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Post by icecreamdf on Dec 11, 2015 17:09:30 GMT
I really, really enjoyed this. Wonderfully huge theatrical scope, but grounded by great performances by all involved. I'd have liked if Ace had a little more to do, but then maybe that's just the way the novel was written. Was Seven's confused musing about having 'seen moving statues somewhere' a reference to something else in the VNAs? Or was it (as I took it) a less-than-sly nod to the upcoming Classic Doctors/New Monsters set? (Where Five faces the Weeping Angels) I think he was just talking about the play the statues were from. |
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Post by aemiliapaula on Dec 13, 2015 10:06:12 GMT
I just realised an element of the plot that this story shares with another Justin Richards novel, Demontage with the Eighth Doctor, Fitz and Sam. {Spoiler (big one for Theatre of War, though the thread titles does say spoilers OK)}
A character with an agenda uses an old-fashioned weapon that won't be picked up by weapon scanners. In Theatre of War Lannic uses a pistol (no energy packs) while in Demontage the assassin smuggles in segments of a glass weapon. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! I'm just up to end of ep 3. My favourite part was {Spoiler}
Theatrical Trojan horse! |
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
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Post by bobod on Dec 14, 2015 12:51:41 GMT
Our Bryan is very good.
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Post by Timelord007 on Dec 21, 2015 8:47:15 GMT
I wasn't a huge fan of the novel but i loved this audio adaptation which was a gripping listen from begining to end, great performances, tightly paced story, good cliffhangers.
Timelord Rating - 9/10
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Post by Audio Watchdog on Dec 24, 2015 0:51:20 GMT
Through the first disc and I'm really enjoying it. A couple of thoughts....I really like Scott Hancock's direction and I'd like to see him handling some monthly range releases and I think I like 7 best around Benny. I would certainly enjoy a main range trilogy or two with the Doctor & Benny.
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Post by eric009 on Dec 25, 2015 15:42:53 GMT
finished it very good. if you not got it yet buy it now  look forward to the second 1 |
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Post by Ela on Jul 6, 2017 4:45:45 GMT
Nothing like bumping an old thread.  Just got around to listening to this. I thought Justin Richards did a great job of adapting his novel to audio. Like Timelord007, I wasn't a huge fan of the novel (at least not the first time I read it), but I very much enjoyed this audio drama. Great job by the actors and all involved with it! Interesting that the audio story was much more explicit with regards to what Brax was up to. There was no such clear explanation in the novel, you mainly had to infer what Brax was doing (unless I blipped over something in reading it). |
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Post by Timelord007 on Jul 6, 2017 5:32:39 GMT
Nothing like bumping an old thread. Just got around to listening to this. I thought Justin Richards did a great job of adapting his novel to audio. Like Timelord007 , I wasn't a huge fan of the novel (at least not the first time I read it), but I very much enjoyed this audio drama. Great job by the actors and all involved with it! Interesting that the audio story was much more explicit with regards to what Brax was up to. There was no such clear explanation in the novel, you mainly had to infer what Brax was doing (unless I blipped over something in reading it). It's strange because upon hearing this audio adaption i had little enthusiasm for it as i thought the novel to be rather bland but Justin Richards adaptation of his own novel was brilliant & pardon the pun he regenerated this story into a enjoyable fast paced 4 parter. |
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Post by Ela on Jul 6, 2017 13:53:33 GMT
Nothing like bumping an old thread. Just got around to listening to this. I thought Justin Richards did a great job of adapting his novel to audio. Like Timelord007 , I wasn't a huge fan of the novel (at least not the first time I read it), but I very much enjoyed this audio drama. Great job by the actors and all involved with it! Interesting that the audio story was much more explicit with regards to what Brax was up to. There was no such clear explanation in the novel, you mainly had to infer what Brax was doing (unless I blipped over something in reading it). It's strange because upon hearing this audio adaption i had little enthusiasm for it as i thought the novel to be rather bland but Justin Richards adaptation of his own novel was brilliant & pardon the pun he regenerated this story into a enjoyable fast paced 4 parter. I don't know if bland is the word I'd use for the novel. I just didn't get into the novel that much the first time I read it. I have to admit I enjoyed it more on my recent re-reading, but that may be because I know more about Brax and Benny, not to mention the Seventh Doctor and Ace, than I knew when I first read it. But the audio story was really a lot of fun to listen to, and you don't need the background of the book to enjoy it. I'll probably re-listen today. I like to re-listen to stories to catch stuff I may have missed the first time around. I also love Justin describing how he created Braxiatel based on the throw away mention of the "Braxiatel Collection" in the City of Death. I remember noticing that remark and realizing that was the first mention ever of the Braxiatel Collection. |
