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Post by themeddlingmonk on Dec 17, 2019 10:39:46 GMT
I really liked it. It was a fun bit of Christmas fluff and sometimes, that's all you need for this time of year. {Spoiler}
Is anyone else getting really annoyed with the "false companion" trope BF has been using in recent years? It started as a cool idea poorly executed with Mathew Sharpe, settled (for me at least) as a solid meh with Ann Kelso, was absolutely amazingly done with Ria, and I called it halfway through episode 2 here. Honestly, if BF is going to add new companions, at this point just bite the bullet and add them. Don't get wishy-washy. {Spoiler}
They’ve gone a bit mad with it haven’t they?
October 2017 - Sheena/Emma/Louise (Starship of Theseus)
January 2018 - Brooke (Diary of River Song 3)
May 2018 - Mathew (Lure of the Nomad)
January/February 2019 - Ann Kelso (4DA Series 8)
July 2019 - Ria (Lies in Ruins)
December 2019 - Joe (Blood on Santa's Claw)
Not all were evil of course but still a fakeout of sorts. I’d say Joe was probably the weakest so far, mainly because the trope is so tired by this point and the other characters at least were a good twist or had some agency as a villain. |
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Post by fingersmash on Dec 17, 2019 14:32:42 GMT
I really liked it. It was a fun bit of Christmas fluff and sometimes, that's all you need for this time of year. {Spoiler}
Is anyone else getting really annoyed with the "false companion" trope BF has been using in recent years? It started as a cool idea poorly executed with Mathew Sharpe, settled (for me at least) as a solid meh with Ann Kelso, was absolutely amazingly done with Ria, and I called it halfway through episode 2 here. Honestly, if BF is going to add new companions, at this point just bite the bullet and add them. Don't get wishy-washy. {Spoiler}
They’ve gone a bit mad with it haven’t they?
October 2017 - Sheena/Emma/Louise (Starship of Theseus)
January 2018 - Brooke (Diary of River Song 3)
May 2018 - Mathew (Lure of the Nomad)
January/February 2019 - Ann Kelso (4DA Series 8)
July 2019 - Ria (Lies in Ruins)
December 2019 - Joe (Blood on Santa's Claw)
Not all were evil of course but still a fakeout of sorts. I’d say Joe was probably the weakest so far, mainly because the trope is so tired by this point and the other characters at least were a good twist or had some agency as a villain. I didn't mind Joe as much as others seem to. He felt like a typical rockstar but yeah. Here's hoping that this weird trope gets rested for a while. |
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Post by slithe on Dec 20, 2019 12:37:48 GMT
Still mulling over this one... On the one hand, I feel that this release is very good. On the other hand, I feel that this is a bit meh.
Some of this is probably due to the fact that Warzone/Conversion (and the other 5th Doctor stories) were very, very good this year and so pushed the quality far higher than would normally have been the case. As a result, Blood on Santa's Claw is a bit like Inside the Spaceship after the Daleks had aired in 1964 - struggling to follow something that has been highly regarded and captured attention.
Prima facie, there is a lot to enjoy here and the three stories themselves are relatively good. The title story is an interesting one and I do like the idea of different belief systems becoming equally as valid an important as others. As someone who teaches and researches the Sociology of Religion, this story attracted my interest in a way that it probably wouldn't have to the casual listener. Similarly, even Christmas itself has become almost a form of 'secular' religion - in the Western world (especially Europe) most people know very little of the religious traditions associated with the period, but can list all the things about Santa, Reindeer, Sleighs, etc. The story makes a good point about religion and the importance of belief - especially the idea that religions are turning into popularity contests based on numbers.
Similarly, the second story was also quite strong and the ethical premise about designer babies is a topical one. Seeing Peri in a 'domestic' setting with her boyfriend was interesting and gave us some insight into her character. Again, the idea of the ideal child is something that is becoming all to relevant and is a good contrast with the current time of year - how many presents (and sadly pets) will be given as 'must have gifts' only to be discarded in January?
