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Post by BHTvsTFC on Jun 28, 2023 8:23:04 GMT
Fantastic set - great writing, great performances. Tom goes for it in Stone Cold! Margaret brings out the best in Leela and is a wonderful character in herself. 5/5!
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Post by Kestrel on Jun 28, 2023 11:47:14 GMT
I find it pretty frustrating. It seems there is a member that enjoys voting 1 on every release. It'd be cool if there were come way to prevent folks from voting without posting, but I get why that may not be a great idea even if it were possible. But, man, I'd really love some -- any! -- context for the outlier votes. God knows it's not like I've ever been down on stories a lot of other people love myself, so I can get why some folks might be reticent to speak negatively, but I do think dissenting opinions are pretty valuable.
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Post by grinch on Jun 28, 2023 11:56:05 GMT
This is definitely one of my more anticipated releases of the summer, so I imagine I'll still wind up picking it up since most of y'all seem to like it so far... but someone voted a 1? Really? Im sorry, but if you're gonna vote for that extreme of an option (at either end of the spectrum) it'd be really nice if ya' could at least post a sentence or two to explain why. With all the recent price hikes I'm forced to lend more and more weight to other fans' opinions on a lot of these releases before I decide to make the plunge myself, and while a single vote vote in the poll is far from persuasive, it does generate some small anxiety. I find it pretty frustrating. It seems there is a member that enjoys voting 1 on every release. Always nice to have a hobby, I suppose?…
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 5,817
Member is Online
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Post by lidar2 on Jun 28, 2023 12:23:51 GMT
This is definitely one of my more anticipated releases of the summer, so I imagine I'll still wind up picking it up since most of y'all seem to like it so far... but someone voted a 1? Really? Im sorry, but if you're gonna vote for that extreme of an option (at either end of the spectrum) it'd be really nice if ya' could at least post a sentence or two to explain why. With all the recent price hikes I'm forced to lend more and more weight to other fans' opinions on a lot of these releases before I decide to make the plunge myself, and while a single vote vote in the poll is far from persuasive, it does generate some small anxiety. I find it pretty frustrating. It seems there is a member that enjoys voting 1 on every release. I could have sworn that I have seen occasional polls on this forum in the past where the voters' usernames were shown beside their vote. But when I go to create a dummy poll to test this, showing voters' names does not appear to be one of the options. Maybe I am misremembering? Does anyone else recall seeing this? And if it was an option in the past, why is it no longer an option? Is that something the mods/admin can control?
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Post by martinw8686 on Jun 28, 2023 15:05:15 GMT
Is there a setting for polls that requires any 1-star reviews to have to post a review?
If I felt strongly enough to rate something 1/5, I'd be happy to explain my thoughts.
Example
Bad Day In Tinseltown - the story and production were perhaps 3/5 but the performance of the lead villain was 1/5 for me. A usually good actress delivered a diabolically bad childrens panto performance, I found it so bad it tainted any good will I had to the rest of the production.
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mbt66
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 3,081
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Post by mbt66 on Jun 28, 2023 15:22:24 GMT
I find it pretty frustrating. It seems there is a member that enjoys voting 1 on every release. I could have sworn that I have seen occasional polls on this forum in the past where the voters' usernames were shown beside their vote. But when I go to create a dummy poll to test this, showing voters' names does not appear to be one of the options. Maybe I am misremembering? Does anyone else recall seeing this? And if it was an option in the past, why is it no longer an option? Is that something the mods/admin can control? I remember seeing the names, but I haven’t seen it for a long time…I was wondering if it was on the old Big Finish forum.
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Post by Kestrel on Jun 28, 2023 19:04:56 GMT
Is there a setting for polls that requires any 1-star reviews to have to post a review? If I felt strongly enough to rate something 1/5, I'd be happy to explain my thoughts. Yeah, same. As far as I can tell there's no such option. It's probably be too complex to code in to bother with. My understanding is that BBS like this one all operate on one of two or three platforms that basically haven't changed at all in decades.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2023 0:51:55 GMT
The "lost" Genesis was so bad I took a hiatus from BF. What a wonderful return this was. Perfect.
Honestly I think this is one of the best uses of the box set format. Margaret's psyche is allowed to develop but not, like we're seeing with some ranges (hi, Sylv!) where by the time of the next release you barely remember who was up to what. This needed just a vague memory of her intro..and not even really S12 Part 1. This set did it all itself. We see in one box why she would fall in love with the idea of the adventures but then find that the death and danger is too much and she'd take her lonliness over it.
The intro story was a nice fun piece. Bit fairytale melancholia when we get to the resolution but lovely stuff. The WW2 story was BRILLIANT. A wonderful use of a few tropes - village under attack, base under siege, alien using people as a host - but never felt derivative. Leela was majestic in taking charge of the "Dainty Men". Loved her rapport with them. And it was a lovely take on the "can't change fate" idea. Sewing that as another seed in Margaret wanting to leave was clever given her loss in the war.
