Big Finish Review - January

It occurred to me earlier that, with this year being the 50^th anniversary of one of the greatest shows ever, audio company Big Finish has a number of ranges dedicated to telling a large number of Doctor Who stories every year. Hell, at the moment, I’m currently subscribed to 4 monthly ranges – that’s 4 Doctor Who stories every month on audio alone! Fortunately, I subscribe well in advance, but for those who can at best afford only one cd per month, out of each month’s releases, what would be the best ones to buy? That is why I’ve written this: the first in what I hope will be a regular review of the monthly output of a number of ranges of Doctor Who that Big Finish releases. A great way to further blog and discuss my favourite show, and, to those who can afford it, to perhaps help some decide what would be the ideal releases to listen to, including a couple of recommendations, one for the new fans and one for those who appreciates their serious continuity.

Main Range

The Wrong Doctors

What better way to kick off the 50^th anniversary year than by having a multi-Doctor story? But this is a “multi-Doctor” story with a difference. It does feature two Doctors, but instead of the usual take of having multiple incarnations argue with each other, we instead have something quite original in which its two versions of the same incarnation, at two different points in life. Really thinking about it, this is probably the most full-on multi-Doctor story we’ve had from Big Finish – others have involved either clones, doubles or the briefest of exchanges (yes, this includes The Four Doctors, although to be fair, that’s still a cool story). But here, we have two Doctors, one older and wiser than the other, arguing with himself. Himself. Thank you, Big Finish, for finally having the balls to do something like this.

Bear in mind though that this isn’t just about the gimmick of having two Sixes. This is a tribute to two things. The first is Mel Bush, of which this story pays a lot of respect to, as the Sixth Doctor finally tries to meet her. Tries and spectacularly fails as…well, I’d rather not go into detail, as (a) I wouldn’t want to spoil too much here, and (b) it’d just be too difficult to explain even if I did want to spoil it (especially for those who haven’t seen The Trial of a Time Lord). We get it all here – her home of Pease Pottage, her excellent memory, her knack at computers and her travels with the Doctor – all are important to the story here, and it’s a testament to Matt Fitton’s writing ability that none of it feels forced whatsoever.  I’m not sure I completely understood the plot all the time, but it didn’t matter: there were numerous well drawn out characters, especially the villain, Mr Petherbridge, brilliantly played by Tony Gardner, to really draw me into the world of the story, at least.

There’s something else that’s great about this story though, and what really makes it a good one to kick off the anniversary year – the Sixth Doctor. Specifically, the Sixth Doctor of the Big Finish adventures at least, with a few nods to even beyond that. (Including BBC novel Business Unusual, where the Sixth Doctor really meets Mel for the first time – yes guys, amazingly, this story doesn’t contradict that story whatsoever.) The contrast of the two Doctors is amazing – yes, they’re the same incarnation, but still quite, quite different. Whereas the younger Doctor is his usual “bolshy” self as we saw on television, his older self is definitely mellower by comparison – both of which are of course amazingly portrayed by Colin Baker. We’re reminded that really, this is a Doctor that we never really saw on television, at least not with this amount of development. He is the Big Finish Doctor – a kind, intelligent, at times sombre but mostly happy incarnation who is, at least in the audio medium, considerably popular. There is no finer way for Big Finish to kick off such an important anniversary of a show nearly half a century old than to celebrate just what they (and indeed other formats of the expanded universe) can do that the tv series couldn’t or wouldn’t – take the scattered seeds that were left untended in the tv series, and let them grow. And that includes the potential brilliance of the Sixth Doctor. 8/10

Companion Chronicles

The Flames of Cadiz

Marc Platt? Writing a story that’s purely historical? Can it be true? Indeed it is! And, even better folks, compared to the usual 1 disc release of the Companion Chronicles, this is the special 2 disc release that comes every January, so it feels even closer to the more fleshed out 4-part historicals of the early seasons.

I was pretty impressed with this story. Partly for how much it draws you into its historical setting, with its fleshed-out characters, both regular and of the story in particular, giving you a good insight in what it was like living in the time of the Spanish Inquisition, specifically near the time of the Spanish Armada.

