One Life

"I can't leave him behind if I can save him."

Writer: John Dorney
Format: Audio
Released: October 2017
Series: The Eighth Doctor: The Time War 1.04

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Bliss

Synopsis

As the full force of the Time War crashes down around the Doctor and his friends, a desperate battle for survival ensues.

But not everyone is playing the same game. Ollistra is after a weapon that could end the war in a stroke and she'll sacrifice anyone or anything to take it back to Gallifrey. Even the Doctor.

Surrounded by Daleks, and on a tortured planet, only one man can save the day. But he doesn't want to fight.

Verdict

One Life was an excellent story and a terrific audio to finish the first boxset depicting the Eighth Doctor's experience of the Time War. It brought things to a good conclusion and served as a fitting finale to what has been a great collection of stories. Following on from the incredible cliffhanger of The Conscript, this started in surprising fashion as we heard Quarren and Rupa meeting for the very first time. These little instances would continue throughout the audio as we got to hear snippets from their first date and then their wedding night. There was some humorous innuendo there which I enjoyed and I also really liked how important this pair became after being somewhat minor characters for most of the boxset thus far. The Daleks invading the Time Lord base on Tenacity was good and I loved how it was them that saved the Doctor from being shot at and regenerating. Ollistra was so confident that his next incarnation would change his mind about leaving without his friends. If only she knew which Doctor was next. I thought her description of the Eighth Doctor's personality was wonderful and I thought this was Paul McGann's best performance of the boxset. The concept of the reversal wave hitting the entire solar system was quite mind-blowing and the effect it was having on the TARDIS was really intriguing. It was still bigger on the inside, just not that much bigger. I loved how Ollistra utilised the infamous emergency cube first seen in The War Games and the use of familiar Time Lord technology did not stop there as we had quite a revelation. Ollistra and the Daleks had both been searching for a weapon so powerful that it could end the Time War. That weapon turned out to be Quarren! I did not see that coming and the inclusion of the chameleon arch was fantastic. I adored that and the idea of him actually being a Time Lord with the ability to end the conflict with just his mind was quite frightening. When Ollistra left the Doctor behind, Quarren's realisation that he couldn't leave him behind after his earlier epic speech was heartfelt. He would lose Rupa to save the Doctor. He became his Time Lord self once again and put an end to this area of the conflict. He saved the Doctor and returned Rupa to safety but because he didn't want any part of the Time War, he erased himself from history. He left Bliss with the Doctor for her to get what I consider the official nod as companion and it was quite emotional that the Doctor and co had been saved but they had no idea how or who by. That was quite poignant. Overall, an excellent story and a brilliant conclusion to what has been a terrific boxset! The Eighth Doctor's experiences of the Time War are something I look very forward to exploring further.

Rating: 9/10