|
Post by mark687 on Apr 28, 2023 15:08:11 GMT
|
|
|
Post by shallacatop on Apr 28, 2023 15:28:58 GMT
I honestly don’t think that announcement could’ve been made any more unappealing. James Goss and returning elements isn’t a combination that excites me, I thought Colin added nothing to the character when he played The Curator and despite being father and daughter felt Davison & Georgia had no rapport in their Legacy of Time outing.
I really hope I’m swayed otherwise, but this is the epitome of what fans that don’t buy Big Finish think it is.
|
|
|
Post by bonehead on Apr 28, 2023 15:38:14 GMT
I honestly don’t think that announcement could’ve been made any more unappealing. James Goss and returning elements isn’t a combination that excites me, I thought Colin added nothing to the character when he played The Curator and despite being father and daughter felt Davison & Georgia had no rapport in their Legacy of Time outing. I really hope I’m swayed otherwise, but this is the epitome of what fans that don’t buy Big Finish think it is. I take your point; this is indeed fan service, as was the last instalment (the Fourth Doctor meeting the 'new' UNIT and The Meddling Monk). But for a celebration of the sixtieth anniversary, I think it's excusable, and will probably be quite a lot of fun. I think there's an over-use of A meets B and faces C generally, but for these releases, I think it's justified. As for those who steer clear of Big Finish, I think it would take a lot to sway them anyway.
|
|
|
Post by shallacatop on Apr 28, 2023 15:43:24 GMT
I honestly don’t think that announcement could’ve been made any more unappealing. James Goss and returning elements isn’t a combination that excites me, I thought Colin added nothing to the character when he played The Curator and despite being father and daughter felt Davison & Georgia had no rapport in their Legacy of Time outing. I really hope I’m swayed otherwise, but this is the epitome of what fans that don’t buy Big Finish think it is. I take your point; this is indeed fan service, as was the last instalment (the Fourth Doctor meeting the 'new' UNIT and The Meddling Monk). But for a celebration of the sixtieth anniversary, I think it's excusable, and will probably be quite a lot of fun. I think there's an over-use of A meets B and faces C generally, but for these releases, I tink it's justified. As for those who steer clear of Big Finish, I think it would take a lot to sway them anyway. I don’t disagree with anything you’re saying, particularly relating to it being an anniversary celebration. It’s just combinations that overegg the pudding a little more than usual; real life father and daughter, another Doctor playing The Curator, etc. Pair those previously done elements, none of which I were keen on, with the author who doesn’t produce great results in a fan environment, it’s not an announcement that does anything for me personally.
|
|
|
Post by sherlock on Apr 28, 2023 15:44:45 GMT
David Richardson in the announcement of Past Lives: “One of the joys of this anniversary release is being able to savour things that could otherwise never happen.”
Things that could otherwise never happen…like the exact same crossover of characters they did at the last big anniversary release! I’m just not sure what Five meeting Jenny will accomplish that the last time Five met Jenny didn’t. It’s not like the degenerating Doctor will know who she is, because the degeneration is starting mid-Time War so still long before The Doctor’s Daughter.
Also in a storyline all about degeneration bringing old incarnations back…what do you need the Curator for? His entire gimmick is irrelevant here surely.
I do think the artist at the end of time angle has promise though.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2023 15:45:23 GMT
I honestly don’t think that announcement could’ve been made any more unappealing. James Goss and returning elements isn’t a combination that excites me, I thought Colin added nothing to the character when he played The Curator and despite being father and daughter felt Davison & Georgia had no rapport in their Legacy of Time outing. I really hope I’m swayed otherwise, but this is the epitome of what fans that don’t buy Big Finish think it is. I take your point; this is indeed fan service, as was the last instalment (the Fourth Doctor meeting the 'new' UNIT and The Meddling Monk). But for a celebration of the sixtieth anniversary, I think it's excusable, and will probably be quite a lot of fun. I think there's an over-use of A meets B and faces C generally, but for these releases, I tink it's justified. As for those who steer clear of Big Finish, I think it would take a lot to sway them anyway. Problem is, though, as a lot have said in the post-Main Range era especially; since almost every box has a "gimmick" to sell itself - it's now less special when we see ANY novelties. We've seen....The Yana Master with UNIT, River with everyone, the Curator 3 or 4 times, Missy meeting the Monk etc etc etc. I don't envy them having to sell a "standard" box set on just "it's a good story". In the MR era, that just happened, as you'd subbed on goodwill. Not too easily done when the boxsets aren't as affordable and the onus is on events often over story. From a marketing POV..all makes sense - it's happening with Marvel and Star Wars. Yet they're declining. When everything is an event, nothing really is.
