A few weeks ago I received the boxset of BBC audio plays which included The Paradise of Death, the first of two audio plays Jon Pertwee, Lis Sladen, and Nicholas Courtney recorded together in the early 90's.
Listening to the opening minutes brought tears to my eyes. The sudden losses of both Courtney and Sladen still hurt but listening to them alongside Pertwee was an absolute pleasure. While the audio play lacks the sweeping soundscapes of the Big Finish productions, The Paradise of Death more than makes up with genuine feeling of the series during the early 1970's, right down to the cheesy sound effects. The addition of Who alums Harold Innocent, Maurice Denham, and especially Peter Miles adds more to the classic series feeling in the Barry Letts script.
While the script could have been more tightly written (or perhaps I've been spoiled by the excellent scripts produced by Big Finish), I nonetheless had a lot of fun listening to this story. A lot of great visuals, particularly the idea of the Brig leading an airborne army of giant bats. What a sight to behold!
Overall, the story may appeal more for the nostalgia's sake than actual quality, but I'm going to rate it a 8/10 nevertheless. I'm looking forward to listening to the story in the boxset, The Ghosts of N-Space.
Listening to the opening minutes brought tears to my eyes. The sudden losses of both Courtney and Sladen still hurt but listening to them alongside Pertwee was an absolute pleasure. While the audio play lacks the sweeping soundscapes of the Big Finish productions, The Paradise of Death more than makes up with genuine feeling of the series during the early 1970's, right down to the cheesy sound effects. The addition of Who alums Harold Innocent, Maurice Denham, and especially Peter Miles adds more to the classic series feeling in the Barry Letts script.
While the script could have been more tightly written (or perhaps I've been spoiled by the excellent scripts produced by Big Finish), I nonetheless had a lot of fun listening to this story. A lot of great visuals, particularly the idea of the Brig leading an airborne army of giant bats. What a sight to behold!
Overall, the story may appeal more for the nostalgia's sake than actual quality, but I'm going to rate it a 8/10 nevertheless. I'm looking forward to listening to the story in the boxset, The Ghosts of N-Space.
