The First Son

"All Movellans are a problem."

Writer: Lizzie Hopley

Format: Audio

Released: October 2021

Series: Dalek Universe 3.01

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, River Song

Synopsis

The Doctor's attempts to return home have led him to the middle of a war zone... and a familiar voice.

The travellers have arrived on a planet made up of crashed space-ships where they encounter River Song... Or do they? Because she's dressed as a Movellan and claims to be a member of that robot race. Is she undercover, a duplicate, or something more sinister?

And more importantly... who is her son?

Verdict

The First Son was an excellent start to the third and final series of Dalek Universe! We had an incredible cliffhanger at the end of Series 2 with a Dalek echoing the famous 'Hello Sweetie' catchphrase of River Song, and the artwork for this episode really is incredible to see River in the form of a Movellan! It's so exciting and I just love that we are continuing the adventures of the Tenth Doctor and River Song, even if this time around it's in an unconventional manner. I thought the continuing relationship between the Doctor and Anya was really good and she very much feels like a companion in her own right, having been one as Ann Kelso alongside the Fourth Doctor. The humour shared between them regarding gerund words was magnificent and Anya's use of trusting in particular was great. They were on the hunt for the source of the signal that relayed that wonderful message and Anya's surprise that it was aimed at the Doctor made me laugh. Who else would it be for! The setting of a spaceship graveyard was intriguing and it containing numerous Movellan ships alongside a few Dalek ones said a lot about the ongoing war of this time period. The arrival of River into the story and supposedly having a son was incredible and just brilliantly audacious for her character. Something going wrong with the Movellans that was making them crazed within an hour was interesting and I loved the later revelation of the cause being Kamen. He was a fascinating and troubled character which made him a fantastic villain, and he was so strong that even River didn't think she could take him out so ended up posing as his mother! She'd brought the Doctor here but had to keep her guise which was marvellous. There were some other good characters in the episode with Rodekka being a fun character as the one who greeted the Doctor and Anya on their arrival. Finding out more about Kamen and his origins as being created in a laboratory as a human hybrid weapon with the Movellans intent on taking Earth in their war with the Daleks. It turned out he had actually killed his creators and was essentially an angry child only three months old, and that's why River posed as his mother and a comfort figure. It was ingenious! The mystery behind the First Movellan and the hunt for him tying in with Kamen's father was really great and I liked how the first vessel was even a secret to the Movellans. Kamen being told that he had developed a fault and was the cause of the virus causing so much trouble to the Movellans was brilliant and it made so much sense! It revealed that River was the real article as she was human and not impacted by the disease, which was lovely and made the scenes where the Doctor was clearly testing her so much better in hindsight! It was a real joy. But she got shot which was a surprise and provided some drama and danger, and she was able to warn the Doctor to find the First Movellan before using a vortex manipulator to transport away. After River had let go of her synaptic control over Kamen, it was a good way to see him off by having him literally overload. It tied everything up nicely especially when it also seemed like Anya would be departing, but she was having none of it which I liked. Overall, a fantastic start to the series!

Rating: 9/10