Encore of the Scorchies

"Even puppets can evolve."

Writer: James Goss

Format: Audio

Released: October 2014

Series: Jago & Litefoot 8.01

Featuring: Jago, Litefoot

Synopsis

There's a new act at the New Regency Theatre, and Jago and Litefoot are about to face their grand finale.

Verdict

Encore of the Scorchies was a great start to the eighth series of Jago and Litefoot! I can’t quite believe I’ve made my way to the eighth series already but it’s been a tremendous ride that shows no signs of letting up. After a fun cliffhanger at the end of The Wax Princess with Jago hiring the puppet Scorchies as his latest act, we had a bit of a time jump to start this episode which was good in moving things along. Jago was once again revelling in the riches of a successful act at the New Regency Theatre and he’d gone so far as almost forgetting his closest friends. Litefoot and Ellie visiting the old chum was quite a sad moment as after all they’d been through he seemed to just be ignoring them. It was almost like he’d nearly forgotten them! Of course, this was down to the influence of the Scorchies who I thought were great enemies for the episode. It does appear that this particular series may be a little lighter on an arc which is fine by me as we’ve had considerable continuity and flow across the first seven series of this range. It could be good to take a step back from that. I must admit I was a little trepidatious prior to listening about the musical elements of the adventure. I feared it was going to be a full on musical but that was thankfully not the case. The songs were a little cheesy in parts and let’s not mention names when it comes to some of the bad singing, but Ellie really did steal the show here at the end and I think her musical number alone raised my rating by a mark. Her banter regarding being forgotten was so amusing because as she stated she really is integral to the success of this series. I firmly believe she’s such a key part. Her lines about being immortal because she’s essentially a vampire were fun and her suggestion about getting her own spin-off series was amazing. The inside jab there was fantastic and it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if Big Finish did come out with an Ellie Higson series! It wouldn’t be the first for an original character. Just look at Graceless or Vienna. Nancy Pettigew was a good character that was also under the Scorchies’ influence, but for me the highlights were Mister and Missus. They weren’t seemingly the Overlords, but the evolution of puppets was intriguing to explore! They were aliens and Litefoot’s lack of reaction to that was presented in a really fun way. He was nonplussed. I think Ellie saving the day was a really nice touch and just added to the impact of her song. Jago realising he’d been wrong and under Scorchie influence was good and it was lovely for him to unite once again with Litefoot and Ellie at the end. Jago had lost his act but he’d returned to normal. I do wonder now if Litefoot will have more influence in a future episode as he definitely didn’t feel like he was in the background here. Thankfully, I think one episode with the Scorchies is more than enough as whilst I enjoy them despite my hatred of musicals, I think anything more than this will be an overstay. Overall, a really fun opener! 

Rating: 8/10

Once and Future: Time Lord Immemorial

"Once upon a Gallifrey."

Writer: Lisa McMullin

Format: Audio

Released: October 2023

Series: Once and Future 06

Featuring: Ninth Doctor, Unbound Doctor, Liv

Synopsis

Slipping between bodies, the Ninth Doctor finds his TARDIS caught between universes as the cosmos starts to break down. A Doctor from another reality arrives and they join forces with Liv Chenka and the Lumiat to find the cause. Someone has desecrated the mythical Hall of the Time Lord Immemorial, where the sands of time from the multiverse are held. And those sands are running out...

Verdict

Time Lord Immemorial was another fun adventure to continue my way through the Once and Future sixtieth anniversary celebration from Big Finish! I’ve seen the series getting a lot of negative reviews on social media with a number of fans not entirely sure what’s going on. But I think that mystery is actually part of its charm. It’s not taking itself too seriously and I quite like that. Sure, it’s been a bit shaky in places and not making a whole lot of sense. The order also seems a little odd with the degeneration going around in all sorts of circles and giving us incarnations from the Doctor from all sorts of places and times, but it’s giving us some really fun pairings! The concept of the Ninth Doctor encountering the Unbound Doctor is brilliant and I quite liked how these two darker Doctors gelled. They had good chemistry and you could obviously tell that Christopher Eccleston was excited to be working with David Warner. It’s such a shame that this is a posthumous release for the Unbound Doctor but it’s a fitting way for him to have a send off. He should be celebrated too. The moment the two Doctors interact for the first time as their TARDISes almost merge with one materialising inside the other was a lot of fun and some humorous conversation about the TARDIS interior theme was much welcomed. Neither recognising the other as a past incarnation was good and that revealed to them that they were from different universes. I thought it was perhaps slightly too much to suggest that the universe was degenerating too, but the idea of a crossover point was good and could have helped the Unbound Doctor during the events of Ruler of the Universe in the New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield. As if these two Doctors meeting wasn’t enough, we also had an unlikely pairing of Liv Chenka and the Lumiat. This technically does give us an unlikely meeting of the Ninth Doctor and the Master, but it’s an incredibly unique one! I thought Liv did get a little lost in the shuffle and it’s a shame we’ve already heard alongside the Ninth Doctor back in Flatpack, but the Lumiat was a welcomed addition. The concept of everything that’s good in the Master being in one incarnation is good fun and the Doctor just not believing that was a nice touch. Why would he? She was fun though and the quirks of Missy being there were very much felt in the performance. I thought the titular Time Lord Immemorial was very good and definitely has potential for future exploration even with its mythical status. I’m not really sure how it differed from the Matrix, but the Doctor seeing events of past and future from Axos to the Nethersphere was tremendous. It did feel a little like filler towards the end as the Lumiat was able to reveal to the Doctor more about the Union and how it might cure his degeneration, so I am looking forward to hearing how things play out in the next episode in the anniversary month. I hope it’s explosive! The Doctor getting a message from Susan at the ends sets us up nicely as involving the Doctor’s family is a pretty big deal. The Unbound Doctor returned back to his own universe in perhaps calmer circumstances than might have been better, but it was lovely to have him whilst we did. Overall, just another fun outing that brought us an unlikely and very whacky combination! A worthy listen. 

Rating: 8/10

The Wondrous Box

"This blue box was a wonder indeed."

Writer: Juliet Boyd

Format: Audio

Released: May 2011

Series: Short Trips 3.04

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane

Synopsis

The Doctor and Sarah Jane pay an ill-timed visit to PT Barnum and The Greatest Show on Earth.

