Project: Lazarus
Project: Twilight
|
Project: Lazarus |
Big Finish Productions Project: Twilight |
|
| Written by | Canav Scott and Mark Wright |  |
| Format | Compact Disc | |
| Released | 2001 | |
| Continuity | Between Trial of a Time Lord
and Time and the Rani |
| Starring Colin Baker and Maggie Stables |
| Also featuring Holly De Jong, Rob Dixon, Rosie Cavaliero, Stephen Chance and Rupert Booth |
| Synopsis: An inhuman killer stalks a local casino. |
A Review by Stuart Gutteridge 24/10/01
Are Big Finish on to a winner with their Sixth Doctor audios? The answer is yes; at least if Project: Twilight is anything to go by. Maintaining their high standard, both Big Finish, and Cavan Scott & Mark Wright take a leaf out of the MAs & PDAs and exploits the realism often featured in them to produce a memorable tale. Featuring as it does Vampires, whose legends are expanded upon and not easily defeated either, this all adds to the atmosphere; as does the London setting with gangsters complete with clich? EastEnders accents.
Most impressive are Colin Baker and Maggie Stables, the script really helping them to play to their strengths. Well written, high quality drama, with a possible sequel on the cards, this is Doctor Who at its best...
A Review by Richard Radcliffe 6/11/01
This self-professed tale of “Gore, Gambling and Garlic Galore” is that, and a great deal more besides. Set in London, present day it features the Doctor and Evelyn (their 2nd adventure on the run, but we don’t mind because they are brilliant) caught up in the underbelly of the Great City.
The Doctor and Evelyn are becoming one of the great Doctor/Companion teams in the History of Who. They have a rapport rarely seen between the Time Lord and his helpers. They also have a genuine affection for one another, which is a real delight after the bickering of Colin Bakers’ TV portrayal. The 6th Doctor has developed far beyond his TV portrayal. He has definitely softened. There is less brashness and irascibility. There is more caring and more heroics. He is a brilliant Doctor.
Evelyn has an excellent story too. Her compassionate side is wonderfully shown in this play, especially with Cassie. The violence of it all clearly affects her – another rung up in the Companion excellence ladder.
The modern day setting works nicely. The Gambling Den that houses the villains, the Thames nearby, dark alleyways with mutilated bodies, underground tunnels under the metropolis. All are described well, and provide the imagination with a canvas on which to weave their story. Comment must also go to the new Music that this story employs. I found it complemented the action very well. Big Finish are not afraid to use new people in every aspect of their production, and that ultimately will keep the standard high.
The characters that populate South London’s underbelly are excellent. Reggie Mead, the owner of the Casino, a real-life Kray inspiration straight from the set of Eastenders. Amelia Doory, Reggies ally with a strange past. Cassie, the waitress at The Dusk, forced to scrimp for a living. Nimrod, a mysterious presence throughout. It is certainly a gritty, more world-weary collection of people than we are used to– but one that is fitting for the story around them.
The Gore and Garlic gave away months ago that this is a Vampire tale, and as such it is a kind of Angel set in London, without the scrapping. There is an interesting take on the Vampire legends though, nice to see Doctor Who using Myths and Legends and building on them. As for who are the Vampires and who are not, the authors run with the uncertainty for the bulk of the story. It was a shame actually the Vampire aspect of the story was given away, because the 1st Episode leads you in a different direction. It would have been better to keep it quiet methinks.
The tale is helped tremendously by realistic performances throughout. You really feel this could happen – which is a nice contrast to a lot of Who. It is also more horrifically real than any of the Audio Adventures thus far. It is extremely gory in places, just to warn the faint-hearted, but always in keeping with the nature of the story. Very Good. 8/10
Perfect timing! by Joe Ford 27/11/01
After the (don't shoot me!) poor Loups Garoux and the 'how much plot can you take?' Dust Breeding we needed some life shooting in the audio range and who can think of anyone better than the fabulous Colin Baker to provide it? Bloodtide was good but hampered by some poor acting (that Greta woman!) and a slow plot but neither are an issue with Project Twilight, which is as damn near to a perfect audio that I have heard!
