Mask of Tragedy

"The hero, the villain, and the chorus."

Writer: James Goss

Format: Audio

Released: September 2014

Series: Monthly Adventures 190

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace, Hector

Synopsis

Athens, 421 BC. An ancient civilisation of philosophers and poets and the birthplace of theatre. The Doctor has decided to show Ace and Hector how it all began, with help from the great comedian Aristophanes. 

But life in Athens is no laughing matter. There's the ever-present threat of invasion from the Spartan horde. The plague that turns people into the walking dead. The slavery. The tyrannical rule of the paranoid, malicious Cleon and his network of informers. And the giant flying beetle with knives for wings that stalks the city streets at night. 

What Athens needs is a hero. And who better to be a hero in Ancient Greece than a man called Hector?

Verdict

Mask of Tragedy was a decent story to continue my way through the Monthly Adventures! Getting to the 190th release feels significant for some reason and even though I still have a mammoth eighty-five to get through, it feels like I'm getting something close towards the end. There's a finish line in sight for sure but it's mad to think it has taken me eleven years to reach this point. It's been quite the journey, but I cant help but feel like the story involving Hex/Hector is about to come to an end. Full transparency, I have no idea when Hex departs the TARDIS and it's sad to say but I do hope it's soon. I've not been enjoying the character of Hector beyond Afterlife and it just feels like the character is lingering but now in a different form. For all intents and purposes, he is still Hex. Except he's not and seems to hate him which feels awkward. For most of the adventure he did feel like a normal companion and played his role as the god Dionysus pretty well! But then by the end of the story he seems to constantly take a sharp twist and change of opinion on what had just happened. Sure, the Doctor and Ace probably shouldn't have been laughing after all of the death and tragedy they had witness, but Hector didn't seem to understand that this was just part of established history and couldn't be changed. It does feel wrong to have Hector as basically a new companion and learning the ropes once again, but he's just not engaging to be in this form. I just want him to leave because in my opinion he's just whiny. That's a shame because I did enjoy Hex! Anyway, onto the story at hand here and I thought it was delightful to venture to Ancient Greece! That's a very fun setting and getting involved in the war between Athens and the Spartans was terrific. Ace's relationship with Adonia with them being on different sides of that was great stuff and she had a strong outing as companion here. She understood the history and showed her experience which I very much liked. Astriphones was an intriguing character and his relationship with the Doctor from past meetings was very good. He and much of Athens knew all about aliens and time travel which was tremendous and I loved how completely unfazed they were by travellers and tourists from the future. They weren't too keen on them getting involved and in the way, but it was good natured stuff. I liked the play on theatre and drama, and the scene at the end to round out the story with an actual theatrical performance was really well done. I also liked the little narration inserts from Ace throughout the story to remind us of that theme. It was nicely done. Cleon made for a decent enough villain and I enjoyed how he wasn't a fan of aliens in his city and time. He also prided himself on being able to spot one pretty easily. Touching a little on the horrors of slave trade was good and I loved how Ace stood up for herself and her female gender. She didn't take kindly to being referred to as the gentler sex and I couldn't blame her. Gentle is not an adjective I would use to describe her! She revelled in standing up for herself. I thought the use of the mask in the title was decent and the power of it to rewrite the thoughts of people around them was an excellent concept. I thought it could have been utilised a little more efficiently if I'm honest. I will admit I thought the story felt like it went slightly too long during part three and felt like it was lingering around a little which was a shame. Overall though, a strong story at its heart but Hector demanding to go home at the end left something of a bad taste in my mouth. I hope he gets his wish! Overall, a good listen. 

Rating: 7/10