#roz forrester

[st4rshiptr00per]

some more specifically VNA-flavored ones for u

EDIT: forgot one of my favorites </3

part 1 | part 2

[daughterofheartshaven]

A Virgin New Adventures reading guide

I told @gotyouanyway that I'd give them my reading guide for the Virgin New adventures that I made for a friend a while back and posting it publicly was easy and also means other people can use this too. I wrote this back in 2021, but stand by it from what I remember. It has been like 5-6 years since I read some of these books, so if I rated your favorite too low lemme know and I'll give it a re-read.

This might not be that helpful if you want to pick just a few books - I designed it more to streamline VNA experiance

The key:

1 - I'd recommend skipping

2 - Eh. You can skip, but there is at least something to be gained by reading it

3 - I would recommend reading this. It's not plot-critical, but it is a good read or useful setup

4 - Read this for sure. It's either plot-relevant, or just that damn good (or both).

Timewyrm: Genesys - 4 (introduces the timewyrm and the series; unfortunately it's also not great.)

Timewyrm: Exodus - 3 (continues the timewyrm story, and is a fairly straightforward but interesting story)

Timewyrm: Apocalypse - 2 (eh. Not much for or against it either way)

Timewyrm: Revelation - 4 (concludes the timewyrm arc with style)

Cat's Cradle: Time's Crucible - 3 (Good if you can wrap you head around it)

Cat's Cradle: Warhead - 2 (depressing as all get out, but very well written)

Cat's Cradle: Witch Mark - 3 (just plain weird. Does finish the current arc and sets up Return of the Living Dad)

Nightshade - 2 (kinda weird. Notable as the first Mark Gatiss story)

Love and War - 4 (plot-relevant. Also awesome)

Transit -4 (Introduces important recurring character. Hard to follow but really good even if you can't follow it)

The Highest Science - 3 (good story, but ultimately not amazingly important)

The Pit - 1 (I did not enjoy)

Deceit - 4 (Not a great read, but important to the plot)

Lucifer Rising - 4 (Amazing, with important character development for our protagonists)

White Darkness - 2 (first David A. McIntee novel, but not especially gripping)

Shadowmind - 3 (good demonstration of where Ace and Benny are as characters, vaguely interesting plot)

Birthright - 3 (good character piece for Ace and Benny, shows a darker side to the Doctor without being dumb about it)

Iceberg - 2 (plot is messy and weird. Only read if you need the Doctor's half of the story from Birthright)

Blood Heat - 4 (starts alternate universe arc, important developments for the Tardis)

The Dimension Riders - 2 (gonna be honest here - I don't remember a thing about this one either way)

The Left-Handed Hummingbird - 3 (first Kate Orman novel. Pretty good, although a little weird and hard to follow)

Conundrum - 3 (Be prepared for weirdness. And superheroes. Helps setup for No Future and Head Games)

No Future - 4 (concludes the alternate universe arc with style, establishes Ace from here on out)

Tragedy Day - 3 (dark, but good. Worth a read)

Legacy - 3 (Kinda dark, but it works. Be prepared for over-continuity)

Theatre of War - 4 (Pulls off one of the best plot twists I've seen anywhere, and introduces Braxieatel to the Whoniverse)

All-Consuming Fire - 4 (Not plot-relevent at all, but is very good, especially if you are a Sherlock Holmes fan)

Blood Harvest - 4 (Major plot point in the Whoniverse)

Strange England - 2 (takes strangeness to an art form. Can be freely skipped)

First Frontier - 4 (plot relevant for spoiler-y reasons)

St Anthony's Fire - 2 (dark and weird, but well written)

Falls the Shadow - 1 (Just... no)

Parasite - 1 (Written by Jim Mortimore, therefore depressing as all get out)

Warlock - 2 (I did not read. Sequel to Warhead, so only read if you liked it)

Set Piece - 4 (major plot developments for multiple characters)

Infinite Requiem - 2 (like The Dimension Riders, I remember nothing)

