roygill
Big Finish Creative Team
Likes: 78
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Post by roygill on Jul 5, 2016 9:03:16 GMT
Just finished it, and loved every minute! I was worried that a whole new cast of characters would be hard to grasp in the allotted time, but it was a completely unfounded concern! The way the story is written, and the brilliant characterizations make it very easy to follow! Roy--a wonderful story!! A tribute to the series and a fitting 50th Anniversary release! I loved how Laura's story is fleshed out, and the origins of the Phoenix finally revealed. Loved Joanna Going, whose reading of Laura (and of course, the way Roy has written her) imbues her with a surprising innocence which works for the character--making her more sympathetic. Joanna's breathy voice and the subtle changes in it once she's undergone the transformation, really pay tribute to Diana Millay while never attempting an imitation, and yet making the character her own. Kudos to the producers, the writer, the actors, the editing, sound design, music, etc....it all comes together in a lush feast for the senses. And Joe and Davy....can we talk a bit more about recasts now? I think you've found your Laura! A question for other listeners that I didn't quite follow: Was Anchor House the Old House from the TV series? Until the final few moments, I was under the impression that Anchor House was another house entirely, and that the house being built, Collins House, was actually the Old House. However, in the final Act, I realize that can't be the case! However, if Anchor House is the Old House, and Joshua is going to now start construction on Collinwood, does that mean it took about 30 years to build? Was the Old House ever called "Collinwood" or is that only the "new" house? All this is a bit confusing to me...and that's the only thing I didn't understand. LOVED IT--HAPPY 50th, DARK SHADOWS! {Spoiler} "A question for other listeners that I didn't quite follow: Was Anchor House the Old House from the TV series?"
No, it came before the Old House. We know from the series there were Collins in Collinsport before the Old House was built - so we decided this is where they lived!
"Until the final few moments, I was under the impression that Anchor House was another house entirely"
It is.
" and that the house being built, Collins House, was actually the Old House."
You're meant to think that.
"However, in the final Act, I realize that can't be the case!"
Collins House burns down. A new house is built, by Joshua (not Caleb). It is called Collinwood (and will in time be referred to as the Old House). Thus timelines - and continuity - reasserts itself!
Of course, Caleb gives the name "Collinwood" to Joshua, thinking Patience dreamt it up. But actually she got it from Angelique. And she got it from the future... *evil grin* Rob and Bobod are spot on! One of things I was asked for by Joe & Davy was to set the script in 1767 - the year of construction of the first Collinwood (referred to in the TV series habitually *in later time periods* as "The Old House"). I realised that if during my play we were going to have characters talking about the "new house" being built - or referring to it as "Collinwood" that would be very confusing. So, believe it or not, the choices I made were actually to add clarity. (Plus, you know, time travel bootstrap paradox + big exciting finale...) The prelude with the Dark Lord quite deliberately refers to the "first Collinwood" to try and flag that up at the start. Hope that's clear
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Post by Trace on Jul 5, 2016 23:12:48 GMT
Absolutely clear! And I should learn to follow my gut from the outset, because I was spot on until I confused MYSELF at the end! LOL.
I have another quick question: Who did the cameos for the Dark Lord and Naomi Collins? Brief, but wonderful.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 5, 2016 23:33:35 GMT
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Post by Zagreus on Jul 5, 2016 23:39:50 GMT
EDIT: Whoops! Go listen to the podcast! What I originally wrote: {Spoiler}I think in the recent Historical Society it's revealed that Alexandra Donnachie did the Naomi cameo, and studied some scenes of Joan Bennett as the same to kind of get a feel for the character.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 5, 2016 23:41:17 GMT
Don't tell him!! I was being all coy and clever!
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Post by Trace on Jul 6, 2016 1:46:14 GMT
I won't read srandom's spoiler. The podcast was on my "to do" listen for tonight anyway, along with Echoes of the Past and this week's Dorian Gray group listen. However, change of plans because I want to savor each one for a night on its own. So...podcast tonight, Echoes tomorrow night, Dorian the following night!
