Gallery of Ghouls

"There's no such thing as an easy coin."

Writer: Alan Barnes

Format: Audio

Released: May 2016

Series: FDA 5.05

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis

When the TARDIS lands in Brighton the Doctor and Romana have the chance to spend some time at the seaside. But with it being too early for the opening of the Pavilion, they have to look elsewhere for their entertainment – perhaps Madame Tissot's travelling waxworks, recently arrived in town?

But they're not the only ones interested in her Exposition. When an unusual thief commits an unusual theft, the time travellers are on the case.

What exactly is the sinister secret of Goole's Gallery? Is Tissot's heading for a meltdown? And what does it all have to do with the head of Marie Antoinette?

Verdict

Gallery of Ghouls was an excellent audio in the Fourth Doctor Adventures! This really was so much fun and absolute joy to listen to and something right at home in this range and era. Starting in 1833 and the comments about the Brighton Pavilion not being built until 1851 were wonderful and I loved how the Doctor was willing to wait eighteen years for its opening! The mentions of the randomiser and needing to stay clear of the hunt from the Black Guardian was great continuity and I loved Romana's plan to see history firsthand while they waited for the pavilion to be built. The waxworks were in town though! Madame Tissot was a fun character and her dismay at the fact her exhibitions were getting incredibly low numbers was coupled with the fact there was a competitor in town in the form of Mr Goole. The Doctor's criticising of Tissot's work of Nelson's demise was hilarious because he really didn't hold back! The theft of the sculpt of Marie Antoinette's head was certainly unique and I really enjoyed the Doctor and Romana being accused of it. However, it was Romana who had spotted the real thief who upon her chasing after him he managed to impale himself! While she went to get K9, he just reduced himself to wax and slid away. The efforts to spoil the Royal Patronage of Tissot's display screamed jealousy and I really liked the cliffhanger where it appeared that Goole's mysterious waxer was actually Marie Antoinette! Of course, she turned out to be an over-cranked automaton which was equally as good and I really liked how this android craved acknowledgement. She was also built with sarcasm which was delightful alongside the Fourth Doctor. Her effort's to extract Tissot's eye only to find that it was basically useless was a powerful way to reveal that Tissot was a fraud and actually from Wolverhampton. She had never been to Paris and the French accent was all a ruse to increase her fees. Goole wanting to experience death and record it through the android was really an intriguing concept and the idea of life without feeling for his liquefied species was brilliant. The action that came from the conclusion with the Doctor using a frequency on the sonic that ended up setting the automatons alight and taking the entire works with it was fantastic and the drama that came with Romana being left inside was great. The Doctor would of course return into the blaze to free his companion but it was obvious the moment they entered the TARDIS that she wasn't the real artefact. It was Goole! He didn't bat an eyelid at the Beige Guardian which was amusing. The Doctor believing the real Romana to be in the blaze sparked him into action and I liked how he risked removing the randomiser to save her. It was also fun for him to admit he didn't quite know how to deactivate the HADS! The Doctor essentially turning the TARDIS temperature down to -0.1 fahrenheit was a simple way to be ridded of Goole as he couldn't control himself without internal organs. That was quite graphic but it had to be done. Overall, I thought this was a brilliant audio and just a really fun adventure!

Rating: 9/10

Mission: Impractical

"People think it's easy being a diabolical mastermind."

Writer: David A. McIntee

Format: Novel

Released: June 1998

Series: PDA 12

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Frobisher

Synopsis

When daring criminal Jack Chance masterminds the heist of a precious national treasure from the planet Veltroch, it is the first step in a chain of events that could lead to the destruction of two civilisations...

Pursued by bounty hunters, the Doctor and his shapeshifting companion Frobisher run into old acquaintances Glitz and Dibber – notorious rogues who have become involved in something big: a covert government agency on Vandor Prime is forcing the pair to turn their criminal talents to its own ends.

The Doctor and Frobisher are soon drawn into the mysterious scheme themselves – but what game is truly being played by the authorities? How is the group of Ogron raiders involved? And who is so desperate to see the Doctor dead?

Caught in a web of deceit and pursued by ruthless killers, the Doctor's mission – should he decide to accept it – is to join Glitz's gang and pull off the crime of the century. And failure will result in an interstellar war costing the lives of millions...

Verdict

Mission: Impractical was a somewhat average novel unfortunately. This was not one my favourite books and comfortably goes down as my least favourite Sixth Doctor book that I have read so far in my years of blogging. I was intrigued by what was going to happen with the pairing of the Sixth Doctor and Frobisher in the unusual format of prose as opposed to comic strip and while I like the idea of combining mediums and having this adventure set between two DWM comic stories, I'm not really sure what Frobisher offered. The author made reference in his opening notes about the work that went in to getting Frobisher and honestly it's harsh to say but I don't think it was required. He didn't really offer a huge amount which was a shame as there's so much potential with his character and shapeshifting abilities. I felt a little sorry for any readers who hadn't read any DWM comic strips as I don't think there was a good amount of information or backstory regarding Frobisher and how he came to be traveling with the Doctor. It wasn't mentioned that he was a Whifferdill until well over 200 pages in! I think this would have worked better with the Doctor travelling solo, especially when we had Glitz and Dibber making fun comebacks. They were great characters once again here and I really enjoyed the references and continuation from The Trial of a Time Lord for them and their dealings with the Master. The discussion about Mel was an intriguing point and I liked how it was said by the Doctor that he hadn't actually met her yet. It was a rare sidestep of a story taking place between the past and the future evidences of that aforementioned Season 23 story. The relationship between the Doctor and Glitz was fun and I loved how there was a long period where Glitz thought he had been poisoned and the Doctor was keeping that trail of thought current even though he'd already slipped him the antidote. I thought the revelation of that for Glitz was wasted though and should have been a much bigger moment! The premise at the heart of the story was actually quite simple with the Doctor reassembling the gang that stole a relic to go and steal it back and return it to its rightful owners. I don't understand why everything got so complicated and in the end I felt that there were just far too many characters and too much going on. There wasn't enough room to get to fully know characters like Liang and Chat or explore the relationship between Mandell and Kara, something that was very powerful at the end but didn't get the build it deserved. Jack Chance was a fun character and I liked how he was the last to be convinced to join the mission that very much was impractical. Karthakh and Sha'ol were very good villains in wanting to fulfil their contract and kill the Doctor and the dynamic of them being one of each species that war loomed between was fantastic. I liked how they were loyal to their contract which made them pretty unique amongst criminals! The Ogrons are always fun and they did have their moments in this book but again I just think they were a bit overkill. They weren't needed and they didn't have the role they deserved. The song that they sung was tremendous though! As a whole, the heart of the story was simple and pretty good but I felt that it got overcomplicated by too many characters. It had its moments, but as a whole I can't help but feel slightly disappointed by the book despite its good qualities.

Rating: 6/10

The Wanderer

"I can see the revolution."

Writer: Richard Dennick

Format: Audio

Released: April 2012

Series: Companion Chronicles 6.10

Featuring: First Doctor, Susan, Ian, Barbara 

Synopsis

Siberia at the end of the 19th Century, and the TARDIS arrives just as a shooting star hurtles to the ground.

With it comes an illness that affects the Doctor and Susan, and knowledge that must not fall into the wrong hands.

With his friends either dying or lost, Ian Chesterton must save the future and win the ultimate prize – a way home to 1963...

