Conspiracy of Raven: The Vanishing Point

"There are no surprises in eternity."

Writers: Mark Wright & Nicholas Briggs 

Format: Audio

Released: July 2024

Series: Second Doctor Adventures 3.03

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis

Following the threads of a conspiracy twisting throughout all of time and space, the Doctor and his companions head to the Vanishing Point – a mythical place, said to exist somewhere between science and magic. But it is a journey from which they may never return.

Verdict

The Vanishing Point was a strong episode to conclude the Conspiracy of Raven third series of Second Doctor Adventures! This continued in the same vain as the first two stories and certainly had an enigmatic and eery feeling. The mystery of the titular Vanishing Point was really interesting and whilst its makeup did seem a little repetitive and similar to the likes of Gallifrey with their policy of merely observing and not interfering, the means to get there and the picture of the universe as a giant model was incredible. It's a shame that we didn't get the visuals to go with it but the imagery was more than enough. It was great to experience the struggle of the TARDIS to reach the Vanishing Point and there was some powerful stuff going on. I'm still a little confused as to Raven's intentions as she does seem to differ with her opinion of the Doctor. In Catastrophe Theory we had Raven questioning if the Doctor should be rewarded, but here she was trying to bring him down and show his companions that he was just lucky. He wasn't always on hand to have a grand plan and that was evident when it seemed the dimensional shift to reach the Vanishing Point was enough to see Zoe dead. I must admit, I believed at first that she would be dead given where this story fits after The War Games and she was much older. It was powerful stuff for a few minutes that saw even Jamie turn against his old friend. He went to the extent that he wished he had never been reunited with the Doctor and the TARDIS which quite obviously hurt the Doctor. It was incredible listen and I really did feel sorry for the Time Lord. Something similar happened with Jamie later on once Zoe was resurrected by the quick reversal of time inspired by the tendril book, as he disappeared completely from the TARDIS and ended up stuck between dimensions. The Doctor didn't know if he could get him back and that vulnerability is something Raven wanted to highlight. Her fascination with the myth of the Vanishing Point was good and she was infatuated with Ananke and the potential there. Albeit after a derogatory comment about their technology. That was fun stuff. I thought Aither was a decent character and his desire to travel with the Doctor and company after seeing that you could do more than merely observe was rather nice. Ir was reminiscent of the Doctor on Gallifrey which was a really fun parallel. The significance of the Kippers here was explored fantastically and whilst they still seem a bit weird, their presence across the TARDIS map through time and apace and the missions that have changed history were fascinating. The pattern that was attempted to discover was good and I liked how it was actually all pointing towards a planet that was materialising. On repeat, I thought it was going to be Gallifrey given the proximity of Raven to the Celestial Intervention Agency, but it was a bit more exciting than that as it turned out to be Skaro! The prospect of the Daleks getting involved with Time Lord affairs at this early point in the Classic era is hugely exciting and I can't wait for the boxset. It's a shame I'll have to wait until next year, but I am very excited. A cliffhanger finish always works as a selling point and it will be good to have the Daleks as the big bad once again. I'm excited for what comes next, especially Raven's relationship and interaction with them. Just what do the Time Lords know and think of the Daleks at this point? And will the Morai be utilised at all? Lots to look forward to that's for sure! Overall, a strong finale to a good and consistent boxset. Keep them coming!

Rating: 8/10