The third story I found quite good. The first half is enjoyable and the idea of being stuck in an ongoing Christmas party is very apt for this time of year. The humour is also quite good for the first half and the reveal about the actual use for the party space station is good. Peri is also developed more in this one and she, finally, gives Joe what for. You can almost imagine Sixie wanting to say something but thinking better of it.
Baker is on great form and is enjoying this and Bryant appears to be having a blast. The guest cast are well served and the more surreal elements actually work quite well for a festive release. The more adult approach to characterisation is also a good nod to the new series, which is welcome here.
So far, so good... So what's the problem?
1. Whilst the final story wraps things up nicely and brings the release to a good conclusion, it is a very deus ex machina type of ending. The heroes are there 'just' in time, rotating round-and-round seems to solve everything without much explanation as to why this has happened.
2. The theme music does make it pre-Trial, which does make the idea of this as the first in a set of Peri/Joe adventures a bit redundant
3. We've had a trilogy with these type of villains earlier this year.
4. Do we really need secondary control rooms and fast return switch references? Does hint at the worst of the 1980s era stories here.
5. Joe - needs fleshing out on how he puts the scheme together - probably a pre-title credits sequence would have been better here. How does he also hide his true form as well and did the Doctor rumble him from the start.
Just minor niggles... Will probably need a re-listen to this at some point.
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Post by Ian McArdell on Dec 20, 2019 12:53:21 GMT
My take on 'Blood on Santa's Claw' is now up at CultBox, complete with some careful tiptoeing around the spoilers. Great gags and nice to have a Christmas Special! |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2019 10:38:35 GMT
Didn't really get this one, but then my mind is on more exciting things. I'll listen to it again during that strange period between Christmas and New Year.
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Post by Who Review on Dec 21, 2019 12:16:21 GMT
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Post by Tim Bradley on Dec 25, 2019 9:22:53 GMT
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Post by slithe on Dec 29, 2019 11:54:32 GMT
It is better as a complete set rather than individual stories. Would have loved to see more arguing between Sixie and Joe. You do get the feeling he is 'in' on Joe's identity from the off but is keeping quiet to protect Peri.
I do wonder what critics/BBC would have made of this had it been transmitted in 1986 as a 'mini-series' of episodes before Trial of the Timelord. Would it have lengthened Baker's tenure in the TARDIS?
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 5,690 
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Post by lidar2 on Jan 2, 2020 9:12:08 GMT
I really liked it. It was a fun bit of Christmas fluff and sometimes, that's all you need for this time of year. {Spoiler}
Is anyone else getting really annoyed with the "false companion" trope BF has been using in recent years? It started as a cool idea poorly executed with Mathew Sharpe, settled (for me at least) as a solid meh with Ann Kelso, was absolutely amazingly done with Ria, and I called it halfway through episode 2 here. Honestly, if BF is going to add new companions, at this point just bite the bullet and add them. Don't get wishy-washy. {Spoiler}
They’ve gone a bit mad with it haven’t they?
October 2017 - Sheena/Emma/Louise (Starship of Theseus)
January 2018 - Brooke (Diary of River Song 3)
May 2018 - Mathew (Lure of the Nomad)
January/February 2019 - Ann Kelso (4DA Series 8)
July 2019 - Ria (Lies in Ruins)
December 2019 - Joe (Blood on Santa's Claw)
Not all were evil of course but still a fakeout of sorts. I’d say Joe was probably the weakest so far, mainly because the trope is so tired by this point and the other characters at least were a good twist or had some agency as a villain. Ann Kelso's story at least had a proper beginning, middle and end - which is more than can be said for any of the others on your list |
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 5,690
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Post by lidar2 on Jan 2, 2020 9:23:53 GMT
Overall I enjoyed this release. Joe aside, I didn't see the end coming.
I think the problem was that it was too like some other MR releases over the last couple of years - Joe was another Mathew Sharp and Seven's last trilogy involved werewolves. The other problem was that Joe was obviously going to either die or else be revealed as a villain. When BF don't bother to give a new companion a proper introduction story it is obvious they are not invested in that companion and said companion is not going to be around for long.
