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Post by omega on Feb 15, 2017 9:37:14 GMT
Released September 2013Part 6 of the '1973' Story ArcSynopsis“It's my philosophy. Heads or tails. Chances and choices...”Carolyn Stoddard is lost. Widowed at an early age, she's the lonely rich girl, drinking her life away as her friends grow up and move on. But Carolyn's life is about to change. Because Carolyn is about to be given a set of choices. And those choices will determine whether she is allowed to live or die. It's closing time at the Blue Whale but for Carolyn Stoddard the night is far from over. It's time to face the music... Written By: Cody Quijano-Schell Directed By: David Darlington, Darren Gross and Jim Pierson CASTNancy Barrett (Carolyn Stoddard), Christopher Ragland (Jonah Rooney), Kathryn Leigh Scott (Maggie Evans), Lisa Richards (Sabrina Jennings), Jonathon Marx (Jim Hardy), Stephanie Ellyne (Amy Jennings)
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Post by omega on Feb 15, 2017 9:40:39 GMT
Hands down one of my top five favorites of the Dark Shadows releases. Like the rest of the first four 1973 stories it's perfect for those new to Dark Shadows, yet to seasoned fans who caught the train in ages ago there's plenty of easter egg continuity (both relating to the pre-Barnabas period and the rest of the show). With the focus on Carolyn as a character as opposed to general incident it feels like the early Dramatic Readings. The original song is amazing, and has helped me when it felt like things were tumbling down.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 15, 2017 12:28:55 GMT
This is certainly an incredible performance from Nancy Barrett who is given some lovely emotive stuff to work with. This is what I love about the 1-disc dramatic readings (and now the bite-size (like this month's 'Phantom Melodies') - that we are allowed to get inside the heads of the characters we loved from the television show. Beautiful stuff.
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Post by silverednickle on Feb 17, 2017 19:02:58 GMT
Cody did such of a good job writing this of not only infusing it with a lot of Easter egg's of Carolyn Collins Stoddard (Hawkes) history from the original series and the audios so far, but also bits and pieces of teasers from other variations of Dark Shadows. You can imagine the traveling Jonah somehow happening upon the world of House of Dark Shadows, and after seeing the vampire Carolyn staked there, realizing this wasn't going to be the ideal Carolyn for his plan. You can see him popping to the Tim Burton's Dark Shadows and seeing the werewolf Carolyn there wouldn't work. There details are mere passings in the overall story, but great for fans familiar with the very many incarnations of the series. Plus what was also nice about this story was that it went somewhere at the end.
At lot of the earlier audios had one weakness where they didn't seem to want to advance the characters too much, as they were either done in between things from the show (and thus this character had to live, or how would they have been on the show) or not hold themselves back from another potential full cast (when the audios first came out, there especially was this notion that they weren't sure if they would ever make another one), or of course leave on a cliffhanger because the sales might not be strong enough for Big Finish to continue.
Cody did a good job of connecting the Carolyn at the end of the series, who wasn't a primary character in 1970 when Barnabas and Julia return to the path that Sam Hall hinted they might have done if the show had continued (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaxfjC3u8Oc&feature=related) and of course from Return to Collinwood (https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Shadows-Collinwood-Various-Artists/dp/B000ESB7ZU). Big Finish has done a good job of respecting these mostly, but also not letting these hold them back from their own ideas. Thankfully they have brought Cody back, but I'm greedy and want him there all the time, or at least helping edit the stories, to add in some of the countless Dark Shadows tid bits he knows.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 15:39:49 GMT
Wow....knowing little of Carolyn apart from a few episodes and a few audios,this is a real emotional wringer of an audio its like a soap episode finale,Cody have to say you poured a lot into this episode,and i got the wee chills when Gretchen came up.Nancy Barrett really gives it her all.this is a definite relisten.who hasn’t been in a bar thinking of how your life might have been?Christopher Ragland turns in an equally great performance. i am much impressed by all these dark shadows releases really haven’t heard a bad one yet.Even Lucifer Gambit which after i listened read a bit and the reviews were mostly negative,i read ,I loved it was fun,Flip Side is a different kind of fun,and alternative reality timeline kind of fun.Brilliant
by the way i would have classed this as a full cast not a dramatic reading.
by way it was so good I played it again
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Post by Rob Morris on Aug 4, 2018 17:10:01 GMT
This is a great one.
It's one of those ones wheere the writing and the lead actor are just meant to be. Nancy Barrett was great in the original series (in all of her many roles) and here she's given really good material to work with. So it just sizzles.
Hole in one, this story. A hole in one.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 17:12:16 GMT
This is a great one. It's one of those ones wheere the writing and the lead actor are just meant to be. Nancy Barrett was great in the original series (in all of her many roles) and here she's given really good material to work with. So it just sizzles. Hole in one, this story. A hole in one. Next one with apple pie and custard is Tainted Love- fingers crossed its also a good one
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bobod
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Post by bobod on Aug 4, 2018 17:13:26 GMT
by the way i would have classed this as a full cast not a dramatic reading. This is one of the ones in the 1973 season I mentioned to you where the stories are slightly linked and the actors appear in each other's stories. It's like a dummy run for Bloodlust - cast appearing throughout the run and a serial element, the difference being each disc tells its own story with its own lead character, rather than it being one ongoing story.
