The Anti-Hero

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

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

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 7/10

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Time Traveller

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

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

Featuring: Third Doctor

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 9/10

The Bog Warrior

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

Writer: Cecelia Ahern

Format: Short Story

Released: May 2014

Series: Time Trips 06

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 8/10

A Handful of Stardust

"All at once horror became seduction."

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

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 7/10

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

"No party was complete without Polly!"

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

Featuring: Polly

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 10/10

Salt of the Earth

"I'm turning to salt!"

Writer: Trudi Canavan

Format: Short Story

Released: March 2014

Series: Time Trips 04

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 10/10

Hidden Human History

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

Writer: Jody Houser

Format: Comic Strip

Released: March-May 2019

Printed in: The Thirteenth Doctor #5-8

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 9/10

The Power of the Mobox Part 3

"Free to claim justice!"

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

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 8/10

Fixing a Hole

"I tried to show you the universe!"

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

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Tegan

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 8/10

To Kill a Nandi Bear

"The animals have been busy."

Writer: Paul Williams

Format: Short Story

Released: May 2004

Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 15

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 7/10

One Small Step...

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

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

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 7/10

The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up

"What could trouble a wizard from the future?"

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

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Mel

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 6/10

Of The Mermaid and Jupiter

"Yes, I'm sinking the ships."

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

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Benny

Synopsis

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

Verdict

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

Rating: 7/10

The Persistence of Memory

"There's an alien spaceship at the bottom of Loch Ness?"

Writer: Colin Brake

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2016

Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 12

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor

Synopsis

CJ is hunting mysteries and wants to collect the latest one in the newspaper, but he doesn't have enough money. Luckily a stranger with fierce eyebrows gives him the coinage, except it's from 8 years in the future. There's a new mystery for CJ to investigate now...

Verdict

The Persistence of Memory was a wonderful way to conclude the Twelve Doctors of Christmas collection! This really has been an unexpectedly great volume of stories and I have thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. I was glad that things ended very strongly as we saw the Twelfth Doctor doing battle with the Monk! I really didn't see that coming and was one of the best surprises I've had in a Doctor Who story in a very long time indeed. I'm a huge fan of the Monk as it is so putting him in a modern era adventure was just delightful! I have hoped for his return on several occasions when there has been meddling with time but it has never turned out to be him. I had a sneaky thought during my reading here but as soon as the mysterious meddler showed that he knew who the Doctor was, I was just waiting in almost disbelief for the big reveal. It was really well done. The Doctor saying it couldn't possibly be him was just added icing on the cake that I adored. CJ was a really good character and his collection of mysteries was a fantastic hobby for a fourteen-year-old boy and that also fitted in nicely with the initial 1979 setting. The Doctor providing him with a 10p coin from 1987 was what set him off in hunting the mystery of this man and when he saw he entered the TARDIS and that it was dematerialising, he barged his way onto the Doctor's ship and seemed quite knowledgeable about it through educated guessing. He deduced that it was more than just a spaceship and could travel in time and as it was Christmas, he hoped for one trip. And he got it! He wanted to see the Loch Ness Monster. Well, initially there were some other things he wanted to see first like the Mary Celeste but as the Doctor established and we saw in The Chase, that was all the Daleks doing. The reference to Terror of the Zygons was great and there was the inevitable line about UNIT dating controversy, something I don't really think is necessary in every single adventure that deals with it, but off they went Nessie hunting. Now, I recently visited Loch Ness and was fascinated by the story of Nessie and I am convinced that she is real. So for the Monk to be interfering from beneath the Loch and using a time scoop was something I could picture easily. The Doctor was fascinated too and he had to make sure that the Monk was defeated. It said something about how far the Doctor has come by this incarnation as his fellow Time Lord was almost fearing the power of the Doctor. Maybe that was something to do with the Time War? It was an intriguing element and it also helped the length of the story so there were a lot of positives. CJ would be returned home having seen Nessie and I loved the revelation that he turned out to actually be Clive Finch, the man we would later see in Rose as the man who tracked all the appearances of the Doctor throughout time. The Doctor even remembered the link and I thought that was terrific. A really fantastic touch that I was a big fan of reading. Overall, a wonderful little tale to finish the collection on!

