The Sleeping City

"We went shopping under an alien sun."

Writer: Ian Potter
Format: Audio
Released: February 2014
Series: Companion Chronicles 8.08

Featuring: First Doctor, Ian, Barbara, Vicki

Synopsis

After travelling with the Doctor through time and space, Ian Chesterton is back in his own time. But the mystery of how he and Barbara Wright disappeared in the year 1963 has altered the authorities – and both are suspected of being enemy agents in the Cold War.

Ian protests his innocence. He has a story to tell about traveling through time and space.

And one adventure in particular – a visit to the city of Hisk...

Verdict

The Sleeping City was a very good audio adventure and a great return to my listening of the Companion Chronicles range! This is my first blog entry for a story in this range for ten months which I struggle to believe, with the Masters Degree (which is now completed!) certainly taking its toll, but I just couldn't resist to take up some offers on the range from a recent Big Finish clearance. I purchased seven stories all from the First Doctor era but this is the only one that seems to be a certain standalone. I found the premise of a story told by Ian following his return to the 1960s in The Chase really intriguing and I had never considered how suspicious the circumstances may have appeared. Two schoolteachers go missing along with a student at a junkyard and two years later the teachers are back without the child! Well, I was hardly surprised that it was front-page newsworthy in the immediate aftermath. With that occurring, I was a little shocked that it was actually Vicki who was the fourth main character in the story but it did actually make sense with it being placed not long before Ian and Barbara left the Doctor and Vicki behind. Gerrard was a good interrogator and I liked how interested he seemed in the story of Hisk that Ian told. Ian knew that there was more than met the eye and that things involved the Doctor, but I was quite taken aback by how desperate Ian was to see the Doctor and Vicki if they were in fact close by. His reaction to Gerrard knowing of the Doctor and that he had come back to this time was great, if not a little saddening given how strenuous his efforts were to return Ian and Barbara from whence they came. Hisk itself was a good setting and I really liked the concept of Limbus. Sleep is something that is perfect for a Doctor Who adventure to play with, and here it was particularly the dream element. The timeframe being around the 25th century and close to Vicki's own time and allowed her to shine without Maureen O'Brien actually appearing. I thought the little throw in of how Ian (alas William Russell) not being able to get her voice right was wonderful as he really was pretty awful. But not in a bad way at all. I would have liked some more of the Doctor if I'm being cynical and that might only because Russell's impression is usually excellent. The cliffhanger was pretty good with the death and I liked how the second part turned into a murder mystery concerning the killing of the boy who just dreamt of selling cakes and pastries. That was quite saddening really that his dream was mocked. The development of things turning out to prove the Doctor wrong and that there was no physical killer was great as it meant that the Doctor had to admit he was incorrect. That doesn't go down too well with his first incarnation which is just terrific. The ending was a tad surprising with Gerrard actually being a part of Hisk and the last remaining element of the Limbus and that needing to be defeated. I didn't see it coming which was good but it did make sense that the interrogation was to learn of the Doctor and Vicki's strengths and weaknesses. Overall though, a terrific little tale.

Rating: 8/10

Police and Shreeves

"He soon forgets all about criminal plans."

Writer: Adam Smith

Format: Audio

Released: November 2010

Series: Short Trips 1.07

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis

Like all Shreeves, San loves to absorb electricity. But her landlord finds out about her alien abilities. Then the Doctor and Ace get involved...

Verdict

Police and Shreeves was a really fun little audio adventure! It somehow seemed to feel right at home in the era of the Seventh Doctor which is a big compliment and I thought Sophie Aldred did a good job as the story's narrator. I think it perhaps could have benefitted a little from more involvement of the Doctor and Ace but that wasn't really an issue. The Shreeves were an interesting species and I liked the concept of them taking on the image of the dominant species of whichever planet they happened to be on. I've always loved the idea behind a shapeshifter and have fancied that they would be the toughest enemies for the Doctor to defeat, but I don't think that has quite been the case given the track record of the Zygons, for example. The Shreeves do seem to get the better of him here though as they take on the form of the Brigadier, bring in the Doctor to get rid of their problem, and then he leaves none the wiser. It's quite extraordinary when I think about it as I really am not sure if that has ever happened in Doctor Who before. The Doctor is just used and then the users get away with it! I highly doubt that this audio will ever be returned to so I'm going to safely assume that the Shreeves are still around absorbing their static electricity from radiators and getting kicked out by landlords or friends when they reveal their alien tendencies. It's a little sad too though to think that every time Sal and San reveal their true nature and express themselves. The life of a shapeshifter must definitely be a tough one! The story starting on Iceworld, presumably prior to the events of Dragonfire, was an intriguing way to go about things and it was nice to get a peak into Ace's life immediately prior to her meeting the Doctor. She was interesting being in her first week of the job and obviously well travelled which was good to mention, but then the story shifted quite considerably. I thought the Doctor really could have been utilised more, but I did find it very humorous that he used hypnotism to dissuade Harper from a life of crime and swayed him to favour charitable ventures instead. That would be quite the change in lifestyle and the Shreeves were loving it. The revelation of the Brigadier being the one that had called the Doctor in was enough to make me smile, but when it turned out it was actually the Shreeves impersonating him I was loving it. Devious plans are the best and this worked a peach. I thought it was also good that the work of Sal and San and what they achieved had been reverberating around the Shreeves community. I really liked that as a little anecdote to what was a great little story! It was a very good way to finish my roundabout adventure around the first volume of Short Trips and with Spotify also having the second volume, I don't think it will be too long now before I step back into the range. Overall though, this was a terrific little Seventh Doctor tale.

Rating: 8/10

The Runaway Train

"We're heading for a thousand foot drop into nothing!"

Writer: Oli Smith

Format: Audio

Released: April 2010

Series: NSA 10

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy

Synopsis

Arriving on Earth in 1864, the Eleventh Doctor and Amy must get a posse together to help them retrieve an alien artefact. The duo are chased across the Wild West by the alien race, their only hope of escape is catching the 3:25 train to Arizona.

Verdict

The Runaway Train was a great little audio adventure! With a move imminent from Bristol and my having conquered everything they had on offer in the library, I thought it was time to log into BorrowBox using my Cardiff Libraries account gained from dissertation research and I was thrilled to see what they had on offer for Doctor Who fans! The Eleventh Doctor Tales is something I've wanted for a long time and I'm so glad I can now do them all for free. There'll be a little bit of dancing around as I have previously listened to The Jade Pyramid, and it seem that things aren't quite in release order, but that's absolutely fine. Who wouldn't want to start with a story read by Matt Smith? He was absolutely brilliant as the narrator in this one and there really isn't anything like the Doctor being voiced by the actor who plays the character himself. He did really well in the other roles as well though and I quite enjoyed his American accent. He is certainly a man of many talents! I thought the setting of the American Civil War in 1864 was very good and I was glad to get good use out of what is a location of great potential. I am not the biggest fan of the Wild West, far from it in fact, but I actually found myself excited by the potential of this adventure. It worked really well and I really liked that Amy even dressed to suit the period. That doesn't happen perhaps as often as it should in historically set stories. She had a very good role as the companion in the story, with Smith bringing out her feistiness in impressive fashion. Some of the other characters were very good with Britt and Bernardo particularly standing out for me. The use of the train to Arizona was exciting and brought a lot of adventure to a story that can sometimes be difficult to stay concentrated on given the nature of its format. Whilst Matt Smith was wonderful, only having one voice tell a story can sometimes be a challenge from a personal point of view. That is especially so when it's a reading like this one. The Cei were an intriguing enemy and whilst they could have spoken a little earlier on, I liked the threat of the terraformer and the planet-wide scale of the danger. The Doctor was quick to make amendments to the terraformer using an inhibitor and the sonic screwdriver and reduced things to a much smaller scale. I think a little more on just how easily he was able to do that could have propelled this adventure into being even better, but it remained thoroughly enjoyable. The revelation that the train would one day head to Arizona, but couldn't because the track were incomplete was very humorous and the image in my head was from the third Back to the Future film with the DeLorean just picking up speed before the tracks finished. It was exciting and once the train was gone, 9 o'clock hit and the transformation began. With the reduced scale, there was a crater created and this became the farmland promised by the Doctor to his recruits at the start of the story. That was a nice touch and I enjoyed the end with the Doctor realising the paradox in place and that he now needed to go and set things in motion. Overall, a very good audio adventure!

