

 

TTV #443 checks out the War Doctor John Hurt in “The Ghoul” (free on Amazon Prime), and current Doctor Jodie Whitaker in “Attack The Block”.

October opens with Jon Pertwee in “The House That Dripped Blood” and Peter Capaldi in “Lair of the White Worm” (both streaming free on Amazon Prime) feature in our Beyond the Doctor 3 for TTV #444.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TTV #445 brings us a triple threat, with Doctors 5, 6, and 7 (Peter Davidson, Colin Baker, and Sylvester McCoy all staring in “The AirZone Solution” (streaming free on Amazon Prime) and David Tennant in “Fright Night”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TTV #446 showcases Patrick Troughton in the classic “The Omen”, and Matt Smith in “Patient Zero”.

Beyond The Doctor concludes with our Halloween special (TTV #447) and a twist, with the first Doctor Richard Hurndall in “I, Monster” (Free on Daily Motion), and Paul McGann in “Afraid of the Dark”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(We are trying to locate Midnight at Madame Tussaud’s (also known as Midnight at the Wax Museum in the states) for William Hartnell, but as of yet cannot find a copy.

Moving into November, we get a book review of “The Pirate Planet” by Douglas Adams and James Goss for TTV #448.

More Torchwood in TTV #449 with Titan Comics Torchwood Vol. 3, and Big Finish Torchwood “Forgotten Lives”.

and speaking of Big Finish, we continue our celebration of their 20th anniversary by starting Gallifrey with series 1 “Weapon of Choice” and “Square One” in TTV #450

Gallifrey continues in TTV #451, with “The Inquiry” and “A Blind Eye”.

And that takes us all the way into December with our look back at The Macra Terror, (Now with Animation!) for TTV #452.

As always, the schedule is subject to change, but we’ll keep you in the loop if it does.

 

 

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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Doctor Who Summer Reading Suggestions

May 21, 2019 0 Comments

Summer Reading Suggestions – by Jamie

From Jamie:

So, what follows is a list of novel suggestions for you guys to review at some point with authors, Doctors/Companions and a short comment about it. Think of it as a Doctor Who Summer Reading List. (There are titles that I enjoy that you’ve already reviewed that I didn’t add to this list.)

#1: The Time Travellers by Simon Guerrier. This one takes place shortly before Dalek Invasion of Earth and features the First Doctor, Susan, Ian and Barbara. One of the first Doctor Who novels I read, it’s a nice alternate timeline story with ties to the War Machines.

#2: The Dark Path by David A. McIntee. This features the Second Doctor, Jamie and Victoria. It also features the Delgado Master and gives some of his origins and how he became our favorite villain.

#3: The Scales of Injustice by Gary Russell. This is one I haven’t read. However, it features the Third Doctor, Liz Shaw, UNIT, the first chronological appearance of Mike Yates and the Silurians. It appears to be a bit continuity heavy and the highlight for you guys is that it is one of a handful of appearances by the Myrka.

#4: The Wages of Sin by David A. McIntee. This features the Third Doctor, Jo Grant and Liz Shaw. It features Liz’s first trip in the TARDIS and has the Doctor and meeting up with Rasputin. I really enjoyed it and think you guys will too.

#5: The Face of the Enemy by David A. McIntee. This one takes place while the Third Doctor and Jo are on Peladon. Instead, it features UNIT, the Master, Ian and Barbara and acts as a sequel of sorts to Inferno. Really good novel.

#6: Wolfsbane by Jacqueline Rayner. This one has been a long time since I’ve read it. It features the Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry Sullivan. It also features the Eighth Doctor who gets to team up with Harry when he’s separated from the other two.

#7: Evolution by John Peel. This is one of the Virgin Missing Adventures and features the Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane. This sees them meeting both Rudyard Kipling and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I remember it being a fun read, but as with most of these, it’s been ages.

#8: Eye of Heaven by Jim Mortimore. I haven’t read this one. Part of me is very hesitant. Featuring the Fourth Doctor and Leela, this is told in a non-linear style. Tardis Wiki lists four different storylines and which chapters go with what. This may one for two of you to tackle: one reads it linearly, the other reads it in the order the Tardis Wiki has for the different storylines.

 

#9: The Sands of Time by Justin Richards. This is a Virgin Missing Adventure and features the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan. I enjoyed this one which acts as both a sequel and prequel to Pyramids of Mars. Also features the characters from Black Orchid.

#10: The Shadow in the Glass by Justin Richards and Stephen Cole. This is a Sixth Doctor novel and features him meeting the Brigadier and encountering Hitler. I enjoyed this one and think it’s one of the better Who novels I’ve read.

#11: Mission: Impractical by David A. McIntee. Haven’t read this one. It’s a rare novel that features Frobisher as the companion along with Sabalom Glitz. Also appears to feature Ogrons.

#12: Illegal Alien by Mike Tucker and Robert Perry. This one features the Seventh Doctor and Ace. It was originally a TV episode submitted for Season 26, but was delayed until the next season and thus, never made. It features Cybermen during the Blitz and according to Tardis Wiki (the source of all knowledge), the epilogue has ties to the Invasion (and maybe an appearance of Cyberman Bob).

#13: Matrix by Mike Tucker and Robert Perry. Taking place right after “Illegal Alien”, this also features Seven and Ace, and deals with the Valeyard, the Dark Matrix and Jack the Ripper. It wasn’t as good as some of the others but goes deeper into the Doctor’s psyche.

#14: War of the Daleks by John Peel. I’ve mentioned this one in some of my feedback. It’s early in the BBC Eighth Doctor run of novels (number five in line) and features the Eighth Doctor, Sam Jones, Daleks, Davros and Thals. It attempts to retcon the destruction of Skaro from Remembrance and has ties to most if not all previously televised Dalek stories.

#15: Alien Bodies by Lawrence Miles. The next release in the Eighth Doctor Adventures, this is the first novel that strictly deals with the series arc: the War in Heaven or the War with the Enemy. (Note that though this war is between the Time Lords and The Enemy, it is not the same as the Last Great Time War of New Who.) It’s a good story that leaves wanting more in this arc.