I love the Doctor Who formula, a ship that can take you to any time, any place, it has the ability to tell a endless number of stories in countless locations. But I especially love it when the formula SURPRISES me by touching on a subject or location that the viewer/listener hasn't seen before. The gritty back-alley casino world of Project Twilight was never touched on in the series so the story has a remarkably fresh feel to it and to dump the 'I threw up on my coat' 6th Doctor and everyone's favourite cardie wearing eccentric into its nasty atmosphere was a touch of genius!
The story twists and turns superbly and although it's not a major surprise that Amelia and her troop aren't the good guys you're never quite sure wheter to trust them or not which adds a nice layer of suspense to an already moody horror tale.
The Doc/Evelyn interaction has rarely been better, if it's the hysterical handbag saving moment or rowing over the mention of Gallifrey or even the touching last scene in the TARDIS, Project Twilight proves that a healthy Doc/companion relationship can take a good story to new heights.
My one complaint would be the character of Reggie who, quite menacingly, confounds the Doctor throughout the story has a ridiculously overblown scene smashing up a room screaming out macho crap like "With a baseball bat, people pay attention!". Irritating because the other characters, especially the deliciously cruel Amelia and the smypathetic Cassie are handed superbly throughout!
Top moments of drama: The Doctor struggling to save a vamp from drowning, Cassie ruthlessley tortured at the hands of Reggie, The Doctor trapped in his cell while screams of agony ring out (thinking it's Evelyn!), Cassie's descent into a Vampire as Evelyn watches and of course the brilliant final confrontation between Amelia and The Doctor!
Great score, great performances, excellent dialogue and top notch direction, this restores my faith in Big Finish to create top quality adventure!
Final thought: I know this might seem like blasphemy (I love Evelyn
too!) but with all those rumours about her death...could you think of a
better story for her to go out in?
Supplement, 13/5/04:
On paper it sounds embarrassing, a clown and an old woman take on vampires at a South London casino. These elements seem to have been plucked completely at random from numerous genres and mushed it together into four episodes of Doctor Who. The fact that it also happens to be one of my favourite Big Finish audios can be credited at all of those involved in the production, the actors who surpass themselves, the director who gives it the edge it desperately needed and the musician who wraps it all up in an atmospheric score.
Evelyn is one character that just seems to get better and better with each release and this was set during her early days and reveals much of her potential as a companion. Let's face it on TV it would be difficult for her to sustain a story what with all the running and looking pretty (not that Maggie isn't a beaut mind you!) but on audio she is the perfect companion. Being of the elder generation she can contribute much to the story; intelligence (her code breaking information), sympathy (her touching relationship with Cassie), wisdom (she wants to leg it when things get deadly!) and humour ("You bring us to Saarf east London!"). Maggie Stables has an extremely rich voice and she very believably plays an older woman under a lot of stress and given the horrors she witnesses here you cannot blame Evelyn for getting a bit emotional (her weepy farewell with Cassie). "I know enough to know that you murder, cheat and exploit the world for your own ends!" she screams out, tied to a chair and threatened by a vampire, there's no doubt about it this woman gives as good as she can.
As I said in my earlier review of this story it is wonderful to see Doctor Who heading into gangster/Ultraviolet territory and who better than the re-invented sixth Doctor (one who is at peace with himself and the universe) and Evelyn to dump into this adventure. Their horrified reactions to the violence and disgusting experiments provides an important moral core that was often forgotten in the mid 80's stories and puts paid to the suggestion that this is a season 22 rip off. Indeed when the Doctor and Evelyn burst in after Reggie has beaten Cassie to a bloody pulp it is their reactions that are more disturbing than the actual act (he says "What have you done you monster? How dare you!" and she simply states "I think I'm going to be sick").
The biggest criticism that is levelled at Project: Twilight is the Doctor's slow realisation that he is dealing with vampires. This myth is just absurd. For a start it only takes two episodes for him to discover the fact (and if we're being picky I could point out it has taken the Doctor longer in the past to discover much more obvious truths, it was two episodes into Time and the Rani until he realised the Rani was impersonating Mel with a big red wig) and secondly why should he automatically think this is the work of vampires? A casino, a hospital in its basement and some talk of genetic experimentations... yeah just screams vampires, doesn't it? There is no indication of anything fang-related until the blood money is brought out and this is precisely when he figures it out.