As other have posted above, they have done quite a bit of this lately and it has become an overused trope. Maybe, as BF's output has expanded and there are more producers working away on their own ranges, and the MR has been split into 3 ranges behind the scenes, it is a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. But that is not really an excuse - that's what exec producers who should have an overview of everything like Nick and Jason ought to pick up on, plus in this instance Joe and Matthew Sharpe were both in stories produced by John Ainsworth released within 18 months of each other.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2020 14:34:18 GMT
PDF script now available (for subscribers)!
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Post by slithe on Jan 3, 2020 9:23:04 GMT
Re-listened to Part 1 again - Blood on Santa's Claw.
Having listened to the whole thing, there's a lot in this that I had missed on first release, which did increase my interest in the story. Baker and Bryant are on good form here and the dialogue is sparkly and sharp.
As a teacher of the Sociology of Religion, I really did enjoy the content of this first part. I also liked the subtle reference to 'old TV shows' being religions - surely, not the Doctor as a God/form of religion? Didn't Moffatt and Davies introduce those elements into their tenure (especially under Tenant). So much to think about in this one and, rather like a Terry Pratchett novel, this episode makes you think (and laugh) in a good way.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2020 10:47:08 GMT
Just listened to Part One. Thoroughly enjoyable, doesn’t take itself seriously at all and knows exactly what it is. Just a lighthearted piece of festive fluff and there’s nothing wrong with that. To harken back to what my fellow members have said, it also has some very interesting observations on the idea of faith and the facets and minutiae of religion.
Personally, I just wish they had accidentally left Joe behind and whisked Mole away for a few adventures.
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Post by nottenst on Jan 9, 2020 15:50:00 GMT
I did not look at the names of the other writers (or for that matter any of the descriptive material), just noticed that Nev Fountain was the writer of the last. So, when the credits came and only Nev was listed I was a bit confused until it was all explained in the interviews.
I had a bad feeling about Joe from the start, but did not suspect that he was using the secondary control room to take them to the same time frame each time they traveled.
One thing that was disturbing was that The Doctor killed the lot of them at the end. Just rotated them all to dust. There doesn't even seem to be any regret there that he was driven to do that.
In any case, it was an interesting release. I was quite surprised that it wasn't really a collection of 4 stories. It should be interesting to listen to it again one day knowing that it is one connected story. I definitely do want to take a look at the script at the second half of the final episode after Peri presses the button.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2020 17:40:28 GMT
I enjoyed that for the most part. I do agree that the villains are a bit too similar to what we had in the Mags trilogy though. I mean, this is what the fifth or sixth werewolf race that is knocking about the universe now?
Also, the existence of the Were Lords just reaffirms my belief that the Time Lord’s are still one of the worst things to ever happen to the universe.
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Post by mrperson on Jan 12, 2020 20:55:23 GMT
Meh. Not really my thing.
(I generally don't like the whole werewolf thing anyway, and we did just have a certain McCoy trilogy).
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jan 13, 2020 9:11:31 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 22, 2020 14:44:10 GMT
Fun for the most part then the final part with Gallifreyan werewolfs was just silly.
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Post by Tim Bradley on Dec 8, 2020 14:49:04 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 3, 2021 7:46:06 GMT
I listened to this last night for the first time half sleepy but hey instead of sending me to sleep I followed it through to the groggy end?I do not know what I expected,I suppose a cheery Christmassy type of tale but it was great having the PDF script and have to say I totally enjoyed it.Ok I knew from the off the BF was something different and it sure followed through on that.It was also great to have an alternate mythos involving werewolves and Peri having children(which is a very interesting thing that should be followed through I think sometime) and all the little strange wee concepts within and tbh I like that it may have a Christmas theme but isn’t really a Christmas story it will definitely get another more concentrated listen soon.Given that none of the writers apart from Nev I know or have done anything else..is this all NEvs work it has his stamp on it and A.Lias  ? I must do a google |
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? I must do a google