Doctor Who: Bang-Bang-a-Boom! by Gareth Roberts

Doctor Who: Bang-Bang-a-Boom! Reviews

• 
  Lindsay

  This is a seventh Doctor adventure with Mel Bush as the companion and is #39 in the Big Finish main range.
  
  The Doctor and Mel appear on a shuttle approaching a space station, only to discover that the two people on board are dead and the shuttle is about to explode. At the last possible moment they're beamed aboard the space station Dark Space 8 and they are immediately mistaken for the new station commander and the pilot of the shuttle. Dark Space 8 is hosting the Intergalactic Song Competition and features a diverse group of crew and guests that the Doctor and Mel begin to mix with. Just in time for the murders to start.
  
  The seventh Doctor era was a strange one for the show and this is well documented in fan history. For me personally, while there are one or two standout stories, it was mostly disappointing and not for me. In particular the seventh Doctor seemed to have two modes of story, roughly separated into his earlier stories and his later ones. The early ones were tonally off, with patently ridiculous situations, slapstick humor, yet with story-lines with substantial body-counts. The later ones got a lot more serious in terms of plot and portrayed the Doctor with a clownish demeanor that masked a Machiavellian puppet-master. This entry fits chronologically smack in the early seventh Doctor stories and this story feels exactly like it belongs in that group.
  
  I strongly dislike the early seventh Doctor stories. Call me odd, but high body-counts don't mesh well with silly antics and clownish behavior.
  
  As a parlor room murder-mystery this kind of works. As a spoof of 90s space station SF it kind of works (I laughed when they referred to Dark Space 8 as "the last best hope for peace", and of course the name is a reference to ST:DS9). As a showcase for the acting of Sylvester McCoy and Bonnie Langford ... no, I'm sorry, they're both obnoxious in this one.
  
  Another one for a very specific sub-group of fans and is highly skippable.
• 
  Polly Batchelor

  ‘Mel we’re going to have one of our little chats in the Reading Room!’
• 
  Nicholas Whyte

  This ought to be a disaster - Doctor Who trying to satirise popular entertainment usually fails dismally. But it largely works, partly due to the all-star cast - former Goodie Graeme Garden as the doomed but slightly comical professor, former Sheriff of Nottingham Nickolas Grace as the sinister Mr Loozley, and former interstellar vampire Patricia Quinn as an alien princess (so no type-casting there then). There is also an alien which can only crackle rather than talking.[return][return]And lots of piss-taking of other sf stories - the space station where the contest is taking place is called "Dark Space Eight", and the rather colourless station doctor thinks she is in Star Trek - while at the same time the Doctor is trying to solve a murder mystery - one of whose victims is this play's Irish character, Commentator WLogan, played by David Tughan (presumably the jazz musician).
• 
  Taksya

  Come storia non è originale e ci sono molti effetti da sitcom... ma le musiche dedicate alla staziona spaziale fanno il verso al tema classico di Star Trek.
  Tra i protagonisti ci sono Nikolas Grace (lo Sceriffo di Robin of Sherwood e Patricia Quinn (l'inimitabile Magenta di The Rocky Horror (Picture) Show... e solo loro fanno salire il punteggio.
  La competizione canora è la versione galattica, ma non meno kitsch, dell'Eurovision Song Contest e l'inno nazionale terrestre replica l'effetto di Toxic nell'episodio The End of the World con qualche anno di anticipo.
  E, chi conosce McCoy, può immaginare quale sarà la sua performance durante il concorso canoro.
  Storia semplice, personaggi stereotipati e umorismo sopra le righe... ma, lasciandosi prendere dai vari omaggi, alla fine si rivela più che gradevole.
  
• 
  Avarill

  This story shouldn't work, but it does. Inexplicably, really. Seriously, it's a mash-up of Star Trek and American Idol. With Hercule Poirot thrown in. Not only does it work, it works with style. The dialogue is snappy and witty, and the plot dances along with glee. Mel (and I don't often say this) is a perfect foil for the Doctor. And Sylvester McCoy (whom I adore on general principles) gets to have the most fun I've seen (heard) the Seventh Doctor have in quite some time. Highly recommended.
  