Verdict

The Wanderer was an excellent Companion Chronicles audio! It feels like an age since I blogged anything within this range so it was great to return to it and going back to the very first TARDIS team was a delight. William Russell was magnificent with his narrating and I also have to give huge credit to the writer for capturing the era of the early days of Doctor Who. This felt very much like a story within those first two seasons and it was good to include the element of Ian and Barbara being desperate to get back home to 1963 whilst also making it clear that they had travelled extensively in the TARDIS. They were very much wanderers in the fourth dimension and coming back to that line from An Unearthly Child was really nice. It's always been a favourite of mine! I liked the uniqueness of the setting in Siberia at the turn of the twentieth century and Ian finding that actually close to home with it only being six decades behind his own time was really interesting. Despite everything he and Barbara had seen on their travels, they still longed for home which I think is actually quite telling. Their arrival in Siberia coinciding with a shooting star was intriguing and I liked how it was quickly deduced that it was no ordinary shooting star. The fire in the sky on this occasion was more of a controlled landing so it was clear that there were aliens on the way. They were the Dahensa who turned out to be an intriguing race but it was actually their robotic probe that was of more interest. It was malfunctioning and that meant chronon particles were being released into the air and infected the Doctor in quite a severe way. I thought it was quite clever to have Susan and Barbara separated so we only heard the aftermaths of Susan's rampage after her infection. That was a good use of the format and the range with Ian clearly the focus. I liked how he was continuing the theme of The Aztecs in not wanting or believing he should change history and also applying that to the future was terrific. Grigory turned out to be an excellent character and I loved how through the probe he was able to see the next one thousand years of human history almost in an instant. And the things he was going to do! Stop the Holocaust, become Hitler's superior and directly impact the World Wars. They were just a few and the potential for disaster with this foreknowledge was fantastic. I was a big fan. The revelation that he was actually Rasputin was something I never saw coming so I loved that. The mad monk indeed. His crazed demeanour was marvellous and I was a big fan of him at the cliffhanger where he saw so much. His take on the Doctor being woven throughout human history was wonderful and some of the dialogue surrounding that was very good. It was good to have some use of the TARDIS telepathic circuits this early on to ensure Rasputin didn't retain all he had learnt, and the efforts of using the probe to get Ian and Barbara back to 1963 were lovely and it was actually a shame they had burned out so rendered useless. Overall, I thought this was a magnificent venture into the past and whilst the conclusion actually came in quite a simple fashion, the pace and logic of it was right at home with the early First Doctor era. A great listen!

Rating: 9/10

Inside Every Warrior

"When I grabbed at the beast I came aware with treasure."

Writer: Gemma Langford

Format: Audio

Released: March 2019

Series: Eighth of March 03

Featuring: Vastra, Jenny, Strax

Synopsis

The Great Detective, Madame Vastra, aided by her resourceful spouse, Jenny Flint, and loyal valet, Strax, is looking into a series of mysterious break-ins.

An eccentric scientist and his put-upon assistant are the latest victims. Evidence mounts, with animal footprints and a trail of destruction.

Verdict

Inside Every Warrior was an excellent story to continue The Eighth of March! This was a clever little release for the Paternoster Gang and serves as a fine example of what their own spinoff series will be like. I really can't wait to dive into that at some point as this was a terrific listen. The trio of Vastra, Strax and Jenny are just outstanding and that was on full display throughout this adventure. I liked how immediately the setting of the Victorian era was established and having the Gang on the hunt for a werewolf felt very appropriate for the atmosphere of the audio. Dr Pinch was introduced and he turned into a fascinating character and him being the subject of a burglary obviously put him in quite a vulnerable state mentally, but there was much more than that to his crazed demeanour. He was on the edge when it came to his mental capacities and that was fun, especially with Strax interacting. The burglar seemed to have come through the wall which added to the feasibility of it being something unordinary along the lines of a werewolf and coupling that with the big footprints that were found outside made for a good and intriguing mystery. Pinch revealing that he thought the werewolf was injured and had green blood was brilliant because that added to the alienness of the culprit and was quite the description in itself. I always think anytime werewolves are mentioned or featured in a Doctor Who story it needs to distance itself from Tooth and Claw and despite the Victorian setting, I thought this audio did a very good job. Pinch pondering over his lost specimen was interesting and I really liked the danger that came when it was Strax that was taken. Daisy Hodge as Pinch's assistant was a fantastic character and she turned out to be a pretty ruthless villain! Pinch's transformation throughout the audio worked well and I loved that he had an interest in Strax and got what he wanted. The alien prison being referred to as a cocktail parlour and Strax being the next flavour on the menu was both excellent and gruesome and hearing other captured aliens really sold the predicament well. I enjoy how Vastra has a reputation and hearing her vulnerability when it appeared Jenny had been fatally wounded was fantastic. She managed to grab pearls from the beast which sparked a heartwarming moment between her and Vastra. Daisy going so far as to extract the essence from Strax was excellent and I liked how some of the other aliens were addicted to the extraction sensation. That was disturbing but also strangely exciting. Daisy playing a game with Pinch over having him guess her name was powerful in highlighting the patriarchal society of the time. He didn't even know his assistant's first name. If he was correct everyone would be free, but if not well the timer wasn't for show! Daisy taunting Strax and Jenny over Vastra being their mistress and boss was superb because it actually gave them strength to both rise up which was really lovely. It was quite an emotional ending then with Daisy realising she was defeated and taking her own life. It all happened so suddenly and it was actually quite the fall from grace! Overall, a fantastic audio adventure! 

Rating: 9/10

Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman

"It has no feelings, no soul... I doubt you could say it was ever alive."

Writer: Steve Moore

Format: Comic Strip

Released: November 1979

Printed in: DWM 5-7

Featuring: Kroton

Synopsis

On the planet Mondaran, groaning under the metallic heel of the Cybermen, Junior Cyberleader Kroton works tirelessly to quell the resistance of the human inhabitants, led by Pendar. But as the freedom fighters are on the rise, Kroton experiences some inner conflict beyond a mere malfunction...

Verdict

Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman was a great comic strip adventure! This actually kicked off my reading of The Glorious Dead graphic novel and even though this story was printed at the back of the collection, even following the commentary section, I felt like I had to start here as where possible I always prefer to read a series of stories in release order. Considering this adventure was released in the fifth, sixth and seventh issues of what was then Doctor Who Weekly, I didn't see any benefit in coming back to them after reading through a lengthy set of adventures for the Eighth Doctor and Izzy. I thought this was a really fun and intriguing tale and I like the use of the Fourth Doctor in the top corner at the start of each part to update readers on what came before, or in the case of part one to establish the setting and show that the events depicted in the adventure were part of a Time Lord library record. That was really fascinating and a good use of the Doctor without him actually featuring. It's a good use of the comic strip format as well to go beyond the Doctor and give us something new with the Cybermen. I imagine this was well received at the time as well considering it had been five years since Revenge of the Cybermen was broadcast! I thought the setting of Mandaran was very good and I liked the use of logic and failing to understand why humanity just didn't accept the Cybermen as the superior beings and ruling species. To the Cybermen, they were the only species capable of being in control which was terrific. I absolutely loved the comic strip design of the Cybermen in this story with it being somewhat close to that of The Invasion but it just looks a little slicker. It really is effective and I think the appearance is definitely a big benefit of the foes here. I thought Kroton was a fantastic character and whilst the name perhaps could have been different given the titular enemies in The Krotons, the fact we have a Cyberman with a name is unique in of itself. I was a fan of that happening for Kroton, but I had to laugh at the silliness of the Cybermen here questioning humanity over their individuality only for them all to have their own names! That's a bit of a continuity error and is a big proponent of why I couldn't give this story an even higher rating. Regardless, it still scores very well and was a really enjoyable read. Pendar was a very good character and I also liked Marilka's role in the uprising with her father. The Cybermen were dealing in logic and coupling that with Kroton's interest in emotions was fantastic. He was genuinely interested and almost wanted to be empathic to what it is to be human. Trying to deal with the inner conflict of saving the humans rather than killing them was a powerful image and it even went so far as to confusing the rebels. Could they be trusted? Having only thirty or so rebels who were willing to trust Kroton in helping them escape was very good and a believable number with the others having to just remain stuck battling the Cybermen. Kroton was able to fly them to safety and whilst they couldn't reach orbit and get off the planet, they could reach salvation on the daylight side. A fitting sacrifice from Kroton as he then propelled into space and would drift on, or so it appeared. Overall, a really great comic strip!

Rating: 8/10

Ghost Mission

"Are you ready to join Torchwood?"

Writer: James Goss

Format: Audio

Released: May 2016

Series: Torchwood Monthly 09

Featuring: Andy, Norton

Synopsis

Sergeant Andy Davidson has always wanted to join Torchwood. And now he finally gets his chance.

Under the strict observation of his Torchwood Assessor, Andy sets out to prove he's got what it takes. When a chemical spill turns out to have serious consequences, when monsters roam the Bay, and when an ancient entity awakes, Andy decides he could do with a helping hand. The problem is his Torchwood Assessor doesn't have any hands. Norton Folgate is a ghost.

