|
|
Post by dannybl on Jun 20, 2020 13:42:45 GMT
Finished it.
I was initially skeptical about the domestic 'kitchen sink' format, but actually it's been a breath of fresh air. Really really enjoyed it, gives a new perspective on the Eighth Doctor, Liv and Helen, allowing character driven plots.
|
|
|
|
Post by tuigirl on Jun 20, 2020 14:37:33 GMT
Must See TV. Can I repeat again how much I like this set so far? I am not the biggest fan of Torchwood, but introducing them as a semi-crossover was quite nice and it also adds a nice bit of mystery and some potential for conflict. We are already seeing that it strains the relationship with Liv a bit... and at a guess, this will only get worse. However, I have the slight suspicion, at the end, when we get the TARDIS back, Liv might be staying behind on Earth. I hope she won't die but have a loving relationship and a normal and completely mundane life, away from saving the galaxy. I would also like to point out how great I think the soundscape is working. I think they outdid themselves here. I am right now sitting on my balcony painting, and listening to this, and the sound effects of the city and the flat were so immersive and well done, it startled me a couple of times. I indeed thought the rural bus was coming past, and was wondering that it was the wrong time...  I also made a point in listening to the music suite (I hardly ever do) and I have to say that the music for this is just perfect. It just fits. So yeah, this is a wonderful release so far and everything is coming together. Now on to the next story. I cannot believe that this will be over so soon and that we will have to wait such a long time for the next one. |
|
|
|
Post by themeddlingmonk on Jun 20, 2020 15:06:56 GMT
Must See TV more like Must Hear CD
|
|
|
|
Post by christmastrenzalore on Jun 20, 2020 16:09:10 GMT
Something about this didn't quite click for me, even though I love a lot of it on a conceptual level.
Might need another listen to fully form my thoughts on it.
|
|
|
|
Post by antartiks on Jun 20, 2020 17:51:51 GMT
In short, this might well be my favorite "first box set" to any Eighth Doctor saga so far. It was strong from beginning to end and immensely enjoyable, as well as a true breath of fresh air for this Doctor's ongoing adventures. Concerning Liv and Helen {Spoiler}
I was pleasantly surprised to see how well they fit into this new narrative. I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to stay on Earth at the end of Stranded 4, leaving the Doctor alone once more. Liv and Tania are cute and I love seeing Helen as Robin's tutor.
A new cast and no "The Eleven" was what this Doctor needed and I cannot wait to hear more next year. Thank God, there's still a lot more Eighth Doctor material coming this year because Stranded 2 seems really far away. |
|
|
|
Post by tuigirl on Jun 20, 2020 21:33:29 GMT
Just finished the set. What more can I say? This was brilliant. Interesting characters, unusual plot and great performances make this come together wonderfully. The only major downside I can see is the long wait for the next set. What I also find quite clever- there is an inbuilt thread in this story that maybe makes it possible that this happens in an alternate 2020- which would explain the (welcome and appreciated) absence of a certain virus. Thank God for small mercies. The Doctor is cooped up too much already, even with free reign of all of London, just imagine him under quarantine conditions. There could well have been fatalities. And the arguements he would get into with even more police officers. Talking about police officers- I also thought that Andy was very well used here, and he even has some adventurous 1 on 1 time with the Doctor. Looking forward to hearing more from him! I also wonder how the house community will deal with the revelations from the ending of the last story- team Tardis certainly has an awful lot of explaining to do! How will they look at their confused and slightly useless landlord now? Bring on the next set! |
|
|
|
Post by Sir Wearer of Hats on Jun 22, 2020 22:13:42 GMT
Will my not having listened to Ravenous 2-4 affect my understanding of this set do you think? I’m waiting for a sale on the Ravenous sets. From what I've heard so far, not at all. I wouldn't rush to get Ravenous just for this No, rush to get Ravenous for the sublime “Day of the Master”  |
|
|
|
Post by Sir Wearer of Hats on Jun 22, 2020 22:15:48 GMT
