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Post by nitronine on Sept 9, 2020 10:36:13 GMT
In regards to performances, aside from the professional actors this story also has a vocal impressionist that is not an actor. That would be the young Youtube vocal impressionist Jacob Dudman. Anyone should already know by now that reading a review of a story you have not heard yet is a great way to run into spoilers and for that reason I do not make any attempt to leave spoilers out of reviews. How hard would it have been for Matt Smith to just remotely record a 5 minute segment for Big Finish for God's sake? When Jacob Dudman started speaking to Peter Davison's #5 at the very end of this adventure, I didn't even know who it was. I thought it was John Hobshaw by Zaqi Ismail. But after several minutes I was finally able to remember that this story is a multi Doctor brief event and this is where that happens. I think it is a terrible shame to have a vocal impressionist that is not a trained actor, trying to act and sound like an actor that actually was The Doctor. And that would be Matt Smith. Is it really all that hard for Big Finish to get the real actors? I would not say that this end segment harmed the story and would most certainly not go so far as to say it 'ruined' it or anything like that. It was cute stunt at best. The story was strong enough on it's own, in great part due to the music and sound. But it's just a real shame that a meeting between #5 and #11 was not able to be done properly with two actors. Especially considering that it was only about 5 minutes or less. Matt Smith could have done that remotely. Whilst I don't want to get sucked into a recast debate, Jacob Dudman may have started out as a Youtuber impressionist but he IS an actor now, appearing in The A List, The Stranger and Medici. Matt Smith isn't obliged to play the Doctor just because it's only 5 minutes and won't take much of his time. I thought it was a lovely little scene. I think Dudman does a great job, especially his Elevemth which is uncanny. Also imagine if Big Finish were able to get Matt Smith to record but only for a cameo, there would be a social media storm of speculation about whether or not this means that there'll be a full 11th Doctor series. Even if BF denied it multiple times most people wouldn't believe them because it wouldn't make a lot of sense to get Matt Smith just for a cameo. There's also the fact that this was recorded before lockdown so they'd have to get Matt actually in the studio meaning he'd have to travel. Even if they decided to rerecord that section with Smith during lockdown they'd have to send him all the recording equipment, teach him how to set it up and the correct way to do sound proofing with his bed sheets, and also have to pay both two actors for the same work as Dudman would have been the one to originally record it on the day. None of this would have been factored into the release's origanl budget so probably won't be cost effective, Matt Smith might not want to return to the role yet, and it wouldn't be a quick 5 minute job for him even if it was just a cameo in the actual story. Although it would be great to have Matt to do Big Finish, we as fans can't just expect him to spend a morning or more of his free time either travelling to a recording studio or setting up equipment just to record a cameo appearance. Sure Dudman's impression isn't 100% but I'd rather they use him as the 11th Doctor than just not have any 11th Doctor stories at all. Side Note: I think Dudman's impression of Matt Smith is very good but more recently (such as in the cameo and Regeneration Impossible) he's less so doing an impression and more just playing the 11th Doctor imo. I can definitely tell the difference in the voice more here than I can when I'm watching Dudman's impressions on YouTube but I'd rather he do that than try to copy what he'd imagine Matt Smith would do if that makes sense.
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Post by grinch on Sept 11, 2020 19:35:12 GMT
I thoroughly enjoyed both of these. Thin Time is easily the best out of the two and when it comes to the cameo appearance of the Eleventh Doctor I really wasn’t that bothered by it. When it comes to recasts, I take the standpoint of if they manage to embody the spirit of the character then I have no issue with it.
Madquake was a fun little run around. Nice to see the Slitheen make an appearance and it has some great moments of introspection. Especially with Marc. Really should just get him to meet a post resurrection Owen. Misery loves company after all.
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Post by mrperson on Sept 11, 2020 21:44:50 GMT
I just realized I hadn't listened to madquake. Slitheen rub me the wrong way a bit, but whatever.
