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Best Producer/Showrunner? This poll is closed. |
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| Verity Lambert |
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49 | 7.04% |
| John Wiles |
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1 | 0.14% |
| Innes Lloyd |
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1 | 0.14% |
| Peter Bryant |
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3 | 0.43% |
| Derrick Sherwin |
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3 | 0.43% |
| Barry Letts |
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12 | 1.72% |
| Phillip Hinchcliffe |
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62 | 8.91% |
| Graham Williams |
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3 | 0.43% |
| John Nathan-Turner |
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15 | 2.16% |
| Philip Segal |
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3 | 0.43% |
| Russel T Davies |
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106 | 15.23% |
| Steven Moffat |
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114 | 16.38% |
| Son Goku |
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324 | 46.55% |
| Total: | 696 votes | ||
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I like the concept of the Rani too. Most Doctor Who villains are out for personal power or gain, or on a conscious mission of evil, so it's interesting to have someone who has an ostensibly valuable goal but is amoral in the pursuit of it.
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Jun 29, 2014 04:33
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The best feature of the Rani, that went completely underused, was her rolling her eyes at the very concept of the Doctor and his typical heroic exploits as well as the Master and his typical devious plans. I think both Big Finish and Moffat do certain things very well, but I actually don't see either of them reviving the character in the way that would be most interesting, which is inserting her into a typical, dire, Big Stakes Doctor Who plot and having her quietly doing something more rational and essentially say "Can you believe this poo poo?" and make a jerk-off motion.
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Jun 29, 2014 05:37
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Detective No. 27 posted:The premiere should have been called "The Twelfth Day of Christmas." What are the odds on this being the name of this year's Christmas special? 
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Jun 29, 2014 06:02
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Bicyclops posted:The best feature of the Rani, that went completely underused, was her rolling her eyes at the very concept of the Doctor and his typical heroic exploits as well as the Master and his typical devious plans. I think both Big Finish and Moffat do certain things very well, but I actually don't see either of them reviving the character in the way that would be most interesting, which is inserting her into a typical, dire, Big Stakes Doctor Who plot and having her quietly doing something more rational and essentially say "Can you believe this poo poo?" and make a jerk-off motion. Except that when she was mocking the Doctor and Master's So yes, sarcastic Carmen Sandiego, creator of unspeakable abominations. Get on that, Big Finish!
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Jun 29, 2014 14:40
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Bicyclops posted:The best feature of the Rani, that went completely underused, was her rolling her eyes at the very concept of the Doctor and his typical heroic exploits as well as the Master and his typical devious plans. I think both Big Finish and Moffat do certain things very well, but I actually don't see either of them reviving the character in the way that would be most interesting, which is inserting her into a typical, dire, Big Stakes Doctor Who plot and having her quietly doing something more rational and essentially say "Can you believe this poo poo?" and make a jerk-off motion. That's why I liked her too. She wasn't the Master, she was a sort of third force out there. If they can really make her different from the Master and explore what it means to be all powerful and truly amoral as opposed to all powerful and wanting to rule the universe, it would be great. And I'll say it again, she had a pretty rad TARDIS: 
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Jun 29, 2014 14:42
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After The War posted:Except that when she was mocking the Doctor and Master's Look, it's not her fault that your tiny human mind can't comprehend how important it is to take fluid from one race to fix what she did to another race. Er, and then she'll have to take fluid from another race to fix the LOOK SHE'S SMART JUST DON'T QUESTION IT OKAY
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Jun 29, 2014 16:28
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Only truly smart people have a ton of things pickled in jars in their tardis.
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Jun 29, 2014 17:15
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All in the name of developing smash-in-emergency beakers of instant T-rex.
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Jun 29, 2014 17:25
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Astroman posted:And I'll say it again, she had a pretty rad TARDIS: The spinning rings illusion is just so wonderfully 80s, it's up there with plasma balls. 
