Friday, February 11, 2011

The Dalek Conquests


The Dalek Conquests
presented by Nicholas Briggs [Compact Disc Briggs]

This one is a treat for science fiction fans, particularly those with a love for the British SF icon Doctor Who. One of The Doctor's main nemeses, ever since his second storyline in 1963, has been the Daleks, rolling weaponized tanks containing the mutated biological remnants of a species so dedicated to war and destruction that their ultimate goals include the destruction of all other life forms and the placement of themselves as the most superior form of life in the universe. Over 43 years of their history (this audioset was put together in 2006), the Daleks have returned again and again in episodes of Doctor Who, with their strident mechanical voices shrieking "Exterminate! Exterminate!" Over that length of time, a great deal of inconsistencies has cropped up regarding the origins and evolution of the Daleks, complicated by the time travel elements that are intrinsic to Doctor Who. This 2-disc CD set uses a narrative framework of a researcher attempting to compile a history of the Daleks, as well as audio clips from various generations of the tv series, to try to create an acceptable level of Dalek continuity over the years. The continuity ends up a bit flimsy, considering the vast number of TV writers/producers/directors who had a hand in individual Dalek storylines. But the attempt is admirable. For me, the most interesting part of this set is the chance to hear bits from rare episodes of the show that haven't been available any other way. Being a fan of the recent new Doctor Who adventures that have been airing since 2005, it was also mildly frustrating to not have the new Dalek storylines since 2006 included. But, still...this is a fun oddity for genre fans! [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the various Doctor Who DVDs and novels in the library collection.] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ official Doctor Who web site at the BBC ] | [ Wikipedia page for Nicholas Briggs ]

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide web site. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month.

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