|
|
|
Post by dasmaniac on Apr 28, 2023 18:37:35 GMT
When it comes to anniversary stories, no one has topped what Steven Moffat did for The Day of The Doctor. It was as much a celebration of the past as it was about moving things forward.
|
|
|
Post by grinch on Apr 28, 2023 18:41:57 GMT
To be fair, this is the sort of story I expect to see for a Sixtieth Anniversary. Although as one of us already remarked, it can’t exactly be considered a novelty anymore when we’ve had a surfeit of crossover material lately.
|
|
|
Post by theillusiveman on Apr 29, 2023 8:20:22 GMT
Premise sounds fun
Jenny and the 5th doctor feels like a repeat of legacy of time Especially as the Doctor won’t remember Jenny as he didn’t meet/ create her until his 10th incarnation
I guess in a way this is a multi Doctor story with Colin’s curator (though why they didn’t get Tom is kinda weird)
Cover art for me looks alright just seeing people getting angry that big finish is using A.I artwork is kinda amusing
|
|
|
Post by Sir Wearer of Hats on Apr 29, 2023 8:58:36 GMT
When it comes to anniversary stories, no one has topped what Steven Moffat did for The Day of The Doctor. It was as much a celebration of the past as it was about moving things forward. To be fair, we’ve not HAD a proper anniversary story since then.
|
|
|
Post by tuigirl on Apr 29, 2023 9:16:57 GMT
I am not excited about this, either. Although I have to say I agree with the notion that this is exactly what these anniversary releases are expected to do- fan service. We have seen this can work wonderfully and perfectly in Picard season 3. But we have also seen it fail time and again in more BF releases than I can even begin to count. I am pretty tired of the X meets Y only to run into Z. So we will have to see how they do this time. Not the biggest fan of Jenny. Colin as the Curator was okay in Stranded, he always is value for money. I have paid for the bundle anyways, so I am now stuck with it anyways and will just see.
|
|
|
Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Apr 29, 2023 9:45:32 GMT
I am not excited about this, either. Although I have to say I agree with the notion that this is exactly what these anniversary releases are expected to do- fan service. We have seen this can work wonderfully and perfectly in Picard season 3. But we have also seen it fail time and again in more BF releases than I can even begin to count. I am pretty tired of the X meets Y only to run into Z. So we will have to see how they do this time. Not the biggest fan of Jenny. Colin as the Curator was okay in Stranded, he always is value for money. I have paid for the bundle anyways, so I am now stuck with it anyways and will just see.
A question I will ask is this.. As BBC ultimately have the final say.. Are they preventing some inventive stories from being produced? (much like the early Main Range).
Or are BF playing it safe purposely for "familiar territory" etc.
Something to maybe consider.
|
|
|
Post by bonehead on Apr 29, 2023 10:31:04 GMT
I am not excited about this, either. Although I have to say I agree with the notion that this is exactly what these anniversary releases are expected to do- fan service. We have seen this can work wonderfully and perfectly in Picard season 3. But we have also seen it fail time and again in more BF releases than I can even begin to count. I am pretty tired of the X meets Y only to run into Z. So we will have to see how they do this time. Not the biggest fan of Jenny. Colin as the Curator was okay in Stranded, he always is value for money. I have paid for the bundle anyways, so I am now stuck with it anyways and will just see.
A question I will ask is this.. As BBC ultimately have the final say.. Are they preventing some inventive stories from being produced? (much like the early Main Range).
