War Room: Allegiance: The First Days of Phaidon

"Leela is due the highest commendation."

Writer: Fio Threthewey

Format: Audio

Released: August 2022

Series: Gallifrey 13.04

Featuring: Leela, Narvin

Synopsis

Phaidon was one of the first worlds destroyed in the Time War – but now it is back. Daleks and Time Lords race to the planet's new location: something has arrived which could turn the course of the war. And for Leela, an even greater shock awaits...

Verdict

The First Days of Phaidon was a great story to conclude the Allegiance instalment of War Room for Gallifrey's thirteenth series! This has been a really intriguing move for the series as we focus on the titular War Room within the Time War which is good and is a little bit of a refreshment, but it really is more of the same and that's absolutely great. Whilst Romana hasn't featured at all during the series with her being banished by Rassilon and her only surviving whilst Leela is useful as part of the War Room effort, her presence was felt throughout and none more so than here. I was a big fan of the continuity with the previous Gallifrey series as not only did we revert back to events of Celestial Intervention with Phaidon being restored, but in doing so there were some references to the Temporal Powers of the early Gallifrey series with the Warpwrights now being present! Of course, some of them were already out there and that being kept secret from Neander didn't sit too well. I liked the reaction of the Warpwrights in finding out that their planet had initially been destroyed only to then be restored by the Daleks as they hoped to obtain the Artefact. To restore an entire planet would take some power so the weapon must have an incredible use, and that was certainly the case with its potential to revert to pre-War timelines and alter the course of the Time War in an instant. Essentially it could prevent it happening and shape the course for the user which was obviously a desirable weapon. Rassilon wanted it destroyed which was a surprise as I thought he might have wanted it for the Time Lords to use, but alas that wasn't the case. It wasn't exactly destroyed as Leela once again showcased how much of an asset she is for both the cause of peace and the Time Lords in having the weapon become part of the Resistance. I thought the return of Narvin was tremendous and I am so happy that his fate at the end of the last series was not death. He's a really strong character and almost iconic for this range so it's really good to know that he survives. His embrace with Leela was lovely and it's a surprise that for him it's been around seventy years since he last saw the savage. The way he was caught up on events with Rassilon being in charge, Ollistra's past incarnation Matrix project and Romana's fate was really good and also served as a little reminder for the listener on how far we have come! I liked that the Daleks actually featured in this episode for the first time this series and I adored that Leela wasn't afraid of a singular one. She really had no fear. Narvin being in his final life and taking the decision quite literally into his own hands over which choice was the Artefact was good, but he didn't die and actually had an interesting conversation with the voices of Phaidon. Leela's conversing with them throughout the episode was good and they brought a nice chill and enigmatic nature to the atmosphere. The General's admiration for Leela was really nice to hear and the way he honoured her at the end was a nice touch. Rasmus and Ollistra didn't see that coming and I like that they don't quite know the truth regarding the fate of the Artefact. Leela not going off with Narvin as part of the resistance was a shame but he understood that she needed to return to the War Room in order to hopefully free Romana. I do hope he features in the next boxset though! I'm pretty confident he will. Overall, this was a strong conclusion to what has been a really intriguing series to continue the Time War saga. Hopefully we can get more Rassilon in the next series! A great listen. 

Rating: 8/10