Dead or Alive: Flying Solo

"You can't conquer time."

Writer: Tajinder Singh Hayer

Format: Audio

Released: July 2025

Series: Fugitive Doctor Adventures 2.01

Featuring: Fugitive Doctor

Synopsis

Pilot Officer Mohinder Singh Johal is an RAF pilot on a sortie during World War Two. Following a close encounter with a flying blue telephone box, his Spitfire vanishes! The Doctor, whose TARDIS is out of control following a blast from a time disruptor, should be keeping a low profile, but with Mohinder lost in time and space, she has to help bring him home.

Verdict

Flying Solo was a great start to kick off the Dead or Alive second series of Fugitive Doctor Adventures! I think it’s fair to say that the anticipation for this second release didn’t match the first and I was actually taken by surprise when I saw the notification pop up on social media that it was released, but I couldn’t help but plan to do it right away on release day! Don’t let the date entry of this blog fool you as I’m working ahead and it was a delight to delve back into the mysterious world of the Fugitive Doctor. I really enjoy Jo Martin as the Doctor and after making such an impression on screen from Fugitive of the Judoon onwards, it’s a delight to continue to expand her adventures. It’s quite intriguing that we still don’t have a definitive answer regarding the placement in the Doctor’s life for this incarnation, but that’s part of the appeal for this range to me. Is she pre-First Doctor? I more lean towards her being between the Second and Third Doctors despite what’s happening in the ongoing Second Doctor Adventures and the depiction of regeneration in The War Games in Colour, but I quite like that we don’t know. Of course, I would love to know but hopefully one day we’ll get the pay off. This followed on nicely from where the first boxset finished in having Cosmo on the trail of the Doctor. She wasn’t having it though and was on the run which is where the Doctor will always be. The state of the TARDIS in having chronon leakage was a good setup for trouble, and that’s exactly the fate that befell Mohinder. He was a terrific little character as an Indian member of the British Air Force and it’s so easy to forget that in 1941, India had yet to declare independence from the UK. That just doesn’t sound correct but history doesn’t lie! The way he was being suspected just by virtue of his race and some pro-Indian books in his collection was a fine example of the prejudice at the time, but he was still doing his bit for the war effort. The fact he was swallowed up by the chronon cloud and expelled through time and space was fascinating and I liked how he ended up going on a journey through time and history of what felt like home to him. From the Punjab of over three hundreds ago BC to as recent as 1919, he was exploring pivotal historical events. I think he accepted the concept of Time Lords and time travel a little too easily, but his desire to make change was admirable. Even the Doctor didn’t think there was anything wrong with him wanting to change the past, she just had to ensure that he couldn’t. I thought Cosmo even getting involved in the political affairs of 1941 was fun and I liked how she even thought it was ridiculous that being Indian made Mohinder suspicious. Even the Doctor was mistaken for Indian when she was pretending to be an emissary for Alexander the Great! Racism is rife and having a black female Doctor is important in exploring that. I so hope we get more sets with the Fugitive Doctor. Mohinder suffering from chronon disease effecting his mind was actually a tad sad to hear as his condition deteriorated over the course of the episode. Cosmo having a trap for the Doctor and distracting her simply by letting her talk was pretty fun and I appreciated the tactics! She was locked onto the TARDIS now but she’d still allow the Doctor to save Mohinder as he looked to go out in a blaze of glory in a history he already knew and couldn’t change. She did just that and I loved how he turned his spitfire into a blade to ensure the Doctor was cut free of Cosmo and free to escape once more! That was nice and whilst I question just how much fuel the plane had, it was good that he didn’t want his friend to be in chains. The rescue was reciprocated and that was a nice touch. Overall, a great start to the series! 

Rating: 8/10