Category Archives: Sci-Fi

‘Beast Wars’ Review #30 – ‘Code of Hero’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

We’re getting close to the end of Season 2 of ‘Beast Wars: Transformers’. How fast time flies when you’re having fun? 😀 In today’s instalment, we have a very significant exit for one of the best and well-loved characters in the ‘Beast Wars’ TV series as well as ‘Transformers’ in general. It’s time for ‘Code of Hero’, an episode where Dinobot makes the decision to fully oppose against Megatron and his tyranny when he attempts to destroy a valley containing proto-humans (Neanderthals). Dinobot ends up fighting against the Predacons, including Megatron, on his own whilst the Maximals are on their way to help him. The first time I saw this ‘Beast Wars’ episode was via GMTV and it was on the Monday of the October half-term week of 1999 in the UK. I had this episode recorded on VHS, which I saw repeatedly during that October half-term. I later saw the episode on an official VHS tape as well as in the ‘Beast Wars’ 15th anniversary DVD box set. The episode is currently available on YouTube for everyone to enjoy! Continue reading →

‘Beast Wars’ Review #29 – ‘Bad Spark’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

In today’s instalment of the ‘Beast Wars: Transformers’ series, we have the introduction of a new Predacon character called Rampage in the episode ‘Bad Spark’. This episode also features Silverbolt and Blackarachnia teaming up with each other after they got caught in an energon storm during a battle for Protoform X (Rampage) between the Maximals and the Predacons. Silverbolt and Blackarachnia continue to form feelings for each other, following on from when they first met in ‘Tangled Web’. Will this develop into a blossoming romance between a Maximal and a Predacon? I saw this episode as part of a double bill of ‘Beast Wars’ episodes on August Bank Holiday Monday in 1999 via GMTV. I also saw this episode after seeing ‘Other Visits – Part 2’ on the same August Bank Holiday Monday. I had the episode recorded on VHS via GMTV in the morning before it was later released on an official VHS tape as well as in the ‘Beast Wars’ 15th anniversary DVD box set. Now the episode is currently available on YouTube for everyone to enjoy! Continue reading →

Basement Update – Series 14 and 15 of ‘Doctor Who’ (January 2026)

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Just a little update in case you’re wondering why I seem to be off the radar as it were in terms of sharing new items on ‘Bradley’s Basement’. I haven’t stopped thinking about my blog, as I’m planning to share some new posts later in the year, including a few in January. Continue reading →

‘Beast Wars’ Review #28 – ‘Other Visits’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Here we are back with another ‘Beast Wars: Transformers’ story and it happens to be a two-parter featuring the return of the mysterious aliens that almost scorched the planet Earth in ‘Other Voices’ at the end of Season 1. It’s time for ‘Other Visits’, a story where we see the return of Tigatron and Airazor. It’s also a story where the aliens form a unique base in the heart of a huge valley, one that Megatron attempts to take control of using the alien golden disc. I saw this two-parter over the course of two Bank Holiday Mondays. I saw ‘Part 1’ as the second episode of a double bill over Spring Bank Holiday Monday in May 1999 and I saw ‘Part 2’ as the first episode of a double bill over August Bank Holiday Monday in 1999. It was very exciting for me to wait in-between the two episodes for the cliffhanger to be resolved. And this was all recorded on VHS for me via GMTV in the morning. ‘Other Visits’ was later released on an official VHS tape as well as on DVD and is currently available on YouTube for everyone to enjoy! Continue reading →

Convention Report – ‘Happy Who Year 2026’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

And Happy Who Year everyone! 🙂 Yes! I’ve been to the latest ‘Happy Who Year’ convention at the Lights theatre in Andover and thoroughly enjoyed it! The convention exceeded my expectations! It was so well worth going to after celebrating Christmas and the New Year! Continue reading →