Rating: 9/10

The Gift

"It's magic!"

Writer: Scott Handcock
Format: Short Story
Released: October 2016
Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 11

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor

Synopsis

The Eleventh Doctor is out singing Christmas carols as he is hunting a loose Lengo, but when it steals all of Maisie's Christmas presents, she undertakes an unexpected journey to an alien planet. Her act of kindness will completely transform a society though, and for the better.

Verdict

The Gift was yet another great little adventure to continue my reading of the Twelve Doctors of Christmas collection of stories! This time it was the outing of the Eleventh Doctor and whilst we’re no stranger to Christmas stories with this incarnation, I was delighted with what we got. It was a real festive little adventure and was perfect for a Christmas-themed collection. I thought it worked really well and was probably the best of the eleven so far in being able to capture the Christmas spirit. Despite that, and this isn’t an actual knock on the story itself but I feel like I should mention it, I wasn’t a fan of the title being something that has already occurred within the Doctor Who universe. Of course this was the same name as a Sarah Jane Adventures serial and whilst I can fully appreciate that is a spin-off series, surely there could have been a way around this? Or at least have it picked upon just altered slightly? Anyhow, that’s just a slight persona peeve of mine that doesn’t have any impact on the quality of the story. The arrival of the Doctor into Maisie’s life was wonderful with him singing Christmas carols solo outside of her house, and the young child thought he was rather good which was a nice moment. The Doctor having acquired over £28 from his festive singing across the street was quite impressive and I loved the moment where Maisie’s mum said she didn’t have much change spare to give the Doctor so he just poured everything he had into her hands. He wasn’t there for money. He was investigating and now he was at the house where the Lengo had got to. I quite enjoyed that the Lengo was an alien but was far from an enemy. They were a polite species but they just couldn’t help but make a mess and be loud. They weren’t the worst qualities for an alien visitor to Earth. It seemed like things were going to be resolved rather quickly with a wormhole being discovered and the Doctor opening it back up with the sonic screwdriver to send the Lengo, who he’d of course hypnotised, back home. When he was on his way back to the TARDIS though, he could see that Maisie was unhappy and it seems that the Lengo has stolen some presents that didn’t belong to it. Well, the Doctor couldn’t have that and especially not on Christmas! He quite comically entered the house through Maisie’s window after a climb up the drainpipe and he would head back to Lengos to retrieve the Christmas presents that had been taken. Except this time, Maisie would be going with him. Her reaction to that was lovely and I liked how mature she was for her age. She realised how big of an opportunity this was and she couldn’t let it slide. The Doctor quickly tracked the Lengo, but all Maisie was concerned with was how lonely the inhabitants of this planet were. They were a species very much of isolationists and Maisie didn’t like despite the Doctor insisting that they were happy. Politeness forced them to get on but Maisie would go on to change their society for the better. Once the Doctor had conversed with the Lengo regarding the stolen presents, it was very apologetic and all was handed back immediately. With no concept of family, the Lengo was unaware of their sentimental value but the Doctor had it understanding in no time. As a token gesture though, Maisie let the Lengo keep one of the presents as its own Christmas gift and it set in motion a complete change in Lengos society. The Doctor returning to Maisie in her adulthood and fully married with two children was terrific and I liked how he wanted to show her everything that she had set in motion with a simple act of kindness. A gift for the ages! Overall, another great little story!

Rating: 8/10

Loose Wire

"I have feasted, and I am strong."

Writer: Richard Dungworth

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2016

Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 10

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

The Doctor is experimenting with some old tapes in the TARDIS and accidentally sets the Wire loose! With modern technology at its mercy and all sorts of data transfer techniques at its whim, is there any way the Wire can be contained?