Amelia and Reggie make an extremely sinister pair, a sadistic Holmesian double act on ecstasy. In truth Reggie does go overboard a bit, smashing up rooms and cursing and think he's the Big Man but that suits his character, the bully who likes to act like he's in control all the time, manipulating others with the power of his fist. Amelia is much more interesting, the scientific side of the pair and engages in some excellently scripted debates with the Doctor, especially when she chastises him over his prejudice about vampires. It is obvious from the beginning that they aren't telling the Doctor everything, their mental conversations reveal as much and this rare chance to be ahead of the Doctor and yet still unaware of their (despicable) plan is quite fun. It is great fun to hear the difference in Amelia once their secret is out, she goes from doting assistant to villainous schemer and gets some delicious scenery chewing dialogue ("Who shall I kill first? My creator or my saviour?").
Cassie is our hook in the story, the sympathetic character that is mistreated terribly. She works much better here than in Project: Lazarus because we get to see her at her most vulnerable, blackmailed by Nimrod into spying on Reggie and having her face smashed in when she is caught. Throughout she grows closer to Evelyn, the one person who has shown her genuine kindness (as opposed to the synthetic smiles and promises from Reggie) and it is lovely to see this affection for the young Evelyn is supposed to radiate but we never see. Once it becomes obvious that Cassie will be the first victim of the perfect Twilight virus, heartache is inevitable and interestingly the Doctor does not manage to save her. It leaves this story open for a (somewhat unsatisfying) sequel but proves that Big Finish was thinking of the future and leaving threads hanging, the arc virus catching on like a plague.
Thankfully the production of Project: Twilight is as dynamic as the script and I was astonished at how good this was the first time I heard it. Jim Mortimore, the man who puts the fucked-upiness in the Doctor Who universe provides an impressive musical score, one that highlights the gritty atmosphere and gives the heated relationships a real sense of discord. An audio story that manages to turn your stomach owes its thanks to some effective sound FX and when Reggie is staked by Cassie and melts away in a horrible gurgling, sucking, pulsating noise you will know exactly what I am talking about. The sounds of the blood farm, in-bred humans moaning in their cages as they are drained of blood is also memorably horrid.
Gary Russell makes sure that the performances never falter and gathers
an impressive selection of actors. Its another example of how comfortable
and natural Colin Baker sounds on audio, somehow he manages to convince
that these events are actually taking place rather than a bunch of actors
gathered around a microphone. He gets some sterling scenes with Maggie
Stables, especially the Doctor's angered reaction to the vampires and her
complacency about the whole thing.
For dealing with a dramatic idea in a truly dramatic fashion this is
Doctor Who at its best. The story builds to an impressive crescendo
in the last episode, all the secrets are out, Cassie is infected, Evelyn
is about to bitten, the Doctor is locked up and Amelia is going to pour
the Twilight virus into the Thames... the actors are breathlessly good at
bringing the story to an unforgettable climax.
If nothing else the story reveals where the greatest meal in human
history can be found, the Peking Crispy Duck at the Slow Boat in
Bermondsey, Saarf East London. What better advice do you need for picking
this up?
A project to be proud of by Julian Shortman
6/11/02
I should have written this a long time ago! As it is, I feel I owe it
to this production to write something a year on, as it remains my
favourite BF release of 2001. And it’s not too hard to explain why.
The production notes state that the team behind Project:
Twilight were aiming to deliver DW at ‘possibly, its
grittiest.’ Now I confess I’ve not read any of Mick
Lewis’ recent contributions to the world of DW, but this is
the grittiest Who I’ve come across yet. Mary Whitehouse would
turn in her grave several times over if she could hear this one! I’m
not a natural lover of blood and guts in any creative medium, and yet I
found myself feeling almost entirely comfortable with the level of gore
presented in Project: Twilight. There were no points when I
thought the authors were trying to make my stomach turn simply to get a
reaction. The many buckets of blood were a necessary part of the scenery
to tell a gruesome tale.
