The Mists of Time

"We're seeing their final days played out over and over again."

Writer: Jonathan Morris

Format: Audio

Released: August 2011

Series: Companion Chronicles: The Specials 02

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis

Many years ago, when she was travelling with the Doctor, Jo Grant visited Zayin Eight. Now, suddenly and inexplicably, she is back on that ravaged planet, and reunited with a human called Newton Calder. What happened to the missing members of Calder's team? What is the secret of the vast ruined city? The answers will lie in the dark and distant past of the Time Lords themselves...

Verdict

The Mists of Time was an excellent Companion Chronicles audio! I thought this was a really strong story from start to finish and a really good use of the Third Doctor era. It felt authentic of later in the run of the Doctor and Jo Grant, and having Katy Manning back performing is never a bad thing. She was excellent in the narration/performance here and I was impressed with how this didn't quite feel like there were only two actors present. It had more of a full cast feel which is definitely a compliment. The more the merrier when it comes to actors in a performed story in my opinion! Calder as the other character alongside Jo was intriguing and I loved the way the telling of the story came full circle as part of the story itself. It was a very clever twist. The title was something I was fascinated by and whilst it wasn't quite what I expected, I thought the premise of the ghosts worked very well. I always enjoy the Doctor's dismissal of the existence of ghosts and hearing that once again here was fantastic and the writing of the Third Doctor was very impressive. It was magnificent characterisation and more than made up for the absence of Jon Pertwee or even Tim Treloar in the role. I wasn't expecting us to divulge into Time Lord history but hearing how they came to be a society of non-intervention and just observance was really intriguing. It was quite a monumental revelation when you think about it! The role of the Memesin (excuse the spelling as I'm sure that's completely wrong!) was very good and their representation as a memento here was terrific. The malfunction was causing ghosts to be created pretty much at sheer will which was in of itself a brilliant concept. Jo having inadvertently brought back her own grandfather was an emotional moment, although I was quite amused by how much he sounded like the Doctor! Jo's reference to Day of the Daleks with her freedom fighters comment was marvellous and a favourite moment in the story of mine, and I liked her interaction with Calder both in terms of the story and from the perspective it was being told. Zayin Eight worked well as a setting and the eery atmosphere definitely matched the story's title. The light background music gave this a creepy feel which I thought worked tremendously. I thought Tomis made for a good villain as the archaeologist and whilst he wasn't really the story, he served his purpose well. This was all about the journey of Calder though and how Jo came to be back with him. Hearing how she took advantage of being in the future to dream up the Brigadier and Benton to save her was outstanding and I was fascinated that she had even concocted her own self! Finding out that it was this ghostly apparition that was alongside Calder all along and he was still waiting for the rescue shuttle was superb. I was a big fan of that. Jo's argument against that being that the ghosts only stayed manifested for around an hour was magnificent, because the audio was about an hour and as it finished she faded away. A wonderful ending to what was a great listen!

Rating: 9/10

Legend of the Cybermen

"This place brings creatures from your imagination to life."

Writer: Mike Maddox

Format: Audio

Released: June 2010

Series: Monthly Adventures 135

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

The Cybermen are on the march through the Hundred Realms, killing and converting as they go. Resistance is useless.

Trapped on the outermost fringes of the battle, the Doctor and Jamie are astonished to encounter an old friend: astrophysicist Zoe Heriot. It's the happiest of reunions.

But what hope is there of a happy ending against the unstoppable Cybermen?

Verdict

Legend of the Cybermen was an excellent audio adventure to continue the Monthly Adventures journey and to finish the set of stories featuring the Sixth Doctor and Jamie! This time the unique pairing were joined by Zoe which was magnificent, and it actually turns out that Jamie wasn't Jamie at all which worked well as far as the stories within this mini-season of adventures are concerned. I liked how everything came full circle going to back City of Spires and The Wreck of the Titan and I loved how the ink concurrent theme came into full fruition as it was quite literally what was used to represent being turned into fiction. That's such a fun idea and it was subtly included in the previous adventures. I liked that a lot. The moment where Zoe and Jamie are reunited is a lot of fun because Jamie has no memories of her. Zoe has the abilities to return Jamie's memories to him though which was brilliant, although I was expecting some sort of revelation or motive from Jamie that revealed he wasn't who he said he was. In this instance, he didn't know he wasn't who he was supposed to be! I thought it was obvious that Zoe was going to be revealed as the Mistress of the Land of Fiction, but the twist that there were two versions of her made it a good moment and element in the story. The return to the Land of Fiction itself was a brilliant idea and I adore the concept of placing the Cybermen there! For a species so concerned with logic, having them tackle imagination in the form of fiction is such a good idea. I thought the choice of Cybermen was good because they resembled the White Robots and could easily be indistinguishable with the guards of the Void around the Land of Fiction, but their voices could have been a bit more booming. Their desire to be rid of fiction and replace it with fact was outstanding, and I just love the idea of them trying to eliminate imagination. That's a wonderful motive for the Cybermen. Some of the narrative storytelling was good, but I do think there could have been something better than just shifting from one voice to the other when it came to the scenes where fiction was being created. I appreciate that's difficult in the audio format though. Jamie realising that his blood was black ink was a superb moment and I was quite impressed with how he embraced this life changing development. He wasn't who he thought he was but he dealt with it well and in a calm manner. The story of Zoe following the events of The Wheel in Space and her return to those moments following The War Games was very powerful and the Doctor's reaction to hearing what she had gone through to end up in the Land of Fiction was fantastic. Colin Baker gelled well with Wendy Padbury and it was great to have Zoe back with the Doctor after so long. It was tough to hear how the Doctor lost her, well her memories, once again as the story concluded but that only added to the emotion. It was a lot of fun to have the Karkus back again, and the way the Cybermen were ultimately defeated was very good even if it was a bit predictable. It's so much fun to eliminate by fictionalising. Overall, a really great listen!

Rating: 9/10

The Wreck of the Titan

"Since when did officers on the Titanic carry guns?"

Writer: Barnaby Edwards

Format: Audio

Released: May 2010

Series: Monthly Adventures 134

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Jamie

Synopsis

It's the biggest ship the world has known – and in just twenty minutes' time it's going to hit an iceberg the size of Ben Nevis!

The North Atlantic is a treacherous place at the best of times. 14 April 1912 is the very worst of times. The Doctor and Jamie find themselves trapped aboard the RMS Titanic, 400 miles off Newfoundland and heading towards a conclusive appointment with destiny.

But the iceberg isn't their only problem. Down in the inky depths, something is hunting: something huge, hostile and hungry. This should certainly be A Night To Remember. 

Verdict

The Wreck of the Titan was an excellent audio adventure to continue my way through the Monthly Adventures and the quartet of stories featuring the Sixth Doctor and Jamie! This followed on nicely from Night's Black Agents and I liked how Jamie referenced that story with it being part of the Companion Chronicles range. It was good to establish its role in the series of events unfolding for him and the Sixth Doctor, but the ending is what gives a lot of answers. Or so it seems. We'll get there shortly though, as first I thought this was a brilliant story in its own right. The Doctor intending to take Jamie to sea in the 1930s was a fun prospect but the truth being that they had landed on the Titanic twenty minutes before it was due to collide with the iceberg. That was so fun to play with and it was an intriguing dynamic to have Jamie having no knowledge of the events. That allowed the Doctor to explain the significance of them, and the part one cliffhanger was tremendous as the crash and impending sinking loomed. The naval setting shifting throughout the story was excellent and I liked the theme of the ships being indestructible. The Titanic of course is infamous for being the ship that would never sink, and then did, and the Doctor describing how the precautions for damage still didn't prevent it was great. I liked the shift to the Titan and the way the scenery around the Doctor and Jamie changed was fantastic. The other people remained the same, but they were playing different characters. Tess transitioning into Myra worked well and I thought she was a brilliant character. I really enjoyed her relationship with Jamie and the moment that he emerged from the Nautilus submarine. The Doctor realising that this was only part of fiction was intriguing and with the ending, I could appreciate the inclusion of books including the one of the audio's title that eerily predicted the events of the Titanic's sinking. It having a 1912 reprint here was superb. I thought John was another good character alongside the Doctor who had a strong showing and it's interesting to hear him alongside a familiar companion that isn't part of his era (The Two Doctors not counting). The Doctor's deduction of events towards the end of the story was marvellous and his confidence in realising that everything was part of a video game was terrific! I would really have liked that and I think it would have been logical and worked well given the minor cast not having character names and only having roles. Instead, what we got was the reveal that the Doctor had once again entered the Land of Fiction! The emergence of the White Robots to finish things was brilliant, and they weren't who I was expecting to show up. The build of the story heading towards the centre whirlpool was very good and the mystery of the powers that were being appeased was great for the plot. As a whole, I thought this was a really strong adventure and definitely the best of the trilogy thus far, with a wonderful cliffhanger to send us into the next story! A fantastic listen.