Or are BF playing it safe purposely for "familiar territory" etc.
Something to maybe consider.
Nick recently announced the BBC were keeping 'more of an eye' on Big Finish, which makes me worry a bit. However, Once and Future has apparently been in the works for a long time, since before Nick's comments.
|
|
|
Post by tuigirl on Apr 29, 2023 12:09:22 GMT
A question I will ask is this.. As BBC ultimately have the final say.. Are they preventing some inventive stories from being produced? (much like the early Main Range).
Or are BF playing it safe purposely for "familiar territory" etc.
Something to maybe consider.
Nick recently announced the BBC were keeping 'more of an eye' on Big Finish, which makes me worry a bit. However, Once and Future has apparently been in the works for a long time, since before Nick's comments. Yeah, I would also say that it is not the BBC really who are behind this. The onset of "samey" and average stories goes back some years. At the start, we got all these weird and wonderful early stories that were experimental and different. In most cases, now, they are playing it save and have all these X meets Y only to run into Z. I sometimes get a feeling that they maybe play Bingo! or something before sitting down to write a story. Of course, there are also exceptions! Best example from this year- "River Song- Friend of the Family". Absolutely fantastic. Original. No recurring elements. Lots of timey-whimey-ness. Great characters. Moving wonderfully crafted story. Kind of experimental in how the puzzle-pieces fit together.
And, maybe best of all, no screaming Daleks!
So yes, it is still possible to get great original stories done.
|
|
|
Post by The Brigadier on Apr 29, 2023 12:18:56 GMT
I was hoping that Once and Future might have turned out to be that rare thing : a 'Road less travelled' for Big Finish, but with the details we do know at the moment I'm starting to suspect that the opposite will be true.
I'm still clinging on to that hope for a bit longer though.
But for now at least, the wallet stays closed. I will wait and see.
|
|
|
Post by Sir Wearer of Hats on Apr 29, 2023 21:57:01 GMT
I am not excited about this, either. Although I have to say I agree with the notion that this is exactly what these anniversary releases are expected to do- fan service. We have seen this can work wonderfully and perfectly in Picard season 3. But we have also seen it fail time and again in more BF releases than I can even begin to count. I am pretty tired of the X meets Y only to run into Z. So we will have to see how they do this time. Not the biggest fan of Jenny. Colin as the Curator was okay in Stranded, he always is value for money. I have paid for the bundle anyways, so I am now stuck with it anyways and will just see.
A question I will ask is this.. As BBC ultimately have the final say.. Are they preventing some inventive stories from being produced? (much like the early Main Range).
Or are BF playing it safe purposely for "familiar territory" etc.
Something to maybe consider.
I think it’s a case of a little from column A and a little from column B. The BBC is more careful of the brand now that it’s an active license and BF is operating on a “give the punter what (we think) they want” principle. The inventive stories and ideas … didn’t sell.
|
|
|
Post by Audio Watchdog on Apr 29, 2023 23:38:42 GMT
A question I will ask is this.. As BBC ultimately have the final say.. Are they preventing some inventive stories from being produced? (much like the early Main Range).
Or are BF playing it safe purposely for "familiar territory" etc.
Something to maybe consider.
I think it’s a case of a little from column A and a little from column B. The BBC is more careful of the brand now that it’s an active license and BF is operating on a “give the punter what (we think) they want” principle. The inventive stories and ideas … didn’t sell. I really think Doctor Who is at the point where it needs a break. 20+ years of audio Who and I don’t even know what an inventive story would sound like. Yeah, BF probably had more freedom in its earlier, pre-Who revival days and while conditions imposed by the license holder may limit the use of some characters or situations due to overlap, they aren’t going impose restrictions on good or fresh storytelling. I just think we’ve hit the point where things are by and large played out. Steven Moffat said a few times that writing for one Doctor is much like writing for any other Doctor. In a TV landscape where you are dealing with one Doctor Who at a time one can tend to forget that we are usually seeing variations on things we’ve seen before. It strikes me as something different when you are releasing audio adventures of multiple Doctors every month. This wasn’t a problem when it was one Doctor a month in the Main Range, with the odd smattering of 8th Doctor releases, because you were essentially dealing with the same solo aspect as the TV Who. Now with box set after box set, its harder to avoid that feeling that we’ve heard it all before…like a couple of months ago with a different Doctor. As David notes, with the box set age, everything has to be a gimmick, so a series like this that is built on a gimmick ends up feeling old hat even before we hear it. I’ll really admit I’ve become overwhelmed by my backlog of BF but every time I try to catch up I can’t help feeling that it is all too much and I’m constantly listening to the same story. Anyway, even with all that I hope this is a fun series.