Colin Baker was at his best. True, he’s not had a dud performance
in any of the audios yet, but here he really shone. As did Evelyn - she
was closely involved with the characters and plot, and came much closer
to being finished off with some of them than ever before. This
Doctor/Companion team is one of the strongest ever created, and I
particularly enjoyed the comments thrown back and forth that show how
they’re gently getting to know each other.
Project: Twilight was also blessed with a very strong supporting
cast. The scenes where Reggie Mead lost his cool were chilling, and
although we could all see Amelia’s treachery coming, it was easy to
understand how the Doctor could be suckered by her appeals for help.
Nimrod was a great idea for a character – an obvious rip off from
Blade of course – but who’s to say DW can’t
borrow a fun concept from time to time? Nimrod’s pre-knowledge of
the Doctor and subsequent disappointment at meeting him in the flesh was
great fun, and the post-production team had the sounds for his cybernetic
joints and harpoons down to a tee. He was a welcome anti-hero sidekick for
the Doctor, and I’m already looking forward to his return next year.
This story was also an excellent example of continuity done right
– the writers chose to include plenty of it, but it never dominated
or demanded that the listener should be able to understand the links to
follow the plot. It simply gave a few extra smiles and chuckles for those
able/sad enough to spot the references. Nimrod’s bonded polycarbide
armour was one such gem, and there was even a passing reference to Neverland snuck into the first episode!
If there is one complaint which I could aim against this production,
then it’s a minor and easily avoided one. The knowledge that the
residents of the Dusk were vampires wasn’t revealed to the Doctor
until the end of part two. I’d have liked to have shared this shock,
if it wasn’t for the fact that the authors had already proclaimed
that the villains were vampires in their notes on the CD! Of course, it
could be argued that I shouldn’t have read the authors notes until
I’d finished listening to the story, but it was more than a little
difficult to miss the phrase ‘the challenge with taking on
vampires…’ as I opened the CD case for the first time! Still,
'tis but a petty complaint in what was otherwise a near faultless piece of
horror Who.
Does what it says on the tin by Robert Thomas
20/6/03
After relistening to this lately I was surprised at how pretty effing
great it was. By no means anything near the best BF have produced but if
it's an average story it shows how high the standard is. The best thing
about it has to be the atmosphere which ranges from scary (the situation)
to seedy (the setting). I distinctly remember feeling that it dragged a
bit on first listen but this time it was jam packed with plot and a very
good one.
The two major guest characters help lift this story Amelia is
wonderfully played by Holly De Jong and despite the fact he rarely appears
the character of Nimrod and the fear of him are perhaps the best parts of
this story. However I must say Reggie was a complete clich?and could
have done with appearing less often.
Very good indeed and all involved deserve praise, all be it bar the
fool who stuck a major spoiler on the inner cover of the CD. By all means
buy it, enjoy it, but don't read the spoilers after all some of us tend to
avoid them.
A Review by John Seavey
22/3/04
Call me crazy, but I liked this one. The flaw everyone talks about (the
Doctor seeming stupid for not recognizing them to be vampires) is really
only a flaw because there's a big statement in the liner notes, saying,
"This is a story about vampires!" The actual story itself relies on one of
those first-time author tricks that sometimes works and sometimes doesn't
-- taking every single idea they think is cool and cramming it into a
space as small as possible. So we get vampire casino owners (deliberately
imitating the Krays) being menaced by cyborg-vampire hybrids who created
them in the first place while all the while, they're experimenting with a
serum designed to convert humanity into vampires -- oh, and breeding tame
humans for their blood, too. It's big, it's goofy, it's silly, but it's
got a certain panache that carried it past its own silliness for me.
A Review by Ron Mallett
26/10/05
Cavan Scott and Mark Wright's Project Twilight is a
sophisticated example of audio Doctor Who. A gothic atmosphere has
been proven to be an ideal background for a good who tale. Directed by
Gary Russell, this continues the good run of 6th Doctor and Evelyn stories
that have been the highlight of the Big Finish line.
