Night of the Fendahl

"I'm your victim."

Writer: Tim Foley

Format: Audio

Released: March 2019

Series: Torchwood Monthly 25

Featuring: Gwen

Synopsis

Torchwood vs Monsters!

Marco makes films. You wouldn't like them. The lighting's shoddy, the sets are cheap and the sound's appalling. But there's an audience for them. Because they're films in which bad things happen to women. 

Marco's latest venture is based on real events. Events which took place in Fetch Priory many years ago. It's an anthology piece, and Marco needs one final victim. But the last victim is not who anyone is expecting. 

Death has returned to Fetch Priory. And Death is no-one's victim.

Verdict

Night of the Fendahl was an outstanding Torchwood monthly adventure! I've been excited to reach this point in the Torchwood stories from Big Finish as the idea of members of the team tackling monsters from Doctor Who is incredibly exciting, and what a way to start here! I must admit that the Fendahl was not my most anticipated of monsters for the Torchwood team to take on, but after reading Doctor Who and the Image of the Fendahl yesterday, I just had to delve straight into this story and it certainly didn't disappoint. I thought the approach of turning those classic events into a movie was fascinating and unconventional in the very best sense. Gwen was clearly not herself right from the off in an absolutely stellar performance from Eve Myles. She was already in the grasp of the Fendahl but I always had a suspicion that she had allowed herself to end up that way. After the mention of Jack Hartman in the novelisation I read yesterday, the revelation here that he would go onto actually be the father of Yvonne is tremendous and really brilliant attention to detail. It was a glorious way to explain Torchwood's interference in Fendahl events. Marco being a Fendelman was terrific too and I liked how he was trying to continue with the family aim of becoming the Fendahl core. His knowledge on that showed he was a little crazed and I liked the mentions of the events not getting out into the public domain. Continuing the theme of the fear of the number thirteen and having it explained here was really well done. It was a nice historical lesson on the Fendahl and the story in which they first appear. The eeriness of Gwen being the victim and her constantly referring to herself as such was brilliant and I liked the mature nature of Torchwood being incorporated here. The inference of Gwen having a sexual appeal for those crazed fans that would watch the film was creepily excellent. The moment where Gwen wanted the Fendahl to first be named was good comedy as the thunder boomed and allowed a very different and explicit F word to be said, but the alluring nature in which she wanted the Fendahl said aloud was fantastic. I loved the moment where Gwen was giving her first performance on camera and the monologue she gave was so impressive. It caught Marco off guard but of course it was the Fendahl talking through her. I really can’t give Myles enough props for her performance here. The moment at the end when she switched from Fendahl control back to herself was glorious and the confrontation she had with Phil was nothing short of incredible. It turned out he’d been part of a horrific sham where women were murdered as part of the films and the victims actually became part of the 13 required to recreate the Fendahl. Phil offered nothing as a response to Gwen and she was absolutely in control which I adored. This was Gwen at her very best and wasn’t going to take atrocities against women well. She left him to suffer along with the rest of the Fendahl which was appropriate in my eyes, and the desperation of Phil wanting to start again was terrible. He got all he deserved. Overall though, this was a truly brilliant audio adventure and a more than fitting return and welcomed addition to Torchwood for the Fendahl. 

Rating: 10/10