The Exxilons

"Your beacon. It kills."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: January 2015

Series: FDA 4.01

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Leela, K9

Synopsis

Planet E9874 supports a developing civilisation known as the Tarl. The peaceful, technologically advanced Locoyuns are helping the Tarl develop rudimentary technology. What could be more innocent than that?

When the Doctor, Leela and K9 arrive, they find the delicate balance in the relationship between the two cultures reaching an unexpected crisis point. The spears are flying and the threat of all-out war is in the air.

The Doctor must use all his guile to tread a careful path with Tarl leader Ergu, while Leela and K9 discover an ancient power of unimaginable strength which threatens to fear the minds out of its victims.

Verdict

The Exxilons was a fantastic Fourth Doctor Adventures audio! I really have jumped around this range over the years but this was a great start to the fourth series. I do think the big plot reveal was actually spoiled by the title of the audio, but I get that it was also a big selling point for the series opener. It's just a shame as I think the reveal of the Locoyuns actually being Exxilons would have worked brilliantly as a cliffhanger and something you wouldn't see coming if it wasn't already obvious. Trexa was a great character and I liked how things started full of action with her on the run after completing some construction work. She was running for her life though and reported back to her superiors before actually stumbling aboard the TARDIS as the Doctor and Leela were departing after materialisation. That was really good and I liked the unusual nature of an unfamiliar character getting to go inside the famous time and space ship. Trexa was important in establishing the makeup of the civilisation on the planet between the Tarl and how the Locoyuns had an arrangement wit their leader Ergu that saw them unknowingly existing as slaves. Calura and Gethal as the powers that be amongst the Locoyuns were very good characters and they seemed to have an intriguing dynamic amongst themselves. Their coming to save Trexa seemed like a surprise but it was good to introduce them to the Doctor, Leela and K9. The Tarl being engaged in building a beacon for the Locoyuns and knowing their true identities, that was a brilliant way to parallel Death to the Daleks and all that entailed. They were honouring the architects, or so was the story, but Ergu was onto them and after learning how his son had died after offering him up he wanted to strike them down for revenge. Leela having a headache with the energy matrix activity that K9 detected linked well with the death of Ergu's son and how he also suffered something similar. The Doctor's reaction to learning of the true nature of the Locoyuns was great and I liked that they wanted the beacon to send them back home to the city of the Exxilons. Their devotion to the city is fascinating and the Doctor describing the past events of the beacon and the city on Exxilon destroying itself was brilliant. K9 being used to attack the beacon and specifically the force bubble was very nicely done and I loved how Trexa got involved in the resolution with her understanding of the symbols. You couldn't destroy the power because it would take out the whole planet, but Trexa could interpret the symbols and guide K9's laser to reverse the mind draining that was happening. Calura and Gethal accepting they were defeated by the Doctor was almost refreshing, and I really liked how Trexa was in conflict with her being born to serve the city that she had just failed. She had seen wrong, and went some way to making amends and would now stay on the numbered planet. Overall, a terrific listen!

Rating: 8/10