The Underwater Menace
Written by Geoffrey Orme
Directed by Julia Smith
Released by BBC Worldwide, 26th October 2015 (R2)

Well, it's finally here. After some eighteen months since we originally expected it to be released, The Underwater Menace has finally arrived for everybody to enjoy on shiny DVD. Any boy, has it been a wait, with the story being delayed owing to animation, then effectively being cancelled and then suddenly being announced ahead of time by an accidental listing by the BBC Shop! Then, with features still under wraps, it was a question over how would the missing two episodes be presented ...

The Episodes

It turns out episodes one and four are telesnap reconstructions in the very strictest sense of the word - they are literally just the telesnaps, shown in progression - including those taken of the opening and closing credits! So, for episode one the opening title music plays over the "Doctor Who" logo, and the closing music plays over an image of a fish-person (plus the producer/director credit telesnaps at the end). The static images also lead to some strange imagery, such as when Zaroff is first introduced you might be led to believe he was a shark!

The reasoning behind why BBC Worldwide decided to present the story in this way is really quite mystifying, especially as their previous effort with The Web of Fear episode three was a much more fluid reconstruction. One can only assume that the budget was so restrictive for this release that they couldn't afford to utilise imagery more appropriate to reflect who/what is on screen, let alone insert the censor clips recovered from Australia, incorporate the standard opening title sequence or recreate the end credits! However, it does mean that you can see the Cura telesnaps in all their glory ...

The soundtrack itself is a clean, un-narrated version. For collectors like myself this is actually quite a good thing, as previously we only have the Anneke Wills-narrated soundtrack version to listen to. However, in terms of presentation the narrated version would probably have made more sense to assist in explaining what is going on, especially with the static telesnap presentation where there are long sequences stuck on a single unreprestative frame.

Overall, I'm not too sure how I feel about the presentation of these episodes; on the one hand it does (just about) serve the purpose of telling the story, but if you are unfamiliar with these episodes then it might well be quite confusing to follow the plot, especially where there is no dialogue - in those cases you might be better off muting the TV and playing the narrated soundtrack alongside the images on screen (or perhaps not even bothering with that as so little is occuring on screen!)

Of course the real reason we're here is the chance to finally see Episode Two in all its glory! With the exception of the lucky attendees at its unveiling at Missing Believed Wiped in December 2011 and a couple of special presentations around the country, the majority of fans have been unable to see the recovered episode for nigh on four years - indeed, we got to see both The Enemy of the World and The Web of Fear beforehand! But was the wait actually worth it?

Episode Three has been available to us for many years of course, and perhaps familiarity has bred contempt, often leading to the story being derided for its outlandish characters, madcap chases, not to mention that immortal final line from Zaroff. With all that baggage, the second episode, therefore, was always going to have a fight on its hands to raise the story from being seen as a 'farce' to something more 'sensible'. However, it wasn't much of a fight in the end - from the outset we are presented with a terrifying scene of Polly about to be operated upon, and then to a much calmer, thoughtful, insightful version of the Doctor to the one seen in the latter episode. I woudn't say that this necessarily immediately raises episode three and the overall story into (ahem) 'classic' status, but in context it now makes the latter episode feel like a 'normal' part three as opposed to the extra prominence placed upon it as being the sole representative of the story.

The problem with a "new" episode is often that there's too much to take in on the first viewing, not to mention the excitement of seeing it that first time. It's the second viewing that normally gives you the chance to better appraise it, and also whether it stands up to the closer scrutiny. Episode two does manage to pass that test, which to me at least means it has been worth the (extended) wait to see it. Though the narrated soundtrack and exisiting telesnaps mean I'm not entirely unfamilar with it, unless we are extremely lucky with when Cura took his shot much of the time little nuances within a scene are lost. Good examples are when we can now see the Doctor's reaction to Zaroff's outrageous claims, or his miming the professor's insanity to Thous, things that weren't evident before. Another one I like is the Doctor hiding in a plain and common wardrobe - in this case there are telesnaps showing this, but they don't quite portray the humour that is present.

I don't think the episode quite meets the hype that has grown up around it being the one remaining episode left to be released for this era of Doctor Who, and it was (justifiably) eclipsed by the two Season Five returns, but all-in-all it isn't a particularly bad episode and probably more representative of the story as a whole. It also now has the 'honour' of being the earliest complete episode of the Troughton era, and means the second Doctor  no longer has an 'embarassing' start to his visible adventures!

As a little bonus, those who sit through the end of the episode four credits can find the telesnap credits featured over video of the story's location, Winspit Quarry, which unfortunately only features in the two missing episodes. Not quite a "Now and Then" feature, and the footage hails from A Fishy Tale, but welcome nonetheless!

Special Features

Fortunately, one of the revelations of the formal DVD announcement was that, unlike Enemy and Web, it would  (most of) the special features that we are used to on 'classic' series releases. These also included the two (brief) Australian censor clips that weren't incorporated into the reconstructed episodes above, so at least these can still be seen on the DVD.

A Fishy Tale covers the making of the story, looking into the 'mountainous' production journey undertaken by The Underwater Menace from its original inception as Under The Sea, its rejection as unmakable by its original director Hugh David and a 007 film crewmember(!), its removal and subsequent re-instatement to the production schedule as other scripts fell by the wayside, and its ultimate tackling by the previous year's The Smugglers director Julia Smith. Regular companion Anneke Wills provided the main 'commentary' on how the story was produced, with additional insight from Frazer Hines on his formal arrival as Jamie as new companion (and the script adjustments needed to cater for another TARDIS traveller). Other contributors include Catherine Howe who played Ara, assistant floor manager Gareth Gwenlan, and new series writer Robert Shearman giving his take on viewing the story in 'modern times'. The feature was narrated by Peter Davison, who only really started to get his teeth into the special features range through its director Russell Minton, who also provided another welcome touch in the inclusion of especially shot footage out on the story's original locations at Winspit, featuring 'fish-people' out on the beach and in the quarry.

As with the majority of behind-the-scenes features in the Doctor Who DVD range, A Fishy Tale nicely summarises the making of the story, but sadly the nitty-gritty details of the ins-and-outs provided by production information subtitles are not included with this release. Being that these traditionally carry lots of interesting snippets about how the script progressed and changed, what was happening around and during production, etc., it feels like there's a bit of a vacuum this time around, and we are missing out on the usual 'definitive' story of production. I guess we will need to wait for the eventual release of the relevant edition of The Complete History now for that account.

