Sargasso

"It's just ducks... rubber ducks!"

Writer: Christopher Cooper

Format: Audio

Released: June 2019

Series: Torchwood Monthly 28

Featuring: Rhys

Synopsis

The seas of planet Earth are choked by plastic. Plastic that no-one has a use for and no-one can get rid of. 

Rhys Williams finds himself stranded on a container ship in a sea of debris. People on board are dying. Because, luckily, someone's found a solution to Earth's polluted waters. The Nestene Consciousness can never have too much plastic. 

Verdict

Sargasso was a great audio adventure to continue my way through this mini arc of Torchwood vs Monsters! I love the image on the CD artwork with Rhys being depicted as an Auton and whilst it was more the Nestene Consciousness that was the enemy in this one rather than its plastic minions, it was so striking and grabbed attention right from the off. I thought it was a good approach to have Rhys in the lead role and placing the timeline as post-Torchwood for him and Gwen was interesting. It showed that Torchwood never really escapes you and despite what then media might say, alien threats are all around. They couldn't be escaped, not even on the Atlantic Ocean and a shipping container fleet. I liked the environmental theme of the story and that proved to be a strong point of discussion for Kaitlin given her views on plastic and the damage it was causing to the planet. Coupling that with the fact her father owned one of the mega plastic chemical companies made her a great character with a strong background. I thought she served her purpose well alongside Rhys and the pair had a decent enough relationship to carry the story through. I liked how Rhys was often making references to Gwen and just hearing how the days of Torchwood were behind her didn't feel right despite everything that had happened during Miracle Day, Aliens Among Us and God Among Us. She just wanted some semblance of normality for Anwen which was lovely and Rhys describing how having a daughter meant all he did was worry was terrific. As a father to an energetic one-year-old, I fully appreciate that sentiment! When it comes to plastics and Doctor Who's universe, the Nestene Consciousness is never going to be far away and it really did seem to be at home in the middle of an ocean. It has always looked similar to a giant octopus with its slimy tentacles so the imagery of it crashing about in the seas and breaking surface was tremendous. It was up there with the image of Rhys as an Auton! I thought the Captain made for a good additional character but for me the focus was always on Rhys and Kaitlin. Tackling the Consciousness's ability to manipulate plastic was good and that even going to the extent of a keyboard on a computer was really good. I like how Rhys also had no idea of what the Consciousness was and that just seemed to make it more frightening given the heightened vulnerability. The mentioning of the ocean containing untraceable but mass amounts of micro plastic was intriguing and echoed a line in Praxeus with all of the plastic around and what could happen if it were to be controlled. The solution being to light up all the plastic was really good and I liked the impact that had on Kaitlin because of then impact it would have on the environment. That was a strong dilemma for her, but there really was no other choice. How else would Rhys go onto defeat the Nestenes? Overall, this was a very strong audio and it was nice at the end to hear Rhys on the phone to Gwen about what he'd achieved and saved. Overall, a great audio! 

Rating: 8/10