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Jun 29, 2014 17:49
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Fil5000 posted:Only truly smart people have a ton of things pickled in jars in their tardis. Pickled in
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Jun 29, 2014 18:11
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The_Doctor posted:The spinning rings illusion is just so wonderfully 80s, it's up there with plasma balls. Ahem, I think you'll find that was the Dalek's Time Controller: 
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Jun 29, 2014 20:13
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Davros1 posted:Ahem, I think you'll find that was the Dalek's Time Controller: I kinda picture the BF Time Controller as a regular Dalek, but with that as a hat.
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Jun 29, 2014 20:14
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Gaz-L posted:I kinda picture the BF Time Controller as a regular Dalek, but with that as a hat. I'm afraid it's a lot more mundane than that: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MojsBd3-nC8/UTZdjsBF9pI/AAAAAAAAHD8/V-kDDOSCjok/s1600/Dalek+Time+Controller+Artwork.jpg
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Jun 29, 2014 21:32
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Cruel Rose posted:I'm afraid it's a lot more mundane than that: At least tell me the rings spin like the Rani's TARDIS...
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Jun 29, 2014 21:33
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Cruel Rose posted:I'm afraid it's a lot more mundane than that: Hahaha! I never noticed that. That's so loving doofy.
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Jun 29, 2014 21:42
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PriorMarcus posted:Hahaha! I never noticed that. That's so loving doofy. The eyestalk is too high up on the head-dome and it's bright purple. The Least Menacing Dalek.
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Jun 29, 2014 21:47
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Cruel Rose posted:I'm afraid it's a lot more mundane than that: What is that, a deleted Dalek from the "upgrade" in Victory of the Daleks?
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Jun 29, 2014 21:55
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CobiWann posted:What is that, a deleted Dalek from the "upgrade" in Victory of the Daleks? Assuming this is a legit question, it's the Dalek Time Controller, a recurring villain in BF's Eighth Doctor stories. (It also fought Eleven in a novel Nick Briggs wrote for BBC Books and Six in a Monthly release.)
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Jun 29, 2014 22:06
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Cruel Rose posted:I'm afraid it's a lot more mundane than that: This looks like something Disney would have made to give tours of Tomorrowland. Someone start a petition to have a friendly Dalek with that design be the latest companion.
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Jun 29, 2014 22:08
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Gaz-L posted:Assuming this is a legit question, it's the Dalek Time Controller, a recurring villain in BF's Eighth Doctor stories. (It also fought Eleven in a novel Nick Briggs wrote for BBC Books and Six in a Monthly release.) I'm pretty sure Cobi hasn't listened to the Eighth Doctor Adventures yet (neither have I). I had no idea what you were talking about until I made sure. Either way though, yeah, that is doofy looking as gently caress. I like it. edit- Here's some art a quick GIS of "Time Controller Dalek" turned up, much better (the rings are still kinda goofy): 
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Jun 29, 2014 22:38
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Chokes McGee posted:LOOK SHE'S SMART JUST DON'T QUESTION IT OKAY Pip: How do we get across to people that The Rani is a genius? What genius activities can we show her doing to demonstrate her geniusnicity? Jane: I got it! We'll get the Doctor to frequently exclaim that she is a genius! Pip: Brilliant, Eric Saward is going to love us!
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Jun 29, 2014 22:46
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I see that and all I can think is "Colonel O'Neill, dial the gate." Edit - for proper spelling and rank! CobiWann fucked around with this message at 00:27 on Jun 30, 2014 |
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Jun 30, 2014 00:20
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O'Neill. Two L's. (And it's Colonel, it says so on his uniform.)
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Jun 30, 2014 00:24
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Gaz-L posted:O'Neill. Two L's. Double whammy of Stargate jokes, how often does that opportunity come up?
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Jun 30, 2014 00:48
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I have a third: A serpent guard, a Horus guard and a Se'tesh guard meet on a neutral planet. The serpent guard's eyes glow. The Horus guard's beak glistens... The Se'tesh guard's nose.... drips. EDIT: To at least tangentially tie it back in, was the third series of BF Stargate audios any good? I adore Claudia Black, but it seems weird to do an SG1 story with only 40% of the titular team.
