New York Toy Fair 2020

Now this is something a bit different, this is Doctor Who related I know but I know many of you like other franchises besides Who so I thought i'd go through some of the reveals at last week's New York Toy Fair which caught my attention.

Marvel Legends

There are always dozens of Marvel Legends reveals at Toy Fair and while this year most of them were comic based, there was one major reveal which I think made every cinematic fan sequel with joy! - we are finally going to be getting figures based on the live action Fox X-Men and Deadpool movies!

Many of us thought this would never happen but here we are! and they look terrific! First of all there was the reveal of Wolverine from 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' as an amazon exclusive. This figure shows Logan wearing his iconic tank top and including bone claws, we will also have a non-exclusive variant of Logan wearing his motorcycle jacket from the first film.

One thing I have to say about this line is that the headsculpts are amazing! The likenesses to Hugh Jackman on these figures and Patrick Stewart, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Ian McKellen on figures further down are just amazing and we can really see Hasbro's face print technology really coming into a league of its own.

We also have figures of Mystique and a two pack containing Professor X and Magneto. What's really neat about this set is that it includes swappable heads so you can pose the duo as either their young or old counterparts (I might just have to buy two of this set :))

We also have four figures based on Deadpool, specifically 'Deadpool 2'. The figures we've got here on Deadpool, Cable, Domino and Negasonic Teenage Warhead look so cool! particularly Deadpool! It's been I think every fans dream to have the X-Men posed on the shelf next to the MCU characters and now it looks that it will be a reality come August!

Also on display were the upcoming Black Widow movie figures which are set to be released next month.

DC Multiverse

One of the most interesting things to come from the DC line in the past year was the multiverse line going to McFarlane toys from Mattel. The first wave was released earlier this month here in the UK (I actually have the Batman #1000, Superman #1000 and Green Arrow figures, let me know if you'd like to see reviews of those) and McFarlane toys wasted no time in revealing the second wave at Toy Fair. Now this is a line i'm going to cherry pick at and only get the ones that I really like and the only ones that really stood out to me were the figures of Batman and the Joker from 'Batman: Arkham Asylum'.

These look really good! and while DC Collectibles have already released their own versions I think that the McFarlane Batman is far superior, there's a lot more detail and articulation to we might finally be able to have an Arkham Batman in a dynamic pose. The Joker however looks really good, up to the head which I don't think reflects the look in the game quite as well as DC Collectibles. But either way these look excellent and priced at only £20 I can't wait to pick them up.

Also revealed were the first two figures from the 'Wonder Woman 1984' movie set to be released this June. These figures, also from McFarlane toys, comprise of Wonder Woman in her main outfit and her golden eagle armour. To me, these figures look excellent, there's incredible detail on these figures and the likeness to Gal Gadot is superb, especially on the golden armour variant. These figures are set to be released in April, so in plenty of time for the movie to come out.

Diamond Select

Not much was revealed here that caught my attention besides the reveal of the Michael Keaton Batman statue from their Gallery line. I think this looks wonderful and im definitely going to buy one when its released. These statues retail for around £45 - £60 so they're perfectly priced statues for those who can't afford the high end products from companies like Iron Studios.

DC Collectibles

Again, bit of a pick and mix for me this year. Although I have to say the Batman statues and zombie Justice League figures do look amazing. That pack of the Justice League in their Rebirth outfits is especially tempting :) What did stand out to me however is the continuing line of 'Batman: The Animated Series' figures. Those following the range will know that the vast majority of major characters have already been made in figure form, but the good people over at DC Direct have come up with a line of 'What If?' style figures for characters that weren't a part of the animated series but look like part of it. Here we have figures of Azrael, The Batman Who Laughs, Red Hood, Talon and the Flashpoint Thomas Wayne Batman. These look great and it's a fun and imaginative way of keeping an otherwise retired line going.

We will also be getting re-releases of several previously released animated series figure, this time with added shading to enhance the animated 'feel' and, in the case of Catwoman, we will finally be getting that alternate Selina Kyle head we've all wanted for so long. These figures aren't for me as I have the originals but if you don't and want to get into this line i'd definitely say hang on for these as the shading does these figures a world of good.

And that's about it. I would mention the Star Wars reveals but I think we'd be here all day! Needless to say all of the Empire 40th anniversary stuff looks great but what i've shown here are my particular highlights and what i'm probably most likely to pick up.

Eaglemoss Big Finish Eighth Doctor Set Now In Stock!

The first Big Finish centric set from Eaglemoss is now in stock!

The set includes figurines of the Eighth Doctor in his TV Movie costume, Lucie Miller and the Dalek Time Controller based on their appearances in the 2011 audio 'To The Death'.