Verdict

Ghost Mission was an average story to continue the monthly Torchwood adventures from Big Finish. Whilst this one wasn't entirely bad, I didn't think it was overly good either which was a big shame as I was actually really excited to get a full Torchwood tale with Andy Davidson! The premise seemed good with him getting the chance to join Torchwood after all this time, but that isn't really what happened. The pre-titles sequence with Andy falling and us already realising there would be peril alongside Norton Folgate didn't do much for me and I actually felt that Norton hindered the adventure. I have exposure to him after his appearances in the (laughably) 'official' continuation of Torchwood through Aliens Among Us and God Among Us, so it is good to get to get to grips on his first appearance in the spinoff series but I'm just not his biggest fan. I really dislike his demeanour and there's something about him that I just can't get to liking about the character. Sadly, I'm not a fan. The dynamic of him being a ghost here did have its moments and I liked the ridiculousness of him being a Torchwood Assessor as a ghost from 1953, but there seemed to actually be a little too much going on. The chemical spillage was good and Norton not being able to physically help put Andy in peril, and whilst I liked the idea of testing him I'm not sure why he was asking for permission to call Gwen for help when the stakes were very real. I mean, we heard someone die in gruesome circumstances at the hands of the spillage. Andy's ingenuity in using the fire extinguisher to put out the creature was tremendous though and definitely the highlight of the audio for me. His descriptors of it being alien mimic soup and a people photocopier were also great and a stark reminder of how out of his depth he could actually be when it came to aliens. The exploration of the cloning factory was interesting but the technology was already used. The threat of him drowning in acid was pretty gruesome and Andy accepting he was going to die was powerful, only for it to turn out to be biogel in not the greatest of twists. Andy pondering over his decade of wonderment why Gwen was special was really intriguing to think about. Norton being pretty unhelpful to Andy got a little annoying at times because I felt like he was just getting in the way. The shift in setting to the haunted church in Grangetown was very good and the eeriness of the Saving Grace lyrics from the ghost echoes within was excellent. That soon turned into a crowd which got a little overload but Andy's Welsh confidence was an absolute delight. The use of singing for communication was creepy and something more should have been made of in my opinion. It was clear that Norton had an ulterior motive throughout and him showing Andy the ruling Committee of Torchwood was fun because obviously that's not who they answer to. Norton had obtained the bad penny silver locket needed in 1953, also known as the red key which was interesting continuity with Zone 10, and I look forward to seeing how that comes back into play. Andy's message draft to Gwen was fun and I liked how he knew that Gwen wouldn't risk his life, so why wasn't he questioning Norton more? But then, Jane came over and whilst Andy admitted he was stalky he soon forgot about the ghost now he had the attention of the good-looking girl. Overall, a strong showing for Andy but a little flat in parts.

Rating: 6/10

Citation Needed

"If the incident that awakened me no longer happened, how do its consequences still exist?"

Writer: Jacqueline Rayner

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2019

Printed in: The Target Storybook 13

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Twelfth Doctor, Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

"We're all stories in the end..."

In this exciting collection you'll find all-new stories spinning off from some of your favourite Doctor Who moments across the history of the series.

Discover what happened next, what went on before, and what occurred off-screen in an inventive selection of sequels, side-trips, foreshadowings and first-hand accounts – and look forward too, with a brand new adventure for the Thirteenth Doctor.

Each story expands in thrilling ways upon aspects of Doctor Who's enduring legend. With contributions from show luminaries past and present – including Colin Baker, Matthew Waterhouse, Vinay Patel, Joy Wilkinson and Terrance Dicks – The Target Storybook is a once-in-a-lifetime tour around the wonders of the Whoniverse.

Verdict

Citation Needed was a decent and very unique adventure to continue my reading through The Target Storybook! This was definitely an audacious and different format for a short story and I like that there was some experimentation on display as I think if there is anywhere to try something like that, it would be as part of a collection such as this one. I don't think I would be able to maintain my interest for a whole book, but for around thirty pages this worked well. It reminded me a little of The Last Dodo with the way we got a lot of definitions and information from the Encyclopaedia Gallifreya and the fact that the entire story was told from the perspective of this book was incredible! It's so strange and weird to think about and I like how it's kind of explained from my opening quote which is something fun to try and wrap your head around. While I did enjoy the story and its uniqueness, I must say that I think this is a bad use of the Eleventh Doctor in the book as a whole as it quickly stems into a Thirteenth Doctor adventure! Ordinarily, that would be absolutely fine and judging solely on the story I thought that worked really well but I just think it's a shame that we are not going to get more of a focus on the Eleventh Doctor. The illustration that started this story adorning him was brilliant though and I enjoyed the Gallifreya's entries on bow ties and how this current Doctor thought they were cool. The Encyclopaedia going through a number of different incarnations of the Doctor and their entries was fun and I love how the confusion surrounding the Meta-Crisis Doctor of Journey's End was addressed on more than occasion, but I was surprised that we didn't hark back to the War Doctor as well as I think that's really where the numbering confusion stems. The Gallifreya experiencing the events of The Name of the Doctor and getting bored of 'Doctor who?' being said throughout time was amusing and I quite enjoyed how it took more than attempt of sleeping through eternity before that was finished. Well, things got even longer when we had gone through a regeneration and we were experiencing the events of Heaven Sent through the Encyclopaedia with the Doctor constantly dying over and over again for four-and-a-half billion years. I also liked how Clara was causing issues given her nature as the impossible girl and the links to Silver Nemesis and Blood and Ice were fantastic continuity. The reaction of shock from the Gallifreya when we experienced another regeneration and this time the Thirteenth Doctor entered the fold was fun and I liked how this provided a pronoun problem. Did past entries need to be altered? That was certainly an unenviable task! The inclusion of Yaz, Ryan and Graham and their arrival as the fam was good and I liked how we even had references to The Ghost Monument and Rosa. What I wasn't expecting was the involvement of T'zim Sha and the Ux with an apparent link into The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos. That was very good and I liked how the definitions could be used as a statement when it came to describing certain elements of a species or character. We quickly delved into a fun moment where the Gallifreya used its own chameleon abilities to disguise itself as tizer and use Graham's thirst for food as a way to communicate with and warn the Doctor. Things ended a little abruptly given the links to televised episodes, but as a whole this was a good and unique Doctor Who story. 

Rating: 7/10

Doctor Who and the Sunmakers

"They don't have a night on this planet."

Writer: Terrance Dicks

Format: Novel

Released: November 1982

Series: Target 60

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Leela, K9

Synopsis

Everyone knows that Pluto is a barren airless rock. So naturally the Doctor is surprised when he discovers artificial suns, an ultra-modern industrial city and a group of colonists being worked – and taxed – to death in this inhospitable and supposedly undeveloped part of the universe...

With the help of his companion Leela and the faithful K9, the Doctor takes on the mysterious and powerful Company, ruthless exploiter of planets and their people.

