The Wasting

"It's as if they're decomposing while they're still alive."

Writers: Iain McLaughlin & Claire Bartlett

Format: Audio

Released: June 2005

Series: UNIT 1.04

Featuring: Brigadier, Emily

Synopsis

A deadly flu-like infection is sweeping the planet. Its first cases appeared in Britain, but now millions are infected worldwide and there is no sign of a cure. The emergency services can't cope with what the press have dubbed a plague...

Under attack from all sides, UNIT in Britain is in disarray. It faces a stark choice – to close its doors and concede defeat, or to fight back, whatever the cost... and the injured Colonel Emily Chaudhry knows UNIT has never backed down from a battle.

If UNIT is to fight back, it's going to need the services of its missing commander, Colonel Brimmicombe-Wood, and the experience of the Brigadier, who can never refuse when duty calls...

Verdict

The Wasting was a good conclusion to what was in the end a pretty decent spinoff series for UNIT! I was glad that the Brigadier returned for the finale and set things up for what could have been a second season of stories featuring Emily and a new team, but I guess sales weren't there to demand it so this is what we finished with. There are a few loose ends that sadly did not get tied up like the Silurian presence, but I was glad that the new affiliation we witnessed in The Coup was used as a way of dealing with the plague virus that broke out across the globe. My favourite aspect of this audio was probably the reveal that the man the Brigadier was talking to over the phone was Harry Sullivan. That was a really lovely touch and a nice tribute to Ian Marter. I was a big fan of Harry getting involved and even though we obviously would not hear him, his presence was more than enough and it was good that he was aiding with strains of a virus. He obviously had experience of that resulting from Terror of the Zygons that we learned in The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion, and whilst those episodes were not broadcast for over a decade after this audio, was nice to be able to draw those connections across a wide range of Who chronology. There's so much of it so for things to make sense across differing incarnations of the Doctor and wide-ranging versions of UNIT was really great. The aftermath of The Longest Night was really felt here and I was quite stunned to find that Dalton had in fact died at the hands of Kirby's bomb that was the cliffhanger finish. It was nice to know that the Brigadier attended his funeral but Emily was unable to, owing to the fact she had only just awoken from a fortnight coma. I liked how keen she was to get back into action though and it was a really nice relationship between her and the Brigadier. The moment at the end they shared was wonderful with her getting a promotion and then she stating that the Brigadier should actually be their scientific advisor! I would love to get the Doctor's reaction to that. I imagine he would be smiling greatly, whichever of him found out the news. The threat of ICIS was good but I was a little confused by Whittington's role as it seemed she'd turned sides in the previous story but I guess I must have missed something there. Currie was very good and I liked how when he was witness to the UNIT setup where there was cold-blooded murder, he came to UNIT itself and warned them they were being set up. Brimmicombe-Wood turning out to be one of the top dogs at ICIS didn't really take me by surprise which was a shame and I think it would've worked out better if he had actually featured in all of the previous stories within the series. The fact that he was played by David Tennant was terrific though and it was strange to hear a recognisable voice with a different accent. It's also a nice coincidence that the story was released in the same month that he would appear on screen as the Tenth Doctor in The Parting of the Ways. The ending with the Brigadier actually shooting Whittington in the hand was humorous and I liked how Brimmicombe-Wood was dealt with and sent to custody. Overall, a good end for what was a decent little series!

Rating: 8/10