Rating: 9/10

Night's Black Agents

"It's a warrior's life that's been forced on me."

Writer: Marty Ross

Format: Audio

Released: May 2010

Series: Companion Chronicles 4.11

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Jamie

Synopsis

Jamie McCrimmon and his new friend the Sixth Doctor are lost on the moors of Scotland, where the legendary Kelpie roam...

They are offered shelter by the Reverend Merodach, the minister of the parish of Lammermoor, and are welcomed to his castle. But strange forces are at work within its walls, and Merodach is not what he appears.

Can the Doctor and Jamie prevent their powerful enemy from taking the TARDIS for himself?

Verdict

Night's Black Agents was a pretty decent Companion Chronicles audio adventure, but I don't think it really got any better than slightly above average which was a shame considering the set up this one had. I like the idea of combining ranges into one big story and I'm sure this will fill in the gap between City of Spires and the next Monthly Adventures audio whilst not being crucial to the storyline of that trilogy. I was very excited by the continued partnership of the Sixth Doctor and Jamie because it's unique, shouldn't happen and just feels different which I'm a big fan of hearing. There is also the ambiguity regarding how things were left and the mystery over why Jamie can't remember the Doctor, even from the events of The Highlanders, is still hanging over things. Given the format of the range this story lies in, it was inevitable that there wasn't going to be too much interaction between Jamie and the Doctor which was a big appeal to me. In hindsight, I think that was actually a benefit given the narration and how familiar Frazier Hines' performance is. It's difficult for him to tell a story with a completely new Doctor and voice him alongside his own character of Jamie. Whilst there was absolutely nothing wrong with Hines' narration, it just felt awkward and wrong for him to be providing an impression of the Doctor that wasn't the second incarnation. I have to say, I don't think the take on the Sixth Doctor was that great and it hurt things slightly. I liked the continuity this story had with City of Spires and the moment Merodach named Jamie as the Black Donald was very good. I just think there wasn't a huge amount going on in the story. The continued mystery of the setting not adding up with Jamie convinced the wrong castle was in the wrong place was good to continue to play around with. Jamie's knowledge of the time and place works very well and showcases his abilities as companion, but this isn't the Jamie we are used to which also adds to the intrigue of the story. The element of the adventure I liked the most was the importance placed on the TARDIS. We know it's crucial to the adventures of the Doctor and his ability to travel in time and space, so it's always fun to play around with him not having access to it. Merodach understanding the power that was held behind it was great. I didn't think he was an overly good character and the booming voice that came later on after the truth was revealed didn't do a lot for me. It felt a bit too much of a caricature. I did enjoy how he challenged Jamie though and hearing the Scotsman defend himself was brilliant. Despite my thinking that the heart of the story was only average, I think this is still a good showing for Jamie in difficult circumstances and alongside a completely new Doctor. For them both, it's still early days as they get to know each other (again, sort of) and getting a bonus outside of the Monthly Adventures is more than welcomed. It's a shame it just wasn't quite better than decent. Still, a worthy listen.

Rating: 6/10

City of Spires

"The Redcoats will soon be upon us!"

Writer: Simon Bovey

Format: Audio

Released: April 2010

Series: Monthly Adventures 133

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Jamie

Synopsis

Arriving in a hail of musket fire, the Doctor unexpectedly finds himself in the highlands of Scotland, where the ruthless Black Donald and his band of rebels are fighting the Redcoats. But the highland warriors no longer fight for the Jacobite cause and the English officers answer only to the mysterious Overlord. What has happened to Scotland and why are its moors littered with advanced, oil-pumping technology?

Reunited with his faithful companion Jamie McCrimmon, the Doctor must venture into the sinister City of Spires to find the answers. But standing in his way is the deadly Red Cap...

Verdict

City of Spires was a very good and intriguing audio adventure to continue my way through the Monthly Adventures! I have been fascinated from the very start of the trilogy within this range to have the Doctor, now in his sixth incarnation, reunited with Jamie given how the two parted ways in The War Games with the companion having all of his memories of travelling with the Doctor wiped from his mind, excluding their first encounter in The Highlanders. The moment the Doctor comes face to face with Jamie here is terrific and I liked how he referenced those aforementioned Second Doctor serials and tries to explain how he's the same man, but just looked a little different back then. However, Jamie had no memory of even the first meeting with the Doctor which shouldn't be the case because the Time Lords allowed him to keep those memories. Something was clearly wrong, and that was further evidenced when it came to the Scottish timelines being completely muddled up. Jamie's ageing didn't add up with the Battle of Culloden, and we were now in the 1780s but elsewhere geographically it was the nineteenth century! I found that interesting and it not being completely resolved by the end was a nice way to set up further adventures through the pair who were now a brand new friendship all over again. The way things came full circle from the first meeting between the Doctor and Jamie at the end as they apparently begin again was excellent. I thought the first half of the story was outstanding and I loved exploring the relationship between the Doctor and Jamie. It was really good to have the Sixth Doctor meeting Jamie again and the latter realising that there was some sort of indescribable chemistry between them was great stuff. I liked that a lot. The Scottish setting and the presence of the Redcoats was terrific, with Jamie's position as Black Donald was magnificent. He embraced the role well and it was a nice twist to have him in a position of authority. The mystery of the Overlord was fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed the references to a 'she' having sent the Doctor. I'm intrigued to hear if that continues in the next set of audios and delivers on a big reveal. Alice was a fun character to accompany the Doctor and Jamie and I liked how she was able to point out that the pair seemed to be picking up on an old relationship. I was a less a fan of Victor though but the guest cast as a whole were more than decent. I thought things were much better before the truth of the Overlord was revealed and I'm still not sure what to make of the fact that it was essentially an assembly of leaches. The Red Caps fitted in well with the setting, but as mentioned for me this was all about the Doctor and Jamie. I loved the reference to The Moonbase when the Pied Piper was brought up and I'm just excited for what comes next between the pair. The actual city was an interesting concept but I just couldn't get enough of the new pairing! Overall, a solid adventure and I'm looking forward to hear what comes next. 

Rating: 8/10

Broken

"You show them you're ready."

Writer: Joseph Lidster

Format: Audio

Released: July 2016

Series: Torchwood Monthly 11

Featuring: Captain Jack, Ianto

Synopsis

Whenever Ianto Jones has a tough day at work, he has somewhere he can hide. And, for Ianto Jones, it's always a tough day at work.

His girlfriend is dead, his colleagues don't trust him, and his boss... his boss is something else. With no friends in the world, and his life in danger every day, is it any wonder that at night, Ianto Jones goes to the pub?

Ianto's local becomes somewhere where he feels safe. Safe from his demons, safe from his life, safe from Torchwood. Until one evening, Captain Jack Harkness walks into a bar...