Verdict

Doctor Who and the Sunmakers was an excellent novelisation of the televised serial! I really do think this is an underrated serial within the Fourth Doctor era and it's one that really does seem to go under the radar. It's really intriguing and imaginative and presents a fantastic society that I would love for the Doctor to return to at an earlier point in history. Having a colony on Pluto is a fun concept in of itself but when you couple that with the fact those responsible for creating it and the six suns that powered it were taxing the population to a ridiculous degree, well there was quite the issue presented for those living there. I love the idea of tax on a number of different aspects of life and the opening paragraphs of the book establishing that with Cordo and his inability to pay his father's death taxes was brilliant. He turned out to be a superb character and his being unable to meet his payments resulting in him being suicidal and wanting to jump from three floors was quite the way to introduce the Doctor and Leela to the society. I thought they were a fantastic pairing in this story and coupling them with K9 was tremendous. He was terrific in this book and I really liked how he and the Doctor were playing chess and check mate was calculated within six moves. The Doctor wasn't pleased with that! Circling back to that at the end of the novel was really fun and the touch of fortune from the TARDIS knocking over the chess board was the Fourth Doctor at his best. The Company and eventing it stood for made for a powerful organisational villain and reading how much of a grip they had on the population was excellent. Praise be to the Company. I liked how that was fed in throughout the book and it really showed how there was no loosening of their grip. Despite the numbers not being in their favour, they controlled every aspect of life on Pluto and could just raise taxes or implement compulsory unpaid overtime without any warning. The Collector as the head of that was superb and I loved the description of his appearance and the fact he adorns the book cover. He's heartless and so ingrained in the calculations of the production output and the levels of profitability that came from that. Gatherer Hade and Marn made for good villains at a lower level before the latter ended up joining the revolution and quite liking it which was great stuff. I thought Mandrel was a very good character and his being threatened by Leela was delightful. He headed the Others but was taken aback by the noble savage. Leela really seemed to be enjoying herself in the story which is always great but she did have a few close calls with death! There was a very strong level of excitement and action in the story and I really liked the pace of the revolution taking place. I also loved the passage where the Doctor knew that the easiest way to free Leela was to take down the oppressive regime that had her captured. That was magnificent. I liked the use of the PCM in the story to subjugate the population and Leela dismissing the fear that it invoked in her when K9 confirmed it was artificial was sublime. The ultimate fate of the Controller takes place in quick fashion with him seeing that there's a surplus and the system is going to crash, so he reverts to his natural form and runs away in a liquefied fashion which is pretty amusing! The Doctor literally putting a cork in the bottle to prevent him from escaping is quite silly but perfectly suited to this incarnation. Overall, an excellent novelisation!

Rating: 9/10

The Conquest of Far

"If you don't trust me, why did you bother saving me?"

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: August 2017

Series: Third Doctor Adventures 3.01

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis

Earth Alliance, the future... Fleet commanders receive their orders from the President of Earth. Operation Far is 'go'. As soon as the planets are suitably aligned, the attack will go ahead.

The Doctor and Jo arrive on the planet Far. The Doctor wants to attend the grand opening of one of the human race's greatest achievements. A huge Hyper Gateway built to make travel around Earth's great empire more convenient, bringing relief to many starving outer colonies.

But they land in the wrong time period, long after the Gateway has been in service, and the Daleks have conquered Far! It's the middle of a war and a deadly game is underway. When everyone has an agenda, betrayal can happen at any time, from any side. The endgame is approaching and maybe this time no one will survive.

Verdict

The Conquest of Far was an excellent audio to kick off the third volume of the Third Doctor Adventures! This was definitely my favourite release in the series thus far and was a welcomed addition of quality to the range made even better by the fact that the bulk of my purchase of the boxset was from a reward voucher at work. There's nothing quite like a freebie! This was a good choice in hindsight and getting an extra encounter with the Daleks for the Third Doctor was brilliant, especially because we got to hear Tim Treloar's take on the third incarnation against the greatest foes for the first time. He has definitely grown on me in the role since it was recast back at the start of the range and whilst I thought there were a couple of instances where too much was done to emulate the mannerisms of Jon Pertwee, he was excellent and definitely helped provide a feeling of authenticity to the story which I think is important. With another Dalek story for this Doctor, I wasn't expecting it to follow on right where a previous one left off! The continuation from Planet of the Daleks was magnificent with the Doctor and Jo literally having just left there only to be encountering the Daleks once again, albeit at a different point in their history. These Daleks were noticeably more advanced with Jo's gasped reaction to their hover abilities a real treat. This also definitely had a feeling of space-opera and that's quite unique for the Third Doctor given much of his era was contained to Earth so it's great to explore other settings for this incarnation. I thought some of the guest characters were very strong with Jickster and Naltrox the obvious standouts. It was good to have the Doctor and Jo split up early on and the proximity to the gateway and their arrival much later in time than anticipated was a good fumble. They were expecting a gatekeeper and instead they got Daleks. The Doctor having to escape through the gateway without any hyperspace coordinates was some good action and excitement and I should also mention that I thought the cliffhangers were very strong. The one at the end of part two revealing the secret weapon of the Daleks was fantastic as we learned that they had a transmitter that was able to convert entire armies en mass into Robomen. I'm a sucker for the Robomen alongside the Daleks and having different levels of them was a really intriguing development here. There were Robomen that were advanced and didn't even know that they had been converted which was really good. I liked the setting of Far very much and I found the origin of its name hilarious and lacking imagination for those who named it on Earth! Very fun. The Dalek Wars are always intriguing to explore and this was no different, and I was impressed with how much the threat of the Daleks was used rather than their actual presence for a lot of the adventure. The scene where the Daleks were interrogating Jo and her truthful (or not!) responses was terrific and I liked how she had the confidence to try and pull one over on them. The ending was actually relatively simple and open-ended which was refreshing and Elaquon's role as the initial slave who designed the transmitter was excellent. She was a great character. I thought it was a big surprise that Del didn't survive after all was well but that showed that death follows the Daleks. The Doctor' gloating to the Daleks at the end as they recognised another face to add to their databanks of the Doctor was fun, although I was slightly surprised he was okay with leaving Daleks alive out in the universe. Still, this was a fantastic listen! 

Rating: 9/10

The Big Blue Book

"People who draw this go missing."

Writer: Lizzie Hopley

Format: Audio

Released: March 2019

Series: Eighth of March 02

Featuring: Ace, Benny

Synopsis

With the Doctor AWOL, Benny and Ace are left to their own devices, going native in a Liverpool university.

Benny accepts an invitation she really shouldn't, and Ace meets a very strange collector.

An alien library is about to gain a big, blue book... but where's the TARDIS?

Verdict

The Big Blue Book was a very good audio to continue my way through The Eighth of March collection of adventures focusing on the women of Doctor Who and Big Finish. It's such a good and fitting idea and this was another great story to be placed in the boxset. This was a terrific way to capture the era of the Seventh Doctor with Ace and Benny in shining roles, and whilst things were more focused on the former it was still good to hear them together as a pair. They really work well together and that was definitely evidenced here. I thought the setting of 1990s Liverpool was good and definitely more could have been made of that instead of just the university lifestyle, although that was really positive and a fun reminder of my recent past. Harvey made for a decent character and it was good that there was someone else other than Benny that Ace knew and cared for. I thought the presence of the TARDIS was quite fun but I have to admit that given the boxset and the fact that it is celebrating women, I thought there was too much made of the Doctor's absence. Things were clearly going wrong so we had both Benny and Ace hoping to get in touch with the Doctor to try and fix things. He was a genius and he could solve any problem and ordinarily I wold have been absolutely fine with that and I haven't let it impact my rating, but I just thought the was a little out of touch in the celebratory release. The library usage was brilliant and I really enjoyed Vassa and how her character and role developed throughout the audio. She was a creepy woman which really worked well and I thought they nailed the casting as her voice really fitted in with the characterisation. The concept of people being turned into books was certainly unique and it worked really well with there actually being a malfunction that Vassa was unable to fix. Not only were people turned into books, but they were being lured in which added to the issues. The description of the size of the library and how there were over 18,000 people who had been turned into books was extraordinary, and it was very fun to hear that all of the books were catalogued despite being blank. Ace causing the TARDIS to even end up as a book was fantastic and I loved how she was ruing telling the Doctor about this development. Ace going into the pages (I guess) and hearing the voices of Harvey and Benny was great and I really enjoyed how we could hear the desperation in their voices. Ace hearing numbers amongst all of the jumble of all those written into the book was a clever little ploy as well. Vassa knowing all about Ace and Benny from a quick scan was fun and I liked how both were immediately defensive. As a whole, I thought this flowed well and I think with a bit more excitement at the end we could have had an even higher rating! I wasn't actually expecting Sylvester McCoy to briefly feature as the Seventh Doctor at the end and it was terrific that he caught the train to Kent to fix whatever problem required him there, whilst retaining knowledge of there being some sort of incident at the library. Overall, a really strong audio!

Rating: 8/10

The British Invasion

"You two see alien invasions in everything."

Writer: Ian Potter

Format: Audio

Released: August 2017

Series: Short Trips 7.08

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

A huge metal dome sits by the side of the river Thames, within it is a device that might change the entire future of humanity. The Doctor, Zoe and Jamie embark on a small act of kindness but the TARDIS seems oddly unwilling to help. It's as if it knows the truth. There is something waiting here, something adaptable and cunning, gathering its strength to conquer the stars.

