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Post by nucleusofswarm on Apr 22, 2023 23:26:15 GMT
Two companions with debatable reputations on TV who have enjoyed hefty runs on BF, even having stories and arcs devoted just to them. But who got the better deal - the botanist or the programmer?
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Post by Sir Wearer of Hats on Apr 23, 2023 1:34:26 GMT
Peri
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Post by theillusiveman on Apr 23, 2023 5:20:03 GMT
In terms of characterisation Mel is better at big finish
Due to restraining the pantomime,
Giving her more dramatic and more depth
Peri is still pretty good, Nicola Bryant’s acting (especially the accent) has improved in the big finish years then when she was on screen
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Post by mark687 on Apr 23, 2023 20:58:56 GMT
Both very good
However if we include Post TV EP Arcs Peri I think
Regards
mark687
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Apr 24, 2023 12:51:41 GMT
Too close to call for me... both characters have had pluses and minuses during their Big Finish runs, mainly the former though obviously. The main thing is both characters have improved immensely in their many Big Finish stories and are more rounded than their TV personas. BF Mel or BF Peri? Give me both!
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Post by tuigirl on Apr 24, 2023 17:37:05 GMT
For me it is Peri.
I just like the character better.
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shutupbanks
Castellan
There’s a horror movie called Alien? That’s really offensive. No wonder everyone keeps invading you.
Likes: 5,677 
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Post by shutupbanks on Apr 24, 2023 22:59:59 GMT
Mel: she has been portrayed consistently better on audio than on screen. Both are great, but we got to know Peri pretty well during her time on the show, whereas Mel wasn’t, which was no fault of Bonnie Langford’s.
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Post by Kestrel on Apr 25, 2023 3:12:15 GMT
I liked Peri a lot more than Mel in the TV show (those consecutive high-pitched screams really ruined a lot of episodes for me) but on audio, it's the inverse: Mel is pretty tolerable (no more screaming! Or at least far, far less) whereas Peri is very consistently grating.
I think Peri's been pretty badly flanderized in the Big Finish audios. On the TV show, she had some pretty solid chemistry with her Doctors -- acerbic and sarcastic at times, but also curious and quietly considerate. In the audios, however, she's just mean. Constantly dismissive of everyone she meets, constantly upset to be everywhere she goes, always ready with insults and mockery -- or, if not, self-pity.
And when my trajectory sends me toward what people consider the better Peri audios... she's not any better, she's just the victim of venom and trauma rather than the inflicter. I don't often see Peri being written with much nuance or subtlety or humanity, really. Her main role in the audios is to function as a more monodimensional plot device than any of the TV companions ever were.
Well, okay, except for maybe Susan. Susan was treated horrendously poorly by the TV writers and even though it's been several years since I went through Classic Who, I'm still sore about it.
But, in either case, I tend to view Peri and Mel stories about the same when I'm considering something new to listen to: the presence of either is a red flag. And certainly not because of the actors -- this is due entirely to the writers.
Even the writers whose work I generally tend to think very highly of mostly only seem to be able to tell Peri and Mel stories by minimizing their respective roles. It's not uncommon in those to see one-offs with more depth and agency.
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Post by elkawho on Apr 26, 2023 2:52:09 GMT
I am going to preface this post by saying that I have never been much of a fan of either of those characters, and I'm still not crazy about them. But they are both much better on audio. When asked to compare, I think Peri was served better on TV and I think she's also served better on audio. Mel has had some great stories and the character is a hell of a lot more interesting on audio, but I believe Peri has had meatier stories. The Reaping, Peri and the Piscon Paradox, The older Peri stories, and the Peri and Erimem relationship are just a few examples that highlight that.
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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
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Post by lidar2 on Apr 26, 2023 8:03:36 GMT
When it comes to audio, Mel has the advantage of starting from a lower base on TV, so there is much more room for improvement (low TV base due primarily to writing rather than performance). A bit like Six himself in this respect
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Post by bonehead on Apr 26, 2023 14:07:08 GMT
Of the two, I think Peri has been given a much more intense backstory (the themes in Piscon Paradox really do add a tragic undertone to her character, and one contributed to by the Sixth Doctor, which leaves as nasty taste - but brave and intelligent writing). Mel has simply been elevated into a good, strong, likeable character who doesn't scream at everything alien - or indeed at anything alien! Both characters are very different and played by terrific actors, but have made different , successful journeys with BF. As to who is 'better' on audio - I really couldn't say. I love them both, but I'm saddened how Mel has been sidelined so much in recent Sixth Doctor stories.
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Post by adamfinch on Apr 28, 2023 19:25:03 GMT
Mel I think, mostly because Bonnie Langford’s performance pops on audio and there’s a real energy and buzz to the early plays she’s in which channel some of the tartrazine fizz and insane ambition of Season 23 and 24. The One Doctor is one of my absolute favourites. I think they’ve struggled to find much to do with her in recent years but that’s not a problem unique to Mel.
Peri’s BF career has been a bit fragmented with the early (first hundred) plays mostly with Erimem and then latterly that tentative “older Peri” arc that seems to have fizzled out. She’s had some great one off stories (The Reaping; The Piscon Paradox; The Curious Incident…; Plight of the Pimpernel) but a lot of Lost Stories that sort of became her main thing for quite a chunk of the Main Range run, and which largely aren’t great at offering her much development.
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