The Elysian Blade

"Anyone else got a memory they wish to relive?"

Writer: David Bishop

Format: Audio

Released: February 2019

Series: BBC Audio 05

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Victoria

Synopsis

Fleeing from the rising tide on a distant planet, the Doctor and his friends are attacked by a swarm of what appear to be tiny insects. Wracked by hallucinations, Jamie is transported back to his home in the Highlands, whilst Victoria sees her late father.

The travellers meet the survivors of Elysian Fields, a travelling hospital that offers patients a choice between the Blade of Longing and the Angel of Forgetting. When next the spaceship lands, the TARDIS crew are offered the chance of a lifetime.

For Victoria, the promise of meeting her father again proves too alluring to resist. But what terrible price must she pay, along with anyone else who makes a pact with Elysian Fields?

Verdict

The Elysian Blade was an excellent original audio! I think this was definitely one of the better stories from the BBC Audio range and I think a lot of that is down to the talents of Frazer Hines. It really did feel like a Companion Chronicle from Big Finish with Hines able to perfectly transition in performance from his own companion Jamie and then the stellar impression of Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor. It really is uncanny and it makes such a difference in giving the story an authentic feel. I really liked how this one started by placing the TARDIS trio in some danger with the escape from the threat of a rising tide but they just ended up face to face with another one in the form of a swarm! Jamie noticing right away that the blackness coming was alive was terrific and it was fun for the format of him narrating and giving his opinion in places. It really was a Companion Chronicle with just one actor in all but name and that worked so well. I thought the trio of the Doctor, Jamie and Victoria was presented very well and I was impressed with Hines impersonating Victoria as well, it seemed to work pretty decently. Victoria always seems to get into some kind of trouble so having her lose her sight was quite the predicament. She was surprisingly calm in dealing with that which impressed me and it was nice for the Doctor and Jamie to want nothing more than to help her despite everything they had going on as well. The Doctor being on hand to have some of the local currency was amusing and Jamie's reaction to that was glorious, so it was pretty fun at the end with him tapping his pockets when he didn't have any money to cure Victoria! I thought the little visions we got were really intriguing and it was nice for Victoria to reflect back on The Evil of the Daleks and the loss of her father, as with everything that had gone on for her since then meant that she'd actually forgotten what he looked like. Jamie commenting on being a little envious of that relationship really showed just how much of a connection Victoria had with her father, because he didn't have a bad one with his parents but it just couldn't compare. Jamie's flashback taking him back to Culloden was great stuff and I always enjoy him back home and in fighting for Scotland. Algos and Avriel were really good characters and them being the ones to essentially steal and sell sense was quite something! It was a fine concept but the terms and conditions signed for were not exactly what they entailed. Later research detailing that this was an analogy for Brexit was something I found incredibly fun and I commend the author, as that really has been a disaster politically! Don't get me started on passport queues. I thought the Angel of Forgetting was terrific and I liked the dynamic of it with the Blade of Longing. Jamie concluding the audio with him mentioning he'll always remember the kiss with the Angel was amusing, I really did like the titular blade and the whole audio worked really well. A fantastic listen!

Rating: 9/10