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Post by bethhigdon on May 5, 2024 13:26:13 GMT
C. Baker 4th Review
Mission to Magnus - Novel
So we talked last time about season 23's hiatus and the hasty re-writes that were forced upon the crew in exchange for letting the series continue.
Well years later, the Target range contacted the authors of the abandoned scripts and asked if they would adapt them into a novel format. Basically creating Target novelizations for stories that never saw air time.
Mission to Magnus is is one such script.
Let's get the positives out of the way first.
This really does feel like a lost serial from the Sixth Doctor's era, warts and all.
This means that everyone is in character. Peri and the Doctor come across exactly like they do on screen. All of the villains and side characters feel like they stepped right out of the 80s. Sil is still Sil. And the plot just has that same, "barely hangs together" post-modern/crass humor vibe that is indicative of the era.
Which might be the very thing that holds the story back.
The plot just doesn't gel together that well, and it often feels like the writer is struggling to find a direction or a even a point.
The story starts with the Doctor being lured into a trap by his old childhood bully from the Academy. He's still traumatized by those events and has to learn to overcome his fear.
Which would be a very interesting and relatable story if it was handled with any care, but it isn't. The Doctor just reverts to comedic child like blubbering instead of the way adults would normally process such trauma. Adults do not show fear the same way children would, and even if still scared, they wouldn't face off against their childhood bullies the same as if they were six years old still.
There is the added problem of said bully not being a threat in any real way. He orders the Doctor to take his place within a trap, (even though technically the Doctor would outrank him as President, and both of them should know that) and then proceeds not to question who set that trap. Especially since he was invited to the planet by the people who live there.
Then the bully is easily captured again by the natives. Where upon he is bullied himself into revealing the secrets of time travel to them. When the Doctor finally confronts his nemesis the character has been reduced to such a pathetic state that it hardly feels like a triumph.
He is then easily dispatched and never heard from again through out the rest of the story… and that's all in the first third of the fist act. Like what was even the point of introducing such a plot line if your weren't going to develop it?
Then there's the Ice Warriors, who despite being on the front cover really feel like an after thought that was just thrown in there. They're apparently pitting two different worlds against each other so that they might divide and conquer both in secret.
Which on the surface isn't too terrible an idea, but it's paired with a ridiculous climate change plot involving orbits of the planets rather then just changing the atmosphere. Which in turn is the only reason to justify their use in the plot as they are written to be the same as any other monster of the week baddie… ignoring what made them stand out in the first place.
Which leads to the final and perhaps biggest complaint about the story… the battle between the sexes. Each of the two worlds are supposed to be dominated by the opposite sex, with both holding backwards attitudes towards the other.
The problem is we don't get to see both societies in action. We only see the female led civilization being totalitarian and oppressive. When we meet members of the male led society they are being held captive by the ice warriors and work willing with the Doctor an Peri to fight the monsters.
This means that when the men insult the ruler of the women led world it looks like justified clap-back for the women's mistreatment of others, rather then the sexist diatribe that it is.
Worst the narration insists that the men are talking with the women 'as equals' for the first time, but the dialogue and attitudes displayed therein is anything but equal treatment.
Also, once the Ice Warriors are defeated, and the female led society needs to rebuild, the men offer their assistance, not out of any goodwill or decency but in exchange for enslaving the women as their 'wives'… effectively conquering the planet as their own anyways and this is played off as a joke?
It's important to point out that none of the women actually agree to this arrangement, yet everyone from off planet, including the Doctor, just accepts this as an inevitable fact of life… and sneaks off while they're arguing rather then trying to come up with a fairer alliterative.
What!?
I can only assume that the author intended this to be a parody of the Amazonian women trope, but it's so poorly presented that it winds up being even more offensive then when the show first played the trope straight back in the 60s with Galaxy Four.
I'll be honest, as unfair as Grade's treatment of JNT and Colin Baker was, I'm kind of glad that this never made it to screen as I don't trust that the production team back then would have managed the all the re-writes that the scripted definitely needed.
This is, on a purely technical level, the weakest of the novels I've read for the marathon. Which is a shame as there are things hidden in here to like. Oh well, at least it was short.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 6, 2024 12:39:51 GMT
C. Baker 5th Review
To Cut a Blade of Grass - Short Audio
To Cut a Blade of Grass is a Sixth Doctor Short Trip that sees the doctor visiting an old friend in the hospital. Said friend is dying and the Doctor wishes to help his friend's daughter and do something nice for him before he passes on.
