Into the Stars: Break the Ice

"A little blast of jingle bells."

Writer: Tim Foley

Format: Audio

Released: August 2022

Series: Ninth Doctor Adventures 6.03

Featuring: Ninth Doctor

Synopsis

On a chilly space station, the Doctor meets a group of scientists experimenting with cryogenics. 

But when one subject returns from extreme sub-zero temperatures, he does not return alone. A creature awakens that can freeze the soul with icy fingers – Jack Frost.

Verdict

Break the Ice was a really good story to conclude this Into the Stars sixth volume of Ninth Doctor Adventures! At long last, a Christmas story for the Ninth Doctor and it comes... in August? The timing on this one is a little strange given that the next batch of audios in this range is scheduled for November, but I guess it won't fit whatever the umbrella title there is. It's not a problem of course as getting a Christmas themed story for this incarnation is most welcomed, and Jack Frost being the villain was superb! I was a big fan of him being the enemy and having him described as a Winter God was excellent. I thought there was a lot of potential there and even using the timing of the Universe cooling down after the Big Bang as a point to date them was incredible. That was godly in every sense of the word, although this was not their usual dimension. It was a little too hot. It was nice for the Winter Gods to be the basis for most planets having a concept of winter and just the use of cold as a weapon worked very well. Frost taking over Kenton worked well and kudos must go to Pip Torrens for a chilling performance as Jack. I liked the namedrop of Ribos when it came to an adventure focused on cold and Jack Frost going by different names was tremendous. I was hoping for a little more of a strong interaction between the Doctor and Frost, and it seemed a little simple as to how the Winter God deduced he was the last of the Time Lords. However, Frost's reaction to realising he was now the last of the Winter Gods was brilliant and was a shining moment for the Doctor. The space station setting worked well and was beneficial to provide a threat of nearing Venus and heating up to be rid of Frost. I thought some of the characters were lovely with Lenni the clear standout. Her relationship with the System was good and having given it the voice of her wife provided some fun humour, as well as the Doctor namedropping Alexa which just wouldn't have been possible if this was released at contemporary times for the Ninth Doctor! That's always fun with these releases. Pal was another strong character and his insistence on representing company interests despite the danger at hand was well done. His death had a strong impact too with Lenni having to watch it right in front of her. The use of sulphuric acid and using water against Frost was clever and neat to send Frost back to where he came from in a pretty painful manner. The highlight came at the end though with the Doctor using the TARDIS to drop Lenni back home and to her wife and child, a child in need of the exposure from the nervous star that his mum had been researching and hoped to one day reach. The TARDIS would provide a shortcut in a really lovely moment to conclude the episode and series as a whole. Overall, a strong episode! 

Rating: 8/10