Timejacked!: Split Second

"History is colliding all over the place."

Writer: Lou Morgan

Format: Audio

Released: November 2021

Series: Twelfth Doctor Chronicles 2.02

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor

Synopsis

The Doctor's been timejacked!

Rookie Time Agent Keira Sanstrom needs the Doctor's help, and she's prepared to go to extreme measures to get it. Unwillingly whisked away from St Luke's University, the Doctor quickly discovers that being forced off Earth is only the start of his problems...

Oh dear. That wasn't meant to happen.

Verdict

Split Second was another good little episode to continue the Timejacked! second volume of Twelfth Doctor Chronicles! After a fantastic cliffhanger at the end of Flight to Calandra, and a quite incredible synopsis given its simplicity, this was actually a bit of a complicated jaunt. It was fun to develop the relationship between the Doctor and Kiera further and the surroundings of what should have been 21st century Bristol were very much of the unknown. A wall was built around the city and there was a mix of steam transport, Calandran space stations and even mammoths! Time was very broken thanks to the actions of Kiera's meddling. She had actually resulted in the vortex being fractured and now there were a number of splinters coming off the main crack which was a fun concept. The idea of the vortex being impacted like this was exciting because of the potential calamity it could cause, and the basis for the episode was soon set with the hunt for anomalies. I like this approach on paper but when it comes to a 55-minute audio, I think seven anomalies was way too many and really limited how high I could rate this story. It was certainly fun, but there was just too much going on or not enough time staying in one location. I would have loved to have the Doctor and Kiera exploring France in 1346 but instead we were barely there five minutes. I think the approach would have worked well as an entire boxset instead of a single episode. The description of time being represented as colours was fascinating and looking at the splits and needing to close them provided the incentive for the rest of the audio. The second anomaly took us to the V&A intergalactic spaceport in Dundee which was a unique location to say the least, but again we just didn't explore it for one enough. Kiera objecting to the Doctor's plan of sealing the small splits first was good and a great way for him to extort his authority as the Time Lord versus the Time Agent. The North Ice Station was a good location for the third anomaly and the issue of Kiera dropping the locator in misty surroundings was great, but given the nature of the story and time constraints it was fixed too soon to have a big impact. I loved the idea of visiting prehistoric Ethiopia for the next anomaly and having the threat of a mammoth directly here was excellent. The Doctor feeling vibrations of tremors in time itself was brilliant and I liked how he knew there were bigger ones yet to come. New Ground was the best location for sure and I liked the character of Pennou as the tour guide. There were so many things dotted around that were out of their time, but the focus on the statue that the Doctor had sene before and it depicting the destruction that was coming today was superb and a great introduction of action. It had vibes of The Fires of Pompeii with Kiera wanting to save Pennou, but that just couldn't happen. We were soon taken to Bath in 1830 at the height of the Season which is something I would love to have seen given I spent three years in the city for university and fell in love with the place. The focus on Bath Abbey was excellent and I loved being able to fully picture the scene given my knowledge of the square where it is located. Kiera being tasked with saving the world was good and I liked how the split was located around the side of the Abbey, which was falling apart. Havilland was an intriguing character for her brief appearance and I get a strong sense that there's more to come from her as she seemed more than she appeared. The Doctor advocating the use of grenades was a fun shift from the norm, and Kiera going to the future of Earth where there weren't even ruins must have been daunting. But there was someone or something alive and moving in the split, which I'm looking very forward to exploring in the finale! They headed back to Calandra at the origin point of all going wrong, but now nobody remembered Vetch. Just what had changed? A decent cliffhanger! Overall, another fun listen!

Rating: 7/10

Timejacked!: Flight to Calandra

"You're only hurting yourselves."

Writer: Matt Fitton

Format: Audio

Released: November 2021

Series: Twelfth Doctor Chronicles 2.01

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor

Synopsis

The Doctor's been timejacked!

Rookie Time Agent Keira Sanstrom needs the Doctor's help, and she's prepared to go to extreme measures to get it. Unwillingly whisked away from St Luke's University, the Doctor quickly discovers that being forced off Earth is only the start of his problems...

The Doctor wants a peaceful afternoon playing guitar in his study. Keira wants the Doctor to take her from Earth to the planet Calandra. Reluctantly, the Doctor agrees. But when they arrive, Calandra isn't how Keira remembers. Something's gone very wrong...

Verdict

Flight to Calandra was a very good and fun start to Timejacked! which is serving as the second series of Twelfth Doctor Chronicles! I think this is going to be a fun release and I was excited from the off by the idea of the Doctor being kidnapped and used for his TARDIS as a taxi service. Of all the incarnations, the Twelfth Doctor is the one I imagine not reacting well to that occurrence. There was no messing around as the story started with Kiera arriving to hijack the Doctor and make use of his TARDIS and I liked the later revelation that she was a Time Agent, something that didn't surprise the Doctor. Her intended destination of Calandra was intriguing and the civilisation that we arrived at was quite interesting. The Confused were a pretty sad story as we learned more about them and the nature of the name of the Sweepers just added to that. We were introduced to Vetch and Milla who were fun characters and completed the main cast of the story, and I was fascinated that Kiera's apparent aim was to bring the Doctor here to help fix what had gone wrong. I remain unconvinced that this wasnt some clever improvisation. Kiera caused a lot of trouble last time she was on Calandra by impersonating an academic student and went so far as to improve their transportation system. As a Time Agent, she broke the primary rule of interference and it ended up in quite the catastrophe. Doubles upon doubles of the inhabitants were being created and this was the result of Kiera utilising her vortex manipulator as she took it apart to try and bypass the limiters imposed on it. Calandra had perfected the ability of matter transfer so combining these elements ended in disaster. The more people were copied, the more zombified the resulting doppelgänger was. I thought that was a very fun concept. The fact they tried to occupy the space of the original person was amusing. Milla changing gears and attempting to shoot Kiera was a fun occurrence but the Time Agent was quick with her abilities and reversed well. I think she's a good character to compliment the Twelfth Doctor and it's nice for him to be travelling when he's supposed to be cooped up at the university. She dealt with Nardole in quick fashion too! The comment about the film Metropolis and the Doctor mentioning it actually being a Cyberman really intrigued me as I believe that's the basis of an upcoming audio in the second series of the Jenny series. Was the Doctor there too? Something fun to think about. Finding out that Milla was actually a doppelgänger wasn't too surprising to be honest, but it worked well and I liked how she was the first one to be replicated. Her original was dead and that caused issues, but the Doctor had worked it all out already and was quick to deal with the situation which I enjoyed. The way the next episode and the rest of the series was set up was fantastic as Kiera just wanted to get home, but a rogue Time Agent was on the loose and the timelines were disrupted on a scale of 90%. The TARDIS was stuck in a time fissure between Earth and Calandra, except when they arrived back in Bristol the cloisters were ringing loud and the city was gone. Everything was gone. A great cliffhanger to lead us into the next adventure and I really like how this series is a big story arc. An excellent approach for the Chronicles range. Overall, a terrific listen! 

Rating: 8/10

Flux: Survivors of the Flux

"My friends are never lost."

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 28 November 2021

Series: 13.05

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Dan

Synopsis

As the forces of evil mass, the Doctor, Yaz and Dan face perilous journeys and seemingly insurmountable obstacles in their quest for survival.