The premise of this story is simple and sweet, told mostly through the eyes of the daughter who is struggling through her father's illness and death. There's not much in the way of conflict here, but it's a philosophical piece about how ordinary people make an impact on others lives even when we don't notice it.
We never hear the dad speak, but we nevertheless get plenty of insight into who he is, what kind of person he was, and the people that mattered to him most. He made people's lives better just by being kind and not by achieving any sort of historic greatness and how in some ways that's more important in life.
I liked this story. It has a nice message and an emotional core. However I have a hard time coming up with more to say for it than that, but I suppose it doesn't need to be anything more.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 7, 2024 15:31:28 GMT
C. Baker 6th Review
Doctor Who and the Mines of Terror - Video Game
The Mines of Terror is actually the third Doctor Who game ever made. (We'll be coming back to the the second, text based, game later.) It is however the first to physically feature the Doctor on screen. Released in 1985, the incarnation featured here is unmistakably the Sixth Doctor.
The story of the game is that the Master is mining a rare metal that will power a device that will allow him to re-write time to his liking; rearranging events to suit his needs. The Doctor is sent by the time lords to stop him. He has to explore the mine for items that will help him progress and destroy the machine. All while surviving enemy encounters and making it back to the Tardis in one piece. To help him in this task he is given the robot cat, Splinx, as a companion. As a cat person myself, I really like the concept of Splinx, but I'm not very sure what she does for the game. Apparently Splinx can carry more items then the Doctor could himself and so acts as an inventory holder within the game.... except the Doctor has to carry Splinx around in order to unitize this feature, thereby making such a game mechanic kind of pointless. I understand that in 1985 there wasn't really the ability to create a secondary AI character that would follow the main character around, let alone the technology to create a multi-player experience, but it does kind of feel like a waste of an idea. Like why couldn't you just program the main avatar to have that same inventory space on them at all times to begin with? Sadly Splinx would only ever reappear once more in an AU audio story. As for the game play itself, it's basically a Mario Bros/Donkey Kong rip off but with one big map to explore rather then multiple linear levels. You can go back, forth, up, or down, at any point you wish, and the game expects you to back track to different areas to collect more stuff. The game ends when you either run out of lives or return to the Tardis. However, while you can re-enter the Tardis at any time, it won't be considered a true win until you've collected everything. Where Mines of Terror fails, is the same reason as the First Adventure, bad stage design. While one could argue that this third outing is marginally better then the first, it still is thwarted by the strange need to be 'organic'. Craggy, jagged lines and slopping platforms make up the ground layout, while the ceiling will hang too low and uneven in certain places. All this, plus a nerfed jump, makes platforming and exploring difficult. Now add in a zoomed in camera that you have to wait on to move with you to see ahead which forces you to make leaps of faith constantly and you have a very frustrating experience. I genuinely can't recommend this game to anyone other then the most hard core enthusiast. You're better off watching a lets play on youtube or reading the game manual if you want to experience the story.
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Post by number13 on May 7, 2024 22:14:25 GMT
C. Baker 6th Review
Doctor Who and the Mines of Terror - Video Game
The Mines of Terror is actually the third Doctor Who game ever made. (We'll be coming back to the the second, text based, game later.) It is however the first to physically feature the Doctor on screen. Released in 1985, the incarnation featured here is unmistakably the Sixth Doctor.