You can order this set now from the Eaglemoss website for £29.99
www.shop.eaglemoss.com

Doctor Who Series 12 Steelbook Artwork Revealed!

The amazing cover art for the upcoming Amazon exclusive Series 12 steelbook has been revealed. I think this looks excellent and follows the same style of artwork as the recent 'Specials' and 'Series 5' sets.

The boxset will have the same contents as the regular blu-ray release, and while we don't know the bonus features yet it's pretty much a given that the set will include all ten episodes from this year's series.

The steelbook can be pre-ordered now for release on March 16th for the price of £49.99 from www.amazon.co.uk

Let's Talk About... Doctor Who: Ascension Of The Cybermen

**WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS FOR 12x09 FOLLOW**

Well, here we are, part one of the two part finale is here! Prior to it's release, this episode had set up a lot and had a lot of anticipation surrounding it, but did this episode answer any of our questions? and did it live up to the hype? Well, let's find out...

We'll start off with the obvious, the Cybermen are back! Not only did this episode continue the story of Ashad from last week, we were reacquainted to the Cybus Cybermen (first seen way back in 2006 - that makes me feel old) and introduced to a brand new warrior class of Cybermen. The new warrior Cybermen looked amazing! Their look seemed to combine the 'Invasion' design and the 'Nightmare In Silver' design, while incorporating its own elements (including spikes!). These look beautiful and they definitely stole every scene they were in - especially the beautiful shot of all the Cybermen marching through the ship.

But i'm jumping ahead! Let's go back to the very beginning of the episode and that absolutely stunning transition into the opening titles. A small but gorgeous detail. For us old school fans, it was lovely to see the aftermath of the Cyber Wars, a war that's been referenced all throughout the history of the show (most notably 'Revenge Of The Cybermen') and it was great to see how the feared the Cybermen are and how much of a threat they are to the universe. Something which was conveyed well through speech as opposed to a massive CGI battle. Also, the reference to Cybermen being allergic to gold was such a surprise, I loved it!

Ashad is such a wonderful villain so brilliantly played by Patrick O'Kane. While we did see him last week and were terrified by him, this week we learned more about his intentions and his desire to hunt down the last remaining humans. There was real fear whenever he was on screen and the confrontation between him and the Doctor was another standout moment.

Team TARDIS were separated quite early on this episode, this really allowed Graham and Yaz to act by themselves and show their initiative and what they've learned from the Doc. The Doctor and Ryan also worked well as a duo and it is making me long for 13 to have one companion for Series 13. It does make me worry however for the fates of our gang as we're left in the dark as to Graham and Yaz's fates at the end of the episode.

This episode also featured many cutaways to a sub-story taking place in Ireland following a policeman through his life and apparent immortality. If i'm honest I didn't know where this was going and when the episode ended I was no closer to knowing how this factors into the main story. It was very interesting however and I am intrigued as to how this all links into 'The Timeless Children'.

The cliffhanger of Gallifrey being on the other side of the portal was incredibly unexpected and raises SO. MANY. QUESTIONS. and with only one episode left, those answers had better be on their way! Also, the Master is back! Sacha Dhawan has proved to be a true embodiment of the Master and it's such a joy to see him back on screen. Let's hope he has a much bigger part in the finale.

I didn't really have any complaints with this episode, it was an epic space opera that perfectly reintroduced the Cybermen and set up a great deal for next week's finale. Did it live up to the hype? Perhaps not entirely but it acts as the perfect setup for the finale. Where will this story go, I couldn't possibly tell you. There are so many threads that have to be resolved and how do the Cybermen factor into it? Either way i'm really exicted for it, in a way that I haven't been for Doctor Who in quite some time.

9/10

Let's Talk About... Doctor Who: The Haunting Of Villa Diodati

**WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS FOR 12x08 FOLLOW**

First of all I have to apologise for the lateness of this review (real life getting in the way), and in the time we've been greeted with two terrific episodes of Doctor Who. We'll be starting off with episode 8: 'The Haunting Of Villa Diodati'.

This episode was interesting because it reminded me a lot of 'Utopia', in that it's an episode that stands by its own merit but gives us a greater story arc that leaves us on a cliffhanger leading into the finale. By this I, of course, mean the Lone Cyberman! Yes, the prophecy that Jack first mentioned four weeks ago finally has a face and, my goodness, how terrifying was Ashad?! What I loved was how this story did something new and different with the Cybermen, by making Ashad half-converted we are given all the menace of a normal Cyberman but with the added bonus of him having emotions. My main worry with this is that they were going to go down the 'Closing Time' route and have emotions be the victor, however we had nothing to worry about and Ashad was a truly evil character, even with his emotions intact!