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Jun 30, 2014 00:55
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 On the morning of October 12th, 2021 Hex woke up. He was expecting to go to work at St Gart's in London as normal and, that evening, have a great time in the bar of the White Rabbit, celebrating his 23rd birthday. But after his ex-flatmate is wheeled into A&E following a bike accident, and the strange young woman from Human Resources tries to chat him up and an eight-foot tall guy in a Merc tries to run him down, Hex realises things are not going quite as he expected. Then in a Shoreditch car park he meets the enigmatic Doctor who explains that he's an extra-terrestrial investigator and something very strange is going on up on the thirty-first floor of St Garts. Therefore, aided and abetted by the Doctor and his other new friend 'Just McShane', Hex decides to investigate. Trouble is, everything that goes on at the hospital is being observed and noted by the occupants of the thirty-first floor. Occupants who are none too pleased that people are poking their noses into business that doesn't concern them. Occupants who will go to extraordinary lengths to ensure that no one discovers the truth. Sylvester McCoy is the Doctor in The Harvest. Cast Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor) Sophie Aldred (Dorothy “Ace” McShane) Philip Olivier (Hex) William Boyde (Subject One) Richard Derrington (Doctor Farrer) David Warwick (David Garnier) Paul Lacoux (Doctor Mathias) Janie Booth (System) Mark Donovan (Polk) Written By: Dan Abnett Directed By: Gary Russell Trailer - http://bigfinish.com/releases/popout/the-harvest-224 X X X X X Introducing new companions is always a tricky proposition. A Doctor is sometimes defined by his companions, from Barbara and Ian to Clara Oswald and all the Jamies, Liz Shaws, Nyssas, and Captain Jacks in between. Sometimes, a companion’s introduction goes smoothly and they become a welcome part of the TARDIS crew for both the Doctor and the viewers. Sometimes…well, sometimes you get a Dodo or a Kamelion. Introducing a new companion into the audio continuity is even trickier. The television series laid out which companions travelled with which Doctor. Five has Nyssa, Adric, Tegan, Turlough, and Peri. Six had Peri and Mel. Seven had Mel and Ace. Eight had Grace Holloway. In the case of the Eighth Doctor, it was easy to introduce Charley, but for the other Doctors, adding an original companion to a group that has been firmly set in “official” continuity constitutes a big risk. There’s a chance the established chemistry between characters (and actors) could be thrown off. A new companion could overshadow the existing companion and maybe even the Doctor. Or, worst of all, the companion just may not click with the Doctor no matter how hard the actors or writers try. For the most part, Big Finish has seen positive results from adding new, original companions throughout their monthly range. Evelyn Smythe was the first companion, meeting up with the Sixth Doctor and instantly hitting it off in The Marian Conspiracy, becoming one of Big Finish’s most beloved characters. Storm Warning gave the Eighth Doctor his first proper long-term companion with Charlotte “Charley” Pollard, Edwardian adventuress, with a story-arc that spanned all of time and space, in this universe and beyond. The Fifth Doctor and Peri were introduced to the Egyptian princess (and would-be Pharaoh) Erimem in The Eye of the Scorpion, becoming a surrogate sister to Peri and causing Five a few headaches in the process. Now, after over eighteen months since we last heard the duo, Seven and Ace are teamed up with a newcomer to both the TARDIS and to Big Finish. The Harvest see Seven and Dorothy “Ace” McShane doing what they do best; snooping around and causing mischief in the course of saving the day. Assisting them in their endevours is a young nurse Thomas Scofield, nicknamed “Hex,” as he discovers mysterious goings-on taking placed in a sealed-off floor of his hospital. A quickly paced story that highlights the Doctor’s planning, Ace’s daring, and Hex’s “oh my God’s” against the plans of a long-time foe of the Doctor’s, The Harvest is a welcome return to form for Seven and Ace and a strong introduction for Hex. Thomas “Hex” Schofield has arrived at St Gart’s Hospital in London for the morning shift, hours before his best buds plan to take him to the pub to celebrate his 23rd birthday. But any thoughts of an enjoyable birthday bash are soon forgotten as his ex-flatmate is brought in after a motorcycle accident. Even with the best surgeon in the hospital