Verdict

Survivors of the Flux was an excellent episode to continue Flux and I can't quite believe we're already at the penultimate instalment! It has absolutely flown by but I'm very excited for the finale now after what happened here. The incredible cliffhanger at the end of Village of the Angels was presented once again here which was brilliant and I'm still in adoration of the way the Doctor was turned into Weeping Angel form. It looked tremendous and having her surrounded by a farm of Angels was a startling image. She was recalled to Division and learning more about this mysterious organisation was magnificent. I loved the idea of it being outside of the Universe and the Doctor's reaction to discovering that fact was tremendous. The Flux being engineered to wipe out the Universe is a startling idea but now finding out its true intentions and place of origin was great. Taking the Doctor out of the Universe to prevent her from saving it was brilliant but I loved that she still had confidence of being able to fix it. Tecteun made quite the return and having her encounter the Doctor was sensational. The idea of the Doctor meeting someone she would know as a mother was exciting and there was so much potential there for emotion and just information! Her description of the Doctor being a virus that was let out into the Universe was outstanding and I loved how she challenged the Doctor about her companions being her own experiments. I was a little surprised by the Doctor's anger regarding the life she could have had, but the potential now with the fob watch and the Doctor's lost memories is incredibly exciting. It looks set to be quite the finale! The episode was an incredibly fun one for Yaz, Dan and Jericho and seeing them globetrot in 1904 to try and decipher when the world would end was marvellous. The date being when next week's episode will broadcast was a nice touch too. Their help coming from Williamson came in humorous fashion and I thought he had a stellar showing. His reaction when Yaz explained what they were looking for was great. I thought the return of the Grand Serpent was very good indeed and the little journey down memory lane and the history of UNIT was just lovely. Seeing its formation, the appointment of Lethbridge-Stewart as Corporal after they missed the Post Office incident (an incredible reference to The War Machines), and then coming full circle to Kate in 2017 was terrific. It was fantastic and I really liked Kate standing up to the Serpent. His plan all being to open up the planet to the Sontarans wasn't something I expected, but I really liked it! I'm all for the Sontarans gaining credibility and out for revenge and all out war. Their boarding of the Lupari ships was good and I really liked that Karvanista and Bel met in unceremonious circumstances. The cliffhanger was stellar once again with Swarm and Azure arriving at Divison as it prepared to transfer from one universe to the next, this one containing the other end of the wormhole that the Doctor apparently came from, but Tecteun was laid to rest and it seemed the Doctor was next. Overall, a very good episode indeed! 

Rating: 9/10

A Tragical History

"When I notice things, they do tend to be something."

Writer: Tessa North

Format: Audio

Released: September 2021

Series: Eleventh Doctor Chronicles 2.04

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor

Synopsis

To most of the inmates in Hythe Prison, life is miserable. However, some are living out their idealised lives within its walls. Amongst the dank conditions, the Doctor is about to uncover the key to everything he could ever desire.

Verdict

A Tragical History was a pretty good story that sadly felt like a slightly underwhelming conclusion to the second volume of Eleventh Doctor Chronicles! It's good to get more stories with this incarnation of the Doctor and Jacob Dudman does a great job of filling in for Matt Smith in the role. However, I think after two boxsets of single standalone episodes, it's time for some continuity and series arcs to take place as there is so much potential with the gaps available for the Eleventh Doctor between series and episodes. Titan Comics did a stellar job with that and I think Big Finish could as well. It would help to have a companion as it doesn't feel right that the Doctor is just turning up alone but his arrival to the eighteenth century here was fun with him quickly deducing that he was in 1770-something from a quick lick of his finger and feel of the air. That's always a fun quirk. I thought the basis on the prison was decent and I liked how everyone within was there because they hadn't paid their debts. Oh how times have changed! The mysterious and whispering voices were good but I think they went unidentified for a bit too long. Their wanting Eliza was interesting and she was a fun character as an older woman that was a thief with a reputation in London. The Doctor meeting Wainwright was fun and him posing as a prison reformer was terrific. That was right up the Doctor's alley. I thought his meeting with Dora was good as well but there was a bit of an overload of new characters in quick succession. The whispers continuing through Eliza were eery and having her want to enlist Wainwright was intriguing, but she was soon dead after a connection and wrote something in the dirt. The escape from the whispers worked well for audio and hearing the three blind mice song was a really creepy option that worked very well. The Doctor realising that the symbol was ancient and a distress call for home was interesting and I enjoyed the concept of the voices making the prisoners think they were living dreams, although that wasn't obvious from the start. Sarah was a nice character to compliment the Doctor and the banter that came from her stealing the sonic and his TARDIS key when showcasing her thievery abilities was fun. The Ilyani being revealed as the whispering species was good and I liked how they were beings of pure consciousness attempting to take life force. They just wanted to go home and they needed power, but humanity wasn't enough for them. They needed the Doctor to amplify that power which was a decent development. Hearing Dora being offered her dreams was good and I really enjoyed the Doctor seeing his desires and being in the TARDIS for that. Getting a glimpse of his darker side and contemplating leaving the humans to themselves for once was good and intriguing, I'd have liked more of that. I thought the ending was very weak though with the way the Doctor and co was able to send the Ilyani back from where they came with seemingly nothing more than magic words. That was too convenient and easy for my liking. Overall, an interesting and pretty decent audio to conclude the series.

Rating: 6/10

The Office of Never Was

"The building is ignoring me."

Writer: James Goss

Format: Audio

Released: July 2017

Series: Torchwood Monthly #17

Featuring: Ianto

Synopsis

There's an empty office block in Cardiff. That's nothing special – plenty of businesses go under, clear out, cease to exist. All that's left behind is an empty building. But there's one office block that refuses to be forgotten about.

There have been stories about that building – strange lights, funny goings on, faces pressed up against the glass. Enough to get the locals worried. Enough to ask Torchwood to get involved.

It's Friday night. Ianto Jones has better things to do with his time than look round a haunted building. But he goes anyway, and it turns out that The Office has been waiting for him.

Verdict

The Office of Never Was was an excellent audio adventure to continue the monthly adventures of Torchwood from Big Finish! I liked the feel of this one right from the off and having a deserted office is a fantastic setting for a Torchwood story. It wouldn't come as any surprise to have a deserted building in Cardiff given the rough and tumble of business life, but when Ianto was investigating the office space he must have been freaked when a voice was calling his name! I know I would be. He soon got trapped in which set us up nicely for the episode and it was a fun addition to have no phone service for him to call upon the rest of Torchwood. The little girl's voice accompany the lift was excellent horror and I liked how Ianto was almost being taunted by another man's voice when an unanswerable phone kept ringing. The guardian of the building arriving was unexpected as I thought it was going to be a house of horrors kind of adventure for Ianto, but it was good to have him able to bounce off another character. The motion sensor lights working for her but not Ianto was brilliant and I liked how causally Ianto asked to leave. The only issue was the building guardians didn't know the way out. She didn't even know her name and she wasn't hearing the voices that Ianto heard. Everything was adding up nicely for Ianto to enjoy some misery. Ianto finding the discarded lanyard and gym bag to go with it sparked him into an amusing story of the type of man who would let you know all shift that he was going to the gym, and after working in an office before the pandemic I can safely say I also know the type! That was fun. What wasn't fun was the swarm of rats on the ceiling as I honestly couldn't think of anything worse. The thought of the rats being above me like that was horrifying and adding in the detail that they were hungry was chilling. The situation worsened as Ianto came across numerous dead bodies in the cupboard that were reduced to skeletons, with one bearing a name tag with Ianto's name on it. Talk about a horror show! The girl revealing that she had a brother who died in the building was an interesting detail and her talking as if someone was listening was great as we neared finding out who was behind this. Her decision to leave them both to it and exit the building to her death was very sudden and it was a brutal introduction of Oliver Milne, founder of Milne Futures. He blamed Ianto for everything he suffered with the closing down and I loved that Ianto couldn't remember because he took a retcon pill. He was the only one from the staff that didn't die which wasn't a surprise considering they worked in brain augmentation! The suggestion of him getting help from the Committee was nice continuity and they really never seem to be going away! They helped implant alien tech in the staff to make a more productive workforce, but Torchwood put a stop to that. Getting the flashback scene with Ianto offering Oliver his own retcon was great and I liked that the entrepreneur wanted to remember. That was the influence for this revenge and wanted to make him remember, but Ianto was in control as he faked begging and took the elevator key to leave Oliver behind before taking retcon again. I thought that was a fitting end! Overall, a fantastic listen.

Rating: 9/10

The Ingenious Gentleman Adric of Alzarius

"Of course dragons are real!"