I loved the setting for this story, all of the characters were given something essential to do within the story and it was great to see Mary Shelly represented on-screen in Doctor Who. I say this because the character of Mary Shelly had previously appeared alongside Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor in several Big Finish audios, most notably 'The Silver Turk' with which this story shares many similarities. Such as the setting, Shelly and a Cyberman. One aspect of the story which drew some attention before transmission was the ages of Shelly and Byron, however they were in their early twenties when Mary Shelly wrote Frankenstein in real life, so I appreciated that little nod to real life. It is also a testament to the historical stories being the strongest of the Jodie Whittaker era thus far.

There was also a great dynamic between the TARDIS team in this story. Ryan was given some comedic moments, Yaz proved useful to the narrative and Graham's lust for food admittedly made me chuckle. It has to be said that I was blown away by Jodie Whittaker in this story. Her speech about the decisions she is forced to make was really powerful and could be compared to Peter Capaldi's anti-war speech from 'The Zygon Inversion'. In short it really made me feel that she is the Doctor. Plus her new waistcoat was a lovely touch.

There were a lot of questions raised after this episode, why was Graham seeing ghosts when no one else could? What was Ashad's plan going into the finale? and does this mark the beginning of the end for the TARDIS team as we know it? Well, with only two episodes left we won't have long to (hopefully) find out all the answers.

If I had any criticisms with the episode it would be that almost too much happened. I'll be honest I was really enjoying the ghost story elements and then we were thrown into a Cyberman story. It's almost as if they could have been two entirely different episodes but that being said the episode did have a real pace to it and I didn't see myself looking at the clock once.

Overall, this episode was definitely my favourite of Series Twelve so far. It brought us an intriguing historical tale and reintroduced the Cybermen in a brand new and horrifying way that perfectly sets up the high stakes of the series finale. In short, I loved it!

9/10

Upcoming Doctor Who Figurines From Eaglemoss!

Hero Collector and Eaglemoss have revealed some upcoming Doctor Who figurines set to be released in May.

Regarding the main collection, SV7 from 1976's 'The Robots Of Death' will comprise issue 175, while a Weeping Angel from (at a guess) 2007's 'Blink'(?) will be issue 176.

Recently Eaglemoss have been releasing a seperate line of TARDIS consoles and we are finally gonna be able to get our hands on the first New Who console: The Peter Capaldi era model. (one which I am especially excited for)

These figurines will be available to order from the Eaglemoss shop and Forbidden Planet at a later date.

Also coming from Eaglemoss in April is the second in their new range of Time Lord sets, this set including the Meddling Monk, as played by the superb Peter Butterworth in 1965's 'The Time Meddler' and The Master (who always dresses for the occasion!) from 1996's TV Movie played by Eric Roberts. Who ever thought that one day we'd have figurines of these two?! 

This set can be ordered at a later date from the Eaglemoss site (when all the items here go up for order i'll be sure to add links) 

Torchwood Added To BBC iPlayer!

All four series of Torchwood have been added to BBC iPlayer for the next 11 months! This means you can now binge watched Series 1, Series 2, Children Of Earth and Miracle Day on these cold, rainy British days.

This all does seem rather coincidental, what with 'Spyfall - Part One' making reference to Torchwood and Captain Jack reappearing in 'Fugitive Of The Judoon'. Could this be possibly hinting at some form of reappearance of the institute in the Doctor Who Series 12 finale? Well, we only have a couple of days to wait to find out...

Doctor Who Action Figure Review: Thirteenth Doctor Electronic TARDIS

For my first video, both on my YouTube channel and here on the blog, i'm taking a look at the brand new Jodie Whittaker era 5.5" electronic TARDIS from Character Options.

The TARDIS is available now from:
www.forbiddenplanet.com
www.character-online.com
www.amazon.co.uk

The GallifreyStands YouTube Channel!

Yes, I have taken the leap and set up a YouTube channel. This is hopefully a way of presenting you guys with more visual media so action figure reviews, discussion videos and the like. I have already filmed a review of the 13th Doctor's TARDIS from Character Options which will be uploaded later today.

So, if you have a YouTube channel give it a subscribe to check out the latest Doctor Who Action Figure Reviews in the link below

www.youtube.com

The Classic Series & Women (1963 - 1989)

The Master once asked the Doctor if the future was gonna be all girl, well it turns out that statement has never been more true...

We are now accustomed to there being a female Doctor in the TARDIS, played by Jodie Whittaker, with numerous female writers, producers and directors helping shape the new era of the show. However it wasn't always like this, the BBC was once a more male dominated environment and it was Who that helped bring roles to more women at the BBC...