Verdict

The British Invasion was a decent little Short Trips adventure! I thought this was a solid tale from start to finish that remained of a consistent quality across its forty-two minutes without ever getting to embroiled or excited in anything, and that's not a bad thing with this format. The trio of the Second Doctor, Jamie and Zoe is always fun and having Wendy Padbury as the narrator here was a big part in my decision to listen to this story today. It seems such a long time since I have blogged anything featuring Zoe so I just had to get on board with this. The title also intrigued me and I think it's a clever use when the setting was centred around the Festival of Britain in 1951. Having everything that stood for encountered by two companions without any real knowledge of the period or its significance was interesting because that allowed the Doctor to explain it, which would also have been helpful for any listeners unaware of the event. Jamie had a good start to the audio and I felt a little sorry for him given that he was realising that with a King George VI around at this time, there was no mention of any McCrimmons or Jacobite success. That must have been tough to learn that the cause you fought so valiantly for ultimately failed. For Zoe, her ignorance was on the other side with her only recognising that she was in the past. Jamie wasn't too thrilled to be in London yet again which was amusing, but the pair's thinking that there were more alien invasions because of some of the Festival's architecture was delightful. That felt very much of its era. The reference to The Seeds of Death from Jamie when it came to his annoyance at going to museums when they could just hop into the TARDIS and see the real thing was fun, and with their having gone to a space museum in the future he wasn't buying the Doctor's explanation of how it was a chance to see what the people of the present thought of their current circumstances. Imogen was a decent character but she really grew into the episode when it was revealed she was a Vardan! I didn't see that coming but hearing how that linked with the Festival and the advance in technology with radio waves and signals was tremendous. It was a fun dynamic for there to be just one wounded Vardan rather than a whole party and I liked how the Doctor acknowledged meeting them before in The First Wave. There was a lot of Companion Chronicle referencing with The Transit of Venus getting a neat little reference in the Doctor's recollections. Ultimately, the ending of this one felt somewhat cheap with the Doctor defeating the Vardan before it was actually any kind of serious threat as he had already realised that there was something else at work. I understand that approach given the format, but it cheapens the moment where Zoe thinks the Vardan signal has actually been sent which is a shame because I thought Wendy Padbury was terrific for the most part with her narration. Her take on Jamie was fun and whilst her impression of the Second Doctor could have been better, that's not to say that it was bad by any stretch of the imagination. Still, this was an enjoyable listen! 

Rating: 7/10

To the Death

"This is the second Dalek occupation I have lived through."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: March 2011

Series: EDA 4.10

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Lucie, Susan, Alex

Synopsis

'He can't be alive.'

After a last, futile fight-back against the Daleks, Lucie, Susan and Alex are heading home to England in the desperate hope of saving the Doctor's life. But the true, terrible nature of the Daleks' plan is beginning to emerge and the Monk has blood on his hands.

To defeat the Daleks, it can only be a struggle... to the death.

Verdict

To the Death was an outstanding episode to conclude the story already started in Lucie Miller and to conclude the fourth and final series of Eighth Doctor Adventures! Wow. It's been one hell of a ride and this was a fitting finale for the range and for Lucie Miller. She's been a terrific companion alongside the Eighth Doctor and her sendoff was handled so well. After such a good cliffhanger at the end of the previous episode, I was surprised with how calmly things started with Lucie, Susan and co finding the Doctor's body after the missile strike. He had fallen far and there was no sign of life, but he was just about holding and despite not waking. Using Susan's TARDIS key to find the police box was good and I liked how that comfort would help with the Doctor's condition. The Monk confessing that he was scared was great but not surprising given his childish nature and I liked how it was Tamsin that had the Doctor's key as well as her having second thoughts on her relationship with the meddler. The Doctor being revived was a fun moment with Susan and the insinuation that the Monk didn't know what he was doing was fun, but the truth was actually that he was collecting human artefacts to remember the race by once the Daleks had destroyed them. That was incredible. He was the one that betrayed humanity to the Daleks and he revealed that the Daleks were planning to put a time warp engine into the centre of the Earth and pilot it through time as a plague planet. That was incredibly audacious and I loved how the Dalek Time Controller was behind it. The explanation of his survival from the Amethyst explosion was excellent and the Monk's role in repairing and slowing the decay surrounding this Dalek was fantastic. It certainly explained a lot with how he was here at this point in Dalek history! Tamsin realising the error of her ways and wanting to help was good and I loved how Susan stood up to the Doctor and disagreed with his desire to go into the future and change history with the Amethyst debacle. Lucie had her own plan which was just wonderful despite her condition as she wanted to pilot a Dalek saucer and drop the bomb down their mineshaft and wipe them out and their plague planet plan. The Monk showing her how to pilot was great and just hearing how unhinged and changed she was made for such a powerful sequence. As if things weren't shocking enough, Tamsin was coldly exterminated and hearing how distraught the Monk was made for a big surprise. He had remorse for his reward for helping the Daleks. The flashback moments where he got the initial plea from the Daleks for help was really beneficial and the attempts of the Daleks to change their future where the Doctor wiped them out were superb. The Monk's desire being to purely get rich was so pompous but right up his alley and the calm way in which he revealed he was responsible for the plague was incredible. So simple and powerful. The Daleks planning to pilot the planet to the moment where all of the viruses converged was brilliant and I thought the attack from Lucie and co was extraordinary with Alex suffering the same fate as Tamsin. Susan was distraught, but the Doctor was noticeably calm throughout. His recollection of Genesis of the Daleks and that famed moment was brilliant but now he knew that the Daleks had to be stopped, no matter what. And the cost was Lucie Miller. What did the Daleks have when humanity took away the fear of death? A fine line and Lucie's sacrifice was fitting. She saved the universe from the Daleks. What a way to go! The Monk saving the Doctor and Susan from destruction was good and I loved how disgusted the Doctor was with his fellow Time Lord. The recollection to Susan of An Unearthly Child and the moment Ian stopped him from killing a savage was wonderful, but now he was thinking he was too soft. Had this pushed him over the edge? His listening of Lucie's message on the gizmo was emotional and I loved the continuity with him repeating The Dalek Invasion of Earth line of one day going back. Overall, an incredible finale!

Rating: 10/10

Lucie Miller

"We had to be as insane as the Daleks to defeat them."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs

Format: Audio

Released: February 2011

Series: EDA 4.09

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Lucie, Susan, Alex

Synopsis

'Hello! Doctor, it's me. Lucie. Lucie Miller...'

Lucie Miller needs the Doctor's help. The whole planet Earth needs his help. But he is nowhere to be seen.

While Lucie struggles to survive a terrible sickness, an even greater threat to the human race is about to be unleashed.

And this will be the second Dalek invasion of Earth the Doctor's granddaughter has had to endure.

'You must accept the reality of your situation. You have been defeated.'