Writer: Julian Richards

Format: Audio

Released: November 2017

Series: Short Trips 7.11

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Adric, Nyssa, Tegan

Synopsis

Sir Keeyoht of la Koura, and his loyal squire Adric, are on a quest. A great and noble quest to stop the most vile of Enchanters, the Doctor, from claiming the greatest treasure in the land. Along with way they intend to battle giants (or possibly windmills), inspire adventurers, rescue and princess and ultimately come face to face with that most terrifying of all monsters, the Dragon.

Except Adric knows there are no such things as Dragons...

Verdict

The Ingenious Gentleman Adric of Alzarius was an absolutely brilliant Short Trips audio adventure! I must admit that I didn't know what quite to expect before listening to this story on the train home after a belting afternoon at the football, and the synopsis really intrigued me, but what we got was so much better than I could have imagined! Now, I'm far from being the biggest Adric fan but I thought the use of his character here was perfect and the narration from Matthew Waterhouse was absolutely superb. It was exactly the right actor for this kind of story and even though it might sound obvious given the focal character of the story, I don't think this would have worked if we had Janet Fielding, Sarah Sutton or even Peter Davison in that narrator role. Waterhouse owned the stage in a big way and he really helped with my enjoyment of the story. We started strong with the Doctor seemingly setting fire to a village which didn't go down too well with Adric and I loved his mentions of the old Doctor, meaning the Fourth Doctor, and how he wouldn't have done such a thing without telling Adric why. But since regenerating, the new Doctor was rash and callous and Adric certainly had his favourites which was fun. Things then certainly took a mystical shift as we heard the roars of a beast which led Adric to get hit in the head with a rock, and from there things got whacky! Adric was suddenly the squire of Sir Keeyohyt and he had no memory of being granted such a position, except it did seem familiar which I thought was amusing. The quest that ensued was just tremendous and the positioning of the TARDIS crew into the events with Nyssa claimed to be the evil sorceress whilst the Doctor was the evil Enchanter who had stolen her from her father, a man that was supposedly a match for the Doctor. That was nice and a nice way to give credit to Tremas. The Doctor and Nyssa supposedly having kidnapped the fair princes Tegan was wonderful and the idea of her being trapped in the blue tower that was the TARDIS was just marvellous. It was such a fun way to bring these characters into a totally different world. The fun romp background music really added a lot to the feel and atmosphere for the story which just became a perfect compliment for the narration. It was just fun. Adric fighting for the honour of Romana was also magnificent and a nice view into his inner thinking and feelings of life before regeneration. Adric running into the real Doctor and us getting the explanation that events were all down to the Sachopan machine was good and despite the terrible Tegan impression, the adventure ended on an impressive not. It was a machine that actualised people's projections into space and literally made anything you wanted real. I'd love one of those myself! But these machines were too good and went as far as recognising subconscious desires which happened here with Adric. The machine had its memory banks erased and wasnt sure what to do so Keeyoht actually became an amalgamation of Adric wanting the Fourth Doctor back and the local villages wanting protection. I thought that was really nice. Overall, a superb audio! 

Rating: 10/10

What Have I Done?

"Who is it you talk to?"

Writer: Guy Adams

Format: Audio

Released: June 2019

Series: Lives of Captain Jack 2.02

Featuring: Captain Jack

Synopsis

Captain Jack Harkness – time-travelling con-man, saviour of the Earth, and intergalactic adventurer. He has lived many lives.

On the battlefields of World War I, something is hunting in the trenches. Jack must try and save the life of a wounded soldier.

Verdict

What Have I Done? was another great audio adventure to continue the second series of The Lives of Captain Jack! This was essentially a two-hander between Jack and Ata which I thought was a fantastic approach and really did a stellar job in establishing the atmosphere of the setting. Placing an adventure during World War One for Captain Jack is going to have a profound impact on him because in all likelihood, he is going to lose a lot of friends and loved ones whilst probably suffering death on more than one occasion itself. And as was made clear towards the end of this particular story, death has its toll on Jack! I thought Ata was a good character for Jack to play opposite and the fact he was a deserter on the enemy lines was a really fun dynamic. It's not a surprise that Ata thought Jack was his enemy given his appearance an accent and it was just good to hear the struggle between the pair accepting they were saving each other. Well, at least that's how it ended up. Ata initially shot Jack dead, or so he thought (rightfully), so it says a lot about Jack's character that he still wanted to help him back to the safety of his trenches. Ata was afraid and talking to someone and finding out that this was his brother was quite emotional and simple. I was honestly expecting something a bit more complicated! He thought he was being slowly killed by the wound suffered in the combat that led him to defect and Jack inferring that it was the fever was good. The enigmatic feel of the audio was definitely the strong point and highlight for me as the actual plot was simple and straightforward. I loved that there was something out on the battlefield that could feed on fear and hearing Ata try and deal with that as a concept was excellent stuff. Unfortunately, he was attracting it because he was full of fear and talking to his brother about the regret he had for deserting and the potential consequences provided a link with the creature. A creature Jack knew all about. Ata was giving it power and needed to be calm, but that was proving difficult which was interesting to listen to. Things definitely got tense as the story reached its conclusion and the ending with Jack defeating the creature with an almighty speech was sensational. John Barrowman was on top form and this was a much improved and more serious performance than we got in Piece of Mind. He unloaded his feelings of fear to the creature and admitted to being scared, to feeling pain and being afraid of love and death despite his immortality. He saw the blackness every single time and he had died on so many occasions now, but it never got easier. Most people only had to tackle that once and briefly, but for him it was a common thing and that must be tough to deal with. Hearing him unleash that emotion and feeling was extraordinary and I liked the audible effect it had on the creature. The link was gone now. Overall, a fantastic audio and a great use of Jack's character and setting as he waits for the Doctor. Plenty of room to fill yet!

Rating: 8/10

All Hands on Deck

"Gallifrey needs you to fight the Daleks."

Writer: Eddie Robson

Format: Audio

Released: October 2017

Series: Short Trips 7.10

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Susan

Synopsis

Everyone Susan Campbell cared about has gone. Most of them died in the second Dalek invasion, and her grandfather never visits. She's living in what used to be Coal Hill School, helping Earth rebuild again. 

Then, one night, she's called away to help with an emergency. A piece of appropriated Dalek technology is malfunctioning, and everyone's afraid of what it might do...

This is just the first in a sequence of predicaments facing Susan – and the connection between them will shape the rest of her life.

Verdict

All Hands on Deck was an excellent Short Trips adventure! I find it quite incredible that a story as important and monumental as this one was for Susan took place in this range, as you don't really associate big moments with the series despite it being a very consistent testing ground for a number of adventures. I love The Dalek Invasion of Earth so any continuation from that story is marvellous in my eyes. I really enjoyed After the Daleks which was released earlier this year set post-Dalek invasion and of course then there's An Earthly Child and the incredible final of the fourth series of Eighth Doctor Adventures. They all tie in nicely here with Susan alone and actually now moved into flats at what used to be Coal Hill School which was a really fun occurrence. For her needing a new place, that was a prime location. Her mentioning of an oak tree that was planted in memory Ian and Barbara was a lovely touch as well and more than fitting. The Daleks having their presence still felt through the form of salvaged technology was great and a timely reminder of how long the Daleks were in control of the planet. The synthesiser was seemingly making something bad with dormant data and Susan had tampered to get it into action which was very good. The hatch being the perfect shape for a Dalek provided some suspense, and I was laughing on the train that the yellow fluid emerging was no chemical weapon but was actually custard! Some light humour. Susan believing she was being tested or distracted was terrific and it was so much fun to have her deal with an asteroid and launch missiles even though nothing was actually coming. Except the spiders came then and their description was fantastic with them being black and orange, fast, and part organic and part mechanical. It was quite the image! Susan comments about her names and neither actually being hers was marvellous and a reminder that Susan was only a name she took on Earth which fascinated me. What's she really called? I would love to know! Susan questioning the purpose of the spiders who just scuttled everywhere was fun and that led for a wonderful arrival of the Doctor! Susan was less than happy and pushed the Doctor to trace the signal back with the sonic to find who was in control of the spiders, and it was the Doctor! He had been hiding a Tesseract containing a message from Gallifrey that urgently required Susan's attention, but the Doctor didn't want her to open it as all became clear. Susan was seeing a vision of the biggest threat to Gallifrey being the Daleks and the beginning of the Time War. The Doctor had denied the request to go himself which shocked Susan who felt like a coward if she didn't go, so she tricked the Doctor into thinking she'd travel with hi again only to go and fight the Daleks for her people! She'd seen the damage the Daleks had done and I loved how it was linked back to her departure from Gallifrey and how they hadn't heard of them when she and the Doctor departed! That was excellent. Bringing everything full circle with Susan now making the decision to leave Earth unlike her predicament when initially departing the TARDIS was magnificent. Hearing her enter a TARDIS that came to pick her up felt like a final goodbye, but now I guess I'll have to get purchasing Susan's War! Overall, a brilliant listen!