Verdict

The Wondrous Box was a great little story to conclude my listening of the third volume of Short Trips! I’ve completed this release in an extremely roundabout away across nearly a decade which is quite staggering really, but they really do fill a little gap on my way to the football on the train. I also get to write this blog on that same train journey which is nice and really makes the time fly by on the fifty minutes from the Rhondda valleys into Cardiff. I was in intrigued from the start prior to listening by the fact that Louise Jameson was the narrator but it was actually Sarah Jane Smith as the companion accompanying the Fourth Doctor. That was fun and whilst I usually prefer the actual actress to voice their own character, Jameson did a really good job. I thought the sound effects of her dialogue in sounding a little distant and quieter really did well to cloud the fact it was still just one actor and neither were played by the original. Jameson did a really good job and her narration is tremendous. It really does help with my enjoyment of the story. I thought the title was fun when it turned out to be referring to the TARDIS and when that was made clear in the story I felt really silly I’m not realising that this would be the case. There wasn’t a more wondrous box in the universe! I thought it was quite fun to have the TARDIS crashing quite soon after landing on an uneven pallet and the circus surroundings were really good. It’s a fine place for a Doctor Who story and I’m honestly surprised that we haven’t had more circus-based adventures. There’s a lot of potential there! Benjamin Jackson taking an interest in the TARDIS was fun stuff and he was adamant he would have it as an exhibition. With it being able to appear and reappear it was a shoe in to be part of the show! Imagine that? It was fun to think about and I do wonder if the Doctor, particularly here in his fourth incarnation, would embrace that. He’d be at home as part of a circus act for sure. Benjamin Jackson actually getting his hands on the TARDIS key and finding his way through the lock potentially contradicts some earlier adventures in how difficult it would be to open the lock even when having the key, but it was still fun. He really did react in wonder to seeing the TARDIS interior and I liked how he was expecting to bump into a mirror imminently. Instead, he found a corridor and a display that listed the 1885 date, but it wasn’t in any kind of ink that he knew. He would even marvel at the introduction of electricity and the lightbulb, so the vast whiteness of the TARDIS interior was quite impressive! I thought that was great. Sarah Jane picking up on hearing the TARDIS as it moved 200 yards was fun although surely the Doctor would recognise his own Time Machine dematerialising? I thought that was slightly odd. I also thought a bit more explanation regarding how the TARDIS moved such a short distance and stayed in the same time was required, but it was still just entertaining. The way things ended with the elephant and train crash was quite emotional and the TARDIS being the reason for that as it was moved and filling the gap the elephant had noticed was powerful stuff. I do like a strong emotional pull. Overall, a really good adventure! 

Rating: 8/10

Hearts of Darkness: The Cognition Shfit

"Don't apologise to the people attacking you."

Writer: Lisa McMullin 

Format: Audio

Released: October 2020

Series: War Master 5.04

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, War Master

Synopsis

"Find the Doctor... stop the Doctor... and, if necessary, kill the Doctor!"

Recruited by the Celestial Intervention Agency to track down his oldest enemy, the Master finds himself thrown into a mission that will take him into deepest Dalek territory.

Abandoned on the planet Redemption, he assembles a crew and acquires a ship – the journey that follows is certain to test them all... and not everyone will survive.

But space pirates and living corpses are the least of their worries. Their biggest threat remains at large: a Time Lord who likes to call himself 'The Doctor'.

Verdict

The Cognition Shift was a decent episode to conclude what has been a really strong Hearts of Darkness fifth series of War Master adventures! Unfortunately, the finale actually gets the lowest score of the t tier series which is a bit of a shame as I felt things were built to really nicely. I enjoyed the approach of the previous episode in The Castle of Kurnos 5 catching us up with what happened to result in the Master and the Doctor swapping bodies, but unfortunately I thought that very fact hurt this story a little. I like the idea on paper but I don’t think an audio format was the best place to utilise it. That is in mo way speaking negatively on the performances of Paul McGann or Derek Jacobi, I just think it got a bit confusing with how long they did stay in the other’s body and the amount of thinking required to remind myself of which voice was actually for what character was a little frustrating. It took me out of the relaxed nature I normally enjoy an audio adventure in. Now, as my rating suggests this was still a strong story and one I enjoyed. Speaking of the performances, it was actually really fun to hear Paul McGann voice the Master and dive into the dark side of his acting ability. I thought he was great and certainly convincing. I think it was a little more difficult to buy Jacobi as the Doctor but that’s probably because we’ve know for a while now this isn’t actually the Master. I think the problems lay in when they were interacting or at the end when the bird got involved. It felt unnatural and it didn’t come off smoothly. Finding out about the cognition shift and what the Master’s plan was made for a really entertaining reveal. If I hadn’t recently listened to The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50 I might agree with the Doctor’s sentiment that this was the Master’s craziest plan yet, but it was certainly up there! Finding out what he wanted to swap minds with was incredible and certainly something I did not see coming. He wanted a transference with the entire Dalek webpath. That was an incredible concept as it was more than enough for him to infiltrate that web, but the device was one of a means of swapping so every bit of Dalek would be congested into one mind. That was frighteningly brilliant. I’d have loved more time for that to come into fruition. Dorada’s involvement was good although I wasn’t a fan of the whole bird thing. Exploring the Scaramancer’s guilt when it came to leaving her sister to die was superb and still so powerful, despite being a little repetitive. The emotion there was fantastic and it was a horrible decision. She lamented that she didn’t get to say goodbye so the Master gave her that chance, but he still refused to save her or swap places. It must have been awful knowing you had the privilege of survival. I thought the conclusion was slightly underwhelming in how the Master and the Doctor were restored to their bodies, but the Scaramancer getting to be the hero and return home to go by her proper name was a nice touch and a neat way to end things for her. The Master revealing that he’d committed a number of crimes whilst in the Doctor’s body was fun and I hope that comes into play in the Eighth Doctor’s Time War series somewhere in the future, but for now this was a good listen.

Rating: 7/10

Hearts of Darkness: The Castle of Kurnos 5

"Darkness abhors light."

Writer: David Llewellyn 

Format: Audio

Released: October 2020

Series: War Master 5.03

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, War Master

Synopsis

"Find the Doctor... stop the Doctor... and, if necessary, kill the Doctor!"

Recruited by the Celestial Intervention Agency to track down his oldest enemy, the Master finds himself thrown into a mission that will take him into deepest Dalek territory.

Abandoned on the planet Redemption, he assembles a crew and acquires a ship – the journey that follows is certain to test them all... and not everyone will survive.

But space pirates and living corpses are the least of their worries. Their biggest threat remains at large: a Time Lord who likes to call himself 'The Doctor'.

Verdict

The Castle of Kurnos 5 was an excellent episode to continue my way through the Hearts of Darkness fifth series of adventures for the War Master! After a fine cliffhanger at the end of The Scaramancer that revealed the Master was actually the Doctor, this told the story of how we reached that situation ahead of what I’m sure will be an explosive finale! I like the idea of the Doctor tracking artron energy and finding his way to the Master, but what I liked even more was the fact the renegade Time Lord had been at Kurnos 5 for decades concocting his plan. I do enjoy it when the Master plays the long game and this was a fine example. His TARDIS exterior had even gone mouldy and was growing moss! I thought it was wonderful to have Paul McGann starring as the Eighth Doctor and just hearing this incarnation in the Time War is great. He’s not involved but he certainly knew all about the Lehar System and the Dalek strongholds. He arrived on Kurnos 5 amidst a rather sticky situation with young people going missing and he was instantly accused by Kilda of being the culprit. He’d arrived at the worst time and she wasted no time in having him locked up. He appealed to her admirably though and in fine Doctor fashion to help her find Meri, her missing daughter. The Master’s plans with her were extraordinary though and she was the key to his long mission. Exploring Gallifreyan history is always something I’m a big fan of, so learning all about Cardinal Magos was a big treat. His experiments in trying to raise an army of the dead under his control made for no surprise that he was banished by the Time Lords, but the very idea of that being a choice alongside execution hardly meant it would be a difficult decision. So his experiments continued and in the meantime he had spawned ancestors. The Master tracking that family line in the hopes of getting some vital information about the cognition shift, the Cardinal’s most famed invention, was quite incredible. Meri was a distant ancestor and that meant she could be used to bring back the brain of Magos for communication. He couldn’t see or feel, but the Master got the location of Nastrond. That tied things together nicely with what we already know this series. Except the Master would never get in, but the Doctor might. And so it figured that the signal the Doctor had tracked was a simple lure and the body transference occurred quite dramatically! The very idea is so much fun and I can’t wait to hear them play opposite each other in the finale. There’s so much potential there and I also look forward to exploring more about the cognition shift. Narvin picking things up at the end of the episode with how we started the series was fun and a nice link to connect everything together ahead of the finale. I thought Dieter’s role as the Master’s assistant was good and I also loved hearing the laser screwdriver in action. The Master was at his best here and I love to hear it. Overall, a terrific episode to move us forward!