working on him, his flatmate passes. Even the attentions of the mysterious McShane (“Just McShane) from Human Resources isn’t enough to break him out of his doldrums. That is, until a large figure attacks her and the pair are forced to flee on her motorbike. No matter how much McShane urges Hex to just go home, he follows her, all the way into a blue police box that’s bigger on the inside. The man inside calls himself the Doctor, and it turns out he and McShane could use Hex’s help. There’s a floor in St Gart’s that is closed off that the pair would love to get a peek at. On that floor, an experiment using alien technology is taking place, involving flesh, skin, organs, and the absolute coldest and most unforgiving of materials… The last time Big Finish listeners had heard the adventures of the Seventh Doctor and Ace (not counting the “sideways” New Virgin Adventures audio The Dark Flame) was over twenty months prior to the release of The Harvest in the techno-tinged and not-very-well-received story The Rapture. Someone at Big Finish must have felt that Seven and Ace’s story needed a jumpstart, as the company brought in an accomplished author to pen their next story. Among British science-fiction writers, Dan Abnett is one of the best known as well as one of the most prolific. Since 1988, Abnett has penned hundreds of comic books and tens of novels. Some of his works can been seen in the seminal sci-fi comic 2000 AD as well as several Marvel comics including Nova and the crossover event War of Kings, best described as “Hey, kids, forget about the Sentry mess in Siege and come read a REAL storyline!” He’s also written scores of novels for Warhammer 40,000, Warhammer Fantasy and even a Torchwood novel. Landing Abnett to pen a Big Finish production was major coup for the company, and Abnett would go on from The Harvest to write several more audios of the Doctor’s adventures. The script does suffer from a bit of “first time audio writer’s blues,” as Hex does spend a good bit of time talking to himself and describing his surroundings. Beyond that however, Abnett has written a story that would have made John Nathan Turner proud; a singular creepy location is the setting for the majority of the audio’s runtime which features a lot of running around and being captured, as well as starring an old enemy of the Doctor’s. The script moves very quickly, always moving forward and refusing to drag its feet. Abnett also gives us several very well done cliffhangers. Episode one finds Hex freaking out inside the TARDIS and the Doctor (after being absent all episode, ala The Empty Child, calmly introducing himself. Episode three ends up with McShane and Mathias about to become part of the supply stock for the gruesome experiments via automatic surgeon. And episode two concludes with a quick escape while Ace urgently tells the Doctor the identity of their opponents; the Cybermen. It’s a Sylvester McCoy story, so there is shouting. But instead of the loud, brash Doctor seen in The Rapture, McCoy’s performance is more along the lines of his turn in The Fearmonger. When fans think of the Seventh Doctor, McCoy’s turn in The Harvest is incredibly close to the cunning, planning, scheming, lesson-teaching Doctor seen towards the end of his television run. The harshness that Seven shows towards Ace for getting Hex involved is tempered by the way McCoy delivers it, knowing full well getting other people involved is par for the course. You can sense the wry smile on McCoy’s face as he quietly manipulates the hospital’s central computers, revealing that he had been slowly changing the programming over the course of a few weeks to allow him accesses to everything, as opposed to just shoving a sonic screwdriver at it and hoping for the best. He comforts Hex as the young nurse realizes what’s happening at his hospital. And his fury and anger towards the experiments the Cybermen have been running turn to wonder and possibility, but then to pity and sorrow once he realizes the purpose behind them and how the Cybermen are doomed to fail. It’s easily McCoy’s best all-around performance since The Fires of Vulcan. When last we saw Dorothy “Ace” McShane, she was recovering from the shocking death of Feldwebel Kurtz in Colditz by being a Mary Whitehouse “don’t do drugs” teenage stereotype in The Rapture. Thankfully, Dan Abnett picks up from the end of Colditz and gives us an Ace who does her best to call herself, and get others to call her, McShane (or “Just McShane” in the case of Hex), as well as acting like a maturing, experienced traveler who still needs to learn a thing or two but is confident enough