Rating: 8/10

The Boy That Time Forgot

"You've changed. You're not the Adric I knew."

Writer: Paul Magrs
Format: Audio
Released: July 2008
Series: Main Range 110

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Nyssa, Adric

Synopsis

A lost world. A prehistoric civilisation. A dark secret.

The Doctor and Nyssa find themselves transported from Victorian London back to the dawn of time, accompanied by debonair adventurer Rupert Von Thal and no-nonsense novelist Beatrice Mapp. Together these unlikely heroes must brave primitive jungles and battle ravening insects as they make their way to the city of giant scorpions, ruled over by... The Boy That Time Forgot.

Verdict

The Boy That Time Forgot was a brilliant audio adventure in the Main Range of Big Finish stories! It was completely unexpected regarding who was the titular character and made for a wonderful cliffhanger at the end of part one. I couldn't quite believe it when it was revealed that Adric was still alive. I never in my wildest dreams would ever have thought there would be an Adric story that was a sequel to Earthshock, but Big Finish keep on pulling gems out of the hat. It was extraordinary. The following on from The Haunting of Thomas Brewster was very good with the Doctor and Nyssa without the TARDIS, which would obviously change their relationship and lifestyle quite drastically. The Doctor was doing everything he could to try and get it back and the next step was block transfer computation. That has always been a concept that has fascinated me ever since Logopolis and seeing it utilised in depth here was terrific. I really enjoyed it and the whole process of the power of numbers is just great. Adric was not the boy we knew who travelled with the Doctor here. He was the Scorpion King. His Excellency. This was his realm and his little insects did his bidding. He was after revenge on the Doctor for letting him die and he also wanted Nyssa to be his new bride. That made for uncomfortable listening but I liked the realism as surely there would be sexual tension on board the TARDIS. Nyssa made it clear that she'd never liked him in that way though. He was hurt, but aggressive and not taking no for an answer which added to the discomfort. Adric would come around towards the end so it wasn't all bad. The Doctor hearing of how close his companion was to solving the numbers on board the freighter was an emotional moment and I thought it was unfair when Adric had blamed the Doctor for his 'death'. That guilt had stuck with the Doctor as during the seance experiment, he'd actually been sleepwalking in time and had helped Adric stay alive. I thought the idea of sleepwalking in time was superb and whilst I'm sure many fans would not have liked the idea of retconning that impactful ending to Earthshock, I'm more than happy for this to have occurred because it's clear it was a one-off. Adric would end the story dead, but having lived a fruitful life in his own reality shaped by Star, the computer programme that the Cybermen had left in charge of the crashed freighter. They didn't know the power they possessed but Adric had utilised it to gain control of the scorpions who were an interesting element of the story. Rupert and Beatrice were fantastic characters in their own right and I thought their engagement was oddly timed, but very nice. I was surprised by Nyssa's disapproving reaction though! I thought the ending was really heartwarming with Adric using his last breaths to retrieve the TARDIS for the Doctor. He used his calculations and block transfer computation to find a helpless Thomas Brewster in the TARDIS and return them both to Victorian London. It was tremendous. A fitting way for Adric to truly depart. The joy in the Doctor's voice when he heard the TARDIS returning was something special too. They really are inseparable! Overall, a brilliant adventure!

Rating: 9/10

Spider's Shadow

"A celebration on the eve of battle."

Writer: Stewart Sheargold

Format: Audio

Released: June 2008

Series: Main Range 109b

Featuring: Seventh Doctor

Synopsis

It is the eve of battle and the Martial Princesses Louise and Alison are hosting a royal ball. But there are unwelcome visitors in the garden and a sequence of events spiralling out of control. And what's more, the Doctor doesn't even remember arriving.

Verdict

Spider's Shadow was not the greatest continuation of Main Range adventures unfortunately. I still really cannot comprehend the thinking behind the format of the releases being split into two adventures consisting of three and one-part stories respectively. It doesn't make sense to me and it seems so obvious that the smaller story will have less attention focused on it by the writer, especially when the one-parter doesn't even get any recognition on the cover! Alas, I don't like to use custom art for my blog entries but I've had no choice but to use one as the featured image for this story's entry. I couldn't quite get on board with this one from the offset which was a big shame and it just didn't have the feel of a Seventh Doctor story. I'd like to have known more about how the Doctor came to be there and meet the Princesses but we didn't really get much at all in my opinion. Louise and Alison were somewhat interesting but I couldn't help but feel the central plot of this whole story was rather petty. Instead of being downhearted about how they were perceived as being seen as beautiful or attractive, something of much keener interest to me would have been the focus being on the impending war and the history with all previous battles. There had been so many of them and I wanted to learn a lot more, but there just wasn't the time in a single parter so that was a little frustrating. I didn't think the writing of the Doctor himself was awfully great and as a result I think Sylvester McCoy's performance was impacted. There wasn't much time or room for Doctor-ish moments which was a big flaw. I quite enjoyed the idea of a time loop prison though, but I felt like it was never really resolved fully. I thought it was good that the Doctor took both princesses into the TARDIS which essentially took them out of time, but even he was impacted by the time loop. I think there's a fine line with a time loop story and there can be an issue of repeated dialogue and if that occurs more than once, things can get boring extremely quickly. I wouldn't say this one was boring, but there were definitely times where I was drifting as things just didn't interest me. I really was trying to like it but it just was not engaging at all. Again, I found the whole thing a bit petty and I thought there needed to be more backstory for the relationship between Louise and Alison. One element of the story I did really like was knowing that it immediately followed The Death Collectors. In a release such as this, that is definitely the direction things should go in so I enjoyed that. Henry was a decent character but we didn't see enough of him and I would also like to mention the setting as I felt there was very little effort to establish where things were and how that was significant. It didn't work for me. Overall, another example of one-part stories not quite working and whilst that is of course a subjective viewpoint, I do hope this is the end of such occurrences. Overall, an average adventure sums it up.

Rating: 5/10

The Death Collectors

"Death is not the end."

Writer: Stewart Sheargold
Format: Audio
Released: June 2008
Series: Main Range 109a

Featuring: Seventh Doctor

Synopsis

There is only death.

A virulent disease that killed millions. A missing scientist. An ancient race of salvagers who collect and preserve the dead. The quarantined planet Antikon connects them all.

When the Doctor arrives on a sky station above Antikon, a single accident has already set in motion a chain of events that will mean the death of every living thing.

And the only way he can stop it is to die. Again.

