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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
it's just....uh....brilliant!, November 13, 2010
This review is from: The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011 (Hardcover)
If you've enjoyed Panini's Doctor Who "Storybooks", then you'll love the "Brilliant Book". This is essential for fans of the show, and especially of Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor. The "Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011" is illustrated throughout with many,many images from the show(some are behind the scenes photographs, some are actually promotional images,etc.), offers original fiction stories(which are also illustrated), gives good summaries of the fifth series episodes,and a bunch of other cool stuff.
I personally liked the page that focused on the so-called "Dream Lord", and which actually gave the readers what appear to be hints about future episodes of the show. Another cool thing fans will appreciate, are the small script extracts scattered throughout the book, showing what scenes of dialogue Steven Moffatt chose to leave out of the finished episodes. :)
Overall, this is a book that could be fun for the younger fans, but if you're an "older" fan of the show I'd recommend picking this up instead of the "Doctor Who Annual 2011"(which is also published by the BBC, and is more kid-centric/friendly than the "Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011").
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hours of infotainment!, December 7, 2010
This review is from: The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011 (Hardcover)
When you're a Doctor Who fan, there is more merchandise available than you can possibly buy, unless you are that happy combination, both rich and obsessed. The question thus becomes, which of the latest books, toys, video, audio, etc. are the must haves? What gives me the most bang for my buck? I rate The Brilliant Book 2011 very high on that scale. There is more fun to be had with this book than, for example, a recent Doctor Who novel.
Essentially a modern, adult-friendly update of the "Annual" concept, this is a 132-page, heavily illustrated book, full of photos from the 2010 series of Doctor Who. But that's not what's so great about it. Each Eleventh Doctor story from Series One/31/Fnarg gets a two-page spread, including a synopsis, a "magic moment" from the story, some "Fantastic Facts," etc. Nice, but not essential, especially if you get every issue of Doctor Who Magazine and watch Doctor Who Confidential. BUT! You also get bits of deleted dialogue, and "behind the scenes" interview material with Steven Moffat and others. Ah, now we're getting somewhere!
Surrounding these episode-based spreads are interviews with Moffat, Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Murray Gold, plus producer Beth Willis taking you through the entire production process and Gareth Roberts' detailed and amusing insights into writing for Doctor Who. But what really makes this book so much fun is the ancillary features of new material to accompany the various episodes. Mark Gatiss brings us excerpts from Churchill's diary, for example, with glimpses of scenes from the great man's many encounters with the Doctor. (In so doing, Gatiss also manages to close the worst of the episode's plot holes.) Rory's stag party is commemorated with pictures and comments from a "Twitbook" page, including a partygoer's boasts about going home with the girl the doctor replaced in the cake. Gareth Roberts tells us about all the ancillary characters who never made it into "The Lodger," and how their lives were affected by the Doctor's brief tenancy. There is even an original Doctor Who short story by Brian Aldiss, although frankly it's the least impressive thing in the book.
My husband was initially annoyed that I'd added this book to my Amazon order, so I could get free shipping on Murray Gold's recent Doctor Who CD Doctor Who: Series 4 - The Specials. After five minutes with the book, he wasn't annoyed anymore. "You're right," he said. "This is a good book!" Trust me: from my husband, that's high praise!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
It's a book about Doctor Who and it's brilliant!, January 6, 2011
This review is from: The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011 (Hardcover)
It's a book about Doctor Who and it's brilliant!
Much like the TARDIS it seems bigger on the inside due to the number of things that are covered.
- episode guide for Matt Smith's Doctor with each episode from this season getting two pages about the show itself
- a peek behind the scenes touching on some monster creation and how the show gets made from start to finish
- interviews with the major cast as well as Steven Moffat and Murray Gold
- fiction based on some episodes (such as entries from Churchill's journal about his various meetings with the Doctor) as well as a new six page story.
If you liked the first season with this new Doctor, it's a must have.
It does seem to be possibly aimed at a younger read but let's face it, we fans of the Doctor are timeless and ageless ourselves.
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