to trust in her skills and wise enough for the Doctor to include in his plans. From the end of the last serial of the classic series, Survival, through The Fearmonger, Dust Breeding, and Colditz we’ve seen Big Finish give Sophie Aldred a chance to break out of the wild-eyed and impulsive teenager she played on TV and let her have a hand at portraying someone a bit closer to her actual age, avoiding the uncomfortable and weird possibility of a 40-year old woman voicing a 17-year old explosives-packing miscreant. The Harvest sees McShane going undercover to work in St Gart’s HR department…in a serial that takes “Human Resources” to a whole new level…and using the position to poke around the hospital, the “boots on the ground” to McCoy’s “boots behind the desk.” Aldred plays McShane (I’m really trying to get used to writing “McShane” instead of “Ace.” Wish me luck) a bit closer to the Seventh Doctor, more mysterious and sneaky, though with a heavy dose of physical action, especially during the desperate rush about the hospital during the climax. It’s such a 180 degree turn from how we left her in The Rapture that also ranks, I feel, as one of Aldred’s best audio performances to date. I looked up Philip Olivier, the actor who plays Hex, and my first thought was “By E-Space, are those abs photoshopped?!?” Olivier is best known in Britain as one of the many cast members of the soap opera Brookside and has since then appeared on a variety shows and as a model in several magazines. He’s a very, very, very pretty man, and I admit my second thought was “but can he act?” It only took a few minutes into The Harvest for that question to be answered with a firm, Scouse-accented “Aye!” Hex enters the story grounded, young with thoughts of that night’s birthday party in his head, uncomfortable at his friend’s attempts to set him up with several pretty young things. He’s not all confident, as seen when he realizes it’s his ex-flatmate on the operating table and pauses in the course of his medical duties, and he doesn’t just recover from the shock at the drop of a hat. Abnett’s writing and Olivier’s acting work very well together, giving Hex enough characterization (more than C’rizz has gotten in three stories at any rate) to define him, without giving away the whole store and answering all the questions about him in his very first appearance. Indeed, the Doctor looks up Hex’s history and gives us a quiet “interesting,” meaning there’s more to Hex than meets the eye. The biggest compliment I can give Hex is that he adds to the Seven/McShane dynamic instead of distracting or detracting from it. With McShane growing up a bit, Hex slides into the “young and shocked companion” role very well. I particularly enjoyed how he continued to freak out about how the TARDIS was bigger on the inside than the outside, and when the Doctor chided him for it, he shot back with a “I know what I see, and I accept it, I just have a hard time believing it response.” It’s refresher to see a new companion realize just how freaking insane the Doctor and his companions are as opposed to a gentle acceptance of how things work. With Hex taking charge as The Harvest rolls on, working on a bullet wound AND keeping someone alive during the climax, his urgency to join the crew of the TARDIS for further adventures is well understood and well played. The Doctor as the teacher, McShane as the graduate assistant, Hex as the new student…I definitely look forward to the next serial staring these three (Dreamtime) to see how their dynamic continues to unfold. The Harvest came out in June of 2004, so almost ten years after the fact I don't think I broke spoiler protocol by revealing that the main villains of this story are none other than the Cybermen, making their third appearance for Big Finish after Sword of Orion and Spare Parts. The Cybermen are probably the best known aliens from Doctor Who after the Daleks. Hailing originally from the planet Mondas, the Cybermen traded their human emotions for cold, logical steel in order to survive that planet's destruction. In The Harvest, Abnett takes the concept and turns it around in the opposite direction, as a group of Cybermen stranded on Earth commit what would be considered blasphemy if their race had such a concept in their databanks. William Boyde, best known as the EastEnder's villain James Willmott-Brown, is Subject One, aka the Cyberleader, and was a great casting choice by Big Finish. The beginning of the story sees him experiencing wonder and revelation at the changes to his body, and as the story progress, that sense of wonder crystalizes into the same Cyberman