Verdict

The Death Collectors was a very good audio adventure to get me back into my listening of the Main Range from Big Finish. It was certainly an overdue return and it more than filled the time on my train journey! I haven’t held back in my criticism of three-part stories from this range, but this one was actually terrific! I’ll judge the format of the release as a whole tomorrow when I get around to the one-part story, but for now I like what I listened to. Any story that deals with the concept of death immediately has my interest as I find it so intriguing. Something new was done with it here which was great and trying to claim that it is just another form of science fascinated me. I found myself thinking about it and whilst I’m far from being any kind of scientist (well, I did get all A graded at GCSE), I was engaged with what the theme of the story was. I really enjoyed it. Throwing the Doctor into the mix when he’s already in his seventh incarnation was good and the Dar Traders were expectedly confided by his death signature. He wasn’t holding back in admitting that he’d already died six times which I thought was good. Their return was a welcomed addition to the story as I quite enjoyed them in The Darkening Eye, but they definitely seemed better suited to the Seventh Doctor. I thought it was a little strange that I noticed that but the whole story had an enigmatic feel and I think that is definitely best associated with the Doctor’s seventh incarnation. Sylvester McCoy was in decent form with an assured performance in this adventure, but I did feel that the lack of companion hurt things slightly. Danika filled in there through and she was actually a wonderful character. I really liked her from the start and instead of worrying whether the Doctor had the right codes to enter the facility, she wanted to help him out and then question him. It was a nice moment and the relationship she built with the Time Lord was excellent throughout. I cannot state enough how good I thought the cliffhanger to part two was with the pair. It was honestly right up there in terms of the very best in the whole of Doctor Who. Oxygen lacking. The Doctor out cold using his respiratory bypass system. All signs pointed to Danika and the Doctor being stuck and dying in space. Mors was on hand to help them in the nick of time though and I thought he was another good character. His research had consumed him, quite literally, and his desire to find out all about Decay and what had happened on Antikon was really good. I would have liked a little more time with Ridley once he was up and causing havoc, as that element of the story finishing seemed a tad quick for my liking. What I really liked though was just the whole death science. It was something to be tested and the Decay not actually being a virus was an unexpected development. Humanity not being able to comprehend it as it could only communicate in a state of death was brilliant, if not nearly impossible to understand. But I liked that as it was a thought provoking adventure. Overall, a great story!

The Davros Mission

"I will rise again to take my rightful place as the supreme ruler of the Daleks!"

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: January 2012

Series: I, Davros 2.01

Featuring: Davros

Synopsis

After his capture on Necros, Davros is destined to face the justice of the Daleks. He sits alone, isolated in his cell. His creations will no longer listen to him. But out of the darkness comes a voice...

Davros is no longer alone in his torment. Before he faces trial on the planet Skaro, he must go through an ordeal that will force him to the very limits of his sanity.

But where do his true loyalties lie? How will he face the future?

Verdict

The Davros Mission was a very good audio adventure and a welcomed addition to the I, Davros series! Now, I'm aware that this was not its original intention as it was originally produced for the DVD set pertaining every Davros adventure, but I'll take what I can get. The idea of a story set shortly after the events of Revelation of the Daleks is good and I like the conflict brought by the Dalek Civil War and many Daleks questioning whether it was Davros or the Supreme Dalek who could give their commands. Davros was on his way to the Supreme Dalek and Skaro here for trial as a traitor, but the Daleks weren't the only ones that wanted him. I really liked Lareen and the format of the story for much of it being her narrating a log to Alydon was a good move. I liked it and thought it worked really well. I really enjoyed her being a Thal and it seems quite weird to think of the Thals in an era close to the Sixth Doctor, but that's only considering things in conjunction with the televised series. The audios have opened up a whole new life for the Doctor Who universe and it's nice to see some links to the televised chronology whilst opening up new doors and dealing with the after effects. There was some great subtleties in this one with Davros getting his mechanical hand that we would see so prominently in The Stolen Earth/Journey's End and also how he actually came to be the Dalek Emperor witnessed in Remembrance of the Daleks. I really appreciated that and I didn't expect it to happen, but it worked wonderfully well and tied everything together nicely with the TV stories that it accompanied on its initial release. Terry Molloy was excellent as Davros and I really would love for their to be another series with him as the star. I'm not quite sure where you go with it, but I guess there could be ground for something extending upon Davros from the Main Range. He's just such a fantastic character and the evilness is abundant in him. Lareen testing that and believing that he had some good in him was an interesting way to go considering she was a Thal and everything Davros did to her species, but I liked the different approach. Even at the end when using her final power supply of her stealth suit that kept her hidden from the Daleks, she knew that Davros believed he was superior to his own creations. That in itself must mean that deep down in the Daleks DNA there was a sense of inferiority. That was really interesting and definitely something I'd like to be played on more in a future story. There's more to tell there. The inclusion of the Movellan virus was a nice touch and I liked how Davros used it to threaten his way to leading the Daleks once more. The way the atmosphere changed when Dalek scans confirmed its presence was extraordinary. They really  did fear being wiped out which was intriguing. Gus and Raz were humorous characters and I liked how they were interrogating Lareen, but she never seemed too worried as she knew she was far more intelligent than the pair. The moment they sucked her clean of the chemical residue was pretty gross listening though! I was a tad uncomfortable I have to say. The ending was fitting though, and I was initially unhappy at having Davros crying. It was all an act thankfully and his turn against Lareen and giving her up was a spectacular moment where his evil nature came out in abundance. The extermination of her was the perfect way to end what was very much an evil story. Overall, a great adventure!

Rating: 8/10

The Deep

"You shouldn't interfere with the TARDIS."

Writer: Ally Kennen
Format: Audio
Released: November 2010
Series: Short Trips 1.05

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Nyssa

Synopsis

When Nyssa attempts to fix the chameleon circuit, the TARDIS turns into a whale. Can she and the Doctor recapture it back into the old TARDIS before it's stuck in this form forever?

Verdict

The Deep was a superb little audio adventure to get me back into the audio format! Wow, it really has felt like a lifetime of prose but I'm thankful to have pretty much done everything there is to do that I don't own in Bristol Central Library in just under a year, but this one was a story I quickly chucked on in bed this morning as I woke up free of actually doing any university work. It's quite the feeling when all you have to do today is print your dissertation and get it bound. But with this, my day started off in a good way with a quite audacious audio story! It really was quite fascinating and anytime a story delves into trying to fix the chameleon circuit, I'm sold. It's just such an interesting concept and part of Doctor Who's history, and even though I love the story, I still wish it wasn't temporarily fixed during Attack of the Cybermen. It wasn't quite the same seeing something other than a police box materialise and have the Doctor walk out of it. The Fifth Doctor was the incarnation here though, and his reaction to Nyssa attempting to fix the chameleon circuit was fantastic! Even more so was the prospect of her doing so without having consulted the TARDIS Manual, he couldn't quite believe she had made so much progress. When the Doctor was happy to enough to test things and put Nyssa's work into action, the result was unexpected and unlike anything I could have possibly imagined. The concept of the chameleon circuit working on the inside of the TARDIS was just sublime and such a good idea. It really was faultless and the execution was fantastic! The image in my head of the console just melting into nothingness as the TARDIS became a whale was extraordinary. Yes, that is correct. This is an audio where the TARDIS became a giant sea creature. It was absolutely mad but I loved it. Nyssa's reaction when she and the Doctor were just left on the beach as the TARDIS whale went off into the ocean was hilarious. It really was unlike anything else and I commend the story for that. It's not easy to achieve with the sheer volume of Doctor Who available today so I was glad that I got something new. I thought Peter Davison was superb in narrating this adventure and whilst he may not have the best reputation for his audio performances, I thought he was on top form here which made listening very easy. The plan of the Doctor to communicate with his TARDIS through sonar as it was still very much a whale was quite funny and I liked the danger of him almost causing a mass beaching. That would have been horrifying! Alas, the TARDIS whale warned the other whales off and through the symbiotic link it had with the Doctor, was able to be reverted back to normality and wiggle off the damage of the chameleon circuit. He would get to keep his TARDIS in the shape of the little blue police box that he very much liked, which also kept the story in line with Hunters of the Burning Stone which was good. Overall, a fantastic audio adventure!

Rating: 9/10

A Long Way Down

"The TARDIS won't behave."

Writer: Jenny T. Colgan

Format: Short Story

Released: March 2015

Series: Time Trips 09

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis

The Twelfth Doctor has turned off the TARDIS forcefield. It's a rookie mistake and he'll never learn. An asteroid crashes into the Time Lord's space and time machine and it's left to Clara to plead with the TARDIS itself to stop the Doctor from plummeting to a long fall.