#16: Legacy of the Daleks by John Peel. This features the Eighth Doctor on his own (possibly around the same time as Wolfsbane). It acts a sequel to Dalek Invasion of Earth, a sort of sequel to Frontier in Space and a prequel to Deadly Assassin. It features Susan, the Daleks and the Delgado incarnation of the Master. It’s a really good story and acts well as a sequel to Dalek Invasion of Earth. However, it contradicts (or is contradicted by) the Big Finish Eighth Doctor stories featuring Susan, the two Masters, and Doctor Who Magazine’s comic Doorway to Hell. Still, worth reading for a good time with a Doctor Who novel.

#17: The Silent Stars Go By by Dan Abnett. This features the Eleventh Doctor, Amy Rory and the Ice Warriors in the far future. I remember enjoying it, but not much else. One interesting thing is that all the chapter titles are taken from Christmas carols.

#18: Plague of the Cybermen by Justin Richards. This features the Eleventh Doctor solo against the Cybermen. A good story, but I don’t remember much.

#19: The Dalek Generation by Nicholas Briggs. This again features the Eleventh Doctor solo, this time featuring the Daleks. I found this one better than the Cybermen story as it looks at the psychology of those who grew up during the Dalek wars and have known nothing else. It also features the first chronological appearance of the Dalek Time Controller (for it) who appeared heavily in Patient Zero, the Lucie Miller Series 4 finale and the Dark Eyes series.

#20: Big Bang Generation by Gary Russell. This features a solo Twelfth Doctor at some point before the end of Series 9 meeting Bernice Summerfield. It’s a fun novel, though if you’ve to some of the Benny audios from around publication date (Legion onwards, I think) you might get more out of it as I had no voices in my head for most of the Benny regulars. Otherwise, it’s a good read. The chapter titles are all Duran Duran songs (which I’ve never listened to so I got nothing out of them) and this originally going to be Twelve and River, but Husbands of River Song was already in the works.

 

Do you have some summer reading suggestion you want to share? Just add yours to the comments below, or go to our Facebook page and add them there. And be sure to follow our Goodreads ‘Doctor Who Book Club – Traveling the Vortex’ group.

Misc

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Big Finish Reviews – Main Range 11-20

May 20, 2019 0 Comments

Welcome back travelers of the Time Vortex,

My name is Jamie and I will be your guide through the Worlds of Big Finish. In this letter I will give my thoughts on the second ten releases in the Doctor Who Monthly Range from Big Finish Productions. These are all available from the Big Finish website for download only at $2.99.

The stories that follow are full cast Doctor Who audio dramas featuring the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Doctors as played by Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann respectively. The companions featured that are returning from the TV series are played by the original actors.

On a side note, I consider Big Finish to be on the same level of canon as the TV series. Especially since Moffat had the Eighth Doctor mention all his Big Finish companions (or at least all he’d had at time of filming) during his regeneration scene in Night of the Doctor.

Disclaimer: All of the opinions expressed hereafter are my own. There are stories that I love that others may hate, and vice versa. I am not responsible for any reactions others might have to my comments and opinions.

 

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

11 The Apocalypse Element (Dalek Empire: Part Two)
Written by: Stephen Cole
Featuring: 6th, Evelyn & Romana II + Time Lords & Daleks
Released: August 2000 TTV Episode: 82

My Thoughts: This is the third story with Evelyn Smythe and the Sixth Doctor and the second with the Daleks. Already, the Dalek voices are much better and more in line with Nick Briggs’ New Who work then their previous Big Finish outing.

Though this is a four-episode story, it is similar to the Invasion of Time in that it has two distinct sections. Disc 1 is the Etra Prime Incident and Disc 2 is a Dalek Invasion of Gallifrey. I’ve read that RTD considers this to be part of the Time War or at least part of the lead-up to the Time War.

This is one of my favorite Big Finish Dalek stories. It’s well written and doesn’t drag in the middle. We start out with a temporal treaty being signed by Gallifrey and the other temporal powers on the planet Archetryx. The Doctor and Evelyn arrive in the midst of this.

Twenty years prior, a delegation was on the nearby planet of Etra Prime when it disappeared. Among these delegates is a newly elected President Romanavoradtrelundar. Over the course of the first disc, the Daleks attack the treaty and Etra Prime reappears.

The Daleks are pushed back enough for the delegates to escape and Romana manages to escape and reunite with the Doctor. The Daleks have been mining an element from Etra Prime and synthesizing it in the bowels of Archetryx. The element (of which the story’s title comes from) is highly destructive and unstable.

The survivors of the treaty delegation flee to Gallifrey, followed closely by the Daleks. The Daleks trick CIA coordinator Vansell (returning after his appearance in The Sirens of Time) into letting them into Gallifrey by showing him tech that he wants to get his hands on. Meanwhile, the element has been released in a neighboring galaxy.

What follows is a race against time to contain the element’s destructive force. Colin Baker shines in this story and using Evelyn’s retina print as a slowing measure on the Daleks gives an explanation for the human eye lock and key from the TV Movie.

Overall, a fun exciting story that continues Big Finish’s trend of giving the Sixth Doctor great stories. Evelyn continues to shine, the Daleks are done well and Romana II is given good material that doesn’t sideline her. If you plan to listen to the Gallifrey audio series, I would recommend listening to the Gallifrey arc in the Main Range first. That being: The Sirens of Time, The Apocalypse Element, Neverland and Zagreus.

Rating: 10/10

12 The Fires of Vulcan
Written by: Steve Lyons
Featuring: 7th & Mel
Released: September 2000
TTV Episode: 146

My Thoughts: Fires of Vulcan is a slow burn, especially in Part 1. It’s very good, but it’s a slow, character-driven story. Featuring the Seventh Doctor and Mel, you’d expect a jokey doctor who mixes his metaphors and plays the spoons. Instead, we get a dark, melancholy, introspective Doctor.

The story starts with archaeologists finding a Police Box in the ruins of Pompeii which is hushed up by UNIT. The Doctor was told of this in his Fifth incarnation and since been dreading the next time he visits the doomed city.