doctrine that had defined the race for decades; everyone will be like them, and anyone not like them is a threat to the Cybermen's survival, and the Cybermen will survive by any means. Boyde doesn't take it over the top as previous Cybermen leads have, but keeps it very quiet, and very logical, which makes his performance even more chilling. The pair of non-Doctor doctors fulfill their jobs very well, Richard Derrington as the “I did it for science” Doctor Fareer and Paul Lacoux as the “no grace under pressure” Doctor Mathias. David Warwick is the typical government hatchetman these stories call for, and he does his job well...except when he's seemingly channeling Dan Abnett's feelings on the European Union, as he quote regulations, initiates protocols, and stands firmly on the receiving end of McCoy's venting about bureaucrats and centralized governments. It takes way from the story in only just how much the anti-Eurocentric dialogue stands out. The sound work is of two minds. The techno-score and incidental music is very very late 80's/early 90's, but in a manner that's overbearing and a bit grating on the ears. The background noise and special effects, however, in the hospital are top-notch, from the beeps and bloops of the casualty room to the harsh whirring and cutting noises in the cyber-surgey wing, and the screams and weapons fire during the climax, David Darlington does a solid job. But The Harvest is all about the introduction of Hex. Philip Oliver is the perfect addition to the Seventh Doctor and McShane's TARDIS, adding a new voice and a new perspective on the Machiavellian machinations of the Doctor. There's little doubt in my mind, going in unspoiled, that Hex will be part of several very good stories during his time with the Doctor!  Synopsis – Combining a great introduction story for a new companion and a unique take on the Cybermen, The Harvest sets Dorothy “Ace” McShane, Hex, and the Doctor on a new and exciting path. 5/5. CobiWann fucked around with this message at 17:27 on Aug 6, 2014 |
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Jun 30, 2014 01:07
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CobiWann posted:
I loved this story a whole lot, I thought it was superior to Arrangements for War and think it well deserves a 4/5 rating. The Cybermen reveal was not a surprise at all but I loved the reverse take on their usual story and the Doctor's doomed hope that maybe they had learned something - it reminded me a bit of the less well-executed aspect of the Daleks in Manhattan 2-parter from season 3. The voice acting is excellent, the supporting characters are well-rounded, everybody has a purpose and the plotlines converge wonderfully well. I want to reserve my highest praise for Hex though, because this is an example of a new companion done right - aside from Evelyn I think this is the best introductory story a Big Finish audio companion has had, and yes I'm including Charley Pollard in that list. I'm sorry to beat a dead horse, but Hex is everything that C'Rizz is not. He's interesting, has a distinct personality, reacts reasonably and acts like a real human being. He is initially overwhelmed by the situation he finds himself in but proves a valuable and contributing member of the group and the awakening of his adventurous spirit and desire to know more makes his request to join them at the end make perfect sense. In the space of a single audio I felt like I knew him and understood his character while I still can't define exactly what C'Rizz's personality is supposed to be. It probably helps that he is so focused on in the first episode, either by himself or in interaction with "Just McShane", and that the Doctor doesn't appear until the very end (although I'm pretty sure he appears briefly in one scene as a maintenance man asking for directions who the other characters don't pay any special attention to). The introduction gives us time to get familiar with him, and it works very much by giving us the character's POV and having the Doctor and McShane as supporting characters in HIS story, whereas C'Rizz was very much a supporting character in the Doctor and Charley's story in his introduction. I really don't have anything else to add other than agreeing that The Harvest is a quality story and that you should probably listen to it, because of said goodness. Oh yeah, also did anybody else get the vague impression from this story that Hex is gay? Or that his dead mate was more than just a friend? I can't really point to anything explicit, nor does it really make any difference, but it is just an impression that came across to me.