The story draws heavily upon vampire lore but despite this is very
original. Who has always worked best when being derivative, but at
the same time bringing something new to the story in order to justify
that. Featuring a group of modern vampires, there is a fair dosage of
gore, quite achievable in the highly suggestive but not graphic audio
medium. If being adapted for the screen, the story would need to be toned
down for a family audience. The sounds accompanying brutal attacks and
bodies exploding are enough to make one feel quite faint as it is.
The atmosphere is helped enormously by the sound work. Both the music
by Jane Elphinstone and Jim Mortimore and the sound design/post-production
work by Gareth Jenkins is superb. As with all Big Finish adventures, the
sound has a truly cinematic quality that harks back to the early JNT era
on TV.
As to the performances, Colin Baker and Maggie Stables have clearly
settled into a routine and the chemistry is strong. Of the cast, Rosie
Cavalierio who portrays the down-trodden Cassie is the one that truly
shines. Rob Dixon (as vampire Reggie Mead) and Stephen Chance (Nimrod)
both put in strong performances. I think it is the script that is the true
star here. This is another Doctor/Evelyn adventure that comes strongly
recommended.
A Review by Brian May
13/7/13
Project: Twilight is one of those stories that neatly juxtaposes
two disparate elements, this time vampires and the seedy London
underworld. Relocating the action here from the originally planned Las
Vegas works better, by far. Vegas has been done to death, from being
glamorised by Elvis Presley and James Bond films in the 1960s and 1970s,
to more recently (and rightly) de-romanticised by the likes of Mike Figgis
and Martin Scorsese. Thanks to the freedoms of audio, Big Finish has so
far taken the various TARDIS crews to places such as Switzerland, Venice,
Rio de Janeiro and the Galapagos Islands. So we could well have gone to
Vegas and most probably heard some comments on its tackiness and
superficiality, but staying in the good old "sarf-east" of Doctor
Who's most frequented city is more beneficial, as the characters and
scenario here don't require even the illusion of glamour.
The setting means the story is effective. But is it enjoyable? That's
difficult to answer. Yes, it's good, but it is also a rough and often very
brutal outing. As a vampire tale, you'd expect a generosity of gore, and
it certainly delivers. The sound effects of exploding bodies are
appropriately disgusting, but they have an almost comical air to them. Add
to the mix dismembered animal carcasses, bags full of blood and the
breaking of fingers. While these aren't played for laughs, they're quite
meek in light of a particularly shocking moment: that of Reggie beating
Cassie in part three. In true less-is-more fashion, we don't hear the
blows. We cut to another scene while it occurs, but there's enough in the
build-up and the aftermath to make obvious what's happened. In equal
measure it's repellent and compelling.
All of this makes it an ideal story for the sixth Doctor. The
overarching amorality reflects Eric Saward's vision, although the passing
of time and attitudes between the mid-1980s and 2001 has simultaneously
hardened the violence and softened the Doctor's character. He's no longer
the cynical protagonist of season 22. Nimrod describes him as a "moral
crusader"; an apt term for sure, but one I wouldn't have applied to Colin
Baker's Time Lord back in the television day.
The episodes are all of a short length, so the story remains tightly
paced. The cast are all good, although Rob Dixon plays it a bit broad as
Reggie at times. But given his character is a vampire who idolises his
Kray brother namesake, this is more forgivable. There are a few weak
points in the plotting; a moment in part three makes Evelyn out to be
gullible to the point of stupidity. It ensures Reggie can attack Cassie,
but it's very grating and more than a little contrived. The real identity
of Dr Abberton is also pretty obvious and indeed is mentioned by one of
the characters earlier; however, it's rather obscure, so may not be picked
up on the first listen. Nevertheless, Project: Twilight is an
intelligent affair. The subject matter of government experiments is a very
disturbing one. Like Goth Opera and Vampire Science before it, the Time Lord/vampire
conflict is painted in shades greyer than the absolutism of State of Decay. It remains open-ended on three fronts:
Amelia (if you can't see the body...), Nimrod (reporting to an unknown
superior) and Cassie (now a vampire, in hiding and trying to get by),
inviting a sequel I for one would anticipate.