Rating: 9/10

The Haunting of Malkin Place

"What's the point of a ghost story?"

Writer: Phil Mulryne

Format: Audio

Released: May 2017

Series: FDA 6.05

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis

Whilst on the way to visit the town where Henry James lived, a chance encounter with a spiritualist on a train sends the Doctor and Romana on the trail of a ghost. It's the most convincing case of haunting he's ever heard of, he tells them. And so, on their arrival, does it appear to be.

Things go bump in the night at Malkin Place. The voice of a crying child. Birds bursting into flight. Strange movements in a seance.

The Doctor is determined there must be a rational explanation. But is science always the answer to everything?

Verdict

The Haunting of Malkin Place was a good Fourth Doctor Adventure! I picked this up following the mini sale after the broadcast of The Halloween Apocalypse and it definitely continued that spooky theme in a good way. It was far from unique and had an atmosphere that has been experienced before in the several ghostly tales within the Doctor Who universe, but the pairing of the Fourth Doctor and Romana II definitely provided some added fun. Their initial bickering over the plausibility of ghosts was delightful and a perfect way to capture their relationship on audio. I loved how the Doctor was trying to convince Romana that ghosts could be real and that there might be more than science to them, but when meeting the locals of 1922 he was very much back in the good books of science! That was so much fun. Having the Doctor and Romana based on Baker Street was a fun element and I loved how things came full circle with the banging about in the attic actually being a future version of the Doctor who was forced to wait around for five years. That was tremendous. I thought as a whole this was a decent story but it certainly started a little slowly for my liking once we exited the presence of the Doctor and Romana. The guest cast took a little whole to get going and things didn't really pick up until the cliffhanger which I thought was excellent. It had the feel of a horror movie for a good few minutes as temporal business picked up and the idea of spirits interfering and making contact was fun. The voices being those of children always seems to spark more fear which is fun and it was cool to learn that the voices were played by Nicholas Briggs' child! I thought the resolution of the cliffhanger was pretty poor as it was actually great to have the Doctor missing and something from the physical realm being taken by the spiritual was a terrific concept. I was fully expect Romana tracking the residual to be left disappointed, but we soon found the Doctor in a ditch which was a shame. The image of him sinking in mud up to his chest was amusing though! The ghostly occurrences being the result of a vortex vacuum was a good concept and fun to explore, and I liked how the Doctor and Romana had knowledge of the phenomena and it fit their rationale for explanation. The idea of ghosts from the future trying to suck Maurice back to 1917 was good and something I didn't expect, but it worked out well. Beatrice was a good character and her attempts to break the circle provided some good excitement. Talbot was another decent character as the head of the household and I enjoyed his introduction to the Doctor and Romana when they arrived. His spiritual tendencies were met with dismay which I liked. Mrs Mountford was an intriguingly creepy character and her fate at the end of the audio with her sticking around was nicely done. Overall, a decent listen!

Rating: 7/10

Flux: Village of the Angels

"The Angel has the TARDIS."

Writers: Chris Chibnall & Maxine Alderton

Format: TV

Broadcast: 21 November 2021

Series: 13.04

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Dan

Synopsis

Devon, November 1967. A little girl has gone missing. Professor Eustacius Jericho is conducting psychic experiments. And in the village graveyard, there is one gravestone too many. Who is Medderton known as "The Cursed Village"? And what do the Weeping Angels want?

Verdict

Village of the Angels was an excellent episode to continue the Flux thirteenth series of Doctor Who! I thought this was a hugely impressive episode and a welcomed return of the Weeping Angels in a full story for the first time on television in over nine years. Following on from another outstanding cliffhanger at the end of Once, Upon Time, I thought the resolution was slightly naff with the Doctor utilising the TARDIS systems to eject a quantum life form, but the directing for those scenes with the Angel controlling the TARDIS and coming towards the trio of the Doctor, Yaz and Ryan was outstanding. It was a tremendous use of the Angels and watching this one with Gemma, that was constant throughout as she jumped on more than one occasion much to my amusement. Getting a full introduction to Claire was good and I liked how there was a similar feel to Hide with her getting mind readings before she became possessed by the voice of a Weeping Angel. That was right out of a horror film in wonderful fashion. I think the concept of the image of an Angel can become an Angel has been taken a little too far in some previous episodes, and this was also the case here with the drawing in the fire that the Doctor ripped up putting itself back together again, but the idea of Claire having a premonition of the future and seeing an Angel, and that image embedding itself in Claire's mind was brilliant. I was really impressed with the originality and the Doctor going inside her mind to talk with the rogue Angel was fantastic. I thought the moment where it was revealed that the Division had enlisted Weeping Angels was incredible and the look on the Doctor's face spoke volumes. It was a tremendous scene. The idea of an extraction squad of Angels coming to get the rogue one was marvellous and the way that shifted at the end was sublime. I thought the cliffhanger was absolutely outstanding and honestly right up there with the best the show has ever delivered. The transformation of the Doctor into a Weeping Angel was sensational and the very idea of the Doctor being recalled to the Division sets us up for a very exciting next two episodes. Jericho was a very fun character to compliment the Doctor and Claire and his fascination with the unknown and the mind was great stuff. I loved how he used his power of observation over the Weeping Angels when they demeaned him in a big way. He showed good courage and I look forward to him continuing to feature for the rest of Flux. The story of Peggy and how she was in 1901 and turning out to be Mrs Hayward as her future self in 1967 was superb. That was a twist I didn't see coming. The whole extraction of time element was very good and provided some good cinematography. The escape through the tunnels and the walls containing Angels was fun and scary, but again perhaps taking the whole image of an Angel element slightly too far. As a whole though, that's a very minor criticism for what was a fantastic episode! The elements of Bel and Vinder seemed slightly misplaced in this episode, along with the mid-closing credits sequence, but I'm intrigued to see where things go from here as they search for each other. Overall though, an excellent episode! 

Rating: 9/10

Piece of Mind

"I'm the new Doctor, here to save the day!"

Writer: James Goss

Format: Audio

Released: June 2019

Series: Lives of Captain Jack 2.01

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Captain Jack

Synopsis

Captain Jack Harkness – time travelling con-man, saviour of the Earth, and intergalactic adventurer. Has lived many lives.

When the Sixth Doctor falls dying into his arms, Jack must carry on in his place. Is the universe ready for a whole new kind of Doctor?

