Reviewed by Martin Hudecek

Story - Robbie Morrison,
Artist – Dave Taylor,
Colours – Hi-Fi (with Dave Taylor)

"ISEN VI is the start of a new era of peace and prosperity .. [what] we've pioneered make it possible to build worlds to any pacification" -
Kano Dollar being interviewed.

In-between their many adventures together both on and off the screen, the Twelfth Doctor and Clara face a new challenge to overcome in this hotly anticipated comic strip from Titan. The time-travelling duo are visiting a planet with great beauty and remarkable animal lifeforms - however almost all of it is not as nature originally intended; hence the title of this story. Some confusion and embarassment is immediately felt by Clara as she comes fully dressed for an alpine break away from her stressful teaching duties on the specialist snow planet of ISEN VI. Instead she and her alien companion have happened upon a totally transformed planet which is now very much tropical in its temperature setting. As investigations unfold and those at work on the terroforming become known to the captivated Doctor, it becomes clear that something rather more sinister is bubbling along under the lush exteriors of the planet.

The beginning 'pretitles' are a good mix of dark humour and a truly unnerving and mysterious monster presence. Although the victim is a bit up himself he still seems like a proper heroic type who is relatable. He not only is killed off heroicly, he also has his name misremembered (something a lot of us have had to accept in our Earthbound lives!). And the impact certainly registers more than with some 'red shirt' types which litter science-fiction/fantasy stories.

The art and colouring is overall terrific, and coupled with an engaging story this is as good an opening issue to a series as one could wish for. It is fully aware of the ongoing Moffatt/Capaldi run that so many of fans and general TV viewers are enjoying presently, with direct mentions of 'Into the Dalek' , 'Robin of Sherwood' and 'The Caretaker'. By having some distinguishable references, which need not trouble new readers who perhaps do not watch much TV 'Who' in the first place, there is a finely judged regard for Doctor Who as an ongoing franchise. Dialogue is very natural and strong and avoids some of the comic book indulgences which bother me every so often in other comic book lines from the likes of Marvel and DC that I also read.

Capaldi's lined and somewhat irregular face means that he translates well to the artistic licenses afforded in comic book format. As in most of the Tv episodes there is a bit of the aloof detective at work and he doesn't mince his words. Once the overall plot/situation presents itself to the Doctor he takes charge quickly and most convincingly if still lacking some charm. In that regard, the comic is consistent with the opening text intro. Once the situation presents itself to doctor he takes charge quickly and most convincingly - if lacking some measure of charm. As the text intro on the first page informs us, he wants people out of the way in order to just get on and save them.

Nonetheless for some reason he comes off a bit more likeable and carefree in general. The lack of Capaldi's domineering intonations may be a factor as readers have the option of bringing this comic medium to full life in their own way. Jenna Coleman's protagonist is perhaps a little too bland and lacks the sparkling brown eyes but still functions as a perky and decent-minded counterpoint to our inimitable Gallifreyan hero.

There is a generous helping of comedic altercations between these two, who now know each others quirks and foibles well enough. During one particular verbal tug of war, the latest version of the Doctor makes a pointed remark at his most immediate predecessor and his love for bow ties; perhaps echoing the doomed Tenth's Doctor's mutterings of a 'new man sauntering away'. Clara is not to be bulldozed of course, and gets in a good dig at the Doctors lifestyle of not needing money and not really being a part of Earth society. She could have a case that he lacks ties to identifiable society out there in the cosmos for that matter. But the Doctor's supreme confidence is all on show throughout this opening chapter. Along with the vanity of calling himself sophisticated and well dressed, he is quite keen to mention Scotland in passing for the most tenuous of reasons.

There is also a sense of competition once the two get on with the task of identifying their new surroundings. The Doctor gets to brandish a specialist magnifying glass, whilst Clara thinks she has coined a new word for a strange new species - but loses her skiing bobble hat in the process to the said 'skunkeys'.

Supporting characters are also commendable here. Natural allies appear in the form of Professor Spector (who has a hairdo similar to Gary Oldman's Zorg in 'The Fifth Element') and her team who work on various sectors of ISEN VI, of which the humanoid/ acquatic Dr Scrofolus is most notable. There is a real sense that we are witnessing a typical day in the lives of this scientific team - until things come to a head, all too typically dovetailing with the TARDIS crew's arrival.

More obstructive is the self-absorbed and greedy magnate Kano Dollar - who is not too impressed by the Doctor's assertiveness and gets to utter that much loved line "Doctor Who?" as a result of his skepticism . There is a media correspondent character who only pops up to deliver exposition on this fat cat/ corporate figure and how ISEN VI has changed but even such a minor character is quite well done by the creative team of Morrison and Taylor.

There seems to be a clear villain in the form of 'Hyperios' and secondary monsters in the form of quirky robots who are vulnerable to the thrall of this mysterious fiery entity. With the nuisance factor of deplorable businessman Kano potentially getting in the way in later chapters, the Doctor has his hands rather full indeed.

So the very early signs of this new comic are most promising. Whilst Titan's other new Doctor Who lines have demonstrated various strengths (particularly the Tenth Doctor line), this would appear to be the ace in the pack.

**
Extras are in the form of a large gallery of alternate covers, with the most notable variants being granted full page sizes.

Cover Variants

Tweet

Reviewed by Ben Breen

Destroy the infinite
Written By: Nicholas Briggs
Directed By: Nicholas Briggs
Casting:
Tom Baker (The Doctor), Louise Jameson (Leela), David Sibley (The Eminence), Michael Fenton-Stevens (Moorson), Clive Mantle (Tillegat/Lieutenant Treeves), Hywel Morgan (Larivan/Lieutenant Garrett), Christine Roberts (Sarla), Ian Hallard (Davent/Infinite Warrior)
Released June 2014

Infinite: Endless, continuing without termination. A noun that does seem to describe rather aptly the continuation of the Fourth Doctor’s resolve to go on a “holiday” with his companion Leela. However, that is not to say that the story is any less entertaining than those that have come before it in what could loosely be called a story arc.