  In fact, I just realized that Gareth Roberts wrote it... and the similarities to The Unicorn and the Wasp are striking. Except... (whispers) this one made a whole lot more sense!
• 
  April Mccaffrey

  Unfortunately, this is written by the absolute trash and bastard that is Gareth Roberts which is a shame as I really like this audio and the novel Shada he wrote too but I just can’t excuse his transphobic and bigotry views as a person.
  
  Perhaps if I can ignore the fact Bang-Bang-a-boom is written by him and just focus it’s also written by Clayton Hickman, it might make it easier….
  
  But, I do enjoy this fun story despite its rather unnecessary dramatic tone.
• 
  Josh

  This story is so weird and I know barely anything about Star Trek but... the murder mystery, the comedic sound queues, the weird characters/setting and the end of story fake out just falls together like a well-oiled machine. (If I watched Star Trek, I'd probably find the parody characters funnier but as they are? They're fine).
  
  The only issue I would have with it is that the music part of the song contest is brushed over and considering the release after this one was the Doctor Who Pirate Musical audio drama, I just wished this one also tried to make weird alien music for Parts 3 and 4.
• 
  Amber

  3.5
• 
  Stephen

  After some of the heavier Doctor Who episodes, it’s sometimes fun to have a light comedy episode from time to time. I may be in the minority there though, as I can imagine this drama is divisive depending on whether or not you want the franchise to always be serious or not. I recall people being in an uproar when episodes such as Love an Monsters were released, so I’d imagine it’s dicey. These are rarely my favorites in any way, but serve a fine purpose. This time, we are looking at Doctor Who: Bang-Bang-a-Boom! a Big Finish audio drama that somehow manages to be both a parody of Star Trek and The Eurovision Song Contest at the same time. Starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Bonnie Langsford as Melanie Bush, this is an interesting episode for sure.
  
  Not being from the UK means that Eurovision is somewhat alien to me, no matter what Will Ferrell films get made about it, but I at least know the general idea, and watched the clip of Lordi performing in it years ago. That said, you really don’t have to have an extensive knowledge of it to have fun with this. Now, Star Trek is something I can get behind! The whole premise behind this is to imagine that a space station not to dissimilar to Deep Space Nine is selected as the host of a galaxy-wide song contest and shady stuff starts happening. I especially loved the musical nods to the Star Trek franchise and the numerous jabs at the show’s tropes.
  
  Overall, there’s not too much to say about this one – it’s predictable, silly, and isn’t something I can really see myself rushing back to give a re-listen to. That said, it’s funny and does a good job of poking fun at Star Trek, and for that I enjoyed it. It fits right in with episodes from this era like Paradise Towers and Delta and the Bannerman, so in that way it’s perhaps one of the better thematic continuations of the classic show we’ve heard up to this point. If you like McCoy era Doctor Who, check it out! Honestly though, The One Doctor was better.
  
  
  https://arcadiapod.com/2022/02/06/rev...
• 
  K

  Part1
  
  フランスのパリを目指していたはずのドクターとメルだったが、ターディスが到着したのは宇宙船の中。しかも2人の乗組員の死体を見つけた上、爆弾がしかけられておりドクターとメルは大パニック。宇宙船が爆発する寸前、ドクターとメルは宇宙ステーション、ダーク・スペース8になぜかテレポートする。2人をテレポートさせたのは新しい指揮官の到着を待っていたダーク・スペース8のスタッフたちだ。ドクターとメルは着任予定の指揮官になりすまし、ターディスを取り戻す機会をさぐることに。折しも、ダーク・スペース8では第398回宇宙歌唱コンテンスト開催を控えており、参加者が続々と到着しているところだった。そんな最中、コンテスト参加者の部屋で新たな死体が発見される。
  
  Part2
  
  エレナ・ハーコート博士は病死と診断するがドクターは毒殺を疑う。コンテストに集まったアングリア、ゴロスは長期に渡る戦争に終止符をうとうとコンテストの会期中に平和協定を結ぼうとしていた。しかし、殺人事件がお互いの不信感を煽り、一触即発の緊張感がコンテスト関係者の間に流れる。ドクターとメルはダーク・スペース8の新指揮官を暗殺した真犯人探しとターディス探しを急ぐ。しかし、またもや犠牲者が出てしまう。
  