Verdict

A Long Way Down was sadly not the greatest way to conclude my reading of the Time Trips series. I'm not so sure it counts as being part of the series, but the idea for a whole adventure to appear on the dust jacket of the series collection of every story is certainly an interesting one. Sadly, it was also a frustrating one for me given the nature of library books and how they're laminated and such. This meant I couldn't actually access the story on the original volume, but thankfully the adventure was reprinted in The Triple Knife and Other Stories collection featuring Jenny T. Colgan adventures, so I was quick to reserve a copy of that just for the final adventure in its pages. It was a very short one, considerably shorter than all of the other Time Trips, and sadly it was comfortably the worst. I thought the relationship between Clara and the Twelfth Doctor was probably the highlight and was actually really well done, and I also liked the continuing theme of the miscommunication between Clara and the TARDIS. It was an intriguing relationship and shown well here which was good. Something I felt was lacking from this story was clarity. I understand it was short but the whole premise of the story seemed dodgy to me. I didn't quite comprehend how the Doctor was falling to a twelve mile or so destination below, whilst also conversing with Clara who was trying to get the TARDIS to go down and catch him. I must have missed something, but I'm struggling to see where things were clarified as I flicked back through the pages. It was a very weird one to me and something I struggled to buy into because of that. It just didn't make sense! The Doctor was falling, so how was he talking with Clara like she was right next to him? The links to Alexandria were good and perhaps a little nod to the previous story of The Anti-Hero, and I did find the Doctor's reaction to Clara asking him if he could catch the scroll very humorous. There was that sudden moment of fury and comedy that was so common to the Twelfth Doctor and that moment worked well. We know he didn't really think Clara was asking him about it so he could read whilst he fell, but it was a good moment of comic value. The initial echo effect was clever and some good foreshadowing of events to come, but things got a little out of control with the multiple TARDISes, Doctors and so forth. There was a lot going on and it didn't all seem clear which was a big shame. Clara did get the job done in the end though with the TARDIS using other versions of itself from split seconds in the future to create a time  flow that eased the Doctor's flow. I wasn't so sure about that, but I did like that the TARDIS was doing its own thing to save the Doctor. Clara wasn't really needed in the end, and she acknowledged that which was intriguing, but the Doctor wanted her there and she'd always be there for him. Overall though, a story that could have been much improved. 

Rating: 5/10

The Anti-Hero

"They believed it, and so it felt as if they were."

Writer: Stella Duffy
Format: Short Story
Released: December 2014
Series: Time Trips 08

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

Arriving at the ancient Museum of Alexandria, the Doctor is keen to explore. He might find some new recorder music, and Jamie might discover a new porridge recipe, while Zoe will love the antiquated ideas about astrophysics. But once inside, they all find rather more than they bargained for, and it soon becomes clear they may never leave the Museum alive...

Verdict

The Anti-Hero was another pretty decent story to continue my reading through the Time Trips series! I was delighted to have an adventure with the Second Doctor, Jamie and Zoe as they really are one of my all time favourite TARDIS teams and their characterisation and relationship definitely didn't disappoint. Something I should mention though is the fact that I am reading the anthology hardcover book of the Time Trips from my local library and despite finding the final and 'hidden' adventure on the insert cover, because of the seal and lamination in place from the library I can't read it! Thankfully, I found out that the said story was reprinted in The Triple Knife so I'll be on track to retrieve that and complete the series tomorrow. For now though, I was taken to Alexandria and I thought the setting was very good with the primary focus on the Museum and the Zoo. There was some humour concerning which entrance they were at, but I actually really enjoyed the moments in the TARDIS before they arrived. The Doctor and Zoe's reactions to Jamie playing the bagpipes was fantastic and I just loved the little moments they all got to share together. It was delightful. The Doctor inferring that he had two hearts without mentioning it as confirmed was good and some clever writing considering where the story is placed in Doctor Who's chronology. Once the trio had arrived at Alexandria, they were all very excited at what they could discover. Zoe's desire for knowledge, and all of it, was delightful but I wasn't such a fan of Jamie finding a porridge recipe. I can appreciate he's not as intelligent as the Doctor or Zoe, but that was a little derisory for my liking. The outburst he had when under the effect of the Muses about a lost love was quite unexpected though and I liked the stunned reactions of his friends. Zoe too was affected by their abilities but it was the Doctor who was perhaps worst hit as he fell into a fit of uncontrollable laughter. Just imaging Patrick Troughton rolling around on the floor in infectious laughter was a nice thought I had to say. I can certainly imagine him pulling it off. The arrival of Hero into the story was good and I liked how he was predominantly concerned with the Doctor. Little did he know what Zoe was up to though! His desire to bring the Muses to life with human hearts was horrifying and his attempt of justifying it by saying that he brought immortality was frightening. It could have been a little more impactful for my liking, but I did think the Doctor's disgust improved things. Jamie was the next victim but Zoe brought the instrument that was a combined flute and recorder and played it just in time, bringing the real Muses to Alexandria. How Hero was belittled was fantastic and ended things on a high note. Zoe's struggle throughout to not reveal some truth to the science the locals were studying was humorous but well in line with her character. One thing I didn't like was the use of chapters – eleven of them! – in a story that was less than forty pages long. It broke things up too much and took away from the pace of the adventure which was a shame. Overall though, a decent story regardless.

Rating: 7/10

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Time Traveller

"I'm here because I'm dying."

Writer: Joanne Harris
Format: Short Story
Released: September 2014
Series: Time Trips 07

Featuring: Third Doctor

Synopsis

On the point of death after absorbing a vast amount of radiation during his final encounter with the Spider Queen on Metebelis III, the Third Doctor stumbles out of the TARDIS, searching for Sarah Jane Smith. Instead, he finds himself in an isolated Time Paradox ruled by an unknown psychic force, stuck on Saturday 8 April, and populated by people without names. Anyone disobeying the rules or showing any sign of dissent is swept up into the Gyre. Can the Doctor persuade whatever – or whoever – controls the Gyre to free the Village, before he dies of radiation poisoning?

Verdict

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Time Traveller was an excellent continuation of the Time Trips series and sees an extremely rare solo outing for the Third Doctor! Even though I'm not a big fan of another adventure in the series for a Doctor that has already appeared, I loved the placement of this one and it brought something new to the Third Doctor which was fantastic. Never in my wildest dreams would I have even thought to place a story during part six of Planet of the Spiders, but this is exactly what happened here! The Doctor was on his death bed and it appears that he took a slight detour between leaving Metebelis III and on the verge of regeneration before returning to Sarah Jane and UNIT. One thing I really enjoyed about this story was learning how reliant the Doctor was on Sarah Jane and just how much he needed a companion by his side. It hadn't always been that way, but now it was clear the Doctor didn't want to be alone. Especially when he was dying. However, things seemed to be going quite well for the Time Lord once the TARDIS had brought him to the Village. The setting was very intriguing throughout and I really liked the blandness of everybody's name. They were all actually titles and the Doctor was soon blended into this weird society by the Queen. That's not a bad friend to make or associate yourself with once you've randomly arrived in a strange place. I liked how she took him under his wing and with everyone being named as titles, I thought the Doctor was going to fit right into place. That was far from the case! There were no doctors here and she was adamant that he became the Vicar. The Doctor was having none of that and his curiosity more than got the better of him as he wanted to know everything that was going on. I liked how he seemed to get a pretty good idea early on and when we got to learn about the princess, things kind of came predictable but I still very much enjoyed it. The setting turning out to be part of the Vortex in the mind of the princess, who we found out was named Polly (nothing to do with the companion of the First and Second Doctor), who could wish things into existence. It all made sense with the large toys and constant carnival atmosphere that occurred in the Village. She'd simply wished for her favourite day to never stop. So it didn't. But people were trapped in the cycle and the Doctor had to put a stop to it. The eye of the storm and the time-gizmo nonsense with the Gyre was actually enjoyable and it was good for the Doctor to use the sonic screwdriver to find the resolution. The power of stories was a nice element of this adventure and I loved that Polly got to share wonders with the TARDIS before she passed away. She had her time and like the Doctor, she was incurable, and met her fate. Now it was time for the Doctor to do the same. Overall, fantastic adventure!