This story in the Fourth Doctor Adventures range sees Leela and the Doctor land on the planet Delafoss, with the Time Lord stating that he recognises it by the trees. Nothing is quite as it seems, as demonstrated in a scene prior to their landing. We see a man identified as Larivan being transformed into a so-called “Infinite warrior” by an entity only known as “the Eminence”. When the Doctor and Leela eventually encounter him, he explains he was forced to take the “breath of forever”, which starts the transformation. However, he is unable to elaborate any further as he is wracked by pain. The Doctor and Leela seek help from a resistance group, engaged in a war with the Eminence and the forces it commands.

Leela’s father is again mentioned as seen in previous stories like The Evil One, in reference to supernatural forces being constructed around fear and misunderstanding. Just as Leela begins to speak, however, a patrol of Infinites discover the existence of the hideout. The Doctor, yet again being seen as a man with a very unclear plan as in previous stories, displays an air of almost new era glee as he makes the patrol believe they should turn back. Convincing the resistance group that they will be of use, the party resolves to go to “the construction pit” and provide photographic evidence of a new Eminence battleship, ironically named “The Infinite”.

After traversing a large and potentially deadly exhaust tunnel and coming out through a service exit, The Doctor, Leela, Sarla and Tillegat see vast lines of people entering the mammoth craft. As filming of the ship continues, it becomes clear through dialogue that the people are hostages. After being detected by Larivan, as well as beating a hasty retreat, the party split up to stand a better chance of escaping. When the Earth alliance ship arrives, a squad of Infinite warriors meet it with Tillegat sustaining a fatal wound. The scene then shifts to the commander of the Infinite warriors who, along with a comrade, witness the arrival of an Eminence casket. The episode resolves itself with a cliff-hanger implying that The Doctor must be captured, in a fashion not dissimilar to original Fourth Doctor TV offerings.

The second episode opens with Leela climbing reluctantly aboard the ship, but hijacking it using a Janus thorn whilst doing so. It turns out that both her and The Doctor both wish to return to the TARDIS, even though the evil that still enfolds the planet has not yet been vanquished. The Earth Alliance pilot and Sarla are both very confused, but this is all left unresolved as the ship is forced to flee from not only fire on the ground, but in the planet’s atmosphere as well.

A rather touching scene ensues with the Doctor attempting to reawaken the suppressed memories within their would be executioner, cut short by an outburst from the enraged man. A call from the commander of the Infinites, Zarith, halts the execution.

The Doctor and Leela then fight for separate goals – Leela to get back to the planet’s surface to be reunited with the Doctor, who ends up simply trying to stave off taking the “breath of forever”. Everything seems to go downhill from here in terms of an impending disaster, with both the Earth alliance and the Infinite warriors seeking to obliterate the opposition. Leela witnesses the stubborn controller of the Earth Alliance lose his nerve as he sees the annihilation of a large portion of his fleet, thus ordering them to turn tale and break off the attack.

The Doctor meets the Eminence for the first time, seemingly in an inescapable situation, whilst Leela convinces the controller of just how useful she can be in providing ideas for the war effort. This interesting overlap works well, as we see the Doctors potential peril coupled with Leela’s calm and cool tactical instincts. The stakes are raised even further when the Doctor, seemingly under the control of the Eminence, delivers a chilling message that, although unnerving the members of the Earth Alliance, only strengthens their resolve to continue the fight.

In an almost too obvious homage to Star Wars, A disguised Leela and the Earth Alliance forces engage in a last desperate attempt to attack the Infinite and rescue the Doctor, the outcomes and intricacies of which I will leave in ambiguity, open to interpretation.

The Doctor and Leela, as with the other stories this season, are played well by Baker and Jameson, accompanied by a well-fitting score appropriate to the military setting. However, the only criticism I feel worthy of note has to be the voices of the Infinite warriors, who do not, in my opinion live up to their cadaverous nature. However, in a sense their voices almost take on a retro quality, befitting of the era. The rest of the cast do a great job, with parallels almost present to the stereotypes of World War II RAF pilots, fighting for the right to freedom and even using humour just to get them through situations.

All in all, “Destroy the Infinite” leaves many interesting questions open, which gives rise to a Sixth Doctor audio sequel, The Seeds of War. With a cast, that for the most part, does a great job in spite of some slightly less impressive vocal manipulation, I think this story is one that’s definitely worth a listen and is interesting in the fact that it raises more questions than it solves. The score, acting and sound design are all to the usual high standard the majority of listeners will have come to expect, topping everything off with an adversary for the Time Lord who feels like something straight out of an original Tom Baker episode.

Tweet

In The Forest Of The Night
Written by Frank Cottrell Boyce
Directed by Sheree Folkson
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman,
Samuel Anderson
Premiere 25 October, BBC One

This review contains plot spoilers.

A few weeks ago, 'Kill the Moon' sparked debates about whether Doctor Who needed to get its science right: was it science fiction or fantasy? This week there seems little room for debate: this is surely outright fantasy, from its fairytale roots through to its magical branches and leaves. Rather than gothic monsters there are glowing motes of sentience; in the place of technobabble there are “voices” that children can hear. Writer Frank Cottrell-Boyce is, of course, not only a Carnegie Medal winner for children’s fiction, he was also the writer of the 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony, where a gigantic tree was uprooted in order to symbolize the industrial revolution’s onset. In short, Cottrell-Boyce is no stranger to the dense symbolism of trees, woods and forests, and here again he tackles nature versus technology, with the Doctor and his sonic screwdriver appearing powerless to turn back an invasion of the trees.