  Part3
  
  メルはドクターが真相究明にあまり集中していないことに気がつく。ドクターは自分でも驚いたことにアングリアの女王に恋をしたことをメルに打ち明けると、ミドルエイジ・クライシスかとメルに呆れられる。メルはポップスターのニッキーと協力して捜査を続け、アイヴァー教授が怪しいと睨むが、その教授も殺害されてしまう。メルはニッキーとさらに捜査を続けるが、メルは重要容疑者を見つけるが、掴まえて問い詰めようとした時、容疑者は足を滑らせ頭を打って死んでしまう。
  
  Part4
  
  ドクターは連続殺人の真相をつきとめる。しかし、テロ計画は進行していた。爆弾がしかけられた場所を知ったドクターとメルは爆発を防ごうとコンテスト会場に急ぐ。
  
  
  
  
  感想
  
  連続殺人の犯人探しとコンテストがいい具合に兼ね合っていて楽しい仕上がり。お祭り感もたっぷりでクリスマススペシャルとかで見てみたいノリで楽しく聴けた。恋にのぼせ上がるドクターがなかなか新鮮で面白かったし、メルとポップスターのニッキーのコンビも楽しかった。特にニッキーが憎めないキャラで、これきりなのがちょっと寂しいぐらい。
  
  
• 
  Steven Shinder

  This is the best/funniest Seventh Doctor audio I've heard. It's essentially Doctor Who meets Star Trek. The Doctor and Mel go to Dark Space 8, which is obviously supposed to be like Deep Space 9. There's a character who does the captain's log thing, and, hilariously, she accidentally presses the red alert button while recording. During her segments, the music reminds me of the notes at the beginning of the them for The Next Generation. (Or I guess that would be from The Motion Picture?) There's even a line where someone says "Dark Space 8 was our last, best hope," which sounds like almost the exact same line from my favorite sci-fi show Babylon 5. So this story felt like it was catered to me. With a music contest and a murder mystery complete with overdramatic musical cues, this is loads of fun. The Doctor Who end theme even comes in early before being cut off because there was still some stuff left to resolve. Haha!
• 
  Anne

  This is a Doctor Who story not meant to be taken seriously. It is purposely goofy and irreverent and it works about 70% of the time the other 30 is kind of cringe-y. Also this featured Mel who was never one of my favorite companions there were times during her run when she seemed more of a caricature then an actual person. I think in the audiobooks she is much improved but not completely. Overall I ended up liking it.
• 
  Marius

  This is comedy, a blatant parody of Star Trek (and possibly Babylon 5?) with a splash of Poirot. The story seems like a jab at some of the "political space opera" 60s & 70s Doctor Who stories, too. Incredibly silly. Stear clear if that's not your thing because it really is ridiculous and self aware. I liked it a lot.
• 
  morgan

  terror of the vervoids style whodunit on a spaceliner with various guests as suspects. seems to be a peace conference of some sort masquerading as a song contest, and the Doctor impersonating the commander of the ship. Fairly entertaining, though the plot lost me at some point along the way. Patricia Quinn's performance as Queen Angvia is great.
• 
  Kelly McCubbin

  This audio drama is for the kind of person that thinks that a woman who's name is an anagram for "vagina" and who has sex glands in her armpits is hysterical.
  I am not that person.
  Patricia Quinn tries to carry the whole thing on her back and is quite brilliant, but can't save this.
• 
  Stephen Theaker

  Manages somehow to reflect the era it’s based on without being terrible.
• 
  Luiz Santiago

  Crítica | Big Finish Mensal #34 a 39: O Arrebatamento e Outras Histórias:
  https://www.planocritico.com/critica-...
• 
  Charles Mitchell

  American idol meets scooby doo, 7th doctor style. Nice to get some Melanie, her time in the show was too short.
• 
  Sarajane

  Ooo
• 
  Stephen Higham

  Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman are writers with a very high opinion of their intrusive sense of humour. If you’re not digging their jokes there’s not much else for you here.
• 
  Rebecca

  An Intergalactic Song Contest provides much humor while the closed setting of a space station is perfect for a murder mystery.
• 
  Jacqueline