Verdict

Lucie Miller was an outstanding adventure to kick off the finale of the fourth series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures! This really did have it all and served as a fine opener to what I am sure will be an excellent finale as a whole. I liked the little recap of Lucie's message that we heard at the end of Prisoner of the Sun and the Daleks describing how they had been destroyed by the Doctor was excellent. The permutations of the timeline for that with where Lucie was massively intrigued me. The pace at which things went wrong in this adventure was sublime and the sickness coming and infecting Lucie whilst she and Alex were holidaying in Thailand was great stuff. It was spreading fast and before we knew it there were mass deaths on an awful scale. Lucie was narrating events after they had happened which provided an intriguing dynamic and some safety for her character, and I liked how she described the pain from the sickness and how it still haunted her. Susan and Alex being safe from the sickness because of their Gallifreyan DNA was good and the call from the former companion to her son and Lucie was really good and full of desperation amid the current predicament on Earth. Lucie having the gizmo to contact the Doctor and it being created by Nyssa was really nice, but I was shocked to find that the Doctor didn't actually answer her call! Lucie and Alex returned to England in quickly described events and the narration worked well in moving the story forward at a quite frantic pace. Lucie was suffering partial blindness which I thought more was going to come of, but for me it was all about the Daleks and their repetition of the events of The Dalek Invasion of Earth. That's one of my all time favourite serials so almost a sequel here was magnificent. They'd weakened the planet with the sickness before invading. Susan dreaming of the Doctor being killed by the Daleks added to the fear factor but I loved the comfort she had in the TARDIS key and feeling the power of the impending TARDIS arrival. Alex had a good episode and him working with Seb as part of the rebellion suited him. I loved that the Robomen returned and the mirroring of the plan with the mine shaft and propulsion unit was delightful. Only this time the scale was off the charts as instead of Bedfordshire, they were using the whole of North America. Lucie and the rebels building small victories whilst encountering deaths was excellent and I liked how there was a lot of radio interference and interceptions. Thousands were en route to the shaft site from all different directions which was quite an image. The return of the Monk alongside the Daleks was fantastic and I loved how they demanded rebel extermination whereas he surprisingly didn't seem so keen. The chaos that came with the attack on the Daleks was superb and I loved the revelation that the Dalek Time Controller was here! How had he survived Patient Zero? The simplicity of Lucie's description of Seb's death was chilling and the overdue arrival of the Doctor having him greet Tamsin was a nice shift. Susan remained convinced that the Doctor would come to save them which I admired, whereas Lucie had given up until Susan descried the glow of the TARDIS key. Then all of her will returned and she recorded her forgiveness to the Doctor for what happened with Aunty Pat and wanted to travel with him again. I do hope she gets that opportunity. The Monk ID'ing the Doctor to the Daleks was hilarious and Tamsin not realising that Lucie was still alive and becoming unsure about him was something I'm sure we'll come back to. The cliffhanger finish was magnificent with the rebels launching a missile at the Dalek base that so happened to contain the Doctor and there being no ability to abort. The emotion that came from its destruction was incredible. Overall, a sensational listen!

Rating: 10/10

The Same Face

"Success in a system of government built on assassination."

Writer: Julian Richards

Format: Audio

Released: June 2019

Series: Short Trips 9.06

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis

No one survives in politics on Samael. Felicity Morgan has learnt this the hard way, as she keeps being assassinated. However, she has a secret. A secret that has kept her alive. A secret that has propelled her to the top job. When the Doctor and Jo arrive on Samael, they learn the impossible truth.

One woman. One face. Many lives.

Verdict

The Same Face was a very good little audio adventure in the Short Trips range! I'm all for the length of stories in this range being similar to this one as at forty-two minutes long, there definitely felt like ample time to develop an adventure with a bit of depth which was definitely the case here. I liked the political theme of the story and I thought the Third Doctor and Jo were a good pairing to throw into that given they are usually contained to a contemporary setting of the 1970s with UNIT which of course naturally gives rise to political connotations. Samael was a very good and interesting setting and the peace treaty showed us just where things were at as the Doctor and Jo arrived on the planet. Things were progressing and finally moving forward after a time of war, but inevitably things were going to go wrong. I thought Felicity Morgan turned out to be a fantastic character and the surprise that came with her regenerating was a real treat. The description of it being like an explosion intrigued me because it would be a long time removed from the Third Doctor era that we would see a regeneration depicted in this way but the continuity was certainly appreciated. I mean, it was just fun to have the Doctor and Jo talking openly about regeneration at this point given that it wouldn't get named on screen until Planet of the Spiders. The synopsis really caught my attention with Morgan continuing to get assassinated but I never clocked that she might be a Time Lord so that was great. It was even better that she was a Time Lord with a twist as despite regenerating her face never changed which was terrific. Her being a former member of the Celestial Intervention Agency made sense and I loved that her Time Lord title was to be the Minister. It was a fascinating concept and changing her personality through each regeneration to match the role of office she held within the political system was brilliant! That was so unique. I never suspected that the Master would also be involved in the adventure so the delivery of his reveal as the Ambassador was excellent. He didn't stay around for too long which was a shame, but it was still so much fun for him to be donning yet another disguise. The Doctor realised before it was too late. I felt like there could have been slightly more jeopardy with the Master around and the Doctor got the upper hand in relatively quick style, but that might have something to do with the time factor. Maybe his appearance wouldn't have been so impactful without the building of the setting. I really liked how Samael was depicted. The Master's interference with the Minister's TARDIS and how that linked in with the regeneration was good and the simplicity of the Doctor putting a psychic barrier on her to ensure her next regeneration would go smoothly and in a more traditional manner was good and what was needed. Katy Manning did a fine job with the narration and I liked how Jo was on hand to comfort Morgan with her post-regenerative symptoms. Overall, this was a really good little audio adventure! 

Rating: 8/10

The Wonderful Doctor of Oz

"There's a lot of times you dream of going over the rainbow."

Writer: Jacqueline Rayner

Format: Novel

Released: June 2021

Series: NSA 67

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham, K9

Synopsis

When a sudden tornado engulfs the TARDIS, the Thirteenth Doctor and her fam find themselves transported to the magical land of Oz. With a damaged TARDIS and an unexpected stowaway from the 1930s, their only hope of getting home is to follow the yellow brick road.

But when an army of scarecrows ambushes them, they quickly realise that everything is not as it should be and are thrown into a fight for survival against an unknown foe. As each of her companions becomes a shadow of their former selves, only the Doctor is left standing.

Desperate to save her friends, she must embark on a perilous journey to seek help from the mysterious Wizard of Oz – and stop whatever forces are at work before she and her friends are trapped in the fictional world forever.

Verdict

The Wonderful Doctor of Oz was an outstanding novel! This is such a barmy and brilliant book and to be honest I wouldn't expect anything less from the ingredients of Doctor Who crossing over with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and having Jacqueline Rayner as the author. This is definitely my favourite Thirteenth Doctor novel so far which is testament to the quality of this novel as it's a strong collection that it joins from this era. The very idea of a literary crossover is great and whilst, to the best of my knowledge, I have never read nor watched The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, I feel that its stature in society gave me enough knowledge going in that reading that classic wasn't a prerequisite. Even if somebody had no knowledge of the famed tale, I thought Rayner did a fine job in catching the reader up with events in the fictional land of Oz. We even had some extracts from the book itself which were good and very helpful. I liked that its author Baum featured as a character and him actually ending up being the one in the role of the Master of the Land of Fiction was terrific. I suspected before reading that this location was where things would take us and it actually took longer than I expected for that to be confirmed. Still, the moment it was revealed was a real treat and just one of a number of nods back to the past. We had appearances from the likes of Chumblies filling in the role of the Muchkins which was really fun, and then there were also Cybermen and Cybermats when we got to the tin man section. Everything being a plan to make the Doctor less of what she actually was by taking her brain, heart and courage was quite horrific when you stop and think about it, and whilst it doesn't seem so twisted when it plays out in the realm of Oz, the fact that each of the fam suffered one of those fates was an excellent plot development. The humour that came from Graham being brainless was delightful, but it was a stark contrast to see Ryan without a heart and Yaz without her courage. They were almost unrecognisable as companions! Speaking of companions, the addition and return of K9 to the adventure was an unexpected treat and he really did fit in well. The humour that comes from his literal nature was as terrific as ever and it was lovely to have the image of him trundling along beside the fam and the Thirteenth Doctor. Theodore was also a good character to stowaway the TARDIS and I liked that he came from a timeline where The Wonderful Wizard of Oz had never been written. That sparking a trap for the Doctor and fam was great and I liked how he was an avid reader. He would get on really well with the Doctor in that case. I didn't think he would be that good but with the fates of three companions, he was a good sense of normal and I liked how he had a clear perspective with no knowledge of the film or book whose land they were within. The Emerald City was a very fun element of crossover with so much green from Doctor Who's past featuring, from the likes of Slitheen and Tereleptils to Silurians and the Absorbaloff! Terrific stuff. Of course, the cover makes it clear that Missy returns here and the whole idea of her encountering the Thirteenth Doctor was incredibly exciting. The way her arrival was teased was great and then I loved how the tree mines and the insects were used to make us suspect that the Witch was actually the Rani. But of course it was Missy! She actually only stuck around for seventeen pages, but that interaction with the Thirteenth Doctor was tremendous. I really loved how she accused her best enemy of copying her. That made me chuckle. Rayner's characterisation of the female incarnation of the Master was a sheer joy to read and her position as Mistress of the Land of Fiction was so much fun. She worked hard to take over but it was already collapsing. I liked the simplicity of Theodore becoming SuperTheo and smashing the hour glass to end up giving the companions their brain, heart and courage back, with us then having a heartfelt ending as Theodore offered himself to take over the Land of Fiction and rewrite himself as Dorothy. He was genetically male, but a female on the inside and now he could match both inside and out which was really nice. The comments from the Doctor and Missy about previously being male were used really cleverly for that unexpected ending. Overall, a truly wonderful read!