Rating: 9/10

Hearts of Darkness: The Scaramancer

"Use your own weapon against yourself."

Writer: Lisa McMullin

Format: Audio

Released: October 2020

Series: War Master 5.02

Featuring: War Master

Synopsis

"Find the Doctor... stop the Doctor... and, if necessary, kill the Doctor!"

Recruited by the Celestial Intervention Agency to track down his oldest enemy, the Master finds himself thrown into a mission that will take him into deepest Dalek territory.

Abandoned on the planet Redemption, he assembles a crew and acquires a ship – the journey that follows is certain to test them all... and not everyone will survive.

But space pirates and living corpses are the least of their worries. Their biggest threat remains at large: a Time Lord who likes to call himself 'The Doctor'.

Verdict

The Scaramancer was a very good audio adventure to continue my way through the Hearts of Darkness fifth series for the War Master! This followed on immediately where The Edge of Redemption left off with Morski and the Master en route to the Lehar System, except the dynamic of their relationship changed immediately. Morski revealed that he’d killed Ilya in cold blood because he knew who the mysterious Mr Seta actually was. Just having him name the Master gave him some sort of power which was fun. I liked that a similar approach to the previous episode was taken in having a main quartet of characters with Dorada and the Scaramancer replacing the roles of Ilya and Kriket here. I thought the latter was a brilliant character and certainly worthy of being the titular reference. Her backstory with the Master was nothing short of extraordinary and absolutely the shining moment of the episode. I liked the idea of events for him being in his personal future so he didn’t recognise her, but the flashback scene to the disaster on her home planet was a fine illustration of the chaos and destruction being caused by the Time War. She was on a stronghold for access to the fifteen hidden galaxies which was quite intriguing and I’d certainly like to know more about them moving forward, but both sides were desperate for victory and control here. And it seemed the Daleks had it. The Master didn’t seem that bothered and it’s clear he feels no Time Lord loyalty or patriotism. But with the Daleks in control he knew it was time to leave. The Scaramancer was born out of the Master giving her an impossible and option-less choice. He knew a pulse wave was coming and that meant death, but she wanted to save her sister. He’d offered to save her, but just her. He even admitted that he could easily save her sister with his TARDIS, but he wouldn’t. He was giving her a choice as part of a cruel and spontaneous psychological experiment. Survive and your sister dies, or die with your sister. I don’t think she was wrong to pick survival, but the Master revelled in this kind of evil. It was beyond cruel and that’s the War Master at his best. The rumours and myths going around about that story and how the Scaramancer was born was very good. I liked that Dorada had a connection with the Doctor and his being on Nastrond felt a little odd, especially with it being described as the planet of corpses. That was really good. I look forward to visiting there presumably in the finale. Except it seems we have already encountered the Doctor as some of the Master’s nice tendencies may have been answered. The cliffhanger finish was really unexpected as the Master claimed to be merely a face, and he was actually the Doctor! If true, that’s quite something. Could it be that it was the Doctor who was actually sent on his own kill mission by Narvin? That will be quite fun if so. I did have some sort of suspicion the Master wasn’t himself when he prevented Morski from killing the Scaramancer, but I wasn’t expecting that! It was really fun and sets up an exciting and mightily intriguing next episode. Dorada escaping was good and I suspect we won’t have seen the last of her. Overall, a great episode! 

Rating: 8/10

Hearts of Darkness: The Edge of Redemption

"It's a war I don't think anyone can win."

Writer: David Llewellyn

Format: Audio

Released: October 2020

Series: War Master 5.01

Featuring: War Master

Synopsis

"Find the Doctor... stop the Doctor... and, if necessary, kill the Doctor!"

Recruited by the Celestial Intervention Agency to track down his oldest enemy, the Master finds himself thrown into a mission that will take him into deepest Dalek territory.

Abandoned on the planet Redemption, he assembles a crew and acquires a ship – the journey that follows is certain to test them all... and not everyone will survive.

But space pirates and living corpses are the least of their worries. Their biggest threat remains at large: a Time Lord who likes to call himself 'The Doctor'.

Verdict

The Edge of Redemption was an excellent episode to kick off the Hearts of Darkness fifth series of War Master adventures! I’m a huge fan of the Time War incarnation of the Master and it’s always wonderful to hear Derek Jacobi back in the role. He’s a fine actor and he just has a chilling ability to bring a sinister and dark dimension to an already troubled and evil character. The calm demeanour is impressive and I liked how it was on display throughout. Starting a series with Narvin giving the Master instructions to not only locate the Doctor, but to kill him was quite a bold way to kick things off! But it showed this series meant business and I’m really looking forward to where we go from here, especially with the artwork showing that the Eighth Doctor will be showing up at some point. I can’t wait for another interaction. Narvin getting angered by the Master’s dawdling was quite fun and I was surprised that the entire first episode was centred on the Master obtaining a ship from Redemption to reach the Lehar System. I liked that there were very limited takers on that journey because of the dangers involved, but the Master found his way to Morski who was potentially willing to go anywhere for the right price. The only problem was his ship was impounded so that made for a good basis in the plot to free that. Kriket was a fun character and when he initially robbed the Master of his credits card I thought he was going to pay the price immediately, but he ended up sacrificing his life much later on in very different circumstances. He’d recruited Ilya because she was the only Medusan and her flexible ability meant she could break in and get the ship. The quartet made a fun team and I must admit I was a little surprised that the Master was playing along so well. He’s not usually a team player, but irking the Time Lords and eventually getting to the Doctor with instructions to kill him is a good enough motive for me. He revels in the long game. Ilya also dying at the end was quite sudden and I didn’t expect Morski to be the one who pulled the trigger. The way she recognised the Master immediately was excellent but she didn’t think he could be the same Time Lord as the one who had destroyed her entire planet and family. But when the Master required medical attention and she realised he was, her reaction was tremendous. It was genuine shock and fright. The audacity of him encountering her. I enjoyed the action of getting to the ship and despite the casualties at the end of the episode, it does appear that Morski will be sticking around to take the Master to his destination. Credits talk. I do hope this will now allow the Master to show a bit more of his evil side moving forward, but the Time War was clearly having a profound effect. Even Morski was asking about it and if it’ll end in his lifetime. Using the alias of Mr Seta was good fun also. I love an obvious anagram. Overall, this was a thrilling and very entertaining start to the series! I can’t wait to continue.  

Rating: 9/10

The Zygon Invasion

"The longer one lived in these bodies, the more one began to understand."

Writer: Peter Harness 

Format: Novel

Released: July 2023

Printed in: Target 175

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis

"We will die in the fire instead of living in chains."

For years, 20 million shape-changing Zygons have lived among us in secret. They wear human form, hiding in plain sight. Now a fanatical Zygote splinter group seek to expose their own kind and provoke a conflict that will force both sides to the brink of Armageddon to ensure their own survival.

It took three Doctors to broker a fragile peace between Zygons and Humans. Now the 12th must face the fallout alone. With his allies compromised and his companion believed dead, can he stop the world from plunging into war?