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bobod
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Post by bobod on Aug 4, 2018 17:14:16 GMT
The Flip Side is probably my favourite Big Finish Production.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 17:16:25 GMT
by the way i would have classed this as a full cast not a dramatic reading. This is one of the ones in the 1973 season I mentioned to you where the stories are slightly linked and the actors appear in each other's stories. It's like a dummy run for Bloodlust - cast appearing throughout the run and a serial element, the difference being each disc tells its own story with its own lead character, rather than it being one ongoing story. Yep am doing kind of random picks of them but love piecing bits together of wether its pre or post Bloodlust from the story it is pretty much excellent work so much more than Who tbh a wider range of emotional depths and totally engrossing. i just long for a British box set of the tv show lol now
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 17:18:01 GMT
The Flip Side is probably my favourite Big Finish Production. Yes can see why you might think that it is a pretty great story with great acting and a wonderful final act
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cschell
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Post by cschell on Aug 4, 2018 20:04:00 GMT
Thanks again everyone! That small run of 6 Dark Shadows audios was pure magic, everyone writing also feeding into each other's energy. It was my first audio and Joe pushed me so hard to get it really right. And that lovely song! Everything and everyone snapped into place. I know I'm the writer, but I feel like I can gush about how good it turned out because I was only one person on a huge team that influenced the finished product.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 20:08:57 GMT
Thanks again everyone! That small run of 6 Dark Shadows audios was pure magic, everyone writing also feeding into each other's energy. It was my first audio and Joe pushed me so hard to get it really right. And that lovely song! Everything and everyone snapped into place. I know I'm the writer, but I feel like I can gush about how good it turned out because I was only one person on a huge team that influenced the finished product. well you and ALL THE TEAM created A MAGICAL STORY
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Post by Trace on Aug 5, 2018 1:26:22 GMT
I agree! And the song was magical too!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2018 8:40:05 GMT
Relistened to this yesterday afternoon. now that the cds have arrived .It really is a dark and entertaining tale and one that you cheer at the villains comeuppance...Nancy Barret enetertains throughout as does Christopher Ragland.I think I have only about 6 left to get but am going to hold off for a while.Bloodline news should surely come soon
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Post by omega on Aug 19, 2018 9:01:42 GMT
Nancy's performance is stunning, running a range of emotions a hitting everyone one of them. Carolyn's phone call with her mother is the highlight and you can imagine the other side of the conversation without the writer resorting to repeating the other side out loud.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2018 9:14:49 GMT
Nancy's performance is stunning, running a range of emotions a hitting everyone one of them. Carolyn's phone call with her mother is the highlight and you can imagine the other side of the conversation without the writer resorting to repeating the other side out loud. And happy 6000th post lol😂 though am not giving out prizes👍
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Post by barnabaslives on Aug 19, 2018 10:59:33 GMT
Nancy's performance is stunning, running a range of emotions a hitting everyone one of them. Carolyn's phone call with her mother is the highlight and you can imagine the other side of the conversation without the writer resorting to repeating the other side out loud. I think that scene must literally be the most moving thing I've ever heard in a Big Finish audio, on account of both Cody's writing, and Nancy's performance.
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Post by omega on Aug 19, 2018 11:44:01 GMT
Nancy's performance is stunning, running a range of emotions a hitting everyone one of them. Carolyn's phone call with her mother is the highlight and you can imagine the other side of the conversation without the writer resorting to repeating the other side out loud. I think that scene must literally be the most moving thing I've ever heard in a Big Finish audio, on account of both Cody's writing, and Nancy's performance. I was filling in Joan Bennett’s lines in my head. Any tender moment between them needs to be savoured. You’ve got to wonder if the line “I miss your face” held any special meaning for Nancy during recording. I’d love to hear one of the short stories exploring the days of Carolyn’s youth, when Elizabeth was raising her. It can’t have been easy, and reflecting on Paul would provide an interesting angle on it.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2018 12:59:35 GMT
I think that scene must literally be the most moving thing I've ever heard in a Big Finish audio, on account of both Cody's writing, and Nancy's performance. I was filling in Joan Bennett’s lines in my head. Any tender moment between them needs to be savoured. You’ve got to wonder if the line “I miss your face” held any special meaning for Nancy during recording. I’d love to hear one of the short stories exploring the days of Carolyn’s youth, when Elizabeth was raising her. It can’t have been easy, and reflecting on Paul would provide an interesting angle on it. There is still a lot of uncovered ground to be had in Dark shadows am listening to the beginning of the Bernice Summerfield range and so much teen sexual angst and stuff i find quite boring as i do with some bits in Bloodlust but overall it did not interfere with bloodlust story.If i want that kind of drama i will switch on hollyoaks(which i wont lol).It was same stuff that interfered with Cicero too just switches me off
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