Don't Blink!

"I spent years being hunted. I know how it feels to become prey."

Writer: Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson

Format: Short Story

Released: August 2026

Series: Circuit Breaker #7

Featuring: Fugitive Doctor, Martha, Osgood

Synopsis

The Fugitive Doctor finds herself facing a damaged TARDIS, an unexpected friend from the future, and a lonely assassin who will stop at nothing to reach her.

Verdict

Don't Blink! was a really strong short story to continue the ongoing Circuit Breaker multimedia adventure! I have been thoroughly enjoying the overall story so far and it's been great to see this getting such positive reviews. It really does feel like the 'current' adventure and with the current situation and unknowns surrounding Doctor Who on television, I think this is a wonderful substitute. I will follow this story and anything Doctor Who to just about anywhere, but I do hope this being on the UNIT website allows a large number of people to experience it because it's a darn good story and it's just a delight to have it for free! Unfortunately, I just can't get to grips with the Lost in Time mobile game so I haven't and won't experience Castling, but I like the little reference to it here with the Sontaran helmet. It's a bit of a surprise that we returned to them so quickly after The Honourable Society, but maybe there's more of a link there? I thought this adventure did a really strong job in catching people up on events so far and the situation for the Fugitive Doctor, Osgood and Andrew which is always beneficial. Things did take a bit of a darker turn though and rightfully I think suspicions are placed on Andrew. Might a future version of him be the mysterious cloaked figure we've seen on a couple of occasions now? It makes sense but is it almost too obvious? It's somebody in UNIT and somebody that has been in the TARDIS. At the moment Andrew fits that bill and I liked how Osgood did question him on it even if she did feel a little awkward in doing so. I do think he is the one in the cloak because I'm still sceptical on how he had the technical knowhow to build the resistor and that's something I thought right away when reading Calling the Doctor and I'm sticking with it. Sometimes the logical and obvious answer is the right way to play things. I wasn't expecting to see the Carrionite orb in play until the next instalment in the saga, but it seems to have set up that adventure very nicely with the cliffhanger finish also! I'm jumping ahead but the Doctor actually getting sucked into the Carrionite orb and having an image of that was delightful. The Fugitive Doctor coming up against some trapped witches? I'm all for that next time around. I thought the threat of the Weeping Angel was excellent and I think the author captured the fear factor they provide really well for a short story. The imagery of the blue energy surrounding the Angel as they almost engulfed the Doctor was splendid. I was a big fan of the images to accompany this story as they helped with the visualisation of the adventure and really captured the Black Archive. This incarnation of the Doctor having history with the Angels was touched upon really nicely. The link to The Shakespeare Code in having Osgood call in Martha for her expertise was wonderful and it was so nice to catch up with her in 2026! It's pretty scary to think it's nearly twenty years now since Series 3 aired! That's frankly ridiculous. I liked how she was called in for the orb but then it was actually her experience with the Weeping Angels that came into play. I thought she was really mature and strong in standing her ground. She held firm with the Fugitive Doctor and she actually liked how different this version was. I'm not sure she shared the same sentiments as Osgood regarding this incarnation although she did realise that she was perhaps wrong to try and push her into being the version of the Time Lord that she knew way into her own future. Having this Doctor use a sonic screwdriver throws continuity into raptures and I quite like that. As if a police box-shaped TARDIS wasn't doing that already! I think this story developed the arc really well in putting suspicion on Andrew, bringing Martha back and setting up the next segment, but after such a strong threat of the Weeping Angel I was a little down by them being contained again purely from a mention in brackets by Osgood! That felt off in what was an otherwise very exciting story. A great read to continue the adventure! 

Rating: 8/10