Verdict

Broken was an excellent audio adventure to continue my way through the Torchwood monthly series from Big Finish! I really enjoyed the positioning of this story as taking place concurrently with Series 1 of the televised run and that was such a good idea. It worked really well and it reminded me a lot of The Last Post with regards to its format. Ianto was still clearly impacted by the death of his girlfriend Lisa in Cyberwoman and as if that wasn't enough, he was not happy with his positioning within Torchwood Three. It was an intriguing look at the character development of Ianto in that first series and having recently watched it again, I really loved that this took place. Ianto goes through a lot over the course of a short number of episodes and exploring the changing relationship he has with Jack is brilliant. The foreshadowing of Small Worlds with Jack getting a call from Estelle was lovely and I thought it worked very well to have him ask Gwen to come with him instead of Ianto, despite him standing right there. Ianto going to his local pub to vent on everything that was happening in his life was great and I loved the realism that came with it. It felt like something that would happen and seeking comfort in the barmaid Mandy was great. I thought it was excellent to have Melanie Walters in that role and as a huge Gavin and Stacey fan, I recognised her voice immediately. I didn't expect her to turn out to be more than a mere barmaid though! The effect of the events of Countrycide on Ianto was incredible and it leading him to wanting to commit suicide didn't actually surprise me that much considering the atrocities he went through on those Brecon Beacons. His recollection of the knife at his throat and the smell of the cannibals was very powerful. His reaction to Jack's murdering of Mary in Greeks Bearing Gifts was good as well and I liked how he challenged him on wondering if Tosh actually wanted something to do when it came to the missing people in the local area. That area being Radyr was good as I often pass through on the train and it felt good to have not such a centralised Cardiff setting. Jack's arrival into the pub was amusing and his genuine shock at seeing Ianto was fantastic. I did agree that Ianto should have asked for more involvement, but exploring his lack of involvement in those early episodes was superb. I thought the introduction of the Saviour was decent but I actually preferred things before it was revealed. The portal he had where he could send anyone to anywhere, including the planet Heaven, was a good way to explain the disappearances, and I enjoyed Ianto appealing to Mandy's better nature and making her see sense. She wasn't a bad person at heart which was nice to confirm. The Saviour testing Jack was brutal and I liked how Ianto believed he had brought Jack back through mouth to mouth which was a very clever way to save the truth about his immortality. The final call with Ianto on the phone to his mum was a nice touch to what was an excellent audio!

Rating: 9/10

The Autonomy Bug

"Blueberry House is a hive of efficiency."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: October-December 2000

Printed in: DWM 297-299

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy

Synopsis

On behalf of an old friend, the Doctor visits Blueberry house and finds that Dr Andrelina Hastoff is in charge of rehabilitating robots with supposed 'severe programming deviancy'. But the Doctor soon finds the truth is far worse...

Verdict

The Autonomy Bug was a good comic strip adventure to conclude my reading of The Glorious Dead graphic novel! It's been quite the adventure reading this collection of stories from the pages of Doctor Who Magazine as I've got to know Kroton going back to the backup stories from the era of the Fourth Doctor before he joined forces with the Eighth Doctor and Izzy for a ten-part epic that saw the return of the Master in a new incarnation exclusive to the comic strip. The story building up to that was very good and we also had a 35th Anniversary of the show along with a 20th Anniversary of the magazine. After such a lengthy adventure to conclude the story arc, this feels like a slightly underwhelming finale to the collection and that is perhaps why the stories were printed out of release order. I didn't go with that approach though and I'm glad with my decision, but that's not at all to say that this was a bad story! It had a very intriguing concept at its heart with the idea of robots thinking they were human really interesting. Izzy's reaction to the cluster of robots she was trapped with talking as if they were human after the painting test was excellent and the look of horror on the robots' face was brilliant. The style of the story itself was different to what we've had come before it and it really has felt a little bit like an experimental time with the magazine's comic strip. I liked how this all turned out to be told as a narration from one of the robots saved by the Doctor and Izzy which was a rather cute ending. Izzy had a lot more to do than in recent adventures which I liked and her interaction and compassion with the robots was great. The Blueberry House setting was fun and I liked how the Doctor's old friend Carstairs was his way in for a purely unofficial visit. Hastoff was a good villain and her experiments with sentience in robots was really interesting to play with. It continues a recent theme with Kroton and robotic creatures thinking and feeling, and the part one cliffhanger being resolved with Izzy expressing pain mode sense. They were going to make her armless! Some of the words in the narration being as if a child was speaking them was a nice touch and gave this story quite a chilled and cute feel despite the threat facing Izzy. The designs of some of the robots were brilliant and I can tell that the artists had fun drawing. Emperor Zero being depressed made for a good development in the story and his role in bringing about the downfall of Blueberry House was decent, and quite the impactful moment! The children overtaking the house and essentially running the asylum now was a fun way to end and it was really nice for them to show mercy to Hastoff when they could easily have disposed of and killed her. That was exactly what the Doctor was hoping for, and he got his wish. Things ended rather nicely then with the Doctor and Izzy solving the issues, and the final page being the reveal of the robots recalling events was terrific. Overall, a decent adventure to conclude a great collection!

Rating: 7/10

The Glorious Dead

"A church which can't read its own bible?"

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: January-September 2000

Printed in: DWM 287-296

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy, Kroton

Synopsis

The Doctor, Izzy and Kroton are taken to Paradost to find that Sato Katsura and the Master have joined forces. The Doctor and Kroton must fight the Master and Sato for the Glory, where the protector has full powers over space and time...

Verdict

The Glorious Dead was an excellent adventure to continue my reading of the graphic novel of which it is the titular story! At ten parts long, it's no surprise that this was what the collection of adventures was named after and I have to say that it was quite the epic! It was extraordinarily long and I'm very grateful to have been able to complete the story over a couple of sittings in the same day, rather than only having a part every month, for ten months, in the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine. When I read the ongoing DWM comic strips, my patience begins to run out after around four parts so I'm not sure how I would have reacted had I been a fan back in 2000! I liked how this felt like a culmination of recent adventures and I was a huge fan of the TARDIS malfunctions and unreliability being a result of the Master's interference. I had expected him to show up again soon following the end of The Fallen and it was a fitting way to arrive. His disguise as the Cardinal was fitting and I liked how his true appearance wasn't revealed until over halfway in. That meant we worked for the reveal and it had a big impact and meant a lot, something that wasn't always the case with the Master's endless returns. I wasn't expecting the continuity from The Movie but I really enjoyed it and appreciated that it was a logical explanation of him returning from what was a seemingly final fate. The role of the Ash Faiths and the Master incorporating them into the Odostra was excellent and I really enjoyed how they required sacrifice to enter this domain. At its heart, this adventure was all about the Doctor and the Master and I thought that was sublime. This was a lengthy battle between the pair and the position of the Master now in wanting the Glory was unique amongst the past encounters. This was a changed incarnation of darker and deeper desires, and he still wanted the Doctor dead. Despite wanting the Glory, he wanted to beat the Doctor to earn it and he'd had a long plan to push the Doctor. Recalling recent events with the likes of his intended killing of Kroton was brilliant, and the Doctor being tempted by the Glory was a big surprise, but the Master capitalised in quick fashion. Izzy didn't have a huge amount to do despite the story being ten part, but I really liked the imagery of her being shrunken at the foot of Sato. His return was handled really well and I enjoyed having the Doctor ridding him of his honour coming back to bite him. Joining forces with the Master was good, but Izzy reverting herself to normal size was too quick and easy to appeal to his greater good. The battle of wits in the Omniverse between the Doctor and the Master was outstanding and some of the artwork that accompanied it was excellent. It was very whacky and there was so much going on the page with even an appearance from Spider-Man! I was a huge fan of how the artwork complemented the story. Kroton and Sato being the ones that were actually the subjects of the final battle was a great twist and the Master's reaction to being rejected by the Glory was fantastic. He was stunned, and the Doctor loved that they were actually spectators with the Master's assumptions coming back to bite him. Kroton being the victor after holding onto hope was a lovely touch and I loved how he put everything back on track after the Master had altered the past of Earth through Sato. The Master disappearing at Kroton's will was good, and I loved how the Doctor believed his words that he would still survive. Overall, a fantastic comic strip! 