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Jun 30, 2014 02:51
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Jerusalem posted:
I didn't quite get that myself, although I suppose it's possible to read it that way. I thought he was just kind of detached and couldn't identify with everyday life, but couldn't quite put his finger on where. Either way, I agree with you both; it was a great story and I'm excited to hear more with Hex as a companion. I think he works particularly well with Ace and Seven too.
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Jun 30, 2014 03:14
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Jerusalem posted:Oh yeah, also did anybody else get the vague impression from this story that Hex is gay? Or that his dead mate was more than just a friend? I can't really point to anything explicit, nor does it really make any difference, but it is just an impression that came across to me. Not at all. Though I will admit that his relationship towards Ace in later audios probably colors that. CobiWann posted:
There was so much positivity in your review, I was surprised to see it not get full points in the end. What do you think could've been improved? Also, it's Thomas Hector Schofield. That's where "Hex" comes from, his middle name's Hector.
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Jun 30, 2014 03:16
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Potsticker posted:There was so much positivity in your review, I was surprised to see it not get full points in the end. What do you think could've been improved? I noticed in my past reviews I tended to extremes with my final score (Project: Twilight) for example), so I've been trying to temper them a bit as of late. 3/5 is my starting baseline, 5/5 is a story I think is really special, and 4/5 is a good, solid story. I can't think of anything that could be "improved" per se, it just didn't have the "thing" that pushed it up to 5/5. Best example I can think of is how I would give Smith and Jones a 4/5 and Human Nature/Family of Blood a 5/5. (Of course, I would also give a 4/5 to 42...) There's no other way to ask this, so I'll come out and ask - I know Philip Olivier has done a lot of modeling for gay magazines and has done a lot of work in the gay community, but I don't believe he's gay, is he? Doesn't matter either way (I didn't get the "gay" vibe from Hex, but it's only been one serial), just curious.
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Jun 30, 2014 03:30
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CobiWann posted:I noticed in my past reviews I tended to extremes with my final score (Project: Twilight) for example), so I've been trying to temper them a bit as of late. 3/5 is my starting baseline, 5/5 is a story I think is really special, and 4/5 is a good, solid story. I can't think of anything that could be "improved" per se, it just didn't have the "thing" that pushed it up to 5/5. Fair enough, I was just curious. For what it's worth, I agree with the 4/5, but because I feel like there was something missing on the Cyberman side of things. I know "feel" is a hard thing to quantify, but it didn't feel like the plot with the skin grafts made a whole lot of sense and as a result that whole part of the plot seemed off and didn't mesh well. In the scope of the entire audio it's a minor complaint for sure, because not only was it a good introduction to the new companion, but it was a good story besides. I know I'm hard on McCoy/Ace stories a lot of the time, but Hex really added something fresh and exciting to the dynamic a lot of the time. Ace finally steps out of the role of being the student and in Hex has someone to teach herself, meanwhile the Doctor watches over both of them to make sure things never do run smoothly.
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Jun 30, 2014 04:53
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CobiWann posted:Best example I can think of is how I would give Smith and Jones a 4/5 and Human Nature/Family of Blood a 5/5. One of these scores is not like the other
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Jun 30, 2014 09:41
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I finally finished Series 5 after binging the entirety of new Who up to that point like a year ago. I stopped in the middle of the Hungry Earth two-parter too (and to be fair that episode was kind of bunk)! I think the changeover to Moffat was what made me stop there but now after watching the rest I'm completely fine with it so eh, maybe I needed a break. And hey, in the interim Netflix has put up the entire rest of the series, so now I can maybe finally be caught up with this drat show! My question is, will I be missing anything noteworthy in Series 6 and 7 (or 5, I suppose) besides the obvious Day of the Doctor by just watching the stuff up on Netflix? I know I missed the entirety of the year of specials between 4 and 5 but I didn't feel like tracking those down so I just read a plot synopsis. I'm going to have to watch Day of the Doctor somehow though.