Verdict

Piece of Mind was a great and fun start to the second volume of The Lives of Captain Jack spinoff! I'm a huge fan of Captain Jack and him having his own spinoff range outside of Torchwood is such a brilliant idea because he really has lived so many lives. And after a century of waiting for the Doctor after being left behind in The Parting of the Ways, Jack was finally reunited with the Doctor. Except it wasn't the one he was expecting! The idea of Jack meeting a Classic Doctor seems impossible because it's so clear that in An Empty Child it's the first meeting between the pair, with the Doctor being in his tenth (technicality) incarnation. So here we have the Sixth Doctor dying in Jack's arms after exiting the TARDIS with a plea to 'save them'. That was a terrific start to a story. The image of Jack wearing the Sixth Doctor's coat has long intrigued me and it looks magnificent because it just shouldn't be possible. I must admit, I was initially taken aback by how mockingly and campy Jack was playing the Sixth Doctor, but it definitely grew on me even if I'm not sure I was ever fully on board with that approach. What made me chuckle and almost audibly send me into hysterics on the train back from football was hearing Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor imitate Captain Jack. That really was tremendous and the levels meant that the impression was so awfully bad that it was fantastic. Baker sounded like he was having so much fun and that really shone through in the performance. I must mention as well how much I loved the mash up of the opening themes of the Sixth Doctor era of Doctor Who and The Lives of Captain Jack spinoff arrangement. That was really well done. Jack playing the Doctor and getting embroiled in the politics between the Sofia and Janovar was a lot of fun, especially when he was ended up arranging a wedding to the entire former species. How very Jack-like! The constant themes of sofas was a little odd I have to admit but it was so whacky that it kind of worked without being logical. Zor being the enemy was fun purely because of the comments about his name as a villain. Hayat was another terrific character and I thought her sacrifice provided some incredible emotion and it was really moving to hear how much Jack cared for her. I think the fact she was saved at the end took away from the moment as I'm not a fan of deaths being corrected for a happy ending. Just look at the different feelings towards Adric in Earthshock and Clara in Face the Raven! Callista was a really good character and I liked how it was appealed to her on the inside once the Sofia turned and channeled the souls of the Janovar to consume through them. I liked the focus on the Memoriad and how that was what was being saved, and Hayat ending the story as the new director of it was a nice way to bring things to a close. But I have to save the best for last, and that's the 'you're a rail replacement bus!' line which had me in stitches from the Doctor and Jack. Magnificent stuff. Overall, a great adventure! 

Rating: 8/10

War Crimes

"The Time Lords were putting the War Lords' crimes to rights."

Writer: Simon Bucher-Jones

Format: Short Trips

Released: March 1998

Printed in: Short Trips 03

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

From Neolitch Earth to the furthest reaches of the universe in the far future, Short Trips brings together established Doctor Who authors and first-time writers in a collection of stories exploring the ever-changing worlds of the Doctor and his friends.

Witness the last days of the siege of Masada with the First Doctor and meet the Fourth Doctor's extraordinary 'old flame'. An evil enemy makes life difficult for the Seventh and Third Doctors, and while the Fifth Doctor is under attack on a sinister ship shrouded in fog, the Second may soon be guilty of a grave error of judgement... The Sixth Doctor's hopes of a holiday are dashed when he discovers a pleasure planet is hiding a shocking secret, and the Eighth Doctor is caught up in a deadly drama played out during the construction of Stonehenge.

And, of course, that's just the beginning...

Verdict

War Crimes was a decent little story to continue my reading of the Short Trips collection of prose adventures! It's a great idea and with the variations of Short Trips anthologies across prose and audio, and now having its own Big Finish series, it's staggering to think of just how many stories there are comprising this range now. Probably more than is possible for me to blog in a lifetime! Especially with how rare some of the later Big Finish books are. But alas, here we start with the third ever Short Trip and it's definitely adhering to what is on the label with it coming in at just ten pages long. That really isn't a huge amount of time to tell a story so I was very surprised that the Second Doctor, Jamie and Zoe turned up with just three pages to go! I was fully expecting them not to feature at all given how things started and that was completely fine. The War Games goes down as my absolutely favourite Doctor Who story of all time so getting any kind of continuity or extension of it is brilliant in my eyes. We had that with Save Yourself in The Target Storybook but this one did it first! And it's not quite as good as that one, but it's fun to explore. Getting an insight to the plan of the War Lords with a brief memo and how they considered races other than humanity for their War Games was magnificent and it's intriguing to think of how different things would be if a different warmongering species was chosen. Having an insert from the Time Lords and their cleanup operation was also great and I liked the suggestion that some quarters of the Prydonian ranks advocated for those other species trialled that they just be killed as crimes against war. That was staggering from a race like the Time Lords! The planet of Ulk-Ra and how it was impacted by the War Lords was a good exploration into the far reaching impact the events of their actions caused and it was clearly a planet where the local species were in the middle of evolution. It felt very contained with all of the forestry which gave it an interesting feel, and the Aelckluk clan with Ossu-male the focal character made for good light reading. It didn't really amount to anything but in a story like this that was absolutely fine. It was just nice to read along. Once the TARDIS did arrive, it was clear the story took place during The War Games episode 10 which was wonderful to think about as that episode really did change Doctor Who forever, in so many ways. And here was a brief glimpse we didn't get to see on screen with the Doctor trying to escape his fate. The species they had encountered was being examined quite comically by the Doctor and Zoe and that was all down to Jamie not having a clue. He didn't have time for all of the scientific jargon and had his own simple terminology for what happened to the beastie. That was really nice and even though the trio barely featured, it was a fantastic use of their characters. Things ended a little abruptly, but tying everything back to the Doctor thinking of Jamie and Zoe and having to endure them losing their memories always hits hard. Overall, a good little read!

Rating: 7/10

The Darkness of Glass

"They watch, they hunt, and they kill."

Writer: Justin Richards

Format: Audio

Released: February 2015

Series: FDA 4.02

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Leela

Synopsis

Cut off from the TARDIS, the Doctor and Leela find themselves stranded on a small island. But they are not alone. It is 1907, and members of the Caversham Society have gathered on the hundredth anniversary of the death of Mannering Caversham, the greatest Magic Lanternist who ever lived.

But Caversham was also a supernaturalist who claimed to have conjured up a demon from the depths of hell. As people start to die, the Doctor begins to wonder if Caversham's story might have more than a grain of truth in it. Can the Doctor and Leela discover what really happened to Caversham a century ago? And if they do, will they live to tell the tale...?

Verdict

The Darkness of Glass was an excellent audio adventure! I'm a huge fan of the Fourth Doctor Adventures range and this was another fine instalment. The pairing of the Fourth Doctor and Leela is tough to beat on audio as their relationship is full of crass humour masquerading in seriousness, and that was evidenced by their arrival to Britain here. It was wet and dull and they found themselves on a sinking path in a brilliant way to set the atmosphere and establish the island setting. Having the story set in 1907 was fun with Leela causing a bit of a shock to the people of this time, with her and the Doctor welcomed into by Mortlake and Porter. I thought the concept of a Lanternist was good and I liked how there were links to magic. The household celebrating the anniversary of Mannering Caversham's death with him being proclaimed as the greatest magic lanterns was great. He shot himself in the head in order to banish the demon which was quite the sacrifice! Rolf dying and Leela being shooed in as an expert in death was excellent. She quickly deduced that he'd been attacked by a creature or animal which was terrific and a great use of her background and character. The mystery surrounding the one small dark square of glass interested me and I knew it would be relevant from the story's title. The lantern being suggested as being used to conjure a spirit was fantastic and fitted right in with the feel of the adventure. It seemed that death was occurring to gain possession of the pane which seemed odd initially, and the idea of the shade changing was fun given the revelation that came later. The demon being the shadow on the wall served as a decent cliffhanger and I liked that it emerged in a dark way. Literally. Somersby was a fun little character and I liked how it seemed like she was almost spying on the Doctor as he was working things out. Holman giving his presentation and the slides being all wrong as Leela assisted was a very fun backdrop for the Doctor working out that the demon had been trapped in the glass in 1807 after Caversham broke down the barriers between realms to trap the demon before he'd shot himself to break the link. The creature was scattered in the panes of glass that had been smashed, but now someone had gathered all of the glass and wanted to summon the demon which I thought was wonderful. I really liked that. Somersby actually owning the castle as Caversham's great granddaughter was an unexpected revelation, and the suggestion of using her to summon the demon was fun. The presentation projecting the slides/glass of the demon onto the window of the Great Hall was superb and I loved Mortlake being the one that was summoning the demon to fulfil his ambition and aim to have it do his bidding. That was never going to work! The Doctor repeating Caversham's trapping of the creature was terrifically done and I liked how the light in the glass was used. The Doctor taking some shards to ensure the creature could never be complete again was a fitting finale to the story and a brilliant way to ensure defeat. Overall, an excellent listen!

