DOCTOR WHO - BLOOD MONEY

[cyberchris35]

I just have to say excellent episode kept me gripped till the end. I loved the ending.

[Si Hunt]

I'm glad you enjoyed it Chris... though...

put me out my misery - how did you listen to a 25 minute episode less than 12 minutes after I posted it on-line?

Si.

[cyberchris35]

I clicked on the banner at top a bit early and clicked on episode 2 from the download page and it worked.

[Si Hunt]

Ah, good thinking! I did have the files on the server a few hours early, seems that luckily Pip anticipated I would use the same style filename as last week and was a bit early too!

Si.

[SiHart]

Poor Nathaniel! I do hope he survived his bang.

A very good effort overall. I particularly liked the expertly played relationship between Emperor Narl and his subordinate which made me smile everytime I heard them and the scene wehere Nick helps Rob out was excellent- the more so for the iconic incidental music used!

Si xx

[Rob McCow]

Garane!
Skraith!
Baron!
Narl!
Doc-tar!
Rob!
Nick!

Great stuff!

I give this 65 million credits out of ten.

[Si Hunt]

the more so for the iconic incidental music used!

I'm glad you enjoyed that Si! I don't usually like to use music that is too familiar, but this was so perfect (and loved by me!) that I couldn't resist!

Si.

[Rob McCow]

Although it's a good effect, I think the 'Dah-DAAAHHHHH' has had it's day sadly. Will it be appearing again this season?

[Si Hunt]

Not in all the remaining stories.

not in the one not produced by me.



Si.

[Pip Madeley]

Fantastic episode, the sound quality and production really are better than ever, and everyone is acting their socks off. Those who aren't listening are really missing out on a great story.

Not wanting to sound vain, but I was surprisingly emotional listening to the Baron's last words last night - excellent work Si.

[Martin Penny]

SPOILERS!

I really enjoyed that, lots of very nice bits of editing and some great acting from everyone - I particularly liked the Rob and Nick scenes, as I had a fear those sections might drag, but they ended up sounding fantastic I thought - I really like Steve's half-Skraith-brainwashed-Rob voice.

I struggled with the decision to kill off the Baron, but in the end, it just seemed like it was the perfect way to end the story, and his character arc. I love how Pip played his last line, making him seem suddenly very human in his final moments. The way that whole scene played out was very exciting, with the music, and Narl and Grath's panicked reactions when they realise the Baron has a weapon.

Another little touch I loved was the return of the music from 'The Paradise Machine' for when Garane was making his escape at the end of the story. It was a nice little bit of musical continuity I thought.

I also really enjoyed the Doctor/Garane scenes, but then, I would!

Oh! And the ending was very intriguing, I'm glad I don't know the details of the latter half of the season! I'm wondering what on Earth Alex is doing as the Doctor - who, by the way, I thought sounded very good in the role in the brief cameo he had here!



Thankyou to one and all for making this story sound so good.

[Pip Madeley]

Is there a regeneration on the horizon?

[Si Hunt]

I had a fear those sections might drag, but they ended up sounding fantastic I thought

Not that they would have dragged anyway, but I did quite a bit of scene splitting in this episode; what with the new series and everything, we're almost "competing" against something that's very fast paced, so I wanted to at least go a little bit faster. So where you've written Scene A and then Scene B, Martin, I've elected to split it into Scene A Part 1 then Scene B Part 1, then Scene A Part 2 then Scene B Part 2, for example. I wondered if you'd notice while listening and think that whole half-scenes had been edited out! I think it worked though, and just gave the episode that bit more urgency.

Si.

[Pip Madeley]

I'd picked up on that and it definitely worked, I'm glad you tried it

[Martin Penny]

I don't think I noticed anything that had been cut or changed actually!

Incidentally, I'm sure Nathaniel survived his brief encounter with Tor Garane, and is currently planning to produce Baron of Boralis: The Movie! Starring Nathaniel Westbridge as the Baron of Boralis.

[Pip Madeley]

We should make it! Little Easter Egg on a disc next year.

[Wayne]

Just finished listening. That was a great episode, once again with top performances from all. I'm especially impressed with the different scraith characters - between you, you created a very convincing alien culture.

But......

The Baron is dead! I was really getting to like the character during this story especially, so that was not only a complete surprise, but slightly saddening that you've killed him off, as i would've liked him to've cropped up again at some point in the future.
However, i'm all for brave decisions, & i applaud not only the writing/scripting & the way it was handled, but also big kudos to Pip for his performance that brought the character to life. And death!
Also congrats for possibly the most intriguing cliffhanger so far, definitely a wtf? moment!

All round super stuff from all concerned once again. Well done!

[Dirk Gently]

Congrats to every one involved in the play & especially the production.

I love the bit between Nick & Rob (nice 5 Doctors music) & all the attempts to undo the conditioning.
It looks like the Skraith have been paying attention to the Daleks in how to get one over on the Earth, drilling holes.
Excellent script & acting; Pip's Baron is brilliant (especially in death, "the Baron is....sorry ) & Paul's outrage at the Baron's plan is possibly Paul finest moment as an actor.

Excellent all round performances by everyone involved.

[Wayne]

Must admit it took me a while to get into the Baron as anything but a joke character when he was first introduced. Especially as i've never really been a fan of Brian Blessed, & Bruce Purchase etc... But Pip's characterization, & no doubt the writing as well, bought a lot more scope to the character, & i've ended up really enjoying the Baron in this & the previous teaser story.
So again i have to say a bit congats to Pip.

