A Boy's Tale

"I wanted a pet."

Writer: Gary Russell

Format: Short Story

Released: April 2003

Printed in: Short Trips: Companions 04

Featuring: Adric

Synopsis

Adventures in time and space are no fun if there's no one to share them. the Doctor has taken along many people on his travels – humans, aliens and robots. Did he really care for any of them? What in their previous life fitted them for the role of companion – and how did they cope after they left the TARDIS?

These seventeen stories look at the Doctor's trusty companions, before, during and after their travels with the eccentric Time Lord. Discover the truth about Romana's regeneration, find out what happened when Zoe encountered the Doctor again, and learn which of his companions the Doctor cared for the most...

Verdict

A Boy's Tale was a great adventure to continue my way through the Companions volume of Short Trips! This was a fantastic use of Adric as a character and it was a really fun dynamic to have much of the story in the form of a letter. That is something I usually enjoy and it certainly worked well. I’d have been absolutely fine if the entire story was presented in the letter italics, but alas it was good to get those interludes throughout the actual story. I thought having an Adric story prior to the events of Full Circle was very exciting! It was also excellent to establish the point in which he was writing the letter as being between The Keeper of Traken and Logopolis. I liked that a lot and it was nice for Adric to touch upon how much he enjoyed Nyssa. It’s nice to know for him that she will shortly return and join Adric and the Doctor on their travels. The form of the letter was good and I liked that Adric was using the TARDIS databank to write the message. His feelings towards the Fourth Doctor in particular were intriguing to read as he seemed to think he was quite grumpy and not affectionate. That’s not wholly incorrect of the Season 18 version of this incarnation of the Doctor and it provided a good sense of vulnerability towards Adric. I’m not a bit fan of his as a companion in the slightest, but I found myself feeling rather sorry for him. That was good in terms of an emotional pull and I was engrossed in the content. I just loved learning more about Alzarius and it is always fun to encounter a companion before they met the Doctor. We get to know more about their history and their true personality as obviously things will change considerably once they join up on the TARDIS! I thought his fascination with learning was clear although he didn’t strike me as the kind of person to be fascinated by dogs! I wouldn’t have Adric down as any kind of animal person but he was determined to learn about them here. Specifically about the concept of a pet and why people had them and cared for them. They even named them! That was fun stuff and I liked how Adric enlisted Zayn to help him on the way. He wanted physical books and not just electronic means of education which I could appreciate, but the dangers were clear to see. I loved that his entire world was opened up once he met up with Marie and she could show him that there was far more to the world on Alzarius. Even the First Decider in Draith was part of the secrecy which was great. I liked how he came to a mutual understanding with Adric about neither party seeing each other involved on the south side. Adric was rather shocked that someone as high ranking was involved in fabrication. His planet wasn’t all he thought it was. I liked how things ended with Draith actually helping Adric escape and sort things out for him whilst he was being looked for by family and friends, and that little nod of understanding with Zayn was a nice touch. There was a good degree of caution there. I thought the revelation at the end of the letter with Adric having actually written to K9 was hilarious because I just completely assumed he was writing to Romana! But it went right over my head with his focus to learn about dogs. Of course he was addressing K9! That really did make me laugh because it was so obvious and I couldn’t believe I’d missed it. Overall, a really strong story to continue my way through the collection!

Rating: 8/10