The Judgement of Isskar

"I'm sure there are enough segments for everyone."

Writer: Simon Guerrier
Format: Audio
Released: January 2009
Series: Monthly Adventures 117

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Amy, Zara

Synopsis

On a planet where time stands still, the Doctor meets a woman who is just a few minutes old. She is a Tracer, sent into our Universe by her makers to locate the six segments of the Key to Time. This being without a name wants the Doctor to be her assistant, but she doesn't tell him the whole truth. Not at first.

Their first part of call is Mars, where a society that one day will become Ice Warriors lives in peace and civility. But the Doctor's arrival will change all that. The universe is dying, a choice must be made, and the Judgement of Isskar will be declared.

The price must be paid – even if it takes centuries...

Verdict

The Judgement of Isskar was an excellent story to kick off the Key 2 Time trilogy! I have been biding my time to find a three-day period to listen to these sets of adventures and with some annual leave taken, things worked out nicely now and I was delighted with what I listened to. There was a lot going on and the pace was frantic, but that made for a great deal of excitement. There were revelations from the off as we were told that the Grace were responsible for creating the Key to Time, and the Tracer we would come to know as Amy. I thought she was a tremendous character and it was a really strong debut for what I guess is essentially a new companion! They really are fitting a lot between Planet of Fire and The Caves of Androzani! The Doctor was with Peri during what I'm sure will be a future audio, but Amy had stopped time and the Doctor could return once the segments of the Key to Time were retrieved. I liked how we started off immediately with Amy retrieving a segment and it was good to not follow the format of Season 16 by having six different stories for each segment. Within this one we had four! It was a refreshing change. I loved that her satchel where the segments would be held was within a different universe and I was intrigued that she told of how the Grace didn't want the Guardians involved. Again, that felt like things were going to be different until the very end of the audio. The story taking us to Mars was brilliant and I loved the Red Dawn reference from the Doctor and him stating how it wasn't too long since he'd been here with Peri. The depiction of the Martian markets and the race that would become the Ice Warriors was really interesting and the Doctor being involved in what they would become was magnificent. Amy's nose tickling when she was close to the segment was quite funny and I thought it worked well to introduce Zara as her fellow Tracer sister a little later on in proceedings. She too was full of revelations as we found out that thanks to the Doctor's actions in The Armageddon Factor, the segments were decaying because he'd put the segments together with a substitute sixth segment. That was a big no. Right from the start it was clear that Zara was troublesome as she'd initially lied about already having a segment which set the tone nicely. Her having a time ring was also something fun to play around with. The segment being on Mars and its decay causing the earthquakes on the planet was a terrific twist and something I didn't expect. Iskarr initially being introduced as a magistrate was excellent as the revelation at the end of part two where he was an Ice Lord had much deeper meaning. Zinc was a humorous enough character while he lasted alongside Zara, but the fun came in the Martians delivering on their promise of a less arduous death. The story shifting to Safeplace for part two was sudden and I really did think we were going to be getting a segment of the Key to Time found in each part, but thankfully that wasn't the case. The Valdigians were an interesting enough species, even if I'm not usually a big fan of the insect-like races. Lady Mesca's assassination was decent, but I will admit to wanting to just focus on the Ice Warriors so I was very pleased by their arrival to the planet. The politics of Safeplace with their king and pregnancy and the provisional government until they reached 23 was still good though. The Doctor's narration at the start of part three was really good and I have to say that this was undoubtedly one of Peter Davison's best performances as the Fifth Doctor. He told of the Martian trade, but then we heard from Isskar and how retrieving the segment destroyed Martian civilisation. Zara helping Isskar find the Doctor and Amy was expected, but I liked the idea of her having always visited the place and being unable to find the segment. Of course, it turned out to be the caste itself hidden in plain sight. The cliffhanger to lead into the final part was just excellent with Zara retrieving the segment with the Doctor still inside! That was really unique and quite the predicament. Things moved quickly from there and I really enjoyed the moment where the segments were evened up between Zara and Amy after the former's satchel broke. The Doctor being retrieved from within the castle segment by Amy was also great and it was nice for the TARDIS's presence to be partly responsible for him staying whole. Amy wanting to stay with the Doctor to retrieve the final segments of the Key to Time despite warnings from the Grace was lovely and I'm glad that she intended on continuing her relationship with the Doctor. Zara seems to think she really likes him, and I think she may be right. The cliffhanger finish was marvellous as the TARDIS was lost in hyperspace and the Doctor and Amy were en route to crash into a star. There were two segments still missing, they had no idea where Zara was and they were crashing. But then help came in the most unexpected form of the Black Guardian! That set things up very nicely. Overall, a fantastic audio and I'm excited for where things move forward from here.

Rating: 9/10