This presents the main conflict of the story with the Doctor resigned to his fate while Mel brims with hope and tries everything she can to avoid that fate. Everything else spirals out from this as the Doctor and Mel interact with the locals. The Doctor angering a gladiator when attempting to gather some funds, their arrival being witnessed by a slave that takes them for servants of Isis, etc.

This really is a good story, it’s not a big action story with galactic importance, but instead a quiet historical with an underlying tone of hope and escaping fate. It’s slow, and has some really good ideas, though it picks up by Part 4 with the actual eruption. Maybe it’s just the pure historical aspect that bores me here. Overall though, a really good story.

Rating: 8.5/10

13 The Shadow of the Scourge (Side Step)
Written by: Paul Cornell Featuring:
7th, Ace & Bernice
Released: October 2000
TTV Episode: 231

My Thoughts: This is one of three Main Range “Side Steps” that took a look at other mediums of Doctor Who, namely using characters from the Virgin New Adventures and the Doctor Who Magazine comic strips.

This release takes us into the world of the Virgin New Adventures line of novels that continued the Seventh Doctor’s story after Survival. This story is set between the novels All-Consuming Fire and Blood Harvest. The general idea of this story is that there are several different conventions happening at the same time in a hotel in Kent. These being a cross-stitch convention, an experiment in time travel and a spiritual retreat. The spiritual retreat becomes the main focus of an extra-dimensional race of conquerors known as the Scourge who feed on fear, grief, sadness and other negative emotions.

This story sees the dark, scheming, plan-within-a-plan Seventh Doctor from the New Adventures. I’ve only read a handful of this series and don’t really remember more than vague plot-points and general ideas. However, it has a slight feel of Invasion of Time in as which the Doctor claims to be aiding the monsters in their invasion in order to defeat them.

As the story progresses though, things begin to fall apart as the Doctor’s schemes starting failing. There are also several mindscape scenes with Doctor, Benny and a Scourge. Very dark, if you like the New Adventures novels or just like dark stories with a fallible Doctor, you’ll probably enjoy this. It’s a decent story that does focus on hope at the end, just not one of my favorites.

Rating: 6/10

14 The Holy Terror (Side Step)
Written by: Robert Shearman
Featuring: 6th & Frobisher
Released: November 2000
TTV Episode: 203

My Thoughts: The Holy Terror is an interesting tale. Essentially, the Sixth Doctor and Frobisher arrive in a castle where the Emperor/God has died and his son is about to succeed him after the TARDIS goes on strike. I could talk about the plot, but I won’t.

This is a tale about religion, the nature of tradition, free will, fathers and sons, guilt. It’s rather quite brilliant. And, it gets deep, very deep. By the end, you might find yourself tearing up a bit.

Robert Shearman, who would go on to write The Chimes of Midnight, Jubilee and Scherzo for Big Finish and Dalek for TV, is a writer who can really build layers to his stories. Sometimes it takes a second or third listen to really appreciate his stories.

As to the companion, Frobisher is a shape-shifting Wifferdill who takes the form of a penguin. He first appeared in the Doctor Who Magazine comics. A really good story with depth and emotional payoff. Good acting really continues the softer Sixth Doctor arc that Big Finish gave us. If you haven’t already, go listen to it.

Rating: 10/10

15 The Mutant Phase (Dalek Empire: Part Three)
Written by: Nicholas Briggs Featuring: 5th & Nyssa + Thals & Daleks
Released: December 2000
TTV Episode: 82

My Thoughts: The Mutant Phase is Big Finish’s third Dalek story and features the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa. After the patient Daleks and Dalek Duplicates of the Genocide Machine, and the Dalek Invasion of Apocalypse Element, we have scared Daleks and time corridors. Essentially, the Daleks are mutating into something new and they are afraid. Moving between the Dalek Invasion in 2158 and the 43 rd century, we encounter Daleks, Thals and the last surviving humans after some major cataclysm that decimated the earth.

It is a bit slow, especially the first half as we slowly set into place all the puzzle pieces. It’s interesting and well-acted, and the inclusion of a reference to Alaska from Land of the Dead help ground in context with other Big Finish releases.

This is story ripe with paradoxes and alternate timelines. Starting in Part 3 and then especially in Part 4, the puzzle pieces come together. This is a thinking man’s story where you have to pay attention in order to understand what’s going as things are revealed.

A good story. The performances are well done, the Doctor and Nyssa in particular. Originally this was an Audio Visual play, so it has it’s origins there. A good listen for those who enjoy a more technical-based story about time travel and its hazards. Rating: 8/10

16 Storm Warning
Written by: Alan Barnes
Featuring: 8th & Charley
Released: January 2001
TTV Episode: 53

My Thoughts: Welcome back, Paul McGann! Though the Stones of Venice was recorded first and the Mary Shelly trilogy (Main Range 153-155) occurs before this one, this was the first we’d heard from the Eighth Doctor since the TV movie. Yes, there was the BBC book line and the Doctor Who Magazine comics, but this was the first time we’d had Paul McGann back, and with a new version of the main theme (by Sherlock composer David Arnold).

We start with a prologue that features McGann giving a monologue as the Doctor encounters a crashed timeship stuck in the vortex that’s being swarmed by Vortisaurs (think space Pterodactyls).

We then move to the R-101, an airship (zeppelin) that is departing on its maiden voyage from England to India in October 1930. However, there’s more here than meets the eye. The R-101 is on a secret mission to return a mysterious passenger to its people, there are two stowaways: the Doctor, who lands in a ballast tank and soon after loses the TARDIS, and Charlotte “Charley” Pollard, Edwardian adventuress and soon-to-be companion.

The story just flies by. It’s fun, enjoyable and doesn’t seem to drag anywhere. The characters are enjoyable, the acting is excellent, the sound design works. This is one of my favorites and a good jumping off point for Big Finish. Both companions that Big Finish has created thus far, Charley and Evelyn, are both excellent. Be aware that there is an ongoing story arc to the Eighth Doctor stories, as there is with Evelyn. Most of the stories so far have been ones where you can jump in without having heard previous ones. The Eight/Charley stories are best listened to in order.

