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Post by IndieMacUser on Sept 8, 2024 15:12:45 GMT
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Post by 20fridge on Sept 8, 2024 23:11:31 GMT
This one was a lot of fun! I was unimpressed when I first read the article announcing this release, but I'd already got the 6th Doctor Bundle for this year. I'm glad I did. The whole is much greater than the sum of its parts. The parody of reality TV takes the good ideas of Vengeance on Varos and Bad Wolf to the Nth degree. It remixes the elements from the 6th Doctor's televised era in such a clever tongue in cheek way. I love how much Mel and Peri get to do. Normally, I would get grumpy with the story escalating the stakes to fate of the universe stuff, but the story maintained the tongue in cheek tone well enough that it worked as part of the gag, rather than making a silly story suddenly serious.
My only real complaint is Culshaw's performance as the Master. He was fine as an Androgum. However, as the Master, there were moments where shades of the Fourth Doctor and the Brigadier slipped in. It's a real shame because there were moments where he nailed Ainely's mannerisms, particularly when he was revealing that the producer was an AI. That was a perfect scene. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, he couldn't maintain it. I'm surprised given that his performance as the Brigadier, his impression of the Fourth Doctor, his original roles, and his reading of a short trip with the Third Doctor and the Brigadier all show that he can maintain a voice consistently.
There were a few aspects that left me with questions. First, will we see Tiffany Jenkins again? At first it seemed like they were teasing a future story (taking place earlier in the Sixth Doctor's timeline), but the mention of Evelyn makes me think we won't get that adventure. Not unless they decide to recast Evelyn, which I can't see them do (especially since if they were up for that they probably would have done it during Hebe's run in the 6DAs). They way they left things, maybe she could come back in the future. Second, is this a different version of post-Mindwarp Peri than the one from The Widow's Assassin? That seems likely. I didn't hear anything that explicitly confirms either way. Given that Peri and the Piscon Paradox established that there are quite a few different Peris out there, having this one be different could make sense.
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Post by mark687 on Sept 8, 2024 23:18:15 GMT
This one was a lot of fun! I was unimpressed when I first read the article announcing this release, but I'd already got the 6th Doctor Bundle for this year. I'm glad I did. The whole is much greater than the sum of its parts. The parody of reality TV takes the good ideas of Vengeance on Varos and Bad Wolf to the Nth degree. It remixes the elements from the 6th Doctor's televised era in such a clever tongue in cheek way. I love how much Mel and Peri get to do. Normally, I would get grumpy with the story escalating the stakes to fate of the universe stuff, but the story maintained the tongue in cheek tone well enough that it worked as part of the gag, rather than making a silly story suddenly serious. My only real complaint is Culshaw's performance as the Master. He was fine as an Androgum. However, as the Master, there were moments where shades of the Fourth Doctor and the Brigadier slipped in. It's a real shame because there were moments where he nailed Ainely's mannerisms, particularly when he was revealing that the producer was an AI. That was a perfect scene. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, he couldn't maintain it. I'm surprised given that his performance as the Brigadier, his impression of the Fourth Doctor, his original roles, and his reading of a short trip with the Third Doctor and the Brigadier all show that he can maintain a voice consistently. There were a few aspects that left me with questions. First, will we see Tiffany Jenkins again? At first it seemed like they were teasing a future story (taking place earlier in the Sixth Doctor's timeline), but the mention of Evelyn makes me think we won't get that adventure. Not unless they decide to recast Evelyn, which I can't see them do (especially since if they were up for that they probably would have done it during Hebe's run in the 6DAs). They way they left things, maybe she could come back in the future. Second, is this a different version of post-Mindwarp Peri than the one from The Widow's Assassin? That seems likely. I didn't hear anything that explicitly confirms either way. Given that Peri and the Piscon Paradox established that there are quite a few different Peris out there, having this one be different could make sense.I think that's for the individual listener to judge, on the Cover Art its meant to be the "Warrior Queen Widow" from the Season 22 Blu-Ray Trailer but any latter version could work. Regards mark687
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Post by Whovitt on Sept 13, 2024 4:08:06 GMT
Full spoilers follow.
I'm glad other people enjoyed this, but this one really wasn't for me. I hadn't read the blurb, but was quickly able to guess there was something wrong with the Cyberia camp. The Cybermen being willing collaborators in their show doesn't make any sense to me, and the level of emotional "pragmatism" in the Cyber Leader's voice during the explanation simply doesn't make sense for a Cyberman. Making the show within the show called "The Trials of a Time Lord" was trying to be way too cute for its own good. The Androgums are there purely for the sake of it, as well as to give an excuse to credit Jon Culshaw as another character to disguise his "main role". I love how he said in the interviews that it was nice not having to replicate another person's voice for the Androgum, but proceeded to do a Shockeye impression the whole time...
Davros felt completely out of character here. There are occasional throwaway moments of "He must be being fed that line by the producer", but he continues to act out of character when they've broken free of their games. It felt like the writers didn't understand the character at all. Tiff was introduced purely to kill off a companion, because Trial of a Time Lord did that, and this story had to mimic it in as many ways as it could (e.g. having different writers for parts 1-2, 3-4, and 5-6). It also meant that the reveal of the Master at the end of Part 4 was predictable from at least an episode in advance (at least it was for me). I didn't know who he was pretending to be, but his turning up was an absolute certainty. And I'm sorry to say but Jon Culshaw put in his worst performance to date. There were times it didn't even sound like an impression, just him using his own voice.
I remember people saying in the interviews how the plot was a nice call back to Vengeance on Varos with a modern twist, while also being described as innovative. Well, it's not really either. Varos with a modern twist was pretty much already done in Bad Wolf, so this was just revisiting an idea that's already been done but stretching it over three hours. The idea Mel had escaped from the shows in Part 2, only to finally have the "twist" in Part 4 that she'd been in a show the whole time was so tediously obvious that I started zoning out during her scenes given how irrelevant I knew it was all going to be.
And seriously, with the Cybermen, Davros, Androgums, the Master, a "new companion", Peri returning (in YET ANOTHER way), and a Varos rip-off, did we REALLY need the Daleks in Part 6? Just like it was obvious to me Culshaw was cast as the Androgums to disguise his secondary role, Briggs being the regular Cybermen instead of Mark Hardy was another obvious way of hiding the fact he'd be doing Dalek voices as well. I even worked out the producer was an AI well in advance. There was just nothing about this story that took me by surprise. Well, except for the only thing I actually didn't anticipate, which was how the Doctor was going to get out of it at the end. He was surrounded by Daleks and Cybermen and Davros and what have you, and there was absolutely no means of escape. So how does he get out of it? "Because the plot demands he has to". There has never been such an in your face, middle-finger-to-the-audience level of Deus ex machina in anything I've ever watched, heard, or read. I fully understand why what happened happnened, but that doesn't mean I like it or accept it as a good ending to the story.
I could go on longer, but I've probably said more than I needed to. I really feel like I've missed out here, as everyone else seems to have enjoyed it. I wish I could see it in the same way.
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