Another thing I was impressed by was how much Platt nailed the era of the kind of story this would’ve taken place in, tv series wise. The dark tone of the story showing the horrors of history, the well fleshed out companions of Ian and Barbara being caught up in it, sometimes being caught up in the sheer thrill of it, and of course, just how alien, dark and mysterious the Doctor is at this point – one of the best traits of a great deal of Platt’s stories is reminding us that the Doctor is an alien, not just biologically but psychologically, seeing people, events and morals completely differently to how a human would. This is a key aspect to the first Doctor at this point, so it’s no surprise that Marc Platt has written a number of stories for this particular incarnation, even one set before the beginning of the tv series. (One Companion Chronicle I’m especially looking forward to that’s released in November has the simple title of The Beginning, a story involving the Doctor and Susan leaving Gallifrey. Naturally, I’m greatly looking forward to listening to such a story.)

One more thing I enjoyed about the story was the added layer of how dangerous it can be wanting to meet your heroes. An old story perhaps, but still a classic, especially when it’s done as beautifully as this. Because some men may disappoint, perhaps inevitably, but still be great men. Not necessarily good men, but still great.

This is a fantastic story that really feels like it could’ve been shot and filmed in 1963 (well ok, maybe 1964, the second story hadn’t even finished in ’63), and is another nice way to kick off the anniversary year – a story that does a great job at reminding us just how wonderful both the first TARDIS crew and their stories really were. 9/10

The Fourth Doctor Adventures – Season 2

1. The Auntie Matter

And so another season begins for one of the series’ most popular Doctors! Last season was set during his time with Leela, which overall I thought was a pretty strong start, including just the right balance between old school and modern day storytelling, with 4^th Doctor stories that fitted perfectly in between the gothic horror of the Holmes/Hinchcliffe era with the lighter scifi of the Graham Williams era, in a faster pace and further expansion of companion Leela, all stories brilliantly performed by Tom Baker and Louise Jameson, acting as though it had only been a matter of months since they worked together and not over 35 years (in the roles of the Doctor and Leela, at least). So that first season has set a very high standard. What of the second?

The second season has gone for a different approach, taking place later in the Fourth Doctor’s life as he travels with Romana in her first incarnation. One thing that comes across clearly right from the start is how easily these two make us believe that no time has passed at all since we last saw the pair on screen, especially with Mary Tamm as Romana, who plays the role with the same intellect and strong attitude that we saw in the tv series. It’s a tragic and shocking loss to think that she’s been gone for over six months now, as her performance here was so full of life, you could really believe that she could’ve easily done it for many more years.

The first story is a bit of a fun if basic romp, taking place in 1920s England and featuring androids, body stealing aliens and ultra-posh Englishmen who can’t pronounce their r’s. Overall, it’s a nice start to the season, but I’m eager for darker and meatier stuff that is surely yet to come. (Or at least, another Doctor Who story featuring the great, great, great David Warner and of course, the reunion of Jago & Litefoot with Four.) 6/10

Destiny of the Doctor

1. Hunters of Earth

The Flames of Cadiz isn’t the only First Doctor story this month. We also have the beginning of a brand new series, specially made to not only celebrate the 50^th anniversary but to also be more welcoming to new listeners who haven’t discovered the wonderful classic Doctors and their stories. This is an unusual series that Big Finish is involved in as (a) the narration for the stories is done in the third-person, unlike the Companion Chronicles which usually use the first-person narrative structure, and (b) due to being co-produced with AudioGo, the later stories will involve Doctors from the New Series, which Big Finish aren’t normally allowed to touch. So it’ll be great to have a series with Big Finish involvement that’ll allow them to make great stories for all the Doctors, not just the first eight.