Rating: 10/10

17 Sword of Orion
Written by: Nicholas Briggs
Featuring: 8th & Charley + Cybermen
Released: February 2001
TTV Episode: 53

My Thoughts: Close on the heels of Storm Warning, Sword of Orion finds the Doctor and Charley trying to take care of Ramsey the Vortisaur and release him back into the vortex. Ramsey is sick and so the Doctor takes Charley to the Garazone Bazaar to find a cure.

The Bazaar is excellently realized. It’s got a great soundscape that really brings it to life. Anyway, the Doctor and Charley find a book at a booth that might help them and head back to the TARDIS, which is being loaded onto a junk scavenging ship. They sneak in and find the TARDIS.

In the meantime, the junkers find an abandoned star destroyer that no one has bothered to claim for salvage because of its size. The salvagers send over a recon team at the same time the Doctor and Charley have landed on the destroyer in the TARDIS. Circumstances force the Doctor and Charley out of the TARDIS and one of salvage crew is murdered.

After initial accusations, the two groups end up joining forces against the Cybermen who inhabit the destroyer. I really enjoy this one because as soon as they reach the cybership and join forces, it becomes a typical Cybermen base-under-siege story.

The acting is good though, and the music is superb. While other reviewers I’ve read have hated this story because it’s a very paint-by-numbers Cyberman story, I still really enjoy it. Be aware that this also sort of sets up and acts as a prequel to Big Finish’s Cyberman series.

Rating: 9.5/10

18 The Stones of Venice
Written by: Paul Magrs
Featuring: 8th & Charley
Released: March 2001
TTV Episode: 53

My Thoughts: So, a little background on this one. First, this is one of a handful of stories whose synopses were used for trying to bring Tom Baker into the Big Finish family in 2001 (along with Spectre of Lanyon Moor and the Holy Terror). Second, although Storm Warning was released first and takes place first, this story was the first story that Paul McGann recorded upon his return to the Eighth Doctor.

I’ve found that I’ve appreciated and enjoyed this story more on each subsequent listen. At its core, Stones of Venice is a love story. The atmosphere of future Venice is well done and feels like nothing much has changed since the Renaissance.

The story opens with a cold open (as all these first four Eight and Charley stories do) where the Doctor and Charley are escaping a revolution of their own making. Kinda would’ve liked to hear this adventure instead of Minuet in Hell. Back in the TARDIS, the Doctor puts the kettle on and decides to take Charley to Venice for a vacation of sorts.

Arriving in Venice, we find not the Renaissance but instead the future where the city is poised to finally sink into the swamps from which it sprung. In the first episode, we are introduced to all the main characters. There’s Duke Orsino (played by Michael Sheard) whose love, Duchess Estella, cursed the city and him to remain unchanged for a century before disappearing after he gambled her away on their wedding night. There’s the mysterious old woman, Eleanor Lavish who is more than she seems. There’s Pietro the Gondolier, a member of the amphibious underclass who can’t wait for the city to fall. There’s Churchwell, Orsino’s curator who wants nothing else than to save the art at the main gallery. And finally, there’s Vincenzo, the leader of the cult of Estella (played by Mark Gatiss) who skulk around the city in hopes of bringing about the return of the Duchess. It is into this rich atmosphere that the Doctor and Charley find themselves.

After being separated, the Doctor and Churchwell find themselves at the mercy of the cult while Charley finds herself at the mercy of Pietro and the Gondoliers as both groups vie for power over the return of Estella. The Gondoliers trying to speed up the fall of Venice so they can reclaim it while the cultists eagerly awaiting the resurrection of Estella. As the story progresses though everyone is reunited for a powerful, emotional finish.

At its heart, Stones of Venice is a love story. Both between the Duke and Estella and just for Venice as a whole. It’s interesting, having listened to parts of McGann’s recent releases to hear how young he sounds in this. And yet, it’s still McGann. This is the romantic, eager, fun Eighth Doctor before tragedy struck and before the darker, more serious tone of the boxsets and the Time War. I didn’t care for this one that much when I first heard it, but subsequent listenings have increased my appreciation for this story. Rating: 7.5/10

19 Minuet in Hell
Written by: Alan W. Lear and Gary Russell
Featuring: 8th , Charley & the Brigadier
Released: April 2001
TTV Episode: 64

My Thoughts: So, Minuet in Hell. I’m sure if you’ve been following me on these reviews or heard my feedback on the show, you know that I have a supreme dislike for this story. Really, it’s kinda hard to say why. As a concept, it’s not terrible and it has some good ideas. It’s necessary for completists, both from a collecting standpoint and an Eighth Doctor’s Big Finish run standpoint. I guess there’s just so much little stuff, that I really have a hard time overlooking and therefore enjoying this story.

I guess the biggest complaint with this is the subject matter. I’m not a fan of supernatural stories. The Hellfire Club just rubs me the wrong way. Even though the “demons” turn out not to be “demons”, it’s getting there that I don’t like. There are the institute and brain experiments, I don’t mind that. If they’d focused solely on that, I might’ve found this more enjoyable.

The accents are questionable at best, downright offensive at worst. They sound like a cross between Deep South and Texas. The main villain, Brigham Elisha Dashwood III, is played by Robert Jezek (who is better known as the voice of Frobisher) and is a politician gunning for the governorship of the fifty-first state of the union and then hopefully President. While at the same time, feeling like an exaggerated caricature of a Televangelist who’s secretly a devil worshipper. Maybe that’s the most offensive.

The Eighth Doctor gets to meet the Brigadier. Yay! The Brig is really the only saving grace of this story. And it’s a shame that this is the only true meeting between the characters on audio. Yes, both actors will appear in Zagreus, but Nicholas Courtney isn’t really playing the Brig, and the Eighth Doctor is barely himself.