Verdict

Loose Wire was another terrific little story to continue along my reading of Twelve Doctors of Christmas! I somehow failed to realise that we would get a returning enemy for the Tenth Doctor in this adventure despite its title but I soon realised what was going to happen once things went haywire for Alice Wu's new phone. The belief that she was getting a phone call from Justin Bieber was quite humorous and the Doctor's reaction to that once he burst onto the scene was purely one of sympathy which I thought was lovely. The pace of this story was frantic which was great and I couldn't quite believe how quickly I was getting through the pages. I know this wasn't the biggest of stories as it is, but it still absolutely flew by which is always a good sign. I liked how quickly the Doctor burst onto the scene and I've always thought that a present day setting featuring the Wire would be fantastic given all it could use to its advantage in what is very much a digital age. WiFi, radio and BlueTooth! The possibilities really are quite endless. The Doctor had created a shield around the vicinity including the house where Alice lived thanks to the sonic screwdriver so it couldn't get far, but the Doctor hadn't considered short-range hops in the likes of BlueTooth speakers and paired devices so the Wire was still very much at large. I thought the expected reference to The Idiot's Lantern was brilliant and Alice's reaction to the Doctor stating he last faced off against this enemy at the time of the Queen's coronation. I thought she was a good little character and she was clearly scared by everything that was going on, and specifically to what had happened to her parents and grandmother, but she did well in not showing it. Once the Doctor confirmed to her that they could be restored back to normal, a light seemed to switch in her head that was fully driven to achieving that purpose. I liked that. The Doctor aiding her in being close to a companion was great and I would have really liked to see her reaction to going into the TARDIS. I thought it was a bit of a shame for that to be omitted. The Christmas Day setting was intriguing and I like to ponder over what year this took place for the Tenth Doctor. Would it perhaps interfere with any of the events of recent Christmas Specials? That's just some fun speculation on my part. Speaking of fun, the Wire attempting to hijack a car through the BlueTooth transfer and link was hilarious and the image of the Doctor diving into the car and being trapped was very humorous. That really was good. To his surprise, Alice's mum was into her cassette tapes and that was all he needed to trap the Wire once again. After he'd freed it, he now had it back trapped where it belonged. A fitting end. His joining of Alice's family on Christmas Day was good but I'm not sure how some of the companions and their families would have felt given how many he turned down. Overall though, a fun little adventure! 

Rating: 8/10

The Red Bicycle

"Life is full of risks."

Writer: Gary Russell
Format: Short Story
Released: October 2016
Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 09

Featuring: Ninth Doctor

Synopsis

The Doctor is on a mission to explain that Time cannot be meddled with here, there and everywhere. She believes otherwise, but it's time for the Doctor to put Gallifreyan principles to the test. It involves Christmas 1998 and providing Rose with the red bicycle she always wanted but never got.

Verdict

The Red Bicycle was another good continuation of the Twelve Doctors of Christmas collection of stories. This was the first one that took us into the modern era of Doctor Who and I was quite pleasantly surprised that this was, apart from one little cameo appearance in the form of a flashback at the start, a solo outing for the Ninth Doctor. They're obviously an extreme rarity given how the television series went for this incarnation so I quite liked the little change. His admiration for Jackie for the way she managed to bring up Rose in the Powell Estate, an area of London he didn't think was very appetising at all, was really wonderful and a touching moment given how this incarnation of the Doctor wouldn't be so easy to give credit. Of course, he probably never mentioned it to her but it was nice to know that he at least thought it. I liked the idea of Rose going back in time to change a little part of Jackie's past and ensuring that she actually had the record that she wished she'd always had. When Rose had changed the past, she questioned Jackie about that said record and nothing more was said other than the fact that she'd had it in her collection for years. His little window of opportunity on Christmas Eve to slip into Jackie's apartment and place the bike under the tree, assuming she would have one, and let Jackie take the credit. Nothing mattered as long as Rose had the bike and the Doctor got to test his theory. The little detour that occurred once the bike was stolen was some much needed action but I have to admit I wasn't overly sure by how easily a young child was able to evade the Doctor with his sonic screwdriver on hand providing him the directions. He'd engineered a DNA trace quite brilliantly to get close but then a character from his history turned up and took the bike as a lure. Jinko made for a good enemy and his history with the Doctor was quite interesting, despite me not being a huge fan of unknown past for the Doctor. He must have really irked this giant metallic creature made of junk and quite selfishly it now wanted the bike to join its collection. The Doctor dealing with the cronies of Elians was great and quite easy to be honest. I really enjoyed how determined the Doctor was to get this bike back and it did seem like Jinko was a somewhat formidable enemy, but there was no trouble in dealing with things. The Doctor really did get the upper hand with ease with some simple use of the sonic screwdriver and I liked that he was able to ensure Rose got her present. Her reaction on Christmas Day was lovely, but I was hoping for a little bit of a follow up on Rose's thoughts on the matter given that part of the Doctor's purpose was to show her about meddling with Time. Were things always meant to be that way? I guess we'll never know and are left with a little bit of an ambiguous ending. Overall though, a quite lovely little story and there's just something special about the Doctor wanting to give the child version of one of his companions the Christmas present she had always wanted.

