Beyond the Ultimate Adventure

"Treasure always comes at a price."

Writer: Terrance Dicks
Format: Audio
Released: December 2011
Series: Companion Chronicles 6.06

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Jason, Crystal

Synopsis

The Doctor, Crystal and Jason have survived monsters, Madame Delilah and Mrs T, but then their former enemy Karl calls them back to the Bar Galactica. The mercenary has a cryptic message concerning Ultima Thule, where fabled treasure and a threat to the universe await...

Verdict

Beyond the Ultimate Adventure was a decent and unexpected Companion Chronicle audio. I say unexpected in the fact of its very existence as I would never have anticipated a continuation of adventures after the events of The Ultimate Adventure! It's a wonderful concept though and it's quite nice now to go back and listen to a Terrance Dicks audio story. He's more renowned for his Target novelisations and there are some instances where the familiarly of that style of writing sneaks into the audio dialogue which is good. The story was quite a barmy one in that at times there was a lot going on and not all of it was coherent. Regardless of that, it was most definitely a lot of fun. There were a lot of familiar elements with one particularly being the early mention of Metebelis III from Jason which led me to wonder just how long he had been travelling with the Sixth Doctor. I wonder if we'll ever get an answer to that question. I would guess not given this story was released nine years ago and to my knowledge there hasn't been anything expanding on the trio's journeys since. Heading back to the Bar Galactica was a great development, but I have to admit I was more expecting a continuation of the trio's adventures rather than a sequel. That wasn't a problem though. One thing that did confuse me was if all three members of the TARDIS trio were there as a full cast nearly, why did this have to be presented in the Companion Chronicles format? I think it would have worked a bit better as a normal audio, but again that wasn't much of an issue. I did like that the Doctor went to Madame Delilah's funeral and wasn't really welcomed as he was blamed for her death over the Daleks. Karl's return was another unexpected development but he was keeping his enemy alive. The mercenary was up to something and I was intrigued what. Finding out about Delilah's secret at her death was a good development and the concept of a treasure hunt was excellent. It didn't quite pan out the way I wanted it to as we were flung off to another dimension in search of the Ultima Thule, or Ultima Fury (it got a bit unclear regarding that), something that was described well and likening the Nazis to the Daleks after confirming their belief in it was very good. I really enjoyed the description of the journey into the other dimension with how it was likened to soup and a sensational feeling. The familiar elements continued with the Doctor wonderfully donning the furry coat we saw his second incarnation wear in The Abominable Snowmen. I wasn't a big fan of the cliffhanger simply being the exit from the TARDIS into the new dimension, especially after the Doctor pretty much confirmed that it was okay outside. The prospect of plucking fears from people's minds was fantastic but it all got a bit messy when that happened. Jason being taken back to a time of the guillotine was great, but then we got a decent number of past enemies returning which was delightful. We had Vampires, Rutan Host and then the Raston Warrior Robot for an extended return which was very good! I found it quite humorous that the companions didn't think it was scary based on its appearance and considering it's supposed to be the most deadly killing robot, it doesn't half miss on times! The reference to The Five Doctors was really good though. The finding of the treasure was interesting as it seemed that there was something for everyone. The emergence of the Eilodon was good, but probably a little late in the story to have a sustained impact. I'm never much of a fan of beings that come from before 'recorded time' and being feared and that's what occurred this time. It wanting to come into reality was intriguing, but then the Doctor couldn't leave without it and couldn't stay with it. The Doctor calling on the Time Lords in style similar to The War Games was decent, but it ended a little quickly in that regard with him sending the Eilodon to Gallifrey to be immediately captured by the Time Lords. Overall, a decent little audio adventure!

Rating: 7/10