Rating: 9/10

The Bog Warrior

"I didn't want to steal their final moment together."

Writer: Cecelia Ahern

Format: Short Story

Released: May 2014

Series: Time Trips 06

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

Arriving on the planet Cashel, the Tenth Doctor witnesses a strange masked ball. To guarantee peace, Prince Zircon has to choose a bride from the Bog People – dead men and women who have been resurrected as slaves. Or as warriors. But Zircon is in love with the enslaved Princess Ash, whose parents were deposed and executed by the current Queen. As usual, the Doctor has walked right into trouble, and it's up to him to sort it out.

Verdict

The Bog Warrior was a very good adventure and a great way to continue my reading through the Time Trips series! This is the last set of collections I am currently getting through so maybe a change of format will be on the cards once I read the final two of these, and I have to say I'll quite enjoy that! This one saw the return of the Tenth Doctor to the series which was a little disappointing to be honest as I had hoped to get a variation of Doctors featuring but it looks like the next story will feature another repeat so I guess that's not what they were after. This again had him travelling alone during the 2009 Specials era and I thought his characterisation was excellent throughout. His arrival on Cashel was good and I liked how he knew he should leave once things were getting a little heated with the local politics, but he just couldn't bring himself to do so. Curiosity got the better of him and it definitely wasn't the first time, nor would it be the last. Root was a magnificent character and the relationship he formed with the Doctor was great. I couldn't help feel sorry for him though with his unrequited love of the much older Princess Ash. She was supposedly the most beautiful girl that even the Doctor had seen and he was quite taken aback. The little moment where he saw that he glimpsed her getting changed was terrific and mischievous in a young boy way which was good and just real. It wasn't anything sinister and the Doctor's smile confirmed that to us. The looming war was a good focal point and it seemed quite the decision for Zircon to pick any of the Bog People to be his bride and avoid conflict. The Bog People were horrifying though and the very concept of their living was just awful! They were the dead brought back to life by nature conjoining with a planetary shift that Xenotime had claimed was her own doing and had become the kingdom's ruler as a result. The descriptions of the people was just grotesque and them all having different levels of decay was just dismal. The poor people! What was even worse was that some of those who hadn't come back had their faces made into a cast that people wore as masks, something the Doctor had to do in a dress in a very comical moment. I liked Mossy as a character and him knowing that the Doctor initially sent him the wrong way when the search for Ash was underway was good as he was on Root's side. They wanted to overthrow the Queen. The use and search for the shoes was very good and I liked the connections it had with Root witnessing her parents' final moment together. They would eventually bring about her downfall but instead of killing her, like Xenotime had done to Ash's mother, the new ruler would see that the evil monarch would spend her days doing hard labour. This was what she had made the Bog People do and that was some very sweet justice. A real fitting end. Overall, a very good adventure with some excellent political aspects and a lot of intrigue. The Doctor was on form and this was a positive story all around.

Rating: 8/10

A Handful of Stardust

"All at once horror became seduction."

Writer: Jake Arnott
Format: Short Story
Released: April 2014
Series: Time Trips 05

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

The TARDIS is diverted to England in 1572, and the Sixth Doctor and Peri meet John Dee – "mathematician, astrologer, alchemist magician, and the greatest mind of our time"/ (Only of our time?", the Doctor asks, unimpressed). But what brought them here? When the Doctor discovers that Dee and his assistant have come across a "great disturbance in the cosmos, in the constellation of Cassiopeia", he realises that they are all in terrible danger.

Verdict

A Handful of Stardust was a decent continuation of my reading through the Time Trips series! I was very glad to get a new story with the Sixth Doctor and Peri as they're a favoured pairing of mine, and throwing in the Master was just an added treat! It perhaps didn't quite live up to my high expectations but as my rating reflects, this was still a very good little read. I liked the foray into the past and the Doctor's reaction when he was confronted by Doctor Dee after he had somehow managed to summon the TARDIS to the sixteenth century was magnificent. The little face off debating who was actually the Doctor was fantastic and probably the story's highlight. I actually thought the characterisation of the Sixth Doctor was good throughout with a nice likeness to Colin Baker evident on the page, but I felt the same could not be said of Peri which was a bit of a shame. She seemed too confident and brash in a very intelligent kind of way and whilst she's far from being dull, this just seemed a little out of her depth for me. I liked how her being an American was made use of, but would she really have blurted out that she was from four hundred years in the future? I'm really not so sure about that. I thought it was a little weird also how she was aggravated by how taken aback Dee and Thomas were with her and she wanted them to stop dropping their jaws and blurt out what it was they wanted to say. I thought that was a little harsh and out of character, but it was nice how her relationship did develop with the latter throughout the story and she came to call him a geek in a very nice way. He liked that. The slight hiding of the Master as being between a bachelor and a doctor on the academia ladder was terrific and I really liked that as I'm less than a fortnight from completing my Masters course now. So, all being well and I'll become my very own evil Time Lord. The plot of the Master was intriguing with his desire to hand over the Earth to the Cassiopeians and the whole link this story had with Cassiopeia and the supernova that would change the way astrologers would look at the universe was good. I didn't quite understand the Master's purpose though, surely he'd have researched that the Gurdian Lex was not so keen on the way humanity was used by the incubus. There was a nice twist at the end though with Peri setting the sluggish thing on the Master himself. Her reactions to that being inside her were good and I liked how she hated knowing that she'd liked it. Desire was a strong thing. The ending was a little shaky for me and seemed to leave a couple of loose ends, like where exactly did the Master go? And the Doctor had just ended up fixing his TARDIS! I'm not sure he'd really let that slide. What I did very much enjoy were nods to the show's chronological past and future with mercury needed to fix the Master's TARDIS and also the mention of him looking into the untempered schism as a child, which we would of course find out in The Sound of Drums. The Sixth Doctor here acknowledged that it drove him mad and that's true, but he'd be back to fight another day. I liked the ending as we found out a bit about the afterlife and achievements of Dee and Thomas in astrology which was a nice touch. Overall, a good little adventure!

Rating: 7/10

That Time I Nearly Destroyed the World Whilst Looking for a Dress

"No party was complete without Polly!"

Writer: Joseph Lidster
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 17

Featuring: Polly

Synopsis

As the new Millennium dawns, Polly Wright finds God. She's not quite in the form the former time traveller expected to find Her, but she knows Polly has an important funeral to attend soon and she needs the perfect dress. What better way than a journey through history to find the right one?