However, at least we have the commentaries to listen to, which provide traditional behind-the-scenes 'gossip'. As with previous incomplete story releases, the existing episodes have the regular cast/crew reminiscences on production, with the missing episodes used to present contextual interviews, clips, etc. For The Underwater Menace, episode one takes the form of the second part of an interview by moderator Toby Hadoke with Patrick Troughton's son Michael (recorded prior to his own inaugural appearance in Last Christmas), who candidly discusses life growing up with his father, his relationships and attitudes towards the work he undertook. The second episode features Anneke Wills, Frazer Hines, Catherine Howe, sound composer Brian Hodgson and floor assistant Quention Mann, and as might be expected discussion focussed on the return of this episode after a few decades and how they felt about being able to see it again. Other tidbits along the way include Frazer commenting on how Colin Jeavons aka Damon's eyebrows reminded him of an androgum (with Toby observing no colour photos exist to compare against), and how the opening scenes of the story raised concern over children not wanting flu jabs. Moving onto the third episode, anecdotes included reflections on the challenges faced both for and with director Julia Smith, the 'infamous' way in which Joseph Furst played Zaroff, plus Brian on the difficulties of sound mixing in the early days and Anneke on Troughton's thoughts over 'that' scene with the fish-people ... The last episode is made up of archive recordings, and features Julia Smith and the originally-slated director Hugh David on making (and not making) the story, producer Innes Lloyd on what he liked about producing Doctor Who and the changes of direction he instigated, and a longer interview with the Doctor himself, Patrick Troughton in which he talks about getting and creating the role, costume and "hairy" arrangements, and how important a routine was for making such a frenetic show.

Yvette Fielding is back for the second half of The Television Centre of the Universe - and we also get a "previously" which is quite useful if you haven't watched the first half since it's release on The Visitation in 2013. The "cliff-hanger" is resolved to be cameraman Alec Wheal, and then it's straight into anecdotes between him and the trio of Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Mark Strickson about life in the studio during recording (plus BBC producer/fan Richard Marson chatting about the "fan glitterati" who watched whatever they could studio galleries!). As before, the main conversations were interspersed with anecdotes from other production personnel, such as assistant floor manager Sue Hedden on how props could disappear and exhibitions assistant Bob Richardson admitting he had purloined a terileptil mind control device! Other contributors included production assistant Jane Ashford (who reflected on the challenges of maintaining contunuity during filming) and videotape engineer Simon Anthony (who commented on combatting recording issues from lighting and physical effects). It was also an unexpected bonus to see behind-the-scenes footage from Earthshock to help illustrate the discussion!

As with the previous part, this is a relaxed, light-hearted wander through the production process and a way to 'look' around TVC as-was, before its tragic final closure. And, in tradition, it's off to the BBC Bar to finish off both this production and (possibly) the classic Doctor Who DVD feature range as a whole!
 

Conclusion

Overall, the story is quite a jolly romp. We get to see Patrick Troughton portray a more playful and extravagant version before these elements are toned down into the more focussed, enigmatic Doctor we travel alongside in later adventures. We get the over-the-top mad Professor Zaroff played with gusto by Joseph Furst. And of course we get to see the companion triad of Ben, Polly and Jamie in action for the first time. Visually, there are some impressive sets, and I personally think the fish people "showcase" in episode three is quite an effective scene (not to mention giving Dudley Simpson a good run for his money!). However, the story is hardly a memorable classic like many of the era to come - it's certainly not the best story in the world, but then again it is also by no means the worst in the grand history of Doctor Who.

In terms of the DVD itself, it's a shame that the still missing episodes were presented in such a basic form, but to misquote a well-known BBC phrase, "other viewing methods are available!" It's also disappointing that the production subtitles were not included, but on the other hand it is great to finally be able to see the second episode fully restored, the making-of, and the final part of the TV Centre feature.

Coming Soon ...

Sadly, "Nothing left in the world has stopped us now..."

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Reviewed by Martin Hudecek

Starring: Tom Baker, Louise Jameson, John Leeson,  Frazer Hines, Michael Cochrane, Bernard Holley,  Veronica Roberts,  and Nicholas Briggs 
Written And Directed By: Nicholas Briggs
Producer David Richardson,
Script Editor John Dorney,
Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs
Released August 31st 2015, Big Finish Productions

Right on the heels of their last adventure, the Fourth Doctor and Leela are heading for the planet of Telos, but without the (often vital) support of the genius computer dog K9.

What new discoveries will feature when the Cybermen's base on Telos is distrubed, and how can the Doctor deal with a combined force of the imperious Cyber-Controller and crafty Cyber-Planner? What will happen when the Doctor is having to try and uncover the consequences of his actions when he first visited Telos with Jamie and Victoria in his Second incarnation? Will the spare parts obtained from Krelos be implemented into making a new Cyber-army?

The answers are immediately forthcoming, but not necessarily pleasing.

The big - and for many long-term fans huge - draw is the involvement of bothFrazer Hines andBernard Holley, who are part of a small group of people to still be with us from the main cast of the highly regarded The Tomb of the Cybermen. Hines reprises Jamie once again, and also provides the voice of the Second Doctor to a  very convincing level. Holley is certainly convincing as the young man he played in the opening episodes of Tomb, but I do find this script simply repeats one of the Troughton story's flaws in not giving a strong actor enough to do. Also we do not actually get a proper crossover of the two TARDIS crews, which admittedly is owing to the plot and to the Cybermen needing to observe timelines carefully for their agenda to work. Given how the cast in the making of documentary even point out this 'missed opportunity' I just wonder if Nicholas Briggs was at one point thinking of revising his story to allow this, or just wanted to make a coherent plot and finale story his priority.

Also there is some clever use of what on TV were vibrant and memorable clothing props in the form of the Doctor's endless scarf and his former companion Jamie's kilt, and how they drive the story forward. Just as in The Fate of Krelos the use of a malignant K9 is very welcome as this plot device was rare and only used to any notable effect by creators Bob Baker and Dave Martin. Even though the Cybermen are meant to be one collective race, the sheer personality of K9 means that there appears to be more of a dynamic than one would expect, so I must praise John Leeson for some fine work there.

If the main objective was for the listener to be entertained then this two parter certainly meets that in workmanlike fashion. It has decent pace, clear enough sound effects, and not overly intrusive music. Louise Jameson is as accomplished as ever, really making you appreciate Leela's many natural gifts and her devotion to the Doctor even when he appears to feel helpless. Tom Baker is always very engaging owing to his huge reserves of charisma, but perhaps were one to see a story from Season 15 and then listen to this, there are some definite signs of this being an older and less bombastic Fourth Doctor. Furthermore I say that when I personally feel Tom's weakest season and set of performances were overseen by Graham Williams when he first took charge and had much less budget to work with.

But what matters is having a duo of heroes to care about, and the Tom/Louise team have certainly produced many a fine outing together both onscreen and via audio.

Of course knowing how the actors have become much more on friendly terms with each other through doing commentaries, conventions, and so on may be something Classic Who followers may take subconsciously into these original plays.  But to my mind, one example of the brilliance of Tom Baker was that he was just as strong acting against those he agreed with as those he did not, and regardless could always convince as the main hero of the story - one who may have been unpredictable but always knew how to overcome opposition.

