Double Part Two

"I've never doubted that you're not human."

Writer: Guy Adams

Format: Audio

Released: January 2023

Series: Torchwood Monthly 70

Featuring: Roberta Craven

Synopsis

A lot of people have died, and not for the first time in her life, Roberta Craven has changed sides.

Travelling the world with a dead man, she's negotiating world peace. Or is she starting a world war?

The Autons are coming. And Torchwood won't stop them...

Verdict

Double concluded in pretty strong fashion to round out what was overall a thoroughly enjoyable and intriguing two-part release to continue my way through the Torchwood monthly range at Big Finish! I do think this was sadly the weaker of the two parts and I would probably give this one a seven and part one a nine to get what is still overall a terrific rating! I love the idea of visiting Torchwood in the 1970s but this one definitely did have a feeling of having moved on a little from the first part. Given that this was released a month later than its opening half, I do kind of understand that but I'm a sucker for immediate follow ons from cliffhangers. I just feel like that should be the way things get resolved but I'm also a big fan of politics playing a role in the Whoniverse so this was definitely up my alley. Roberta Craven continued to lead the story brilliantly and I would love to hear more from her character, especially given how things ended here! Louise Jameson is just a delight playing this role and it's clear she's enjoying not just being a noble savage in the Whoniverse. Her pairing with Neal Hart again was good although this was far from the normal Neal. He was an Auton and she knew that. The whole concept behind the full copy was fascinating but I think a little more clarity on just how they were able to do that with the likes of flesh and brain waves when they're powered by plastic would have been beneficial. I do think it's good and has a lot of potential, but then what might the point be if the copy was such a good copy that it couldn't always be influenced by the Nestene Consciousness and its desires? That seems like a little bit of a flaw and dare I say a waste of resources? What use is a copy that can't be directed? The answer may have lain with the threats provided to Al_Sabah who was tortured as part of the oil negotiations with Nessoil. Seeing doubles of himself and hearing how one smothered his ill mother to bed in hospital while another did the school run for his two boys was genuinely horrifying. The fake Neal being in a position to threaten was quite something and he knew that Al_Sabah had some terms to provide because why would he have flown such a long way to simply say no to anything that was put on the table. There was some strong logic there. The audio when his bodyguard was killed in the car was deeply distressing and showed the extent to which Nessoil would go for favourable terms on the oil price. It's all about money! Everything comes down to it. even when dealing with alien infiltration. The very idea of the Nestene Consciousness being in the North Sea was amusing as an image because that's not the kind of oil supply one would expect to find there! Roberta realising that she was the Auton and not Herman Baker was a really good moment and it definitely explained a lot of what was going on in her head. He was too stupid to not be human in aligning himself with the Autons. Touching upon the difference between Autons and the Nestene was intriguing too and I would have liked a little more on that because it's fascinating. The way things concluded with Roberta basically recruiting for Torchwood as Autons was a fun thought and definitely leaves things open for some kind of future civil war? Or will they just be accepted as British citizens as the Nestene hoped initially? A little ambiguity is decent here and I enjoyed it overall. A great listen as a two-parter! 

Rating: 8/10