Almost lifting his title from a William Blake poem, Cottrell-Boyce is clearly committed to Doctor Who as an educational show. Indeed, writing in The Telegraph on Saturday August 23rd he also compared the many Doctors of the show’s history to Philip Larkin’s poem ‘The Trees’:

Perhaps part of the show’s deep appeal is that it offers this possibility of renewal, of starting again. The Doctors are like the trees in Philip Larkin’s poem, which “die too” but whose “yearly trick of looking new / Is written down in rings of grain”. “Last year is dead, they seem to say / Begin afresh, afresh, afresh."

And there’s certainly a freshness to this rather unusual Who. The episode fizzes with ideas, especially when Cottrell-Boyce comes up with his own explanation of “bigger on the inside”. It’s a moment that’s sold wonderfully by Sheree Folkson’s direction. Rarely has the TARDIS console room felt as awe-inspiring as when Folkson has the camera track Peter Capaldi’s walk up the stairs and around the outer wall, effectively seeing it all through the dazzled eyes of young Maebh (Abigail Eames).

There’s also more than a touch of Malcolm Hulke’s old-school storytelling to this adventure, with the Doctor and humankind confronting a power that’s always been there – though these ‘tree devils’ aren’t quite what they seem. Meanwhile, the beautifully unsettling image of a green earth hits home with an ecological message that’s far from subtle. This authorial vision of Doctor Who is probably the closest thing to James Lovelock’s Gaia theory that TV drama has ever sustained, even edging out the classic BBC thriller, Edge of Darkness.

In some ways, though, this is anti-Doctor Who: the Doctor and Clara are ultimately on-lookers, and Missy is similarly reduced to doing little more than watching the outcome of events, albeit with surprise. The Doctor’s role in the story is definitely trimmed back: although he works out what’s going on, and helps Maebh get word out to the authorities, he still ultimately watches the trees in action with a degree of uncertainty. In contrast, Danny Pink gets much more to do than usual, showing his mettle as a leader; Cottrell-Boyce perhaps wants to demonstrate ‘ordinary’ human powers at work, whilst minimizing or cutting back on the conventional fantasy-hero’s role. And what John Tulloch and Manuel Alvarado, writing in The Unfolding Text, call one “of the recurrent motifs of Doctor Who” (p.94) is also inverted. In place of “organic” nature threatened by bad or mad scientists, science is alternatively trumped by nature’s fantastical potency. These trees run rings around both Time Lord and humankind.

But Doctor Who reimagined with a type of fairytale ambience – far more so than ever before in the Moffat era, despite previous attempts to position the show in these terms – also has certain limits. The script is sometimes in danger of becoming a touch twee, and its ending is arguably slightly weak. The brief final scene feels forced and tacked-on – there simply because another moment of emotional closure is needed. For a screenplay that has otherwise refused to play by a number of Doctor Who’s ‘rules’, this final capitulation to yet another happy ending doesn’t quite ring true.

'In the Forest of the Night' wants to revalue fairytales at the same time as reinforcing its ecological thesis. At one point, it’s suggested that forests represent a primal symbol of fear (“the forest is mankind’s nightmare”, says the Doctor), and it would have been interesting if the episode had taken more time to tease out and develop this possibility. But psycho-drama is rapidly displaced by eco-lecture. And so instead forgetting is identified as “the human superpower” (did Moffat’s ‘Listen’ riff on Cottrell-Boyce’s ‘Forest’, or was this an arboreal coincidence?). Fairy stories are shown to be less strange than the episode’s 'real' events. In this reversal, fairytales are an echo of magical reality and not just a mode of childhood fiction. Despite appearances, 'In the Forest of the Night' doesn’t merely reference fairytale archetypes; it’s an argument for the uses of enchantment and the values of the fairytale, not just in terms of making readers and audiences feel safely thrilled, but in reminding us – children and adults – of the strangeness and wonders that can exist all around us, before us and after us.

Having a Carnegie-winning writer of children’s fiction contribute to series eight was undoubtedly a press release-worthy event. But following two impressive episodes from Jamie Mathieson, especially the visually stunning and tightly coherent 'Flatline', 'In the Forest of the Night' doesn’t stand out quite as much as may have been anticipated. It is very much ‘Frank Cottrell-Boyce does Doctor Who’, and as such has a far stronger authorial voice than the show sometimes permits guest writers. Yet by reducing Clara, the Doctor and Missy to spectators gazing with wonder at a global spectacle, this story felt more reminiscent of the London 2012 Opening Ceremony than I would ever have imagined.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

The Ghosts of Gralstead
The Devil's Armada
Written By: Philip Hinchcliffe, adapted by Marc Platt
Directed By: Ken Bentley
Tom Baker as The Doctor
Louise Jameson as Leela
Released September 2014

Tom Baker's Doctor has had something of a renaissance on audio since he belatedly signed up with Big Finish. The Fourth Doctor and Leela's relationship has flourished over a growing series of adventures designed to bridge Seasons Fourteen and Fifteen and evoke the spirit of '77.

Now, Philip Hinchcliffe, the producer that brought them together returns with a box set of two stories that recapture the feel of the tail-end of his era. Hinchcliffe's ideas are adapted here by Ghost Light and prolific BF scribe Marc Platt, stepping in to the shoes of Robert Holmes, evoking that era whilst bringing his own ideas to the party.