Nicholas Briggs of course is at hand to do the Cyber-voices and makes the silver giants as chillingly robotic and soulless as we have come to expect, over the years of Big Finish stories and obviously the revived TV series. The Cybermen are certainly not holding back and wish to leave their individuality-destroying-mark on a rather less malevolent civilisation. Without giving too much away, the legacy of their destructive ways was already shown in 'Krelos' and this story hinges on just how much the TARDIS crew can act to avert this - bearing in mind that K9 is still under Cyber control at the start of this season finale.

Other supporting cast is also more than up to the mark. Michael Cochrane has been a first-rate contributor to Doctor Who as evidenced in his two 1980s turns; one alongside Peter Davison, and one with Sylvester McCoy. Even when a script wobbles he is magnetic and memorable, and this again holds true for the 'multi-person' Geralk. Veronica Roberts' Relly is also more than serviceable, even if she is not given too many of the play's best lines of dialogue. We are invested in her fate and that makes the overall story work.

What  prevents this play from being a real winner is the slightly muddled ending. It plays out compellingly enough but just veers on the wrong side of deus ex machina and seems to nullify some of the actions of characters that we really thought would matter more. I do like how the method used to achieve a good result has a major impact on what the Doctor and Leela will ultimately take away from their escapades. They show their resourcefulness under pressure but perhaps it is left to others to somehow appreciate that effort. There just seemed more potential from the various enticing components of the play for a really explosive finish. While an interesting approach to have two plays with lots of 'timey wimey' I did end up feeling a little more impressed with The Fate of Krelos (if ultimately it aspired for less grandiose effect) than I did this finale.

Apart from what I said earlier on about the casts' muted misgivings, the making of documentary is certainly worth a listen and will especially interest those who either know and love Tomb, or who still are keen to see it either on a stream or on one of the increasingly scarce Revisitation DVD box sets. Briggs was certainly as good in direction as ever, and the enthusiasm of the cast for their work together is as bright as the unrelenting sun that makes Telos an arid environment. That is until curiosity draws would-be-pioneering travellers down to the underground...

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Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

The Lost Stories: Lords of the Red Planet
Written by Brian Hayles
Adapted by John Dorney
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Released Nov 2013 by Big Finish

Big Finish has long been the hub for Doctor Who's what-ifs and might-have beens, be it filling in enticing gaps left in the TV canon, or giving the eighth Doctor a whole new lease of life on audio. In more recent years, the remit has widened to take in stories for the first three Doctors, with surviving cast members providing narration - first with Companion Chronicles, then The Lost Stories. Lords of the Red Planet takes this idea to new levels - with its expanded cast and lovingly-crafted sound design, it expertly recaptures the late Troughton era in six pacey episodes.

Lords of the Red Planet is based on another unproduced idea by Brian Hayles, and was to be the original follow-up to The Ice Warriors. It was abandoned in favour of The Seeds of Death, quite possibly because it would have used up an entire series worth of budget trying to create three distinct reptilian species and an underground city, mines, and a rocket on Mars!

As with The Queen of Time, Hayles' original storylines have been adapted into scripts for Big Finish, this time by John Dorney, and with the cast again led by Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury. It's an origin story, a sort of 'Genesis of the Ice Warriors' - which sees the Second Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe arriving on Mars in its distant past, only to be caught up in terrible events that see the fall of one race and the rise of another. Troubled scientist Quendril works around the clock genetically 'sculpting' an army for the cruel dictator Zaadur on pain of death for his people, and the arrival of the TARDIS crew in the subterranean city of Gandor only makes things worse....

The Ice Warriors have traditionally been a bit of a blank slate throughout their history, arguably they've barely been explored beyond The Curse of Peladon's twist of Izlyr and Ssorg being good guys. Some attempt to flesh them out was made more recently by Mark Gatiss in Cold War, but Lords of the Red Planet looks at the bigger picture, and with greater effect.

We meet the reptilian martian race that created the Ice Warriors; the aforementioned Quendril (played by Michael Troughton) as well as the prototype Ice Lord Aslor, and one of Quendril's 'failed' experiments, his assistant Risor - both played by Nick Briggs, also on Ice Warrior duty. Briggs does an excellent job of breathing (hissing?) life into two distinct characters, with the tragic Risor being reminiscent of Condo from The Brain of Morbius. His Ice Lord, Aslor (a dead ringer for Alan Bennion's Ice Lords of the 60s and 70s), bonds with Zoe, and fights against his warlike conditioning, showing great pathos.

Quendril, meanwhile, struggles with the consequences of his work, and is highly distressed at the pain he is forced to put his test subjects through. Michael Troughton excels here, despite the horrific nature of Quendril's work, he comes over as sympathetic, no small feat when you realise he's essentially a Davros figure.

We also get an insight into the society of a dying world dependent on daily doses of 'life drink', with the spoiled, vain, puppet Princess Veltreena, (played by Charlie Hayes, daughter of Wendy Padbury) as its figurehead. Even the villainess of the piece, Zaadur, played by Abigail Thaw, has a brief moment of sympathy, when it's revealed that she too is the product of genetic experimentation and has gone through similar agonies to Aslor and Risor. Thaw is excellent, and gives a very strong performance. Dorney's decision to change Zaadur from male to female is a masterstroke, although, as with The Queen of Time, it does remind you of the Troughton era's lack of female foes.

Hines and Padbury are great as ever, with Hines doubling up again as Jamie and the Doctor. Zoe has a meaty part, acting as Aslor's conscience, and ripping the electrodes from him as he is being agonisingly 'brain-formed' by Quendril's process. Jamie is more involved with the rough stuff, but gets a nice scene with Veltreena, who is clearly flirting with him, despite being unsure of what exactly he is. Hines is as good as ever, and sounds like he's stepped straight out of The War Games. Padbury is excellent as well, but sounds like she's struggling to get Zoe's pitch right at times.

Lastly, Hines' uncannily accurate Second Doctor is present in full effect, and is almost flawless - it's only occasional lines of over-wordy dialogue that don't ring true, but the speech patterns, tone, and attitude are all there, and it's a joy to hear. Lords of the Red Planet is a real treat, and a fine bit of world-building, classic in feel, but quite modern at the same time, with real moral dilemmas nestling alongside sonically perfect hissing Ice Warriors and rumbling tympani straight out of The Seeds of Death.

Even if Big Finish isn't your thing, Troughton fans in particular should snap this up. A triumph.
Sssssssuperb.

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Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

The Lost Stories: The Queen of Time
Written by Brian Hayles
Adapted by Catherine Harvey
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Released Oct 2013 by Big Finish

Poor old Brian Hayles. He gave us some great bad guys in the Celestial Toymaker and the Ice Warriors in six (credited) Doctor Who stories between 1966 and 1974 - but he was often heavily rewritten as his ideas overreached what a TV show could manage, especially on a small budget.

His first effort, The Celestial Toymaker, is credited to him, but the final script was rewritten beyond recognition by first Donald Tosh then Gerry Davis. He had a little more luck from here on, but was still frequently sent back to make changes, or subject to rewrites.

