Tom Douglas
I thought they were some similarities between [this and] Phantasmagoria, a Fifth Doctor and Turlough Story which was released last year, with the themes of the supernatural at work.
I quite liked the idea of the Doctor losing his memory. It was interesting to listen him struggling to regain his identity. This story seemed to centre more on Charley, who along with Becky-Lee and the Brigadier, managed to outwit the villains at the end of the day.
Nick Courtney and Paul Mcgann seemed to hit it off quite well. Overall, I thought the story was very plausible and it totally captivated me. Well Done Big Finish.
Robin Rowles
A good, simple plot with good scripting. The introduction actually comes near the end, so it's not obvious what's happening. This is all to the good, as it makes the idea of a pseudo-Doctor very interesting. The running time is slightly overlong, (as with The Holy Terror).
McGann and Fisher are really starting to gel together. I thought the Vortisaur was interesting, albeit derived from established Who history. However it had limited scope as a character and returning it home was a good idea.
Nicholas Courtney's performance was just right and his minimal time with the Eighth Doctor wasn't a problem. Gideon Crane was really believable and it would not strain credibility to have him return in a future contemporary adventure. Fertile continuity links for the discerning listener: a tiny pre-link to Loups-Garoux; is Gideon Crane related to Visteen Krane? A strong conclusion to a good mini-series.
Simon Catlow
Alan W. Lear and Gary Russell's Minuet In Hell rounds off the first season of Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor audio adventures with a bang. It has a wonderfully epic feel about it, which is no doubt helped by the extremely long running time of the production.
The script here is superb, many of the lines being especially memorable ('You're going to cut up my brain - that's not really for my own good, is it?'). With high quality performances from main players Paul McGann, India Fisher, Nicholas Courtney, Robert Jezek and Nicholas Briggs, Minuet In Hell is certainly the best Eighth Doctor story that Big Finish have produced.
McGann, in particular, should be singled out - his performance as a Doctor who has lost his memories is quite superb. The only problem with the acting is some of the dodgy American accents. There was also a continuity error regarding the Eighth Doctor and the Brigadier's first meeting which was annoying, but not really a problem.
The plot may be more complex than usual, but this is part of the story's appeal. The production of this audio is excellent with the background sounds being very well produced without intruding on the main action.
Jason Buckby
This latest adventure featuring the Eighth Doctor and Charley is something of a disappointment. Firstly the Brigadier is greatly underused - he and the Doctor only meet up properly in part four. I thought the idea of teaming the Brig and Doc again is so that we can have lots of fun with them playing off each other. The last audio featuring the Brigadier The Spectre of Lanyon Moor is what all the fans had been waiting for. Brilliant.
Minuet suffers compared to some other previously released stories. To much chatter, no action. It sounds as if I hate this release. I don't. I just wish it could have been done better.
Nick Briggs is great as the Doctor's cellmate. You can see why he was the Doctor in the early audios made in the early 1980s. Robert Jezek was great as the villain but I sometimes thought Frobisher was trying to take over the world in some of the scenes. Paul McGann is just brilliant as usual. The gorgeous India Fisher is really finding her feet too.
Would I recommend you to buy it? Of course I would. We can't like every release and while Big Finish continue to produce such high quality dramas, we will support them.
Robert Roffe
This intelligent story is an excellent conclusion to Big Finish's first Paul McGann season. McGann's Doctor has fully recovered the energy, enthusiasm and vigour that he displayed in the TV movie, but seemed to lose in Storm Warning and The Stones Of Venice.
The inability to fathom out just exactly what is going on in the early episodes makes for an adventure that engages the listener from the outset. The battle between the Doctor and Gideon Crane for ownership of the Doctor's persona allows McGann's Doctor to be uncertain and doubtful to an extent that would have horrified any of the Doctor's previous incarnations.
The Brigadier has been brought our of retirement once too often, and although Nicholas Courtney puts in his usual good innings as Lethbridge-Stewart, it is high time that the character was put out to graze.
Although avid Who fans will always like to see the occasional story featuring classics such as Cybermen and Daleks, it is time that the script writers moved on and explored new characters and creatures. Doctor Who needs to evolve further if it is to convince the controllers at the BBC that another TV series should be commissioned.
David Farmbrough
I am sorry to say that the only really good things about this are the actors. The ever reliable McGann and Courtney are up to their usual high standard, and they both have distinctive, listenable voices, which helps.
Charley is O.K. as the companion with a mystery behind her ('really not supposed to be here'), which deepens slightly on this audio. The guest Morgan Deare is terrific as an ageing Southern politician. Barnaby Edwards and Robert Jezek both turn up yet again, but somehow Nicholas Briggs brings a surprising freshness to the part he plays.
The bad point is the script. This is probably the most derivative Who story ever, with plot elements taken from the Mind Of Evil, Time And The Rani (in fact whole sections of 'spurious' dialogue sound like they have been written by Pip and Jane Baker) and even recent stuff like Whispers Of Terror.
The central concept of a creature that feeds off negative energy in humans is so similar to that in the Fearmonger that Jonathan Blum ought to consider suing! In fact the whole 'corrupt politician being exposed' subplot is handled in exactly the same way as in that story.
Similarly, a machine is invented that has the power to record people's personalities on a CD ROM. This is as near as dammit identical to Justin Richard's central idea for Whispers Of Terror, only not handled so well. The technology sounds so similar to that which a (for example) journalist and writer might find on his home computer that it is laughable.
James Lark
Rather a mess.
Adam Hammond
Comic-strip hokum!
Sam and Karen
Except for some horrible American accents, this was great!
Nick Courtney was, as always, amazing, and the plot was entertaining.
We enjoyed the Doctor's memory loss and the inevitable bumbling of the Brigadier. Charlie is an entertaining companion and we look forward to purchasing more titles with her.
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