The first, The Ghosts of Gralstead is a triumph. It starts off in Victorian London, but not the familiar gaslit Ripper-in-the-fog setting that Doctor Who still does to this day - this has serious scope, and unfolds beautifully over six episodes. This goes off in different directions including Africa and back - a tale of the dead rising and dimensions opening, with faith healers, tribal warriors, grave-robbers, warring brothers, a ghost-whispering child-woman, and a grotesque 'elephant woman' with some very unsavoury appetites.

The cast is excellent. Baker is on fine, imperious form, and Jameson Leela gets not only a love interest in African hunter Abasi, but a villain she truly fears in Carolyn Seymour's deliciously evil Mordrega. Louise Jameson's performance is spot-on, the only criticism here is that her relationship with Abasi is too well-matched, considering we know she eventually chooses boring, wet Andred as a mate for no apparent reason!

The Devil's Armada is somehow less impressive. Putting the Doctor and Leela in Elizabethan times against the backdrop of the Spanish Armada, with a fanatical witchfinder, and a race of imp-like creatures stirring up the conflict.

It's a good idea, with some good dialog and performances, but it feels a little flat after Gralstead. Tom Baker is a bit more of a mixed bag here - his yokel impression in the first episode is a bit too glib and broad, but minutes later he's perhaps more furious than we ever saw him on TV and the effect is slightly jarring - Tom turned up to eleven. He's excellent when the Doctor realises he could lose the TARDIS though.

Overall, Philip Hinchcliffe Presents is a worthy experiment, here's hoping Mr Hinchcliffe has some more ideas up his sleeve.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

Flatline
Written by Jamie Mathieson
Directed by Paul Wilmshurst
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Joivan Wade, Christopher Fairbank
Premiere 18 October, BBC One

This review contains plot spoilers.

Nine weeks in, and it's time for a 'Doctor-lite' episode, as Clara Oswald's journey continues. Last week, in Mummy on the Orient Express, we saw her consider her role as the Doctor's companion post-wobble. This week, she's had a shock promotion - it's her turn to be the Doctor.

Arriving on present-day Earth, we're immediately in uncharted territory for Doctor Who - Bristol. They should have taken the time to look up Chris Parsons, and see if he moved back to the area after all that business with Skagra and that sphere in Cambridge. Hopefully he'd live in the nicer part of Bristol, which we don't see here. The TARDIS arrives on a wasteground, and the first place Clara visits after that is a dingy underpass. Other locations include a warehouse and a railway tunnel. It's not doing Bristol's tourism industry any favours.

After a brief, creepy teaser, the story quickly gets down to business - the TARDIS is rapidly shrinking with the Doctor trapped inside, and lunch with Danny Pink is off. Clara is left to investigate, with the trapped Doctor as backseat driver - giving her the sonic, an earpiece and hacking her optic nerve.

Clara soon happens upon a Community Service team led by nasty-piece-of-work Fenton (Christopher Fairbank), and teams up with one of the group - Rigsy (Joivan Wade), a likeable young man with a penchant for street art. From the start Rigsy is portrayed as a good sort, while Fenton is an unrepentant bigot and bully throughout, and nearly gets everyone killed. Even the Doctor's moved to say that not all the right people were saved at the end.

Fenton's crew are tasked with painting over murals that have appeared alongside tributes to recently disappeared locals. The murals are of people with their backs turned. It soon transpires that they're not murals. A sinister alien force is at work - one that exists only in two dimensions. It's dissecting and analysing us, a slow-dawning realisation that hits when the Doctor twigs that the strange decor on the walls of the flat of one of the missing people is actually a flattened out human nervous system.

The alien threat is unnamed, doesn't speak, and has unknowable, yet nasty motives. We never learn anything about it - even whether it's a single entity or a race - but its theft of our dimensions, and our image is a disturbing concept. The concept of people turning into drawings was of course done way back in Fear Her, but there's no upbeat reversal of the situation here. The Doctor is briefly given pause to ponder whether the aliens' (or alien's - we don't know for sure) M.O. isn't necessarily bad, but his mind is made up by the end, and his fury is something to behold. The stop-motion-styled flowing effect as people are absorbed into the walls and floors is creepy, as is the jerky, misshapen movement of the painted figures chasing down the railway tunnel. Once upon a time Doctor Who made kids afraid of shop window dummies, telephone flexes, and statues. It recently branched out to bedsheets. Now it's moved on to walls, and floors.

Douglas MacKinnon does an excellent job of directing as ever, all long shadows and atmosphere, with some excellent camera trickery and physical comedy - as the Doctor's hands and face portrude impossibly from the shrunken TARDIS. Clara even pulls a sledgehammer from her handbag. Jamie Mathieson delivers his second cracking episode in a row - more from him please.

Danny Pink appears again, in another cameo - the third in a row since his last full appearance in The Caretaker. It's hard to see where his character is going from this, and Samuel Anderson's a bit wasted here - hopefully his story will finally pay off in the next few weeks.

For a Doctor-lite episode, the Doctor is much more present than usual, albeit trapped in an ever-diminishing TARDIS. Capaldi and Coleman continue to impress. Both get some great lines, and the Doctor and Clara's relationship is now in a very interesting place. She's thoroughly pleased with herself about how well she handled standing in for the Doctor. She wants his approval. He eventually compliments her, but seems a little troubled at how well she did at 'being' him, and also at how easily she lies to Danny about still travelling with him. Perhaps his influence isn't healthy, and he seems to acknowledge this.

We end by cutting to Missy, watching Clara (somehow - how does she do that?) on her white iPad, remarking how glad she was to have chosen her. We'll find out what for in a fortnight, but it's unlikely to end well.