A prolific writer, bursting with ideas, Hayles submitted many stories to Doctor Who over the course of around a decade, but most of his ideas were rejected on grounds of suitability or cost. According to Terrance Dicks, who had to rewrite large chunks of The Seeds of Death and The Monster of Peladon himself, Hayles was an affable man, and was very understanding of the required changes, but it must have been a frustration for him.

The Queen of Time, as presented here by Big Finish as a hybrid Lost Story/Companion Chronicle is one of Hayles' rejected efforts, adapted from a 1968 outline into a full script by Catherine Harvey. Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury take the lead here as Jamie and Zoe, with Hines again on double duty with his uncannily good impression of Patrick Troughton's second Doctor. The cast is completed by Caroline Faber as the eponymous Queen of Time, Hecuba, who gives a great performance - moving effortlessly between flirting and fury. Faber does a great job here, playing Hecuba as a charming yet vicious femme-fatale, playing cat and mouse with the Doctor whilst casually putting Jamie and Zoe through hell. It's a very strong performance, one that reminds you of the lack of strong villainesses in much of the original series. The only slight criticism I have is that there's maybe a little too much of Hecuba's maniacal laughter going on at times. Hines and Padbury are excellent as ever. They occasionally sound older, unavoidable, given the passage of time - but both recapture their characters effortlessly, and the same old chemistry is at work. Hines' take on the second Doctor continues to impress, it's so good that you could easily forget that it isn't Troughton you're listening to.

The Queen of Time begins with Hecuba's beautiful laughing face appearing on the TARDIS scanner, inviting the Doctor to dinner. Hecuba wastes no time in separating the Doctor from his companions, leaving them to complete a variety of sinister trials whilst he squirms over the revolting dinner she provides and tries to find a way out of her realm. This story is surreal, and has some elements in common with The Mind Robber. The sound design is very effective, with inventive use of gramophone records, and ticking clocks. There are also some similarities to Star Trek, with the crew faced against a godlike being capable of terrible things. The story would have been very difficult to pull off in 1968 in this form, being very visual and quite graphic in places - the food really is disgusting, and there are Alice in Wonderland rug-pulls of reality, and slavering dragon creatures. This has the result of making this tale quite narration-heavy, as there's a lot to picture here, and consequently a lot to describe.

Nevertheless, The Queen of Time is great fun, and recaptures the Season Six TARDIS team to great effect. It's also possibly the only Doctor Who story to make a plot point of a thrown brioche.

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Reviewed by Ben Breen

The Dying Light
Released by Big Finish
Written by Nick Wallace
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Released: Dec 2013

Big Finish Productions strive to create audio adventures that can be enjoyed by everyone and their efforts for last November's celebrations were very successful in that regard. As part of their relentless quest to bring more and more original tales of the Time Lords to anyone who likes audiobooks, a three story run involving the slippery Quadrigger Stoyn came into being.

This trilogy consists of The Beginning, The Dying Light and finally, Luna Romana. The Dying Light is one of several audio adventures featured under the banner of "The Companion Chronicles".

Even though I received a Companion Chronicles CD with my special edition copy of The Light at the End, the main 50th anniversary adventure, I haven't got around to listening to it as of the time of writing. However, I was aware before delving into this story that they might be shorter adventures, partly due to them not being full cast audio dramas. Nonetheless, as I listened and wondered what twists and turns the plot had in store, I was actually surprised and a little disappointed to discover that there were only two episodes in this story. This allows for little background and character development to be accomplished in comparison to the more common full cast audio dramas, such as The Sirens of Time, which normally have around four episodes each.

The story is, to say the least, an intriguing one. The Doctor, in his second incarnation, along with Jamie (Frazer Hines) and Zoe (Wendy Padbury), land once again off-course, in a cave of some kind. After realising that the scanner isn't defective, as is first feared, the three time travellers then embark on an exploration of a great city. This takes them into some rather dangerous situations, one of these encounters finishing up the first episode. In what could be seen as an homage to the second Doctor's era - the time travellers are trapped both in progress and retreat by large stone giants. This does play a role in the second and final episode of the story, if only seemingly for dramatic tension. The planet on which the travellers land is said to be a dying one, orbiting a dying star. Well, no prizes for guessing where the adventure gets its name from.

The plot itself seems fairly sketchy in places, although since this review only covers the standalone story, there may be important links in the other sections of the trilogy which are missing here. Repeated listening may be preferable to discover exactly how the salient points are supposed to fit together.

The only criticism I could place on this story is that there was no dedicated cast member for Katherine, although Hines' performance is admirable. His second doctor, however, does deserve a mention and, as seen in The Light at the End, his performance does imitate the late Patrick Troughton relatively well.

The casting of Terry Molloy, well-known to most Doctor Who fans as the psychotic and maniacal Davros, creator of the Daleks, seems well thought out. Quadrigger Stoyn does begin as a particularly prickly character, aided by Molloy’s choice of vocabulary as much as his own vocal qualities. It progresses to a point at which we, as readers/listeners, might begin to sympathise with him, but there is nearly always an uncertain feeling about what he is going to come up with next, appropriate for a villain of this style.

All in all, The Dying Light is a rather intriguing two-episode adventure even as a standalone story, with what might be considered a minor lack of casting and a slightly puzzling story.

Related Reviews: The Beginning (24 Dec 2013); Luna Romana (6 Apr 2014)

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Reviewed by Lani Smith

The Light at The End
Produced by Big Finish
Written and Directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released: November 2013

The Light at The End was built up for quite some time as the true Doctor Who fan's 50th. Where many seemed fit to ignore the majority of the show's time, Big Finish, as per usual, decided to do quite the opposite and revel in the past. They wanted to do a proper 8 Doctor story, shattering the previous televised records (which was essentially held by The Five Doctors, which, despite its name, had about 3 and a half Doctors).

However, this sort of thing had been attempted by Big Finish before with Zagreus. Zagreus, for those who are unaware, has something of a rather unfortunate reputation about it. The common narrative surrounding why Zagreus flopped so immensely was that it simply had too many Doctors and returning cast members. Indeed, for the long-term Doctor Who fan who defends the upcoming rather New-Who-Centric televised 50th, Zagreus was always a go-to example for the age-old proverb of "Too many chefs spoil the broth."

Challenging this narrative, however, is The Light at The End which, thus far, has received a warmer and much more enthusiastic response. The question here is why? Why did this succeed where Zagreus failed?

Put simply, The Light at The End understood what it was. It was a celebration of 50 years of Doctor Who. Where Zagreus tried to expand upon the universe, in often very interesting ways, it was bogged down by narrative, rather than filled with celebration. When Zagreus was properly celebrating Doctor Who, as-in the rather brilliant recasting decisions, it shined. When it went on about exposition and nothing happened, it failed.