Verdict

The Zygon Invasion was a great novelisation of the two-part The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion from Series 9! When the next batch of Target books were released I thought this was a strong choice to represent the Twelfth Doctor era because this is a defining story for this incarnation. The moment where Peter Capaldi delivers that speech on war can’t ever be done justice in prose, but a stellar job was done at trying to present that. I liked that the prose format was used to show that the Doctor felt like he needed to perform and put on a show with this speech. The alternatives if it went wrong were pretty dire. I enjoyed how well the book was represented as a sequel to The Day of the Doctor and having a number of flashbacks to that with the three Doctors was good. Clara being the bridge between the two stories was excellent too and I thought she had a strong outing in the companion role. It was a little weird just tapping into the era for this story here and she almost feels bigger than the companion role with her not constantly travelling in the TARDIS. I didn’t like that on television and I don’t like it here. It just doesn’t feel right and the Doctor begging after her with 127 missed calls seems a bit desperate. She revelled in that, but I’m not sure it’s the dynamic needed. The use of footnotes in the book to reference a couple of other Target novelisations was a really nice and it’s just lovely that Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster got some love as the first Zygon book. Some of the Zygons feeling abandoned by their Skarasen was a really nice inclusion too. I was a big fan of the Zygon continuity. I loved how Osgood was presented and her desire to not reveal which version - human or Zygon - was killed by Missy was great. I think a little more could have been dwelled on with that, but the effects were clear. She’d screamed for two days with the link they had. I do think there was a little bit of silliness with the likes of Clara pondering on what her bum looked like when she saw Bonnie in her body print, and some of the Doctor’s comments and puns were too cheesy. Too much disco. I think that’s the Steven Moffat influence though. I thought Jac was good as Kate’s second in command and Walsh was a strong character too, especially when killing a Zygon that was posing as her son. That was very powerful stuff. It was inevitable that the ceasefire was always going to fail, but the way the Zygon High Command had tried to keep it intact was a big shock. The fact Etoine had been ordered to kill some of his own race because they wanted to be free and risk breaking the treaty was horrible! Bonnie sympathised in setting him free. She was a really fun character and I liked the addition of the flashback scenes with Clyde having the body print of Danny. It tapped into Clara’s mind nicely and the grief she’d felt of losing him. I thought the cliffhanger moment was presented very well in the book and I liked the anticipation of the presidential plane being shot at. I’m still not a huge fan of Clara being able to control Bonnie from within, but the communication to the Doctor through winking was a clever touch. The Osgood Box was a fun deceive and it being empty was obvious but the moment Kate and Bonnie realised and stepped away was terrific. The Doctor’s performance paid off. I do think the return to ceasefire was done ever so slightly quickly, and maybe divulging some firm details would have been good. But alas, Bonnie taking the form of the deceased Osgood and them being a double act once again is a really nice touch. I totally forgot that happened so that was a fun moment at the end. Overall, a great novelisation of an iconic story!

Rating: 8/10

Glass

"It was the same face, just watching me with that smile."

Writer: Tara Samms

Format: Short Story

Released: March 1998

Printed in: Short Trips 07

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis

From Neolithic Earth to the furthest reaches of the universe in the far future, Short Trips brings together established Doctor Who authors and first-time writers in a collection of stories exploring the ever-changing worlds of the Doctor and his friends.

Witness the last days of the siege of Masada with the First Doctor and meet the Fourth Doctor's extraordinary 'old flame'. An evil enemy makes life difficult for the Seventh and Third Doctors, and while the Fifth Doctor is under attack on a sinister ship shrouded in fog, the Second may soon be guilty of a grave error of judgement... The Sixth Doctor's hopes of a holiday are dashed when he discovers a pleasure planet is hiding a shocking secret, and the Eighth Doctor is caught up in a deadly drama played out during the construction of Stonehenge.

And, of course, that's just the beginning...

Verdict

Glass was a great little story to continue my way through the first volume of the Short Trips books! Whilst I’m traditionally not a fan of reading a story in the first person, this was a really strong adventure! I was hooked right away from the unidentified woman’s trauma and the way she was recounting her awful experience was really well done. It instantly grasped me with the language and the sheer agony she felt. I instantly believed everything she had gone through and that was good because the idea of a face in the glass, every bit of glass, does sound rather ludicrous. It’s a brilliant concept for a Doctor Who story though and helped explain this instalment in the book’s title! I was intrigued prior to listening to see what the reference would be concerning, but it actually became a little like horror. I could see this adventure absolutely being made on television with some sort of horror vibes, and it would definitely fit with Torchwood. There was already something akin to an adult theme with this story when it came to the woman describing her neighbours and hearing them either arguing or being at it loudly. Of course, sex wasn’t referred to by name but it didn’t take much to put two and two together there. Hearing how she listened even more than usual since the glass instances was intriguing and almost quite sad, but the toll the glass was having on her life was extraordinary. She was frightened of lightbulbs and couldn’t even look at her own son Jason because he wore glasses. She swiped them off his face cutting him in the process and that delivered some serious tension. Her husband Alan was slightly more understanding despite the likes of candles burning and curtains being drawn to prevent any kind of glass being needed. She’d locked herself up in her room and that’s when the Doctor and Romana emerged onto the scene. They knew what was happening and were the only two people who could help, much to our narrator’s relief. She was sceptical at first, and rightly so, but when a jelly baby was the peace offering she couldn’t help but laugh. I liked that. It was a fun way to establish the incarnation of the Doctor was the Fourth, although I do think it was a little odd to omit Romana’s name. Thankfully, the description her hair and outfit was enough to tell us this was the Time Lady in her second incarnation. The golden pairing of the Classic era! Due to the nature of the first person perspective, they didn’t get too much of a chance to shine with their humour but it wasn’t really that kind of story. The smile in the glass in particular was quite chilling and I was a big fan of the Cambridge setting to have this as essentially a follow on from Shada which is very fun indeed. They’d just sorted things there but one mind had gotten loose so they were tying up loose ends which I really liked. The woman didn’t really understand and she acknowledged her lack of comprehension for a lot of the words used which felt real. She was none the wiser about a lot of the details and she just wanted the glass creature out of her life. That was more than enough with the family issues they’d had in their new home with her mother-in-law dying a fortnight later. The house was back up for sale with everything the woman was going through with the glass and these kind of real world issues were great to explore. I thought the way things ended with the Doctor and Romana using branches to permanently crack and splinter the glass to drain the creature out was good and the ambiguity and lack of clarity actually fitted in nicely with the first person nature. How would she be able to explain the Doctor taking the creature away. But she was safe, but she didn’t want the greenhouse rebuilt. Overall, a very good read!

Rating: 8/10

Murmurs of Earth

"This is the extreme edge of the Solar System."

Writers: M Deacon, J Middleton and C Wraight

Format: Audio

Released: May 2011

Series: Short Trips 3.06

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

Peri's life is in danger when she and the Doctor land on a planet populated with mysterious holograms...