Tweet

Reviewed by Damian Christie

- The Worlds of Doctor Who
Written by Justin Richards, Jonathan Morris and Nick Wallace
Directed by Ken Bentley and Lisa Bowerman
Released September 2014

“What’s more, as these [phonographs] become more popular, there might be a market for selling copies of the best acts ... Ha ha! Obviously those more suited to an auditory experience, dramatic recitations or even full cast drama – all delivered through the medium of sound!”

Henry Gordon Jago, The Worlds of Doctor Who: Mind Games

A year after Doctor Who triumphantly celebrated its golden anniversary, Big Finish (BF) is celebrating a milestone of its own – 15 years of entertaining fans with Doctor Who audio dramas. When BF first acquired the rights to producing audio Who in 1999, the TV program was on ice and its revival still another six years away. In that time, the company’s Doctor Who output now numbers hundreds of titles (well above the 190-plus releases in the so-called “main” range, if you add the Fourth and Eighth Doctor adventures, Companion Chronicles, Lost Stories and other special releases). In addition to producing numerous Doctor Who spin-offs that have explored popular and even obscure parts of the Whoniverse – eg Gallifrey, Jago & Litefoot, Counter-Measures, Dalek Empire, I, Davros, Iris Wyldthyme, Professor Bernice Summerfield and Vienna – the company has had the confidence to also secure the rights to other cult franchises and maintain a high level of quality and consistency that comes out of the deep affection, passion and dedication that the writers, producers, directors and performers have for their material.

Like its 50th anniversary counterpart The Light at the End last year, The Worlds of Doctor Who anthology is effectively Big Finish’s self-congratulatory pat on the back – as well as a gesture to the fans for their support over 15 years. Unfortunately, like The Light at the End, Worlds isn’t the most original or audacious of Doctor Who releases. Certainly there is an ambition to tell a broad story that threads its way through the rich, diverse tapestry of the Whoniverse, it’s just a great pity that the threat/villain of Worlds is so underwhelming and that the stories are for the most part so bland.

The villainous Rees, a Victorian era magician and hypnotist who subsequently defies human nature, is one-dimensional, both as a linking concept and as an antagonist. Without giving away too many spoilers, it’s tempting to say the character is a carbon copy of Dr Walter Simeon in the Doctor Who episode The Snowmen, even down to having a remote and brooding childhood and developing paranormal powers that take on a life of their own. Rees’s motives, particularly in the initial Jago & Litefoot instalment Mind Games are over-simplistic and sadistic. Indeed, because you are aware that the villain appears in all four instalments of the anthology, it practically removes all mystery and intrigue in the later stories. The Reesinger Process, the second instalment featuring the Counter-Measures Intrusion Group characters, provides some conjecture and conundrums in the course of the plot but little surprise at the climax. The title of the third serial - The Screaming Skull - is itself virtually a dead giveaway (pun intended!), although it is the most action-packed, entertaining and well written of this lot of serials. The final instalment Second Sight provides us with some insights into Rees’s back story and why he has become so powerful but aside from being a malevolent presence, the character remains grossly underdeveloped and unsophisticated. That said, Jamie Glover (who portrayed William Russell/Ian Chesterton in last year’s An Adventure in Space and Time) gives Rees charisma and authority for such a sketchy adversary.

Given Big Finish has set out to market its wares through this special release, then it will take some solace that it may lure in some curious listeners. The Jago & Litefoot and Counter-Measures instalments are virtual advertisements for those respective series, although you thankfully do not have to be an avid listener of them to enjoy Mind Games and The Reesinger Process. Justin Richards, who pens both episodes, makes them generic enough from the boxsets that you won’t be raising your eyebrows at allusions to other episodes (although no doubt if there are any, they are a payoff for avid listeners). You only need, of course, to be familiar with the characters from classic Who serials The Talons of Weng-Chiang and Remembrance of the Daleks (and even for modern series fans who won’t have seen them, those serials are readily accessible on DVD). Certainly Christopher Benjamin (Henry Gordon Jago) and Trevor Baxter (Professor George Litefoot) bring the memories flooding back with flawless portrayals of their very popular characters, and some of their dialogue, banter and comic timing is extremely well written by Justin Richards (Litefoot to Ellie Higson: “Then I shall be delighted to chaperone such a charming and refined companion!” Jago: “Oh, thank you Professor ¬─ and we’ll let Ellie come along too!”) It is just a pity that the episode in its own right is so weak.

The Counter-Measures team also scrub up well, considering that their characters in Remembrance of the Daleks were even less developed than those of Jago and Litefoot. Pamela Salem (Rachel Jensen), Simon Williams (Group Captain Gilmore) and Karen Gledhill (Alison Williams) reprise their roles effortlessly and Richards does an admirable job of fleshing out their characters and in particular their civil servant supervisor Sir Toby Kinsella (superbly played by Hugh Ross ─ “Rachel Jensen, you know I don’t do smug!”). Again, though, The Reesinger Process is little more than a framing device for this anthology and the big guest star names in Sinead Keenan (familiar to fans from appearances in modern Doctor Who and Only Human) and her real life brother Rory Keenan are wasted in their roles as sister and brother team Stephanie and James Wilton, the heads of the “mysterious” Reesinger Institute. Even The Screaming Skull is probably designed to encourage listeners to try out BF’s Doctor Who Companion Chronicles range, given that Jonathan Morris’ tale is partly a sequel to his offerings Tales from the Vault and Mastermind with American UNIT officers Ruth Matheson and Charlie Sato (the 1996 TV movie’s Daphne Ashbrook and Yee Jee Tso respectively). Having been compromised by the Master in their previous appearance, the two UNIT officers are given the opportunity to redeem themselves by returning to the Vault that stores extraterrestrial and supernatural artifacts recovered by the paramilitary organisation. Ashbrook and Tso’s enthusiasm for Doctor Who, despite their brief association with the program, is apparent not only in their performances but also in the “Behind the Scenes” CD in which they discuss their encounters with fans at Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary celebrations last year and their gratitude for being able to bring Matheson and Sato’s characters to life. Indeed, while Sato’s fanboy character in Mastermind irked this writer, his cheek in the face of danger in The Screaming Skull is memorable. Sato’s dialogue with the disembodied Rees, in which he goads the villain into revealing his plans before realising he is to go under the knife, is priceless and Tso injects plenty of humour into this exchange.