The Light at The End fixes this problem. Before we go into this, I should describe what a beat is. In directing and scriptwriting a beat change is a moment when the perspective of a character, or the audience, shifts in relation to a scene. For an example of one of the most famous beat changes in film history, look to Star Wars Episode V and the infamous "Luke, I am your father" line. Both Luke and the audience, in this moment, had their perception of events change entirely. Beat changes are directly related to the pacing of a piece and are vital to understanding why Zagreus failed where The Light at The End succeeded.

In essence, it saw that the core problem with the previous anniversary celebration was that it relied on glacial, or nonsensical, beat shifts. In Zagreus, the beat shifts never came quickly enough, often relying on people talking and the situation remaining static for huge swaths of time. Likewise, following the intense and emotional beat at the end of Neverland, the story made a nonsensical shift towards the humdrum as the protagonists trapsed about the TARDIS calmly for an hour. It was jarring and made little sense in context of the previous beat.

The Light at The End has no such problems. The beats come quickly, they land well, and they keep the two hours flying by. It felt dynamic, exciting, and fun. The script is also cleverly edited and every single scene, except one short scene with The Master gloating to himself, has a clear intention and purpose. The script does not waste your time as a listener, which is vital.

But, I'm sure you are all wondering, how the script holds up with so many cast members? Well, this is rather brilliant actually. The various Doctors and companions are split up into teams, much like The Five Doctors, and each has their own largely separate stories (that come together well at the end). We see about three or four groups form, which by definition makes the vast cast more manageable. However, due to the nature of The Master's plan, the various companions eventually flicker out of existence, delivering a much more manageable cast as time goes on. But, of course, not before delivering some amazing character interaction with some great combinations. Who knew that Charley and Four could get along so well? It's certainly a combination I would never have imagined working. Or what about Ace and Peri? Or, most tragically, Seven and Peri. As the script goes on, the groups form and the companions drop off, so that the cast actually becomes quite manageable with each group having their own basic section that is laden with Doctor-interaction dialogue. Four and Eight were the highlight for me (and a combination I hope to see much more of someday!), but there was plenty here to like. The “too many chefs” argument falls absolutely apart when the chefs are being overseen properly by both an experienced scriptwriter and, more importantly, an experienced editor and director.

It should also be said that there were some other moments of brilliance with the handling of The Doctors and the large cast. Firstly, and most impressively, the first three Doctors actually have rather a large role – with tons of lines! I was incredibly impressed with this, only expecting Big Finish to give them lipservice and some reused lines from their televised time. However, they got a spot-on impersonator for Three, returned Frazer Hines's Two, and possibly used the wonderful William Russell as One. The interaction between One, Two, and Three is a joy to see and it's wonderful to see how they interact with some of the later incarnations that they have never really gotten a chance to meet in the past. Secondly, it was nice to use the script to allow some “time bleeding” and enable the other companions that were not featured prominently to have some one-liners. We hear Tegan, Susan, Zoe, Jamie, and plenty of others. Even if it wasn't for long, it was still nice for a celebration to bring them all back for that.

One thing you'll notice in this script is that the script compliments the complications inherent in the casting. Mainly that the script and the story allows for the script to simultaneously expand the cast without allowing it to become unwieldy (the one-liner ghostly visions), while also allowing the cast to shrink and become more manageable as the plot goes on.

That said, the script is also necessarily quite simple in nature. The purpose of the script was not to tell a good story, or even a remotely compelling one, but to celebrate the years and the characters that have made the show what it is. One will not come away from this script thoroughly impressed with the plot as in something like Jubilee or Farewell, Great Macedon. The plot is secondary to the celebration here and, in reality, that is precisely what is needed for a good 50th celebration. If one puts too much focus on the plot, as in Zagreus or likely the upcoming televised 50th, the focus comes away from what made the show great in the first place and the characters that helped craft it. This is the one time of the decade when it is fully appropriate, and even ideal, to look back fondly instead of looking forward. And that's where the script shines. It delivers exactly what is needed – tons of character interaction and lovely combinations of Doctors that we would never get to see any other time of the year. This includes the first time we really get to see Four interact with any other Doctor or companion (Tom Baker is an absolute joy here, by the way). It's got enough references and returning characters that any long-term fan will be positively thrilled, but it's a simple enough plot that anyone with a basic understanding of who The Doctors are and what their personalities are like will enjoy it as well. For the casual fan and the dedicated one, there's plenty here to enjoy.

Oh, and get the Limited Edition. Trust me – you'll want to hear it all. There's so much content there.

(You can check out more of Lani's Big Finish and Doctor Who reviews at http://who-reviews.com/dwnews)

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Reviewed by Tom Buxton

The Light at The End
Produced by Big Finish
Written and Directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released: November 2013

“You know, old girl, sometimes I think you’re probably the finest ship ever to have sailed the Vortex.”

It’s a scene that has played out before our eyes a thousand times- a wearied, eternal time traveller verbally caresses his ship, readying it for a new adventure in the fourth dimension, his gentle care for its complex machinery as unyielding as his faith in the human race. Even after fifty years, however, depending on the talented British thespian cast in the role, this subtle, familiar sequence can still feel fresh, each incarnation of the Doctor developing a unique relationship with his TARDIS and yet at the same time rarely deviating significantly from the established status quo. The Light at the End, Big Finish’s spectacularly ambitious 50th Anniversary Special, similarly lays its foundations in the familiar, what fans have come to expect of the ‘classic’ era, then rapidly subverts those preconceptions in order to tell one of the studio’s most captivating narratives yet.

That the Special’s scribe, Nicholas Briggs, can find the time to craft a cohesive and engaging storyline at all is in itself a notable accomplishment. The prospect of integrating each of the first Eight Doctors, their companions and the ever-villainous Master into one delicately structured drama must have been daunting enough, even before the need arose for the plot to neither ignore nor become too dependent on the programme’s legacy. Briggs is careful in the latter regard, not shying away from throwbacks to 1963, The Three Doctors, Logopolis, The Eleventh Hour and other landmark moments in the show’s history, but simultaneously ensuring that the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth incarnations of our titular hero each have their moment to shine, to remind the listener why this iconic science-fiction drama continued to survive and thrive with them at the helm.

Inevitably, this balance of nostalgia and narrative cohesion which Briggs has struck won’t please everyone. Anniversary tales can often be something of a double-edged sword, in that many fans (perhaps rightly) want as many elements of days gone by to be referenced or have a physical presence within the episode, whereas others desire a storyline which pushes the boundaries of the show’s storytelling. While Briggs fulfils both of these desires to an extent, at the same time he arguably fails to completely excel in either regard. The Daleks, the Cybermen and plenty of companions are barely name-checked here, a stark departure from the nostalgia-fuelled ‘glory days’ of The Five Doctors, and equally the justified blockbuster-esque storyline brings little in the way of heartfelt emotion or dramatically challenging content, falling short of the heights attained in recent televised episodes such as Human Nature and The Doctor’s Wife by some distance.