Well, I liked it! Glad to have just whooshed right through it one day. Cool blend of the domestic and the extraterrestrial - Liv and Tania worked well together - after ten years of Liv in the TARDIS, it's nice to see new sides to her. I'm hoping we spend more time around Baker Street, even though the Doctor is already planning a test flight by the end of this set. All around, I'm looking forward to listening to this again when Stranded 2 comes out! Right now, arc-wise I'm assuming that the Doctor being stranded is what affects the future - he changes something minor, gives too much information to the wrong people (probably the Divine Intervention folks), and humanity grows so fast that they're two thousand years ahead of where they should be by the 41st century. Also Tom Baker was incredible and I hope his appearance is not a one-off! Sorry... TEN YEARS! Dark Eyes 2 was ten years ago? Really? good Lord.... |
|
|
|
Post by antartiks on Jun 22, 2020 23:24:32 GMT
Well, I liked it! Glad to have just whooshed right through it one day. Cool blend of the domestic and the extraterrestrial - Liv and Tania worked well together - after ten years of Liv in the TARDIS, it's nice to see new sides to her. I'm hoping we spend more time around Baker Street, even though the Doctor is already planning a test flight by the end of this set. All around, I'm looking forward to listening to this again when Stranded 2 comes out! Right now, arc-wise I'm assuming that the Doctor being stranded is what affects the future - he changes something minor, gives too much information to the wrong people (probably the Divine Intervention folks), and humanity grows so fast that they're two thousand years ahead of where they should be by the 41st century. Also Tom Baker was incredible and I hope his appearance is not a one-off! Sorry... TEN YEARS! Dark Eyes 2 was ten years ago? Really? good Lord.... Nah, it was 6 years ago. |
|
|
|
Post by constonks on Jun 23, 2020 4:04:27 GMT
Sorry... TEN YEARS! Dark Eyes 2 was ten years ago? Really? good Lord.... Nah, it was 6 years ago. Yeah I'm apparently losing my grip on time given that I hadn't watching DW ten years ago, but remember the release of Dark Eyes 2. This is her twelfth boxset with the Eighth Doctor though so it does feel like a long time! |
|
|
|
Post by antartiks on Jun 23, 2020 16:46:10 GMT
Yeah I'm apparently losing my grip on time given that I hadn't watching DW ten years ago, but remember the release of Dark Eyes 2. This is her twelfth boxset with the Eighth Doctor though so it does feel like a long time! More than half a decade is still a long time, don't worry. Feel old yet ?  |
|
|
|
Post by elkawho on Jun 23, 2020 20:52:07 GMT
The scene in "Must-See TV" When Liv is in the hospital and The Doctor can't bring himself to just go see her because he feels he needs to solve it. It reminds me of Death in Blackpool when Lucie is in the hospital and he can't just be there for her. HE needs to fix it, to find an enemy and do something. He never learns, our Doctor. (Granted, there was an enemy in that story, but you know what I'm trying to say.)
|
|
|
|
Post by fingersmash on Jun 25, 2020 14:33:10 GMT
So I finished listening to Stranded and I have some thoughts. Individually, each story is at least good, the second is absolutely brilliant, but I'm having a trouble writing a review which is looking at each of them individually. Stranded, at least for me, feels more like a series of vignettes about these characters living in these circumstances. Yes there are still Doctor Who style plots, but it just seems more character focus while story is taking a backseat. It reminds me of the musical Company in a lot of ways. Both are ensemble affairs looking at ordinary life through the lens of an outsider (Bobby in Company is an outcast for not committing to marriage), both don't have an overall plot, but a series of scenes, and both are about modern life. Well that's how to totally sell me on a set. Company is one of my favorite musicals ever so to hear this is kind of a Doctor Who version of Company is exactly what I'd want after Dark Eyes, Doom Coalition, and Ravenous (and the episode 1 preview definitely sold me already) |
|
|
|
Post by mrperson on Jun 25, 2020 16:52:42 GMT
Well, I started this during yesterday's lift. My view might be affected because I wasn't in my best of moods. I need to exercise daily or just about daily to maintain an even keel mentally speaking, and it'd been a number of days since there just wasn't time with everything else (a large part of which is a newborn). I hadn't slept much. So yeah, not exactly in a great place when I started.
I listened to to the first one and started the second, turning it off when it got to the part of "let's have the Doctor cook!" (The wife had rather rudely put laundry in the wash, and I couldn't hear the damn speakers clearly even turned way up...)