Rating: 8/10

White Man's Burden

"Maybe the history books got it wrong."

Writer: John Binns
Format: Short Story
Released: May 2004
Printed in: Short Trips: Past Tense 11

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Turlough, Ian, Barbara

Synopsis

Pretoria, April 1877. The Transvaal is about to be annexed and become part of the British Empire amidst the threat of the Zulus. The Fifth Doctor and Turlough are in town to put history back on track as that isn't quite what's going down. Little does the Doctor know that friends from his past are working against him...

Verdict

White Man's Burden was a very good little story to get me back on track with the reading of the Past Tense collection of Short Trips! I really enjoyed this one from start to finish as it was just very solid throughout and a really interesting and informative tale. I know a decent amount about this period and the British Empire following a second year module during my History BA, but I thought the information provided for the situation's background was excellent. This was what the Past Tense collection should be all about as it entertained and educated. I was a big fan of that. Whilst there wasn't actually a great deal going on in terms of a plot (which is fine, there really doesn't have to be), I thought the theoretical aspects of the story were very good too. I enjoyed the Doctor going into detail about history having a set path and his anger towards that theory was fantastic as he refused to believe that the whole universe was predetermined. He was even less keen to accept it because it was something the Time Lords had come to hold as fact. He wasn't having that. However, he needed to put history back on track here which I thought was intriguing as his actions in ensuring that Britain annexed the Transvaal would actually have quite horrific consequences. The Zulu War would come and Britain's involvement would be heavy. I'm not usually his biggest fan, but I liked the inquisitive nature of Turlough in this adventure and there seemed to be no lulling over Tegan's departure that must have occurred quite recently before this story. The Doctor suspecting that the Master might initially be the one up to no good and changing established history was great, but the truth was even better! I never suspected for a second that part two would tell us all about a secret act of Ian and Barbara at a time where the First Doctor was struck by flu and left in the TARDIS looked after by Vicki. Barbara was desperate to do what she thought was something good for history and here she wanted to rid Britain's involvement in South African apartheid. I liked that she wanted to test the waters, but given what occurred in The Aztecs and how passionate and adamant the Doctor was there that history couldn't be changed, I was surprised that Ian went along with it. It did show how much he thought of Barbara though but even he didn't quite believe that they were going to be successful. Of course, they would never know that it was actually the Doctor of the future that would prevent them from changing history which I liked and was quite ironic. I think they might have just laughed if they found out though! Barbara was devastated that history remained as she knew it. The Fifth Doctor and Turlough didn't need to do a great deal to keep history as it was meant to be, but their presence was required and that was that. The Doctor said this was how it was always meant to be and I liked that Turlough wasn't quire about that and kept probing. He refused to believe that there was no such thing as free will, but all the signs suggested otherwise which was very intriguing. Overall, a really good little adventure!

Rating: 8/10

Resurrection of the Daleks

"It's my duty to hunt them and, this time, eradicate them forever."

Writer: Eric Saward
Format: Novel
Released: July 2019
Series: Target 161

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Tegan, Turlough

Synopsis

"I'm not here as your prisoner, Davros, but your executioner."