All’s not lost by any stretch of the imagination, though, for where The Light at the End falters at times in the execution of its audacious Anniversary narrative, it more than compensates the listener with its stellar cast ensemble. Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann each capture the essence of their respective Doctors perfectly, the sheer brilliance of each of their incarnations demonstrated masterfully without the need for CGI or extensive make-up to cover up the age which these five men have gained since their last televised appearances in their role. Try as some fans might to contest against the notion, it is impossible to overlook the unmistakable fact that were these five Doctors to have appeared on-screen in The Day of the Doctor through new rather than archived footage (the latter eventuality all but inevitable), their bare resemblance to their appearance in the 1970s and 1980s would become all too apparent within moments of the viewer catching sight of them. Here, in an audio medium, fans new and old can remember the first eight Doctors in a guise purely rendicative of their original selves and thus worthy of the esteemed thespians who maintain their loyalty to the show decades on from their departure. To paraphrase a much-cited lyric, you can’t always get what you want, but instead, sometimes, you get what you need.

Of course, such as fans would also expect from a Special of this prestigious, rare ilk, the Doctors aren’t alone in their battle with an old foe. Louise Jameson’s Leela, Sarah Sutton’s Nyssa, Nicola Bryant’s Peri, Sophie Aldred’s Ace and India Fisher’s Charley all join their respective incarnations of the Time Lord, and for the most part they all provide substantial contributions to the wider narrative, even if at times that boils down to a nostalgic rendezvous between old friends and adversaries. Fisher is arguably the most short-changed supporting actress of the piece, relegated to a brief appearance alongside McGann in the opening scenes and a diminished return in the drama’s final moments. Other than that odd case, though, the ‘gals’ find plenty to do here, and not one of them finds themselves reduced to pantomime- screaming while tumbling down a relatively harmless incline, for example- which is always a positive omen in this reviewer’s book.

If only Geoffrey Beevers were so lucky. Returning to the role of the Master in his pre-Logopolis decrepit guise, Beevers’ portrayal is overexaggerated, shallow and dictated by superfluous dialogue which does nothing whatsoever to broaden our perspective on this iconic antagonist. Whereas Steven Moffat no doubt aims to challenge the viewer’s assumptive preconceptions of the character of the Doctor in The Day of the Doctor, it appears in this case that Nick Briggs has simply aimed to cast the Doctor’s arch-nemesis in a purely nostalgic light, neglecting to add any layers of depth in his construction such that Beevers is forced to rival Eric Roberts’ TV Movie portrayal for unreservedly outrageous expressions of evil.

What does prove to be an additional distinctive trait is Briggs’ direction of his own piece. Over the course of Light’s two-hour running time, listeners will ‘visit’ 1960s British homes, pocket universes, various TARDIS control rooms and plenty of other diverse settings, and whether through the eclectic soundtrack or the manner in which Briggs structures the dialogue and exposition, there’s rarely a chance to become lost in terms of where events are taking place in spite of the whistle-stop tour on which the narrative takes us. If this particular special release is anything to go by, then Briggs should definitely consider taking up joint scripting and directorial duties on a more frequent basis.

Like any Doctor Who Anniversary Special before it (indeed, Dimensions in Time knows this better than most), The Light at the End has its share of shortcomings. Like the majority of celebratory episodes that have preceded it, though, this is a drama which is worth the time of any fan, regardless of whether they were present at the time of An Unearthly Child’s broadcast or only just began to tune in with The Name of the Doctor this Spring. This isn’t the most original, stirring or effective instalment of Doctor Who by any means, yet it revels in its familiarity, in taking the scenes we’ve witnessed playing out a thousand times over and putting a glorious new spin on them.

For too long, uncompromising ‘fans’ of the show have lamented the impending absence of the first eight Doctors in next month’s celebratory movie- their focus should always have been on Big Finish, the only studio possessing the ability to bring these timeless characters back to life with no visual blemishes of age or otherwise. Steven Moffat surely knew that he would never even need to resurrect the classic Doctors for his Special- they’ve received their own, spectacular 50th Anniversary epic in The Light at the End, an adventure which does greater justice to the pre-2005 legacy of Doctor Who than a nostalgia-burdened televised outing ever could. It inspires wonder, awe and mystery, just as the show always has, and encourages us to remember how those same feelings came from a mere trip into a near-abandoned junkyard housing a strange blue box half a century ago- after all, that’s how it all started.

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The Monster Collection:

The Daleks
The Cybermen
The Silurians
The Sontarans
The Master
Davros

Released: 30 September 2013

The Monster Collection is a new series of DVDs that each focus on one of the Doctor's adversaries; unlike previous collective releases such as The Dalek Collection and Cybermen, however, this time around each of the six DVDs pair up both the modern and classic appearance of the subject in question.

There's obviously been an attempt to pair up 'origin' stories: for the Sontarans we have The Time Warrior with The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky, the Silurians have Doctor Who and the Silurians with The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, and with Dalek creator Davros it's Genesis of the Daleks alongside The Stolen Earth/Journey's End. Things start to go a little awry with The Master, where it's Terror of the Autons paired with The End of Time (though the latter story does explain why the Master is how he is so perhaps more relevant than Last of the Time Lords. The Cybermen are then represented by Rise Of The Cybermen/Age of Steel and The Tomb of The Cybermen (this being the first 'complete' story featuring them) - I'm guessing either the animated reconstructed version of The Tenth Planet wasn't ready for that set's preparation, or maybe it was actually a decision that having an animated episode is mis-representative and might detract newcomers from the show (I doubt it would have been through it's inclusion in the recent Regenerations boxed set, though, being The End of Time is included here!). However, I'm rather more mystified at Asylum of the Daleks's inclusion with The Daleks - I would have thought Dalek would have been a better choice - not to mention meaning that Christopher Eccleston's contribution to the series could also have then been represented!

Speaking of incarnations, only the first four 'classic' Doctors are represented, though with all of the adversaries in the set introduced during the first twelve years of the show that's inevitable. For those that are, we have one Hartnell, one Troughton, three Pertwee and one Tom Baker story (though Troughton only makes it in through The Tenth Planet not being used). Perhaps if the Terileptils, Bandils and Tetraps return then the others could get a look-in (grin).

If future collections were to be considered, then candidates might be - assuming animations remain off the menu - the Ice Warriors represented by The Seeds of Death alongside Cold War, and the Zygons through Terror of the Zygons and the still-be-broadcast The Day of the Doctor. The Autons are another notable absentee, though with Terror already in The Master collection and Spearhead from Space only just been re-released on Blu-ray that set is probably unviable (though it would have given Eccleston another chance with a pairing with Rose!).

However, I suspect that sets such as The Macra (The Macra Terror and Gridlock) and The Great Intelligence (The Abominable Snowmen and The Snowmen) are rather less likely ...

The Discs

The Cybermen and The Sontarans are presented on one disc, with the others across two. As these are a collection, all the discs use the same basic "rainy" montage with spinning TARDIS in the background, with the main protagonist taking centre stage (see the screenshots below). Unfortunately this doesn't extend to the stories themselves, so the 'classic' story has the same graphic as the 'modern' - this is most noticeable with The Master, where John Simm graces Terror of the Autons where I would have really liked an imposing Roger Delgado!