|
|
|
Post by martinw8686 on Apr 30, 2023 12:36:26 GMT
I adore Doctor Who, I'll take what ever I can get, having been born in 1986, I remember the wilderness years all to well, I discovered the show in the mid 90s and devoured the back catalogue. I worry if there was to be a prolonged break for Doctor Who, we could be looking at another 16 years or God forbid a reboot that throws away 60 years worth of mythology.
I'm really excited for Past Lives, the chance to see the 4th Doctor return, able to reflect on all that's happened since his original death, and to see Sarah Jane again, I can't wait.
That said, this second story, doesn't really grab me with what's been revealed so far. I'm hopeful the interesting premise of returning regenenerated Doctors yields a refreshing form of reflection for these stories.
|
|
|
Post by Kestrel on Apr 30, 2023 23:30:14 GMT
Nick recently announced the BBC were keeping 'more of an eye' on Big Finish, which makes me worry a bit. However, Once and Future has apparently been in the works for a long time, since before Nick's comments. Yeah, I would also say that it is not the BBC really who are behind this. The onset of "samey" and average stories goes back some years. At the start, we got all these weird and wonderful early stories that were experimental and different. In most cases, now, they are playing it save and have all these X meets Y only to run into Z. I sometimes get a feeling that they maybe play Bingo! or something before sitting down to write a story. Of course, there are also exceptions! Best example from this year- "River Song- Friend of the Family". Absolutely fantastic. Original. No recurring elements. Lots of timey-whimey-ness. Great characters. Moving wonderfully crafted story. Kind of experimental in how the puzzle-pieces fit together.
And, maybe best of all, no screaming Daleks!
So yes, it is still possible to get great original stories done.
The really annoying exceptions are the ones that look like they'll be more disposable X meets Y chaff, but for whatever reason spin off in wildly different directions. My go-to example for that would be A Quiet Night In.Also -- and Ive probably said this before -- I think the perception that Big Finish is less ambitious/taking fewer risks now than before is largely illusory. It only makes sense for people to remember the stories that left the bigger impression, and forget those that didn't. Eventually all that's left is the very good -- or the very bad. And as someone who's only been in this hobby for a couple of years now, and has spent most of that time consuming very old stories simultaneously with brand-new stories... I see a lot of generic chaff and impressive standouts at both-ends. Certainly the early MR had its share of stinkers, but also its not like that was the only range Big Finish was releasing back then, and few of the other ranges are as well-regarded or as well-remembered. Consider also that Big Finish is releasing a greater quantity of content now than ever before -- and that means more of everything, good and bad. I think a lot of our collective frustration stems from the XDAs being... not great. And rightly so -- they ain't great and they're (supposed to be) flagship products. But at the same time we've been getting some truly spectacular new releases in other ranges, from Peladon and Susan's War to Stranded and Friend of the Family.I'm typically a very cynical person, though I do try to obfuscate that as best I can, and I'm definitely far from optimistic about the current state and trajectory of the new XDAs... but when it comes to Big Finish and their output as a whole? Yeah... I just don't see the decline that some fans do.
|
|
|
Post by ollychops on May 1, 2023 10:04:28 GMT
Yeaaaah, not too hyped for this one considering we already got the Five/Jenny team-up in The Legacy of Time. I’m sure it’ll still be great because it’s a Goss story but initial details aren’t getting me too excited.
|
|