Speaking of the Doctor. He spends most of his screentime whimpering with amnesia, a trope that had kinda been overdone with the Eighth Doctor by this point. Meanwhile, Nick Briggs plays Gideon Crane, an unfortunate man who happens to run afoul of the TARDIS and fall under Jackson Lake (see The Next Doctor) syndrome where he thinks he’s the Doctor.

I read the summary found in the Big Finish Companion Volume 1 for this story. It’s not that bad of an idea. The way the plot summary is written makes it sound like something interesting that I’d like to listen to. And yet, actually listening to it, I struggle to get into it. I think that the accents are the biggest offender here. They’re British people trying to be Texan, or southern, or something. The biggest offenders are Dashwood, Becky Lee and the worst being Senator Pickering/Marchosias.

I think this is a story that couldn’t decide what it wanted to be. A political story, a supernatural story, a scientific experiment story, an Eight meets Brig story. It just kinda throws them all into the pot and stirs. Oh, and they close out the Ramsey the Vortisaur storyline that’s been hanging around in the background of these first four Eighth Doctor plays and there are a few lines about Charley being dead to further the Web of Time arc. I’ll admit, I didn’t even finish the story this time around. I just couldn’t get into it. It tries so hard and then fails in so many ways.

Rating: 1/10

20 Loups-Garoux
Written by: Marc Platt
Featuring: 5th & Turlough
Released: May 2001
TTV Episode: 106

My Thoughts: Loups-Garoux (pronounced Loo Gar-oo) is the second Big Finish story featuring the Fifth Doctor traveling alone with Turlough between Resurrection of the Daleks and Planet of Fire. At its core, it’s a Doctor Who Werewolf story.

The Doctor and Turlough arrive in Rio de Janeiro in 2080. The Amazon is a desert and Carnival is about to begin. As the story progresses they are drawn into a battle for dominance over who is to be the leader of the werewolves, the vicious, ancient murderer Pieter Stubbe, or the kind, weary Ileana de Santos (played by Eleanor Bron).

What plays out is a typical Fifth Doctor story. Ileana and her entourage flee Rio by private monorail across the desert heading to the Santos cattle ranch out in the middle of the desert for a big meeting with all the other werewolves. The Doctor and Turlough follow. Ileana’s son Victor is ill and stuck in the form of a wolf. Also, there’s Rosa who descended from Shamans of a lost tribe of the region who plays into things when Turlough gets thrown off the train and later in the conclusion.

It’s an enjoyable story, the acting and sound design works well. The accents are fine (as opposed to the previous story) and for fans of the werewolf genera, this is a good story. As I’m not a fan of the genre, then it gets a slightly lower rating because I’m not overly fond of the subject matter. That said, an enjoyable way to pass a couple of hours.

Rating: 7/10

So, that’s my assessment of the second ten releases from Big Finish’s Doctor Who Main Range. At some point, I’ll have another ten listened to, and can supply another guide for those interested in dipping their toes into Big Finish. Again, this is not a fast process so the next installment might be a while.

Happy travels,

Jamie.

Misc, Reviews

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Life Finds A Way…To Interfere

April 10, 2019 0 Comments

Life has gotten in the way of the podcast this week. Between some travel, work and other commitments this week’s podcast will be delayed until next week.

Please tune in then for our thoughts on Short Trip 9.01 “The Revisionists” written by friend of the podcast Andy Frankham-Allen.

Sorry to keep you waiting!

Misc, News, Podcasts

Early Spring Schedule (Or, The Groundhog Lies Like The Doctor)

February 11, 2019 0 Comments

As winter continues to keep most of us in its icy grip despite the prognostications of a certain rodent who is on my list right now, we present the next bit of scheduling or a few things to do while you try and keep warm:

Tonight (2/11) we’ll record our thoughts on the “animated” audio adventure “Real Time” for TTV 418.

TTV #419 offers up a couple of Big Finish Companion Chronicles: 5.5 “A Town Called Fortune”, and 5.7 “Peri and the Piscon Paradox”

Alternate Who in TTV #420 as we return to the world of Torchwood with Titan Comics “Torchwood Vol 2”, and Big Finish “Torchwood: Fall to Earth”.

The month of March kicks off with our thoughts on Big Finish #115 Forty-Five for TTV #421. 

 A long-delayed book review finally hits in TTV #422: Doctor Who and The Krikkitmen by Douglas Adams and James Goss

TTV #423 has some more Big Finish with mainline story Big Finish #120 “The Magic Mousetrap”

Discussion topic time as we tackle the idea of Desktop Themes and The Evolution of the Console Room for TTV #424. This also happens to be Planet Comicon Weekend, so we’ll give you a few highlights of that. 

TTV #425 starts off April with Big Finish Short Trip 9.01 “The Revisionists”, and Andy Frankham-Allen, keeper of the Lethbridge-Stewart flame, drops by for an exclusive interview and update on the state of the Brigverse. 

Another long-delayed book review in TTV #426 as we take a look at Lethbridge-Stewart The Laughing Gnome: Fear of Web by Alyson Leeds. 

My goodness. More Big Finish? It’s almost like we were building up to something… TTV #427 has our take on mainline story  #121 “Enemy of the Daleks”.

Am I Blu? With three classic series Blu-ray box sets available, we take a look at whether or not it’s worth upgrading in TTV #428.

And a not so long-delayed book review hits in TTV #429, as we take a look at the just-released Doctor Who Meets Scratchman by Tom Baker.

Yes, that’s a lot of Big Finish and books we’re tackling in a three-month span. But rest assured, constant listener, there is a method to the madness and a master plan behind it all. On the horizon? That would be telling…

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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Big Finish Reviews – Main Range 1-10

February 11, 2019 0 Comments

Listener Jamie, who has sent a great amount of feedback in the recent weeks, has shared a project that he has been working on. With permission, we are being allowed now, to share it with you. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Big Finish Reviews – Main Range 1-10

Hello travelers of the Time Vortex,

My name is Jamie and I will be your guide through the Worlds of Big Finish. In this letter I will give my thoughts on the first ten releases in the Doctor Who Monthly Range from Big Finish Productions. These are all available from the Big Finish website for download only at $2.99.