The TARDIS is ensnared in a time corridor, catapulting it into derelict docklands on 20th century Earth. The Doctor and his companions, Tegan and Turlough, stumble on a warehouse harbouring fugitives from the future at the far end of the corridor – and are soon under attack from a Dalek assault force.

The Doctor's oldest enemies have set in motion an intricate and sinister plot to resurrect their race from the ashes of an interstellar war. For the Daleks' plans to succeed, they must set free their creator, Davros, from a galactic prison - and force the Doctor to help them achieve total control over time and space. But the embittered Davros has ideas of his own...

Verdict

Resurrection of the Daleks was a very good novelisation of what was a terrific televised story. At long last this Dalek adventure finally gets the novelisation treatment, but I imagine my reading was not anywhere near as special as it might have been for several fans who have read and own the initial batch of Target books. I'm not jealous, I promise. Regardless, I just had to get my hands on a copy and I thought it was a fantastic read. One thing that surprised me a lot about the novelisation was how little Turlough actually does. I've been much of a fan of his and I can't say I missed him here (or even noticed initially). Tegan was definitely the standout companion throughout which says a lot when Turlough knows about the Daleks! I really did think he would have more involvement. The characterisation of the Fifth Doctor was superb in this story with Peter Davison's likeness expertly captured on the page. I really enjoyed his dialogue with the Daleks and particularly Davros here and I've always thought this story was one of his best. This book certainly didn't change my opinion which I was delighted with. One of the highlights was definitely Lytton and he seemed as crude and dastardly as ever. I also liked the little foreshadowing of the events of Attack of the Cybermen where he would return to do battle with the Doctor as there would definitely be a next time. I though the shift to have him wanting the Doctor dead based on a history they shared was an intriguing move though but I was fine with it. I liked the emergence of the Supreme Dalek, but the most intriguing aspect of the Daleks for me was the likes of the Alpha, Beta, Delta, Epsilon and Gamma Daleks all appearing. Those were quite some names! They were good though. The initial focused setting being the Vipod More was brilliant and Davros being hidden and referred to simply as the Prisoner was delightful. I think that's because I knew what was coming but I really appreciated that. Some of the characters in this one were great with Mercer and Stein standing out. I must admit that this story fooled me again with the latter being revealed as a Dalek agent! Laird was also good but her death was just one of many that would send Tegan into breaking point when it came to travelling with the Doctor. The scale of death and how close and intimate it was definitely shone through in this novel and I couldn't blame Tegan for leaving the Doctor in abrupt fashion. Her little anecdote about questioning whether she'd made the right call was a nice touch. The only thing I really disliked about this story was the extended detail regarding what could go on in the TARDIS for Stein now he was on board. That seemed completely unnecessary and just filler. I didn't like that despite how interesting it was. Davros being needed by the Daleks was interesting as they needed a cure to the Movellan disease that defeated them following the events of Destiny of the Daleks, and I just loved Davros when he reacted to the reveal that the Daleks were defeated. He couldn't have that and quickly set a motion in plan to get an army and some Daleks on his side. The result was Dalek civil war and battles ensued. The use of the time corridor in the story was fantastic and I liked how it took the TARDIS out of action. The pace was also good but the ending did seem to come a little sudden as the two Dalek factions looked to wipe the other out. Who would truly rule the Daleks? I'm sure we'll get a revelation soon ;)

Rating: 8/10

Ghost of Christmas Past

"Why can't it just be Christmas Day?"

Writer: Scott Handcock
Format: Short Story
Released: October 2016
Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 08

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

The Time War is raging but the Doctor wants nothing to do with it. He helps where he can, but he's just feeling a bit lonely. The TARDIS gets ensnared between two timelines that are competing for dominance as the Time War continues its damage and the Doctor gets trapped in a time loop the second before Christmas Day begins. A message from an old face sets him straight.