EPIC Angels story. Tom takes charge so well here. He is just impossibly The Doctor. Moffat's Angels are so good it's hard to believe they're not classic era, they feel like they've been around forever. Using them as more of an outsider threat, only briefly being "on camera" was fun. This coulda been TV.
Margaret's Ghosts was a lovely end. Tom's huffy goodbye fits with the way he said cheerio to Sarah and the likes. Almost retcons not making a fuss when companions leave. "He doesn't like endings..." as River said. To leave her almost in a land of grief was such a wonderful concept. Bringing the timeloop WW2 soldier back? Wunderbar. I was entirely sold on their fling and when she wrote the note at the end, we KNOW he will come...so she gets that happiness at last.
What could have been a real downer of a set - it's about a sad old woman realising her sadness is better than the TARDIS life after all - is completely offset by Tom being SO good. The stuff with "Is it Darren or Darryl? OK George..." never got old. Loved it.
More of this. Just let Tom be Tom, tell stories about emotions and imagination. Not back of a fag packet notes to make "lost" stories.
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enofa
Full Member
Likes: 122
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Post by enofa on Jul 1, 2023 1:09:10 GMT
Listened to the first three tonight, this is easily my favourite 4DA release in some time. Wizard is ok, probably needs a second listen for the story to really sink in as it’s an odd one. Friendly Invasion is a lot of fun, some nice twists and a lot of funny lines (“Would you like to be set on fire?” “Hold on, has anyone ever answered yes to that question?” being a particular highlight). Stone Cold caught me by surprise because I’d somehow forgotten there were angels in it, and it worked all the better for it: it’s the first time they’ve been hidden away for half a story and the reveal was great. Once they’d arrived it was a standard angel runaround, but the setup just made them a bit more refreshing again.
Will give the final story a listen tomorrow. Very impressed so far.
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Post by Chakoteya on Jul 1, 2023 8:31:38 GMT
Just a random thought... Companions with something to go home to seem to 'suffer' more from the traumas of jeopardy that come with travelling with the Doctor than his 'rescued waifs and strays'. This hypothesis does not fit for all versions of the Doctor though.
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Post by shallacatop on Jul 1, 2023 9:14:43 GMT
What a wonderful set of stories, wrapping up an equally wonderful run for Margaret.
The Wizard of Time was a lovely quirky story, something that is perfectly suited as one story in a larger boxset. The Friendly Invasion is a great concept that’s sold by an even greater guest cast and I loved its impact on the remaining two stories. Stone Cold was fantastic, excellent use of the Angels, Tom was on fire and I stormed through the four episodes in one go! And then we have The Ghost of Margaret; I’m not sure I recall a story littered with so much despair and tension. We know it’s the end for our beloved TARDIS team, but we’re desperate for that spark of hope that only comes in the very last seconds. Tom’s hoarse performance in this is terrific; utterly helpless yet completely THE Doctor.
I think this will stand out amongst one of the very best runs of Doctor Who at Big Finish. It’s Tom’s finest, certainly in his own range. Margaret is one of the finest original companions, telling a beautiful story that’s never restricted by character traits. And her relationship with Leela? Well, I never thought they’d be able to give the character that extra boost, at least not without a mindwipe to preserve continuity. Gorgeous stuff.
I really hope we get similar with the Harry & Naomi run next year.
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enofa
Full Member
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Post by enofa on Jul 1, 2023 20:39:23 GMT
The Ghost of Margaret was beautiful, a wonderful sendoff and my favourite story in the series.
After being somewhat disappointed with the 12A, this box has really turned it around. A wonderful set.
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Post by Audio Watchdog on Jul 3, 2023 18:51:12 GMT
I don’t assign a lot of perfect scores but this set easily got a 5 from me. What a great TARDIS team and what a great set of stories. Margaret’s Ghost is a beautiful send-off but it is Louise Jameson who sells the story. She has some absolutely heartbreaking line readings through-out the adventure. Great Angels story as well. All in all my favorite BF box in a long time.
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Post by IndieMacUser on Jul 8, 2023 10:49:18 GMT
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Post by bonehead on Jul 11, 2023 20:25:38 GMT
Late to the party as always, I found The Wizard of Time a wildly unexpected story that both stretches the seams of the two-part setting and somehow sits perfectly within it. There is such a time-spanning urgency to this that I think a longer episode-count would have been too exhausting - partly because this is so indefinable. The character of Harmer is fascinating and curiusly tragic - possibly peppered by the fact that it has turned out to be one of the excellent Ronald Pickup's final performances. I've found Nery's Hughes' Margaret to be another Evelyn Smythe-type, which is no bad thing, but for me she has struggled to attain her own identity. She doesn't have a huge amount to do here, but Hughes is an appealing performer. Louise Jameson and Tom Baker are on good form throughout, but it's the story that shines for me. It's a horror tragedy of sorts, an eccentric piece that really does defy description. Really enjoyed it.
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Post by bonehead on Jul 12, 2023 16:11:52 GMT
The Friendly Invasion by Chris Chapman.