Verdict

Murmurs of Earth was a decent story to conclude my incredibly sporadic listening of the third volume of Short Trips audios! I have something of a love-hate relationship with the first four series of this really good range as I just think the stories are almost too short despite the name of the range. This one in particular was definitely on the more positive side and I was delighted right from the off to hear that Colin Baker was the narrator. It’s always good in my book to have an actor that is one of the main characters in that role and it doesn’t get much better than the Doctor himself. I thought his impression of Peri was rather humorous and I get the impression Baker had a bit of fun in taking on that challenge. She was very important to the plot and what we had was very intriguing. The somewhat feisty relationship with the Doctor and Peri was presented well here and whilst it wasn’t as obvious as was presented on television, tapping into the softer side of the sixth incarnation was good in limiting that. Baker revels in that and he really has had a new lease of life at Big Finish that has essentially redefined his Doctor. That’s some achievement and this is another little addition here. I thought the idea of the Doctor taking Peri to the Oort Cloud was good and whilst she wasn’t exactly thrilled at first, when she found out she would be the first human being to set eyes upon it her mood soon changed. Being given that opportunity is almost unfathomable but it must be incredibly exciting! The TARDIS being at the edge of the Solar System was exciting as the unknown nature of that was really fascinating. With the Doctor’s assurances that no life could be in existence here, with not even a robot survey for another century with this being 2199, it was obvious that there would actually be life! And I say obvious in the best way. It was fun for the Doctor to be wrong. I thought the Sentinels were a decent enough alien race and their kidnapping of Peri was something that really angered her, as you would expect. She was referred to as an abomination which was more fun and I could just picture her reaction to that. The Doctor could explain that the Voyager probes had limited information on the discs and that meant the information the Sentinels had was limited including the way they greeted them. That was really interesting. I do think we’ve had a few too many sentinels in Doctor Who now but I did think they filled the role well enough. Where I think this story perhaps lost a rating was by how it seemed to just fizz out at the end. I think the issue with some of these Short Trips is that the stakes never quite feel high enough so things just calmly conclude without too much impact. I think that was definitely the case with this one which is a shame. As a whole though, this was a strong listen! 

Rating: 7/10

Seabird One: Dark Side of the Moon

"Don't interrupt me when I'm being sincere."

Writer: Alfie Shaw

Format: Audio

Released: July 2022

Series: UNIT: Brave New Worlds 1.03

Featuring: Bambera

Synopsis

A new British space station, the Britannia, is due to be launched at the end of the week, but Bambera, Rix and Savarin fear that some kind of psychic entity is trying to sabotage it. Is it really the spirit of Helena McNamara, deceased astronaut and old friend of Rix? And does it speak the truth when it warns that something terrible is waiting for humanity on the dark side of the moon?

Verdict

Dark Side of the Moon was an excellent episode to conclude the Seabird One opening series of UNIT’s Brave New World spinoff! This has been a really impressive boxset and it’s definitely exceeded my expectations prior to listening. I’m a big fan of the 1990s setting and just exploring UNIT in an era where we haven’t really seen or heard them before is a lot of fun. Brigadier Bambera is a strong character to lead them but I really think she is well complimented by Savarin as her sergeant and Rix as her scientific advisor. The latter is really growing into the star of the series for me and I look forward to hearing her even more in the next series following how things concluded here. I liked exploring the idea of there being something alien on the dark side of the moon and tapping into the different space programs of nations was fun. This was obviously centred on the BSP which was good and I liked that something was clearly being hidden. Rix having a connection with Helena as an astronaut that was thought dead and her remains had even been buried was emotional stuff, but having her actually survive was incredible! She was tapping into the lives of people to take over their mind, at least partially anyway. The moment where she was trying to prove to Rix that she was actually Helena but was struggling with different people’s memories being all in her mind was terrific. Colin Carter being the first of those we were introduced to was fun stuff and the police didn’t really know how to handle the suggestion that he was actually a dead astronaut. UNIT were rightfully called and what we got was massively entertaining. The hour absolutely flew by and I liked the way the nickname of Lou was almost confirmation to Rix that her old friend was the true article. However, the moment where she revealed she’d switched the omega-4 and said the real person would visit her if she knew her address after all. Maybe not straight away, but absolutely within the year s lolr ince the crash that saw her perish. I liked the mystery that came from Bambera getting warning calls that couldn’t be tracked and the importance of the Britannia making the trip or not was crucial. She was warned, and the threat that faced humanity was strong! Helena knowing that there must be something alien despite all readings suggesting otherwise was great stuff and I liked the threat of the Grey Men to potentially come in the next series. Any enemy from the Moon is exciting in my book! I thought the cliffhanger finish with Helena realising that it was the aliens who’d given the all clear once again was good and they weren’t messing around this time knowing she was from the first ship. They killed her suddenly and reported to the superiors that the advance and subjugation of Earth could begin. I thought Rix having some love interest with McManus was nice and the flirtation was there early on so Savarin pushing her into getting a date was really good. I’m liking their dynamic and I think they’ll continue to gel moving forward. Dame Lydia featuring once again was good and I loved how she defended UNIT when they were told to leave after accusing the BSP of sabotaging their own astronauts. Overall, a brilliant finale! 

Rating: 9/10

Seabird One: Time Flies

"It's like watching life backwards."

Writer: Alison Winter

Format: Audio

Released: July 2022

Series: UNIT: Brave New Worlds 1.02

Featuring: Bambera

Synopsis

Bambera and Savarin are summoned to a secretive genetic research facility by Dr Louise Rix, UNIT's rebellious new scientific adviser. Two scientists have vanished in mysterious circumstances, and despite the assurances of the sinister Dr Grange, UNIT suspects there's something very wrong with the centre's caterpillar population. Can they survive the fruits of Dr Grange's experiments? And will Savarin survive Bambera and Rix's rocky new relationship?

Verdict

Time Flies was an outstanding episode to continue my way through the Seabird One first series of UNIT’s Brave New World! After an entertaining start, this one felt more down to Earth as far as UNIT was concerned and it was a stormer. I thought this was superb from start to finish. This was the Brigadier Bambera I was expecting from this series as she definitely felt a bit more abrupt and just generally in line with the Brigadier we knew from the Third Doctor era. Her military mind was in full force and she didn’t waste time. She asserted her command and definitely took her position in the UK seriously which was nice to hear. She was only thinking of UNIT’s interest and the safety of the human race, so having her not exactly thrilled with her new scientific advisor was really good. I like the dynamic of conflict between the Brigadier and scientific advisor and whilst it obviously has some way to go to reach the levels of Lethbridge-Stewart and the Doctor, it was off to an entertaining start here! Their relationship was terrific and I loved how Rix wasn’t too bothered by the chain of command. Even when ordered to concoct a cure to the DNA deleter, she stood up to Bambera because it just couldn’t be done. At least, not quickly after years and years of research to create it. Grange as the scientist at CSRF was a brilliant villain and his nature as a botanist mixed with his crazed experiments made him a superb character. I also thought the casting of Silas Carson was a stroke of genius in that role. I honestly couldn’t think of anybody more perfect! His tones and calm demeanour just ooze a delicious amount of sadism. He was such a fun character and the sickening nature of his mind was explored fully at the end as he allowed himself to be bitten by the caterpillar rather than face legal justice. That didn’t impress Rix who deemed him a coward. Her role in exploring the DNA experiment was excellent and finding the clothes of Flynn who had gone missing was startling, but that was nothing compared to the surveillance footage! The very concept of perfecting DNA that could be rewound was sensational. I loved that idea and whilst initially it was said to be to treat cancer, it had gone too far now. The use of butterflies as the visual example was really clever and I loved the shock that came from the Brigadier, Rix and Savarin as they returned to their cocoon and reverted to being caterpillars. That was extraordinary! The flies being weary and able to communicate and warn each other was good and I loved the intrinsic detail in which Rix could identify the danger so quickly. She knew there was trouble at hand and that they shouldn’t get close to the insects. The Briagdier keeping the deleting DNA on file was good and I really enjoyed the hint at the future from Grange with UNIT needing to use it in the future. I suspect that will happen. Savarin being referred to as Seabird Two was fun and I like that Rix is now signed up as Eerie One. Bambera having to catch up on her meetings now was fun as duty called in a mundane way with her new role, but attentions quickly turned to the British Library. That’s an intriguing setting for the finale to come, and Rix’s humour about what danger might face them there was wonderful. Overall though, a sublime episode! 

Rating: 10/10

Seabird One: Rogue State

"With you in charge, the world's a safer place already."