The story of the game is that the Master is mining a rare metal that will power a device that will allow him to re-write time to his liking; rearranging events to suit his needs. The Doctor is sent by the time lords to stop him. He has to explore the mine for items that will help him progress and destroy the machine. All while surviving enemy encounters and making it back to the Tardis in one piece. To help him in this task he is given the robot cat, Splinx, as a companion. As a cat person myself, I really like the concept of Splinx, but I'm not very sure what she does for the game. Apparently Splinx can carry more items then the Doctor could himself and so acts as an inventory holder within the game.... except the Doctor has to carry Splinx around in order to unitize this feature, thereby making such a game mechanic kind of pointless. I understand that in 1985 there wasn't really the ability to create a secondary AI character that would follow the main character around, let alone the technology to create a multi-player experience, but it does kind of feel like a waste of an idea. Like why couldn't you just program the main avatar to have that same inventory space on them at all times to begin with? Sadly Splinx would only ever reappear once more in an AU audio story. As for the game play itself, it's basically a Mario Bros/Donkey Kong rip off but with one big map to explore rather then multiple linear levels. You can go back, forth, up, or down, at any point you wish, and the game expects you to back track to different areas to collect more stuff. The game ends when you either run out of lives or return to the Tardis. However, while you can re-enter the Tardis at any time, it won't be considered a true win until you've collected everything. Where Mines of Terror fails, is the same reason as the First Adventure, bad stage design. While one could argue that this third outing is marginally better then the first, it still is thwarted by the strange need to be 'organic'. Craggy, jagged lines and slopping platforms make up the ground layout, while the ceiling will hang too low and uneven in certain places. All this, plus a nerfed jump, makes platforming and exploring difficult. Now add in a zoomed in camera that you have to wait on to move with you to see ahead which forces you to make leaps of faith constantly and you have a very frustrating experience. I genuinely can't recommend this game to anyone other then the most hard core enthusiast. You're better off watching a lets play on youtube or reading the game manual if you want to experience the story. My nostalgia is loving these off-the-roundel-filled-wall choices!
Incidentally it reminded me there was a 1980s game in which a secondary helper character followed you the player character around, repairing pipes(?) for reasons I don't recall. (Then, it was about 40 years ago I played it!)
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Post by bethhigdon on May 8, 2024 12:53:18 GMT
C. Baker 7th Review
Prisoners of Time: Endgame - Comic
Prisoners of Time was a year long spanning 50th anniversary special.
Over the course of twelve issues, each doctor got to participate in a mini-adventure that highlighted their era. Only for their companions to be kidnapped at the end of each story by a mysterious entity.
Endgame is the conclusion of that story arc, bringing all then eleven Doctors and their friends together to defeat the Master and Adam.
Yup the former 9th Doctor's companion has turned full on villain, and honestly who could blame him? The treatment of Adam was one of the very few low points of the Eccleston era, and this story arc seeks to rectify that and give the character closure.
It works really well for what it is and is the main draw of the graphic novel, but we're here for the Sixth Doctor not the Ninth.
The Sixth Doctor is traveling around with Peri and Frobisher during his portion of the comic.
Frobisher is from the Sixth Doctor's original comic run and has proven so popular that he's managed to crossover into other spin-offs.
He's a shapeshifting alien bounty hunter who was once contracted to kidnap the Doctor but then decided to join him on his travels instead.
Frobisher usually prefers to inhabit the body of a penguin though can turn himself into anyone or anything, living or non-living. He winds up being the key player in helping to defeat Adam.
Being forewarned by the Tenth Doctor, Frobisher takes Peri's place and allows himself to be kidnapped instead. He then proceeds to sneak around Adam's hidden fortress and dismantle the systems from within, freeing everyone.
I'll admit, I'm kind of getting 'multi-doctor' fatigue as we reach the middle of the marathon. There's only five such episodes in the series proper but the spin-offs are a whole other ball game apparently.
However as far as multi-doctor stories go, Prisoners of Time is one of the better ones. There's plenty of fan service (we even get a brief Ben cameo) and an emotional core to the story that builds off of the plot lines laid out in the main show.