The stories that follow are full cast Doctor Who audio dramas featuring the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Doctors as played by Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann respectively. (Though the Eighth Doctor doesn’t appear in this set of stories.) The companions featured that are returning from the TV series are played by the original actors.

On a side note, I consider Big Finish to be on the same level of canon as the TV series. Especially since Moffat had the Eighth Doctor mention all his Big Finish companions (or at least all he’d had at time of filming) during his regeneration scene in Night of the Doctor.

Disclaimer: All of the opinions expressed hereafter are my own. There are stories that I love that others may hate, and vice versa. I am not responsible for any reactions others might have to my comments and opinions.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

1 The Sirens of Time
Written by: Nicholas Briggs
Featuring: 5th, 6th, 7th + Time Lords Released: July 1999
TTV Episode: 67

My Thoughts: So, this is the first Doctor Who audio drama that Big Finish made. While they had been producing Bernice Summerfield stories prior to this, this was the first story that featured the Doctor, or rather Doctors. Featuring the 5th, 6th, and 7th Doctors, this story is rather ambitious. Three Doctors and a major threat to Gallifrey itself, it seems Big Finish may have bitten off more than they could chew. It’s a good story, but there are much better ones to come.

Made up of three loosely linked parts each featuring a different Doctor (Part 1 = Seventh Doctor, Part 2 = Fifth Doctor, Part 3 = Sixth Doctor) and a fourth that concludes the story and wraps up loose threads. Highlights include the Doctors meeting, and arguing amongst each other, in Part 4, and the introduction of Vansell, coordinator of the CIA (Celestial Intervention Agency).

A threat to the Time Lords has Vansell racing to speak to the Lord President. The threat is obscured by time distortion, but it is apparent that the Doctor is somehow involved. Part 1 sees the Seventh Doctor stumbling upon a jungle/swamp planet that is a prison to an old man. Part 2 finds the Fifth Doctor coming in contact with the U-Boat that sinks the Lusitania. In Part 3, the Sixth Doctor arrives at the Kurgon Wonder, a mysterious time anomaly. Part 4 finds the three Doctors on Gallifrey as it is being invaded by the Knights of Velyshaa and the mysterious Sirens of Time.

It’s a good story and an enjoyable listen. It’s definitely not the worst I’ve encountered. There are some good ideas in here, and it’s epic scale was a nice idea to bring in listeners and open up the range, but in some ways, it’s too ambitious and could’ve used some more refinement. The cast is good. The three Doctors fall back

into their roles well, and the principle villain does well. While not the best, it does serve as an okay jumping off point for new listeners. Rating: 6/10

On a side note, there is a behind the scenes release called “Talkin ‘Bout My Regeneration” that was originally released with DWM #279 and that is currently available as a free download from Big Finish’s website. Not only does it cover the making of Sirens of Time but also the origins of Big Finish Productions and their Doctor Who audio dramas. Worth checking out if you like bonus behind the scenes material.

2 Phantasmagoria
Written by: Mark Gatiss
Featuring: 5th & Turlough Released: October 1999 T
TV Episode: 76

My Thoughts: A much more contained story after the epic scale of the previous one, Phantasmagoria is a period piece with a bit of good old-fashioned alien menace thrown in. After having three Doctors together with no companions, this story features the 5th Doctor and Turlough.

Set in England 1702, this is a nice little piece of Classic Who. An English country village, a little bit of occult-ish undertones (especially in the first half of the story), and an alien threat in the background. All the building blocks are there. And, while not a true Big Finish masterpiece, it’s a nice contained little story that’s a fun adventure to listen to.

All the pieces fit together nicely. Mark Gatiss does a good job of slipping in little clues that pay off in Episode Four without blatantly spelling things out or making things overly complicated. (Gatiss even guest stars as Jasper Jeake.)

Davison continues his run as the the Doctor with no stumbling blocks to take you out of the performance, and Mark Strickson returns to the role of Turlough well. The guest cast does well and all around it’s a nice little story. Fans of the Fifth Doctor will enjoy it and it’s not continuity heavy so new listeners should be able to find it rather accessible. Rating: 8/10

3 Whispers of Terror
Written by: Justin Richards
Featuring: 6th & Peri Released: November 1999
TTV Episode: 85

My Thoughts: The Sixth Doctor returns in his first solo outing since Slipback in 1986. Paired with companion Peri, the dynamic between them feels reminiscent of what we saw in the first part of Trial of a Time Lord, still bickering but not as harshly as most of his TV run.

This story is set entirely in the Museum of Aural Antiquities and makes good use of audio-only medium. It revolves around a murder mystery and an upcoming Presidental election. A recently deceased actor who shunned the visual, instead focusing on audio was considered the front runner in the election, now his agent has stepped up in his place.

The story is good, a nice mystery with a few twists that make it really enjoyable. Colin Baker seems to return to the role of the Doctor effortlessly. The sound nature of

the plot means that some of effects can be a bit distracting or annoying, but overall enjoyable.

Apart from the Doctor and Peri, this story also features Doctor Who Alumni Lisa Bowerman (Bernice Summerfield) as Beth Pernell and Peter Miles (Nyder) as Museum Curator Gantman. A solid story that brings back Colin Baker in fine form, Whispers of Terror is a fun story that capitalizes on the audio medium. Rating: 8/10 (Because Colin Baker has even better stories later.)

4 The Land of the Dead
Written by: Stephen Cole
Featuring: 5th & Nyssa Released: January 2000
TTV Episode: 81

My Thoughts: The second solo outing with the Fifth Doctor, this time with companion Nyssa (Sarah Sutton). The Doctor and Nyssa find themselves in Alaska and almost hit a small airplane. Jump ahead 30 years and they arrive at the home of Shaun Brett, built as a mausoleum to his late father.

Soon, prehistoric monsters made of bone and held together by an energy field emerge and attack the house. This leads to a frantic attempt to survive and escape, while at the time trying to understand the creatures and eliminate the threat they pose to the planet.