By the way, I received both DS CDs today! It's the first time in 10 years of Big Finish that I got a cracked jewel case--the one for Echoes... Pretty good record actually, for overseas shipments! They were both in a padded envelope this time, and I think the boxes are probably better.
I have so much more to say about Blood & Fire. I guess I'll have to write a little at a time as the thoughts come to me--and I've a feeling I'll be thinking about (and relistening to) this one for quite a while to come!
One thing I must mention--the wonderful characterizations, both as written and performed! Like Kingdom of the Dead, The Crimson Pearl, and Bloodlust before it, B&F is truly an ensemble piece just like the original series (and this time, with Lara and Joanna leading the pack). And what fun characters! Loved Andrew Collins and Daisy Tormé (dare I say that Joshua and Abigail were never quite so sympathetic and likeable!). They succeed in adding a level of new understanding to the originals! Kathryn and Mitch do great things as the Collins family heads...David, Nancy, Lisa, and Chris are all perfect as Collins and Stockbridge relations, with Nancy adding yet another totally unique character to her repertoire. Every member of the supporting cast: Marie, Alexandra, Matthew, Ursula, Jim Storm, John K., Scott, Wally, Daniel, and Natalie is memorable and so well integrated into the story as a whole! Joe and Davy (and Roy, in this case) really do "soap opera" well! Jerry Lacy is both mysterious and menacing as Malachi Sands (great name!!). And even Michael Shon gives us a little "early Tommy" as the wolf!
Lara is always great, and Joanna Going is a revelation here in a role that was played by such an iconic actress! So, rather than going over the top with it, she uses a breathy innocence and subtle start, and allows for the slow build (her vocal inflections run the gamut from hopeful bride-to-be to melancholy ennui to raging immortal as her Laura becomes what we all know her to be! I think she's a brilliant casting choice, and I SO hope she'll be back as Laura or ANY role.
That's enough for now! I think I mentioned every cast member, because not doing so would just be wrong. It all works because they're all SO good!
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Post by Trace on Jul 6, 2016 2:03:45 GMT
Lisa Richards?!?!? LOVE IT!! Have one more DVR'd TV show to clear up, and will then get to the podcast!
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Post by Zagreus on Jul 6, 2016 2:30:33 GMT
Agreed, re:Going coming back as Laura in some capacity. This needs to happen folks!
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Post by barnabaslives on Jul 6, 2016 3:45:53 GMT
Another great podcast! Absolutely lovely to hear some behind-the-scenes stuff and sounds like a very good time being had by all making Dark Shadows. Wonderful to hear more from Roy about the writing of the instant classic Blood & Fire, and from the cast. Alexandra Donnachie is really making a huge impression on me as indispensable as she's already proven to the Dark Shadows, and the range of characters she's played.
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Post by joehart1962 on Jul 6, 2016 4:26:57 GMT
Let's find out what happened when Laura left Edward and ran away to Egypt with Quentin! (Well, we know how that ended -- with human sacrifice -- but getting there is half the fun!)
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Post by Trace on Jul 6, 2016 4:34:41 GMT
GREAT podcast! So that's who Naomi was!!! I've been really impressed with her from the start--she's wonderful.
I agree with Joe--a Quentin/Laura Egypt story would be great!
I'd also think a Laura/Jeremiah story would be excellent! Here we have B&F where she's engaged to one brother, and ends up married to the second brother--who is only a baby at the time of Joshua and Laura's engagement!