It's never a chore to feel the need to listen to a story a second time, especially one this interesting, to become completely familiar with some of the finer points of the plot. I'm not hugely keen on ignorant yokel locals, so that became a bit of a sore point for me, but there are so many other poignant and dramatic things going on here, I'll not let it bother me. A word for Brnaby Edwards - as mentioned in another post, he excels here, playing no end of characters, all suitably different from one another; terrific performances. Margaret's own wistful plot-line seems to be helping to signpost her departure from the series - it's probably because I'm aware she's leaving more than anything, but her travels with the Doctor are allowing/forcing her confront moments from her past that presumably she hasn't made a habit of revisiting. I love the dialogue - Leela gets some smashing lines. All the business about the 'dainty men', 'Peder' (her phonetic pronounciation of Peter) and 'soft face' are all very appealing.
I'll say I wasn't quite as enamoured of this as I was of The Wizard of Time, but that was a very singular story. I did have a great time with The Friendly Invasion though, and it will be a pleasure to revisit it.
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Post by martinw8686 on Jul 12, 2023 21:57:48 GMT
Pretty decent set, I enjoyed all the stories, not quite 5/5 but that's only because Big Finish has such an impressive back catalogue to compete with.
The Wizard of Time 4/5
The Friendly Invasion 4/5
Stone Cold 3.5/5
Ghosts of Margaret 4.5/5
I thought Tom's age showed more in the final story. He's defied time for so long, his nearly 90 years was bound to show sooner rather than later. I can still use my imagination to visualise the Fourth Doctor of the 1970s but it's sad to think Tom may not have long left with Big Finish, although I wish him as many years of happy retirement as possible.
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Post by bonehead on Jul 14, 2023 15:27:02 GMT
Stone Cold.
Not sure about the two comedy characters in this. Was it Douglas Adams that said to some, it’s just an excuse to overact? That put safely to one side, this is a thunderously good tale. Not since Sylvester McCoy suggested an audio tale set in silent cinema, were Big Finish given such a challenge as to make an essentially silent monster so effective on audio - and yet they've done it. Lots of heavy stone sounds dragging and moving together with Simon Power's sound design and Jamie Robertson's musical stings - wonderful. Genuinely chilling! The story doesn't lag and makes good use of its running time for Margaret to once more express doubts about travelling with the Doctor. Her contrast with Leela is great here - she (like Victoria before her) wearies of what is going on around her, whereas Leela's having a ball. Tom really is on fire here too. All in all, great quantum-locked fun.
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Post by bonehead on Jul 15, 2023 14:03:25 GMT
The Ghost of Margaret by Tim Foley.
There are some good jokes about name mix-ups and phone numbers in this otherwise spooky and poignent goodbye to Nerys Hughes as Margaret. It brings to an end a really good box-set of 4DAs - its appeal aided by a mammoth ten episode count. I'm still not entirely won over by Margaret, but this is a good departure for her - a little over sentimental for such a short-lived character, but touching nonetheless. The Fourth Doctor was never this emotive - this is the fellow who was dismissive and snappy toward his best friend Sarah Jane when she lost her sight - turning him into someone he never was for the sake of this short story doesn't quite ring true. It's very 'nice', Margaret's relationship with Sergeant Ray Hunter (Chase Brown) is very convincing, and Leela always had a compassionate warmth, but it doesn't sound very authentic to this Doctor. We have other Doctors who can get emotional and 'human', but none that have the eccentric qualities Tom brings to the role.
"Don't sit it on the crisps, it's bad luck!"
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Post by martinw8686 on Jul 15, 2023 15:42:26 GMT
The Ghost of Margaret by Tim Foley.
There are some good jokes about name mix-ups and phone numbers in this otherwise spooky and poignent goodbye to Nerys Hughes as Margaret. It brings to an end a really good box-set of 4DAs - its appeal aided by a mammoth ten episode count. I'm still not entirely won over by Margaret, but this is a good departure for her - a little over sentimental for such a short-lived character, but touching nonetheless. The Fourth Doctor was never this emotive - this is the fellow who was dismissive and snappy toward his best friend Sarah Jane when she lost her sight - turning him into someone he never was for the sake of this short story doesn't quite ring true. It's very 'nice', Margaret's relationship with Sergeant Ray Hunter (Chase Brown) is very convincing, and Leela always had a compassionate warmth, but it doesn't sound very authentic to this Doctor. We have other Doctors who can get emotional and 'human', but none that have the eccentric qualities Tom brings to the role.
"Don't sit it on the crisps, it's bad luck!"
I really enjoyed the story and performances but I have to agree that the Fourth Doctor is portrayed as way more sentimental than he ever was on screen. I think those feelings were bubbling under the surface but outwardly a departing companion would be more likely to encounter aloofness or a trailing scarf disappearing into the TARDIS to the sound of gooooooooodbyeeeeeee! Perhaps as Tom has mellowed over the years he's asked for his Doctor to express the sentiment his ego clouded over in his original run.
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