Writer: Robert Valentine

Format: Audio

Released: July 2022

Series: UNIT: Brave New Worlds 1.01

Featuring: Bambera

Synopsis

In the war-torn republic of Valge Maja, Brigadier Bambera is hot on the trail of arms-dealing terrorist, Roman Krojac, when she's ordered back to Geneva. Her old sponsor, Dame Lydia Kingsley, offers her a job as the new head of UNIT. Reluctant to accept, she nevertheless teams up with sarcastic UNIT officer Sergeant Jean-Paul Savarin to prevent a monstrous Soviet-era weapon from falling into Krojac's hands.

Verdict

Rogue State was a really strong episode to kick off the Seabird One first series of UNIT’s Brave New World. This is a fascinating idea for a series with it essentially being a UNIT spinoff from the 1990s, and I think it has the potential of being a hidden gem. Big Finish rarely fail with any of their spin-offs and let’s face it they’ve done some rather whacky ones. We’ve had the likes of Lady Christina, Jenny and Graceless so it’s not a massive surprise to have a series focused on Brigadier Bambera as part of UNIT. This episode and the setting of the series as a whole felt a little dystopian which was pretty cool and I definitely had vibes of Blade Runner throughout. I liked how we didn’t mess around and firmly got into the throws of the episode. There was no time to stop and have introductions, we were straight into proceedings with Bambera on the hunt for Krojac. He was a really good villain and I love the idea of a Soviet enemy. Tapping into politics and a post-Cold War world was excellent and the tension on display was impressive. I loved how he was taunting Bambera and whilst I’d have liked a little more information about why she was involved with him from the UNIT side of things - he hardly seemed extraterrestrial at first - the emotional story hinted at was very interesting. I’d certainly like to know more about Bambera’s failed marriage and just her private life in general. It’s certainly something she didn’t want to discuss so there’s definitely something there and it’s quite nice to hint at exploring her background. I’m sure things will come out as the series goes on. I thought Savarin was a really good character and I’m delighted that it appears he will be sticking around as Bambera’s number two. The humour she had with him about being able to read despite being a part of the security was very fun and I think he will offer a lot. I also thought Dame Lydia was a strong character despite her only appearing on the phone and the humour that came from Bambera continuing to ignore her instructions of not using her title was a nice touch. I’m sure that’s going to continue throughout. Her offering to Bambera to head up UNIT UK was good and I think that will help bring her closer to home and familiar surroundings moving forward. I thought the threat of the Chuchuna was decent if not a little silly in parts. I think a bit more description and motive would have been good, but thankfully their buyer in the form of Krojac filled that villain role. These were more like the monster henchmen. Bambera wanting them alive was good but it was amusing how quickly that changed when life was threatened! Using sound to control them was good and I was surprised that Krojac didn’t see out the episode. I figured he was going to be around for at least the series and that made his sudden death all the more impactful. It was well done. Overall, a very good start to the series and I’m certainly now looking forward to hear more!

Rating: 8/10

Dying Hours: The Crowd

"The Doctor isn't for hire."

Writer: Lizzie Hopley

Format: Audio

Released: September 2023

Series: BF Doom's Day 1.04

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Charley, Doom

Synopsis

"Follow the crowd", that's what they say, right? In this case, however, devastation, murder and destruction follow this particular Crowd – Doom's next target. But amongst them – an unfamiliar face, with a familiar name. Could this be Doom's salvation?

Verdict

The Crowd was an excellent episode to conclude the Dying Hours contribution to Doom’s Day from Big Finish! It does feel weird that after the journey we have been on with Doom that things are going to end in an online text story, but for now this was a fine finale to the performed adventures and it was lovely to hear her in full alongside an incarnation of the Doctor. She was a little saddened to find yet another face of the Doctor’s that wasn’t the ‘old guy’ she was looking for, but he’d remembered her from his first incarnation which was quite fun. Throughout the episode he’d known all along that he was going to help her because he remembered meeting her again at New Venice which was rather amusing. I thought Paul McGann was great as the Eighth Doctor and having him around medieval England hunting the Crowd was excellent. It was wonderful to hear him paired up again with Charley as that was a dream team in the Monthly Adventures so any excuse to revisit them is all good in my book! The relationship between Doom and Charley was sublime and I loved how they battled verbally. It was quite the mouth off! There was a lot of conflict concerning Doom from where Charley stood and that all centred on her being an assassin. Exploring morals here was fun and Charley wasn’t overly impressed by the Doctor’s actions in saving the life of an assassin. The Doctor didn’t exactly get on with Doom either and that’s certainly because of her profession with him not having kind things to say about the Lesser Order of Oberon. Getting an extended time with Terri on the phone was amusing and she wasn’t too impressed about going beyond her jump handler duties. Doom’s reaction when she realised the Doctor was present was excellent and I was impressed with how well her desperation was presented in this episode. Sure, she was quick to start carrying out her mission of assassinating the Crowd but she really knew time was running out now and needed to get back to the First Doctor. It was also really good to link the Crowd with death following Doom. That’s a theme that hasn’t been explored for quite a few hours now so it was fitting that it returned here. She was genuinely frightened by them associating her with death and knew it wasn’t far behind her. I thought the concept of the Crowd was terrific with them being a people drawn to tragedy and they’d exploited so much now that they needed to create their own. That was fantastic and the Doctor and Charley being on hand to track and stop them was great. Their nicknames for certain members was also a nice touch. Doom not wasting any time in killing seven of the twenty on her list was good and we finally saw her in full assassin action. That was overdue on this scale considering the reputation she possessed. I liked how things ended with the Doctor going to take her to her past incarnation to see if she will survive, and Doom having drawn the Crowd into their own explosion was a very neat way to make her mission a success! Overall, a fine finale to what was on a whole a really fun boxset. I look forward to reading how this saga concludes. 

Rating: 9/10

Dying Hours: The Howling Wolves of Xan-Phear

"Tonight I feast with my ancestors."

Writer: Simon Clark

Format: Audio

Released: September 2023

Series: BF Doom's Day 1.03

Featuring: Doom

Synopsis

A warring world of wolves. Doom's target turns out to be the puppeteer of the warring Xan: a Silent. But what if she's already completed her mission? How will she know? What if this wasn't even her mission in the first place? No time to waste. The countdown is on.

Verdict

The Howling Wolves of Xan-Phear was a little bit of a lacklustre continuation of the Dying Hours contribution to Doom’s Day from Big Finish. For whatever reason, this episode felt like it was never really going to reach much above being average which is a shame because the first two episodes were a lot of fun! I was excited by the concept of Doom encountering the Silence, but it never fully lived up to my expectations sadly. The Silence didn’t even sound like their television counterparts that we saw during the Eleventh Doctor which didn’t feel right and I get that they could be different members of the house or order, but it would have been good to stick to what we know in my opinion. I thought given that this was hour 22 in Doom’s search to find the Doctor she would have been more focused on that. She barely mentioned him until time was running out and even then her concern was the mission of assassination instead of the Doctor. Even with a reputation like hers and credits to earn, surely with only a couple of hours left to love you would be consumed by finding the one person who can save you? I’m not sure, it just didn’t feel like her priorities were right and there was no urgency for the one thing that mattered to her. Hearing the TARDIS in the echoes was exciting as I thought we would get a meeting with a Doctor, but it was just quickly forgotten about which was a shame. I quite liked the concept of the howling of the Wolves and their ability to manipulate and even cancel out sound was very good. I was less a fan of the Melch as their enemies on the war zone as they just sounded a little ridiculous. It’s an awful name. Throwing Doom into a war zone was fine and I did enjoy the action that came from it. She felt right at home and could show off some of her techniques, but I just wasn’t given enough of a reason to care about the fight. I wasn’t bothered by either party and the only interest for me was in Doom and the Silence. I liked that Doom finally made the connection between the Silence and the Doctor, and referencing the Series 6 arc of the Doctor answering the oldest question and that putting them to rest was good but it came too late. Her conversation with the Silence about the Doctor was decent and I liked that they saw that Doom’s destiny was intertwined with that of the Time Lord. That’s a good hint to what might come in the saga’s final two hours and I am intrigued to see how things finish as there doesn’t seem to be any sudden urgency at the moment. Terri was quite humorous in how unhelpful she was for Doom in locating her target as well as her reaction to the assassin not being massively happy with the Silence being wiped from memory when you looked away. How would she know when her mission was complete? That was fun to play with and probably more could have been made of that. I liked how she used her monocle to show Jeppra that one had died and what they looked like. The Silence controlling the war was good and I liked how Doom exposed that and ensured her mission was completed. And now all signs lead towards medieval England for an explosive finale! Overall, sadly the worst of the series so far but it was still good to have the Silence return. 