Other than that, these are vanilla releases with only subtitles as an option, and the story-specific sub-menus only give the option to choose a specific episode. There is no restoration work undertaken on these discs either, retaining any rendering issues encountered on their previous dedicated DVD release (for example, David Daker and John Carney credits are still missing from The Time Monster); however, The Tomb Of The Cybermen is the re-released, VidFIREd version from Revisitations 3.

Conclusion

The pairing of a classic era adversary with its modern interpretation is an interesting way to bring those creatures' earlier exploits to the attention of those solely versed in the 21st Century version (not to mention a 'fresh' Doctor, too!) As the publicity says, "These collections are perfect for younger viewers just discovering the scary delights of fifty years of Doctor Who." This is quite a canny move on the part of BBC Worldwide in order to engender an interest in the older stories (and the back catalogue of hundreds of adventures to purcha- enjoy, as well...).

However, there is nothing new of interest to those who already owns previous releases - and the chances are you have, of course - for example with something like Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel this is its fourth outing, having been previously released as part of Series 2 Vol 3, The Cybermen (2009) and Doctor Who: DVD Files Vol #10 (not to mention complete series and era boxed sets!). But then, these DVDs are not really aimed at you!

On the other hand, if you are thinking of treating a younger cousin etc. to a Doctor Who DVD in order to introduce them to larger history of the show then these are perhaps a relatively cheap way to do so.

(It's just a shame that the Jagaroth didn't make a re-appearance in order to have City of Death, so you'll just have to buy them the classic release instead!)

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The Apocalypse Mirror
Big Finish Productions
Written by Eddie Robson
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Released May 2013

In a decaying city in Earth’s future steel birds stalk the skies and people are vanishing from the streets. Jamie, Zoe and the Doctor soon learn that the city’s days are numbered, but can they do anything to save it before they vanish like so many citizens before them?

The Companion Chronicles were created to solve two main problems for Big Finish telling stories featuring the first four Doctors. By having older versions of the Doctor’s friends relate stories of their adventures Big Finish avoided the problems of not having an actor to play the Doctor, and the companion actors being much older, allowing them to play the character at a similar age to themselves. The approach also opened up new ways of telling stories, and the rage has often made use of clever framing devices and narrative tricks.

The Apocalypse Mirror is a somewhat experimental release, which moves away from the familiar Companion Chronicles approach described above. While it is narrated from Jamie’s perspective, it lacks any kind of framing device and is highly unusual in that all three of the regular characters are ‘voiced’, with Wendy Padbury on hand as Zoe, and Frazer Hines taking on both Jamie and the Doctor. Big Finish have been keen to promote this side of the play with the DWM preview calling it “the most authentic Second Doctor Companion Chronicle yet”.

In the past Big Finish have been adamant that they would never re-cast the Doctors who are no longer with us, but this play is the closest they have come to this. Since this isn’t a full-cast play they can just about get around calling it ‘recasting’ (as Hines voices all the characters bar Zoe), but it sails very close to the wind. The problem is that even though Hines’ take on Troughton’s voice is very good, it will only ever sound like Frazer Hines doing an impression of Patrick Troughton, rather than the real thing. Recreating the past in such detail feels like a fairly futile aim, and with The Companion Chronicles already offering a neat solution to the lack of the first three actors to play the Doctor it’s hard to see why Big Finish are veering away from a format which works so well.

Given the decision to have all three regulars ‘voiced’, it’s a shame that Wendy Padbury couldn’t have been more to do as Zoe, as she disappears from the story half way through, and doesn’t return until the conclusion. The play’s supporting characters are all drab and forgettable (however, given the revelations in the play about the nature of the city and its inhabitants, the dullness of the characters is probably intentional) and giving one of these characters the second voice, rather than Zoe, might have made them more distinctive.

Where the play excels is in its imagery. The setting of the neglected and part-derelict city is wonderfully evoked in Jamie’s narration, and the Hawkers (the metal birds which grace the CD’s cover) are a memorable and very visual menace. There is a good sense of mystery created around the disappearances of the city’s people and the strange ‘nostalgia sickness’ which causes people to see flashes of the city’s greater days and these mysteries are resolved in clever and unexpected ways. Jamie is used very well throughout the play, with his sense of wonder authentically captured and Episode Two gives him a rather lovely speech arguing against cynicism and despondency.

Overall The Apocalypse Mirror is a play which is high on atmosphere but low on the storytelling complexity we’ve come to expect from The Companion Chronicles. Trying to have all of the regulars voiced is an interesting experiment in the way The Companion Chronicles tell stories, but one which feels like a bit of a backwards step, trying to solve a problem which doesn’t really exist.

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Reviewed by Tom Buxton

Destiny of the Doctor: Shadow of Death
AudioGo
Written by Simon Guerrier
Directed by: John Ainsworth
Released February 2013

This review is based on the CD release from AudioGo, and contains minor spoilers.

“You do know that you’re breaking all of the laws of time, yes?”

Hot on the heels of January’s 50th Anniversary Destiny Of The Doctor debut adventure Hunters Of Earth, Simon Guerrier has provided us with a base-under-siege style Second Doctor tale in Shadow Of Death which once again is sure to trigger the nostalgic tendencies in any fans of the classic era. If this growing franchise of audio adventures can maintain its splendid tonal and narrative variety in the nine releases still to come, then it’s a done deal that Destiny will be one of the greatest highlights of Doctor Who’s big year by far.

In terms of relating the reasoning for Shadow being such a successful endeavour for AudioGo and Big Finish, it all comes down to one man at the heart of the production: Frazer Hines. For obvious reasons, it would be unlikely that the star who once played Jamie McCrimmon could then double as Patrick Troughton’s Time Lord in any 50th Anniversary productions due to continuity restrictions. Yet here we have perhaps the perfect rendition of Troughton’s impulsive and cheeky incarnation of the character, the closest we’ll get to ever seeing that Doctor in action again after the tragic passing of his portrayer. Hines’ Second Doctor is everything the character was in 1966-1969, and it’s testament to the actor’s abilities that he can balance this alongside his crisp-clear reprisal of his role as McCrimmon and a realistic interpretation of Wendy Padbury’s Zoe in tandem.

As with Hunters, Hines is supported by an actress from outside the show’s continuity, in this case Evie Dawnay. Evie effortlessly inhabits her role as a suspicious researcher on the space base which the TARDIS crew find themselves exploring, echoing many of the Troughton era tales in refusing to believe the Doctor’s innocence until he had proved his intelligence in a dangerous situation. It would be easy for some to argue that Guerrier has simply played to the tropes of Troughton’s time on the show, yet given the adverse reaction that Eoin Colfer received for his 50th eBook A Big Hand For The Doctor when it gleefully deviated from the tones of the First Doctor era, it’s safe to say that this was probably a wise move on the writer’s part.