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Jun 30, 2014 11:49
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Series 6 has some of the best individual episodes of the revival to date, but as a whole it is a very uneven and badly paced season - plus the addition of a very poorly handled resolution to the pretty goddamn HUGE situation in the cliffhanger of the first half of the season. Series 7 is two solid half-seasons but they feel very much like two distinct (but short!) seasons, and the decision to keep Amy and Rory (excellent as they are) around for the first half of the season came at the detriment of Clara's development in the second half of the season. I'd recommend fully watching both (you've got roughly 8 weeks till the start of season 8) but if you think that'll be too much or you just can't be bothered, I'd highly recommend: Season 6: The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon - Important season arc wise The Doctor's Wife - Excellent standalone The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People - Superb 2-parter with an amazing cliffhanger finish A Good Man Goes to War - Important season arc wise Let's Kill Hitler - Important season arc wise (HORRIBLE supporting character who almost ruins the entire episode and retroactively a lot of prior stories too) The Girl Who Waited - Fantastic standalone The God Complex - Great character moment for Amy that builds on The Girl Who Waited The Wedding of River Song - Important season arc wise Season 7: Asylum of the Daleks - Introduces Clara The Angels Take Manhattan - Half season finale The Snowmen - Introduces Clara/Reintroduces old school classic Who villain The Bells of Saint John - Introduces Clara The Rings of Akhaten - It's just a beautiful episode The Crimson Horror - Half Victorian horror/Half hilarious comedy/All Diana Rigg The Name of the Doctor - The Doctor's first visit to Trenzalore There are plenty more very good or high quality episodes in there, but these are the ones I'd most recommend watching. Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 12:09 on Jun 30, 2014 |
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Jun 30, 2014 12:06
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Jerusalem posted:I'd highly recommend: You are a cruel man, J-ru.
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Jun 30, 2014 12:10
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Guys! Steven Moffat is about to commit a major crime in the name of merchandising by bringing back an obscure piece of Time Lord backstory. 
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Jun 30, 2014 12:21
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marktheando posted:You are a cruel man, J-ru. All three are good episodes (albeit with some very striking problems) on their own. I'd argue their failures come more from being integral parts of the season arc that gloss over the long term ramifications or immediate realities of the events that transpire. Probably the most egregious of which is the Ponds' reaction to their child being kidnapped and never getting to properly/knowingly raise her). That said, they ARE integral parts of the season arc and therefore not episodes that should be missed if Amppelix wants to get caught up on the overall story of what is going on with the Doctor and his companions over those seasons. None of them are my favorite episodes but I do think they're important ones, and should be seen even if the viewer ends up being underwhelmed by them. I think Hide and Cold War are pretty strong stories in season 7 and superior to some of the "important" stories, but I didn't include them because they're mostly standalone and not quite strong enough on their own to warrant as "must-sees".
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Jun 30, 2014 12:24
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Jun 30, 2014 12:58
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Amppelix posted:I finally finished Series 5 after binging the entirety of new Who up to that point like a year ago. I stopped in the middle of the Hungry Earth two-parter too (and to be fair that episode was kind of bunk)! I think the changeover to Moffat was what made me stop there but now after watching the rest I'm completely fine with it so eh, maybe I needed a break. And hey, in the interim Netflix has put up the entire rest of the series, so now I can maybe finally be caught up with this drat show! You can actually watch most of the year of specials on Netflix, if I remember correctly. If you just search for "Doctor Who," they'll show up in their own entry. I think there's just one that's not on there.
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Jun 30, 2014 13:55
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 00:49 |
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Jerusalem posted:I'd recommend fully watching both (you've got roughly 8 weeks till the start of season 8) but if you think that'll be too much or you just can't be bothered, I'd highly recommend: I agree with everything you said, but I don't think he was asking about intentionally skipping anything. I think he was literally just asking if any episodes are missing from Netflix in seasons 6 and 7, besides Day of the Doctor. I believe the only things missing are Day of the Doctor and Time of the Doctor.
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Jun 30, 2014 14:12
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