It's certainly better then The Two Doctors, that's for sure.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 9, 2024 11:05:17 GMT
C. Baker 8th Review
The Ultimate Foe - Novelization
I won't lie, The Ultimate Foe is my favorite Sixth Doctor story on tv, so I was really excited to get this one as the randomizer's novelization pick. What a disappointment. Let's get one thing out of the way, unlike most of the fandom, I have nothing against Pip and Jane Baker. I've enjoyed all of their episodes for Doctor Who in some manner. But their prose... oh heavens, their prose. Talk about trying too hard! I never read anything that simultaneously both described too much and too little at once. The purple prose goes to great lengths to give details of the setting and yet you never get a feeling of placement; no grounding to which your mind's eye can conjure up the scenery for yourself. The Bakers constantly interrupt the action to tell us what everyone is thinking, over explaining motivations, but fail to actually flesh out the plot and provide a base motive for the main villain. And here's the really mind boggling part, despite only being a two parter originally and despite the fact that this novel has double the chapters a normal target book would have, the adaptation fails to actually add anything to the story. In fact they even remove the scene of the Doctor finding out about Peri's fate, but still have the Master giving that explanation to Mel and the court. Like why? Just why? Shouldn't the Master be giving that information to the Doctor directly in order to create more conflict between the Hero and the Time Lords? Don't you remove the emotional drama that way? Why even bring Peri up at all then? The only addition/change that actually works is the epilogue that sees the Sixth Doctor dropping Mel off back where she came from in the timeline, which is then supposed to lead directly into Time and the Rani. All in all I still love the actual televised story. The visuals are great, the surreal plot still hangs together, wrapping up what was a near impossible story arc, and the flowery dialogue works for the characters at least... but I'll be trying to stay away from any more Pip and Jane target novels in the future if I can.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 10, 2024 14:45:06 GMT
C. Baker 9th Review
Temporal Logbook III: Changed Lives - Anthology Charity Book
I have never heard of fan published charity books until I started watching Doctor Who. I know of no other fandom, large or small, that does anything like it; professionally publish fan-fiction and sell it for charity.
I can only guess that such a thing is possible because of differentiating copy-write laws in the UK, because I highly doubt Disney would ever let you release a Kingdom Hearts or Star Wars book like that, even if all the proceeds went to good causes rather then yourself.
Temporal Logbook III: Changed Lives, is the third in a series of charity anthologies. Modeled after the the various official short trips collections, such anthologies are perhaps the most common of the charity books. While there are full novels out there, anthology collections allow for better spread of the work load and so are easier to get printed.
This particular publication features a bit of a theme. "Changed Lives"... each short story focuses on the impact the Doctor has had an individual, for good or for bad.
Here is just a quick run though of what you will find.
A Forward By Yee Jee Tso : The actor who portrayed Chang Lee in the TV movie talks briefly of the impact of Doctor Who has had in his life
Fifth Doctor – ‘The Return’: After Tegan has recently left, a remorseful Doctor decides to check on another companion that also chose to abruptly leave him.... Dodo.
War Doctor – ‘Lament’: The Doctor lands on a memorial planet; as in the entire planet is a graveyard. There he meets a young woman who has recently lost her whole family, and he makes a startling discovery about the Time War.
Twelfth Doctor - 'The New Doctor': One of the Doctor's students stumbles upon the Tardis, but a quick trip to the planet of dreams quickly goes awry.
Third Doctor – ‘Technical Adviser’: They're making a Doctor Who movie! And the Doctor and Liz Shaw are asked on to be advisers to the film. But certain elements of the fictional story appear to be too close to real events for their liking. The Doctor and Liz go on quest to find the financial backer of the movie; a mysterious producer that seemingly doesn't exist!
Sixth Doctor - 'The Heart of the Matter': An old man re-accounts his adventurous life to his granddaughter, and tells about the mysterious stranger called the Doctor who kept turning up to redirect it constantly.
Eleventh Doctor- 'The Last Tomb': A lonely old man on the beach gets caught up in local family's vacation to a dying planet... more news at 11.
Fourth Doctor - 'Kiss of the Dybbuk': The Doctor and Sarah Jane land upon a ship who's crew is being tormented by the legendary Dybbuk. The creature can possess anyone, and so it's up to them to find the evil spirit hidden among the crew before time runs out.
First Doctor - 'Something at the End of the Lane': The Doctor has finally brought Ian and Barbara back home to their own time! The time travelers couldn't be more happy, but celebrations are cut short when a medieval knight shows up in a coffee shop.... and is that mastodon stampeding in the street?
Tenth Doctor - 'Consequences': When the Doctor makes the choice to save a little boy from dying... He lays out a path with dire consequences for his own future.
The Second Doctor - 'The Harvesters': The Harvesters are supposed to mine for precious materials within the asteroid belt for their creators back home... and when a new metal 'asteroid' on rockets enters the belt carrying rare organic materials, well it's a prime opportunity for the Harvesters. Too bad the human crew doesn't see it that way.
Ninth Doctor - 'A Night in Santa's Workshop': She's the last of her kind... but not for long. Earth will make the prefect new home for her offspring. And they must feed... and the Doctor and his companion will be the perfect meal.