So how is the first one? Definitely an interesting opening, as it begins not long before the very start of the series. It’s very reflective of both the era and of the very time of when the original series began, in days of when random violence between groups like mods and rockers would break out. And violence is very much key to this story. This is a very dark and disturbing tale in which Susan finds herself not only distinctly branded as an outsider, but dangerously targeted for it. There are some really creepy images – particularly one of Susan being completely surrounded while people try and throw rocks at her – but along the way, the story occasionally soaks in the lighter aspects of 60s culture, too. There’s also a small but vital moment in the story that’s very clearly important to the arc of the whole series. Mostly though, it’s a fantastic standalone story that gives us a glimpse both of Susan’s life (the Doctor is more of a background presense here) before the start of the series as well as 60s life in general. This is a really great jumping on point for anyone who’s yet to discover the joys of the classic stuff. 8/10

Recommendations

For the newbie: Hunters of Earth

If you know nothing of classic Who or even new Who and are wanting to buy a story that you can just switch on without worrying about any background knowledge beforehand, this is definitely your safest bet, as being a jumping-on point is what this particular series was designed for in the first place. It’s also a great standalone drama to boot, so you should fully enjoy it. Another story to enjoy that's also not too bad continuity wise is The Flames of Cadiz.

For the continuity obsessed: The Wrong Doctors

Starting with direct references to previous companions, thorny tv continuity issues and even an out-of-print novel, this is definitely one for someone with at least a basic knowledge of the Sixth Doctor. It’s not too bad, and it is a wonderful celebration of the life that the Sixth Doctor has had in audio form at least, but that’s exactly it – it’s paying tribute to over a decade of this incarnation on cd, and while you hardly need to know all of it, it helps to know just how much this Doctor has changed and why to fully appreciate it.

So overall, a very strong start to the year for Big Finish. Can they continue such a high standard? Who knows. Judging from the February releases I've listened to so far, very possibly, although I'll save discussion for that for the next blog. (Which hopefully won't take too long.) Personal favourite for the month? It's tied between Hunters of Earth and Flames of Cadiz, probably because I have a soft spot for Hartnell's darker and more mysterious Doctor, but mostly because those stories are simply great, mature (but not too mature) stories that completely stand on their own. Keep it coming, Big Finish!

Berberian Sound Studio review

There were three main reasons why I wanted to watch Berberian Sound Studio from the moment I heard about it. One was a lot of positive reception around film and cult review websites and magazines. Two was it was supposed to be a homage to the Giallo genre, only ironically, without showing any imagery and focusing purely on sound. Three was Toby Jones – ever since playing the Dream Lord in, yep, you guessed it, Doctor Who, he’s been an actor that I've been very keen to check out more of. (Not realising that actually, I had already seen a couple of film’s he’d been in, or at least, his voice – I am of course referring to his role of Dobby in the Harry Potter movies.) Hearing about a film he actually had a lead role in really got my attention. And what a role he was given: the typically repressed English soundman working on an Italian horror.

I’ve put off writing this review because there’s so much for me to write about, in a case like this. This isn't your typical horror, or at least, anything along the lines of most of the kind of horror films that Hollywood releases these days. There aren't any jumpy scares, no violent deaths of stupid characters, no psychopathic maniacs, none of that. Instead, this is a horror that wants its audience to think, to feel, and to empathise with its main character. In all these aspects, I felt it was very successful. 

The story is of a sound engineer, Gilderoy, who has been hired to work on a highly violent horror movie in Italy. As he continues to work on it, the film starts to deeply affect him in numerous ways, and the longer the film goes on, the more Gilderoy loses his grip on reality.

One film that sprang to mind while watching this was Roman Polanski’s The Tennant (which Jean, a very good friend of mine recommended to me - any credit for my craving for deep and thoughtful psychological horror should be given to him, as before I'd more than likely have avoided such films, if I'm honest, so thank you again, Jean). The protagonists of both films are foreigners to the country, always made to feel excluded, not just through cultural differences but through personal differences, too. This is a world where Gilderoy simply doesn’t belong in the slightest, something that’s made clear from the very beginning: a typical, deeply repressed Englishman among a film crew of highly emotional Italians, a man who takes his Catholic faith very seriously working on an exploitation movie that forces him to watch an ugly side to it, a man who didn’t even know what kind of film he would be working on until the day he arrived and saw the horrific images. “I didn’t know I’d be working on this type of film…” he quietly says. From that moment on, you know that it will not be a film that would be easy for him to work on.

