Dark Mel vs. the Valeyard? Squee!

[Guy Gardener]

I'm seven years late to the party.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/He_Jests_at_Scars...

Yes it's the same actor who played the Valeyard from the trial of a Time Lord and yes it's Bonnie who I have maintained without missing a beat that the producers of Doctor Who had cleverly disguised her as not a ridiculously attractive woman with seizure inducing patterned pullovers... I'm sure one of them jumpers she wore had a kitten playing with a ball of yarn legended in front of and ambiguating her boobs?

In this however, she's hard.

At one point Mel is in a distopic rundown backwater ballsup prison world and you'e thinking, OH! it' Mad Maxine, but the Unbound series is a collection of vague to specific "What if" postulations on Doctor Who disontinuity, and this instalment is all about "What if the Valeyard won his battle against 6 in the Matrix?"

And you know what happens?

The time lords act poncy till it all goes ass over tea kettle and they wet their keks in terror as they nominate Melanie as they mercenary assassin knight errant to murder the doctor, now the valeyard, and in so doing save the universe from all his evil skullduggery.

It's a good branching point to place a hypothetical story and it's amazing seeing everything go tits up as Mel draws closer and closer to the realization that there will be no last minute turn about of fate that she is going to have to sooner rather then latter pull the trigger and kill her best friend.

It's a gripping story, a well oiled production and few companions have ever got a story with this sort of teeth ever, just marvellous.

 

[Piper]

If you liked that, I can't recommend the other BF Unbounds enough - with the exception of the dismal Exile, which is the worse thing BF have released ever - they are all superb What Ifs? What if the Doctor hadn't left Gallifrey? What if he hadn't arrived to help UNIT after his second regeneration? What if he believed the ends justified the means? Really worth checking them out

 

[Guy Gardener]

Making my way through slowly at bed time.

A friend and I were just mocking trial of a time lord an Mel just the other day, but this seems to be validation for either character and the story that bore their genesis.

 

[23skidoo]

And for the benefit of folks who might be going "Huh"? "Doctor Who Unbound" is a series of "what if" audio dramas produced by Big Finish featuring big-name actors playing alternate-universe versions of the Doctor, often alongside well-known companions, like Mel, who are presented in a different light as well.

Notable "Unbound Doctors" have included Sir Derek Jacobi (before he played the Master), David Warner, Michael Jayston as The Valeyard, and American actress Arabella Weir as the first non-satirical female Doctor in a BBC-licensed production. Besides Bonnie Langford, both Nicholas Courtney and Carole Ann Ford have played alternate versions of their characters for the series. And one of the stories from around 2002 or so -- I forget which one -- featured a character played by an up-and-coming actor named David Tennant.

Unfortunately I've yet to have had a chance to hear any of these. I keep hoping to track down the CDs one of these days (I am not a fan of downloads, so would prefer physical media if at all possible). But from what I hear, they're pretty cool. I'm particularly interested in hearing the Weir story, and the two Carole Ann Ford episodes that paired her Susan with Geoffrey Bayldon as the Doctor.

Alex

 

[Guy Gardener]

People always go "huh?".

Its like my theme song.

I started the post half way listening to the story about Mel, not realizing that the point of divergence from the original continuity happened during the actual show, so this is not so super off/odd Mel from a NAZI Parallel earth, it's our girl Mel giving the opportunity to whine on her right if she doesn't have to use the Time lord as a crutch, and really if he's not there to listen to her screaming in terror then she really not entirely inclined to bother screaming in terror, and the little carrot top just gets on with the job at hand. Almost as if she never had to always be so vocal rallying up some bloke to charge to her rescue because of not any other reason than she wanted to con some alphamale into thinking it was his idea to stand between her and Dalek firepower.

Girls are smart.

 

[Piper]

I'm particularly interested in hearing the Weir story,

Noooo. Exile really is terrible. Honestly. No matter how bad you've heard it is, it's worse. Unless you find the sound of copious vomiting and belching hugely amusing it really must be underlined how much this should be avoided. Weir is not remotely Doctorish either. Terribly missed opportunity.

and the two Carole Ann Ford episodes that paired her Susan with Geoffrey Bayldon as the Doctor.

These on the other hand are superb. So worth hearing if you can. Bayldon is great as the Doctor and CAF gives possibly her best performances as Susan she's ever done. I've heard all of BF's Who output and the second Bayldon, A Storm of Angels, is easily in my top five.

 

[Marc]

Notable "Unbound Doctors" have included Sir Derek Jacobi (before he played the Master), David Warner, Michael Jayston as The Valeyard, and American actress Arabella Weir as the first non-satirical female Doctor in a BBC-licensed production. Besides Bonnie Langford, both Nicholas Courtney and Carole Ann Ford have played alternate versions of their characters for the series. And one of the stories from around 2002 or so -- I forget which one -- featured a character played by an up-and-coming actor named David Tennant.

Sympathy for the Devil featured David Tennant as a Unit Colonel with David Warner as The Doctor and Nicholas Courtney as The Brigadier.

Full Fathom Five had David Collings as The Doctor. He'd previously appeared in Robots Of Death as Poul, Revenge Of The Cybermen as Vorus and Mawdryn in Mawdryn Undead.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Yeah, but definitively that lad is Silver from Sapphire and Steel.