‘Beast Wars’ Review #27 – ‘Maximal, No More’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Let’s return to another ‘Beast Wars: Transformers’ episode where we check out the Season 2 episode ‘Maximal, No More’. This is the fifth episode in Season 2 of ‘Beast Wars’ and it’s the fourth in the season. In the episode, Dinobot finds himself put to the test where he must decide whether he’s going to be a Maximal or a Predacon. He initially rejoins the Predacons, thinking Megatron will achieve a great victory in his agenda. But his loyalty is tested, especially when he’s made to destroy a Maximal comrade. Who could that be? 😀 I first saw ‘Maximal, No More’ as part of a double bill of episodes on Spring Bank Holiday Monday in May 1999. This was on GMTV early in the morning. The episode was later released on an official VHS tape as well as on DVD and is currently available on YouTube for everyone to see it. Is ‘Maximal, No More’ a great instalment in the ‘Beast Wars’ TV series featuring Dinobot as a Transformers character? Continue reading →

Quick Movie Review – ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Okay, so, I’ve seen the third film in the ‘Avatar’ film series directed by James Cameron – ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’. I decided to see this latest instalment at the cinema with my best friend Stephen in the New Year rather than during Christmas in 2025. I’m happy I did that. Continue reading →

‘Beast Wars’ Review #26 – ‘Tangled Web’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s the New Year and we’re continuing where we left off in Season 2 of ‘Beast Wars: Transformers’. Hopefully, I’ll have finished updating the rest of my ‘Beast Wars’ reviews by May. 🙂 Anyway, let’s check out, ‘Tangled Web’, the fourth episode in Season 2 of ‘Beast Wars’ and the third story in the season. In this episode, Tarantulas, Blackarachnia and Quickstrike are sent on a mission by their Predacon leader Megatron to build a refuelling station in a cavern full of Energon cubes. Rattrap and Silverbolt of the Maximals are sent to investigate a signal that leads them to Tarantulas, Blackarachnia and Quickstrike. I saw ‘Tangled Web’ after seeing ‘Part 2’ of ‘Coming of the Fuzors’ via GMTV on Early Bank Holiday Monday in May 1999. The episode was later released on an official VHS tape as well as on DVD and is currently available on YouTube for everyone to see it. Is ‘Tangled Web’ a worthwhile episode to check out in Season 2 of ‘Beast Wars’ or is it a fairly average filler episode? Continue reading →

Week 52a – ‘The Nyssa Challenge’

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Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Happy New Year everyone! 🙂 And on the 1st of January 2026, it’s time for the final instalment of the latest ‘Nyssa Challenge’ mini-review season of ‘Doctor Who’ stories, which I’ve shared from December 2025 to January 2026. It’s time for the BBC Children’s Books adventure called ‘Doctor Who in Wonderland’ by Paul Magrs, featuring the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan and Turlough, which is set between ‘Mawdryn Undead’ and ‘Terminus’. I’d been meaning to read this story for the 2024 to 2025 ‘Nyssa Challenge’ mini-review season when the book was published in July 2024. I wasn’t able to find the time to check out the book, but thankfully, I’ve been able to find time and read the book for the 2025 to 2026 ‘Nyssa Challenge’ mini-review season. Continue reading →

Week 35 – ‘The Nyssa Challenge’ REVISITED & UPDATED

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 –UPDATED REVIEW ON AUDIO CD AND VINYL TODAY–

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s New Year’s Eve today! I’m sharing the penultimate instalment of my latest ‘Nyssa Challenge’ mini-review season on ‘Bradley’s Basement’. Today, it’s time to revisit the ‘Doctor Who’ audio story ‘1963: Fanfare For The Common Men’, which I’ve recently listened to on my brand-new vinyl recorder player. I greatly enjoyed revisiting ‘Fanfare’ on vinyl. I must admit, I enjoyed it more than revisiting ‘Spare Parts’ on vinyl lately. 😮 I know ‘Spare Parts’ is highly regarded as a Big Finish audio story, especially with it featuring the Cybermen in it. However, I found ‘Fanfare’ more enjoyable, especially with it being set in the 1960s and having a Beatles-like atmosphere to it as well as starring Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa. Continue reading →