Rating: 9/10

Free Speech

"Let us rabbit on."

Writer: Eugenie Pusenjak

Format: Audio

Released: December 2020

Series: Short Trips 10.X

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

On Skaz, speaking costs money.

Aymius Todd is trapped in a police interrogation. They want to know about his links to the Garrulous Liberation, and his encounter with a man called the Doctor. But, Aymius is running out of words, and if he can't afford to finish his story, then he'll never be able to speak again.

Verdict

Free Speech was a good little Short Trips adventure! I'm a big fan of the Paul Spragg Memorial Opportunity and having the chance to write a Doctor Who audio must be a huge privilege for any aspiring writers. I'm a massive fan of the show but I don't think I'd know where to start when it comes to writing a script, but I'm just grateful to get a free adventure! I must admit that I was initially put off within the first few minutes or so of this story starting as it was quickly established that it would be told in the first person. I don't like that approach for prose and I have to say that I wasn't a huge fan of it being the case in audio, but it didn't take away from the story for the most part which is good. Aymius was a decent character as the focal point of the audio and the format of a police interrogation worked excellently. I thought that was a terrific approach and really fed into the way things were recalled. PC Lockett was a good character leading the questioning and he had some amusing thoughts on the story he was presented by Aymius. I thought the setting of Skaz was intriguing and the planet having it customary to pay to speak was a really good concept. There's a lot to play with there and it kind of took the theme of The Sun Makers to the extreme! Aymius being a gardener which didn't garner a high pay was fun as I loved that he was accused of talking a lot lately. You even needed a license to write on this planet which was frightening to think about as I type this blog! Aymius being engaged to Heleyna was nice and I liked the dynamic of her being a rich girl that could even afford to sing. The thought! Aymius being friendly with Marley Evans was good and her heading the Garrulous Liberation provided a good relationship for them. Aymius wanting to get enough money for an engagement ring was nice and Marley needed money for her political movement, so a card game was on the cards which made for some fun moments. The Doctor being thought of as a rich man because of how much he talked was wonderful and I have to say that Jacob Dudman's impression of the Tenth Doctor only felt average. He's much better suited to the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors in my view. The Doctor getting on a hot streak when playing cards was brilliant and I liked how his big winnings provided the money for Aymius and Marley to get their engagement ring and funds, but they did save his life! Doctor admitting to cheating to beat Gaverett was amusing and then him being in custody was a fun development. Aymius wanting more than to just exist was really good and he wanted more, to make a difference. That made him more likeable. The wedding planning troubles he had with Heleyna were a shame though and I was a little saddened to learn that she had actually dobbed him in! The chip in the voice box switching it off when no money was left was quite the occurrence but the Doctor arriving as legal representation and saving Aymius before disabling the chip was a really nice touch. Him showing how free speech had been achieved after the final speech was a lovely end. Overall, a decent adventure!

Rating: 7/10

Metamorphosis

"He's turning into a Dalek!"

Writer: Paul Cornell

Format: Comic Strip

Released: September 1992

Printed in: Doctor Who Yearbook 1993

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis

The Doctor and Ace arrive on board a spaceship and find that some of the youngest crew embers have disappeared!

The villains have been exposed, and now the Doctor and Ace must find a way to defeat them!

Verdict

Metamorphosis was an excellent comic strip adventure to continue my reading of The Age of Chaos graphic novel! Unfortunately, I've still been unable to find the time to tackle the titular story in the collection so far, but having a small but still decently long comic strip adventure later in the graphic novel is most welcomed when time is limited! I thought this was excellent from start to finish. I liked how it was clearly within the universe presented by the Virgin New Adventures books and the appearance of Ace was clear to see that it fell in line with those. She was a little different to how she was presented on television and definitely looked a little maturer in taking authority when it came to the Doctor handing her a job. The pace of the comic strip was impressive and quite frantic over the sixteen pages which really provided some excitement. Within a page or two the Doctor and Ace had arrived at a murder scene and were arrested as suspects. The Doctor oozed calmness though and despite the predicament he never felt like he was going to get charged with the murder. That was fun and he seemed to walk into the room at just the right moments to find out vital information. Their ship location housing human embryos was fun and unique but the idea of radiation being shot at the ship to alter their development was brilliant. The Doctor also being susceptible to that with his Time Lords tendencies was terrific and really put him in danger. Ace was less pleased about the smell from the gas exchange! Reading in hindsight this was really intriguing to draw the parallels with Asylum of the Daleks and as my picture shows, hiding the presence of the Daleks in the words eggs and stir as the start of their infamous exterminate catchphrase was excellent. I thought their arrival was a good cliffhanger and I loved the artwork and how colourful it was. They really presented the Daleks so well and considering this was released in 1992 mad it all the more impressive. I'm used to black and white comics from this era so that was a welcomed change as they looked sublime. But for me the highlight was how disturbing the Dalek embryonic toddlers looked! That was freaky on a whole other level and I think it took the human factor effort from The Evil of the Daleks to a completely different level. It really was quite something and was just an incredible image. A Dalek toddler clutching to the back of a full Dalek was sublime. It just felt like it shouldn't happen and that made it great. The embryos being blank following on from the Draconian Wars was nice continuity and a good way for the Daleks to get what they wanted. The way the Doctor and Ace were quickly found not guilty thanks to the angle of the gas breaking was amusing because it's quite common, but it just worked and was a quick fix to the circumstances of their arrival. The Doctor using the Daleks' efforts to turn him into their own kind, an incredible concept, was magnificent and his superior brain power meant he could get a signal out of his own for those already converted to obey and put the Daleks to a stop once again. I thought that was fantastic! Overall, a really strong comic strip!

Rating: 9/10

Second Chances

"For as long as I can remember, I haven't been able to remember."

Writer: John Dorney

Format: Audio

Released: June 2014

Series: Companion Chronicles 8.12

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

From time to time, everybody makes mistakes. Everybody has things from their past they'd like to undo, but nobody gets a second chance. What's done is done and we can't change that.

Zoe Heriot's mistakes have led her to imprisonment at the hands of the Company. But when news reports trigger memories of the Doctor, Jamie and an appalling threat, she begins to sense a way out. An opportunity for redemption opens up to anyone willing to take it.

Nobody can alter what's been done. Nobody gets a second chance.

Or do they?

Verdict

Second Chances was an excellent audio adventure to conclude the eighth series of Companion Chronicles and the range as a monthly release. It was a terrific ending to a series of stories featuring Zoe and her capturing by the Company that harked back all the way to Echoes of Grey and it was a fitting finale for sure. Zoe starting things with a wish and wanting to be happy but being told the solution to that was to never dream, never love and to never wish for anything. Talk about a morbid beginning! The concept of a space station dying was intriguing and the wishes centring around the shooting star was very good. I liked how that mattered to Zoe and transitioned into the TARDIS arriving on the Artemis station which was cooly located near Saturn. I thought it was great that it was a Company station and the threat of it developing bacterial weaponry was superb. Ali returning was a good development and a nice way to bring the story arc full circle, and it was interesting for Zoe not to remember her but did remember Jen telling her about Ali. Zoe did recall the events of The Uncertainty Principle which was some good continuity and I liked how a focus on pain was able to spark more memories. The link between Artemis and Apollo as the twin space stations and the parallels that had with mythology was great and having Zoe translate the ship's final message was a good use of her skills. I thought it was magnificent for Ali to want to skip the irrelevant bits of the story and a loose way to mock the typical structure of a Doctor Who story. It was also an easy way to eliminate Jamie and the Doctor from proceedings with Zoe very much the focus. Zoe realising that the code was another code was intriguing and her horror at the potential of a computer virus really sold it, especially with the links to the sync ops which I thought were a fun idea. Combining matter and processor was a good clash of worlds and the virus being a metal eating bug was a fantastic threat, especially when it came into the ship systems. The asteroid hitting and Zoe being told bluntly that the Doctor and Jamie were dead must have been a huge shock but all attentions had to be on evacuating the shuttle. The virus was past the point of return and Zoe was sucked out into space and lost her vision, a sequence that I was stunned wasn't the cliffhanger! She survived through a breather, but what I loved was her realisation that her attempts to decode the virus had actually activated it so she blamed herself for everyone else dying. That didn't include the Doctor and Jamie though as the TARDIS was located at the spindle to survive and they refused to depart without Zoe which was lovely. I loved the twist that the virus release on Apollo was happening now concurrent with Zoe's timeline and Zoe wanted to contact to stop it from happening, but the Company were unwilling so there was the alternative of Zoe and Ali going together to contain because Zoe knew the timings and what to do contain. That was a fun concept for the story over the two parts. Part two had a lot of repetition and seeing events from afar we'd already listened to which I liked and Ali, who was actually Kym, was just there for the virus and wanted Zoe to create a copy which was brilliant. She'd faked the records and they were always there anyway as they helped cause the destruction. Zoe using her photographic memory was super and I loved how she remembered every bit of the code and needed a copy to make it better. She'd sent the Company a transmission modified to destroy the Company from within and then to destroy itself. That was excellent stuff and then we had a big shock factor of Kym shooting Zoe! She was saved thanks to Jen which was a nice touch, and the talk of remembrance at the end was magnificent to tie up the story arc over the series! Overall, a fantastic listen!

