The Potential Daleks: Humpty Dumpty

"I can't allow you to die alone."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: December 2025

Series: Second Doctor Adventures 4.01

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall...

A nursery rhyme through time is on the brink of causing a cosmic catastrophe. And for the Doctor, Jamie, Zoe and Raven, this is just the beginning of a final battle.

A battle which began on Skaro.

Verdict

Humpty Dumpty was an outstanding start to The Potential Daleks fourth series of Second Doctor Adventures! This is easily one of the most exciting ranges Big Finish currently have going on because having an entire Second Doctor era set after The War Games feels like cheating and really shouldn't be possible, but yet here we are! I absolutely adored The War Games in Colour which feels like if it is canonical then this series shouldn't be able to exist, but Raven's reiteration again here of this being a splinter version of the Second Doctor is fascinating. It signals that there could be a definitive ending for this version of the Second Doctor which is very intriguing but it also opens up a lot of possibilities as well as providing some real jeopardy for this version of the second incarnation. It was indicated that this version perhaps can't regenerate when it came to debating him making the sacrifice with the other and true version of the Doctor(s) getting to live on. I thought the continuity from the entire Conspiracy of Raven series last time out was very strong and it's a shame this came so long after its release with a production delay because it does basically immediately follow on. Touching on the origins of the Kippers was fascinating stuff and the very concept of them being potential Daleks is not something I saw coming. I liked the concept of the Daleks being wiped out which I assume is an allusion to the intended final end in The Evil of the Daleks, but hearing of what Raven thought she was working towards means they're very much on the comeback trail. The idea of Raven aiming to help bring about a new Dalek Emperor with Time Lord DNA is staggering but something I absolutely loved. There feels something special about exploring conflict between the Time Lords and the Daleks at this early stage of the Classic era and I am absolutely all here for it. The Doctor working out that the multitude of materialising Skaros were linked to the Kippers actually being Daleks was incredibly interesting and I loved the audacity of it all. It's ludicrous but certainly the right kind. I thought the care home setting for Angela was incredibly eery and the way she was repeating the nursery rhyme of Humpty Dumpty was uncomfortable to say the least. That was in 1951 and having Zoe and Raven there whilst the Doctor and Jamie were in 1877 when Angela was a baby worked brilliantly. The Daleks were utilising the two years and Angela's nursery rhyme in particular to bring about a time corridor through which they could return, and when the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme was getting more and more Dalek sounding I loved it. I think the return of Celestin was a nice touch and great continutiy dating back to Beyond War Games, and I can't wait to see how he plays into things with his connection to the Dalek Emperor. Jamie in particular had a really strong story here as companion and I loved that even as a little older his loyalty to the Doctor was absolute. He wouldn't be letting him go at it alone which was admirable. I thought Violet as Angela's mother was a strong character too and hearing how she had supposedly invented the phonograph was terrific stuff. Of course, she was no scientist and it was implanted within her from the Daleks. The pending return of the Daleks was a strong cliffhanger with the Celestin/Emperor going full Dalek in the nursery rhyme. I can't wait for the next episode! A sublime start. 

Rating: 10/10