Rating: 10/10

Terror of the Vervoids

"The crime we are committing in the name of science will make us infamous."

Writers: Pip & Jane Baker

Format: TV

Broadcast: 1-22 November 1986

Season: 23c

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Mel

Synopsis

The Doctor is on trial for his life. Plucked out of time and space by the Time Lords, he is charged with transgressing the First Law of Time. He must defend himself against the prosecution led by the sinister Valeyard...

In a desperate bid to clear his name, the Doctor presents his defence to the charges laid against him. In the year 2986, the starliner Hyperion III makes its way to Earth... but all is not well. The Doctor and Mel arrive in response to a distress call, although not in time to prevent a murder.

And this will not be the only death: someone aboard will kill again and again to protect their secret. And while the murderer closes in above decks, in the Hydroponic Centre a terrifying new breed of creature is about to awaken...

Verdict

Terror of the Vervoids was a very good third instalment of the epic The Trial of a Time Lord adventure that spans the entirety of the twenty-third season of Doctor Who! I have started with the splitting up of this serial and blogging each segment as its own entity, but I really am not happy with having done this now! Despite a lot of popular opinion, I am adamant that the best way to view this whole adventure is in one go and judge it in its entirety. I felt that this one linked in well with the overall season arc and the use of the story to further that was good. I thought the basis of the story in its own right wasn't as good as it could have been without the links back to the court room, but I thought it was good to keep things tied with the trial. I don't this is the best way to introduce a new companion in the form of Mel, but thankfully despite a rushed start to life in the role she has a decent serial. That's excluding all of the screaming that is just terrible for the ears! She has some good humour with the Doctor in the control room and her efforts to get him into an improved shape and condition with the exercise bike and carrot juice are definitely amusing. She's a very different companion and it's noticeable how much of a shift the tone and atmosphere makes with Mel in the role. It's a little off-putting given how Mindwarp ended that we move so smoothly away from Peri, but the explanation of the Doctor's evidence coming from the future is certainly a saving grace. The very idea of that is a little strange as you'd expect the Doctor to call back on something he had clear knowledge and memory of with the charge against him so great, but it does provide the insight that the Matrix has been tampered with and the Doctor is being set up. That's an excellent concept and the Doctor not being able to rely on his evidence but having no choice other than to press on to fid the culprit. The Valeyard revelled in picking holes in the evidence put forward by the Doctor and it's hard to disagree with some of his points. Mel was undoubtedly put in danger and the Doctor's role in the fate of the Vervoids was inarguable, despite the reasons. I thought the concept and design of the Vervoids was tremendous and I love that we have sentient plant creatures. They look majestic which just adds to their appearance. The threat they posed was simple but very effective. I thought the gym theme was a little strange and I did like Professor Lasky and how she was always wanting to get a workout in. The role of the Hyperion III was very good and I could appreciate the special effects that went into that imagery considering this was from 1986! The cliffhangers were pretty strong and I liked the one at the end of part twelve and how that sets us up for the finale with the Doctor now accused on a more serious charge of genocide. His reaction to that was brilliant because he certainly has his work cut out, but at least he stopped the Vervoids from destroying the human race. The pictures that showed how they were completely eradicated were impressive and powerful with a strong fate sealed. Overall, another strong segment in what is a great serial as a whole!

Rating: 8/10

Prisoner of the Sun

"The only cell that can hold you is one you create for yourself."

Writer: Eddie Robson

Format: Audio

Released: January 2011

Series: EDA 4.08

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

Six years after being captured by the galaxy-spanning organisation known only as The Consensus, the Doctor lives inside a hi-tech complex at the heart of an unstable sun, condemned to an eternity maintaining its systems. A moment's carelessness could cause the star to collapse – and the deaths of billions.

Watched over by liquid guards, the Mercurials, the Doctor's only company at the heart of the sun is his assistant 'Daphne' – the latest in a line of android helpers. But rebels have their eyes on the sun, and its lonely controller – and are prepared to risk even a galactic cataclysm to secure the Doctor's release...

Verdict

Prisoner of the Sun was another very good audio adventure to continue the fourth series of Eighth Doctor Adventures! We're well and truly into the final stretch now in what is the longest of the four series for the eighth incarnation of the Doctor so far, and whilst this did have a tendency to feel like a filler episode it was still a great listen! There really isn't anything wrong with a standalone story like this one and with how it ended there was still a decent amount of series arc continuation. That being hinted at for the start of the story with Lucie apparently killing the Doctor was great. He was a prisoner and it appeared that his companion had killed him, except he wouldn't die so easily as Gliss the Mercurial was eager to point out. I thought the concept behind that liquefied race was very intriguing, as was the Doctor constructing his own robotic companion! Adorning it with the voice of Lucie was fun and provided a different take on Sheridan Smith's role in the episode. The Doctor christened her Daphne as she was the fourth of her kind with the previous all having names starting with earlier letters in the alphabet. The Consensus were a good organisation to figurehead the enemies for the story and the Doctor being imprisoned is always enjoyable, even though it was for six years! The sun project was fascinating and their desire for a weapon out of the solar star was certainly ambitious. The Doctor being the one to ensure the systems were in place to prevent the sun going nova and weaponised and saving 2 billion people on the planets below was good and quite the predicament to place him in if we're being honest! The rebels arriving to try and save the Doctor was good after hearing of his story six years ago and doing battle against the Consensus, but some of them were actually out to ensure the Doctor stayed imprisoned. He was revered as a martyr and a hero and it needed to stay that way for inspirational purposes. Jelena hoping to see that through was great stuff and I thought she was a good character, contrasting well with Hagan who was honoured to meet the Time Lord. The fun that came with the Doctor revealing he'd had the ability to escape all along was excellent and I think Paul McGann actually delivered brilliantly without a formal companion. He was really engaging. The action packed scenes made for a tense adventure and the description of the base being a prison of responsibility was excellent stuff. The responsibility of two billion lives would not have weighed easily on the Doctor's shoulders. The Mercurials getting a better offer and preventing the repairs was a good twist and I loved the idea of the whole solar weapon project being a fake to keep the Doctor imprisoned. My quote was very good. The Consensus initiating the self destruct remotely provided excitement and Daphne being the failsafe higher authority was a good backdoor card, if not a little convenient. Chloe's arrival in the TARDIS after the staged killing was good, but her reprogramming by the revels and then trying to kill the Doctor got a tad overkill in trying to follow just who was on who's side. The double trick was good but probably a step too far for big impact, but the Doctor's calmness at the countdown and his confidence was just a sheer delight. He was way ahead of the game. The ending with the distress call from the real Lucie Miller was good and I look forward to the pair being reunited once again! Overall, a very good audio!

Rating: 8/10

The Gates of Hell

"This is the empire of the dead."

Writer: David Llewellyn 

Format: Audio

Released: June 2021

Series: Out of Time 02

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Fifth Doctor

Synopsis

Paris, 1809. The Fifth Doctor takes a tour of the Catacombs and meets a sassy Time Agent doing the same...

Paris, 1944. The Tenth Doctor misses his target and lands in occupied France. He hides from the Nazis – in the Catacombs.

A collision of two Doctors' timelines triggers a temporal catastrophe, granting the Cybermen dominion over the Earth.

The Doctors must travel back in time to find the source of the Cyber-invasion and close the Gates of Hell...