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Post by mrperson on Sept 11, 2020 21:46:34 GMT
I thoroughly enjoyed both of these. Thin Time is easily the best out of the two and when it comes to the cameo appearance of the Eleventh Doctor I really wasn’t that bothered by it. When it comes to recasts, I take the standpoint of if they manage to embody the spirit of the character then I have no issue with it. That was supposed to be 11?!
I didn't read the cast notes. It obviously was a Doctor given the content of the dialogue. If figured BF was simply making up some Xth incarnation (or, given the end to last season of the TV show, one of the countless before 1).
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Post by themeddlingmonk on Sept 11, 2020 23:29:16 GMT
I thoroughly enjoyed both of these. Thin Time is easily the best out of the two and when it comes to the cameo appearance of the Eleventh Doctor I really wasn’t that bothered by it. When it comes to recasts, I take the standpoint of if they manage to embody the spirit of the character then I have no issue with it. That was supposed to be 11?!
I didn't read the cast notes. It obviously was a Doctor given the content of the dialogue. If figured BF was simply making up some Xth incarnation (or, given the end to last season of the TV show, one of the countless before 1).
Well if the voice didn’t give it away, I would’ve certainly thought that the fact he was retired in 1892 due to the loss of his companions would’ve.
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Post by slithe on Oct 4, 2020 9:05:51 GMT
I listened to Thin Time and enjoyed it. Good characterisation and the claustrophobic atmosphere of the house came across well on audio. Had a real Horror of Fang Rock vibe to it - particularly the cliff hanger at the end of Part 1. Davison is on good form here.
The use of paradoxes is a neat premise and I quite enjoyed the way it resolved itself.
Not too sold on the use of the 11th Doctor. I personally think the 7th would have been better.
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Post by Tim Bradley on Oct 15, 2020 13:11:33 GMT
Hello! I've listened to 'Madquake' at last! Another nice opportunity to hear Sarah/Nyssa's voice again and to block out the real world for a bit. My full reviews on 'Thin Time'/'Madquake' will be up on my blog soon. Tim.
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Post by Kestrel on Oct 20, 2020 0:28:49 GMT
Loved Thin Time, didn't really care for Madquake beyond some superficial appreciation for seeing the Slitheen used well again. As I wound up mentioning in my response to Shadow of the Daleks 1, these companions are not people I care about. At all.
Weirdly I was told not to expect much from Thin Time, and that Madquake was the better story. Ah, well, what can I say? Look, one thing y'all need to know about me--that perhaps some of you can guess from my avatar--is that I love, love, LOVE classic mystery fiction. Unsurprisingly I am most fond of Maurice Leblanc. But Agatha Christie? Arthur Conan Doyle? Yes and yes. Give me funny happenings in a manor house, a small cast of characters trapped inside, struggling to solve the mystery and save the,selves all the while knowing they can't fully trust each other? That, boys and and girls, is exactly my jam. Toss in some timey-wimey shenanigans and how could I not fall in love?
And then the 11th Doctor pops in to say hello. I'm not entirely sure why he's there, but it was a fun and unexpected cameo all the same.
Though I must mirror an opinion I saw expressed in reaction to the recent announcement of a "Young War Doctor" audio range, with a new actor cast in John Hurt's role: the whole point of Big Finish, to me, is new Doctor Who stories with the appropriate actors in the appropriate roles. An impressionist only makes the absence of the original actor more apparent, more obvious, and leaves the whole affair feeling less authentic. More fanfiction than not, no matter how skilled the impression.
i think this is part of why I enjoy the 1DAs so much: David Bradley is playing the Doctor, his own version of the Doctor, and never feels as though he is mimicking William Hartnell's performance, even when adopting similar mannerisms.
And as short as the 11th Doctor's part was in Thin Time, I cannot but feel it was a wasted opportunity. Surely it would have been relatively easy to get Matt Smith to record a few lines? They could even have contrived a literally phoned-in performance, and not used up more than an hour of the man's time.