Verdict

Ghost of Christmas Past was a wonderful continuation of the Twelve Doctors of Christmas story collection! I think this was definitely one of my favourites of the book and is probably only second to The Christmas Inversion. This saw the Eighth Doctor during the early days of the Time War which I was surprised about, but definitely pleased with. I liked how it was reiterated that he wanted nothing to do with the Time Lords in their battle against the Daleks and just helped where he could. Even then though that was difficult because of how extensive the War had got. Time was being rewritten everywhere and all around him and the difficulties this produced for the TARDIS were palpable. It had gotten ensnared between two competing timelines and ended up trapped in a time loop in the last second of Christmas Eve 2016. The Doctor's irritation and anger at wanting time to move forward and for it to just be Christmas Day was fantastic when he realised how he must feel like a child does on Christmas Eve. I can safely say from experience that this is exactly the case! I used to struggle to get to sleep on Christmas Eve until I was a good 14 or 15 years old because the excitement was just palpable so for the Doctor to stop and acknowledge that during the days of the Time War was a lovely moment. He soon grew bored in the TARDIS and had been counting each and every second for hours. But then a knock came from outside, except nobody was there. The Doctor's frustration was obvious and this is where I thought the characterisation of Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor was very good indeed. It captured his likeness from both The Movie and what he's done on audio since. I was impressed with that. I liked the descriptions of his unique TARDIS interior and his reaction when he found a letter hovering about was great. The letter being a hypercube from Susan was an unexpected pleasure. He'd gone around the TARDIS following the ghostly noise that was inside and gone past several of the old rooms of former companions, but he wouldn't disturb their memory and reminisce in the nostalgia. I thought that was quite sad really. It was lovely to get an update about Susan though following her departure in The Dalek Invasion of Earth and the message just being an invitation for Christmas Dinner was lovely. I just really wish he took her up on the offer! We didn't even need to have that encounter (although I'd have loved it) but just some indication that there is where he would be heading would've possibly made this story perfect. I liked though that the TARDIS and the Doctor being telepathically linked was explored a bit and each could feel when the other was down. The former had orchestrated all the events here to show the Doctor that he was loved. Maybe it was hinting that he needed a companion? It was very nice regardless. Overall, a lovely little story and it was nice to get more Eighth Doctor!

Rating: 9/10

The Grotto

"Have you been naughty or nice?"

Writer: Mike Tucker
Format: Short Story
Released: October 2016
Printed in: Twelve Doctors of Christmas 07

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis

The Seventh Doctor and Ace have tracked an escape pod to the roof of Macy's in a snow-covered New York amidst Christmas celebrations. The inhabitant is dangerous and loose. Can the Doctor and Ace track the alien footprints before there are any casualties?

Verdict

The Grotto was another decent story that continued my reading of the Twelve Doctors of Christmas collection. I thought this was a good title and I liked how the grotto was actually used in this adventure. Readers of this blog entry who hadn't actually read the story may be forgiven for thinking this was a typical Christmas story going off its title and my chosen quote, but it was far from a story of happiness and cheer! I thought the setting of Macy's in New York was excellent and very well utilised and it just reminded me of the Paul Blart Mall Cop films thinking of an entire story being contained to a superstore. I've actually been to Macy's and I actually think it would make for a great setting so I was glad to see it used here as it is also so recognisable, even if one hasn't been there before. Ace getting to look out on New York when it was covered in snow from on top of Macy's was something I was a little jealous about as that is something I can imagine is very special indeed. The relationship between the Doctor and Ace in this one was very good and I liked the characterisation of them both. There were hints of the Seventh Doctor being up to his usual trick of not telling Ace the whole story, but that wasn't quite the case. After tracking a ship whilst in Earth's orbit, the Doctor and Ace were appalled to find that it was shot down and that fact was cheered back by those who sent the missile to do its damage. Ace was horrified by the actions of her people, but unknown to those who did the bidding there was a survivor and it had crash landed on top of Macy's. It had escaped its escape pod though and a Stellogratt was on the loose. Learning more about them wasn't exactly thrilling as there were no familiar elements to their history so it just didn't mean much which was a shame, but their inhibitor making them both intelligent and having the natural instincts and characteristics of a hunter was a very intriguing concept. I think that could definitely have been explored further in a story of greater depth but for what we got, it was good. The Doctor and Ace splitting up in Macy's was humorous and I loved the latter's suggestion that she would find a new baseball bat, much to the Doctor's chagrin. That was a humorous moment. The ending was somewhat action-packed and a good pace which was exciting, but it still seemed to be lacking in a little substance which was a bit strange. The Stellogratt basing itself in the grotto was humorous and the image of the large creature being in the Christmas attraction with all the other decorations around was very interesting indeed! The way it was susceptible to smell was a rather disappointing weakness but I did love how enthusiastic Ace was when she was glad to have hit it with a direct shot every time. It was dealt with and asleep and that meant the TARDIS would soon take it somewhere it couldn't do any damage. I guess that's a decent resolution for a story of this length but I just felt it was lacking a little bit. Overall though, still a good little adventure.

