Venus

"Beautiful but deadly."

Writer: Stuart Manning
Format: Short Story
Released: October 2005
Printed in: Short Trips: The Solar System 02

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Charley

Synopsis

Hovering over the planet of Venus, the Eighth Doctor and Charley are enjoying some quiet time in the TARDIS following their recent adventures. Charley marvels at how close they are and the meaning of the planet's name, but they'll soon get close to becoming imprints on its blotted surface...

Verdict

Venus was another decent little story in The Solar System collection of Short Trips! It was fantastic to get an adventure with the Eighth Doctor and Charley in a format other than audio and I was hugely impressed with the characterisation of both characters. The feel of the audio era the two shared was certainly evident on the page which was a massive positive and I just loved the dialogue between the pair. Their relationship is one of the greatest things to come out of Big Finish and this bonus piece of prose was a very welcomed addition to their era. I was a little disappointed that the Doctor and Charley didn't actually set foot on Venus but if that was what I was expecting for all ten stories, it would hardly be the most exciting collection in the world if they all followed the same format! Venus became the subject of the story and actually the intended canvas for one spectacular piece of artwork. That is certainly not the way I was expecting things to go but that is exactly what the Aristede was planning. The Doctor and Charley being dumbfounded by the inhabitants of the ship, which was very much alive,  when they looked at them with stupidity when they warned them of their impending death. But of course, they had all signed on for that and hoped to get one image that nobody else ever had nor ever would see right before they died. It was quite the sacrifice! I certainly shared the Doctor and Charley's thoughts as they realised they were helpless and everybody around them was going to die. There would be no convincing them of changing their minds and escaping in the TARDIS. There was nothing they could do and their reactions were full of emotion. Even Scarlet, who they had met at the start of the story, claimed there was nothing better for her than to become a blot on the surface of Venus. The little links with mythology and Venus's role in death were good and I found the whole concept actually quite horrifying. Devotion to things like this is something I can never quite wrap my head around and it was on full display here. Nothing much happened other than a basic arrival, meet the locals, leave kind of story and that's all this needed to be. Simplicity works well sometimes, and I definitely welcomed it here. Overall, a very decent little story!

Rating: 7/10