Verdict

That Time I Nearly Destroyed the World Whilst Looking for a Dress was a wonderful way to conclude the Past Tense edition of Short Trips! This really was the perfect ending to what has been a fantastic collection of explorations into the past. I was really delighted. It was different and certainly stood out. Polly being the one to actually tell the adventure was great and it's always good to catch up with companions once they have finished travelling with the Doctor. However, as this story illustrated, Polly was far from finishing travelling. She went all over and actually interfered in a number of the Doctor's forays into the past, all of which actually occurred in this collection which was just a genius idea. I think my favourite visit to the past was definitely when she ended up in The Thief of Sherwood, and we actually got to read some of that story rather than just read about it though the likes of television previews. It was sublime and a lovely use of Anneke Wills being credited as Marion in the fictional story from Jonathan Morris. I really applauded that. It was just magnificent. I wasn't sure where things were going before that point, but then I was absolutely delighted. Really fantastic writing and some great planning! Polly getting to see the First Doctor again was terrific and I just love the idea of her having met Ian and Susan. It's a lot of timey-wimey nonsense going on but I love it.  She then ended up in the events of Bide-a-Wee and saw the First Doctor again before he would meet her in The War Machines and I liked how she did good for him. Things jumped again then as we saw Polly actually meet an older incarnation of the Doctor in the form of his fifth incarnation during the events of Graham Dilley Saves the World. That was quite humorous and a whole lot of timey nonsense happening as her past self was actually at the match as well and it turns out she was the pregnant women that appeared! So Polly also got to meet the likes of Tegan, Peri and Erimem as well as the Fifth Doctor. Two of him! It was all going on and one could be forgiven if they got confused by this stage. Things jumped forward still to Of the Mermaid and Jupiter and I liked the idea of Polly and Benny becoming friends over some alcohol. They shared a lot of stories about pulling and whilst I was surprised to see strip poker and porn mentioned in a Doctor Who story, especially with the image of Polly in nothing but her bra and knicker, it added a lot of realism and that's just what adults get up to. It was completely ordinary and I appreciated that. I'm not sure how I'd feel if younger fans read it, but this isn't exactly aimed at them. The ending was a really nice touch as she was joined once again by the Second Doctor and Jamie sometime around the events of The Two Doctors as they were now working for the Time Lords following on from The War Games! Ben was there too and he finally proclaimed his love for her. It was obvious there was an attraction there from the very start and for the two of them to finally get that moment together and kiss was fantastic. Ben is certainly a lucky fella! Polly is just magnificent. Overall, a wonderful concluding story!

Rating: 10/10

Salt of the Earth

"I'm turning to salt!"

Writer: Trudi Canavan

Format: Short Story

Released: March 2014

Series: Time Trips 04

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis

The Third Doctor and Jo Grant arrive for a well-deserved holiday of sun and "blokarting" on a salt lake in Australia in 2028. Weird sculptures adorn the landscapes – statues carved from the salt. People have been leaving them in the salt lakes for years – but these look different. Grotesque, distorted figures twisted in pain. They don't last long in the rain and the wind, but they're just made of salt... Aren't they?

Verdict

Salt of the Earth was an absolutely superb Time Trip adventure! This really was terrific from start to finish and is definitely the best short story I've read in a long time. This format has somewhat consumed the blog lately, but once I move back home from university and the availability of resources from the local library decreases, my scope will certainly be expanded once again. This one captured the relationship of the Third Doctor and Jo in spectacular fashion and was such a joy to read. You can just imagine Jo wanting to go to an Australian beach and the Doctor giving her an empty salt lake instead. She wasn't too pleased, that was until the Doctor started assembling the blokarts for them to ride along on. Jo was excited about that and couldn't stay too mad at the Doctor, even if she had to eye roll at his explanation defending himself and trying to justify that he'd brought her exactly where she'd wanted. That was a funny moment. I thought the story starting from the perspective of Smithy, a dog, was very different and worked fantastically as we got to read about his owner, Shaun, becoming a salt statue. It was quite horrifying how quickly he was consumed and Smithy being something of an alert with his different senses was very good indeed. I'm not the biggest dog person at all, but there's something so likeable about an intelligent animal in a story and it doesn't occur all that often so things felt fresh. There was an instant sense of mystery and right from the offset I was interested. Even better, I noticed that I wanted to know more about what was going on and that was just wonderful. The story lured me in early on and I didn't put the book down for the duration. The characterisation of the Third Doctor was terrific and the same could be said of Jo. Once they met Sunny, things really did kick into gear with the Doctor not messing around when it came to investigating and getting some answers as to what really had gone on with the salt. Salt being dangerous was an intriguing concept and Australia was a good setting for that with their excess of salt lakes and the such. Baker's Crater being the centre of everything was interesting and the Doctor knew it wouldn't take him long to deduce the source of all the dangerous salt from there. He'd got into the scientific lab quite easy with some help from Sunny and he'd put things right soon enough. With Jo getting infected and turning into a salt statue herself, the impetus for the Doctor was very quickly advanced and he didn't mess around in finding out that it was nanobots protruding salt into anything remotely water-based and organic. That meant humanity and Jo was the next victim. The role she played in saving herself and the local community was brilliant and it became a vocal command that shut the nanobots off for good. Her disbelief at doing so was terrific and I liked how the Doctor had to tell her that it was she who saved the day. They had to quickly escape though as the spaceship that was the source blew up with the systems shut off and there would be no more bad salt. The ending was a nice touch with Sunny ending up adopting Smithy and I liked that they'd both be looking after each other. Overall, a fantastic adventure!

Rating: 10/10

Hidden Human History

"Seeing monsters everywhere is one of the quickest paths to becoming one."

Writer: Jody Houser

Format: Comic Strip

Released: March-May 2019

Printed in: The Thirteenth Doctor #5-8

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

The Doctor, Ryan, Yaz and Graham stumble upon a sinister alien with a thirst for human blood! The gang track the Stilean Flesh Eaters throughout history, encountering friends, old and new, along the way. For once, the humans seem to know more about what's going on than the Doctor, thanks to a podcast (Hidden Human History) that everyone is listening to – everyone except the Doctor that is...

Verdict

Hidden Human History was an excellent comic strip to continue along the Thirteenth Doctor's comic strip adventures from Titan Comics! I think the team there do such a terrific job and it's a great shame that the other ongoing series have seemingly come to an end. I still need to complete the last graphic novels of the Tenth and Twelfth Doctors, but at least we get something with the current TARDIS team. I thought this comic strip was highly impressive in capturing the feel of the TV series with superb characterisation of all four members of Team TARDIS. That made the story so much easier to associate with. I loved that element. Even some of the ways the panels were drawn looked similar to the direction that occurred on television which was highly impressive. I thought the idea of a podcast was fantastic and having it deal with lesser known events in human history was great, but when you throw in the Doctor visiting all of those periods with her current set of companions who have all listened to the podcast, you have something special. The formula worked wonderfully well and I liked that things were not just contained to the Guelders Wars of the 1500s. That setting was beautifully drawn and it was good to get some local interaction. The introduction of the Stilean Flesh Eaters was done very well and the cliffhanger to part one with one of them biting the Doctor was good. The resolution could have been improved upon but there was one simple fact that the Doctor was keen to impress on everyone concerned. These aliens were not evil. They were dangerous by the very fact of being carnivores but they couldn't help that. Their intentions were crucial in the Doctor not ridding the planet of them. When they jumped forward to Cary's Rebellion in 1711, the Doctor refusing to think their arrival and location being an episode of the podcast a coincidence was terrific. She was having none of it. I would have liked to have known why Magda kept referring to the Doctor as Mum, but that seemed to be quite forgotten about. I also liked that things became a paradox and Ryan trying to wrap his head around that fact was a great moment. He didn't have much to do in this story and I think it's clear that he's the weakest of the so-called fam. When the team came to modern day to track the podcast host, Bethany Brunwine, the Doctor not being surprised that it turned out to be the very Stilean Flesh Eater that had bitten her all those centuries ago. She was fascinated with the time travel explanation which I liked. Schulz and Perkins returning from A New Beginning was some nice continuity and I get the sense that we might not be done with the Time Agency. A Captain Jack meeting anyone? I'd love that! The story ended in quite nice fashion and there was no real trouble in the end. As the Doctor was keen to remind, you are what you eat, and now the Stilean Flesh Eaters seem to have blended into human society. Bethany is there to keep an eye on things but even her extended life thanks to the Doctor's blood was coming to an end. I thought the little references to The Fires of Pompeii and Journey's End were wonderful and the imagery from Kerblam! and The Witchfinders was also impressive in a brilliant moment for the Thirteenth Doctor with a great speech. Overall, an excellent adventure!

Rating: 9/10

The Power of the Mobox Part 3

"Free to claim justice!"

Writer: Scott Gray
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 22nd August 2019
Printed in: DWM 542

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

The Thirteenth Doctor is determined to find what's really going on in Hubtown. Ryan is on a mission to save his friends and discover the truth of the magna storms and wants to find just who is controlling the magna storms. And just how powerful are the Mobox?