Rating: 9/10 

The Company of Thieves

"It's the soldiers o' fortune who get to keep the real goodies."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: October-December 1999

Printed: DWM 283-285

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy, Kroton

Synopsis

The TARDIS materialises aboard a cargo freighter just as space pirates attack and slaughter the crew. But there is salvation aboard in the unlikeliest of forms of a Cyberman, one who laughs and tells stories...

Verdict

The Company of Thieves was another great adventure to continue my reading through The Glorious Dead graphic novel! This was a solid story to continue the adventures of the Eighth Doctor and Izzy and I liked how the former was acknowledging that the TARDIS continued to get the intended destination wrong. Would it be on the brink or in need of its five-hundred-year service? I think that's fun to explore and if it continued I'd be very much on board with it. The style of the story was lighthearted and fun with the pirates arriving on the cargo ship to ravage and kill and the different species that made up the crew were amusing. I thought the style of the artwork was well suited to the comic strip story and the style of the story we had with what was essentially a romp. The arrival of Kroton into the adventure was excellent and I was really taken aback by how humanised he was for a Cyberman, even if he did have a soul. I feel like I've come to know the character well since his arrival in Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman and his subsequent adventures in Ship of Fools and Unnatural Born Killers, so it was about time that he met the Doctor. And what in impact that first meeting had! The Doctor never had a chance to hear out Kroton and when it appeared that Izzy was in danger, he sprung into action and quickly delivered a deadly bolt of voltage to Kroton which seemingly killed him and put his systems out of action permanently. I thought that was a brilliant cliffhanger to part one, so to see him revived and laughing a couple of pages into part two was terrific. The Doctor was stumped and whilst I wasn't massively fussed on the explanation of how he came to survive that power going through him, the interaction between the Doctor and Kroton was exactly what I would have hoped for. Kroton was sick of getting judged in a stereotypical fashion and always being treated as a Cyberman (I mean, who can blame anyone thinking that?), but when the Doctor heard him out their relationship blossomed in quick style. The hierarchy establishing Horstrogg as the captain of the pirates was good and I thought the relationship with Shakka as the second in command was a real highlight. There was tension throughout the adventure, but the final page essentially being a stand off between the pair as the asteroid belt rocks drifted away from each other with them having a component each of the Eraser was magnificent. That was really strong writing of what I'd expect of selfish thieves. The Eraser itself seemed to come slightly late, but I really liked the concept and it was quite sudden and quick for Izzy to command it to destroy itself. She didn't realise it was holding the atmospheric field together, but I was honestly not expecting that to work! It did, and she apologised quickly but the Doctor was more than happy with her actions. And Kroton was there to save the day and fly into the safety of the TARDIS, which was found after a part two cliffhanger that had it missing, and his reaction to the TARDIS being bigger on the inside and everything that meant for the logical makeup of a Cyberman was wonderful. Exciting times ahead, overall a very good story! 

Rating: 8/10

TV Action!

"I'm trapped on a parallel Earth, being pursued by a galaxy of 1970s light entertainment stars intent on zombifying my brain?"

Writer: Alan Barnes

Format: Comic Strip

Released: September 1999

Printed in: DWM 283

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy

Synopsis

The Eighth Doctor and Izzy have a brief meeting in a parallel universe with an old enemy of the Doctor's known as Beep the Meep, where one of the Doctor's adventures are nothing more than televised programmes and science fiction.

Verdict

TV Action! was a very good little comic strip adventure to continue my reading of The Glorious Dead graphic novel! This story also marked the twentieth anniversary of Doctor Who Magazine in a really fun way. The idea behind this adventure was really clever and just amusing. It was a perfect use of the comic strip format as something like this just could not be done on television, in a book or for an audio adventure. It just wouldn't have worked. I'd have liked it established that this adventure took place in the Land of Fiction, but as we didn't get that confirmation (if that even is where the TARDIS was transported to) I'm going to pretend that's where the story was located. I thought it was good to have the first page dedicated to how the TARDIS was transported into another dimension with the live chase that Izzy observed on the Goggle-Box playing a big part in opening up the route. Izzy finding things familiar without being able to put a firm answer on her surroundings was good and after I concluded the story, I found that this was actually supposed to be the Blue Peter garden! There were a lot of references dating back to 1979 and the date of the story occurring on the release date of the first issue of Doctor Who Magazine was tremendous. I thought that was a really nice touch and a very clever way to celebrate the anniversary. I was also intrigued to find that this was Izzy's birthday and I think that would have been even better if she debuted in the first comic strip adventure. Unfortunately that wasn't the case but it's hardly surprising! A twenty year run as a companion, even in a comic strip, would be quite something. Further research upon finishing the story showed that there were also cameos from stars from the likes of Fawlty Towers and Blake's 7 which is really fun. The image of Izzy walking onto a TARDIS set was magnificent and the return of Beep the Meep was really great and a fitting return for the anniversary. Beep is one of the most barmy villains that have featured in the comic strip and having him return in a world of fiction was fantastic. The appearance of the Fourth Doctor to tackle Beep with the Eighth Doctor absence and to save Izzy was marvellous. Having some direction for a comic strip's events being depicted was great and I was fascinated that Beep the Meep was a monster in a story that would have been broadcast on television as I really do not think he would work well there. As a whole, this was a quick fire but brilliant celebration of Doctor Who Magazine and its continuous comic strip, which really is incredible and has given so many extra adventures with so many different Doctors and companions. The final panel of this adventure having the Eighth Doctor holding the first issue of Doctor Who Weekly in his hand was outstanding and another fine use of the format. As Izzy said, it would explain everything and I think that's brilliant. I just wish this was longer! Overall, a great anniversary comic strip.

Rating: 8/10

The Road to Hell

"A new age is about dawn."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: May-August 1999

Printed in: DWM 278-282

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy

Synopsis

The Eighth Doctor takes Izzy to 10th century Japan, or so he thinks. It turns out the TARDIS has actually dropped them off in the 17th century at a time where the Eastern country is very much an isolationist, where foreigners are not welcomed...

Verdict

The Road to Hell was a decent and good continuation of The Glorious Dead graphic novel! I thought it was probably a little long at five parts, but I appreciated how unique it was with the seventeenth century Japan setting. That was really good and an era and country like no other we commonly see the Doctor and companion arrive. After a couple of single-part adventures bookending a longer story, it was good to get a feature-length comic strip story here and that was testament with the Doctor and Izzy not arriving until the final pages of the first part. I thought the artwork was very good for this story with the nano-drones dragon creation looking very impressive. Thankfully, this is one of the final stories to be produced in black and white and I think a bit of colour and vibrance would have really benefitted. The pairing of the Eighth Doctor and Izzy is definitely one of my favourites in the comic strip and it was a lot of fun to have Izzy referred to as a boy by some of the locals. She didn't take well to that! The Doctor felt like he was quite isolated in this adventure with Izzy quick to be captured Katsura and they actually ended up enjoying quite the good and positive relationship after a shaky start. Asami turned out to be a pretty good villain and her patriotic nature towards Japan was very good, and I liked how she saw into Izzy's mind to see the future fate of her country after the Doctor denied her entry. He was a Time Lord of course so seeing into his mind was not as easy. The images of Hiroshima served as a good cliffhanger and Asami taking the fate of her country into her own hands was magnificent. I liked the comments about the evil westerners and that felt a little more of its time of 22 years previous. Rikushira was a decent character and I liked how he felt important. That was a big positive of the story as a whole to be honest with the historical characters all feeling like they had a significant role in society. The use of the TARDIS bringing the Doctor and Izzy to the wrong time period is always fun and the position of Japan at this time being very different from what he expected was good. The Gaijin as observers and wanting to study the concept of honour was intriguing, and I think more could have been made of them. It didn't seem right that they just observed when it was clear that Asami was doing more than acting naturally. That was my main qualm with the comic strip story is that the Gaijin were quick to see that Asami wasn't as she claimed and a slightly predictable conclusion. I enjoyed that they were designated a name and didn't have that concept, but I think some sort of verdict on their study of honour would have really benefitted things. I liked them as a species and their ability to observe with them drawing some good parallels with the Doctor and the Time Lords. As a whole, it was probably one part two long but the idea at its heart was sound, we had a good villain and intriguing species observing along with some impressive visuals. A good read!