The Screaming Skull also nicely references Mind Games and The Reesinger Process and while this episode is a marked improvement on those chapters, this is down more to Morris’ strong writing, characterisation and tongue-in-cheek humour. Even then, the story is not without at least one irritant – the Terravore which stalks Matheson and Sato in the corridors of the Vault is a cross between a Dalek and the Skovox Blitzer which recently appeared on television in The Caretaker! (The Terravores debuted in the 2011 Sixth Doctor adventure The Crimes of Thomas Brewster.)

In another twist, The Screaming Skull also prominently features a reinstated Captain Mike Yates (Richard Franklin) who subsequently fills the “Brigadier” role when he recalls the Doctor (“ol’ Sixie” Colin Baker) to Earth for the final chapter Second Sight, written again by Richards in conjunction with Nick Wallace. While this tale also features Gallifrey regulars President Romana and Leela (Lalla Ward and Louise Jameson), it is more of a Sixth Doctor adventure than a Gallifrey tale and therefore unlikely to motivate casual listeners to investigate BF’s Gallifrey range. While they are as solid as you would expect, Ward and Jameson are horribly underused and Franklin is also rather superfluous to this instalment as Yates (he fares much better in The Screaming Skull). You could even argue the role of “ol’ Sixie” in this tale is symbolic – BF, after all, is largely credited with restoring the fortunes of the much maligned, lamented Sixth Doctor and the popularity of Colin Baker himself in the eyes of long-time Who fans. Certainly, the Sixth Doctor that we meet in Second Sight is Baker’s mellower, more likeable portrayal over the past 15 years and not the abrupt, impolite persona who graced our TV screens in 1984-85.

Although Second Sight explores the villain’s origins and how a character that starts as a common garden Victorian serial killer becomes a powerful menace to the wider cosmos, the final chapter is very dialogue-heavy and expository. Considering events in this serial should be drawing to a dramatic conclusion, the resolution is, if anything, dull and underwhelming. By establishing such a potent threat, Richards and Wallace set themselves up for a fall – they’re not able to devise a climax that is dramatic and nail-biting. At no point in this story do you feel that the Earth and the human race are truly under threat from the Rees malevolence. Not even the prospect that the malevolence could potentially infiltrate every aspect of our daily lives is as unsettling as it ought to be. You come away from this boxset feeling as if the story still requires closure.

Indeed, given the ambiguous ending to Second Sight and the anthology as a whole, it’s disappointing that popular archaeologist companion Bernice Summerfield was not included in the boxset to confront Rees in the 26th century, perhaps alongside Miles Richardson’s brilliant Irving Braxiatel. After all, as Lisa Bowerman points out in the CD extras, her involvement with BF stretches back to the inception of Bernice’s audio adventures ─ a year before the company obtained the Doctor Who licence. Nevertheless, Bowerman makes a dual contribution to The Worlds of Doctor Who - she is a director of the plays alongside Ken Bentley and she also plays cockney barmaid Ellie Higson, Jago and Litefoot’s impulsive, loyal friend.

As a cross-media promotion, The Worlds of Doctor Who may appeal to listeners who would like to sample the greater Doctor Who audio range and its numerous spin-offs. In turn, it’s a nice gesture for the company to be able to celebrate its output and pay back fans for their long term dedication and emotional and financial investment in its products. However, if you’re looking for something original, exciting and innovative, with substance and intrigue to boot, The Worlds of Doctor Who sadly isn’t it. You will get better examples by delving deeper into BF’s back catalogue.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Hudecek

Mummy On The Orient Express
Written by Jamie Mathieson
Directed by Paul Wilmshurst
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Frank Skinner, David Bamber Christopher Villiers, Daisy Beaumont, John Sessions, Foxes Samuel Anderson,
Premiere 11 October, BBC One

This review contains plot spoilers.

"You know Doctor, I can't tell if you are a genius or incredibly arrogant',.. "On a good day I'm both". - Perkins to the Doctor

What a romp and what a showcase for Capaldi. This was always the breed of story I hoped to get when Steven Moffat was first confirmed as showrunner. It has the heart of Doctor Who's golden period from 1974 to 1977 when Tom Baker was at his peak but also slots in very comfortably with a 2014 autumn schedule on a Saturday night. Doctor Who has often borrowed its own past successes and done something new, often to great effect. Thanks to a very capable director in Paul Wilmshurst (who continues to impress after 'Kill the Moon') and a more than competent script this is definitely one of those winners.

The story is remarkably simple without being too predictable. Various passengers from all walks of life on the Orient Express are being targeted by a remorseless creature that only they can see and feel. Despite their understandable panic there is only confusion from the people around them and nothing can be done within the span of Sixty-Six Seconds. And the Doctor realises that he is facing a stern test of his ability to come up with a solution. This is not a murder mystery for a Poirot or Marple and not everyone is playing by the rules..

The haunting killer of classic Who's 'Mind of Evil' is subtly referenced in the threat the Mummy presents - only the victims can see it . The way that it can move anywhere and not be stopped by physical items like bullets or locked doors is a perfect way to scare the junior members of the audience. The gimmick of having there be a visible counter remorselessly marking the moment of demise on-screen is somewhat odd but does come off - at least until Gallifrey's favourite son pulls off a beautiful trick (which doubles as an homage to Moffat's very first televised story).

