1963: The Assassination Games

"Why would anyone want to fake Communist sympathies?"

Writer: John Dorney

Format: Audio

Released: November 1963

Series: Monthly Adventures 180

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis

London. The end of November, 1963. A time of change. The old guard being swept away by the white heat of technology. Political scandals are the talk of the town. Britain tries to maintain its international role; fanatics assassination charismatic politicians and Group Captain Ian Gilmore is trying to get his fledgling Counter-Measures unit off the ground. 

When his life is saved by a familiar umbrella-bearing figure, he knows something terrible is going on. Whilst Rachel investigates an enigmatic millionaire and Allison goes undercover in an extremist organisation, Gilmore discovers a sinister plot with roots a century old. 

The Doctor and Ace are back in town. A new dawn is coming. It's time for everyone... to see the Light. 

Verdict

The Assassination Games was an excellent story to conclude the 1963 trilogy of Monthly Adventures to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Doctor Who! I've really enjoyed the focus on the year that gave us Doctor Who as there is a lot going on in a historical context. This particular story really dived into politics which was excellent and it was all very British which I actually liked. The Cuban Missile Crisis and the JFK assassination were in the past now but there was still a lot going on. I thought the lack of naming the Prime Minister was fun and very Doctor Who-like, but real world inferences were there. This almost had a Classic feel to Aliens of London with the high ranking politicians actually being aliens but I wasn't expecting their plan for conquest. The Light made for a strong villain and whilst it does seem a little contradictory that they were the secret rulers of the universe but then were trying to concoct a plan to reinsert the British Empire. It all seemed a little small scale, but the explanation was good and the means to pit America and Russia against each other leaving Britain unscathed on paper at least seemed foolproof. Let the superpowers destroy each other whilst Britain goes stronger and becomes great again. This was very much political indeed. I thought the story starting with the Counter Measures team was a nice little shakeup and whilst I am yet to delve into their spinoff series, I imagine the first part felt a little like one of those episodes. It was refreshing and felt very 1960s which gives me high hopes for when I do dive into the range. That's certainly something I plan to do and initially I had thought I would need to rewatch Remembrance of the Daleks again beforehand, but now I'm not so sure. I thought it was nice to slowly reintroduce the characters and they were a great little team! Gilmore as the Group Captain was terrific and I enjoyed his discussions with Toby Kinsella who seemed like a strong addition as a political backer trying to secure the organisation some funding. They certainly needed it! And then of course we had Rachel and Allison who were both marvellous. The latter's relationship with Ace in particular was great, whose disguise as Dorothy the maid was brilliant. Of all the roles that Ace could feel most out of place! No wonder she was told off for the way she poured tea. I liked the references to their previous Shoreditch meeting with the Doctor and his revealing that they travelled in time was a nice touch. They really did know a lot about he and Ace now! The closed loop method of them being in 1963 was nicely done as Ace found Gilmore's memoirs and a mention of a second meeting, and it was nice for the Doctor to acknowledge his other incarnations being in the same proximity to him in 1963. He had a lot to consider! I loved the fact the turned out to be James Rutherford MP and he was playing the long game to build up the campaign required to get elected as an independent! The cliffhanger there was strong and just terrific imagery of the Doctor sitting there all smug. The Seventh Doctor elected! The only slight qualm I had with the adventure was that Ace could have done a little more, but as a whole I really enjoyed the combination of the Doctor, Ace and Counter Measures. I'd hope there would be more. Francis and Devere in particular were my favourite villains of the Light, but the species as a whole were a fascinating bunch. The Doctor preventing the the destruction of an entire country was strong, as was the story as a whole. A terrific listen! 

Rating: 9/10