Seventh Doctor - 'Sepulchered Soul': Locked in a battle for a mortal's soul, who will win? The demons, or an angel called the Doctor?
Thirteenth Doctor - 'Emotion Quotient': A young woman is suddenly frozen in time, and no one can figure out how or why... not even the Doctor!
Eighth Doctor - 'Auld Acquaintances': The Master has escaped death yet again, and the Doctor's personal timeline is unraveling as a consequence.
Now of course this segment of the marathon is Sixth Doctor focused so, without spoiling too much, the most notable things about 'The Heart of the Matter' is that Frobisher shows up again, and the ending is indeed a mindscrew. Trust me, you won't ever guess how it ends.
As for the Collection as a whole, it was really enjoyable and quite varied. My personal favorite story was 'Something at the End of the Lane' but that's probably my Ian bias talking. All of the stories with in were of very high quality and I absolutely would recommend checking out the whole novel.
Fortunately, there are still copies in stock and for sell as of time of writing, and all proceeds go to SETTLED. A charity that helps to provide free and trustworthy information, advice and support in different languages to EU citizens in the UK. SETTLED helps to ensure that EU citizens gain Settled Status and to respond to the difficulties that they face in a post-brexit UK.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 11, 2024 14:01:44 GMT
C. Baker 10th Review
Project: Twilight - Full Audio
This was alright... I guess.
I mean it's not a bad story by any means, and for many people this is regarded as a classic, but for me personally it never really rose above passable.
For starters, I'm not a horror fan, so the plot of this story was never going to be anything that interested me a whole lot. I also feel that gore in an audio format is rather pointless and I'm continually baffled whenever Big Finish tries to incorporate it. It always comes across as too try hard to be shocking or scary.
Also some of the action scenes are a little confusing on audio, but that's nothing new.
But what really bought things down for me were that the main characters kept being written as stupid and that was aggravating to listen to.
Sure the Doctor being tricked into helping the bad guys isn't out of the realm of possibility, and to his credit he never fully trusts them... but then why let his companion run around by herself if he doesn't trust them... especially once he figures out their true natures?
Also why would the guess character blindly answer the door to her apartment when she already knows she's being stalked and blackmailed?
And why on earth would the companion leave an injured woman alone with someone that they already don't trust and believes to be a thug.... especially when the woman is begging them not to leave them alone with the obviously dangerous man!?
I haven't listened to too many stories with Evelyn, but even I could tell that this was out of character. Because it would be out of character for any companion to do that! Hell even Turlough wouldn't be dumb enough to do that!
The whole thing feels contrived, and having heard the squeal to this; Project: Lazarus, I can tell you that it is contrived. Contrived to create sequel bait.
But I did say that it wasn't all bad and it isn't. The acting is good. Colin Baker is a wonderful through out. His Doctor's interactions with Evelyn are a delight and the highlight of the story.
The main villain... is, well, arguably too obviously the main villain , but she plays the part well. The production is solid as always. And finally, hearing the guest character, Cassie, kill her abuser is deeply satisfying to listen to.
So all in all, I'm not sorry that I heard it, but I'll probably never come back to it again.
Oh and hurray to see that the Doctor has went back to eating meat! Take that Holmes!
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Post by bethhigdon on May 13, 2024 17:55:25 GMT
C. Baker 11th Review
Doctor Who: The Ultimate Adventure - Miscellaneous
Can you call something a musical if it only has three songs?
Regardless, The Ultimate Adventure was a stage play that ran from March to August of 1989 that indeed featured song and dance numbers.
Initially staring Jon Pertwee, Colin Baker took up the role after he became ill. While you can find footage of both, C. Baker's run is the better quality recording available and any official squeals/remakes feature his doctor. Hence why I'm featuring it during his era.
The plot involves the Daleks kidnapping an important American diplomat and the Doctor and his companions being tasked to rescue him, not realizing it's an elaborate trap.
Think of The Dalek Masterplan condensed down into an hour and a half stage show with added Cybermen and musical numbers, and that's pretty much the experience.
The Doctor and his companions keep running around from location to location, from alien planets, to modern day bars, to historical events ect... just long enough to have a little vignette of a scene before going back to the plot briefly and then we're off to the next set piece/action sequence/song ect...
