Life and Big Finish things
Apr. 3rd, 2013 09:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
regndoft- Hotmail has been putting me off ever since... forever, actually, but most recently they've removed MSN and "upgraded" to Outlook. Which means that today I finally caved in and got gmail, and I should really get around to changing my adress on a bunch of sites (even if you can connect it to the old one, it feels more proper). Bleugh.
- The exam I skipped is next friday, which is sooner than it actually should be, but I'm strangely enough not feeling particularly bothered by this-- perhaps because we've started talking about Hellenism and I find I'm rather enjoying it?
I haven't been jumping in my seat since we finished with the Bronze Age, but I find the Hellenistic world, the strong interaction between cultures and increasing awareness of the outside world very compelling, and the eclectic art styles very interesting. So it's fun (and this month's Companion Chronicle is the original Team TARDIS at the library of Alexandria! Way, way too late/500 AD, but still a bit appropriate and definitely a treat for me).
- Speaking of Big Finish, last week, after eight years of internet paranoia, I caved in and installed uTorrent (which should actually be myTorrent, because it's the Greek letter my on their logo, but no one seems to refer to them as this? Whatev) to download the main range. THERE ARE 171 OF THEM RELEASED SO FAR AND I AM A POOR STUDENT. I COULDN'T RESIST ANY LONGER.
So, I've been listening to the ones I haven't already in order (so far). Quick, non-spoilery opinions cut for length:
Whispers of Terror: I... feel like this really had something going for it, but ultimately it just didn't amount to much? This is partly because despite it not having a very big cast and me not being voice deaf, I still had a hard time sorting out who was who. The mystery itself didn't really hold up for more than half the audio either, and the ending felt tacked on and gratuitous.
Despite that, I really found it rather interesting, and I love that it's so clearly experimental, using the audio medium to its advantage; you'd never be able to see this story on TV. I love Six and Peri, and while they nag at each other in this it feels... less mean-spirited than what can appear in the series, sometimes? I think that's partly because Big Finish tones down the whiny, reluctant aspect of Peri's personality and ramps up her sarcasm levels instead (just like they tone down the obnoxiousness in Six and make him more obviously compassionate).
The Land of the Dead: This is one of those I look at and go: "this is probably not very good, I understand if people don't like it", but I... really did enjoy it. The artsy environment is very evocative to me and a bit surreal, the sense of isolation and increasing sense of urgency/mania in the characters interesting. Also I love sarcastic Monica. AND DINOSAUR SKELETONS (even if they are really very silly).
I also really like Nyssa in this, which is-- I've never disliked her, but it's interesting how much stronger she comes off as a solo companion? There's no notable changes in her personality, she's simply better written and given more time in the spotlight. Nice.
The Fearmonger: why have I never seen this recommended anywhere? It kind of makes me wonder if I missed some huge flaw that everyone else have picked up on, because I quite adored it. Seven and Ace are lovely, the side characters are well-written, the themes it brinsg up - fear and what it makes people do to others - is realistically handled, there are plot twists that work without resorting to ~*darkness*~/mindfuckery, which is always a risk when some writers want to write a McCoy era story (as if that's what makes a good Seven story).
Also, I love the Doctor's monologue about butterflies, and time. Actually I just love Seven. SO MUCH. <3
The Genocide Machine: I. HATE. DALEK STORIES. SO MUCH. AGH. This is basically Planet of the Daleks: the Remix. Daleks hiding out on a jungle planet for-freaking-ever? Check. Invisible natives? Check. We even have a Tarrant, for Rassilon's sake! (note: don't try to emulate Terry Nation stories when writing Daleks. Ever.) The one-off characters are either not developed enough or just annoying, and the major reveal is... not really handled well by the rest of the cast. Bleugh.
Red Dawn: This is a pretty mediocre story; Peri doesn't get to do much, and Five mostly stands around trying to keep everyone from killing each other (he mostly succeeds). The big reveal is very predictable, and the bad guy is just... bad. However, I can't really dislike it because... it's Ice Warriors. Multi-faceted Ice Warriors even (AS THEY SHOULD BE) and I am a sucker for well-developed alien cultures, and I just. Have a particular soft spot for Ice Warriors. But even then, I feel like what we did get could've been a bit more polished and sharpened in relation to the human cast; they should've used Peri for that, a bit like Polly in The Tenth Planet, rather than wasting her on other stuff that could've worked without her presence.
But the Ambassadors of Death reference filled me with glee (CONTINUITY IN THE WHONIVERSE, YOU ARE A RARE AND WONDROUS THING). Also, confession: this story was so mediocre I was sort of hoping it was written by Mark Gatiss. Because it seems like the sort of thing he'd write but at least that'd mean he could write Ice Warriors... (I am really hung up on this Ice Warrior thing, in case you can't tell).
I'm a terrible completist, and so far I've listened in order, but very soon I think I'll start skipping ahead a bit. Partly because some of the early ones I'm... either really uninterested in, or have heard terrible things about. But also because Five isn't my favourite. Which doesn't mean I won't listen to his audios, but it does mean most of the early audios I haven't heard are Five audios, and I don't really feel like listening to, like, five of those in a row.