Rating: 7/10

Unnatural Born Killers

"I'm one of a kind. I've got a soul."

Writer: Adrian Salmon

Format: Comic Strip

Released: April 1999

Printed in: DWM 277

Featuring: Kroton

Synopsis

As the Sontarans seek to colonise another planet, a Cyberman unlike any other stands in their way. He won't be letting them ravage another world. And there's nothing they can do about it...

Verdict

Unnatural Born Killers was a very good little comic strip adventure to continue my way through The Glorious Dead graphic novel! The significance of this story is yet to dawn on me but considering Kroton is placed alongside the Eighth Doctor and Izzy on the graphic novel's cover artwork, I think he's going to play a pivotal role! This is why I have favoured the approach of reading in release order because it just makes sense to have an understanding of who Kroton is and how he was created going back to Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman and Ship of Fools. I just cannot comprehend the decision to print the stories out of order and if anyone did read in the order in which they were printed, something I imagine most readers would do if they hadn't been around in the late 1990s to collect the comic strips within the issue of Doctor Who Magazine each month, what benefit is there in learning about Kroton after the major story has taken place? It just seems baffling. I mean, his genesis was alluded to here and whilst this story pretty much does give you all you need to know about him, why not just print the backup stories first so we know a great deal more about him before the major events start? Anyway, enough about the graphic novel silliness to the story itself and considering it was only six pages long, I thought it held its own very well for a single-part adventure and the lack of Doctor or Izzy was absolutely fine, probably because there was so little time! The idea of the Sontarans colonising a planet isn't new but it was wonderful to have them come up against a Cyberman here. They got more than they bargained for with Kroton though, but just the image of a Sontaran and Cyberman doing battle was magnificent. I really enjoyed that both had knowledge of the other and Kroton using the probic vent weakness was great stuff. Kroton proclaiming to have a soul was a nice throwback to his origins and it was nice for him to protect the planet. I was a big fan of the lack of dialogue and how what we read was the inner thoughts of Kroton, rather than have him actually speak it. That worked really well. I was also a big fan of the different artistic style which worked really well for the monsters and whilst I wouldn't favour it for the drawing of humanoids, it was perfect for Sontarans and Kroton here. It felt a bit jazzy and although it seemed more like something you would find in comic strips aimed at a younger audience, it fitted in really well here. Kroton made pretty light work of the Sontarans in the end and despite their intentions being colonisation followed by genocide if that failed, the fact they got to go out with an honourable death and it was their Field Major that was the last to be defeated kept them strong as a villain. But there's no shame in going down to a Cyberman with a soul. I'm very excited for what comes next an the anticipated meeting between Kroton and the Doctor has me eager to read the next story in the collection! Overall, a very good little adventure.

Rating: 8/10

The Fallen

"They all drown within me."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: December 1998 - March 1999

Printed in: DWM 273-276

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy, Grace

Synopsis

The Doctor is reunited with Grace Holloway, but soon finds out that her career has taken her and her colleagues down a dark path, and a dangerous one... though the results of their experiments may not be the most deadly thing in the area...

Verdict

The Fallen was a decent comic strip adventure to continue my reading of The Glorious Dead graphic novel! This was actually the first time I felt like I was doing a proper story within the collection after all of the one-part comics that have preceded it in release order of course, so it was really nice to have a fleshed out adventure of more than eight pages or so and to actually have cliffhangers too! It was a solid story and I didn't think that there was anything particular wrong with the adventure, it didn't fully grasp my attention for the four parts to a level where I would say it was great. It was very much good though and a lot of that had to do with the ending of part one and the surprise cliffhanger of Grace's return! I had no idea whatsoever that she would be in this story so that came as a great surprise to me and would have been as if I was reading back in the late 1990s! I thought the idea of bringing her back after all that went on between her and the Doctor in The TV Movie was excellent and I wasn't expecting the relationship that was presented in the comic strip here. She had moved on a lot since that fateful New Year's Eve night in San Francisco and with us now being in 2001, Grace had arrived in England and was working for MI6 that was headed by the mysterious Leighton Woodrow. His relationship with Grace was intriguing, but it was her past with Stark as the doctor that really interested me. The continuation from her first televised appeared was good and I liked how she still had some of the Master's DNA on her, except that by this point he was far from being a Time Lord so her efforts to hold back death and bring regeneration to the human race was quite something! The Doctor was appalled and really went to town on her which I didn't see coming. It seemed a little uncharacteristic for the eighth incarnation to react to Grace in that way, but the fact it caught me off guard quite excited me. The fact that Stark was an egomaniac was presented quite amusingly and I found it to almost be in mock fashion over Doctor Who villains of the past with the Doctor realising that his personality meant he knew exactly what splicing DNA with the Morphant meant. That being a creature from Skaro was good, but I wasn't a massive fan of what it resulted in with the fluid and liquefied state of Stark. His appearance opting to be a wave just felt weird and whilst that was a fun advantage of the comic strip format, it just didn't quite have a factor of seriousness associated with it for me. It was humorous though! I thought Izzy was left behind a little in the story which wasn't a huge surprise given the appearance of Grace, but I did love her comment at the end by the TARDIS where she referred to herself as the kid while the Doctor was off kissing his girlfriend. For the companion to have her life flashed before her eyes at some point, it really is something that she felt like such a minor character. The resolution with her thoughts of the Doctor saving her didn't work well for me either. I thought the ending was really intriguing and a great way to keep readers coming back as we apparently have the use of a tissue compression eliminator which could only mean one thing! And in a brand new incarnation. Well, that is awfully exciting and definitely ended the comic strip story on a high. Overall, a good read!

Rating: 7/10

Happy Deathday

"You must do battle with every single enemy you have ever defeated."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: November 1998

Printed in: DWM 272

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy, Seventh Doctor, Sixth Doctor, Fifth Doctor, Fourth Doctor, Third Doctor, Second Doctor, First Doctor

Synopsis

The Beige Guardian has kidnapped all eight incarnations of the Doctor, tied them up and placed them on a huge birthday cake with hissing dynamite 'candles' strapped to their heads. The Biege Guardian produces every enemy the Doctors have ever defeated, and they are forced to defeat them all once again...

Verdict

Happy Deathday was an outstanding comic strip adventure to celebrate Doctor Who's 35th anniversary! This really was a wonderful read from start to finish and I can't quite believe so much was done in just eight pages. It was a huge amount of fun from start to finish and was the perfect level of humour and self mockery to go along with what was actually a great plot! The idea of capturing all (at this point) eight incarnations of the Doctor is brilliant and the image of the opening panel that I have used as the picture above was just sensational. All eight Doctors side by side along with a description of their own personality was brilliant and I loved the satirical nature of the artwork that was carried throughout the comic adventure. That really helped in highlighting that this story shouldn't be taken too seriously and was just about having fun! The fact that all of the Doctors were lined on a cake was very good and in line with the theme surrounding the purpose of the story, but from there we were introduced to the culprit behind the snatching of all of the Doctors from their time stream - the dastardly Beige Guardian! He was magnificent and so silly which made him excellent and his recollection of the day where the Guardians got their colours assigned was so amusing. The pairing off of Doctors into the Mouth of Madness was really fun and I loved that we had the Second and Sixth Doctors together and their mentioning of trials after these two were the incarnations that stood trial on Gallifrey. We've seen them together before of course in The Two Doctors but getting another chance here was most welcomed. Them initially being confronted by what they thought was a Raston Warrior Robot but actually a Wildean Wit Enforcer was tremendous because he was one to punish bad puns! Having the Doctor around was a big liability then. The encounter with Davros and the Daleks was great and I loved the image of the Second Doctor against Davros because we never had that on screen. The pairing of the Third and Fifth Doctors was very good and the contrasting styles was fun in how they dealt with a combination of (drunk) Ogrons and Sontarans. The Fifth Doctor sitting back while the Third got on with some Venusian aikido was great, but he was able to shine with a cricket ball after discovering a Zygon in disguise! The Seventh and Fourth Doctors made for an intriguing pairing and the latter's fascination with a macadamia nut allergy was very amusing. They were more interested in each other than the band of enemies they were presented with which I thought was brilliant. Some of the artwork of the ensemble of enemies previously defeated was superb with comical images of the likes of Vervoids, Krotons, countless Cybermen, Omega, and even the Gods of Ragnarok! It was so good. The Eighth and First Doctors being the ones left behind to battle the Beige Guardian was great and they made a good pairing and light work in the end thanks to a fun catapult. Each of the Doctors then getting their own take on a final line was sublime with the First Doctor's lengthy, the Seventh dark and conniving, whilst the Fourth was more chilled and fun. Scott Gray absolutely found the voice of each incarnation of the Doctor which was so impressive. The ending with Izzy turning out to be playing a game on the Time-Space visualiser with some rather interesting game names also available! A game of Measles of the Daleks, anyone? Overall, just wonderful. 