This quest type of adventure suits the medium pretty well and as Classic Who was always just filmed theater anyways, it translates to the stage quite well. The effects pretty much amount to just strategic lighting and wires, with some decent makeup for the aliens, but it's still impressive looking.
As for the songs, they're more hit or miss. They certainly don't reach the heights of Doctor in Distress, but then whatever could? Most of them are decent enough in the moment but forgettable. The best one is Business is Business which I guess is the closest we get to a villain song; even though the character who sings it isn't really a villain, more of a morally grey character.
In fact Madame Delilah, the queen of the mercenaries, is the best character in the show full stop and it's kind of sad that she never appears in anything else.
So yeah, I recommend checking it out. Especially if you're a fan of either Six or Three.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 14, 2024 13:49:41 GMT
C. Baker 12th Review
Beyond the Ultimate Adventure - Spin-off
There's not many Doctor Who spin-offs that could lay claim to being inspired by the sixth doctor's era. I know of the Stranger series, that wired Ozone movie, and a mini-series staring Sil, none of which are official. But Big Finish did produced an audio adaptation of the Ultimate Adventure play starring Colin Baker again, and years later created a sequel to that audio adaptation.
It is essentially a spin-off of a spin-off of a spin-off.
Perhaps not the oddest thing we've covered for the marathon, but it is a puzzling move from a marketing stand point.
The sequel is not another musical comedy extravaganza but a regular old Companion Chronicle. Fewer cast, less comedy, and zero songs.
Like, those who haven't heard nor seen the plays would just be confused, and those who are a fan of the plays aren't getting the main attraction that drew them to the stage shows to begin with.
Another odd creative decision is expanding the usual CC format to include C.Baker himself, but not going the extra mile to bring in David Banks to replay Karl. There's only four characters in the majority of the story anyways, so it's odd to hear three people talking and the fourth being voiced alternatively by two of them.
So, yes, this story would have benefited being a full cast audio, and maybe being expanded to include songs, but that's not to say that the story is bad.
Terrance Dicks returns to write this sequel and it's just a comfy slice of generic Who. It's nothing ground breaking or challenging, the plot is basically a cross between the Three Doctors (entity trapped in other dimension wants to escape into ours) mixed with The God Complex (characters have to re-live their most traumatic experiences/fears) with the Doctor's fears being past monsters they have to defeat.
It might be a stronger experience if we were more familiar with the companions (and if Karl was actually played by his VA) but the cast isn't by any means dull. Jason is a renegade from the French Revolution, Crystal is a modren-ish day, night club singer, and Karl is a futuristic space mercenary.
That's a colorful cast of characters to bounce off of, and the story does utilize their backgrounds to effect. But because we spend so little time with them, that there's little too them but their backgrounds.
Jason and Crystal are your stock, generally 'nice' companions. Karl is arguably the most fleshed out, but he's still feels like a generic rouge archetype… like a less charming Glitz. Nothing particularly interesting is done with the Doctor and his fears. It's just an excuse to see some old baddies again.
But then again, who doesn't like seeing old favorites? I especially got a kick out of seeing a Rutan again.
I'll be honest I enjoyed this far more then Project: Twilight. It maybe safe, predictable, Who, but then what's wrong with that? Sometimes all you want is something comfy to listen to after a long day at work.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 15, 2024 14:01:06 GMT
C. Baker 13th Review The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up - Short Story
We got another short trip from the anthology Past Tense.
In this story the Sixth Doctor meets King Alfred the Great, who is in incognito while spying on the vikings invading his land. The Doctor has to inspire the ailing king not to give up on his quest… but not for the reasons that you would imagine.
I'll give the story this, I did learn more about King Alfred here then I ever did in school. Beyond that though, the author seems more concerned with being clever then with just telling a story.
See the real reason the Doctor is there is to steal some cake.
That's it.
It's revealed at the end that the Doctor is going behind Mel's back and breaking his diet by enjoying delicacies from the past.
Never mind that 'cake' in 9th century England is not the cake we have today, and is probably the whole grain stuff that Mel would approve of anyways.
Never mind that half the food before the creation of the FDA and similar programs was poisoned and that the most common way to die in the past was from stomach cancer or dentistry.
Never mind that Time Lords have a different biology to humans and so probably processes sugars, carbs, proteins, and minerals differently from us. Not to mention that not all diets work for all people the same way.