Looking at the episode descriptions, I am a bit worried, even with Dorney involved. We know Doctor Who on Earth can work; beyond the very many episodes when he's not stranded, there was Pertwee. Episode after episode during exile. But, there was not so much time spent on him being upset or at sub-optimal functioning levels, or on his companions worrying about how he is upset or at sub-optimal functioning levels. It seems to take up so much of what I've already heard. And when I read the other episode descriptions, I see things like "There are new arrivals in Baker Street: Sergeant Andy Davidson, and the helpful Mr Bird. The Doctor isn’t happy that someone else in the house is more useful than him." "As the Doctor becomes desperate, Helen and Liv advise him to accept their situation."
I really hope we lose this intense focus on how he's feeling, how it sucks, how his companions are worrying about it all, and how awfully boring mundane life is. All I have to do to know about that stuff is sit down at my desk and continue hazily working on this damn brief I have to finish. I don't want to listen to what I'm already more than well aware of when I'm trying to get away from it all.
Fingers crossed it gets back to being just Who soon...
|
|
|
|
Post by Audio Watchdog on Jun 25, 2020 18:38:46 GMT
So two episodes in and I like it well enough and it is a nice change of pace from the previous 3 collections but I don't know if this is what I want for 12 more hours.
|
|
|
|
Post by ollychops on Jun 25, 2020 21:31:50 GMT
Finished this a few days ago but forgot to share my thoughts. I feel a bit middle-of-the-road with this one, because I found all the stories serviceable (Wild Animals and Must-See TV were probably my favourites of the set), but there were no real standouts IMO. But the set overall felt like a breath of fresh air and was a nice change of pace after Doom Coalition and Ravenous, and I love the addition of the Baker Street residents. I'm curious to see where the story goes with the end of the last episode.
|
|
|
|
Post by relativetime on Jun 26, 2020 20:28:11 GMT
That was, as has already been stated multiple times, a much needed breath of fresh air. Definitely the strongest start we’ve had for an Eighth Doctor series - hopefully the following sets can keep it up! I’m not worried though. The character work here is fantastic and I just loved getting to enjoy some little moments with this team after the grand scale of the past boxsets. The ending of Divine Intervention does have me a tad bit worried. Just a tad. I actually hope we push off leaving modern Earth a little while longer. It’d be a shame to have spent all this time setting up these side characters - the best we’ve had probably since the Lucie Miller days - only for them to fall by the wayside as we resume the regular adventures in time and space. |
|
|
|
Post by Audio Watchdog on Jun 26, 2020 21:54:47 GMT
So I finished listening to Stranded and I have some thoughts. Individually, each story is at least good, the second is absolutely brilliant, but I'm having a trouble writing a review which is looking at each of them individually. Stranded, at least for me, feels more like a series of vignettes about these characters living in these circumstances. Yes there are still Doctor Who style plots, but it just seems more character focus while story is taking a backseat. It reminds me of the musical Company in a lot of ways. Both are ensemble affairs looking at ordinary life through the lens of an outsider (Bobby in Company is an outcast for not committing to marriage), both don't have an overall plot, but a series of scenes, and both are about modern life. Well that's how to totally sell me on a set. Company is one of my favorite musicals ever so to hear this is kind of a Doctor Who version of Company is exactly what I'd want after Dark Eyes, Doom Coalition, and Ravenous (and the episode 1 preview definitely sold me already) Awww. I was supposed to see the revival of Company a couple of weeks ago. On my canceled NYC trip. And now I’m sad. |
|
|
|
Post by Who Review on Jun 27, 2020 9:17:39 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by fingersmash on Jun 28, 2020 13:26:10 GMT
The breath of fresh air I absolutely needed for 8. Tania makes a spectacular entrance as the newest addition to Eight's increasingly diverse collection of companions. She is written exactly as you should write a trans* person: a person living their best life and played by a trans* person. I genuinely hope this signals a new era in Big Finish creating original companions: more diverse, more evenly balanced, and different backgrounds. I've said time and time again that the franchise as a whole needs to move away from the "20-something able-bodied, straight, cisgender woman from contemporary Britain" archetype for companions and this is what I mean by it.
Now let's see a companion in a wheelchair or a male or non-binary companion, hell I'd even take them finally creating a Welsh companion.
|
|