I do not write this to say the impressionist is a poor substitute for Smith--the impression is uncannily similar--but that all it sounds like to me is a man saying, "I am Matt Smith: don't you wish I was?"
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Post by slithe on Nov 8, 2020 18:36:23 GMT
Just re-listened to Thin Time. The story itself is quite good and the paradox angle is quite interesting. I still think the first episode is the strongest out of the two in this story. The haunted house angle works quite well. Davison's performance is good and the guest cast are well developed/seem to be enjoying this.
Still not sure about the Dudman cameo. I thought it was better second time around and I could see the 11th Doctor here more than just someone 'imitating' the role. Still think Seven, Sixie or Eight might have been better.
I am not sure - I will see how the Culshaw Brig goes in the upcoming 7th Doctor release. It might be that subconsciously I know these are recast parts and I'm battling with that...
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Post by Tim Bradley on Dec 30, 2020 10:42:38 GMT
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Post by nottenst on Apr 27, 2021 15:42:02 GMT
Thin Time another solo 5 adventure and another monster that feels Lovecraftian in design. Also a story that kind of feels a bit like The Chimes of Midnight and with a resolution that has more than a bit of War of the Worlds in it. It’s one of those stories where the Doctor wins by being lucky instead of any plan or solution he comes up. In spite of all that I sill rather enjoyed it. The ingredients may all be familiar but Dan Abnett does a nice job of mixing things up so they feel fresh in the moment. About “that” ending, I loved the writing but feel it is let down by the actor not named Peter Davison. Thin Time was quite an atmospheric story and The Doctor did get a push to rejoin his companions, but he really didn't accomplish much. I guess that if he hadn't been there then John Hobshaw would also have been killed before the paradox righted itself (and I don't understand why Stubbs wasn't restored in whatever place in the timeline he should have been - paradoxical). He "saved" Mrs. Polly, but she died before that in the regular timeline. I think having that happen to her diminished any reason for him to have been there in the first place. As far as Madquake - another fun one. When Cott mentioned that the Slitheen there were afraid of Bamma I had thought they would have set up the holographic projection of her there to frighten them. To actually have her "physically" there didn't seem to make as much sense. Still, it was amusing. P.S. In the Extended Extras at 9:50 they start talking about why they did the cameo bit. P.P.S. Janet Fielding is incorrect in the extras about The Sirens of Titan. I don't remember about the plot points, but it was written by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. It was Venus on the Half-Shell that was "written" by Kilgore Trout (actually written by Philip Jose Farmer).
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Post by agentten on Jun 19, 2021 15:38:40 GMT
I loved the atmosphere and mystery so much in Thin Time. There was such a feeling of palpable dread. Nobody does sci-fi tinged horror quite like Dan Abnett. I would love for him to write for Big Finish about 1,000% more in the future.
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Post by tuigirl on Jun 19, 2021 17:59:25 GMT
I loved the atmosphere and mystery so much in Thin Time. There was such a feeling of palpable dread. Nobody does sci-fi tinged horror quite like Dan Abnett. I would love for him to write for Big Finish about 1,000% more in the future. Just imagine what Dan Abnett could do with the Time War..... (I have been a fan of Dan's for more than 20 years now)
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Post by Ela on Oct 18, 2021 10:31:19 GMT
I read through this whole thread last night and, though I listened to this release recently, I am struggling to remember the details of the release. Reading the release description did not really jog my memory, as usually happens when I read release descriptions. So while I remember more or less enjoying the release when I listened, I guess it hasn't had as lasting an impression on me as other releases in the Main Range.
I did like the idea of the Doctor needing time alone and going off to have adventures separately from his companions, as dealt with in the previous release. I have mixed feelings about the Jake Dudman surprise appearance as the 11th Doctor. I'm sure Jake is a fine actor, but I am not particularly enamored of his Doctor impressions (one of the reasons I have not invested money in the "Chronicles" series of releases).
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