Rating: 10/10

The Runaway Bride

"Get me to the church!"

Writer: Russell T Davies

Format: TV

Broadcast: 25 December 2006

Series: 2006 Christmas Special

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Donna

Synopsis

No sooner has the Doctor said a tear-stained farewell to Rose Tyler, he finds himself face-to-face with a women in the TARDIS, and she's dressed in a fluffy white wedding dress.

Who is she? Who is she supposed to be marrying? And how did she get on board?

Verdict

The Runaway Bride was a very fun episode to serve as the 2006 Christmas Special! Following on from watching the first two series of the modern era and the first series of Torchwood with Gemma earlier this year, on the eve of becoming parents we thought it would be a lovely time to watch the Special and provide some humour. It's still a while to go until Christmas, but with the wedding focus it didn't feel too much like a Christmas episode which actually works in its favour. Right from the off, there's excitement and humour and they are two brilliant ingredients for an adventure. Donna's reaction to being in the TARDIS is tremendous and the chemistry between David Tennant and Catherine Tate is so good. Those initial scenes where she opens the TARDIS door and realises she's in space, sees the jacket of Rose and accuses the Doctor of conspiring with Nerys kidnap her are just magnificent. They really are so fun. The slaps the Doctor receives are pretty warranted as he is quite intrusive on Donna with his scanning and then he tells her she's not special or important. The innocence of the Doctor at his best. A favourite thing of mine and Gemma's to do is pick out some questionable special effects and it's fair to say that some haven't aged well here with the overview of London and the motorway chase not being too incredible. I think there were also some production errors with at least one sign having Welsh on it despite the London setting! I thought the drama of the Robot Santas returning was great and really good continuity from The Christmas Invasion, events Donna didn't remember due to a hangover which I found fun. Learning of her relationship with Lance was good and I was amused that it was she who was begging for the wedding after only six months together. I've been with Gemma for over four years and that still feels a little while away yet despite the imminent birth of our baby boy. The after effects of Doomsday are felt in just the right amounts here with the Doctor seeing Rose at the reception in a blonde friend of Donna's, and I like how he doesn't name her to Donna until the very end despite alluding to her a lot. Donna's reaction to having the reception without her is terrific and she really does shine. Her constant reference to the Doctor being a Martian is wonderful as well and he has to just go along with it by the end. The emergence of the Racnoss as the power behind the Pilot Fish is good and I think the creature looks very impressive. Its position as an ancient race was excellent and the significance of Gallifrey getting named for the first time in the new series is not lost. It's an emphatic moment, just as it should be. The idea of the Racnoss being at the centre of the Earth is certainly intriguing and the plan to use the Huon particles was good, with Lance's reveal as the one poisoning Donna a very good moment, just when she thought an axe was axe. The ending is incredibly powerful with the Doctor drowning the Thames to drown the Racnoss children stuck below the large drop, with the web star then destroyed in quick fashion. The Torchwood continuity works very well and I like the dark atmosphere of what ultimately ends as an upbeat special. Overall, a great episode!

Rating: 9/10

He Jests at Scars

"I am the Time Lord and you are the mere human."

Writer: Gary Russell

Format: Audio

Released: August 2003

Series: Unbound 04

Featuring: Mel, Valeyard

Synopsis

What if... the Valeyard had won?

The thing about meddling with time is that one moment something is real, the next, it's been erased. Probability becomes just a possibility. Established truth becomes a theoretical falsehood. Like dominoes, as one timeline falls, the others come cascading down around it. You can engineer new timelines, new possibilities but before long, the distinction between what is, what was, what might be and what never can be becomes blurred.

Out of this grow myths, lies and legends. The Doctor was one such legend, but no one knows whether he truly ever existed. Well, not now they don't. The Mighty One, ruling the multiverses from the eternal city of Chronopolis has made sure of that.

Verdict

He Jests at Scars was an outstanding audio adventure! I thought this was a magnificent listen and definitely my favourite of the Unbound series so far. The what if concept here was excellent and playing with life after The Trial of a Time Lord in a scenario where the Valeyard was actually victorious was fantastic. What’s more, I loved that we got an insight into the travels and adventures of the Valeyard in his TARDIS and how this came alongside a companion in the form of Ellie. She was quite amusing in also not being too bothered by all of the destruction being wrought by the Valeyard, but it was clear there was a significant position of power in the TARDIS and it certainly didn’t belong to her. She was chastised for calling the Valeyard as the Doctor which was fun and I thought Michael Jayston played the role so well. It was a great take on the Doctor and despite it being released far before the incarnation was created, there were definitely vibes of the War Doctor there for me. Except this version of the Doctor went so far as to embracing evil and acting upon it, something he supposedly was surprising for all of his previous lives. That comment in itself was quite something, but the Valeyard now going so far as to try and undo a lot of what the Doctor had achieved in the past was terrific. That really was a brilliant concept for a story which worked ever so well. Starting with the events of Logopolis was a fun place to begin as I really enjoy that adventure and the Valeyard interfering with the time ram and shooting both the Fourth Doctor and the Master into oblivion was great! But then of course, issues with time ensued as the Valeyard had inadvertently committed self suicide. The chaos that stemmed from that was brilliant and we learned that the First Doctor and Dodo walked the streets of Logopolis. The Valeyard wanting to go as far as killing Dodo to try and put history back on the right track was quite something and it just showed how this really was the amalgamation of everything evil about the Doctor. Mel’s involvement to try and put things right after the Matrix began to decay was terrific and I really enjoyed hearing a darker side to her character, something we definitely didn’t get on screen. She killed the last Tharil which was a surprise but she’d come so far on her mission that she didn’t even care. That spoke volumes! Finding out that if she never met the Doctor in Brighton, as the Valeyard ensured through some simple interference by Ellie, that Mel would die of a brain tumour at the age of 48 was heartbreaking and I found it surprising that this wasn’t confirmed as not happening should time be restored, although it was stated that the reason was from radiation from communication devices on Earth. The uselessness of the President on Gallifrey was so much fun and that really allowed Vansell to shine as he observed events. He wasn’t overly keen on saving the Doctor from the Fantasy Factory, and he just saw it as an overdue mission completed when the Valeyard had gone back in time on Skaro and given the Thals an equation to wipe out the Daleks before they even began. There was then such an exciting finish with the Valeyard reflecting on all his interference and the possibilities and timelines created from interference in the lives of every incarnation of the Doctor. The mentions of the likes of Moroks and Nimon were good as well and I loved how there was just so much going on. The ending with the Valeyard and Mel stuck in the TARDIS after it had exerted all of its power to keep up the projections was excellent, and the irony of the Doctor and companion together for eternity was sublime. Overall, a superb audio!

Rating: 10/10

Timewyrm: Apocalypse

"If everything is perfect then there's no need to progress."

