Annihilation

"We'll bring daylight back to Gallifrey."

Writers: Scott Handcock & Gary Russell

Format: Audio

Released: March 2011

Series: Gallifrey 4.03

Featuring: Romana II, Leela, K9

Synopsis

Gallifrey dies...

Romana and her comrades find themselves in the dank and grubby wastelands of northern Gallifrey, trapped between two forces in a long and ancient war.

One side bides their time within their nests, whilst the other draws up troops across the trenches. Both sides have their secrets, their means to win the war – and both want Romana fighting alongside them...

After millennia of warfare, the final assault approaches. The Ancient Enemy and the True Lords want this world. And before this night is out, there will be bloodshed. 

Only the late Lord Rassilon holds the key...

Verdict

Annihilation was another very good episode to continue the fourth series of Gallifrey! This really is shaping into a very unique and intriguing boxset of adventures as we got another sidestep into an alternate Gallifrey, only this time it was also in the past which opened up a great many opportunities and was a very clever approach to take. I think there probably ought to be more of a firm aim throughout the series than just having Romana, Leela and Narvin jumping around different versions of their home planet to try and find a home after what occurred with the Free Time virus on their own version, but what we're getting is so fascinating so it doesn't really have any true bearing on the enjoyment of the episode. Gallifrey was at war during this adventure which was good and even though it was an alternate version, it was a rare journey into the planet's past and a time where the Vampires were present and doing battle with the True Lords. I thought them having that name as they believed themselves to be just that of Gallifrey was fun and the whole idea of incorporating the war between Time Lords and Vampires was excellent. I liked how Rassilon's name was almost spat upon with distain and the calm nature in which Lord Prydon announced that he killed hm long ago was great. I thought he was played fantastically by Geoffrey Beavers and it was nice to hear him in a role other than the Master. He has such a calm and callous voice that makes perfection for a villain. His little nod to playing the Master towards the end was a very nice subtle touch. I enjoyed the fascination he had with Romana and getting a bite to work out that she was from the House of Heartshaven was magnificent. The revelation that came later with Romana having transferred some of her own antibodies and Vampire immunity was fun. I thought Leela had a strong episode and I loved that she became one of Borusa's hounds and got her sight back, along with the heightening of plentiful of her other senses. It was also interesting to explore the relationship between her and Narvin which was really nice and with all that has happened recently, she's all that he has left which was tough for him to admit. The version of Brax depicted here was a horror show and demonstrated the dangers that Leela had should she go through with becoming a hound. I thought Lady Borusa was a very good character and I liked that it allowed Katy Manning some time to shine in a completely different role to what we're used to! She was central to the War and it centring around the Great Key and destroying the transduction barriers that enclosed Gallifrey was very good indeed. I liked that there was a constant state of war between the two factions. The power we know each side is capable of helped sell the scale and danger of that. Romana going on to embrace her role as the destroyer of worlds was telling of how far she has come during this spinoff range and I'm not so sure the Doctor would approve! But here she is, continuing to make the same mistake and it's a theme I'm a big fan of continuing as I'm not sure where she goes from here. With one episode left in the series, I'm intrigued to hear where things finish and if the Gallifreyans will find a version of their planet to settle on. Leela is ageing, but is that stumped by her becoming a hound? I'm not sure, the potential she has to truly become a savage now is exciting. Overall, a great listen!

Rating: 8/10