Verdict

The Gates of Hell was an excellent story to continue the Out of Time collection of multi-Doctor adventures! Has it really been a year since the Fourth and Tenth Doctors teamed up? Crikey things really do fly by! I think the idea behind it is delightful and on paper the concept of the Tenth Doctor being reunited with the Fifth Doctor once again is fantastic, so throwing in the Cybermen is an added bonus. I really like that the Tenth Doctor interacts with a Classic design of his old enemy too. Thing starting with the Fifth Doctor was good and I enjoyed his relationship with time agent Tina Drake. There was a paradox centring on 1809 in Paris which was fun, and the Tenth Doctor was also in the French capital but in 1944. He'd been aiming for 1922 though so something was clearly off! The Cybermen having expected the Doctor to arrive all along shifted the dynamic a little which works well and their placing the fifth incarnation into a stasis field was excellent! They weren't messing around. Tina escaping her death from within that through the vortex manipulator was good and the glee around its portability was amusing. It turning out that it was actually the Doctor who was the source of the paradox was great and the reaction when the Tenth Doctor opened the stasis field in 1944 to free his former self was magnificent. I'd have loved some visuals there! Their recollection of Time Crash was a lovely nod to the past and the dangers that came from the fact the Cybermen had taken over Paris in 1944 were brilliant. The stasis field had actually held the paradox stable and there hadn't been a Second World War with the Cybermen having ruled since the nineteenth century. That was a very fun alternate timeline. The patter of Cyber involvement centring around transits of Venus was intriguing and I really liked how it was the Fifth Doctor that deduced that. The Tenth Doctor getting to go into the Fifth's TARDIS was a wonderful moment and his joy at the roundels was such a good moment. Their co-piloting back to 1769 was also a real treat, and there they found Tina who had a good knack of showing up. The mythos behind Mad King Charles with the silver demon and the golden orb was intriguing and Joseph Delon's tale of what exactly happened with the monarch and a Cyberman was fantastic! The orb was buried at the behest of the Cybermen and was the cause of the time gates which also gave Joseph powers beyond human ability. He thought of himself as a god! This information providing the Doctors with the knowledge of how to restore the timelines was great thigh and I loved that they saw Joseph pawning off the orb in his younger days. If only he knew the power in his possession there! I really liked that the Fifth Doctor was rusty when it came to using a sonic screwdriver so that was really fun for him to use the trusty device here once again. It must have been some time since the events of The Visitation! The tense conclusion worked really well and I liked the simplicity of changing the destination of the time gate and sending the Cybermen back to the Ice Age. The Doctors getting to enjoy the liberation of Paris after overshooting their return to the normal timeline was a nice touch to finish on and it was just terrific for another multi-Doctor collision! Overall, a brilliant audio adventure.

Rating: 9/10

Peace in Our Time

"A chase around the streets of Edwardian London is to be savoured!"

Writer: Una McCormack

Format: Audio

Released: December 2019

Series: Short Trips 9.12

Featuring: First Doctor, Steven

Synopsis

A family meal, interrupted. Government papers, stolen. Social etiquette, ignored.

Ruby Watkins is the over-worked and unappreciated maid of the Gledhill family. Answering the door midway through serving dinner, she finds Mr Gledhill's junior at the War Office, Mr Taylor, is here to see him on urgent business. For some unknown reason, he's brought a doctor with him...

Verdict

Peace in Our Time was a decent little Short Trips audio adventure! I thought this was a solid historical tale that had a good level of mystery and alien involvement whilst staying true to the time period in which it was set. Unless I misheard, I don't recall any specific year being given as the setting for the story but an Edwardian era adventure is definitely a good place to go with the First Doctor and Steven! For whatever reason, they just seem very well suited to that era and the pair really did revel in their disguise to try and obtain the secret government papers that would go some way to protecting an alien invasion in the future. The very idea of that is good whilst convoluted and one of my worries was that something like that wouldn't have the room it needed to breath in the Short Trips range. Thankfully, that was no trouble at all and what we had was a good audio story. Peter Purves was excellent as the narrator which is the standard for him now and he brings a genuine feel to the adventure with his impression of the First Doctor. It always helps when the take on the lead character is reminiscent of William Hartnell in this case, and it was nice for the Doctor to appear to be having some fun! He was really liking the chase around Edwardian London which was amusing, and even more so considering Steven didn't quite share those feelings. The companion being referred to as Taylor throughout the story was a little strange but it fitted in well with the guise that was taken to try and gain access to the papers. However, that did seem a little off when it was used in narration. Regardless, it didn't really take anything away from the story! Ruby was a very fun character and I thought she was very sweet in liking the fact she had a job and could take home annual earnings of £30. How times have changed! Her stance at the end when her former employers were no more was a big shame because now she had no job and no references to get a new one! She was stuck. Her being picked up by the Suffragette Movement was good though and it's nice to know that she'll be doing good. Elizabeth was also a decent character within the Gledhill family and I liked her role in the temporal business that was occurring. The prospect of changing the past to make the future easier to invade was brilliant and something I thought more could have been made of. The Doctor mentioning visitors constantly was good and a reminder that there was business at hand, and Steven having to front that was terrific. The use of the Dreadnought was good and I should also mention my enjoyment of the title and the era that the story takes place in. That's a neat connection. Overall, this is a solid little audio adventure to close out the ninth series of Short Trips!

Rating: 7/10

Relative Dimensions

"Christmas in the TARDIS!"

Writer: Marc Platt

Format: Audio

Released: December 2010

Series: EDA 4.07

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Lucie, Susan, Alex

Synopsis

Christmas is a time for family, they say – which is why the Doctor has invited his granddaughter Susan, and great grandson Alex for Christmas dinner in his time and space machine. But who, or what, is the spectre at their yuletide feast?

Venturing deep into the dark heart of the TARDIS, Susan uncovers her past, Alex is told his future – and the Doctor finds himself caught in a deadly, dangerous present!

Verdict

Relative Dimensions was an excellent audio adventure to continue the fourth series of Eighth Doctor Adventures! This had such an upbeat and positive feel and that's something of a contrast to what has occurred so far this series in the range with everything that happened in Death in Blackpool and then the departure of Tamsin not long after joining as companion. The prospect of the Doctor and Lucie celebrating Christmas with Susan and Alex was wonderful and despite the apparent uprise of bats in the TARDIS, the Doctor was determined to have a family Christmas which is just magnificent. Hearing Susan and Alex waiting at the bus stop and the latter doubting whether his great grandfather would show up was fun, and it was nice for the Doctor and Lucie to be pulling out all the stops and getting the TARDIS ready. The echo of the Doctor calling for Lucie was intriguing and I liked the slow burn of introducing trouble into the story. Lucie meeting Susan and Alex was fun purely for the Doctor being referred to as grandfather. I thought Alex not being regenerative or telepathic was a little strange given Susan's DNA as a Time Lord, and the Doctor later deducing him to only be 7% Gallifreyan was obviously pointing towards interference. Susan's reaction to seeing the TARDIS was in flight was brilliant and the idea of something being with them in the TARDIS was exciting. The Blitzen fish destabilising the TARDIS structure was very good as anything with the power to do that was interesting in my book! The fact it could even insulate against the TARDIS was terrific. The Doctor's story at the dinner table about taking Leonardo to the first Christmas was fascinating and it's a shame that it got cut short! But the stasis field was cracking and I loved how it was initially only Lucie who was aware by virtue of simply paying attention. Susan's reference to Quinnis was excellent continuity and I loved how the Doctor's present of presenting Susan with her old room came back to bite him. It turned out the fish Susan acquired in that story was merely dormant and the Doctor's reconfiguration had woke it up. Alex's understanding of temporal nature and realising that the fish had to escape because they'd already seen its future was excellent. Susan and Alex's relationship was strong and I could understand why the former didn't want the latter to go travelling with the Doctor. She knew from experience! They were still rebuilding the planet after the events of The Dalek Invasion of Earth which I very much liked. The Doctor getting stuck to the fish and being chucked through different times was pretty amusing and it wasn't part of Alex's plan in the slightest. There's a mysterious quality to Susan's son and I haven't quite worked out what's going on with him just yet. I suspect more than we have heard in his two appearances so far. The memorial of companion rooms was both incredible and a little sad and Alex being almost given the TARDIS as inheritance if the Doctor didn't make it was lovely, and also suspicious. The conclusion was actually relatively simple as the fish was unhooked, but then Lucie and Alex had decided they would embark on a Grand Tour of Europe which is something I'd love to do. The Doctor wanted to take Alex with him, but how could he deny him to be with Lucie? At least there was always next Christmas! The comment at the end with the Doctor wishing anyone listening a happy Christmas was delightful and a really clever way to subtly break the fourth wall. Overall, a fantastic audio!

Rating: 9/10