Earth Aid

"Make it so."

Writers: Andrew Cartmel & Ben Aaronovitch

Format: Audio

Released: July 2011

Series: Lost Stories 2.06

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace, Raine

Synopsis 

Welcome aboard the space vessel Vancouver. Its mission: to guard a vast shipment of grain from Earth t the planet Safenesthome.

Its Captain is called Ace. She seems a little unsure of herself. In fact, some might almost think she was new to the job...

Its medical officer is called simply 'The Doctor', and he's perhaps not all he seems either.

When mysterious ships target the Vancouver, Ace and the Doctor are pushed to the limit. Meanwhile, there's something nasty in the grain containers. And it's not very happy...

Verdict  

Earth Aid was a great Lost Stories adventure to conclude the quartet of stories for the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Raine that began way back with Thin Ice, a story I listened to nine years ago. That makes me feel very old as it really doesn’t feel that long! Raine’s backstory was established there with her being a baby, and the continuity we got here with Crime of the Century was more of the focus and what worked well. Of course, at the end of Animal and by the way this story started I wasn’t sure if she would actually show up in this adventure with her wanting to take a break from the TARDIS, but that didn’t mean she would escape trouble! The cliffhanger for part one with her being the one inside the safe was excellent and a fun way for her to arrive in the adventure. I’m not entirely sure where we move from here with her as a companion because it would be a shame to have her story unfinished, but it’s been terrific having her compliment the Seventh Doctor and Ace. I was intrigued after listening to find that this story was actually intended to open Season 27 and it’s a darn shame that this never made it to screen. I think it would have worked well. The humour that came from Ace being the Captain was excellent and she was so unequipped for the role which was tremendous. Even the way she spoke was wrong with her using old cliches or just lingo not fit for being a captain. Simplicities of lines like landing instead of docking were wrong and it didn’t take long for Yanikov to cast his doubts. He was a fun character and almost immediately he was questioning Ace’s credentials in her role, and the penny finally dropped for Shepstay when she was unable to perform a landing, something all captains were qualified and trained to do. The dynamic between Ace and Yanikov throughout was certainly a highlight. I thought Ingrid Oliver as Baraki was superb and it was so fun to hear her excel in a role other than Osgood. She was so good and it’s fascinating to think this actually pre-dated her first appearance as UNIT’s scientific advisor. She was brilliant here. I thought the return of the Metatraxi was decent and I was glad they didn’t appear with their ridiculous altered translation voices. Their desire to be feared as a warlike species is amusing and they were almost shocked that anyone might view them in a way other than that. The revelation of them being the original inhabitants of the planet and being forced to live in harmony with the Grubs was most unexpected! The Grubs themselves were very amusing and I enjoyed the conversation with the Doctor initially as they were actually very thankful for the grain that was provided! The humans and Metatraxi being less appetising was a very strong line and showed they weren’t as innocent as their demeanour and voice made them out to be. The mutiny against Ace was good and whilst the ingenuity of her attracting the Metatraxi by firing their weaponry seemingly endlessly was great, she could never last in her captaincy role. The ending was somewhat calm after an exciting conclusion, and I do hope we haven’t heard the last of Raine as she was left with a story unfinished in my estimation. Regardless, this was a really fun romp! Overall, a great Lost Story and I’m intrigued to think that this concluded a quartet of adventures when it was due to be a season opener. Oh what could have been!

Rating: 8/10