Rating: 6/10

Dying Hours: A Date with Destiny

"You kill people for money. That's sick."

Writer: Robert Valentine

Format: Audio

Released: September 2023

Series: BF Doom's Day 1.02

Featuring: Doom, Jackie

Synopsis

A romantic dinner turns life-threatening for an unsuspecting human in 2007. But this time, Doom has competition. And if she loses, then her last chance to find the Doctor could be snatched away. Cue an action-packed chase through the streets of London. But has Doom met her match?

Verdict

A Date with Destiny was another fun adventure to continue my way through the Dying Hours contribution to Doom’s Day from Big Finish! I think fun is definitely the best way to describe this saga and whilst I think some fans have potentially taken it too seriously amongst all of the other anniversary festivities, I’m really enjoying things. It’s lighthearted despite the central character being an assassin and I like that we’re having some random encounters with numerous characters from across Doctor Who’s history! This time around it was the turn of Jackie Tyler who’s probably the most famous character not to be a companion. She made a big impact with the Ninth and Tenth Doctors so it’s only natural that she would be at the heart of one of the missions for Doom to take on and find the Doctor. Her relationship with Jackie was quite amusing and having her impersonate the Doctor was nicely done, even if it was very obvious that she wasn’t the real article! She did a decent job in tapping into some Doctor-like dialogue and making Jackie feel safe, but the fact she kept getting referred to as Doom was going to be a bit of a deal breaker. I don’t think Jackie ever firmly believed the time travelling assassin was actually the Doctor. She did take the idea of him regenerating into a woman well though. Jackie constantly asking about Rose and hoping she was safe was well done and that definitely should have been her first thoughts. Jackie not wanting Doom to go near her washing because it wasn’t all dry yet was the humour I expected from the episode which I really enjoyed. I really do think I might be more of a Jackie fan than a Rose one. Don’t tell my girlfriend that though! I thought Doom encounter a fellow assassin in the form of Destiny was good and their pally relationship verged on annoying with the constant ‘babes’ referring to. It was almost like a Doctor-Master dynamic in the relationship, except Doom showed no hesitation at the end in pulling the trigger. I thought it was fun to have Jackie as a target because of actions taken by the Doctor and Rose against the Zaconian Claw, and that meant she was long gone if they had to resort to assassinating her mother. I liked the idea of there being repercussions for defeating an enemy like this. Destiny offering Doom a place in her new assassin organisation that would see the assassin keep all of the fee rather than the Lesser Order taking a percentage was good, although with only a few hours left of her life she wasn’t exactly in the business of career opportunities. It was a neat idea though. Jackie ousting Doom as to her identity not being the Doctor by mentioning a third heart was amusing and an attack with a washing line was equally so! With Jackie also being targeted by Destiny, the chase across London was really entertaining and some strong action! I thought Roxx perhaps arrived a little too late in the episode, but Doom standing up to him and showing no qualms about confrontation was terrific. She was empathic at the end and with the contractor deceased she needn’t kill Jackie after all. Jackie getting on the phone to the Doctor and Rose to tell them about Doom was good and I like the setup for the next mission with Doom to encounter the Silence! I’m intrigued to hear how that will play out. Overall, a great episode!

Rating: 8/10

Dying Hours: Dawn of an Everlasting Peace

"I don't have time for a backstory."

Writer: Jacqueline Rayner

Format: Audio

Released: September 2023

Series: BF Doom's Day 1.01

Featuring: Doom

Synopsis

Venus, 3975. The day of the non-aggression pact. The perfect ironic location for an assassination! But Doom's mission is about to become much more complicated thanks to an explosive plot to underwire the treaty itself. 

Verdict

Dawn of an Everlasting Peace was a really strong start to the Dying Hours anthology that acts as Big Finish’s contribution to the ongoing sixtieth anniversary celebration Doom’s Day saga! There’s been a lot going on with this series of adventures and as we get close towards the end now it still feels like Doom is doomed and not going to get any closer to finding the Doctor she needs to save her life. There was no Doctor around this time, but having Doom enter the world of the Space Security Service and what we would encounter in The Daleks’ Master Plan was magnificent. I’m a huge fan of that serial and the world it creates so entering it here was tremendous. Hearing Zephon again was good fun and whilst I wasn’t a huge fan of Doom impersonating the delegate, or was it the minister, it was good natured fun. The way she got her vortex manipulator through security by aiding Lonnet with her wheelchair using son Klorin was actually rather clever and showed how clever and skilled she actually was. We potentially haven’t seen enough of that in the stories so far. It’s been a refreshing change of pace to get a full cast audio adventure here and it’s lovely to hear Sooz Kempner fully embrace the role. It’s been a long time coming as all we’ve really had up to this point is the goofy online updates or trailers to promote the next release. Sadly, they’re seen as a bit of a laughing stock which is a great shame as this celebration has had some really strong moments! I’ve enjoyed the run. Sure, it could be better and one thing I think would have helped is if the Big Finish releases in particular had been spaced out across the hours. We are going to finish with a bang, but it does seem odd that the most fleshed out stories with a full cast will come last. Anyway, back to the story at hand and the story concerning Lonnet and Klorin was really emotional. It turned out despite him having the appearance of an elderly man in his nineties, he was actually her son of just three years. It was something familiar as we know what happened to Sara Kingdom in this region of space as she was aged to death by the Dalek time destructor, and the taranium was in use to age Klorin. Except his pap had saved him when the delivery of death came and he took the brunt of the exposure. It was a horrifying story and I actually got a little emotional as I was listening to the story with my little boy of two years running around the room. I couldn’t imagine what Lonnet would be going through. The confusion of Klorin not having the special goodbye from his father was also powerful stuff. Doom getting to impersonate his pap thanks to her telepathic suit was nicely done, although I wasn’t a big fan of her not going through with the assassination on Lonnet. I know it was the easy way to confirm that Karlton was the traitor and the hit was out for the Compuvac, but if she’s the universe’s greatest assassin I thought she wouldn’t show remorse. The Compuvac itself was very intriguing and rather resourceful in being able to fix any problem! It was an obvious target for assassination, but Lonnet hoping to get her son cured was further emotion when it claimed the damage was irreversible. I liked the lead into the next episode with Doom set to head to early twenty-first century Earth and encounter Jackie Tyler! She’ll at least get some knowledge I’m sure. Overall, a great opener!

Rating: 8/10

The Waters of Mars

"All it would take to begin was one drop."

