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Post by olegrand on Aug 3, 2012 10:24:07 GMT
Hi guys! The BLACK ORCHID story of the classic series has often been critisized by fans (and, so it seems, by Peter Davison himself) for its unconvincing or uninspired plot; it seems that many viewers were also disappointed by the lack of any fantastic / sci-fi element in the story (aside from the presence of the Doctor and his companions). As far as I'm concerned, I feel that this story could really have been turned into something really interesting if the whole Amazonian / Black Orchid backstory had been modified or replaced by another backstory - one with (you guessed it) fantastic or sci-fi elements in it. Since I'm currently working on the next episode of my campaign, which will most probably take place in a Brideshead-like english manor in the 1920s, I'd be very interested to discuss with other DWAITAS GMs or enthusiasts their ideas for an "alternate" BLACK ORCHID story...  |
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Post by Rel Fexive on Aug 3, 2012 22:34:18 GMT
BLACK ORCHID was an unexpected return to the classic 'historical' epsiodes of the early days. I really like it for being nothing more than a slightly Christie-style murder mystery. Having aliens being behind everything weird or even slightly abnormal in Earth's history makes the past an incredibly cluttered up place....
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Post by zebaroth on Aug 4, 2012 0:15:51 GMT
have the manor house be doing experiments involving plants from the amazon. trying to make a new drug
to cure aids or cancer or something. but they are using death row inmates for testing illegally. the drug causes
any one exposed to it go insane. even the researchers are have some issues
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Post by olegrand on Aug 4, 2012 8:07:26 GMT
Having aliens being behind everything weird or even slightly abnormal in Earth's history makes the past an incredibly cluttered up place.... Nobody can disagree with this, but (as a GM, viewer, reader etc) I think that purely historical scenarios tend to work best when focusing on famous personages or notable events. It is all, ultimately, a matter of taste. |
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Post by da professor on Aug 4, 2012 8:27:14 GMT
It is all, ultimately, a matter of taste. This. |
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Post by Rel Fexive on Aug 4, 2012 9:53:44 GMT
I'll certainly agree it's more interesting if you know of the people involved and know how the historical event turned out in the history books, it can be fun to see a case of "what really happened!" It's just that you don't always need to find out that Beethoven Was an Alien Spy. |
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Post by olegrand on Aug 4, 2012 12:18:11 GMT
It is all, ultimately, a matter of taste. This. Sorry, but I don't understand. Could you please clarify what you mean by this single word?  |
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misterharry
Dominus Tempus 
Dalek Caan's Lovechild
Posts: 3,250
Favourite Doctors: Second, Third, Fourth, Eleventh, Thirteenth
Traits: Empathic, Face in the Crowd, Insatiable Curiosity, Stubborn, Phobia (Heights), Unadventurous
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Post by misterharry on Aug 4, 2012 14:26:46 GMT
What if George Cranleigh's injuries aren't the result of him being tortured by native indians, but by something else that he found in the Amazon... a creature not of this Earth. The natives subsequently found him and nursed him back to health. But whatever was done to poor George is transforming into something no longer quite human. Not sure what or why - maybe a superpredator to help weaken the human race in preparation for an alien invasion...
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Post by olegrand on Aug 4, 2012 17:24:29 GMT
What if George Cranleigh's injuries aren't the result of him being tortured by native indians, but by something else that he found in the Amazon... a creature not of this Earth. The natives subsequently found him and nursed him back to health. But whatever was done to poor George is transforming into something no longer quite human. Not sure what or why - maybe a superpredator to help weaken the human race in preparation for an alien invasion... What if the Black Orchid itself was a sentient, alien organism, with symbiotic-parasitic powers ? |
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misterharry
Dominus Tempus
Dalek Caan's Lovechild
Posts: 3,250
Favourite Doctors: Second, Third, Fourth, Eleventh, Thirteenth
Traits: Empathic, Face in the Crowd, Insatiable Curiosity, Stubborn, Phobia (Heights), Unadventurous
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Post by misterharry on Aug 4, 2012 18:08:48 GMT
Yes, that would work. I was trying to avoid too many similarities with the Krynoids. But an organism that transforms its host into something a little more subtle than a building sized monstrosity maybe. It could either be an accidental arrival on Earth, or a deliberate one intended to be a scout or to establish a spearhead.
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Post by da professor on Aug 5, 2012 8:40:45 GMT
Sorry, but I don't understand. Could you please clarify what you mean by this single word? It means that I strongly agree with the statement the word follows. This has become a normal way to say so on forums in English. |
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Post by olegrand on Aug 5, 2012 12:33:37 GMT
This has become a normal way to say so on forums in English. Well, I didn't know that - thanks for clarifying the matter.  The only explanation that had occurred to me was that you were saying I should have used "this" instead of "it" in my sentence... ;D |
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Post by da professor on Aug 6, 2012 15:16:58 GMT
This has become a normal way to say so on forums in English. Well, I didn't know that - thanks for clarifying the matter. The only explanation that had occurred to me was that you were saying I should have used "this" instead of "it" in my sentence... ;D I don't consider it my place to correct another's grammar, especially in public. |
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Post by olegrand on Aug 7, 2012 19:48:05 GMT
I don't consider it my place to correct another's grammar, especially in public. Sorry for the paranoid assumption. Mea culpa. |
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The only explanation that had occurred to me was that you were saying I should have used "this" instead of "it" in my sentence... ;D