Rating: 9/10

Flux: Once, Upon Time

"Time is playing games with you all."

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: Audio

Broadcast: 14 November 2021

Series: 13.03

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Dan

Synopsis

'Time is beginning to run wild.' On a planet that shouldn't exist, in the aftermath of apocalypse, the Doctor, Dan, Yaz and Vinder face a battle to survive.

Verdict

Once, Upon Time was a great episode to continue the Flux thirteenth series of Doctor Who! After another almighty cliffhanger at the end of War of the Sontarans, I thought the resolution was quite weak here with the Doctor conveniently calling upon a time storm to save her companions and hide them in their own time stream during the memories of their past, present or future. But once I got over that, I thought the episode was excellent and provided so many questions and giving us enough of a glimpse into the past we all want to know about: the Doctor's. The moment where the Thirteenth Doctor looks in the mirror and sees the Fugitive Doctor reflecting back was terrific and resulted in an audible gasp from Gemma next to me! It was a fantastic moment and whilst it was clear that she was always coming back, I loved that we got her as a surprise here. Shifting between memories of the past, memories that the Doctor had lost and didn't know she had, was brilliant and I just love the idea of getting glimpses. There's so much I want to know and I can't wait to find out. Using the modern characters to present the past and the actions of the Division was magnificent and learning that the Doctor was leading a squadron against the Ravagers was a bit of a surprise, but I guess when it comes to the Fugitive Doctor there's a lot of room for a departure from the character we know. I think things are moving at such a pace now which is exciting and it does seem like Dan has settled so quickly as the companion that it's actually quite strange. I thought he had another strong episode but it does feel like he's settled a bit too quickly. Vinder was great in this story and I liked that we got to learn a lot about his origins and how he ended up in the outpost where we first met him. His connection with Bel was a revelation I was not expecting though and she was a fascinating character. I enjoyed how she was our eyes into a universe post-Flux and having her encounter the Daleks and Cybermen was fun, although it didn't seem entirely necessary. I liked finding out that she was pregnant and I just get a feeling she's going to have a big role to play in the overall series arc. The Ravagers taunting the Doctor for knowing about the past that she does not was good and them knowing that she'd conjure the time storm was fantastic and a great twist. The idea of a battle between space and time really excites me because that's on such a big scale and the Doctor's actions resulting in the blue time particles that we saw causing such destruction was a fantastic shock. Getting an insight into the origin of the Flux and its connection with the Doctor was marvellous and the look on her face said it all. After seemingly bringing the Mouri back to the front by using the same method as her forgotten past and having the upper hand, that all changed in an instant and that scared the Doctor. She was taking no prisoners and was desperate for answers, putting Yaz and Dan firmly in their place. The use of the Weeping Angels in the episode was magnificent and the image of an Angel becoming one from a video game was very nicely done. The cliffhanger is right up there from the modern era with the directing sublime as an Angel took control of the TARDIS! Overall, an episode that provided answers while presenting more questions but one that worked well.

Rating: 8/10

Eldrad Must Live!

"This could be the worst catastrophe in nuclear history!"

Writer: Bob Barker

Format: Comic Strip

Released: August 2021

Series: Cutaway Comics: Eldrad Must Live! #1

Featuring: Eldrad

Synopsis

Following a narrowly averted radioactive meltdown, a military cleanup operation is well underway at the Nunton Complex. With Eldrad and the mysterious strangers having vanished, the emergency seems to be over. But has Eldrad left a final deadly surprise behind for Nunton's director, Professor Watson, in the embers of the nuclear reactor?

Verdict

Eldrad Must Live! was a good little one-shot comic story from Cutaway Comics! This is my first foray into this company's range of comics from the worlds of Doctor Who and it was certainly a good place to start. Eldrad is an iconic villain from the Classic era and The Hand of Fear is fondly remembered as Sarah Jane Smith's farewell, but there would be no mention of her or the Doctor by name here which amused me greatly given all of the licensing issues and confirmation required. It was fun to have them referred to from Watson as the man with the three-metre long scarf and the woman dressed like Andy Pandy, and just having a little sequel to that famed Classic serial is a marvellous idea. I think it could have benefited from being more than one issue long, but it was still a lot of fun and full of pace and action. Professor Watson getting a return after his appearance in the aforementioned televised story was terrific and I like that we get more of him. The whole setting of the Nunton Complex was also presented really nicely and I have to say that I thought the illustrations for this were outstanding. I was really impressed with it being my first foray into the company's range! Fantastic stuff that felt really authentic which left a good impression for sure. Speaking of good impressions, I thought Fenton was an excellent character and actually the highlight of the comic for me. Although it was a little quick and sudden for her to reveal she was actually a government agency, the way she oozed control when asserting her authority was tremendous. Watson seemed like he didn't know what to do! Having a splinter of Eldrad that survived the events thought wrapped up by the Doctor and Sarah was fun and I liked that we got an explanation in the opening page, even if it probably needed to be slightly clearer just what was happening with the splintering. Having Eldrad first take the form of a spider was fun and felt very much of the era with the proximity of Planet of the Spiders and the appearance resembled the Eight Legs from that adventure which was good. The way things shifted from being quite calm to having a nuclear disaster on the cards was great and I liked that Watson wanted to use science rather than go Gung ho with weaponry. Eldrad taking on the form then of a giant monster was impressive and was a terrific use of the comic strip format. That infamous shade of blue was lovely to see and I thought it was presented really nicely. The ending with the cut on Fenton's face coming into play, as was obvious from the moment the wound was inflicted, was decent and I liked that Eldrad now took her over and had Fenton under control. The message that went back to her team to stand down and that the threat was under control was good and I liked how this leads into a future comic story, even though I'm not a fan of cliffhanger finishes when there is only one part to a story! Regardless, this was an entertaining little read and I look forward to more to come! 

Rating: 7/10

The Melting Pot

"Violence is all we have left."

Writer: Christopher Cooper

Format: Audio

Released: September 2021

Series: Eleventh Doctor Chronicles 2.03

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor

Synopsis

Arriving on Piir to sample the local cuisine, the Doctor finds a society wildly different from the one he remembers. With violence brewing on the streets, the Doctor will have to get to the bottom of what has gone wrong on Piir, before the world tears itself apart.