No, you're not suppose to overthink it, because it's just a comedy. Just a cute fluff piece. Except it's not very funny.
Oh the concept is hilarious!
I love the idea of the Doctor thinking up increasingly over the top ways to get around Mel's health fad restrictions, to Mel's increasing frustration at never quite being able to catch him in the act.
That's comedy gold right there!
But that's not what we get.
The author keeps us in the dark as to what is going on for too long that the set up becomes the punchline instead.. reducing it's impact.
Then there's also the unpleasant way the Doctor is described as 'portly' and 'fat' and this is somehow to implied to be his fault for not following his diet.
Even though Six was never 'fat' and being bigger then some other people isn't due to some moral failing at not being able to kept to a diet…. in fact most fad diets are actually harmful in the long run and rarely help with weight loss.
It's Mel's obsession with the latest health fads and well meaning bossy nature that is the character flaw that should be exploited for laughs here. Not the other way around.
So to summarize, this was a real missed opportunity.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 16, 2024 12:53:38 GMT
C. Baker Ranking
Favorite: A Fix with Sontarans - I just think it's fun. And I do not ask for Who to be anything more than fun.
Least Favorite: The Two Doctors - This story however is not fun, and is still my least favorite classic story on tv. The only episodes I dislike more are from NuWho.
1. A Fix with Sontarans - Minisode 2. To Cut a Blade of Grass - Short Audio 3. Endgame - Comic
4.The Ultimate Adventure - Miscellaneous
5.The Temporal Logbook III: Changed Lives - Fan Work 6. Beyond the Ultimate Adventure - Spin-off 7. Doctor In Distress - Behind the Scenes 8. The Man Who Wouldn’t Give Up - Short Story 9. Project: Twilight - Full Audio 10. The Ultimate Foe - Novelization 11. Mission to Magnus - Novel 12. Doctor Who and the Mines of Terror - Video Game 13. The Two Doctors - TV Story
So outside of a few clunkers, mostly a fun era. Up next, the Seventh Doctor.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 17, 2024 13:26:13 GMT
McCoy 1st Review
Dalek Attack - Video Game
Dalek Attack is the fourth Doctor Who video game ever published. It's a 'run n gun' platformer where the Doctor (and a companion in co-op mode) must traverse cities around the globe to locate and free hostages while blowing up bad guys.
The story, such that it is, is that Davros and the Daleks have invaded Earth in 2254, and the Timelords have called upon the Seventh Doctor to stop them.
Like with the previous early video games, I decided to watch a let's play rather then subject myself to the torture of battling wonky controls and outdated mechanics like the lives system.
There's also the problem of figuring out which version to play as this game got several, and I do mean several, releases and ports.
At a bare minimum there are three different version of this game, with various ports for each.
First is the ZX Spectrum version. It's 8 bit and all the levels are solid colors with black outlines. Each level gets it's own color and you can only play as the Seventh Doctor in this version.
The Commodore 64 version is also 8-bit, but utilizes more colors at a time to try and gain more definition. Also every version of this game has it's own soundtrack.
Then there's the 16-bit version that was released on multiple consoles, including Atari, Amiga, IBM and DOS. This version seems to be the most popular, not only because it has the more detail, but also because it's the version that allows you to play different doctors.
You have the choice between the Second, Forth, and Seventh Doctors. And for co-op, the second player can now pick between Ace and the Brigadier. Though I hear tell that co-op is a pain to play, and that this is the most buggy version out there.
'But why so many versions?' you ask.
Probably because for decades this was the only Doctor Who game that was actually passable. I mean it's a generic 90s shoot-'em-up but it actually functions. The layout is decent, the controls and jumping mechanics work, and the general conceit of fighting off Daleks in various famous cities around the globe (plus Skaro), with interesting new foes as bosses, all while saving people, is a sound idea for a game.
I know some fans have complained about turning the sonic screwdriver into a weapon for the game, but given that it's Daleks we're dealing with here, I don't see the problem. The Doctor has killed less threatening foes before, and since the Timelords are said to be involved you can easily work this into the Time War.
So if you enjoy both Doctor Who and 90s platformers then this might be something worth checking out.
I however hate platformers with a passion and so I didn't even bother. As previously stated I watched some lets plays, one for each version. Here they are if you would like to watch for yourself.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 18, 2024 12:25:16 GMT
McCoy 2nd Review
Destiny of the Doctor: Shockwave - Short Audio
It's amazing how much a decade can change your perception of something.
