Post by Kestrel on Dec 12, 2021 3:01:06 GMT
This is, I think, my first Companion Chronicle -- and it was one hell of a story to start on. This is easily among my very favorite non-full cast audio dramas, and definitely high up on the list of best 1st Doctor stories. I was a bit skeptical about the Companion Chronicles range going into it, but after Quinnis I am completely sold.
Quote of the story: "They smell blood and tears before they're shed!"
Near the end of the first episode, there's a scene where the townspeople are running about in a frenzy, and Mila (who we'll eventually learn is actually an evil bird monster) starts laughing at them -- and Susan joins in. The Doctor disapproves, but they just can't stop laughing at how silly all of the tumult is. This is the precise point at which I fell in love with the story.
And ultimately it's Mila--and her relationship with Susan--that really makes this story. The biggest criticism I can levy at this story is that the foreshadowing of Mila's nature is a bit too heavy-handed (a child being ominously prophetic in fiction never winds up being just normal childish nonsense, of course). I think they could've been a but subtler with her, especially given the fact that Mila is voiced by another actor, in addition to Carol Ann Ford, which already lends her character an alien, external, supernatural quality -- a being who exists outside of the "usual" world crafted by the narrators voice.
If I'm rating this, the one thing holding this story back from the highest "five golden TARDISes" out of 5 is the ultimate resolution. The story take pains to note that Mila doesn't cause misfortune, but simply feeds off of it. So it's a bit disappointing that she ends as just another Monster That Must Be Defeated. It would've been more interesting, I think, to see this conflict resolved via a method that did not require her death. Why not take her elsewhere in the TARDIS? Or perhaps find her a community on the planet where she'd be welcome? One could even frame her consuming of negative emotions as a good thing for the human(?) communities -- arguing that this process lessens the duration or severity of negative emotions, thereby allowing people to more quickly and fully experience positive emotions.
Basically, this is not a scenario that demanded violence.
But other than that? Perfect. I love seeing the Doctor alone with Susan -- he was always the most interesting character in the show, and the larger TARDIS crew always diluted that. It's quite nice seeing the two Time Lords by themselves, in a more focused and intimate adventure. It also does an excellent job of demonstrating just how much the two cared for each other, something that wasn't always apparent in the TV show.
I also really loved how the two episodes comprising this story were so different. The first dealing with the Doctor as a rainmaker, an impish delight, and the other being a more action-packed affair with a surprisingly fun new monster hunter character to drive the plot--and gently mock the Doctor.
And before I forget--the setting! Audio-only adventures leave a lot of room for ambiguity, something that Big Finish does not often use to their advantage. Here we have a society that feels almost surreal, anachronistic in some ways (the Doctor's role as a rainmaker, the fate of his predecessor, and the apparent superstitions of rain dances are very evocative of a preindustrial society) while others are futuristic (the monster hunter's ornithopter indicates that, in some respects at least, this society is more advanced than our own). This ambiguity makes this world feel very interesting and unique, even though we're allowed only the narrowest of windows into it.
Quinnis really does pack a helluva lot into a surprisingly short runtime. Carol Ann Ford's reading is excellent, and the comments about her son tie this story into the 8DAs and provide a layer of poignancy that absolutely wasn't necessary, but makes the story just that much better.
As is often the case, I am again reminded just how good Carol Ann Ford is, and how criminally underused she is on audio. (Yes, I am still pining away for Susan's War 2.) I'm definitely much more interested in listening to more of her Companion Chronicles, which as I understand it comprise the bulk of her work for Big Finish, so if any of y'all have some favorites to recommend, please let me know!
So: 5/5 -- practically perfect.
Next up for me: Peri and the Piscon Paradox.
EDIT: At one point Susan mentions the "red roof" of the TARDIS -- so presumably when this story takes place, the Chameleon Circuit is still functional. Did anyone catch what the TARDIS was shaped like? The way this story went, it sure seemed that the TARDIS was roughly the same height, width and depth of a 1960s police box.
Quote of the story: "They smell blood and tears before they're shed!"
Near the end of the first episode, there's a scene where the townspeople are running about in a frenzy, and Mila (who we'll eventually learn is actually an evil bird monster) starts laughing at them -- and Susan joins in. The Doctor disapproves, but they just can't stop laughing at how silly all of the tumult is. This is the precise point at which I fell in love with the story.
And ultimately it's Mila--and her relationship with Susan--that really makes this story. The biggest criticism I can levy at this story is that the foreshadowing of Mila's nature is a bit too heavy-handed (a child being ominously prophetic in fiction never winds up being just normal childish nonsense, of course). I think they could've been a but subtler with her, especially given the fact that Mila is voiced by another actor, in addition to Carol Ann Ford, which already lends her character an alien, external, supernatural quality -- a being who exists outside of the "usual" world crafted by the narrators voice.
If I'm rating this, the one thing holding this story back from the highest "five golden TARDISes" out of 5 is the ultimate resolution. The story take pains to note that Mila doesn't cause misfortune, but simply feeds off of it. So it's a bit disappointing that she ends as just another Monster That Must Be Defeated. It would've been more interesting, I think, to see this conflict resolved via a method that did not require her death. Why not take her elsewhere in the TARDIS? Or perhaps find her a community on the planet where she'd be welcome? One could even frame her consuming of negative emotions as a good thing for the human(?) communities -- arguing that this process lessens the duration or severity of negative emotions, thereby allowing people to more quickly and fully experience positive emotions.
Basically, this is not a scenario that demanded violence.
But other than that? Perfect. I love seeing the Doctor alone with Susan -- he was always the most interesting character in the show, and the larger TARDIS crew always diluted that. It's quite nice seeing the two Time Lords by themselves, in a more focused and intimate adventure. It also does an excellent job of demonstrating just how much the two cared for each other, something that wasn't always apparent in the TV show.
I also really loved how the two episodes comprising this story were so different. The first dealing with the Doctor as a rainmaker, an impish delight, and the other being a more action-packed affair with a surprisingly fun new monster hunter character to drive the plot--and gently mock the Doctor.
And before I forget--the setting! Audio-only adventures leave a lot of room for ambiguity, something that Big Finish does not often use to their advantage. Here we have a society that feels almost surreal, anachronistic in some ways (the Doctor's role as a rainmaker, the fate of his predecessor, and the apparent superstitions of rain dances are very evocative of a preindustrial society) while others are futuristic (the monster hunter's ornithopter indicates that, in some respects at least, this society is more advanced than our own). This ambiguity makes this world feel very interesting and unique, even though we're allowed only the narrowest of windows into it.
Quinnis really does pack a helluva lot into a surprisingly short runtime. Carol Ann Ford's reading is excellent, and the comments about her son tie this story into the 8DAs and provide a layer of poignancy that absolutely wasn't necessary, but makes the story just that much better.
As is often the case, I am again reminded just how good Carol Ann Ford is, and how criminally underused she is on audio. (Yes, I am still pining away for Susan's War 2.) I'm definitely much more interested in listening to more of her Companion Chronicles, which as I understand it comprise the bulk of her work for Big Finish, so if any of y'all have some favorites to recommend, please let me know!
So: 5/5 -- practically perfect.
Next up for me: Peri and the Piscon Paradox.
EDIT: At one point Susan mentions the "red roof" of the TARDIS -- so presumably when this story takes place, the Chameleon Circuit is still functional. Did anyone catch what the TARDIS was shaped like? The way this story went, it sure seemed that the TARDIS was roughly the same height, width and depth of a 1960s police box.