Writer: Nigel Robinson

Format: Novel

Released: October 1991

Series: New Adventures 03

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis

The end of the Universe. The end of everything.

The TARDIS has tracked the Timewyrm to the edge of the Universe and the end of time – to the lush planet Kirith, a paradise inhabited by a physically perfect race.

Ace is not impressed. Kirith has all the appeal of a wet weekend in Margate, and its inhabitants look like third-rate Aussie soap stars.

The Doctor is troubled, too: if the Timewyrm is here, why can't he find her? Why have the elite Panjistri lied consistently to the Kirithons they govern? And is it possible that the catastrophe that he feels impending is the result of his own past actions?

Verdict

Timewyrm: Apocalypse was an excellent novel to continue the New Adventures and Timewyrm series! It was a little shorter than the first two books comprising the story arc but that allowed for a good pace and it didn't actually feel that much shorter. The setting of Kirith was really unique and I really enjoyed the experimental society of its people. There was a lot going on here and whilst I thought the initial opening chapter establishing the planet and its people, with the hierarchy concerning the Panjistri, was a little bit too much of an info-dump, what followed was brilliant as we learned more gradually of what life was like on the planet. Establishing the timeframe the story was based was also brilliant and using a quote from the Logopolis novelisation to reveal that we were at the end of the universe where it had past its expiry date was fantastic. I thought the potential there was great and I enjoyed how that meant a lot of time had passed for the Timewyrm since the last encounter. I liked the presence of the Timewyrm throughout the book as we read some brief thoughts at the start of most chapters, but she only came into prominence towards the end where she combined with the Great Matriarch. That woman made for a good villain and I liked how despite the organisation she had created with the likes of Fetch as her devoted assistant and the Panjistri, she was very selfish and everything was centred to her own end goal. She was always influenced by the Timewyrm, and that influence also captured the Doctor. The little flashbacks and memories from the Doctor harking back to the Second Doctor era was really intriguing and I enjoyed the brief cameos of the likes of Ben and Polly, and Jamie and Zoe, with Victoria also remembered. The concept of the Timewyrm hiding in the Doctor's past due its links with the TARDIS was excellent and I loved that it picked a time where the Doctor was most vulnerable following his first regeneration. I'm not entirely sure how Lilith fitted in with The Power of the Daleks, but her ending up as the Great Matriarch made for a good story and some fun continuity. Ace had a really strong story, probably her best of the New Adventures so far, and she developed a really strong relationship with Raphael. She had the advances of a number of men on the planet because of her unique look among a physically perfect society, and her comment to one about getting started without her was perfect for Ace. The story surrounding Darien's disappearance and the memory wipe was really intriguing and played out well. I thought the Homunculus was quite the contraption and the idea of the Panjistri trying to create the perfect being with their God machine to save the universe was quite spectacular. Their needing Ace and her aggression as the final component was fun and it was a good use of her different qualities as companion. Miril was a good character as well as a senior statesman and father figure to Raphael, and his death was a very shocking moment! But they had to move on quickly. The attack from the giant creature was full of action and I thought there was a good build to the action of the climax. I thought it was a clever twist to have Raphael take over the God machine and quickly separate the Great Matriarch and the Timewyrm at the time of success, after five thousand years of waiting, was denied. Ace realising that his lack of wanting to kill, as evidenced by his distraught at shooting the Homunculus to save Ace, showed that the Timewyrm was merely banished and not killed which sets up the next book very nicely! Overall, a great read!

Rating: 9/10

The Suffering

"All men shall feel my pain."

Writer: Jacqueline Rayner

Format: Audio

Released: February 2010

Series: Companion Chronicles 4.07

Featuring: First Doctor, Vicki, Steven

Synopsis

The TARDIS materialises in England in the year 1912, a time of great social change. The Suffragette movement is lobbying for votes for woman, and the skull of the so-called 'missing link' has been discovered in Piltdown.

While Vicki falls victim to a strange influence, the Doctor and Steven investigate the fossilised remains. The Suffering has been unleashed. Can the travellers survive its rage?

Verdict

The Suffering was a good Companion Chronicle adventure, if not a little too long for the format. I think if this was streamlined a little then it would have gone down as a really great story! However, it went on slightly and I realise already that I sound negative when I really ought not to be as this was still very much a good adventure. I thoroughly enjoyed the start and the explanation as to how the story's recording and narration came to be with Vicki and Steven inside the TARDIS post the events that we would come to listen to over the course of the two-and-a-quarter hours or so. That was really clever and enjoyable and the self-mocking of Vicki not sounding like Steven and even later at the start of part two where Vicki basically tells Steven off for repeating the cliffhanger was tremendous. That was so much fun and it's no surprise to me to find Jacqueline Rayner was the author. That sort of quickness is exactly what I would expect of her and it didn't let me down. I was a big fan. I thought the pairing of Vicki and Steven was actually brilliant in this audio and it was a really nice insight into their relationship. It was still relatively early days for them as established by The Time Meddler reference and how Steven hadn't eaten since 1066, with his days as a prisoner as seen in The Chase still being felt as well. The companions' lack of historical knowledge of the twentieth century was amusing and their incredulity at the fact that women didn't have the vote here in 1912 was excellent. I like the dynamic these two bring as companions with them both being from the future. The links Vicki had with the Suffering and particularly harking back to The Rescue and her failed trip to Astra which resulted in the crash we would see the aftermath of was fantastic. I really liked the use of Vicki's voice and the mental aspects of them as an enemy. The gender theme was a powerful one at times and the Suffering wanting its namesake to apply only to men seemed apt for the adventure to be set at the time of the Suffragette Movement. That was a clever choice. I loved how it was Vicki that stood up for men and used the likes of the Doctor, Ian and Steven and their care and compassion for her as evidence that not all men should suffer. Sure, society at this time was predominantly man-centred and discriminatory towards women, but that wasn't a time Vicki knew. The Suffering's links to the fourth galaxy was something that really intrigued me and I like to think that they have some sort of links to the Drahvins, although at this point the trio hadn't encountered them. I thought the explanation of the Suffering's home world and what men did to women and then centred them on pain was very harsh and obviously bad, but it did go on a little when it came to the story. I also thought the way the Suffering was actually defeated lacked a bit of excitement and action whilst going long, although I appreciate the difficulties associated with the format and having just two actors. They did a fine job though and at its heart, I thought the story was a good one that just perhaps went a bit too long. Still, a more than enjoyable listen!

Rating: 7/10

Moving Target

"Frozen... everything? Everyone!"

Writer: Guy Adams

Format: Audio

Released: June 2016

Series: Torchwood Monthly 10

Featuring: Suzie

Synopsis

Suzie Costello would never describe herself as a hero. Not even if she were the last woman on Earth. Turns out, she's the second last woman on Earth, and that'll just have to do.

With the Earth frozen in time, Suzie becomes locked in a battle to save the planet and the life of Alex, the last woman alive. Hunted by alien warriors, and, with every hour that doesn't pass, the stakes are only getting higher.

Suzie Costello would never describe herself as a hero. But she would say she's someone who always makes the right choices. Wouldn't she?