Sanctuary - 3 (a pure historical. Not really great on its own, but helps set up Human Nature)

Human Nature - 4 (The story that was adapted to TV. One of the best New Adventures by itself, becomes even better by having fun comparing it to the TV version)

Original Sin - 4 (plot-relevant)

Sky Pirates! - 2 (Only if you like Douglas-Adams-esque dark humor)

Zamper - 3 (Somewhat interesting follow-up to The Highest Science)

Toy Soldiers - 2 (Adds pretty much nothing, but not painfully bad) 

Head Games - 4 (a worthwhile look at where the Doctor has been going and who he is)

The Also People - 4 (probably my favorite New Adventure, although Theatre of War and Human Nature are also up there. Also resolves a recurring character's arc)

Shakedown - 3 (Fun, but ultimately fluff)

Just War - 2 (Weird and ultimately unimportant)

Warchild - 2 (Same situation as Warlock. Starts Psi arc, but can be skipped)

SLEEPY - 4 (Generally good story, sets up Psi arc if you skipped Warchild)

Death and Diplomacy - 3 (only worthwhile as setup for Happy Endings)

Happy Endings - 4 (Plot relevant. Ultimately fluff, but plot-relevant)

GodEngine - 4 (not plot-relevant, but an excellent story)

Christmas on a Rational Planet - 2 (part of Psi arc, and lays groundwork for Faction Paradox stuff, but I couldn't really follow it)

Return of the Living Dad - 4 (cleans up old plot threads, and is a great story in its own right)

Cold Fusion - 4 (Not plot relevant, but an excellent, gripping story)

The Death of Art - 2 (part of Psi arc, but not great)

Damaged Goods - 2 (Russel T. Davis's first Who work, but very dark and nasty)

So Vile a Sin - 4 (finishes Psi arc and has other plot relevance)

Bad Therapy - 2 (deals mostly with repercussions of previous story, but not great in and of itself)

Eternity Weeps - 1 (Jim Mortimore's writing is too depressing for me. Technically plot relevant in that Benny and Jason get divorced but not worth it)

The Room With No Doors - 4 (setup for Lungbarrow, good story in its own right)

Lungbarrow - 4 (concludes the new adventures of the seventh doctor in a surprisingly meaningful way)

The Dying Days - 4 (a nice little coda to the series that sets up Benny's adventures as well)

[cousin-quartz-of-house-paradox]

being a dweu fan sometimes is like. seeing the completely normal and innocuous word "forrester" and feeling like you've been shot in the heart but there's no blood and someone's calling for a doctor but you're here, won't they wait for you to catch your breath?

[motherwasapapafucker]

𝘈𝘳𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘙𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘥 & 𝘒𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 '𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘰𝘯'

[alexbaxterscot1]

So in 2014 I uploaded a fan made Lungbarrow soundtrack, to say it was rudimentary would be an understatement! But as 2024 was both the tenth year anniversary of the original fan soundtrack's release and the tenth anniversary of my nan's passing, the person who really pushed to get me into music... I figured a complete overhaul and reworking with a shiny new system was in order!

You'll find the whole video above, and if you check out my channel, you will find suites and tracks based on other Doctor Who New Adventure novels!

Please check it out if you're interested, more will be coming soon!

[wgough42]

Discuss

[dalesramblingsblog]

Why do the first three EDAs of 1998 seem to decide all of a sudden that Sam is a chronic fingernail-biter? As far as I can recall there was no hint of that trait from The Eight Doctors through to Alien Bodies. It almost seems like an attempt to set something up for Kate Orman and Jonathan Blum to use as a signifier of how far she's moved on in her four-year absence from the TARDIS in Seeing I but from doing a quick scan of that book it's not mentioned at all.

Really does sum up the recurring issues they're having with defining Sam. When they're not focusing on her body in a very MenWritingWomen kind of way, that is.