Verdict

The Power of the Mobox concluded in very good style with this terrific third and final part! I thought this was definitely the best of the three parts and meant that things finished on a very high note. Now, onto the magazine itself and after a fantastic issue detailing the serials of Christopher Barry, this looks set to be another very good issue. The Writing Talk features focusing on the different eras of Doctor Who is something I'm really intrigued by and I look very much forward to reading. The Robots of Ravolox also looks set to be a good feature and I think Bonnie Langford being the subject of the Out of the TARDIS interview should be terrific! And there's always good things to come from Eric Saward so I look forward to reading his interview, particularly after recently reading his Resurrection of the Daleks novelisation. The usual features of Gallifrey Guardian and Galaxy Forum rarely disappoint and I think it's about time now that I write into the latter again. I've never failed to be printed but I haven't sent anything in since the broadcast of The Woman Who Fell to Earth so I think it might be time. Anyway, back to the comic strip finale and I really liked the pace. I think it did help that I knew things were ending, but with the relatively recent decrease in the number of pages Doctor Who Magazine devotes to its comic strips, there has been something of a tendency to rush things towards the end and that just leads to a weak resolution which is never wanted and never a good thing. Thankfully, that didn't quite happen here and we got the ending we deserved. I thought the Doctor was terrific in this part and it was great to have her travelling alone. She does get to shine momentarily without the companions and she had played Rodney along with absolute ease. She couldn't quite believe what she found with the Mobox being harnessed of their power and she vowed to end everything along with Rodney. All because he was laughing in a situation like that. I thought that was a brilliant moment and she was pretty much disgusted by his actions. The sudden shift in character for Rodney was intriguing and I definitely didn't see it coming, but it worked well and more than gave the Doctor a reason to stop things in their tracks. Ryan being the one to save Yaz and Graham from being incinerated by the artificial mag-storm was good and quite humorous given that he referred to his phone as a weapon from Vulcan! The Doctor soon fixed things and freed the Mobox from captivity and torment, but to ensure there was no further bloodshed she turned off the gravity and turned everyone into balloons. You couldn't stay angry whilst floating. I thought that was pretty funny and a good way to end what was a good comic strip story!

Rating: 8/10

Fixing a Hole

"I tried to show you the universe!"

Writer: Samantha Baker
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 16

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Tegan

Synopsis

When a TARDIS malfunction and interference with time transports Tegan back to the TARDIS, she isn't exactly thrilled. The Doctor she knew has gone, but her feelings have stayed the same. She has a life now and she needs the Doctor to get her back to Heathrow Airport. We've heard that before...

Verdict

Fixing a Hole was a very good penultimate story in the Past Tense collection of Short Trips! This one didn't exactly take place in the past but was more an exploration of a past relationship the Doctor has shared with a companion. Given how she departed in Resurrection of the Daleks, there has arguably not been such a controversial pairing than the Doctor and Tegan and whilst they never had a TARDIS trip alone as they were always joined by either Adric, Nyssa or Turlough, they really did have a tumultuous time together. She acknowledged her feelings here with how half of the time she really did love seeing the universe, and I thought it was fantastic that we got some flashbacks to her life on Earth. She was always waiting for the Doctor to come back to twentieth century Earth given how much he loved it which I thought was nice and whilst this one was surprisingly something of a sequel to A Fix With Sontarans, a little skit that really cannot be classed as canonical, I'll pretend I didn't notice the mention of Sontarans and for this to be the third time she was thrown back into the Doctor's life, I'll consider The Gathering as the second instance in its place. I think that still works for sure and she even mentions how different the Doctor looks here following his regeneration in The Caves of Androzani, so why would she mention it if she was already familiar with his sixth incarnation? I think my logic is sound. I at least like to think so. I think it's important to note that the logistics of how Tegan came to be on board the TARDIS again were unimportant in this one and it was the interaction between the pair that was the whole purpose of the story. I think the Doctor is still saddened by the way she left and he hoped she might stay with him for a little while here so he could make amends. A possible adventure in time and space between the Sixth Doctor and Tegan would be incredibly exciting and I think the possible dynamics between this pair would be superb. It'd be such a unique pairing and it would definitely work. But Tegan had put those days behind her now. Life had been a struggle after leaving the TARDIS and now she finally had her job back and she wasn't going to let the Doctor step in her way this time. The similarities to Logopolis were intriguing and subtle which worked well and I liked the ending with the Doctor finally bringing Tegan to Heathrow Airport. That was a great little way of (probably) rounding off their story together and bringing everything full circle. I also think it's nice that they perhaps get to depart on better terms here than they did in her televised exit. It's nice that they get this moment, even if the Doctor she shares it with is not what we're familiar with as an audience. He's still the same person and he shares the same feelings of sorrow towards Tegan. They get to patch things up with a quick conversation and it's nice that they can just talk. Overall, a lovely little adventure!

Rating: 8/10

To Kill a Nandi Bear

"The animals have been busy."

Writer: Paul Williams

Format: Short Story

Released: May 2004

Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 15

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis

The Fourth Doctor takes his companions, Sarah Jane Smith and Harry Sullivan, to what would be known as Malawi in the 17th century. They find a dead body, and whilst accused of murder, they have to prove that there is no such thing as the duba...

Verdict

To Kill a Nandi Bear was another decent little story to continue along my reading of the Past Tense edition of Short Trips from Big Finish. This one reunited the terrific trio of the Fourth Doctor, Harry and Sarah Jane and I thought the characterisation of all three was really good throughout. I enjoyed how well their relationship was captured on the page and it did have a slight feel of fitting into Season 12. The setting here was uncanny in Malawi some four centuries into the past, and I found it quite humorous that Harry's idea of an authentic African experience was for there to be an actual lion roaming about that they could see! Sarah disagreed quite firmly in that regard. One thing I really like in stories like this one is the realisation that there is so much danger on Earth. You don't need to have. a far off alien civilisation to be scary or anything. You can stay right here on this planet and have the Doctor and his companions interact with nature. Sarah Jane's reaction to seeing the dead body of Mwabi was fantastic and with it being quite graphic, it showed just how deadly the likes of cheetahs or hyenas could be. There's nothing quite like the threat of something that may actually greet you in life one day. The Doctor getting somewhat friendly with the locals was good and he was keen to demonstrate his knowledge of their customs and everyday life, but that did come to backfire a little as they were suspected of murder. It was either them or the mysterious Duba, a Nandi bear, and so to prove it wasn't the latter the Doctor and his friends had to rid the nearby surroundings of the wrestling beast. Sarah Jane getting left behind as the insurance if you like in a prison cell was good, though I wasn't too sure about the comment about the fella's behind that she didn't mind noticing when locked up. Harry's attitude throughout the adventure was intriguing and he really did seem to be enjoying where they were and leaning about their surroundings. I thought his profession as a doctor being acknowledged was great when it came to how he viewed dead bodies as it was quite distant from how Sarah Jane reacted. The plan of the Doctor's in having Harry dress up as a Nandi bear, which turned out to be a Big Foot costume, was a little poor but the ridiculousness of it had me laughing so I didn't mind it much in the end. Just the image of Harry locking himself in the TARDIS and then the Doctor proudly claiming to take the duba away, once he had Sarah Jane back by his side of course. He definitely wouldn't be going anywhere without her! I thought she was really good in this story and she even had a moment to reference The Monster of Peladon which was a nice touch. I thought the ending was funny with the trick not working on everybody, but at least the Doctor's prediction that holding back science would not have actually happened. Probably. The last paragraph containing an actual duba was a clever way to end. Overall, another good adventure.

Rating: 7/10

One Small Step...

"The story of the little boy who had been run over by a motor car."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 14

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

The Second Doctor and his friends, Jamie and Zoe, are enjoying a much needed break on the beach at the Isle of Wight following strenuous encounters with Quarks, Dominators and Krotons. But there doesn't need to be an alien threat for the Doctor to change time.