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2017 14:05:54 GMT
It's strange because upon hearing this audio adaption i had little enthusiasm for it as i thought the novel to be rather bland but Justin Richards adaptation of his own novel was brilliant & pardon the pun he regenerated this story into a enjoyable fast paced 4 parter. I don't know if bland is the word I'd use for the novel. I just didn't get into the novel that much the first time I read it. I have to admit I enjoyed it more on my recent re-reading, but that may be because I know more about Brax and Benny, not to mention the Seventh Doctor and Ace, than I knew when I first read it. But the audio story was really a lot of fun to listen to, and you don't need the background of the book to enjoy it. I'll probably re-listen today. I like to re-listen to stories to catch stuff I may have missed the first time around. I also love Justin describing how he created Braxiatel based on the throw away mention of the "Braxiatel Collection" in the City of Death. I remember noticing that remark and realizing that was the first mention ever of the Braxiatel Collection. The books were very good at doing that. The Hoothi and their silent gas dirigibles get a brief mention in The Brain of Morbius before they turned up in all their finery for Love and War. Venusian Lullaby took it to its logical extreme by fashioning Venusian society entirely out of mentions from the television series. |
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Post by Ela on Jul 6, 2017 16:04:39 GMT
Huh. I missed that the Hoothi were mentioned in The Brain of Morbius, I think. Or maybe I vaguely remember it.
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Post by sherlock on Sept 4, 2018 16:44:15 GMT
That was very enjoyable. Braxiatel's a fascinating character and the plot moved along nicely, hearing Benny doing actual archaeology was nice. This is my first venture into the 'New Ace' characterisation era, and she seems basically the same as ever so far.
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Post by Ela on Sept 4, 2018 16:52:53 GMT
Love Brax. He's an infinitely interesting character, and Miles Richardson does him so well.
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Post by newt5996 on Sept 5, 2018 0:00:06 GMT
That was very enjoyable. Braxiatel's a fascinating character and the plot moved along nicely, hearing Benny doing actual archaeology was nice. This is my first venture into the 'New Ace' characterisation era, and she seems basically the same as ever so far. She was vastly toned down from the novel as this was a period where the writers didn’t know what New Ace was supposed to be. |
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Post by tuigirl on Sept 6, 2018 20:03:11 GMT
Just listened to this today and I greatly enjoyed it. I thought the plot twist in there was very clever.
And I love Benny! Also, even the 7th Doctor is not as bad as I first thought...
Slowly but surely I am patching my knowledge gaps and now I even met Braxiatel. What a delightfully duplicit character. I like.
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Post by shallacatop on Apr 8, 2019 16:08:37 GMT
I’m working my way through the New Adventures adaptations. I listened to Damaged Goods fairly recently, so haven’t relistened on this occasion. Simply put: it’s one of Big Finish’s best productions. Anyway, I’ve just finished Theatre of War.
It feels rather traditional in its first half, albeit on a bigger scale. Part 3 feels like it’s telling a side story with Benny & Brax, with interjections from the Doctor & Ace’s side of the story. Part 4 builds up to a big climax, but doesn’t quite deliver, as it becomes a piece of exposition that was told “off screen”, so to speak. It’s certainly a strange structure, especially with cliffhangers. Part 3 springs to mind where the Doctor makes a revelation that we already know about. I suppose that’s one of the downsides to adapting material which isn’t split into parts. I think that’s why the 2x60 format works better for these.
What’s also strange is the portrayal of Ace. She’s written and acted as though she’s fresh from the likes of Remembrance of the Daleks or Silver Nemesis. Not the nature Ace of the New Adventures. There’s nothing that explains why she has come back following the events of Love & War. I appreciate that’s because they’ve not novelised all the books, but it’s something that could’ve easily been sorted through a prologue written as a diary entry from Benny. In hindsight, I think BF might have been better trying to make their NA selection more cohesive, rather than having the ability to dip in and out.
This all makes it sound like I’m being critical. I did actually enjoy the story, I thought it was good. I loved the scene in Part 3 where the Doctor challenges the Exec and makes him step down from executing the thousand citizens. That was Sylvester at his best.
It’s an oddity in the NA range so far, though, when it feels like it could’ve been a cheeky adaptation in the main range, as it doesn’t really possess the qualities that make the others “special” and standout.
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