VNA #08 - "Nightshade" by Mark Gatiss - Doctor Who Book Guide - CtW

[@electricmastro]

Indeed. This is definitely my favorite Doctor Who story Mark Gatiss wrote for the narrative. There's a lot of... substance to it that makes Nightshade more than the fluff I see in his television stories.

[@ratboy6617]

true, its a great book. i still love it. it was so gothic

[@bobbyshaddoe3004]

Nothing against gatiss, the man is tremendously talented as an actor. I think being an actor is probablynwhere his priorities are first and foremost. Sure he poured all his attention into nightshade and created something great. His tv episodes aren't bad actually, and they are a bit flawed, but i think his focus is mostly on his craft as an actor rather than as a writer.

[@jbcatz5]

Great review. The Big Finish adaptation is worth listening to. The next book, Love and War, was adapted four years ago and hopefully you've had a chance to hear that.

[@DrEeveeYT]

22:26 I don't think the visuals of Jamie and Zoe fit with what you're talking about as they were forced out by the time lords

[@archive9796]

The best New who is adaptations Jubilee -Dalek Human Nature -Human Nature/Family of Blood What I did on my Christmas holidays by Sally Sparrow-Blink So I'm shocked Mark didn't want to adapt this as this great it would have been good for Capaldi era I do like Sleep no More but take that & Face the Raven away and make this a two parter there !

[@bobbyshaddoe3004]

Borgin & Burkes Antiques Shop capaldi wpuld have nailed it. This would have been great between him and clara.

[@creamypeanutbutterjellygir3321]

*DARK SECRETS*

[@ratboy6617]

one of my most loved dr who books.

[@shawndavis7249]

Another well-researched and well-presented review. Keep up the fantastic work1

[@Incognitus999]

Big Finish are having a sale on Novel Adaptations this weekend, and whilst Nightshade is not included, you can pick up "love & War" and "The Highest Science" on D/L for £6 a piece. Thanks to the wisdom of the British people in strategically cutting off our noses to spite our faces, this means they are about $7 a pop. Spoiler alert! I'm sure poparena would agree with me that you should deffo buy "Love and War" if you can. Mispronouncing "Quatermass" I can live with, but "tertiary"?!?! What's also interesting about Quatermass versus Doctor Who is that both of them have a different take on their subject matter. The Quatermass series sees the unknown as something very scary, very hostile, and it is always to be feared; The serials start off with astronauts catching a horrifying fungal disease merely by journeying into space, moves on to mixxing demons with some bizarre notions of race and racism as a biological imperative (albeit one that should be rejected), and ends in the 1980s with a sinister movement of hippies being brainwashed by aliens who are using them for food (presumably whilst Nigel Kneale shouts at them to get off his lawn). It's very conservative and reactionary. In contrast, Doctor Who's approach has always been... well... to poke the unknown with a stick and see what crawls out (and you're usually rewarded for doing so). For example, when Doctor Who eventually does start doing the obvious Quatermass homages in the 1970s, the Doctor Who stories often involve a significant shift in emphasis on who and what to fear. In the "Ambassadors of Death", it's not the astronauts who are the threat, it's the establishment - including UNIT; in "The Daemons", the true villain is the Master, who is in disguise as one of the most 'establishment' of figures, the English Vicar, who summons the Devil and attacks the Doctor & UNIT with some conservative / 'Little Englander' iconology --- including ye great tradition of Morris Dancing. But yeah, I agree with you: this is clearly Gatiss best story. His key weakness when it has come to televised stories has always been that unchecked nostalgia that never seems to go anywhere. This seems to be one of the few occasions there is actually a point to the reflective melachony beyond the oppotunity to break out his favourite childhood toys and have a play about with them. Looking forward to seeing what your take on "Love & War" is. One of the best Who stories in any medium.

[@wacmack]

takes me back to reading these thw first time.

[@spencerkoelle184]

A masterful summary, if I do say so myself. I am really annoyed that the big finish version isn't on audible.

[@antoniof.8614]

*looks at the audio adaptation sitting on the shelf*

[@peterweeks2066]

I’m sure you’re aware by now but there is only one ‘r’ in Quatermass; and it wasn’t a one-off as you said Quartermass many times in quick succession.

[@robinschicha4712]

This was the First Book of Dr.Who I read. I had no idea was the Doctor was at this time. Not even how he looked like.

[@jbcatz5]

This the Timewyrm: Genesys of comments

[@CameronReadyPro]

What was the music track used in this video? Is it from a Doctor Who soundtrack?

[@BetaRomeo]

I'd love to know this as well!

[@ratboy6617]

mark gatiss should take the reigns on the current tv show, it would be good again then.

[@90RavenBlack]

Bet the old BBC web version of the book made finding pictures a lot easier for this one. ;)

[@archive9796]

Having listened to the Big Finish version I had to find out more and now as I'm writing this comment Mark Gatiss future in Dr Who is unsure as he is unsure if Chris Chibnall will take him on and rumour is he and Moffat might do a Dracula TV adaptation But yes I agree this is the DW Gatiss story He did always try to write epic stuff which was classic gothic or classic sci fi but 45 mins isn't enough for his episode to reach there full potential

[@starwarsnerd100]

Wait, so what the hell was causing all the memories and TV aliens to come to life? And how did the Doctor stop them? I realize you're probably withholding details to encourage us to read it ourselves (and as you've said before, your job isn't to make Books on Tape for us), its just unusually sparse compared to the other ones you've done.

[@poparena]

*sigh* I've had comments saying I give too much away and comments saying my videos are too long. Just can't win.

[@starwarsnerd100]

poparena Please don't take it as a criticism, I just thought it was unusual compared to previous reviews.

[@Verumex]

poparena As someone that wants to read most of these books but loves watching your videos for further information about the ones I haven't read and have yet to read, I think this video was perfect. I now have a good understanding of what Nightshade is about, yet I don't really know anything about the story itself, which I think is the absolutely perfect level to aim for.

[@bobbyshaddoe3004]

poparena i appreciate you trying to ride the balance between being informative but not too informative as to give things away. I own a copy of the audio adaptation and its great.

[@TaliesinapCerridwen]

Hmm it is a great book but I never understood why the Doctor did what he did, mainly because it was never explained. Also the consequences should have been profound, not non existent. By the next novel Ace seemed to be like “Robin? Who’s Robin”. I suppose one could put it down to the Doctor erasing her memory and the only reason he didn’t do it again in the very next novel us because he doesn’t get the chance. Still it was a little unsatisfying.

[@mayotango1317]

Because the Seventh Doctor is a jerk.

[@Furore2323]

Cool beans.

[@Nickman826]

I really really dislike the idea that Susan and The Doctor aren't Granddaughter and Grandson

[@mayotango1317]

Well, now is canon because The Timeless Children.

[@haileyshannon7548]

Kind of a reverse “Star Wars” the big turning point in that being learning that they are all related