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Post by martinw8686 on Oct 22, 2023 11:28:50 GMT
I'm wanting to spread a little positivity. It's easy to find fault when releases aren't to our liking. I want to give a shout out to recent good work of the ranges that have impressed me most.
3DAs - Loving the recasts and care taken to authenticly recreate the era.
5DAs - character focused tales that suit the more sensitive Doctor.
8DAs - great character work and clever stories, especially Albie's Angels. Next month a new companion who looks promising. Time War Cass ended promising an intriguing follow up.
11DCs - Absolutely brilliant, Dudman's 11 is remarkable and the stories have been original but also feel right for the season long arc Big Finish have squeezed in between series 7a and 7b. 5/5 Range
River Song - Wow just wow, to Friend of the Family. One of the best releases of the last decade from Big Finish.
Gallifrey Time War/War Room - I've just binged this range. TW1 & TW4 were awesome, War Room 1 has been really impressive too, Louise Jameson has taken Leela to a new level, it's lovely seeing how much the character has grown since the Doctor departed.
The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield - my next binge range, David Warner's Unbound Doctor really intrigues and the range is very well reviewed.
Honourable mentions,
2DAs - lots of potential, the double act introduced in James Robert Mccrimmon was wonderful.
Stephen Noonan 1st Doctor- I love his creepy interpretation of the Doctor and The Miniaturisist was brilliant.
7DAs - much improved this year. Solid set with Far From Home.
Apart from my dissapointed with Once and Future and avoiding the 6DAs (negative reviews), I can honestly say I've rather enjoyed the last couple of years with Big Finish
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Post by mark687 on Oct 22, 2023 11:42:02 GMT
Consistent
3DAs, 4DAs, 8DAs, 9DAs, TWMR, WM, PG
Ranges that have improvements 7DA 5DA 1DA 2DA
Jury still out on 6DA and Once and Future
Regards
mark687
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Post by bonehead on Oct 22, 2023 11:48:56 GMT
The 3DAs claim the crown for me, hands down, followed by the 5DAs and 1DAs. The reason is, I think, that these ranges have mostly stuck to telling good stories well. No endless crossovers, no constantly returning villains.
An honourable mention for the War Doctor Begins, a series that has really carved out an identity of its own. I'm sorry it is coming to an end.
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Post by martinw8686 on Oct 22, 2023 13:11:57 GMT
How could I forget The War Master! Top range, one of my absolute favourites. 5/5 range.
I'd class The War Doctor Begins as an honourable mention. Jonathan Carley was brilliant, I hope we see more from him. I really enjoyed WDB 1 and 4.
I'd probably say River Song isn't quite a fully consistent range, the quality varies from set to set. But I adored FofF, so thought it worth a mention.
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Post by martinw8686 on Oct 22, 2023 13:35:21 GMT
Tier List of current consistency of ranges I've listened to in last couple of years.
5/5 my absolute favourites
WM, 8DAs, 11DAs, 10DAs (Dalek Universe), 11DAs,
I'm confident TNAOBS will be either 5/5 or 4/5
4/5 Usually very good
4DAs, 3DAs, 2DAs Beyond War Games, 5DAs, WDB, Gallifrey TW/WR, 8DTW,
3/5 show promise/ up and down
1DAs, 7DAs, 9DAs (I enjoyed the first few sets but have lost interest in the structure)
2/5 dissapointed/not to my taste
Once and Future, Unbound Doctor of War
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Post by tuigirl on Oct 23, 2023 15:52:09 GMT
For me- - New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield. This range had some of the most original and fresh stories in recent years, and it was a real blow that the range ended with the sad passing of David Warner. - The War Doctor Begins- although I am tired of Daleks and the Time War, this is one of the ranges that continues to engage me, despite the setting and villains. - The recent 5th Doctor Adventures were pretty good, it started with the end of the Main Range with some great storylines - 11DAs - 3DAs- which are great at emulating the eras the stories come from- sometimes to their detriment as seen in the latest release that definitely had "lengths".
I am having high hopes for the continuation of the Paternoster Gang- strong start into the second series.
There were some really awesome stories in other ranges, like Albie's Angels (pure tearing-up material) and of course the amazing Friend of the Family. But the respective ranges were a bit more hit and miss for me lately, and the question was about "consistency".