“A new world of sound awaits you.” There are a number of really wonderful quotes that sum up how wonderful this movie is, and this is one of them. For we see none of the images that Gilderoy sees, only hear, with the occasional description of some truly horrific acts. But the sound is the key thing. Chopped melons become sliced heads and severed limbs, blenders become chainsaws, cooking fat becomes horrifically burned skin. This wonderful use of sound imprints some truly disturbing imagery when really showing us nothing, and it’s wonderful use is something I truly appreciate in a film such as this.

Oddly enough though, while the sounds do give us the clear image, the shots are also important. Now just how the sounds are made, but also including some really nice tributes to the giallo genre in numerous ways - extreme close up of eyes and mouths, cut from mouth to red sauce in blender and, my particular favourite, a close-up of a hand in a black glove while simply turning on the projector. It’s clear that the director, Peter Strickland, is a massive fan of the genre. This is not a giallo movie, nor is it intended to be, but it’s certainly effective in being a respectful tribute to the genre, and kudos must be given to the cinematography for adding to that.

As the film goes on, tension and uneasiness builds as Gilderoy grows to be more and more uncomfortable with the images that he (but not we) sees. It truly becomes difficult for him to work on the film while continuing to see such horrific images that don’t just offend him but also deeply, deeply disturb him on numerous levels – as an Englishman, as a Catholic, as simply himself. He doesn't want these horrific acts to happen, even trying to stop the sounds from happening so the images don’t happen, but it’s no use – whether the sound happens or not, the image of the horrific act still happens. Over and over again until he adds his part. And that’s the worst thing – it’s not being forced to watch such graphic violence, it’s being, as the producer of such a work says, a “part of it”. Gilderoy is adding his own part to the violence and the suffering, the vital part, the sound, and that is something he cannot bear to live with.

Inevitably, he tries to quit, to leave, to escape, but it’s no use. “There’s no reason to escape.” The man is effectively trapped, far from all that he loves in every possible way, and there’s nothing that he can do about it. This feeling of entrapment is, again, another theme that instantly reminds me of Polanski in many of his films.

Despite all this darkness, there’s still a nice amount of humour in the film, but fortunately not the kind that goes against the themes and dark tone of the story. Rather, it is an awkward humour that empathises even more the differences between Gilderoy and his Italian colleagues, as Gilderoy finds it difficult to get on with them at all, whether due to a barrier in language or in culture. The humour in these instances only help to add to the feeling of isolation that Gilderoy is going through.

Eventually, for Gilderoy, and for us, reality and fantasy become blurred. He’s no longer just a part of the Italian horror he’s working on, he’s a part of his own, and the last act of the film involves surreal dream sequences and even dubbing in Italian, as Gilderoy’s life becomes a film that he’s uncomfortable to watch.

As I said, this was a film that I had been eager to watch since the moment I heard about it, and sure enough, it did not disappoint. At times, there were moments that were almost too bizarre, particularly the very end, but perhaps these will be more rewarding with understanding on repeat viewings. In any case, this was a horror that I deeply, deeply enjoyed, a wonderful break from all the typical sensationalist horror that Hollywood is making these days. 9/10

Diary of a Who Addict - Two Exams, One Haircut and the Return of the TV

FINALLY. After weeks and weeks of studying, I can finally relax - for a little while, at least - and get back to being a lazy sod. Had two more exams, one after the other: one on taxation, the other on financial performance. Naturally, it was the former that I was having the most difficult with, so much so that even trying to solely focus on that since the beginning of January, it was only the last two weeks before the exam that it really started to sink in, and even then, it was hard to take everything about it into account. I went from studying one hour a day to six hours, every day during the week before the exam. That usually never happens, but I really needed to make an effort with this one. By the day of the exam, it was the most confident I'd ever felt about it. That's not saying much, but I'd already accepted that, if I've failed it, I at least knew I had tried my best when it came to the studying. 