The Orient Express is one of many in the cosmos and history, but this particular one rattles through the vacuum of space relentlessly, caring little for its appearance compared to other vessels that normally occupy this zone. It also used to be a tour through an area of the galaxy that had many a remarkable planet. However although this appears to be just another one of many journeys, there is a real twist when the whole vehicle is shown up as nothing more than a laboratory for testing a sample group. Although it is perhaps not totally watertight as the TARDIS has clearly broken into the environment!

What is clever is that quite a few of the victims are not all that likeable, or perhaps we catch them on a bad day. This is very welcome as it means that what normally is just monster fodder is something else and links in smoothly with the whole amoral presentation of this new Doctor which has fascinated many viewers since the season premiere. Also commendable is how the Doctor gets caught out several times - once when he casually mentions knowing a particularly memorable planet, now long-gone. This is put to effect later with an impact on the overall drama when the psychic paper turns out as not a simple plot short cut after all. The Doctor is realistically challenged, but such is his ego he will have none of it, and as bodies pile up his hubris and ruthlessness only seem to magnify.

When it comes to actually saving the day, it turns out to be a pyrrhic victory. A good number of people get back home unscratched. Some of the apparently threatened passengers were only hard light holograms and so were never really at risk. But lives are lost and not just to the sinister bandaged antagonist. Other carriages with real living people are broken into and the bodies are left to float in space, most likely forever. And this is a direct consequence of the Doctor's efforts: he does get the right end result, but only after a fatal trial-and-error procedure. The Twelfth Doctor may not react too overtly to this disturbing turn of events but he surely knows he could have done something different.

Guest stars are all up to the standards the better episodes have set previously, with a welcome cameo from talented singer Foxes and a nicely balanced guest role for Frank Skinner as Perkins. When he first appears there is ever so slightly an element of creepiness as appears rather indifferent to an old woman's death; but then perhaps he didn't take kindly to being looked down upon as was implied by what little we saw of her. I won't claim Skinner is as good an actor as he is a comedian but he still fits the particular role quite handily. Having Capaldi around certainly helps too as he effectively assumes the role of guest companion. His eventual moment in the TARDIS is also wonderful. The sheer exuberance that someone experiences from seeing dimensional transcendence is a trope I will never tire of. Meanwhile Clara is forced into another section of the train and interacts quite significantly with Maisie - herself a fine one-off character that very much needs saving by the Doctor.

Yes, she did not storm off after all, despite all the signs being there. Clara perhaps more predictably is the voice of morality again; with her friend admitting he could not do anything until he had all the facts at hand. That they are still together is a result of their deeply held admiration and respect. Purely liking one another as most platonic friends doesn't come into it, but then how many friends are there who are come from different planets and have such contrasting life spans?

Danny once again takes a backseat role the second week running, but the arc is still being explored in interesting ways. His seeming acceptance of Clara's hectic lifestyle and how the Doctor really cares on some level despite all his harmlessness is interesting if perhaps a little forced. I do welcome character development for this year's new star of Doctor Who and I am being won over gradually. However in all honesty I still find Samuel Anderson somewhat underwhelming in relative terms, especially if I were to compare him to Arthur Darvill who was rather similar in function.

Although the resolution sees the doctor disable the Foretold and use part of its core to save everyone remaining on the train, there is still no sign of the real threat who caused the crisis in the first place. This is a good idea and knowing Moffat there is as much chance that the answers come next season as they do by the closing twelfth episode of this present run of episodes. So we are left with a rock solid story that can stand up on its own and reward many a viewer's time, but also is well-woven into Series 8. I eagerly await the next Jamie Mathieson effort; conveniently enough it is scheduled for next Saturday evening.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Hudecek

Story – Rob Williams, Artist – Simon Fraser, Colorist – Gary Caldwell

It is 1931 in Mississippi and something very strange indeed is at work. Some previously unseen characters are aware of The Doctor - who is in the control of a hypnotic force that ensnares the local community. Events look to be coming to a head and it is left to Alice and newcomer John Jones - who resembles a young David Bowie - to somehow seize control and get the Doctor out of a pickle. The sinister ‘SERVEYOUinc’ corporation are again at play and looking to make life difficult for the people who inhabit the Bayou location – and their big star Robert Johnson.

Matt Smiths portrayal is still relatively fresh in many sci fi/fantasy fanatics’ minds, and many will want further material for such a well-conceived and well-realised incarnation. This series has the potential to take Doctor Eleven down some interesting avenues and so far the overall arc is at least promising something quite good. But the actual stories since Issue 1 do not seem to require the most dynamic side of the doctor: last time also had him captured early. Also lacking was a chance for him to alter events around him before the final confrontation, and his personality did not show the kaleidoscopic range of a good TV episode. This time round it is perhaps even more of an issue, as he is initially presented as possessed, before the story jumps to the initial events chronologically. Although he is restored to normal by the close of this issue he still needs other’s support especially that of a significant new supporting character. This brings back memories of the 9th doctor having others help him save the day; yet that seemed less of an issue due to all the wonderful angst that he held over destroying both his race and the Daleks. But Doctor 11 while perhaps clownish on the surface is very good at assessing problems and getting a solution, so I really hope the creative team get him to be a bit more hands on as the overall arc continues to unfold.
John Jones is an interesting experiment by the creative team in that he is seen to start at the bottom rungs of the career ladder of music. He is a bit daft, a bit precocious as well and somehow is the pineapple topping to go on top of a pizza – clashing but actually a good blend in this adventure. How he gets aboard the TARDIS in the first place though is a bit unrealistic and shows off the normal crew to be rather irresponsible.
As regards other characters – the one off villain in this issue is a triumph of good art portraying a sinister opponent, with his lines most likely being deliberately generic as he is a spokesman for ‘SERVEYOUinc’. But still something about the corporation built up now in two installments just doesn’t feel terribly impressive. I want a real scene stealing villain to be behind the problems the Doctor is facing, rather than some poor man’s Morgus from ‘The Caves of Androzani’. Still, there is time for the stories to get that part fixed.