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Post by martinw8686 on Oct 23, 2023 21:14:48 GMT
For me- - New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield. This range had some of the most original and fresh stories in recent years, and it was a real blow that the range ended with the sad passing of David Warner. - The War Doctor Begins- although I am tired of Daleks and the Time War, this is one of the ranges that continues to engage me, despite the setting and villains. - The recent 5th Doctor Adventures were pretty good, it started with the end of the Main Range with some great storylines - 11DAs - 3DAs- which are great at emulating the eras the stories come from- sometimes to their detriment as seen in the latest release that definitely had "lengths". I am having high hopes for the continuation of the Paternoster Gang- strong start into the second series. There were some really awesome stories in other ranges, like Albie's Angels (pure tearing-up material) and of course the amazing Friend of the Family. But the respective ranges were a bit more hit and miss for me lately, and the question was about "consistency". Albie's Angels and Friend of the Family were awesome. You're right about some releases being hit and miss though. I find a few ranges to be consistently good but only occasionally spectacular. I'm looking forward to listening to the Benny/Unbound Doctor sets, it looks like all of their sets are highly rated. I enjoy the more weird timey wimey stories, so I've still got plenty of mileage for the Time War. Although I prefer the affects caused by the Time War to the Daleks themselves.
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Post by timleschild on Oct 23, 2023 21:19:43 GMT
Ninth Doctor Adventures.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 24, 2023 5:22:56 GMT
For me, the Third Doctor Adventures.
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Post by sherlock on Oct 26, 2023 9:07:58 GMT
Torchwood’s one of the most consistent for me, which is impressive give how much of it there now is. Monthlies are the most reliable range going I think, and Among Us didn’t have a single story I didn’t enjoy.
Agree on New Adventures of Benny and War Master. The 5DAs have also carved out a nice niche this year in decent original stories so hoping that trend carries on.
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Post by martinw8686 on Oct 26, 2023 11:37:03 GMT
It's so easy to focus on what we don't like as fans. I love Doctor Who and can fall victim to very specific expectations of upcoming releases. I have to say looking at all the ranges I listen to, Big Finish are still consistently knocking out top knotch adventures month in, month out.
The War Master, War Doctor Begins, New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield, Gallifrey WR, 3DAs, 4DAs, 8DAs all score top reviews over the last few years.
I'm not so keen on the 9DAs or Torchwood but those ranges continue to be highly regarded.
For my part, even the ranges I haven't mentioned aren't particularly bad, their either new ranges still finding their feet or just okay 3/5s.
I have avoided the recent 6DAs based on the reviews I've seen. Perhaps in afew years I will get them on sale. Although Out of Time 3 was very good and I enjoyed The Eleven.
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Post by thelonecenturion on Oct 26, 2023 20:26:22 GMT
I think Big Finish gets a lot of flack at the moment (there are a lot of complaints that they only do crossovers), and to be honest I think the majority of it is completely undeserved. The ranges I'm enjoying at the moment:
The Third Doctor Adventures - Very rarely are there even returning monsters/villains in this range let alone too many crossovers. This series strikes the perfect balance for me in recreating the era faithfully but also telling original stories, and I think it's consistently excellent.
The Eighth Doctor Adventures - Occasionally there's a reliance on recurring monsters here but when that's done it's done well and again I think this range is consistently very enjoyable.
The Eleventh Doctor Chronicles - This series with Valarie has been some of my favourite Big Finish output in years, it's incredibly strong and there hasn't been an episode I haven't liked so far.
The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield - I really hope this range hasn't finished for good. While the series with David Warner were the best output of the bunch, I did really like those early boxsets with the Seventh Doctor and Ace. I'd love to see Benny either with a new Doctor or solo for a while, because I think the team behind this series really knows what its doing.
Torchwood - Almost no misses. By far my favourite Big Finish range, it takes characters and storylines from the TV show and expands upon them so well as to surpass even Children of Earth in quality. Genuinely amazing stuff.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 17, 2023 21:15:27 GMT
Not a range as such but I've loved Harry and Naomi. I like the old school BF vibe of telling their story out of order. By the time we meet them their travels with "their" Doctor is over and they're already in the wrong time after he makes a mistake dropping them off. They've been supporting players in 4 Unit Nemesis sets then in the 2 most recent 7DA sets get picked up by a later Doctor. Now we know we're getting their "origin" (though, clearly we know Harry's) as a team in the 4DAs. It's not been confusing or convoluted. Not felt like a gimmick. Just feels like a way to do something interesting with an existing companion in Harry and have a bit of fun with time travel. It breaks up the UNIT plots a bit when we get an ep where Harry can come in. Or Naomi gives a good contrast to Kate or Osgood.
Only slight niggle is Naomi never sounds remotely like she's from the 70s (80s? Unit dating!) but hey. The charm more than makes up for it. Their last set with Sylv didn't get them home (either to the future or their own time) so there's more to come too. Underrated stuff I think. A lovely folk horror in Scream Of The Daleks. A fun UNIT story set in Australia with Ice Warriors....anyone who's been put off by them crossing ranges? Don't be.
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Post by number13 on Nov 17, 2023 22:16:08 GMT
For me, the Third Doctor Adventures. And for me! They're absolutely splendid.