Verity Lambert made history as the first female producer at the BBC in 1963. As the series' producer of Who she was ridiculed at the time by men thinking that a woman couldn't produce TV, she quickly proved naysayers wrong by delivering one of the most successful shows of the 60s. She was at the forefront of the show when 'Dalekmania' hit in 1964, the Dalek's massive success spawning fan mania comparable to Beatlemania, another craze of the 60s.

Verity Lambert on the set of 1965's 'Mission To The Unknown' 

Lambert made decisions that would create the show we know today. The main one making Susan the Doctor's granddaughter. Initially, Sydney Newman, the man who came up with the idea for Who, had the Doctor merely travel with Susan. But Lambert thought it inappropriate that an old man be travelling with a young girl and so, the decision was made to make her his granddaughter. Not only making Susan a three dimensional character, but also adding layers to the Doctors mysterious backstory. Between her departure and the next major female voice, Rona Munroe in 1989, there was a noticeable decline in the characters of the companions. They were only there to scream and ask questions and we knew very little about them beyond that.

The First Doctor and his granddaughter Susan Foreman in the first ever story 'An Unearthly Child' in November 1963.

Doctor Who also gave the opportunity for one of the first female directors to work at the BBC - Paddy Russell. Who directed 'The Massacre' in 1966, plus three more stories under Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker respectively. Russell was the only female director of the classic era. This paved the way for more female oriented crews on BBC productions outside of Who into the 70s.

The 1970s were a very male dominated era for the show, with only Russell directing three serials. It was in the 80s that a female presence reemerged; Barbara Clegg became the first female writer in 1983 with 'Enlightenment', a story which was notable for introducing Eternals and bringing Guardians back to the screen for the first time since 1077. It was often seen that a woman couldn't write sci-fi and so whenever a woman did write for the show, it was with a male writing partner. The most famous of these being Pip and Jane Baker, who scripted four stories between 1985 and 1987.

The Sixth Doctor in 'The Trial Of A Time Lord - Part 14' written by Pip & Jane Baker 

Andrew Cartmel was responsible for bringing in Rona Munroe to script the final classic story 'Survival' in 1989. This story proved a fan favourite and she was subsequently invited back to write for Peter Capaldi's Doctor in Series 10 in 2017. Munroe also has the distinction of being the only writer to write for both the classic and new series. In total there were only three female writers, one producer and director between 1963 and 1989. This is something the new series would strive to improve when it returned in 2005...

The Doctor & Ace walking off in the final shot of Rona Munroe's 'Survival', the final regular story for 16 years. 

Build-A-Bear Doctor Who Range Revealed!

Build-A-Bear have revealed a brand new range of Doctor Who products today.

The range includes various versions of the Tenth & Thirteenth Doctor (available individually, in a gift set and deluxe sets) and an online exclusive bear with the Doctor Who logo printed on the chest and foot. Also available are the clothes by themselves to you can build your own.

You can shop the range from www.buildabear.co.uk

All The Latest From Gallifrey One!

Gallifrey One is currently under way in Los Angeles. But for those of us unable to join the celebrations, we do at least have some news to wet the appetite!

Starting off with probably the biggest news to come from the convention that details have been revealed, as well as the cover, for the next series of Eighth Doctor adventures from Big Finish; 'Doctor Who: Stranded'

'The TARDIS is gone. Stranded in one time and place, the Doctor, Liv and Helen seek refuge in Baker Street. But the house has changed: they now have neighbours - not all of them welcoming. And someone has a dire warning for the future. The Doctor and friends face their greatest challenge yet: living one day after another, in 2020 London!'

Stranded will comprise of four stories:

• Lost Property (by Matt Fitton)
• Wild Animals (by John Dorney)
• Must-See TV (by Lisa McNullin)
• Divine Intervention (by David K. Barnes)

'Stranded' will also see the return of Tom Baker as The Curator (?!?). The mysterious (future?) incarnation first seen in 2013's 50th anniversary special 'The Day Of The Doctor' 

The box set can be pre-ordered now for release in July from the Big Finish website for £24.99 on CD and £19.99 on download. 

In other news, a second series of 'Missy' is coming in July with Michelle Gomez reprising her famous role for four further stories: 'The Lumiat' by Lisa McNullin, 'Brimstone and Terror' by Roy Gill, 'Treason and Plot' by Gemma Arrowsmith and 'Too Many Masters' by John Dorney. 

Not much was said about the TV series, other than filming on Series 13 won't begin until September. This more than likely means that we won't see Doctor Who return to screens until next autumn once Series 12 has finished airing. 

With two days remaining on Gallifrey One, i'll be posting updates if any more news gets announced.