Stolen Goods

"I was made for war, but I didn't want to fight."

Writer: Matt Fitton
Format: Audio
Released: June 2018
Series: Jenny: The Doctor's Daughter 1.01

Featuring: Jenny

Synopsis

Jenny is new to the universe and keen to explore – but in unfamiliar spaceships, accidents happen. She's lucky to have someone on hand to help. A slippery fast-talking someone called Garundel.

Soon Jenny is mixed up in cons and explosions. But she also finds something strange, inexplicable, and as new to the universe as she is. She'll call him Noah.

Verdict

Stolen Goods was a great way to kick off the first series of Jenny: The Doctor's Daughter! I was a little sceptical about how well she would fare as the lead character for her own spinoff, despite really wanting to see more of her following The Doctor's Daughter in 2008. 11 years later and I've finally gotten around to exploring her journeys through the universe. I was a little surprised that she was so explicitly referred to as a Time Lord and it was her bio scan confirming that which made for the basis of much of the story. I loved the way the audio convinced us into thinking that Jenny was quite clueless and new to the universe with how she seemed to be going along with Garundel's procedure for what was quite clearly a scam. I was really hoping that she wouldn't fall for such a lousy trick and just as I was beginning to be disappointed with the character, she played out a sublime flashback of events that confirmed she knew that she was being scanned. The way this was directed like a crime thriller was just superb and I think from that point forward I fell in love with the series. Whilst I remember, I have to mention the opening titles which I think are terrific and certainly suited to what I expect this audio series to be like. It's funky and well-paced and I think Jenny is going to be a lot of fun. The little nods to the Doctor are good, but I do hope they aren't too frequent as I want this to be Jenny's chance to shine. She is a character with so much potential and adding Noah alongside her will provide an intriguing dynamic. It is obvious that it has been some time since her creation, but it is also clear that things are still somewhat new to Jenny in grasping exploring the universe. All of the instincts of the Doctor are there which is fantastic and I like how she wants to help those in need. The line that I have used for my story quote was just perfect and going back to reference the Hath and everything that went on in that week war was really good. Garundel and Vesh Taralesh were good enemies and I was quite surprised to find that the former had actually met the Doctor in previous audios! I look forward to getting around to those stories in the future, but while he was here I enjoyed his efforts a lot. The ease with which he was willing to tarnish his partnership with Taralesh wasn't too surprising and I fully expected it once the scan confirmed Jenny to be a Time Lord. I was loving the story, but I actually think it dropped a tad when COLT-5000 emerged. The cyborg that wanted the Time Lord, I'm not sure it was even needed to be honest. Dealing with Garundel was good and the amusement at the conclusion where the cyborg was pleasantly pleased with the arrangeable terms of the deal that was being presented. Jenny and Noah had produced their own time hop and the psychic theme of the adventure was very good indeed. I admired Jenny's confidence in having faith that she would find the way to control the ghost ship, and she did through her mind. That seemed a great method of control for Jenny, but the escape pod came in handy. Her attempts to thwart COLT-5000 by faking an explosion was terrific and as a whole this was a brilliant start to the spinoff series. I look forward to seeing where things go from here!

Rating: 8/10