Also, the 4DAs are very consistent, The War Master is always excellent and (going back a bit further) I think The Early Adventures were excellent from start to (so far at least) finish.
Going back still further, let us pay the greatest tribute to Jago & Litefoot. 17 full volumes plus all the extra stories and the quality never wavered for a second, a panoply of perfectly presented performances. Positively peerless!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2023 0:33:30 GMT
Interesting that no-one - literally no-one - has picked out the 6DAs. I wouldn't either. Anyone got any ideas why?
Ultimately the stories haven't been great - but even when they're better than others, I just find Hebe quite a dislikeable character and when an episode has her and Patricia/Purity? It can be just too much narkiness for one audio and quite off putting. I don't think there's much chemistry with Colin and Bonnie and the newbies either.
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Post by martinw8686 on Nov 18, 2023 0:39:13 GMT
Interesting that no-one - literally no-one - has picked out the 6DAs. I wouldn't either. Anyone got any ideas why? Ultimately the stories haven't been great - but even when they're better than others, I just find Hebe quite a dislikeable character and when an episode has her and Patricia/Purity? It can be just too much narkiness for one audio and quite off putting. I don't think there's much chemistry with Colin and Bonnie and the newbies either. I've not listened to the 6DAs since the relaunch based on the poor feedback. Such a shame as when I first discovered Big Finish I devoured 6s adventures with Evelyn. He also had a great run with Constance and Flip.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2023 0:49:28 GMT
Interesting that no-one - literally no-one - has picked out the 6DAs. I wouldn't either. Anyone got any ideas why? Ultimately the stories haven't been great - but even when they're better than others, I just find Hebe quite a dislikeable character and when an episode has her and Patricia/Purity? It can be just too much narkiness for one audio and quite off putting. I don't think there's much chemistry with Colin and Bonnie and the newbies either. I've not listened to the 6DAs since the relaunch based on the poor feedback. Such a shame as when I first discovered Big Finish I devoured 6s adventures with Evelyn. He also had a great run with Constance and Flip. And both Flip and Constance had distinct personalities. They were polar opposites yet ended up bringing the best out in each other. That...doesn't really happen with Hebe. She's written as a, well, less interesting Liv. A sarcastic comeback for everything but without any real depth beyond that. She's got traits but little actual character. Having that TARDIS team for 4 boxsets, none of which has been very popular, has really dented the momentum for Colin's Doctor, I think. One of the aspects I like about BF is being able to jump around eras. We can have a First Doctor box with Dodo then an older Vicki. A Fourth Doctor box with Leela, then Margaret, then Harry and Naomi then...loads of options. I wonder if people just didn't take to Hebe and Purity with Colin and Bonnie and things have just gotten old? Some of what they have Purity do and say is VERY on the nose stuff as well, which came off quite pandering. We've had one boxset in over 3 years without that team, and even that had The Eleven who has been overused quite a lot himself. Colin's got two boxsets next year. I hope things pick up.
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Post by eightelements on Nov 18, 2023 7:53:56 GMT
One of the aspects I like about BF is being able to jump around eras. We can have a First Doctor box with Dodo then an older Vicki. A Fourth Doctor box with Leela, then Margaret, then Harry and Naomi then...loads of options. We've had one boxset in over 3 years without that team, and even that had The Eleven who has been overused quite a lot himself. Colin's got two boxsets next year. I hope things pick up. Well, as mentioned in the news article announcing the 2024 DW box sets, next year is Colin's 40th. Will his two box sets follow a similar format to [The Fifth Doctor:] Forty? Will Big Finish have learned its lesson from the poor reception Forty 1 received here? Between that and The Last Day, who knows what the quality of next year's 6DAs and 7DAs will be like...
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Post by masterdoctor on Nov 18, 2023 9:52:18 GMT
Even though I'm a couple of releases behind on some ranges, my favourites are the 3DAs, Diary of River Song (I haven't heard the last set yet), The War Master, The Paternoster Gang, Torchwood, The Robots and the 9DAs. All of them are consistently high quality in my opinion and some of the best of Big Finish has come out of these ranges (Friend of the Family, Respond to all Calls, Volume 7 of the 3DAs)
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Post by sherlock on Nov 18, 2023 10:27:23 GMT
Interesting that no-one - literally no-one - has picked out the 6DAs. I wouldn't either. Anyone got any ideas why? Ultimately the stories haven't been great - but even when they're better than others, I just find Hebe quite a dislikeable character and when an episode has her and Patricia/Purity? It can be just too much narkiness for one audio and quite off putting. I don't think there's much chemistry with Colin and Bonnie and the newbies either. Well in terms of consistency I think Water Worlds is a good example of a consistent little set that admittedly doesn’t set world on fire either. Then Purity Undreamed happened, and I haven’t followed the range since.
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