Best Trial segment?

I've gone for The Ultimate Foe. It's actually pretty cool and eerie and I love Glitz in it. Dominic Glynn's score is also very effective.

Would be the Ultimate Foe if it were more consistent and longer - it still turned out pretty well considering its production.

That aside it's hard to say, they're all about equally flawed with inspired parts to neutralise.

I'd say the Mysterious Planet is the most well-written all-in-all.

'The Mysterious Planet' - love that whole Planet of the Apes-ish 'you think you're on an alien world called Ravalox but you're actually in Marble Arch tube station, many years in the future' vibe. Also, Glitz and Dibber are genuinely funny. Well done, Robert Holmes.

Every single episode of the ill-fated Colon Baker era was complete trash, worst than the worst of nu-who tripe. Trial was quite possibly worst few hours of television ever broadcast.

The Ultimate Foe. The Valeyard's confrontation with the Master was a far better callback to the Mind of Evil where the Masters worst fear is a giant Doctor laughing at him, than the Jesus Doctor trash.

Now that I think of it I changed my mind the ultimate foe is my favorite segment vervoids second.

I'd go for "The Ultimate Foe" because episode 13 is about the only watchable episode out of the entire season.

I haven't watched it for over a decade so my memory is a bit vague but here goes ...

Vervoids I think. It seemed to take itself more seriously than Planet or Mindwarp while i found Foe to be rather confusing and muddled. Plus the performances were so much better - especially Blackman and Craig. And wasn't there a rather hot blond stewardess somewhere on set or am i getting confused with another story? Quite how Bonnie got the companion gig and not her i will never understand.

For the season overall i would add that Jayston gave a good performance in his role as the Valeyard. He's one of my favourite actors of the time, I having first "encountered" him in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. He was also a very good James Bond in a BBC radio dramatisation of one of Fleming's novels. Its just a shame all he was given to do was trade insults with, and shout at, Colin for most of the season. But he did do it very well.

:-)

stengos wrote:And wasn't there a rather hot blond stewardess somewhere on set or am i getting confused with another story? Quite how Bonnie got the companion gig and not her i will never understand.

There was yes, the sadly no longer with us Yolande Palfrey

She was one of my earliest TV crushes.

Tanmann wrote:

stengos wrote:And wasn't there a rather hot blond stewardess somewhere on set or am i getting confused with another story? Quite how Bonnie got the companion gig and not her i will never understand.

There was yes, the sadly no longer with us Yolande Palfrey

She was one of my earliest TV crushes.

Yep. That's the one. Very pretty. I also thought she was a fine actress - certainly companion material. I wasn't sure if it was this she was in or Dragonfire the following year.

Thanks Tanmann.

Are you serious? A “best segment” of the worst television serial ever?
I am hard-pressed to think of another television show that was so fucking horrible. My god that was trash.

ToiletMan has never seen Porn Mums.

Vervoids was less crap than the rest of it.

I’ve gone for Ultimate Foe, on the grounds that part 13 is easily the best of the season. The rest is pretty crap, though. Vervoids is nearly half decent, but that’s all I can say about it. Mysterious Planet could have been a good Holmes script were it not for the Trial insertions and hacked budget, and Mindwarp is just a mess.

I like Mysterious Planet best, but Vervoids comes a close second.

Mindwarp sucks.

Ultimate Foe is one of these stories that needs fixing, or at least add on a third part where everything gets sorted out, but there's still some good stuff in it.

Vervoids.

Vervoids and The Ultimate Foe are very entertaining. Mindwarp is rancid, though.

Vervoids.

Tanmann wrote:

stengos wrote:And wasn't there a rather hot blond stewardess somewhere on set or am i getting confused with another story? Quite how Bonnie got the companion gig and not her i will never understand.

There was yes, the sadly no longer with us Yolande Palfrey

She was one of my earliest TV crushes.

Cute

Vervoids.

Vervoids is like a Season 24 adventure just with Colin Baker. Good stuff.

I don't even think The Mysterious Planet is all that bad anymore, but then I'm not quite feeling myself at the moment