  Bang-Bang-a-Boom is one of my very favorite Big Finish audio plays - because it is relentlessly funny. This is a full-cast audio play, with music, sound effects and an excellent cast. It features the Seventh Doctor, played by Sylvester McCoy and his companion, Mel. The story starts with a bang, as the TARDIS arrives on an in-bound shuttle to a space station. The Doctor and Mel no sooner arrive than they realize the people on the shuttle are dead and it is about to explode. Before they can get to the TARDIS, they are beamed to the space station.
  The station, Dark Space 8, is expecting a replacement commander, the previous one having died in a space flu. The staff of the Station welcome the Doctor as the new Commander, and Mel as his pilot. The Station is about to host the Intergalactic Song Contest.
  The Doctor and Mel meet the contestants of the contest, including representatives of two Galactic Empires posed on the brink of war. They also meet the Arbiter, a galaxy-wide famous diplomat. Before long, people on the station start getting murdered, the Doctor investigates, and Dr. Eleanor Harcourt feels so ... helpless.
  The story is great fun, and the parodies of ST:TNG and ST:DS9 are rampant. The Doctor gets to play detective with Mel as his reluctant assistant. They eventually realize that the Intergalactic Peace Conference that is taking place at the same time, supposedly on another planet, is actually taking place on the station - and the Song Contest is a convenient cover. The Doctor also uncovers a number of secrets about the crew of Dark Space 8. The story has a light tone and is laugh-out-loud funny. It truly is one of my very favorite stories and I highly recommend it.
• 
  Jayaprakash Satyamurthy

  Not bad at all! Pretty good, really and a much awaited return to form by Sylvester McCoy. The Doc and Mel wind up on Dark Space Eight (a sly Star Trek nod accented by use of music suspiciously like the Star Trek theme) where an intergalactic song contest is taking place. The death of a new commander who was on his way to the space station, and whose place is taken by the Doctor, suggests something more serious is afoot.
  
  A large cast of fascinating characters, interplanetary intrigue, one murder after another and a series of gratuitously mangled idioms spewed out by the playful Doctor, relishing the chance to play the sleuth all add up to a very satisfying installment, full of cliffhangers and laughs in good measure.
• 
  Jennifer

  Yeah, this was alright, a bit of fun. I am warming to Sylvester McCoy's 7th Doctor and felt this story allowed the character room to breathe, ironically by dint of him impersonating a dead officer. The Agatha Christie parallels set against the 'Intergalactic Song Contest" complete with dry Irish commentator 'Logan' were effective, along with all the "Da, da, daaa" when another body is found made for a jolly romp. There were several false endings but unlike too many Doctor Who stories where the end feels dragged out these worked.
• 
  Angela

  The Doctor and Mel visit the universal equivalent of the Eurovision song contest that is being held at the same time as a peace conference. They are mistaken for people of rank, and when murders start to occur they have to solve them, as well as keeping the contest on track. This is a comedy with some detective work. Mel is teamed up with a boy band member, and the Doctor is pursued romantically by a singer. I laughed out loud a couple of times, just don't take this too seriously. A very good listen.
• 
  Mel

  I wasn't very impressed with this one to start with. Fake Eurovision and Star Trek on a spacestation. Definitely my least favourite Gareth Roberts story so far. But it did have some priceless moments, like Patricia Quinn as an alien flirting (and succeeding) with the Doctor and the Earth national anthem!!! As well as some really funny lines. I'm glad I stuck with it in the end as it did get better.
• 
  Linnea Gelland

  Ah, yes. Well... The Intergalactic Song Contest, some strange Russian-ish sounding accent, and oh my goodness what is that irritating mouse voice! And then there is the bomb inside the guy and the armpits of- oh never mind. Strictly silly. But unfortunately not the funny kind of silliness, in my opinion.
• 
  Debra Cook

  This was a great Sylvester McCoy story. So vivid it makes you wish you were watching it. Mel and the Doctor dematerialize on a ship hold a music competition that is actually a peace conference. Lots of people dying and laughs. Great adventure. Highly recommend.
• 
  Wendy

  This mashup of Star Trek Deep Space 9/Babylon 5 with the Eurovision song contest works better than it has any right to. I found that the rather broad satire wore a bit thin by the last episode, but the exuberance of the performances and the twists and turns of the plot held my interest.