Destiny of the Doctor (not to be confused with the video game Destiny of the Doctors) was a special audio series released for the 50th anniversary.
Each entry focuses on each Doctor having a short adventure that eventually ties into a larger story arc. Kind of like the Prisoners of Time comic that ran at the same time, but without a crossover at the end.
The series is a blend of both the Companion Chronicles and the Short Trips formats.
Like the Companion Chronicles, each entry features one main character narrating everything and a guest actor playing another character to bounce off of. And the adventures are roughly an hour apiece.
Yet the narration is all in third person rather than first, and the story is not necessarily told from the perspective of the companion. Hence why it's kind of more like a Short Trip. Plus Short Trips tend to come in collections like this.
But I'm beating about the bush; what of the story itself?
Well it's good.
It's well produced, nicely preformed, conveys the era it depicts perfectly as an anniversary special should, and the plot is both easy to listen to as a standalone while still tying into the larger story arc in a way that's not distracting.
It's also deeply triggering.
The story involves a planet blowing up and everyone running for their lives all while a group of doomsday cultists try to 'save' everyone by killing them.
Now back in 2013, this sort of plot was fine. Standard Who stuff even with the bleaker setup.
But in 2023, I've now lived through a global pandemic, several climate change induced natural disasters, two economic crashes, an attempted Nazi led coup, seen various terrorist attacks, wars, and senseless act of mass violence play out daily on the news, and watched as idiots repeatedly refused to partake in basic safety persuasions all because they didn't 'believe' in the very obvious danger before them because they wanted to feel 'special'!!!
I just don't have the patience anymore.
The main problem I have with this story, beyond just the anxiety inducing opening which is meant to evoke such feelings, is the sympathetic way the deadly lunatic tiring to murder everyone is dealt with.
I kept wanting to reach through the speaker in order to slap the silly little dumbarse.
I appreciate that the story doesn't have her give up her faith as part of her redemption... but it also doesn't feel like she learned anything either. Even when she changes her mind and sacrifices herself to save everyone else instead, it's feels less like a change of heart and realizing that what she did was wrong, and more like she just changed her plan cause her deity told her too.
Ugh! I can't. I just can't anymore. I no longer care why authoritarians do what they do. I'm not interested in empathizing with their selfish insanity. I don't want to 'hear them out' or 'politely' give them a platform.
I genuinely, truly believe that coddling abusers is what has led to all of our recent problems with the world, and a cult is nothing more then an organization of abusers. That's what makes it a cult.
And it doesn't matter how outwardly 'nice' or simply 'misguided' the antagonist is in this story, she's still a bully. End of. And I desperately wish that she was called out on that by the main characters rather then being forgiven so quickly.
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Post by bethhigdon on May 19, 2024 20:59:15 GMT
McCoy 3rd Review Battlefield - TV story
After much consideration, I’ve decided that Battlefield is the quintessential Seventh Doctor story.
It’s not the best. It’s not the worst. It combines two of the most iconic elements of the era… nostalgic military romps with high concept fantasy. Hints to Ace’s troubled background and her flirting with the first person her age are once again plot points. It even has the intergalactic vacation gone wrong vibes from earlier seasons with the pub scenes.
It has all of the highs and lows that typifies this time in Who. It’s cheesy and tacky in that late 80s, early 90s way, and it is loads of fun.
Also I headcannon that Merlin is Cushing’s Doctor.
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Post by mark687 on May 19, 2024 21:07:36 GMT
McCoy 3rd Review Battlefield - TV story
After much consideration, I’ve decided that Battlefield is the quintessential Seventh Doctor story.
It’s not the best. It’s not the worst. It combines two of the most iconic elements of the era… nostalgic military romps with high concept fantasy. Hints to Ace’s troubled background and her flirting with the first person her age are once again plot points. It even has the intergalactic vacation gone wrong vibes from earlier seasons with the pub scenes.
It has all of the highs and lows that typifies this time in Who. It’s cheesy and tacky in that late 80s, early 90s way, and it is loads of fun.
Also I headcannon that Merlin is Cushing’s Doctor.
Like 2 Doctors another story I just 100% enjoy, performed with sheer conviction from all involved. Regards mark687
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