Did I do my best with the other exam? Honestly no, which is why I'm more worried about failing it, despite being a lot more comfortable with the material: formulas, statistical indicators, all the kind of things that came naturally to me back in top set high school maths class. Partly because I need to pass both and taxation was the one that I felt needed the extra effort for, but also because my familiarity with so much of the material of financial performance made it near-impossible for me to separate what I already knew with what I really needed to know. After doing a mock test though, it definitely helped identify the key areas I needed to study. After spending some more time studying, touching up on a couple of formulas and areas I hadn't been confidant on before like discount factoring and volume and capacity forumlas, I finally had the financial performance test today. I think I did pretty darn good on most of the formula stuff, it was just two MASSIVE questions that involved writing and interpreting about a few variances that I was least confidant about. I may write a lot, but I cannot write fast. I did the best that I can, but I was typing away at those questions right up until the clock ran out. Still, although I didn't study for it as hard as I did personal tax, thinking about it, I'm pretty confidant. The two writing questions were a small part compared to the numerical stuff, so I'm hoping I did well on most of that.

But even if I failed both, I can always retake the tests when it comes along. I'll be studying a bit of personal tax each week to keep it fresh in my head for the next 6 weeks (yes people, it takes 6 whole weeks for these exams to be marked), but overall, I'm pretty glad that most of the pressure is off, at least. Yes, there's still plenty more work to do, including a 4000 word report that I'll need to work on, but for the moment, I can finally sit down, relax, and put on some tv. Hell, I can finally finish my re-watch of the Lord of the Rings later on, which will be great to do. I've already finished season 12 of classic Who, which I'll get to in a moment. 

Now one more thing I've gotta mention that I also did today: HAIRCUT! Finally, after a few weeks of bushy mane that was starting to grow, I've finally gone back to a much shorter haired look with just a little bit of curly hair on top.

I like this look, I really do, and the fact that the 8th Doctor has recently been given that look is, I can assure you, entirely non-coincidental.

Now, as I mentioned earlier, I finally finished off season 12 of classic Who. What are my thoughts on it? Overall, I really enjoyed it, especially the middle 3 stories and the crew of this season. It's much better than seasons 10 and 11, at least. The first story was clearly made by the old production team and lacked a lot of the freshness that the three stories afterwards had, and the final story was a little cheesy and campy in parts, but overall it was a pretty good season.

Some quick ratings for the season:

Robot: Tom Baker's first story is, in my opinion, far from his best, as overall it's pretty cliched and, being the last story made by the departing production team, definitely lacking in originality in some places. But it's worth watching for seeing Tom Baker's first full appearance as the Doctor at least, especially the joy of seeing the Doctor being excited about a brand new body. 5/10

The Ark in Space: Holy shit, this is more like it: dark corridors, scary body horror, and a much more serious Doctor, this really kicks off the era of the new production team of Philip Hinchcliffe and Robert Holmes with a bang. 9/10

The Sontaran Experiment: very short, but overall, pretty sweet. I really enjoy how it still manages to squeeze in some moments of genuinely dark horror, as some of the "experiments" the Sontaran Styre performs on his human subjects are pure torture, such as leaving a man chained up and dying of dehydration after several days. Basic, but another good Sontaran story, I thought. 7/10

Genesis of the Daleks: I've said a lot about this story already in my previous entry, so all I'll say is this: this is one of my favourite Doctor Who stories of all time, easily in my top ten. If you get the chance, check it out. It's not perfect, but it is fantastic stuff. 10/10

Revenge of the Cybermen: honestly, this story feels like a step-down in not one but two ways, both as a story following on from the gritty darkness of Genesis and as a Cyberman story (the first since The Invasion, nearly six seasons before). The Cybermen lack any threat in this story (a real shocker, considering Cybermen co-creator Gerry Davis co-wrote it), and in both story and look, it seems cheaper than the stories surrounding it. Still, that's not to say it's not enjoyable as slightly campy, cheesy fun, at least. But it's definitely not one of the best we've seen this season. 6/10

Right, I'll probably start season 13 next week, if I can locate Terror of the Zygons online (which, shockingly enough, is one of the only stories of the entire Holmes/Hinchcliffe era that I haven't watched). For the moment, I need to catch up on all the Big Finish audio I've yet to listen to, including the second story of the team-up of the Sixth Doctor and Jago & Litefoot (who, as I've mentioned before, are two of my favourite characters ever). Before I head off, I will show you one last thing: the t-shirt that arrived in the post the other day:

Pulp Fiction/Doctor Who t-shirt! The moment I saw this, I could only think of one thing:

Sorry guys, couldn't resist! Anyway, that's my blogging done for the week. Laters, everyone!