Essentially a base-under-siege story, this was Big Finish’s first attempt at Dinosaurs (or at least Dinosaur-like creatures). It’s not a bad story, the action sequences are good and sound design works well. It’s just not great. Still, it’s early days for Big Finish, so I give them some leeway.

The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa do very well though. Sarah Sutton slips right back into the character as if she’d never left. Set between Time-Flight and Arc of Infinity, it works. It’s just that Big Finish goes on to much better stories later on. Rating: 5/10

5 The Fearmonger
Written by: Jonathan Blum
Featuring: 7th & Ace Released: February 2000
TTV Episode: 99

My Thoughts: In the near-future, there’s an election in Britain. The right-wing candidate, Sherilyn Harper is spreading fear through her speeches. Talk radio feeds the fear. Terrorists and assassins seem to be coming out of the woodwork and in the midst of all this is a deadly creature that feeds on fear. The Seventh Doctor and Ace arrive to stop the creature and find themselves in the midst of the excitement.

This was Big Finish’s first majorly political story taking place shortly after Survival. Written in 1999 and released in early 2000, this story now seems a bit prophetic. Harper could very easily be replaced by Trump and set in America and unfortunately be mostly unchanged.

Still, it makes for good drama. The story gives a scheming, brooding Doctor. We don’t get the hysterics that I keep seeing other reviews saying are McCoy’s weak points. We get some nice scenes between the Doctor and Ace that help expand their characters.

An excellent story. The best so far, it really captures the late Seventh Doctor era. A fun, brooding political drama. Seven and Ace are good and the guest stars do well also. The story works well and is an enjoyable listen. Rating: 8/10

6 The Marian Conspiracy
Written by: Jacqueline Rayner
Featuring: 6th & Evelyn Released: March 2000
TTV Episode: 68

My Thoughts: This is the story where the Sixth Doctor’s renaissance with Big Finish truly begins. Introducing Maggie Stables as Dr. Evelyn Smythe, a history professor in her mid-fifties, this story finds the Doctor hunting down a nexus point that threatens the timeline.

It turns out that Evelyn is at the center of the nexus with her family disappearing from history. Because of this, in order to protect Evelyn, the Doctor takes her to Tudor England to prevent the damage. However, instead of the court of Elizabeth I, they find themselves three years early during the reign of Mary I.

I really like this one. We get a softer Sixth Doctor who’s not the abrasive man we saw on TV. Evelyn is a joy to listen to. She’s clever and sassy, and doesn’t take any grief from the Doctor. I feel that Evelyn is the best companion we’ve ever got for the Sixth Doctor.

The other big reason why this is the best story in this range so far, at least for me, is that it takes a person from history who is considered a monster and who I didn’t know much about, and made them sympathetic, human characters. Mary I, who is known by most as Bloody Mary, is treated here not as evil, but misguided. Firm in her beliefs, still doing terrible things but not for the sake of being bad. She truly believed that she was in the right, that this is what God wanted from her.

This is the best from Big Finish so far. An excellent companion introduction, the beginnings of the Sixth Doctor’s reform, and a pure historical that isn’t boring. The only reason this doesn’t get a higher rating, is because we get even better Sixth Doctor stories going forward. Rating: 9/10

7 The Genocide Machine (Dalek Empire: Part One)

Written by: Mike Tucker
Featuring: 7th & Ace + Bev Tarrent, Daleks Released: April 2000
TTV Episode: 74

My Thoughts: Big Finish does their first Dalek story. It’s okay, but they’d go on to have much better ones. The Doctor and Ace are good, but it doesn’t feel like they’re giving it their best. The general plot is that Ace finds a book from the library of Kar-Charat in the TARDIS library and so the Doctor goes to return the book.

This story introduces new recurring character Bev Tarrent who reappears in the Main Range once after this before joining the Bernice Summerfield series. My problem with Bev isn’t that she’s a terrible character. She isn’t. My problem is that she sounds too much like Ace and therefore, it’s hard to tell the two apart.

So, the Library of Kar-Charat is hidden beneath temporal barriers. The Doctor arrives and returns the book. The chief librarian, Elgin, (who is an annoying character,

on purpose though) is eager to show the Doctor around as, because the library is hidden and considered lost, they don’t get many visitors.

Elgin has built a massive wetworks facility which stores a huge amount of data in water. It’s his pride and joy. It turns out the Daleks have been lurking on Kar-Charat, and the surrounding worlds, waiting for a time sensitive to show up so that they can use them to gain access to the library. The Daleks kidnap Ace when she goes outside and replace her with a Dalek duplicate.

The rest of the story is the Daleks using test subjects to download the data of the wetworks for their own nefarious schemes. But it also turns out that the wetworks hold a dark secret. You’ll have to listen to find out the rest.

I will say that the Daleks don’t sound quite right in this one. Voiced by both Nick Briggs (the official voice of the Daleks) and Allister Locke, they don’t always sound right. Otherwise the rest of the cast is fine, the Doctor and Ace are a little sub-par, especially after such good performances in the Fearmonger. It’s not an awful story, but there are so many better Dalek stories later on. Rating: 6/10

8 Red Dawn
Written by: Justin Richards
Featuring: 5th & Peri + Ice Warriors Released: May 2000
TTV Episode: 219

My Thoughts: Right on the heels of the Daleks comes the next classic monster from Big Finish: the Ice Warriors. This is one of those stories where it feels like the Doctor is just along for the ride. The plot revolves around the first manned mission to Mars.

Essentially, there’s a manned mission to Mars to investigate an anomaly on the surface. The Doctor and Peri just happen to land inside the anomaly at the same time. The two groups meet and discover that the anomaly is a Martian (Ice Warrior) tomb.

What follows is an enjoyable story, however it’s not as exciting as it could be. While the existence of a spy on the Mars mission and the general threat from the Ice Warriors help make the plot interesting, there’s also a lot of the general space mission stuff and technobable, which is fine if that’s your thing. There are also a lot of discussions on honor, that while they flesh out the character of the main Ice Warrior, they also slow down the story a bit.