Writer: Phil Ford

Format: Novel

Released: July 2023

Series: Target 176

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

"Water is patient... water just waits. Water always wins!"

November 21st 2059, and Bowie Base One – the first human colony on Mars – is destined for destruction in a nuclear explosion. This tragedy is a fixed point in history. The Laws of Time dictate that it cannot – must never – be changed. 

The Doctor arrives just as a viral life-form escapes from the Martian ice into the base's water supply. A single drop can transform a human into a terrifying monster with the power to infect others. History records that the threat is destroyed along with the base and every human in it. But as his darkest hour comes calling, the Doctor resolves to break the rules as he never has before...

Verdict

The Waters of Mars was an excellent novelisation of the television episode of the same name! The Tenth Doctor’s penultimate on screen adventure, this was a fine choice to novelise and I was really impressed with how Phil Ford handled the task of bringing this dark and powerful story to prose. I only watched the episode around three or four weeks ago so the events were extremely fresh in my head and that’s an approach I don’t usually take. I like to be quite distanced (as much as possible) from the on screen version so I’m able to judge the book in its own right, but I found the idea quite fun and I was intrigued to find how the book would be different. We got a little more fleshing out of the characters that form the crew of Bowie Base One which is expected in a prose format and something I welcomed, and we also got to delve deeper into the mind of the Doctor. I remember thinking specifically how they would incorporate the online news reports of the disaster into the book and it was minimised in a big way. We only got one instance of the Doctor remembering being in a different body in a different time reading a newspaper account of events in New York.  I quite liked that, but it is a shame we didn’t get those news flashes of each crew member. I thought the book did a good job of expanding more on Yuri and Mia both as characters and with their relationship. The moment the Doctor made it public what everyone already knew but was hiding was a fun moment, but perhaps not so much as his first introductions to the crew. When he realised who he was meeting and what the date was, things really got going and the inner turmoil began. That’s where the thoughts of the Doctor were really nicely presented as events went on he knew he should leave. But he just couldn’t. Reading the inner breakdown of the Doctor is incredible stuff really and he does resort to the Time Lord Victorious in extraordinary circumstances. I love how he proclaims to fight Time itself as he was the only one left with the burden of the Laws of Time and he decided now what they were and how they were followed. That was a lot of power and he said it was tough when Adelaide confronted him about it being too much. I thought the background of her character and the expansion on the Dalek seeing her moment during the events of The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End was brilliant. We basically had an entire chapter devoted to her as a ten year old and the reaction of her friendship group to seeing the planets in the sky. She even thought about how cold it would get now they were no longer orbiting the sun. What a thought! It was the Target format at its best. I really enjoyed some of the descriptive language for the Flood and just referring to them by name on numerous occasions was better than on screen where I’m not even sure if they were named. It gave them a bit more credibility I felt. Just reading of their patience and how they were waiting and yearning for Earth was excellent. They were water and that was a powerful enemy. Incorporating some Ice Warrior history into the story was nicely done and what you want from an adventure set on Mars! The Doctor reading the Ice Warrior warning in North Martian concerning the water was great stuff. I thought Adelaide trusting in his words completely was very good and despite being a stranger, she could see in the Doctor’s eyes that he meant what he said. That was important throughout. The setting of 2059 is good and I liked the hindsight by having the pandemic referenced as one of the reasons the world had gone wrong and was in need of expansion beyond the stars. Adelaide’s taking history into her own hands because she wanted her legacy to live on through her granddaughter is a sublime moment as just when the Doctor thinks he’s won, she sends him straight into despair. The story stayed the same despite some of the details changing. Suggesting conspiracy theories about the base was really fun stuff. I thought the links with Planet of the Dead and the four knocks warning as The End of Time is foreshadowed were also presented very well. It really did have a sense of impending finality for the Doctor. Overall, a tremendous read!

Rating: 9/10

Freedom

"It will undoubtedly be destroyed when it reaches its own moment of creation."

Writer: Steve Lyons

Format: Short Story

Released: September 2023

Series: Short Trips 06

Featuring: Third, Jo, Brigadier

Synopsis

From Neolithic Earth to the furthest reaches of the universe in the far future, Short Trips brings together established Doctor Who authors and first-time writers in a collection of stories exploring the ever-changing worlds of the Doctor and his friends.

Witness the last days of the siege of Masada with the First Doctor and meet the Fourth Doctor's extraordinary 'old flame'. An evil enemy makes life difficult for the Seventh and Third Doctors, and while the Fifth Doctor is under attack on a sinister ship shrouded in fog, the Second may soon be guilty of a grave error of judgement... The Sixth Doctor's hopes of a holiday are dashed when he discovers a pleasure planet is hiding a shocking secret, and the Eighth Doctor is caught up in a deadly drama played out during the construction of Stonehenge.

And, of course, that's just the beginning...

Verdict

Freedom was a really good story to continue my way through the first volume of the Short Trips books! I’m always a big fan of revisiting the Third Doctor’s exile on Earth following the events of The War Games (and beyond), especially when the theme is the exile itself. I really liked the continuity with The Mind of Evil in having the Master imprisoned at Stangmoor Prison and there is somewhere quite familiar with him which is fun. Well, familiar with Keller at least and his appearance. The Doctor having sympathy for his Time Lord counterpart was intriguing and quite a stunning way to kick off the story. With this story taking place somewhere during the events of Season 8, exile is still relatively fresh for the Doctor and it’s fair to say here he hasn’t entirely come to terms with it. He’s struggling being contained to one planet and one time so when the Master is contained to a single prison he has all of the sympathy. To him, an entire planet is small scale imprisonment. The Brigadier’s reaction to the Doctor almost asking if the Master could have a bigger space for his imprisonment was superb and met with the expected bafflement. After trying to take over the planet a few times, the Brigadier sarcastically suggested just giving the Master the key to his cell! It’s fair to say he wasn’t in agreement with his scientific advisor. I thought Jo had a really strong outing in this episode and it’s good to expand on her early days at UNIT. She’s settled in by now and conjured a relationship with the Doctor, but she’s still a little ditzy and the inner thoughts of the Doctor when she asks more questions showed that. The direction of the story was really good as it was essentially the Doctor getting trapped within his own trap. The concept of the construct was really good to explore and I think it would definitely be worthy of a full length novel. There’s a lot of potential to explore the gap between seconds and whilst it was impossible to get there, the idea of it being occupied and then there being conflict occurring within was excellent. I really liked how the Master had forced his mind there too in the form of Gooder and even in a short story at just twenty-six pages, we get a good old disguise so associated with his character in this era. The Doctor knew it right away but the reveal of that goatee was still a good moment. I’m a sucker for a Master reveal even when it’s obvious. The way the story shifted between times leading up to the Doctor and Jo being stuck in the construct was good and kept things bouncing back and forth which was fun and certainly helped with the pace. It wasn’t quite frantic but it was fast flowing. It was a breeze to read. The Doctor accepting the circumstances of he and Jo being trapped was good and I loved how she refused to just take the situation as it was. There was no way to tell time or how it was passing here which must be incredibly difficult. Jo had slept three times but it was troublesome to not know for how long each time! The conclusion to this one was so powerful as Jo had to almost plead with the Doctor to save Earth. He was prepared to leave the fate of the planet to the Time Lords as they temporarily restored his knowledge of time travel and the TARDIS, but Jo was enough to get him to immediately give up his freedom. I’m not too sure how I feel about the Doctor putting himself ahead of Earth, but it was powerful stuff. Overall, a really good read!

Rating: 8/10