The Four Doctors

"I see you understand now, Doctor. This is my destiny. I've met you in your future lives, I've seen it, and I run to it willingly."

Writer: Peter Anghelides
Format: Audio
Released: December 2010
Series: Bonus Release 09

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Sixth Doctor, Seventh Doctor, Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

The fifth incarnation of the Doctor has been allowed access to the Vault of Stellar Curios, where the biomechanoid Jariden are at least prepared to consider his warnings about dangerous temporal leakage. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the Daleks attack, unleashing a temporal maelstrom that will not only threaten the Jariden race, but will have dire consequences for the history of the Doctor himself.

Verdict

The Four Doctors is a real celebratory story. On paper, it's perfect isn't it? Four Doctors and the Daleks in an hour long adventure! And it certainly lives up to its expectations. The plot was fantastic and full of action, mystery and brilliance. I liked how the Fifth Doctor started the story and then was soon joined, although not meeting, by the Eighth Doctor. That gives an advantage of having a Doctor who knows nothing of the events that would unfold and one incarnation who's experienced the events three previous times! I adored the Eighth Doctor's mocking of the Fifth's attire and also the Sixth later in the story. The format of the story was so much better than that of The Sirens of Time. Where that had three different parts with three different Doctors and everything being tied up in a final part, The Four Doctors benefited from the one hour solo episode and the character of Ulrik, who was linked in some way at some point in his timeline with the Doctor, even though every time it was different incarnation which was humorous! His reaction to meeting yet another version of the Doctor each time, always accompanied by a 'big blue crate' was terrific. The Daleks were outstanding in this and with the voice similar to that of the post-2005 series, it allowed a more fearful and aggressive stature in the classic domineer. The Dalek Prime rank, similar to the Emperor (arguably the Emperor himself) was tremendous! The idea of the Dalek-Jariden war was marvellous and I liked the Jariden's reactions to the arrival of a Dalek ship at the Vault of Stellar Curios. I liked how the mystery of the containment of the Inner-Vault and how the Daleks were desperate to retrieve it. After the Sixth Doctor's part of the story, I absolutely loved how the Robomen returned! Of all the Dalek slaves in their history, the Robomen are certainly my favourites so I was thrilled with their unexpected involvement. I enjoyed Professor Faraday and he suited being along the Seventh Doctor perfectly, particularly in 1854. The climax was fantastic and I liked how the Roboman was actually a Jariden and Ulrik's grandfather! A robo-Jariden was dangerous for the Jariden race, as the Doctor explained, as they could use it for their gain and enslave the whole race! This was of course what was contained within the Inner-Vault. The final scene inside the Eighth Doctor's TARDIS was a real fandom highlight. All the Doctors briefly met each other as I hoped and the ever-present banter in multi-Doctor stories was great. The disapproval of the Eighth Doctor's current desktop theme was hilarious! Overall, a wonderful audio!

Rating: 10/10