Endgame

"Compared to Truman, Stalin would be a pushover. If the Players are operating in Moscow... the atomic button could be pushed any day now."

Writer: Terrance Dicks

Format: Novel

Released: November 2000

Series: EDA 40 

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

Winning is everything - and nothing.

Losing is nothing - and everything.

All that matters is the game.

The Players have decided on an Endgame. Play ends only when one side has been annihilated - even if the entire planet is destroyed in the process. They weren't expecting the Doctor to be one of the pieces - and neither was he. He really doesn't want to get involved. 

The Doctor doesn't know who he is - but he's fast ceasing to care. Caught up in ennui, nothing seems to matter to him any more. He has no interest in the Cold War, in spies or double agents or secret documents. 

But he's soon forced to take an active role. Because as far as the authorities are concerned, the Doctor is The Third Man... 

Verdict 

Endgame was a brilliant novel, a quite excellent read! What better way to delve into the Eighth Doctor Adventures novels than with a writer I know will deliver in Terrance Dicks (an author I've had a lot of experience with lately with my readings of Made of Steel and Revenge of the Judoon). But now he's back, from my perspective of course, writing a full length novel and to help my accessibility into a new range for me, I'm presented a story with a familiar enemy in the shape of the returning Players. The last Classic novel I read was Players so whilst the memory of that story was still clear in my mind I thought it'd be a good idea to do their return pretty quickly. And what an excellent return it is! The prologues started the book wonderfully with the Players declaring the Endgame which seemed would result in total annihilation, and then we had a heartbreaking moment at the Festival of Britain with a magnificent little cameo from the Seventh Doctor and Ace. But of course, continuing with the Earth arc and the Doctor being amnesiac, he sadly didn't recognise his immediate predecessor or his past companion. That really was a striking moment. I loved the historical nature of the story with the setting of 1951. The aftermath of the Second World War will always provide an excellent setting for a Doctor Who story and what better than the early days of the Cold War? We had the Doctor travelling across Britain, then to Washington and then to Moscow before mopping things back up in the US capital. Along the way we had some quite brilliant characters! The death of Oskar was quite a sudden shock and I loved how it enraged the Doctor. Up to that point I thought the representation of him had been mightily intriguing with him showing absolutely no interest in just about anything. He just wanted to live a quiet life and genuinely just didn't seem to care about political affairs. But when a friend close to him died that all changed. He, albeit under blackmail, had a good relationship with Kim Philby. Of course, he'd taken the TARDIS to get the Doctor to cooperate with him but they did get along. I was very intrigued that the TARDIS was never referred to by name and just as the "blue box". Even if the Doctor couldn't remember what it was, it meant a great deal to him. His failing to notice even a hint of beauty or attraction in Penny, despite her unsubtle attempts, was typical Doctor I thought. It was a lovely touch at the end where he said she looked "very nice". The scenes on the boat trip with Guy and Donald were quite comical with the pair being drunk and ending up in bed together. Naked. But what led to that trip was excellent! Action packed writing. Axel, an assassin who'd failed to kill the Doctor previously, and had been ploughed into a hedge after failing in a car chase, was on the same boat. His vanishing abilities were decent attributes! The Doctor seemed to get along well with just about everyone in this story! Jim Anderson and Kent Howard included. Oh, and how could I forget President Truman, the most powerful man in the world so they say. The way he got the President to authorise his entry into Project Kali was outstanding. And what we saw inside the facility was strange indeed. The Doctor being able to answer the seemingly impossible questions without the aid of the Players' psychic addition was just terrific. When he told Myrek that he had been deceived, that just bold brilliance! The return of the Countess was much welcomed and I loved how off the back she was trying to influence Stalin in the Players' little game of causing atomic warfare. I was very surprised that it took until her arrival, pretty late in the novel, for Players to be directly referenced. Her descriptions of the Second and Sixth Doctors was hilarious! Patrick Troughton's Doctor really is a "little clown" isn't he. I found it interesting that the Countess seemed to be able to give the Doctor his memory back, but he didn't want it. The speech he gave about the human race being so incredible was just sublime. Absolutely astounding! He'd soon changed the mind of the Countess when it came to human history merely being a game. This led to an exciting and action packed climax full of bloodshed as Helga, Myrek and Axel all perished as psychic powers turned against them. The Countess declared to the Adjudicator that the Endgame was void, and the Doctor had his blue box. All just about worked out, and there he was, back at the Cafe des Artistes drinking his coffee and eating his cheesecake, oblivious to the gorgeous girl trying to cheer him up and show him a good time. Overall, a tremendous novel!

Rating: 9/10