So, with all the bleak harshness listed above, it's hard to describe
the story as enjoyable without feeling somewhat sadistic. But it's
certainly engaging, well realised and worth our attention. 7.5/10
I Can Hear the Blood Rushing Like a River by Jacob Licklider
17/6/18
WARNING: This review contains major spoilers for the twist of Project: Twilight and its conclusion. If that does not bother you, please read on, but if it does, give the audio a listen, then come back here.
The layers present in this audio are very deep, as Scott and Wright explore the human condition and the monsters we can make during a period of intense pressure like a World War. The play shows just how bad humanity can get and how they will get their just desserts as time goes by. There's a secret government organization, the Forge, which is basically Torchwood except more towards the evil side. The plot sees the Doctor and Evelyn arriving in South East London in 1999 where a shady casino is doing deals in blood as people are being murdered on the streets. The owners of the casino it turns out are part of a group of experiments from World War I by said government organization who left them as literal blood-sucking vampires. Their leader, Amelia, asks the Doctor for help as on the surface they want to become human again, and he agrees to give it. There is also a young barmaid whom Evelyn connects with after falling on hard times and a Forge operative coming after the vampires.
The first thing to stand out about the audio is its opening scene, which sets the overall tone for the story as it sees the vampires escaping from Nimrod's experiments. This is dripping with intrigue as you wonder what this scenario is about and how it will eventually play into the rest of the story. The plot then cuts to 1999 where everything kicks off to an incredibly dark story with some gruesome imagery coming to your head. This is not a story for the faint of heart, as you can imagine all the blood spilling throughout the plot.
Colin Baker is on top form here as the Doctor, as he is tricked into helping the vampires reproduce. He is initially wary as, being a Time Lord, vampires are his natural enemy, but he does something he should never do and lets his guard down, which causes a lot of rage from the Doctor in the way Colin Baker does. His concern for Evelyn in this story as she is in so much danger is heartwarming. She could be killed off at any moment, and he does everything to stop it from happening. His care really completes his transformation to a softer character and makes this story great as a season finale. (That season consisting of The Marian Conspiracy, The Spectre of Lanyon Moor, The Apocalypse Element, Bloodtide and Project: Twilight) He also comforts Evelyn with her sadness at the end of the story, which is heartwarming. The best parts of their relationships were outlined in the beginning when they have little blows at each other over the Doctor's taste in food.
Maggie Stables as Evelyn steals the show, as she gets to have a subplot of her own with the barmaid of the casino, Cassie. Cassie is someone who has fallen down on her luck. She is surrounded by a religious family but accidentally had a child, so she is working at the casino so she can support him. Evelyn has a real emotional connection with her and helps her feel good about herself until Part Four where they get captured and (Massive Spoilers Incoming), Cassie gets turned into a vampire, and it's the Doctor's fault. The end of the story sets up the sequel to this story with the Doctor and Evelyn leaving Cassie in Norway so they can find a cure.
The rest of the supporting cast is great, especially considering they are all villains of the piece. The head of the vampires is Amelia played by Holly De Jong, who is stone cold. De Jong plays her very sympathetic until the curtain is pulled up and it is revealed just how evil they are. They want to take over the world, which has terrifying implications, seeing how Cassie reacts to becoming a vampire. Amelia is cold and calculating and surrounded by weaklings. Her partner in crime is Reggie Mead played by Rob Dixon who can be summed up as insane. He is someone who was probably broken before he became a vampire, which makes for an extremely interesting villain. He breaks a tone of bottles when he goes into a rage over Amelia trusting the Doctor. The other character is Nimrod, the Forge operative played by Stephen Chance. He is much more prominent in the sequel, but here he is just as evil, as he wants to destroy the vampires, which are his creations. He obviously has ulterior motives, as he is fascinated with the fact the Doctor is an alien. I won't give too much about the character, as he is best heard on your own.
To summarize, Project: Twilight is one of the darkest stories I've experienced, and it does very well for it. The acting is perfectly combined with some great music and sound design. Gary Russell does great as director here and I implore you to find this one for yourself. 100/100