"Everyone needs a title."
Writer: Lisa McMullin
Format: Audio
Released: November 2022
Series: Ninth Doctor Adventures 7.02
Featuring: Ninth Doctor
Synopsis
1864. Instead of relaxing at the Bad Homburg Spa, its visitors are fighting. And Bertha Kinzky, housekeeper to Alfred Nobel, is appalled. Perhaps the mysterious Herr Schmidt can help?
Soon, Bertha is contending with aliens, as well as her mother's matchmaking, as she and the Doctor try to keep the peace.
Verdict
Lay Down Yours Arms was a good episode to continue my way through the Hidden Depths seventh volume of Ninth Doctor Adventures. I liked the setting of 1864 very much and it was fun to have the ninth incarnation back on Earth, but in a much different time and place compared with what we are used to on screen and beyond. He must be the most Earth-centric incarnation of them all, and that’s even including the third who was exiled there! I liked Bertha and she definitely had some companion qualities, but I think one of the issues with this current run of Ninth Doctor audios is that we know all roads lead to Series 1 and meeting Rose so it’s difficult to get fully invested. There’s no overall arc and there’s no companion coming, so I worry that the appeal of individual stories can only last so long. I’m still thoroughly delighted to be getting more and more adventures with the Ninth Doctor, but I hope that if there is a third batch and beyond we can get something a little more. I must admit I thought things started a little slow with the Doctor teaching Bertha how to sing and the Judoon song was pretty atrocious! No wonder the Judoon arrest themselves for crimes against music. Bertha’s mother was a little annoying in pushing her to find a husband as a matter of need, but I liked that she wasn’t really interested in marriage. She seemed ahead of her time a little which was nice and probably added to her companion qualities. The Doctor being in town as Herr Schmidt was good and I thought that suited with the constant mentions of the importance of titles. The Doctor having to point out that he didn’t actually want to marry Bertha was fun because initially Sophie didn’t want that for her daughter, but upon finding that he didn’t want it she was offended! The Doctor was actually in town looking for the Tsar which was good, but this was not the real Tsar. The idea of an alien Russian doll impersonating the Tsar was very fun although once the excellent description of him dismantling was done with, I wasn’t a huge fan of the Trictokites (I’ve surely butchered that spelling!) as a whole. The concept of branding for war was decent and I liked that the Doctor could utilise the Shadow Proclamation in seeking them out to prevent them fighting amongst themselves. However, they sounded a little off and didn’t seem like a real scare despite the intention. They didn’t seem to match the image on the artwork either which didn’t help with my visuals of them. The use of infecting the water with bath salts was intriguing and I did think the Doctor putting emerald passifite into the sprinklers was fun but easy. He revelled in stopping them which I always enjoy. The Doctor, and particularly this incarnation at this early point in his life, having discussions on war was powerful stuff. It worked well with the Doctor questioning if soldiers really didn’t know what they were fighting for. He knew when he was a solider. Everything being in the title and stopping war by soldiers simply laying down their arms was good, but slightly predictable. It was a nice touch to conclude with the Doctor visiting Bertha fifteen years after these events where he was able to encourage her to marry Arthur and write her book. He then jumped forward again to 1905 when her husband had passed and she picked up the Nobel Prize. That was great and showed a soft side to the Ninth Doctor we didn’t always see. Overall, a decent episode!
Rating: 7/10
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