…because if the reviews from Amazon.com UK is any indication it looks like the story and the presentation of his return is just awful.
Some quotes:
The listener is initially left thinking that Hornet’s Nest is either a radio drama made on the cheap or a talking book that the producers have tried to make more interesting with a couple of extra voices and one or two sound effects.
and this:
Paul Magrs’ storyline and script leave a lot to be desired – both pedestrian and silly.
and that’s from a 5 star review.
And finally this:
What we have is a Tom Baker who sounds like he’s sleep-walking through the lines he’s reading and a story that belongs in the 19th century.
…I have already cancelled part 2 which I had on pre-order.
Remember these are the Doctor Who Fanatics who got the item right away, first day stuff.
If you can get Doctor Who fanatics to cancel a pre-order of this then that’s BAD!
I don’t think narrative style is a big deal, that is the style used by the Companion Chronicles. I think the BBC decided they could copy the success of Big Finish on the cheap and somehow managed to convince Tom Baker to do it. They created expectations and just failed to deliver. At least that is my guess I haven’t managed to get a copy as it isn’t available on Amazon US and Mike’s Comics doesn’t have it yet. It’s only £5.37 out of England. Of course Amazon UK shipping cost practically doubles the price.
If the problems are post production it might be possible to improve the CD’s that are coming, but I’m still talking out of my hat so we will see.
As this is the release day in England I’ll keep an eye on the Amazon reviews and see if the unhappy trend continues.
Update: Andrew Whickey is a bit kinder:
For an audience coming to this from the other BBC audiobooks – straight readings of novelisations of TV shows – this will be a pleasant change, but compared to Big Finish’s productions it seems slightly underwhelming – it’s just not using the medium well enough.
That said, I will still be buying the rest of the series – it’s definitely entertaining, and while the story is not up to the standard of Big Finish’s best, it’s definitely not *bad* either – it’s a pleasant, diverting hour-and-ten-minutes of entertainment, with Tom Baker getting to do his thing again. It’s firmly aimed at a casual nostalgia market, rather than being aimed at either hardcore fans or people who are interested in innovative drama, but that’s not a bad thing. On its own terms it’s enjoyable enough, but I hope if Baker does any more, that he will turn to Big Finish…
Well it looks like it all comes down to the expectations game.
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