Besides, in terms of the history of the Whoniverse, who doesn’t love a good space base under threat from an alien menace? There’s a shadow plaguing the lost city of the Quiet Ones, a race whose planet orbits an exploding star, shifting timelines to the point where different areas move through time faster than others. You have to wonder if Guerrier took any cues from the likes of Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead and/or The Girl Who Waited in these regards, and yet either way it’s thus a true credit that the writer can integrate these seemingly New Series-riffing elements into a Troughton tale with such ease and seamless effect.

One question that will undoubtedly be a major deciding factor for the Destiny range’s success is just how well individual releases would have fared without its overarching plot elements that will tie into later instalments. Indeed, much of the second half of this base-under-siege romp relies upon the influence of a Doctor who will soon be returning for another season of adventures on BBC1, and this will perhaps be seen as a detrimental point for some. Essentially, it’s a ‘get-out’ clause that saves the day without any of the help of the Second Doctor’s own intelligence, seemingly allowing the Eleventh Doctor to acquire information that’s vital for a future battle to come. The second incarnation of the character seems none too pleased about his future self’s meddling in days gone by, and the hints of the danger this meddling could enable are clear through dialogue such as the line I’ve opened this review with. One thing is certain- the final adventure, The Time Machine, will have a lot to deal with when it places Matt Smith’s Doctor at the forefront of proceedings come November.

All the same, once you ignore the rather convenient climax and look at this second Destiny release as a whole, the picture (or ‘painting’, an image which Matt has said will become crucial in the 50th Special) becomes a lot clearer and more positive. Frazer Hines in particular is a shining beacon of auditory excellence here, and the backing by some superbly rendered audio cues and atmospheric effects really does a good job of strengthening that Troughton era atmosphere. This reviewer cannot fault the attention to detail and immersion that’s been afforded to both entries in the Destiny range so far, and it’ll certainly be exciting to see how other writers and production teams deal with the remaining nine Doctor releases to come in terms of this reverence. Shadow Of Death may stumble at times in its narrative, yet its cast and atmosphere remain finely handled to the point of pure excellence, combining to form a gripping listen that should more than sate fans’ appetites until the next entry.

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Doctor Who - The Nameless City
Written by Michael Scott
Puffin Books
UK release: 23 February 2013

This review contains plot spoilers and is based on the UK edition of the ebook.

The second of Puffin’s e-shorts, this story focuses on the second Doctor and Jamie McCrimmon. At times it reads rather like Lovecraft lite: Howard Phillips Lovecraft’s own short story called ‘The Nameless City’ was published in 1921 and dealt with ancient ruins sung of by the (fictional) Necronomicon's "mad poet."

The Necronomicon also makes an appearance in Michael Scott’s story, and his beaked, clawed and octopus-like monsters are reminiscent of the Cthulu Mythos. I wonder just how appropriate these Lovecraftian debts are: when the TV series threatens to become ‘too scary’ for young viewers then negative commentary never seems far away, but perhaps different rules apply to the written word rather than the visual image. In any case, readers don’t have to know Lovecraft to follow the story: it’s more a bonus layer of meaning for those who get the references.

On the whole, then, this is a deft mix of Lovecraftian elements and Doctor Who history: Jamie meets a mysterious bookseller named Professor Thascalos who is presumably a well-known character drawn from the Doctor’s past (and future), whilst Vengeance on Varos’s Zeiton-7 forms a further part of events. And the second Doctor is typically well represented via a scattering of iconic dialogue and artefacts: “ when I say run, run” gets an outing, for instance, as does the Doctor’s recorder playing.

If this anniversary series partly retools Doctor Who for today’s younger readers, another emerging pattern seems to be that these ebooks make heavy use of other fantastic literature. Last month’s title was ultimately indebted to a very famous children’s fantasy, whilst this story focuses on connections to Lovecraft’s cosmic horror, and begins in 1968 on Charing Cross Road, itself renowned for its range of second-hand and collectors’ bookshops. It’ll be intriguing to see whether this bibliophilic, bookish strand continues through later e-shorts, but such is its prominence in Eoin Colfer’s A Big Hand For The Doctor and here, it’s tempting to suppose that “include elements drawn from well-known fantasy literature” was part of Puffin’s brief to writers. Time will tell whether such a device does indeed tie the whole sequence of short stories together, or whether it’s just a first and second Doctor coincidence. (Will Charlie Higson pop up with an Ian Fleming-influenced third Doctor story? Which Doctor should be re-worked via H.G. Wells or Jules Verne?).

Michael Scott doesn't just emulate Who, he also improvises a few new tunes using the show's established elements. Particularly striking is how the Doctor looks out of the TARDIS’s Police Box windows at one point, given that unlike latter-day Doctor Who, the TARDIS of this era didn’t include Police Box doors as part of its console room set-up. And the TARDIS’s organic nature, emphasized in ‘new Who’, is also cleverly seeded into Scott’s scenario.

There’s a recurring sense that this short story wants to introduce readers to the pleasures of culture beyond television. As well as featuring Charing Cross and its bookshops, the TARDIS materializes at the back of the National Portrait Gallery, and Jamie doesn’t just muse about how big the TARDIS interior is, he wonders “how many rooms, galleries, museums and libraries” it contains. Here there may be shadowy schemes and terrifyingly powerful forces from beyond time, but there are also books and galleries and music threaded into the story’s background and foreground alike. It’s Doctor Who coded as a culturally edifying vehicle. With freaky monsters. And the Book of the Dead.

One difficulty with the short story form is that there’s relatively little space and time available to set up and resolve an epic adventure. Consequently, the Doctor’s scheme to defeat an ancient evil existing before Gallifrey is only given minor foreshadowing, and seems to emerge almost out of nowhere. Nevertheless, I can imagine the story’s ending appealing both to younger readers and to admirers of Jamie McCrimmon. And curious conclusions have a long track record in official, original Doctor Who literature, going all the way back to 1960’s Doctor Who and the Invasion from Space, where galactic invaders were foiled in a truly absurd fashion. By comparison, Michael Scott’s storytelling is far stronger, artfully weaving together Lovecraft and loved continuity, even if his finale does strike a slightly off note.

A notable improvement on January’s ebook, this feels much more like Doctor Who, and Scott’s representation of the second Doctor comes far closer to deserving the description “as seen on DVD”. However, with the appearance of Professor Thascalos, and the TARDIS apparently being stranded on Earth, there’s also a definite flavour of the following era: this is very much the second Doctor retroactively composed in the light of what’s to come. Perhaps Scott’s preferred era is really that of the third Doctor, and he just couldn’t resist smuggling in a few series-travelling tropes ahead of time. (Or may be he was expecting to write a Pertwee story, and got bumped up the schedule). But whether it’s coloured by passion or pragmatism, The Nameless City is a definite credit to Scott’s authorial name, skillfully bridging Doctor Who’s eras and offering up a smartly intertextual, atmospheric tale.

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