Diary of a Who Addict - Genesis of the Daleks recommendation

Currently, I have just reached Genesis of the Daleks in my Who watch. I fucking love this story. I've watched it so many times, and it’s still wonderfully enjoyable: dark, gritty, full of great characters and the occasional dash of wit, this is a classic. Watching it in context helps me appreciate it even more, as a Dalek fan: after being rather unimpressed with the last couple of Dalek stories, this is wonderfully refreshing by comparison, even if they do kind of get regulated to mere servants in this story, their creator Davros is a brilliant creation (even if he does get overused afterwards by appearing in every single Dalek story afterwards).

More importantly though is, well, this story’s importance. If you consider yourself a fan of Doctor Who at all, even if it’s just the new series, this is a story you have to watch. With the creation of Davros, this had quite the impact on the classic series, but arguably, its impact on the new series was even bigger. It’s all to do with the very beginning of the story, when the Doctor meets another Time Lord who has a mission for him: go back to the very creation of the Daleks and either prevent their creation or change them fundamentally at their earliest stage - either way, directly changing history. Considering how the Time Lords exiled the Doctor for merely getting involved in events, the fact that they’re desperate enough to want to change history not only makes them hypocritical, it’s the starting point of a conflict between the Daleks and the Time Lords that eventually breaks out into a War across the whole of time itself and leaves both races nearly wiped out.

Something I also love is there’s a key moment when the Doctor has the chance to wipe out the Daleks forever, and he hesitates. He’s afraid of becoming even remotely like them, and he doesn’t want that to happen – he doesn’t want to wipe out another race because it’s a threat, even if he genuinely knows how much devastation they will cause in the centuries to come. Not only is it a moment that he will come back to in his later years, when he suffers a lot more at the Daleks hands (especially in the 8^th Doctor audio stories Terror Firma and To The Death), it also symbolises a crucial moment – that the Doctor may finally be learning to accept that he will be fighting the Daleks for the rest of his life, that he will always be their enemy, that it will always be his fate, and, for better or worse, he has absolutely no right to change that. 12 years after first meeting them, this story really crystallizes the Doctor’s relationship with the Daleks like no other.

These aren’t the only reasons to watch the story, though: as I mentioned before, it’s also a great story in its own right. Davros is a brilliant character, very much like his Daleks – ruthless, calculating and without mercy. However, he’s also much more of a distinct individual than any of his race – a man with ambition, with dreams of power, a man considerably more intelligent than his own creations…and even more insane. All of these qualities make him even more dangerous than his pepperpot creations and, despite being very overused over the years, tending to overshadow the Daleks too often, in this story he is absolutely brilliant, especially when played by the great Michael Wisher, whose heavy make-up and use of only one arm makes it even more impressive how much emotion and personality he was able to put into the character.

There’s also another great villain of the story: Davros’s henchman, Nyder. What makes him such a great character is how completely loyal he is to Davros, how much he really believes in what he’s doing, even when he learns that he’s willing to sacrifice his own race, the Kaleds, just so the Daleks themselves could go on. This unquestioning devotion makes him even more horrifyingly believeable than if he were made to be “three-dimensional” – if he were given doubts and reasons of why he believes that what he was doing the right thing, in my opinion it could’ve cheapened it. But no – Nyder is like many men in history who committed truly horrible acts for their leaders – intelligent but also unquestioning and totally obedient. Again, this is a role that’s brilliantly portrayed by Peter Miles, and when he returned in audio prequel story I, Davros, playing exactly the same role nearly 30 years later so perfectly,  I was absolutely thrilled.

There’s numerous other reasons why I love this story – the gritty realism of war, the drama, the performances of the regular cast etc. – but I think I’ll let you discover that for yourself. It’s not a perfect story by any means – at six episodes it can feel a little padded at times, and like many Who stories, it tends to suffer from its low budget from time to time, but overall, it’s a seriously high quality story that not only left its mark in Who history as being one of the most important stories since arguably The War Games, but it’s also one of the best.