Dr Who

Big Finish Review: Doctor Who – Maker of Demons

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

I could almost feel like when Matthew J Elliott wrote ‘Makers of Demons’ that he had read my review of ‘Fiesta of the Damned’. I am not enough of an ego-maniac to think so (and he wouldn’t have had enough time) but it’s like he missed any of the pitfalls I found in ‘Fiesta’ to deliver a wonderful story (with due respect to the fore mentioned story!)

The story is straight-forward and engaging. The Doctor and Mel have been to the planet Prosper to settle some humans in with the locals (the Mogera) and negotiate a treaty to make this possible. Leaving behind a new and sustainable energy source ‘Doctorium’ (discovered and named by guess who!). Years later The Doctor, Mel & Ace return to the planet; but the peace has been shattered and the Mogera have been transformed into monsters, seemingly by Doctorium; but as you might guess there is more to this than meets the eyes.

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Big Finish – Doctor Who: The Chimes of Midnight Limited Vinyl Edition

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

When Big Finish first got the rights to add the 8th Doctor to their line-up it was such an exciting moment. At the time we only had one TV outing for this Doctor and a few books. Yes, the first adventure sets a tone for a Doctor but there was still so much to know about him. So once we were getting 8th Doctor audio’s what would they do with him? Some of these first audio’s seemed to lean into the suggested psychic powers from the TV movie; others tended more toward a sense of mystery, but the best included a heavy sense of wonder and excitement to them and an adventuring spirit buoyed on by his new companion Charlotte ‘Charlie’ Pollard (Edwardian Adventurer).

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Big Finish – Doctor Who Early Adventures 3.1: THE AGE OF ENDURANCE

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

As this is my first review of an ‘early adventure’; I’ll talk briefly about this range.

It’s been really good to see classic doctors revived and companions brought back in the ‘early adventures’. There were some really nice companion chronicles, but Big Finish doing full cast audio adventures have slightly ruined me for narration when we can hear a story with a full cast acting it out. These early adventures are mostly acted out with a full cast, with occasional narration to set the scene. The companions like Frazer Hines as the Second Doctor and William Russell as the First do such a good job you feel like they are there and I’m really glad they made the brave decision to do early Doctors replacing the actors we miss so much.

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Big Finish: Phillip Hinchcliffe Presents Doctor Who – The Genesis Chamber

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

Phillip Hinchcliffe had a lot to live up to from his much esteemed producing of Doctor Who when he re-joined Tom Baker for the Big Finish adventures. With his first couple of adventures he more than delivered; as he does with The Genesis Chamber.

Set at a human colony where half the people live inside a domed city and procreate using a genesis chamber and the other half live outside in the wild in a tribe and do their procreating the old fashioned way. At the start the Doctor and Leela meet up with some joy riding nobles from the domed city; who crash land in the tribe and from then on nothing will be the same for either of the peoples on the planet again.

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Big Finish Review: Fiesta of the Damned

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

It’s really nice to still see a story come up in any part of the Doctor Who world that is based on real historical events and especially when it’s a part of history that is maybe less well used in modern fiction.

Now when you are dealing with a history based episode you have a few choices. You can go for a straight telling of the events and get the Doctor and companions mixed up in established events, like classic DW story ‘The Romans’. You can create a secret threat to history that the Doctor must defeat to save the timeline a-la ‘The Unquiet Dead’. Or you can add in a supernatural element that the writer makes part of the original events as they did in the ‘Fires of Pompeii’. This story tries to have its cake and eat it too on this front.978-1-78178-891-2

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Big Finish – Doctor Who: Bernice Summerfield Vol. 3: ‘The Unbound Universe’

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

It’s another moment when Big Finish find something new to do you never would have thought of and you suddenly realise it’s what you never knew you always wanted.
Since they have gone down the road of ‘The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield’ it’s been great to see the Doctor paired with Bernice and how they have managed to keep Bernice as the central character without lessening the Doctor. But to then throw in a whole new universe from a range that hasn’t had a release in 8 years, it’s both insane and genius! 

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“This really feels like an ambitious collection of stories that each work on their own but also feel like part of one bigger story that doesn’t get lost in the mix. The whole cast and crew behind this story are on their A game to say the least.”

 

 

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Big Finish – You’re Him Aren’t You (Paul Darrow Autobiography)

Posted on by indiemacuser

Review by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

I have a confession, don’t tell anyone… but I’ve never watched Blakes 7. I’ve watched the first episode and said, I must get back to this and then didn’t. So worse than not watching it, the episode I watched didn’t feature Paul Darrow, a real offence. I have been lucky enough to interview Paul at a con and found him to be a complete gentleman, charming and intriguing. So when I was sent his autobiography to review on audio book from Big Finish, I was definitely in.978-1-78575-341-1

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Doctor Who Series 10 (Episode 4) ‘Knock, Knock’ – On Set Photos

Posted on by indiemacuser

The TARDIS has materialised in Newport !!!!!!!

The tenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who began filming in June 2016.

Today (11th August) Peter Capaldi and upcoming companion Pearl Mackie were filming scenes for episode 4 at Fields House – Newport.

The episode also guest stars David Suchet.

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Review: Doctor Who Experience 2016

Posted on by indiemacuser

Written by Lewis Mainwaring & Ben Gummery

The Doctor Who Experience (located in Cardiff Bay, South Wales) is one of the largest and most ambitious Doctor Who exhibitions ever staged. Featuring props and costumes from throughout the shows history encompassing both the classic and modern era of Who.

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Big Finish Review – Doctor Who: Classic Doctors, New Monsters Vol 1

Posted on by indiemacuser

Written by Doctor Squee (Host of Gallifrey Stands Podcast)

The following review contains mild spoilers!!! Continue reading →