Verdict

One Small Step... was a pretty decent little adventure to continue along the Past Tense collection of Short Trips. Big Finish really have stamped their feeling on this volume and I think that was clear with Nicholas Briggs being the writer. I liked the idea of a story that would go back to the time of the Moon landing in 1969 and this obviously pre-dates the broadcast of The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon so there would be no connections there. I always think stories that deal with events that later have such an impact in the Doctor Who universe is intriguing and I do enjoy the context that they are written in. This was just a few hours after the event had occurred on television and the young boy that we got to meet didn't seem overly impressed by the blurriness of what he saw on screen as Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the Moon. I thought that was typical of what you might expect for a little boy as he wouldn't quite understand the scale of the event that he'd witnessed. He'd surely appreciate it a little more in his future once he'd grasped what had occurred. It was a monumental achievement for mankind and my Nan still refuses to believe that anything else comes close in the greatest achievements of humanity. I struggle to disagree with her. It didn't really have much to do with the story but that was surely because of how short it was. It really didn't have much room to play with at just six pages, but it told quite an emotional little story. The characterisation of the Second Doctor was really great and the moment where he looked over his shoulder and heard his companions having fun together and enjoying the beach was just wonderful. I really did like that. But that all went away when the Doctor encountered the little boy. I really didn't appreciate the lengthy conversation about cow faeces, even if the Doctor's stumped reaction was pretty comical, but when he told the little boy to go back home and ask his parents if he was allowed to be out and then the boy got run over on his way, the Doctor's hearts sunk. He was absolutely devastated and even though the child was not dead, he could see that his leg was badly broken and beyond repair which would mean that his life would never be the same. Now speaking from experience, this story resonated with me here because when I was 11 I got run over on the way home from school and I snapped my left femur clean in half with the bone coming out of my leg. The scar that was left and the 10 weeks it took to get me walking again were tough and it's hard to live sometimes. It destroys self confidence so if someone had the power the Doctor had here to changes events, I'd have been deeply grateful. Sadly, I had no such luck but this little boy got a second chance even if it would get the Doctor in trouble. Would this have contributed to his trial that would soon be coming in The War Games? Who knows. I'd have liked a little more on how the Doctor had changed events so that he was never there in the first place, but I liked the means he went to. Overall, a short but powerful little adventure.

Rating: 7/10

The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up

"What could trouble a wizard from the future?"

Writer: Nev Fountain
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 13

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Mel

Synopsis

Wessex, 9th century. The Doctor visits King Alfred, ostensibly to encourage him. Alfred is disguised as a harpist, staying in a swineherd's hut, so that he can spy on the Vikings. He's ready to give up and is convinced that his rival, King Guthrun, is a godless heathen with no Christian honour, but the Doctor has other ideas?

Verdict

The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up was a pretty average continuation of the Past Tense edition of the Short Trips collection from Big Finish. I didn't quite understand why the Doctor was never named and I really fail to comprehend the logic behind that when his appearance is described and it was so obviously the Sixth Doctor. I didn't like that from the off. I thought those descriptions were a little harsh too with the Doctor being compared to a pig! Like, for real. I didn't see that coming and was quite taken aback as I don't think that's fair at all for Colin Baker. I can understand how they were linking that with the whole getting fit programme that Mel has had him on since The Trial of a Time Lord, but that seemed a tad harsh in my book. This one seemed a little similar to White Man's Burden for me with not much of a plot actually occurring and some interesting dialogue. However, there were no former companions coming into that one and this was considerably shorter at just eight pages. There really is only so much you can do with that small amount of pages, but I wasn't too disappointed with what I read. There were definitely elements I did enjoy and having the Doctor in the 9th century before England was even known as that was fantastic and a little unfamiliar. He'd met King Alfred and knew that he was disguised, but the monarch didn't seem overly surprised by that. Taken aback, sure, but he wanted to know more about the wizard's (The Doctor) knowledge. The Doctor flat out admitted he was from the future which was an interesting move and he got himself right involved in history! One thing that has occurred a lot in this collection of adventures is that the Doctor has interfered with history? Has it always supposed to happen this way? I'm not overly convinced. The Doctor appeared to have no other motive for being in Alfred's presence than to give him the encouragement he needed to keep going in his battle for kingship against Guthrun. I would have liked a little more background on what was going on in the country and continent at that time with the Brits and the Danes as that's a historical period I know a little about, but not enough in detail. I would be keen to have been fed a little more about the significance of the Doctor being there and pushing Alfred into continuing the fight just when it seemed he would give up. I did find it quite humorous, but also silly, that the Doctor's real purpose for being there was just to steal the King's cakes. Mel had him on his diet and he wasn't a fan, so he flat out lied to her about needing to go on top secret solo missions where the fate of Time was on the line. In reality, he was just dropping into history and stealing some junk food! I can imagine the Sixth Doctor doing just that at this point in his life so I thought it was funny, even if a little annoyingly silly. Mel was none the wiser but she would surely catch on before long. Overall, a somewhat decent adventure but difficulties were with the word count.

Rating: 6/10

Of The Mermaid and Jupiter

"Yes, I'm sinking the ships."

Writers: Ian Mond & Danny Heap
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 12

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Benny

Synopsis

16 October 1829 and The Mermaid ship sets sail from Sydney, Australia. By 6 November, the crew have experienced four sinkings, but miraculously not one soul has been lost at sea. What is the Doctor's involvement in all this? Benny won't be happy when she finds out...

Verdict

Of The Mermaid and Jupiter was a decent little adventure to get me back into my reading of the Past Tense volume of Short Trips from Big Finish. I was glad to see that there was a new pairing that I am yet to read in any of my recent short story collections and the Seventh Doctor and Benny are a pairing I have limited experience with so anything I can get for now is great and most welcomed. I do one day plan on reading through the New Adventures but time and money will make that difficult, along with the sheer volume of content out there for every other Doctor. It's hard but I'll get there one day! Now, this one saw the story take place over quite a long timeframe of around three weeks and I really liked the diary format without it actually being one of the character's diary itself. It worked well. I liked the idea of Benny being dragged around by the Doctor and I got to see a side to her I haven't seen before. She was grumpy and pissed off and didn't care much at all for life at sea. When she found out that the first ship was sinking, her reaction was really intriguing and she did seem to genuinely believe that death was certain. Her encouragement for Professor Burroughs was nice to see and I enjoyed how she was trying to talk him through survival as they abandoned ship. By the time they were on their fourth vessel though, he was having a nervous breakdown amid the constant sinking of ships. The crew really must have been cursed, and I liked that they acknowledged that. It seemed to be a fact and Nolbrow, the reputable captain, seemed to understand when the Jupiter was going down that they would not be part of the lifeboat. When Benny found out that the Doctor was actually ensuring that the ships sunk, I was shocked and I loved her reaction. He'd had many instances of not keeping her in the know and deceiving her for his own cause, but this was a step too far! She refused to help him in any way until she got her explanation, and much to Benny's surprise she got one. It wasn't a truthful one, but it enabled the Doctor to use her for his means. The ending was really nice with Peter Richley being reunited with his dying mother on board the Sydney after not seeing or writing to her in a decade. It was her one dying wish and was what all of the events were about. The Doctor wanted to help her and seeing her son again reinvigorated her for another twenty years of life and a relationship once more with her son. That was a nice touch, but this all seemed a lot of effort for the Doctor to go through just to get a meeting. I wasn't buying the whole not troubling the Web of Time thing and Benny questioning why he couldn't just use the TARDIS made sense, but trying to believe that the Doctor hadn't considered it did not. I didn't like that bit much at all. However, I did enjoy the story as a whole and the characterisation with the Seventh Doctor up to no good was terrific. Overall, still a decent little adventure!

Rating: 7/10