(There's a passage where Sam recognises "the line of her breasts" and frankly with how often the authors like bringing them up or putting her in a wet T-shirt or having her be exposed to creepy leering sex pests - or both, as happens in Option Lock, woo! - I can't blame her. God it's just so weird, how have we gone from Roz Forrester, Bernice Summerfield and Ace to... this, in a little over a year.)

[thebraxiatelcollection]

I adore the sibling dynamic between Roz / Benny / Chris in the vnas books and how they are found siblings who look out and love one another with chaotic sibling energy. Chris is the big, golden retriever brother looking out for his two cat-energy sisters and I just love that.

[vikingschism]

Continuing my readthrough of the Doctor Who Virgin New Adventures, I finished reading Damaged Goods the other day. This book was Russel T Davies' first published foray into Who and it was an absolute banger. Many of these novels don't really hold up to much scrutiny as a reader, but this is one of the few that I think really stands out - not just as a Doctor Who novel, but a novel that is worth reading.

The Doctor and companions find themselves on earth, trying to ingratiate themselves with the residents of a working class housing estate - given what RTD would go on to write in the main show, this sort of setting should sound instantly familiar. However, we cannot forget that these are the VNAs and thus there is a level of grit and grime that feel more like they come from Torchwood. This book gets dark. I can handle that, but it's definitely something to be wary of if you're interested in reading the book.

The main enemy of the book was a really fun concept, definitely one that special effects would struggle to keep up with but in prose can really shine. And speaking of the prose the novel is written well - there's some great lines in here. I particularly love The Doctor describing the challenge of ingratiating themselves with the different households on the estate as having to "breach 76 fortresses". That's a wonderfully evocative bit of dialogue.

And I really have to give RTD praise for the characters - they're well drawn and compelling. One of them is a gay man who is roiling in self-loathing, there's a mother desperate to give her children a better life than her, and a teenage girl who saw something many years ago (as well as The Doctor) but wants nothing more than to have nothing to do with it. And that's only naming a few - all of the characters have their internal struggles and these are all well done.

In all, I highly recommend the novel. I will caveat that it is dark and not for the faint of heart - expect a similar level of grimness as Torchwood: Children of Earth had. The book was a great time though, and I will look forward to seeing how So Vile A Sin continues this little arc that's developed over the past few books.

[st4rshiptr00per]

guy image compilation (im still on art hiatus due to health issues)

[cousin-quartz-of-house-paradox]

honestly? aro icon.

[floridianfireflyfaith]

Roz straight-up Forrest Gumping towards Paddler will never not be funny. 😂

[daughterofheartshaven]

And the art thief

a monk who the Doctor wanted to annoy

a tramp

and the heat vampire

I just love the seventh doctor companions

Obviously we got Mel and Ace

And that dead woman's son

And the soldier from the organisation that killed that guy's mother

And another soldier from the army

A space archeologist that hasn't got a degree

And her husband

A bigoted future cop

A future cop with a big dick

Werewolf girl

His future self's companion that one time

Harry sullivan

Another fourth doctor companion

Anti dalek propaganda macho man hero replica with a chainsaw and a greasy ponytail

The real anti dalek macho man hero with a chainsaw and a greasy ponytail

Nazi from an alternate timeline

That woman from the alternate timeline the alternate timeline Nazi made because from her point of view the normal timeline was an alternate timeline so she alternated it

The nazi's friend in a timeline where she isn't a nazi

the one the doctor delivered as a baby

The android he built because he was lonely

And Wolsey the cat

[michelada12]

Just an average night at KFAM 189.16 📻

[dialogue from Frasier]

[dalesramblingsblog]

This week on Dale's Ramblings, Dave Stone finally concludes his Clockwork Trilogy some two years after the last instalment, and Jason and Roz return to round out one last hurrah for the classic New Adventures companions.

Or the ones to which Virgin still have the rights, at any rate...

Like what I write? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi!

[thebraxiatelcollection]

I love Chris and Roz's relationship in the vnas so much. Chris is the definition of a golden retriever, and Roz Forrester reminds me of a Siamese cat.