Verdict

Moving Target was not the greatest of monthly Torchwood releases from Big Finish unfortunately! For whatever reason, I just couldn't find myself getting too invested in this adventure which was a big shame as I was really looking forward to exploring more of Suzie following on from her appearances in Everything Changes and They Keep Killing Suzie. She's a really interesting character and I just don't think this was the best use of her character. She represents part of the Torchwood team prior to where we join when the series starts, but this story closed her off from the rest of the world which would have worked better with a more familiar character in my opinion. I liked how there was a different take on the usual Torchwood introduction where the twenty-first century is where everything changes and Suzie reflects that she really should have been ready, but from what we know of her she very much was not. The concept at the heart of the episode in of itself wasn't bad and having time frozen and being able to explore the world and interact with it whilst everyone and everything remained frozen represented an incredible opportunity. I don't know what I'd give for that! Suzie realising that the time distortion generator she had 'borrowed' was inactive so deduced she wasn't the cause of whatever was happening outside, and she soon realised that she wasn't alone with Alex being another woman unaffected by the freezing of time. She seemed a fun character initially and very much ebullient, but I didn't grow to her and I think finding out the reason for her being the target came too late. I liked the concept behind her being future proof and the fact she would have a limited impact on the timeline as her pregnancy was ectopic and her fiancé was actually cheating on her with her best friend which would lead to an overdose. It was quite an abrupt series of revelations and then after a whole episode of escaping the hunters, something that dragged too long for me, Suzie went and killed her anyway! I really wasn't expecting the truth to be that the hunt would only end when the target died. I quite like the idea of being caught off guard like that, but it still just felt a little bit off. The whole hunt pausing for three hours after ten hunters were killed just felt wrong and Suzie only reading the rulebook bit by bit had a feeling that the rules could just be made up as we went along. I did enjoy the relationship built between Suzie and Alex until the vodka came out, and then we saw the damage that can be caused by alcohol. Alex calming that Suzie wasn't saving her out of selflessness but actually because she wanted to be important. There was clearly some foreshadowing of Suzie's fate, and that was also sparked by the Referee who turned out to be an incredibly annoying robot. I didn't like him at all. As a whole, this did have a brilliant concept at its heart but I think this was a failed opportunity to explore Suzie and her involvement in Torchwood. It had its moments, but as a whole it failed to get me hooked which was a shame. 

Rating: 5/10

The Ultimate Foe

"I want you to meet my darker side."

Writers: Robert Holmes & Pip and Jane Baker

Format: TV

Broadcast: 29 November - 6 December 1986

Season: 23d

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Mel

Synopsis

The Doctor is on trial for his life. Plucked out of time and space by the Time Lords, he is charged with transgressing the First Law of Time. He must defend himself against the prosecution led by the sinister Valeyard...

The Doctor has tried to prove his innocence, but the Valeyard is certain of his guilt and will stop at nothing to carry out a sentence of death. But there is a surprise witness waiting in the wings; one who knows the truth...

With the trial in disarray, the Doctor flees into the Matrix to confront his enemy, into a nightmarish world of torture and punishment. Trapped within, he will have to fight for his life against the ultimate foe...

Verdict

The Ultimate Foe concluded The Trial of a Time Lord in a very unique way to say the least! This really does have a feeling of being so different to the three instalments that preceded it and taking the approach that I have with the titular adventure that comprises Season 23 of Doctor Who, this felt even whackier! It really does have so much going on and one thing it definitely has going for it is intrigue. It's just whacky and that makes it different and I think it pays off. It's a fun tale that doesn't mess around and whilst it does have that feeling of picking pieces up with all that was going on with the writers and production team behind Doctor Who at this time, but it somehow manages to work. The Master is injected which is brilliant and I love seeing the Anthony Ainley version alongside the Sixth Doctor as we didn't get a pure meeting between the pair on screen, but this was as close as it got. I think the way that he calmly announces the true identity of the Valeyard is fun and my only qualm with his appearance is that the Inquisitor doesn't know who he is. I think that fails in terms of continuity from the likes of The Five Doctors and just the general standing of the Master on Gallifrey. It was fun though that as soon as he turned up chaos ensued and the Doctor's claims that the Matrix had been tampered with were found true. The image of the Master from within the Matrix itself was impressive and whilst I found the Keeper of the Matrix pretty pathetic, the audacity of the renegade Time Lord to run riot within the very fabric of Gallifrey is excellent. The Doctor and the Valeyard doing mental battle of sorts was great and I think the fantasy factory and land within the Matrix was brilliant. It was so different and probably a bit ahead of its time, and the cliffhanger is quite the visual. There were a lot of good visuals in the story to be fair. It was definitely a highlight. I think the directing in this one was smart and would have benefited from a time where technology was superior, but I appreciated the effort and the style that was being attempted. The arrivals of Mel and Sabalom Glitz into the adventure were pretty fun, even if they didn't end up doing an awful lot. Glitz having a business relationship with the Master was something fun to explore and I liked that Mel was challenging him on their arrival. Her spoiling the Doctor's plan was amusing as well and I thought Colin Baker performed that cunningly. He took on the verdict of genocide and forced death to ensure a confrontation with the Valeyard, but he didn't quite get it. Popplewick wasn't my favourite of characters, but the confusion that came from so many different versions of him was good. I enjoyed the Master's TARDIS featuring heavily and his desire to help the Doctor over a jealousy of putting him to the sword was amusing, but sure if he defeated the Valeyard then he would get his goal in the end? The concept of the Valeyard is excellent and at the time I imagine it would have been rather fun to explore. Of course, we've now gone past the Doctor's thirteenth incarnation but I can still appreciate that it was all of the dark elements of our famed character. The ending with him having survived was a nice touch and it's a shame there was never a follow up! Overall, a good ending to the season but I maintain that the serial should be viewed in its entirety rather than as four chapters. It just flows better.

Rating: 8/10

#HarrySullivan

"What do you call a freighter full of journalists?"

Writer: Eddie Robson

Format: Audio

Released: August 2019

Series: Short Trips 9.08

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis

En route to answer the Brigadier's summons, the TARDIS is dragged off course. The Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry find themselves trapped on The Zephyr, a spaceship that is going at full speed and yet is unable to move. With fuel running dangerously low, their only hope lies on Deraxas, a nearby world exclusively for the famous and celebrated.

However, Alderasea has never heard of them and has no intention of letting them land...

Verdict

#HarrySullivan was a good and fun little Short Trips adventure! I must admit that the title of this story has intrigued me ever since it was released so I'm delighted to have finally delved into it. I was intrigued right away to find that Louise Jameson was the narrator despite Leela not appearing in the audio and I thought that was going to be a bit strange and somewhat off-putting, but I actually thought she did a stellar job and it actually helped with her usual character not being present because we didn't have a familiar actor doing impressions and interacting with others that her character was engaged with. That was definitely a big bonus. I think the trio of the Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry is excellent and the way they were written here was really impressive in capturing the era of Season 12. I felt authentic and I liked the continuity we had with Revenge of the Cybermen and how this fitted in after that serial but before Terror of the Zygons with the Brigadier's summons not being answered immediately after a slight highjacking. The scenes inside the TARDIS with that were a lot of fun with the Doctor blaming Harry for touching the controls on the console, but Sarah was there to back up his innocence. It really was greta characterisation of the Fourth Doctor. The freighter that they arrived on of the Zephyr was good and I liked the concept of it being stuck in a zeno field was really intriguing to explore. Getting a hint of that inside the TARDIS with the doors and the console constantly appearing to get further away was interesting and I liked how they were stuck right in the middle. That was clearly troublesome, but with regards to the freighter this was a deliberate occurrence from the occupants of the planet Deraxas who didn't intend on letting them land. The freighter being full of journalists was decent and allowed Sarah Jane to be right at home, and finding out that the planet only let in people who were famous was magnificent. I really enjoyed that concept and even though it was a little slow to really kick into gear, the moment where Harry realised that he was going to become the story was certainly a highlight. He was socially awkward and he wasn't overly comfortable becoming the heart of the story, but it allowed Sarah Jane to shine and use her skills in a field close to her own. She was used to writing stories and now she could create the basis for one. It didn't take long for Harry to become the talk of the town which was good, but when he arrived on the planet it didn't seem as interesting as it ought to be. I liked that everyone seemed quite pompous and happy with their status, and I think some visuals for Harry fitting into this environment would have been really beneficial, but ultimately we didn't have time to waste and he went straight to the point of asking for the freighter to be cleared to land. That wouldn't be possible due to the request of an incredibly high profile guest Carla Colini. However, she didn't last in prominence too long as it was found that there was a true story at hand where she had been replaced and rather have that leaked, Harry was able to orchestrate a bargain that would keep the truth hidden but allow the freighter to land. It was a pretty simple and quick fix, but it tied everything together rather nicely. Overall, a fun little listen!

Rating: 7/10