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Post by Bazoolium on Jan 20, 2018 23:12:23 GMT
That was a hell of a lot of fun. Mad, but in the best way. The cast seem to be having a ball with the script, but I feel that it struggled to deal with a TARDIS team of 4.
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Post by IndieMacUser on Jan 26, 2018 10:55:51 GMT
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Post by omega on Jan 31, 2018 9:13:08 GMT
"We've seen Stranger Things with the Doctor."
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Post by nottenst on Jan 31, 2018 20:51:01 GMT
Just finished this today. As everyone else mentions, this was a load of fun. One thing I was wondering at the end, though - that credit chip the Doctor gave the Scorpion. I don't think it wasn't mentioned after he semi-paralyzed her. I presume he took that back as she violated the terms of that deal.
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Post by number13 on Feb 1, 2018 0:08:25 GMT
Another brilliant comedy of plots, power grabs and assassinations by Robert Khan and Tom Salinsky (after 'The Ravelli Conspiracy'), this time set around two ducal families on an alien world - but a lot of the satirical comedy is aimed much, much closer to home and perhaps whether you think this story is brilliant or just 'very good' may depend on getting/liking the many British royal references. For me this made the story a 5* but there's going to be wide variation in how people react to this. I don't remember any other MR story where a significant part of the 'payoff' depended this much on the listener knowing specific real-world events in some detail. (So I've put a few examples at the end - if they were obvious to you, my apologies, I included that section to illustrate what's going on beneath the surface of an already entertaining 'Doctor Who' adventure for the benefit of any listeners who wondered what I was waffling on about! ) I enjoyed the pure character comedy of the first half, played perfectly by all the large cast. For me the winner was Sarah Sutton, excellent, as Nyssa very unconvincingly pretends to be "Nyssa the Destroyer", apprentice to The "Scorpion" Doctor! ('He kills for money. I murder because I like it.') A quick twist into the second half when it looks as if things might turn a bit more serious but we're soon into 'Ravelli'-style court comedy-mystery with the Doctor pulling all the threads together and unmasking villains so efficiently I was thinking 'hang on a minute Doctor, there's another episode to go yet!' {Spoiler} Take a close look at the cast list to see who played 'Amelia' and 'Tomek'... But just when they think it's all over... The Scorpion really turns up for the final episode, Patsy Kensit in great style as the very deadly assassin, stomping around in a cybernetic suit which sounds like a late-reel Terminator and exuding menace with a comedy edge. The facts are serious but the tone stays light with lots of running through catacombs - and then bang! One really good shock moment which plays very well on the Fifth Doctor's character pre-'Earthshock', when he was one of the gentlest and least confrontational of Doctors. But we can soon relax, there is a happy ending and just for once, everyone lives to tell the tale - now that proves it's a comedy! Satire Spoiler There's a big bonus on offer IF you followed news of our British royal family from about 1981 onwards; the jokes and near-quotes will most likely leap out again and again. However, if you are much under 35 (at a guess) and/or just not interested in British 'royal news' then the payoff won't be as great because the jokes might not score so many hits. Try these quotes for size: 'Whatever “love” is.', 'The Duke of all their hearts.', 'the people’s Duchess.', 'For too long there have been three people in this marriage.', 'a candle that just blows and flickers in the wind'... If you instantly recognised the curious similarities you'll probably also have spotted the ones about not flying a flag at half-mast, about former staff selling their stories, a royal personage 'painting execrable watercolours, talking to bees' and a building extension described as a 'brutalist barnacle' (I believe the word was in fact 'carbuncle'!). And that most biting line (this one at the expense of the Great British Public) about the Duchess's (fake) death building into 'a tsunami of grief and mass hysteria' - in just 'a couple of days'. Ouch...! And there are many, many more... I'm not anti-royal, but I enjoyed every minute of this right royal send-up!
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Post by Audio Watchdog on Feb 12, 2018 0:10:30 GMT
Well, that was rather a fun adventure. Nyssa the Destroyer was pretty hysterical.
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Post by mark687 on Feb 12, 2018 12:44:29 GMT
Extended Extras DL for this is available for Subscribers to the MA's/MR's
Regards
mark687
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Post by Ian McArdell on Feb 15, 2018 16:22:35 GMT
My take on Kingdom of Lies is up at CultBox - fun, but didn't totally float my boat. Lots to love about it though...
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Post by Hieronymus on Feb 20, 2018 21:24:43 GMT
I was very impressed with the Music Suite for this story. It blends so well with the action, that I wasn't conscious of the music at all while listening to the story. This is a result of good music and good sound editing together. The music stands as well (or even better) apart from the story as it does within the story.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2018 23:07:02 GMT
That was pretty wonderful. The tone was very evocative of the first few farcical episodes of The Holy Terror - which is as high as praise gets. It never reaches the heights that story does but it's really fun without ever being just a runaround (that overused term "romp") and it's something akin to a Davison take on The Romans in the almost Carry On shenanigans. From Nyssa The Destroyer to the old Duke just wanting to go to the bookies to the Princess who couldn't hide for 10 mins when she's faking her own death I thought it was just bags of fun.
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Post by Ela on May 2, 2018 22:58:14 GMT
Completed my belated listen to this a week or two ago and really enjoyed it. Fun and amusing!
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Post by slithe on May 4, 2018 19:25:06 GMT
Great fun this one. Really satirical and lots of digs at the British Royal Family here. Probably a more topical release than initially intended due to the forthcoming Royal Wedding and birth of the Royal Baby, but definitely amusing. Peter Davison plays the Fifth Doctor in a way that is quite refreshing - humorous and with a biting wit. The attempt to be a marriage counsellor is a particular highlight as is the deadpan 'Nyssa the Destroyer'. A great way to spend a couple of hours. Not sure whether Doctor Who is supposed to be comical, but this was a nice change for once.
If I am going to nitpick a bit, I do wonder 'how far' Big Finish are going to develop the Doctor beyond the confines of their respective era. Can't see JNT ever allowing this one in the 1980s. Pity. However, it doesn't seem to represent the character of the Doctor that we saw on the screen. A minor point, but worth considering.
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Post by fantasticalice on May 15, 2018 5:49:03 GMT
Well that was just delightful. Fantastic start to my inaugural mr subscription.
And I have to tell you I was wor near tge end. Peter is my favourite but I really believed he was gonna kill someone or through Blatant and willful inaction cause death.
It was a relief when he continued being the fifth Doctor but wow. It's right up there with those moments in the better audios where you're worried the Doctor will really die/regenerate.
Doctor Who and it's "closed loop" storytelling is really one of the best barometers for good stories. I mean if I'm scared Nyssa is going to die or that Adric will murder someone there is no higher praise!
Very very enjoyable though. And I loved the Royal family digs.
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 5,810
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Post by lidar2 on May 16, 2018 20:22:40 GMT
Listened to this and enjoyed it.
Very good on its own terms but when taken together with the writers' other story, the very similar Ravelli Conspiracy, I fear the writers may be a pair of one trick ponies. Their next story needs to be very different if they are to dispel this perception.
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