[Dirk Gently]

Oh BTW, I've thought of a get out for the Baron's death. He may be able to return.

[Pip Madeley]

I think the Baron is a marvellous creation by Martin - I've always thought of him as a massive personality housed in a massive frame (I always envisaged him being like the Duke of Manhattan but he has turned into Brian Blessed lately). Like Orcini in Revelation, his thoughts are always of nobility and honour and he is probably the most patrotic being in the entire Universe. While he is a little egocentric in referring to himself in the third person all the time (though that could just be traditional behaviour for Boralan nobility), like the aforementioned Pirate Captain there is an emotional man somewhere beneath all the bluster and his last words reflect that.

In terms of his general manner of speaking I was pretty much allowed to do what I liked, but Martin said he wanted him to be LOUD and shouty, which is fine but I thought people would get a bit bored with a character that shouts constantly so I thought it would be a nice touch to add little peaks and troughs to his speech e.g "THE BARON STRONGLY SUSPECTS HE WILL BE IN.... the control room". I remember Si was encouraging me to do those sort of deliveries and I think it worked well.

As for his pop career, I'd rather not go there. Will we see hear him again? Who knows. I'm sort of happy he died a hero, as Martin said it seemed fitting seeing as it was partly his actions in 'Seasons' that had brought him to that point - and I for one didn't want people to get bored of the character. But like the Doctor, he was a peace loving man and he did what he had to do. As for Tor Garane and the Galactic Bank, they will need dealing with once and for all...

[Martin Penny]

Must admit it took me a while to get into the Baron as anything but a joke character when he was first introduced.

That's fair enough really, as he was introduced to provide some comic relief in my last story - and I think he served that purpose well.

Oh BTW, I've thought of a get out for the Baron's death. He may be able to return.

Do tell...

I think Pip summed the character up marvelously in his post. And the little touches and quiet moments he put into his performance affected my writing for the character, and turned him from a somewhat pompous rich man into a noble hero.

One thing I wanted to emphasize was that the Baron was a flawed man, at times egocentric, and not always the most sympathetic man in the universe - but he was always doing what he believed was right. He was forced into going to Earth, and had to make the best of a bad situation.

Oh, and I imagine his talking in the third person is a product of his Barony - hence his annoyance that the Duke of Drakon did not do the same.

I wont rule out seeing the Baron again in a future story, but I'm generally very much against resurrecting deceased characters.

Incidentally, I keep picturing the unseen Insectoid Skraith to be the same species as the Bee-Man from 'Eye of the Daleks'.

[Dirk Gently]

Oh BTW, I've thought of a get out for the Baron's death. He may be able to return.

Do tell...

Well, the Baron used a matter transporter of Garane's to get to the Skraith mother ship, so he might have (accidentally or not) pressed a recall button or similar on said device & ended up on Garane's ship or because of the explosion warping the transportation field somewhere else on the planet Earth or even somewhere else in the Solar system.
It's an opening that even the PDA's or Big Finish wouldn't pass up if they needed to resurrect a character.

[Jon Masters]

Excellent stuff for part 2, even if my Spidey sense on Nathaniel was way off.

The Baron enters the legendary Hall of DW Fame with this story, and deserves to remain here. His story may have been signposted quite early on in part 2, but it was still a great turn. to Pip and Martin for such a beautiful combination of lines and delivery.

But also well done to the rest of the cast - everyone had their moments, and there were some great little scenes with none of the main cast present that just shone through. And for Rob's Phil Mitchell voice when processed - that explains a lot.

But WTF at the end ? - the little I know makes me want more !

[Andrew Curnow]

I always envisaged him being like the Duke of Manhattan

That's who I always picture, Pip!!

Just finished listening to it - like everybody else has said, the Baron's death and particularly his final line, were very moving, well done to all concerned for that. And like everyone else, I'm greatly intrigued by the final scene - I guess we'll have to wait for the 'shrouded in secrecy' season finale to get to the bottom of that one.

I've really enjoyed this opening story, the production values are a step up even on last time (which is saying something!), and the whole piece has sounded so 'real' if you know what I mean. And the performances have been really great - I will just single out the Doctor though (er, Paul that is, not Alex - oh dear this is going to get confusing) as there was some particularly meaty stuff in part 2 which Paul handled really well.

I will admit though, and I hope it won't upset anyone, that I did feel slightly disappointed that the Doctor didn't really save the day. Particularly given his outrage when the Baron's plan was first suggested, I'd have hoped the Doctor might have had something to do with the conclusion - somehow the ending didn't quite 'feel' right.

I hasten to add it's a problem the TV series has had too - Pyramids of Mars is probably the most obvious example where the ending suddenly comes out of nowhere and doesn't 'work', and the Eccleston era was full (and probably too full) of stories where the Doctor didn't save the day at all. And equally, I can't really think of an obvious 'alternative' - and also, no question that on the personal level of the Baron's sacrifice it was a very touching moment. It just, I don't know, surprised me I suppose, in that the Baron destroying (presumably) the entire Skraith fleet wasn't the sort of ending I had expected.

As I say, I hope that doesn't upset anyone, it's just how it struck me as I was listening. Oh, and, The Baron is.... a PS Legend!!