Verdict

The Melting Pot was an average continuation of the second volume of Eleventh Doctor Chronicles. This was one that just seemed to be there and didn't really do a lot but also didn't really disappoint at the same time. It was a bit of a weird listen as I just seemed to plod along and I think the tone was set right from the off with how things started with the beastly creatures and the Doctor arriving to pick up a spoon to lead into the opening titles. It was a somewhat uninspiring pre-titles scene. The setting of Piir was decent and I liked how glum it was presented with the rain pouring and the assumption that anything could be done on the planet with it being lawless. That set things up nicely but I don't think it was fully capitalised upon which could have been really fun. I wasn't a massive fan of the native species on Piir and the little blurp sound effect that accompanied almost all of their speech got really annoying by the time the audio ended. I had vibes of The Web Planet which isn't a great thing as far as I'm concerned! The idea of a scent-based life form was good and referring to the youth as cubs was a nice touch, especially when they had gone missing. The Doctor's bow tie being taken as the symbol seemed a bit weird and when it turned out that the faith was of the sandglass it made more sense but just seemed a bit silly to me. Stem made for a decent villain as Elix's uncle who was a lovely character, and the mythology of the Raal was akin to The Macra Terror, except there really was no such thing as the Raal. Them being blamed for the missing cubs by Arvin was pretty good but I wasn't a big fan of his character as he was too childish for my liking. His being in league with Stem and retelling the Doctor's intentions wasn't much of a surprise but it was still fun to hear. I loved the Doctor pouncing on the fact the Raal had never been seen before and that set him running to fix what had gone horribly wrong. He'd been to this planet two hundred years previously and it was a paradise, but now it was far from it! Stem rallying the troops I guess you could say against the Raal seemed to be a sudden development but the idea of them taking back what was theirs and disregarding others was good. Arvin's task all along in getting the Doctor to the tower that was central to operations was so he could get in and the Doctor had inadvertently aided the cause. Stem's whole desire being money and wanting the minds of the planet was a good concept but I don't think it was fully explained. Gonch was a decent character towards the end but it was all about the Doctor discovering that the Raal were an invention to allow the colonists to gain control over the native species and cast a system in place to give all advantages to the privileged. It worked well and made sense. The Raal and the Piir were all one people which sparked a reaction and the Doctor releasing pheromones at the end to show the Piir what they'd created and forgot was good and they felt very bad indeed. Overall, an average little audio! 

Rating: 6/10

The Meaning of Red

"Peri was ready to admit defeat."

Writer: Rod Brown

Format: Audio

Released: October 2020

Series: Short Trips 10.10

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

The TARDIS accidentally strands Peri alone on the inhospitable world of Calleto. Taking refuge with the planet's only colonists, she waits and waits, but the Doctor doesn't return. Her only hope lies in discovering the secrets of this planet.

It's that, or she dies.

Verdict

The Meaning of Red was a great little Short Trips audio adventure! Well, I say little but at forty-five minutes long this was like a normal length audio from Big Finish which I really liked. Of course, we didn't have anything close to resembling a full cast story but Nicola Bryant did a terrific job with the narration and bringing Peri to life once again. Pairing her alongside the Fifth Doctor is fun and whilst I think Big Finish have exploited that little gap between Planet of Fire and The Caves of Androzani to the extreme, it's always good to get more adventures with a pairing we rarely saw on television. The way their relationship was portrayed at the start here was fun with the Doctor intending on arriving in England in the eighteenth century and introducing Peri to Capability Brown while he would go off and watch the first ever cricket match at Lords. This was hardly Peri's idea of excitement and she made that known which was really amusing. The Doctor changed plans and where the TARDIS arrived didn't exactly scream excitement with a rocky and sandy landscape greeting them. It was intriguing that it was in Peri's future and a new Earth colony, but Peri and the Doctor wouldn't get a chance to explore it together as the cloisters were heard and the TARDIS was forced into dematerialisation with the Doctor inside looking fearful and Peri locked outside amid tremors that left her all alone on a desolate world. That was quite the beginning! Peri having confidence that the Doctor would return was nice and I do wonder how those thoughts changed as the months ensued. Professor Richards was a great character and I liked how she was used to explain the situation on Calleto. The planet having experienced global warming at a much quicker rate than what happened on Earth was good and I liked how there was one bush that was an anomaly of life on the planet. Nothing grew there. The emergence of a creature causing victims within the colonists' group was interesting and Peri deducing that it would have needed food to survive before their arrival was excellent. Finding out that the planet's ecosystem was all codependent was brilliant and a fun concept and the planet actually defending itself against the TARDIS was terrific. I was a big fan. The way things developed and moved was fast paced and we could have done with an extra cast member to help with proceedings, but it was still great! Richards dying and being sucked into the planet was a shocking end to her and one I didn't see coming, but it provided a great return for the TARDIS in the knick of time before Peri, Rob and Alex followed suit into the depths f the planet. The idea that time passed much slower for the Doctor was intriguing and a highlight for me was the ending and the bush being red as a sign of remembrance. It was the only specimen the planet would allow to prosper which was a nice touch for all those lost. Overall, a very good listen!

Rating: 8/10

torchwood_cascade_ CDRip.tor

"The more you listen, the more control it has."

Writer: Scott Handcock 

Format: Audio

Released: June 2017

Series: Torchwood Monthly 17

Featuring: Tosh

Synopsis

WARNING: The unauthorised reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Your downloads are monitored. Internet piracy is a crime and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison, a fine of £250,000 or death.

Come on, we've all done it. We've all downloaded a cheeky little something we shouldn't have. After all, what's the harm, eh? You never get caught. No-one knows. No-one knocks at your door and tells you you're about to die.

Turns out, there's something hiding in the internet. It knows what you've done. And it's going to stop you. 

Verdict

torchwood_cascade_CDRip.tor was an excellent Torchwood audio adventure! This was one of the most unique stories I've ever listened to and I thought the format worked so well and was just perfectly suited to Torchwood as a series and Tosh as a character. It was a brave presentation that worked so well and blurred some lines between fiction and reality with the likes of alternate Torchwoods being heard, transitioning into the likes of interviews from behind the scenes cutting in as well as the way things led into the coming soon trailer for the next episode in the series. It was very well done indeed. We started in a similar way to Zone 10 which took me by surprise but the corruption file recording of Tosh's that followed peaked my interest immediately. I mean, the story title did that from the off but once we got into the thick of things I was hooked. The warnings throughout from Nikki to stop listening were good and it was quite cool to have the listener addressed like that. Obviously, it fed in nicely to the plot as did the call from Stephen from Torchwood One who knew of Tosh and needed her help instantly. The little skips and jumps in the audio were a constant reminder of the theme of the episode with it seemingly like my own download file on the Big Finish app was corrupted! Stephen having studied aliens since the fall of Canary Wharf was intriguing and the discovery he'd made of 27 disappearances all at 4.39am and everyone having the same date of birth was magnificent. That couldn't possibility be a coincidence despite what Tosh was saying. There was one anomaly though and that was Nikki who'd used her girlfriend's computer to download a playlist and she was in San Francisco hearing a voice in her ear that was coming for her. It was her girlfriend that correlated to the pattern so the answer lay in the coding of the internet and downloads, all focused on a torrent site. I won't try to understand torrents or coding, but I was fascinated by the terminology and what could potentially happen. Stephen being next on theist was good and I liked how Janet's data soon was replaced by his own which led to Tosh being enlisted. The glimpses of future events in the episode occurring halfway was fun with Max, who we hadn't met yet, having his biology apparently rewritten. The virus having physical consequences was a great concept and I liked that this wasn't the first instance with another 32 people with the same date of birth also having an occurrence just 36 hours previously and this meant Tosh knew what she was looking for and could decode. She was in her element in this episode and Max being another that was due to be next with the same date of birth worked well so we were soon taken to his house which was good. The infringements comment from the virus was excellent and I thought it was nice that Tosh didn't have any. The corrupted sought to share and the torrent became a cascade to take over. The release vs release battle between Tosh and Stephen at the hands of the virus was very good and I loved how Tosh knew Stephen loved her all this time. She was so calm! Tosh updating her profile settings to math the targeted date of birth was marvellous She was taunted and reminded of her abandoned brother which was a surprise but she carried everything in her stride which was terrific. Underestimate Toshiko Sato at your own will, because that was a mistake with Tosh taking control and executing the programme after luring the virus onto the Torchwood mainframe and locking it away onto a hidden cache. I'm not entirely sure of what cache is, but I know I clear it from time to time on my laptop! Overall, a terrific audio!

Rating: 9/10