I'm also almost finished with the first season of Jago & Litefoot, which has been enjoyable. And I still have The Last Post to listen to, which... I've mostly been putting off because then I'll have run out of Liz audios. And there won't be any more. Ever. :(
- The exam I skipped is next friday, which is sooner than it actually should be, but I'm strangely enough not feeling particularly bothered by this-- perhaps because we've started talking about Hellenism and I find I'm rather enjoying it?
I haven't been jumping in my seat since we finished with the Bronze Age, but I find the Hellenistic world, the strong interaction between cultures and increasing awareness of the outside world very compelling, and the eclectic art styles very interesting. So it's fun (and this month's Companion Chronicle is the original Team TARDIS at the library of Alexandria! Way, way too late/500 AD, but still a bit appropriate and definitely a treat for me).
- Speaking of Big Finish, last week, after eight years of internet paranoia, I caved in and installed uTorrent (which should actually be myTorrent, because it's the Greek letter my on their logo, but no one seems to refer to them as this? Whatev) to download the main range. THERE ARE 171 OF THEM RELEASED SO FAR AND I AM A POOR STUDENT. I COULDN'T RESIST ANY LONGER.
So, I've been listening to the ones I haven't already in order (so far). Quick, non-spoilery opinions cut for length:
Whispers of Terror: I... feel like this really had something going for it, but ultimately it just didn't amount to much? This is partly because despite it not having a very big cast and me not being voice deaf, I still had a hard time sorting out who was who. The mystery itself didn't really hold up for more than half the audio either, and the ending felt tacked on and gratuitous.
Despite that, I really found it rather interesting, and I love that it's so clearly experimental, using the audio medium to its advantage; you'd never be able to see this story on TV. I love Six and Peri, and while they nag at each other in this it feels... less mean-spirited than what can appear in the series, sometimes? I think that's partly because Big Finish tones down the whiny, reluctant aspect of Peri's personality and ramps up her sarcasm levels instead (just like they tone down the obnoxiousness in Six and make him more obviously compassionate).
The Land of the Dead: This is one of those I look at and go: "this is probably not very good, I understand if people don't like it", but I... really did enjoy it. The artsy environment is very evocative to me and a bit surreal, the sense of isolation and increasing sense of urgency/mania in the characters interesting. Also I love sarcastic Monica. AND DINOSAUR SKELETONS (even if they are really very silly).
I also really like Nyssa in this, which is-- I've never disliked her, but it's interesting how much stronger she comes off as a solo companion? There's no notable changes in her personality, she's simply better written and given more time in the spotlight. Nice.
The Fearmonger: why have I never seen this recommended anywhere? It kind of makes me wonder if I missed some huge flaw that everyone else have picked up on, because I quite adored it. Seven and Ace are lovely, the side characters are well-written, the themes it brinsg up - fear and what it makes people do to others - is realistically handled, there are plot twists that work without resorting to ~*darkness*~/mindfuckery, which is always a risk when some writers want to write a McCoy era story (as if that's what makes a good Seven story).
Also, I love the Doctor's monologue about butterflies, and time. Actually I just love Seven. SO MUCH. <3
The Genocide Machine: I. HATE. DALEK STORIES. SO MUCH. AGH. This is basically Planet of the Daleks: the Remix. Daleks hiding out on a jungle planet for-freaking-ever? Check. Invisible natives? Check. We even have a Tarrant, for Rassilon's sake! (note: don't try to emulate Terry Nation stories when writing Daleks. Ever.) The one-off characters are either not developed enough or just annoying, and the major reveal is... not really handled well by the rest of the cast. Bleugh.
Red Dawn: This is a pretty mediocre story; Peri doesn't get to do much, and Five mostly stands around trying to keep everyone from killing each other (he mostly succeeds). The big reveal is very predictable, and the bad guy is just... bad. However, I can't really dislike it because... it's Ice Warriors. Multi-faceted Ice Warriors even (AS THEY SHOULD BE) and I am a sucker for well-developed alien cultures, and I just. Have a particular soft spot for Ice Warriors. But even then, I feel like what we did get could've been a bit more polished and sharpened in relation to the human cast; they should've used Peri for that, a bit like Polly in The Tenth Planet, rather than wasting her on other stuff that could've worked without her presence.
But the Ambassadors of Death reference filled me with glee (CONTINUITY IN THE WHONIVERSE, YOU ARE A RARE AND WONDROUS THING). Also, confession: this story was so mediocre I was sort of hoping it was written by Mark Gatiss. Because it seems like the sort of thing he'd write but at least that'd mean he could write Ice Warriors... (I am really hung up on this Ice Warrior thing, in case you can't tell).
I'm a terrible completist, and so far I've listened in order, but very soon I think I'll start skipping ahead a bit. Partly because some of the early ones I'm... either really uninterested in, or have heard terrible things about. But also because Five isn't my favourite. Which doesn't mean I won't listen to his audios, but it does mean most of the early audios I haven't heard are Five audios, and I don't really feel like listening to, like, five of those in a row.
I'm also almost finished with the first season of Jago & Litefoot, which has been enjoyable. And I still have The Last Post to listen to, which... I've mostly been putting off because then I'll have run out of Liz audios. And there won't be any more. Ever. :(
