The Sontarans

"Doctor, you don't know the Sontarans."

Writer: Simon Guerrier
Format: Audio
Released: December 2016
Series: The Early Adventures 3.04

Featuring: First Doctor, Steven, Sara

Synopsis

The TARDIS arrives on a moon-sized asteroid orbiting two gas giants. With an amazing view, it's a chance for the Doctor, Steven and Sara to unwind after their recent adventures.

But they quickly find themselves in the midst of battle - on one side: a familiar group of space-suited soldiers - members of the Space Security Service. On the other: strange, squat aliens in body armour.

Surviving the initial hostilities, the Doctor and his friends discover that the SSS squad is on a terrifying mission. With many lives at stake, they have to venture deep inside the asteroid in search of a hideous weapon. But who can they trust in the battle against these Sontarans?

Verdict

The Sontarans was a fantastic audio adventure in which we got to hear the Doctor's first ever meeting with his great enemies. This is a story I have wanted to listen to ever since it was announced and I was so glad that it was definitely the Doctor's first meeting with them, rather than just another adventure that just happened to be with an earlier incarnation like what occurred with the Weeping Angels and the Fifth Doctor in Fallen Angels. He didn't have a clue what or who they were and he even got their name wrong at the start which was terrific and quite what I would have expected from William Hartnell's wonderful Doctor. I thought Peter Purves did a good job impersonating him as the First Doctor whilst reprising his own role as Steven. I was quite fascinated with how much Steven was in control and I also really enjoyed how both he and Sara knew all about the Sontarans whilst the Doctor was utterly clueless. His reaction to discovering that they were clones was great and I also liked the way he found out that their war was with the Rutans, not humanity. The appearance of the SSS was unexpected and I liked how this was a famed event in Sara's past. She knew all about what would occur on this asteroid and she had to abide by the history books. The Doctor permitting her to tell Papas the result of this battle was intriguing but something I very much liked. The required links and references to The Daleks' Master Plan, the story in which this adventure must take place, were brilliant and I liked the lead back into that story at the conclusion of this one. Steven being subjected to Sontaran torture and experimentation was really good and I liked how he was struggling to prevent them from finding out about the Time Destructor. Their fascination with the TARDIS, or 'cabinet', was delightful and I enjoyed their frustration at not being able to get in. Their desire for honour and fair conflict was superb and I absolutely adored how the Doctor took advantage of that in providing human safety with the ships towards the story's end. Gage actually being a Sontaran was something I did not expect but it was the surprise of the revelation which made it so good. A Sontaran posing as a human was the most loyal of them all. Of course, Slite killed him without hesitation once he questioned an order. The asteroid setting was brilliant and seemed perfect for this era of Doctor Who. It worked really well. The Sontarans knowing of the Daleks and being intrigued by Steven's surviving of them was good and when he was recalling his imprisonment at the hands of the Mechanoids that we saw in The Chase, the Sontarans thinking voluntary imprisonment absolutely illogical was sublime. I thought the ending was decent with the Sontarans being overpowered by the Nil and humans alike but the Doctor opening the TARDIS for the leading Sontarans to step in so Tinder could shoot them in their probic vents as they entered was a great strategy indeed, as the Sontar natives acknowledged. The cliffhangers were good and as a whole, this was a thoroughly enjoyable story!

Rating: 8/10