Rating: 7/10

The Drosten's Curse

"I couldn't wait to be the monster's breakfast."

Writer: A. L. Kennedy

Format: Novel

Released: July 2015

Series: BBC PDA 03

Featuring: Fourth Doctor

Synopsis

"I shall make you the jewel at the heart of the universe."

Something distinctly odd is going on in Arbroath. It could be to do with golfers being dragged down into the bunkers at the Fetch Brothers' Golf Spa Hotel, never to be seen again. It might be related to the strange twin grandchildren of the equally strange Mrs Fetch – owner of the hotel and fascinated with octopuses. It could be the fact that people in the surrounding area suddenly know what others are thinking, without anyone saying a word.

Verdict

The Drosten's Curse was a great novel and something I did not expect! So soon after reading The Death Pit, I find that this book is actually an extended version of the same adventure. I really didn't see that coming and I am so happy that I read them in this order. The first quarter of this story was pretty much the aforementioned Time Trip extended with only a few additions, but then we went in a strange new direction that expanded deeply on the original story. I thought the continued obsession of Julia Fetch with octopuses (or octopods) was excellent and it really did add to the allure of her mysterious nature. She was an intriguing character, but something I found interesting about this version of the story was how far removed she was from her grandchildren. The twins of Honor and Xavier were very weird throughout and I liked that it was revealed they were a defence mechanism of the Bah-Sohkar. That wasn't much of a surprise but it was a nice little development to have. I really enjoyed getting to meet Bryony all over again and she really was just as magnificent as the first version of the story. I absolutely love her and I would be so happy if she became a companion at some point, even if just for a little bit. I was less disappointed with her fate in this book though as she and Putta went on to have a purpose to ensure that there was no more Bah-Sohkar incidents in Arbroath or the vicinity in the future. The way that great monster was revealed to have arrived in a white sphere, not too dissimilar to a golf ball, was a nice touch and a very good way to link back to the Fetch Hotel initial setting. Bryony having to deal with Mangold again was good and I liked how she was desperate to save his life when the Bah-Sokhar caught onto her thoughts of disliking him and wanted to rectify that. The use of thought in this book was really good and I loved the issues that caused to everyday people in Arbroath. I liked those little passages in the book as it showed that the story was having an impact on everyday people. The Doctor being frightened was also an important aspect I enjoyed but his relationship with Bryony and Putta made everything relaxed. They made a wonderful team. I thought the latter couple finally getting together was brilliant and I really liked their contrasting moments in the TARDIS. Bryony was sadly less impressed with her would-be boyfriend's ship but she soon liked the idea of travelling all snug with him through the stars. Peter Junior being the one who wanted to be the jewel at the heart of the universe was an unexpected and sudden turn of events, but I liked what came of it. The monster being defeated by love was somewhat similar to the original story and I've had liked a bit more of a twist there. I was again surprised that the Doctor didn't perhaps mention the possibility of them joining him in the TARDIS but I do understand that the pair had a purpose now. They were crucial. The use of the Doctor in the story itself was very good with the Bah-Sokhar wanting him to be its master as it had the best mind, and I was also a little surprised by the line where it was stated that there were planets of dead of people who trusted the Doctor. That seemed a bit harsh! He didn't want death. Regardless, this was still a very good and enjoyable book.

Rating: 8/10