Overall, it’s a fine Doctor Who story, it’s just not in the top tier. It’s good if they’re your favorite monster or if Davison is your favorite Doctor, but I found it middle of the road. Not terrible, enjoyable even, just average. Rating: 6/10

9 The Spectre of Lanyon Moor
Written by: Nicholas Pegg
Featuring: 6th, Evelyn & the Brigadier Released: June 2000
TTV Episode: 68

My Thoughts: The second outing for the Sixth Doctor and Evelyn is another fun story. Mysterious goings on in Lanyon Moor, an archaeological dig, a nobleman using the arcane arts as a means to his rise to power. All the elements of a good Doctor Who story are here.

The Doctor and Evelyn land in Cornwall, in the middle of Lanyon Moor. Nearby is an ancient fogou, a stone tomb or temple like structure. There is a dig going on there and when found, the Doctor and Evelyn are taken to the dig’s headquarters. There, they meet the Brigadier who is there on vacation (and on an undercover mission for UNIT).

This is the Sixth Doctor first meeting with the Brig, they would later meet in the novel Shadow in the Glass. The two work well together and Nicholas Courtney falls back into the role with ease.

Along the course of the story, we meet Professor Morgan, Mr. Ludgate and Sir Archibald Flint. Sir Archibald is the resident nobleman who is using the alien menace’s physic field to try to become the messiah, or some such thing. There are several catch and release, or escape, scenes between Evelyn and Sir Archibald.

Overall, an enjoyable story that flies right along. At no point was I bored or wondering when the pace would pick up. The Sixth Doctor continues to get the revival he deserves and Evelyn is shaping up to be one of my favorite companions. Adding the Brig just made this even more enjoyable. Rating: 9/10

10 Winter for the Adept
Written by: Andrew Cartmel
Featuring: 5th & Nyssa Released: July 2000
TTV Episode: 84

My Thoughts: This is a slow one. Taking place in and around a Swiss girl’s school in December 1963, Winter for the Adept is slow burn of a ghost story. The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa fit well into this kind of story, with a small guest cast and atmospheric goings-on.

Essentially, the villains are aliens who rely on the psychic abilities of others. It’s a nice mystery, just not my cup of tea. It’s slow, almost hypnotic in its storytelling. Written by former script editor Andrew Cartmel, it could just as easily be a Seventh Doctor story. Having the Fifth Doctor injects a kindness into the Doctor that might not have been there with the Seventh.

Also introduced here, is India Fisher as Peril Bellamy. Fisher is better known in later releases as companion Charlotte Pollard, but we’ll get to her later. In this, Fisher plays a mischievous girl but still rather different from Charley.

Things wrap up nicely in part four, with everything taken care of and all questions answered. A nice slow, atmospheric ghost story. If you’re into that sort of thing, you’ll probably enjoy this. It’s just not my cup of tea. Rating: 5/10

So, that’s my assessment of the first ten releases from Big Finish’s Doctor Who Main Range. At some point, I’ll have another ten listened to, and can supply another guide for those interested in dipping their toes into Big Finish. This is not a fast process so the next installment might be a while.

Happy travels,

Jamie.

 

Misc, Reviews

Happy New Schedule!

December 31, 2018 0 Comments

A Couple of quick revisions and updates as we look out into the wilds of 2019…

For TTV #413 (which will be recorded late on Wednesday due to the premiere of the New Year’s special) we’ll take a look at Resolution (S11x11). 

We flip-flopped a couple of weeks here, so this is the seventh Doctor gets some love for TTV #414. We’ll take a look at the recent Titan Comics mini-series Operation Volcano, and Big Finish #109 The Death Collectors / Spider’s Shadow 

Another Candy Jar Book Review in TTV #415 with Lucy Wilson Mysteries: Curse of the Mirror Clowns by Chris Lynch 

Back to Big Finish to start 2019 in TTV #416 by finishing off the 8th Doctor Adventures Season 3, #7 The Eight Truths, #8 Worldwide Web 

 And something we’ve been looking forward to for a long time finally comes to fruition in TTV #417 as we look at the BBCi and Big Finish co-production of “Real Time”. We’ll be covering both the 90 minute animated webcast version, AND the extended audio for comparison.

That gets us into February with TTV #418, a look at the book Doctor Who and The Krikkitmen by Douglas Adams and James Goss.

As always, thanks for sticking with us!

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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The Schedule of Ranskoor Av Kolos

December 3, 2018 0 Comments

Been a while since we posted one of these. Now that the 11th season is winding down, we’re back into rotating topics of show discussion. Here’s what’s on deck for upcoming episodes!

TTV #410 will have our thoughts on the season finale, “The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos”

TTV #411 is a Book Review, we’ll look at Candy Jar’s Lethbridge Stewart: Lineage, and Titan Comics 13th Doctor issues #1 & 2.

We thought for Christmas we’d have some fun and do a Lost In Time Christmas special: The Celestial Toymaker. (Toymaker. That’s a Christmas story, right?) Well, find out in TTV #412 as we tackle the novelization & the reconstructed episode.  

Don’t worry, we will do a little something special for Christmas, we just don’t know what yet.

For TTV #413 we celebrate the New Year with the as of yet untitled New Year’s episode (S11x11) 

Back to Big Finish to start 2019 in TTV #414 by finishing off the 8th Doctor Adventures Season 3, #7 The Eight Truths, #8 Worldwide Web 

Another Candy Jar Book Review in TTV #415 with Lucy Wilson Mysteries: Curse of the Mirror Clowns by Chris Lynch 

The seventh Doctor gets some love in TTV #416. We’ll take a look at the recent Titan Comics mini-series Operation Volcano, and Big Finish #109 The Death Collectors / Spider’s Shadow 

 And something we’ve been looking forward to for a long time finally comes to fruition in TTV #417 as we look at the BBCi and Big Finish co-production of “Real Time”. We’ll be covering both the 60 minute animated webcast version, AND the extended audio for comparison.

Beyond that? Lethbridge-Stewart returns, we revisit Torchwood, and finally, have that desktop theme discussion. As always, thanks for listening!

Misc, News, Upcoming Events

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