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Post by levi3o4 on Jul 2, 2021 21:28:32 GMT
Honestly, I think this box set's secret weapon is the combination of Jon Carley and Louise Jameson. No disrespect to Briggs, Hurt, or Eccleston, but I feel as though Jameson gets a better performance - more polished, more thought-through - out of Carley than Briggs ever got out of Hurt (or has, more recently, gotten from Eccleston). Hurt's Big Finish performances felt, to me, as though he was very game, but ultimately needed just a bit more direction, and Eccleston has given me the same impression. Which is frankly weird, because they're both amazing actors (very much among my favirite Doctors). Carley, on the other hand, lands every line perfectly.
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Post by Chakoteya on Jul 3, 2021 10:10:30 GMT
Lion Hearts was okay. You just knew the Dr had a way out for everyone, after all.
Shadow Squad - wow. How to conduct a Time War in 4D, which is of course how it would/should be done.
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Post by sherlock on Jul 3, 2021 13:21:09 GMT
Light the Flame
Well, this is a step up from the original series. My main drawback with the original series is it seemed to be afraid of truly pushing the War Doctor’s character. This feels much more bold, and his threat towards the end feels genuine. Carley’s performance is goddamn great. John Hurt left some phenomenally big shoes to fill and Carley does so with confidence.
I enjoy that this story has not a Dalek in sight. The Time War is a distant existential threat here, with what the enemy is doing really secondary to that. I like this approach to the War, more so than the “Dalek Time Strategist has [x] plan to wipe out the Time Lords...again.”
I was burnt out on all things Time War for a while, but this story has brought me back. On to the rest of the set!
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Post by drj on Jul 3, 2021 13:55:05 GMT
With all this praise, I’m definitely getting closer to getting this… and Dalek Universe!
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Post by selimpensfiction on Jul 3, 2021 14:49:09 GMT
I adored the original War Doctor series and this box set more than lives up to that standard. In fact, it's fair to argue that its even raised the bar. Congratulations to the Big Finish team that brought this together. And yes, Jonathon Carley's performance is amazing.
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Post by elkawho on Jul 3, 2021 15:12:39 GMT
With all this praise, I’m definitely getting closer to getting this… and Dalek Universe! Do. They are the 2 best releases so far this year. You won't regret it. (Robots 4 comes close.)
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Post by sherlock on Jul 3, 2021 15:25:29 GMT
Lion Hearts
This is quite a simple, small scale story by Time War standards (no planets in peril here, just a group of Tharils) and works well. The expectations around the War Doctor are played with here to good effect, and Tamasan’s delight at his darker reputation is very disturbing, as intended.
I have no idea how accurate Dorney’s take on Biroc is as it’s been an age since I watched Warrior’s Gate, but the Tharils here don’t necessarily feel they needed to be Tharils. Any species could have worked here really, but I suppose it’s a nice way of showing how all corners of the universe got dragged into the conflict.
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Post by sherlock on Jul 3, 2021 17:14:46 GMT
The Shadow Squad
Eh. That was okay. It presented fairly basic ideas as if they’re groundbreaking.
Gasp, the barmaid contact has been erased from history! Erm...literally the first scene of The Heavenly Paradigm did this same thing.
Gasp, the Daleks are altering history in a way that threatens space/time! Erm...isn’t that the entire point of the Time War?!
Gasp, the Doctor inflicts a horrible fate on a Dalek! Erm...he’s done that quite a few times. Literally in their first story he brags to a dying Dalek he’s got no clue on how to restore their power but even if he did he doesn’t want to. He even talks a Dalek into committing suicide in Remembrance. The Daleks have always been the Doctor’s punching bag.
It wouldn’t be such a problem if the characters themselves weren’t surprised by these things, but they are. Tamasan takes ages to grasp the idea of her contact being erased, the Doctor is appalled at the Daleks’ actions threatening history and the Dalek seems really surprised by the Doctor’s cold attitude towards it.
The only really new concept is the titular squad, who are neat but underscore the other problem with this story. There is no real tension. The Time Lords have a plan, the Doctor and Tamasan learn the plan, said plan works perfectly. There is a spanner thrown in the works but in a such a way it’s clear how it will play out, intentionally. So I just kinda shrug.
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Post by tuigirl on Jul 6, 2021 19:26:52 GMT
Started today. Light the Flame... well, yes, it is a good start, but none of it came to me as particularly new or daring. To me, it felt a bit like one of these riddle drawings where you have to connect the dots to follow point A to Z. We know exactly what happens at A and we know it will lead to Z. Maybe it is just me, but I had expected a bit more "oomph" than just connecting the dots (because what came out was pretty much exactly what was in my head already). It was, however, nicely atmospheric and I have always like the mystical aura of the Sisterhood. Ohelia and her coven work very well here. And I also liked Rasmus. I admit, his last appearance in Dark Universe was VERY underwhelming, after the great promise we had in Ravenous. But Rasmus was likeable here and I also liked how he was used. So I have hope for the future of the character. As for the performance of the Doctor... that is really uncanny. That was done wonderfully. I just hope the upcoming stories will do it justice.
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Post by mrperson on Jul 7, 2021 21:31:59 GMT
While it has been a while since I listened to Hurt, he (was it Tarley?) does seem remarkably like him. Now, whether he sounds like hurt at the age suggested by the cover is up for debate. I'd have to go rewatch his Caligula in I, Claudius or something from then. It's been a while.
I've listened to one episode through. It was decent enough, but I do hope for more variation. We've already had an awful lot of fight-the-dalek and stop-the-timelord episodes. The Gallifrey range seems to get into more interesting territory at times. We'll see how it goes (I suspect I bought everything as a bundle)
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Post by kennysmith on Jul 8, 2021 12:05:57 GMT
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Post by muckypup on Jul 15, 2021 13:48:40 GMT
i cannot believe that this is not john hurt, as a recast goes this is impeccable.
quick up the release schedule and give us 4 boxes a year........
takes a lot for grumpy old me but this is impressive.
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Post by TinDogPodcast on Jul 19, 2021 11:22:39 GMT
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Post by Ian McArdell on Jul 19, 2021 22:12:28 GMT
My take on Forged in Fire has just landed at CultBox. In short, Jonathon Carley's performance is uncanny and there's oodles of potential here.
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jul 19, 2021 23:01:33 GMT
Has anyone received their cd copy yet? If so, which 2 logo's are on the cd cover on the front and back?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Likes:
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2021 6:05:10 GMT
Has anyone received their cd copy yet? If so, which 2 logo's are on the cd cover on the front and back? Nope
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jul 26, 2021 12:07:14 GMT
I just received my email to say this has been dispatched.. I will receive it by September I reckon.
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jul 28, 2021 22:38:34 GMT
We have a visual on the boxset yay!
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Post by elkawho on Jul 29, 2021 0:45:48 GMT
We have a visual on the boxset yay! What a sweetheart! I love this so much. And I'm very happy that it happened for him.
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Post by mark687 on Jul 30, 2021 13:36:03 GMT
Has anyone received their cd copy yet? If so, which 2 logo's are on the cd cover on the front and back? Current TV Show Logo in White. Lettering style for the Title is the same as Dalek Universe. Regards mark687
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