The Resurrection of Mars

"Every passenger on this ship will boil in their own blood."

Writer: Jonathan Morris

Format: Audio

Released: November 2010

Series: EDA 4.06

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Tamsin, Lucie

Synopsis

Deimos, moon of Mars – where Lord Slaadek's plans to revive the ancient Ice Warrior civilisation hang by a thread. Only the Doctor can stop him... but an old enemy, hiding in the catacombs, has an alternative plan. A plan that will test the Doctor's heroism to its limits. Just how far will the Doctor go to prevent the destruction and resurrection of Mars – on a day when his friends become enemies, and his enemies have right on their side?

Verdict

The Resurrection of Mars was another excellent adventure in the eighth series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures! This concluded the story that was brilliantly started in Deimos and I think as a two-part whole, this has to rank right up there as one of my favourite stories from the range. It was fantastic. The combination of Lucie Miller's return along with the Ice Warriors and the Monk is just magnificent! What's not to like, really? It was good to start off with Lucie and how she was unceremoniously dumped off by the Monk after the cliffhanger last time out with her sending a message to the Doctor. She didn't seem too surprised to find him on Deimos, but given the chaos that was ensuing who could blame her? It was both fun and slightly annoying that the Doctor revealed he had already sabotaged the reioniser all along and that meant Tamsin's anger towards him wasn't entirely necessary. I did enjoy her constant disagreements with the Doctor though and the Monk's efforts to then recruit as his new travelling companion were delightful. That was such a fun prospect and with Tamsin still being quite new, she was a prime target for the meddler. His taking her to Halcyon was really intriguing and him showing her the aftermath of the direct results of the Doctor's actions on Deimos and Mars was superb. With the Ice Warriors prevented from taking Mars, the Halcyon disaster would ensue as they came to reap this planet as their new Mars. Finch wasn't as standout as the first point but she was still great and I really enjoyed her refusing to give the Doctor up to the Ice Warriors because of his value, even though she wasn't fully aware of what that was. The reunion between the Doctor and Lucie was really heartfelt and whilst events of Death in Blackpool were still prominent, I loved Lucie's line about the Doctor being her lift home! The cliffhanger was brilliant with the threat of repairing the ioniser or Lucie dying going hand in hand with the craft being destroyed and the Monk's monologue talking about the greater good. That was really well done. The Doctor talking to Lucie about his past and why he has companions was really nice and for him it was so he had a constant reminder of how important a single life was. That was powerful stuff. It was so much fun for the Doctor to put on an Ice Warrior armour suit and McGann's take on the ssss speech so frequently associated with the Martians was terrific. Lucie and Tamsin meeting was very good and their bickering over the Doctor and the Monk was great stuff. The Monk having had a scheme all along was wonderful and I wasn't too surprised to find that he'd woken the Ice Warriors early than should have been the case, hence their presence on Deimos. Tamsin saying that she'd had enough of travelling with the Doctor was a surprise and her wanting to be with someone who made a difference for good was extraordinary, more so because she believed the person to do that was the Monk! The reinoniser feedback causing the Deimos explosion was a fitting end to the Ice Warriors and whilst again the Doctor having already adjusted the process last minute to save Mars was a bit of a cheap way out, the comments of a new dawn on the red planet were excellent. I loved how the Monk was angered and his suggestion of gaining revenge and dropping in on some old friends was very intriguing. I look forward to hearing where the series goes from here! Especially with what's to come and the Doctor owing Lucie Miller Christmas! Who knows what that will be like. For now, a magnificent audio!

Rating: 9/10