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Post by Zagreus on Jul 6, 2016 4:39:15 GMT
Let's find out what happened when Laura left Edward and ran away to Egypt with Quentin! (Well, we know how that ended -- with human sacrifice -- but getting there is half the fun!) OMG YES! YEEEEEEEES! And let's have some pre-Barnabas Laura stories, and maybe a story about Laura saving Burke from the plane wreck, and Laura rejoining the main cast back in the 80's stories, and and and! MORE LAURA PLEASE! GREAT podcast! So that's who Naomi was!!! I've been really impressed with her from the start--she's wonderful. If they ever dramatize Wolf Moon Rising, they should have her play the younger Liz in the 1920s parts! I agree with Joe--a Quentin/Laura Egypt story would be great! I'd also think a Laura/Jeremiah story would be excellent! Here we have B&F where she's engaged to one brother, and ends up married to the second brother--who is only a baby at the time of Joshua and Laura's engagement! Oh yes! That too! Oh man was Joshua still alive during that storyline? Would be interesting to know if he recognized her...
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Post by omega on Jul 6, 2016 7:02:46 GMT
Is the person who carved Jeremiah's name on Patience's gravestone the same person who carved his own?
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Post by omega on Jul 6, 2016 8:01:48 GMT
Considering the placement in Angelique's timeline, {Spoiler} her alias in this story is actually very heartwarming. She goes by the name Cassandra Peterson, with Cassandra being her name when she shows up after 1795 and Peterson from Tony Peterson, who she has a series of misadventures with. At the end of their final story Angelique is made by the Dark Lord to forget her time as Cassandra and with Tony, which means that the fact she uses Cassandra Peterson as her alias implies this has worn off.
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Post by Zagreus on Jul 6, 2016 8:10:23 GMT
Considering the placement in Angelique's timeline, {Spoiler}her alias in this story is actually very heartwarming. She goes by the name Cassandra Peterson, with Cassandra being her name when she shows up after 1795 and Peterson from Tony Peterson, who she has a series of misadventures with. At the end of their final story Angelique is made by the Dark Lord to forget her time as Cassandra and with Tony, which means that the fact she uses Cassandra Peterson as her alias implies this has worn off. {Spoiler}or is, at the very least, still somewhere in the back of her consciousness, even if she can't remember it directly. The events of Vengeance at Collinwood are even more tragic when one considers that bond that BF have given Angelique and Tony
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 6, 2016 8:22:32 GMT
Considering the placement in Angelique's timeline, {Spoiler}her alias in this story is actually very heartwarming. She goes by the name Cassandra Peterson, with Cassandra being her name when she shows up after 1795 and Peterson from Tony Peterson, who she has a series of misadventures with. At the end of their final story Angelique is made by the Dark Lord to forget her time as Cassandra and with Tony, which means that the fact she uses Cassandra Peterson as her alias implies this has worn off. {Spoiler}or is, at the very least, still somewhere in the back of her consciousness, even if she can't remember it directly. The events of Vengeance at Collinwood are even more tragic when one considers that bond that BF have given Angelique and Tony {Spoiler} Yes, she may have no idea why she said that name.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 6, 2016 8:23:52 GMT
Let's find out what happened when Laura left Edward and ran away to Egypt with Quentin! (Well, we know how that ended -- with human sacrifice -- but getting there is half the fun!) There were people asking at the Fest too for Quentin and Laura in Egypt tales.
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Post by omega on Jul 6, 2016 8:24:22 GMT
The end of the story places this after Bloodlust and sets Angelique up for where she is in The Path of Fate (Dramatic Reading #6). There's still the gap between Devil Cat and House of Despair that can be filled in.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 6, 2016 8:26:09 GMT
David, Nancy, Lisa, and Chris are all perfect as Collins and Stockbridge relations, with Nancy adding yet another totally unique character to her repertoire. Nancy is hilarious in it. And so is Chris Pennock in a very different part for him.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Jul 6, 2016 8:30:20 GMT
The end of the story places this after Bloodlust and sets Angelique up for where she is in The Path of Fate (Dramatic Reading #6). There's still the gap between Devil Cat and House of Despair that can be filled in. Well we can tell from the first scene that it's just post Bloodlust, and then the end covers the other bit.
There isn't a gap for Angelique between The Devil Cat and The House of Depair - they intentionally dovetail beautifully (as someone once said). Although I suppose one could shoe-horn in a resurrection and subsequent return to the same position if one needed her out and about in that time-frame.
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