Robert Johnson is a fun enough character who probably would work very well on-screen. Yet there is a pre-existing relationship between the Doctor and him which could have been perhaps built up to a little better. The other locals of the Mississippi are just making up the numbers but at least do not have any bad dialogue to make them memorable for the wrong reasons. Still for me the best element of the comic is Alice herself. She has more to share with the Doctor over her poor situation back home on Earth, but doesn’t let poor events get in the way of real excitement over the opportunities that time travel grants her. 1980s TV companion Tegan Jovanka is certainly not in her sphere of influence it would appear!
As I await the next stories, I feel something a bit more substantial needs to happen and this particular Doctor needs to be shown off to his best effect. I believe the team can improve their results but they must change the formula a bit.
**

The first bonus strip is a very funny one panel story by David Leach and AJ concerning a classic game for children that the Doctor wants to try out.
The second tag-along is another winner from Marc Ellerby and denoted as ‘Sonic Sleuth’. The absent-minded professor Doctor is at his most incapable, and Amy needs to help him out. Another great insight into the strains of being an odd-time-travelling couple.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

Kill The Moon
Written by Peter Harness
Directed by Paul Wilmshurst
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Ellis George, Samuel Anderson, Hermione Norris, Tony Osoba
Premiere 4 October, BBC One

This review contains plot spoilers.

Every now and again, an episode of Doctor Who comes along that divides and conquers at the same time. Kill the Moon could be that episode. It subverts expectations, and not just those of the viewer - nobody in this story gets what they expected either.

The episode begins with a quick scene-setting moment of Clara and 'disruptive influence' Courtney Woods on the Moon in the year 2049, broadcasting a message - they have a terrible decision to make. We then flash back to the present day at Coal Hill School, where Clara is giving the Doctor a piece of her mind for taking Courtney for a spin in the TARDIS at the end of The Caretaker, then telling her (off-screen) that she's "nothing special". Suddenly faced with an unhappy companion and a clearly distressed teenager, the Doctor makes the snap decision to take Courtney to the moon to try and make up for it, with Clara still on board. They arrive, not on the Moon, but on a dilapidated space shuttle heading very rapidly for it. A space shuttle full of nuclear bombs.

They are confronted by Captain Lundvik (Hermione Norris), and her two crewmates Duke (Tony Osoba) and Henry (Phil Nice). Lundvik's crew are on a desperate mission. The Moon has put on weight, and the Earth is being crushed under the pressure. Humanity is at the brink of extinction. Space travel at this point is in the doldrums, the last mission to investigate was ten years previously, and the Mexican crew disappeared without trace. Lundvik's crew have liberated a shuttle from a museum and are there to destroy the Moon. Norris is good as Lundvik, who comes across as cold and calculating, but in reality is a desperate, numbed woman on a suicide mission. Her cohorts, sadly don't get much to say or do. If this was Star Trek, they'd be wearing red shirts.

The Doctor is instantly on the case, noting that there is gravity where there should be none, and that the Moon is breaking up already. They investigate the base set up by the Mexicans, only to find it deserted except for cobwebbed and space-suited corpses. New Director Paul Wilmshurst wastes no time with the scares - there's something hiding in the shadows of the moodily-lit base, and in craters, some rather nasty spider-like creatures that make short work of Lundvik's crewmates. There's a brilliantly tense scene where the Doctor and co. attempt to escape a 'spider', and Courtney is trapped on the ceiling of a room with one when the gravity fails. The Doctor of course gets her back on the ground, and Courtney herself deals with the creature, but this is when the story starts to change from a straight scare-fest into a very different beast, from Philip Hinchcliffe scares to Malcolm Hulke moral grey areas.

It's all getting a little too real for the clearly scared Courtney, who asks to go home. The Doctor doesn't put up much of a fight, but locks her in the safety of the TARDIS while he continues his investigation. Ellis George is very good as Courtney. A whole episode of a teenager snarking in this scenario would be annoying and unrealistic - she shows that she's scared and cares enough about the situation to want to help, but even in the face of armageddon the shields are up, and she prefers to call Clara 'Miss'.

Paul Wilmshurst's direction is exemplary. He makes stunning use of the Lanzarote location as the lunar surface, and will doubtless traumatise a fair few youngsters with those vicious, screaming spiders. More from him please. New writer Peter Harness is also a real find, deftly handling scary and weighty with enough room for a joke about tumblr which other writers may have made into purest driven cheese.

The spiders are actually a form of bacteria, and the Doctor soon realises that the Moon isn't just a pile of rock orbiting the Earth. It's an egg, an egg with a very long gestation period - and it's hatching. A unique baby is about to be born.

Lundvik still wants to know how to kill it. Humanity is still at risk. Clara and Courtney insist that it's wrong to kill a baby. Clara turns to the Doctor to make a decision. And he walks away, disgusted with Lundvik who has primed the bombs, but adamant that this isn't his decision to make, snapping that it's time to take the stabilisers off the bike, and leaving the three women forty-five minutes to make a decision. Doctor Who is tackling abortion, and the Doctor has abdicated his responsibilities.

Clara puts it to the public vote. Humanity predictably chooses itself, but at the last moment she hits the abort button, and the Doctor reappears and whisks them back to Earth, where they witness the creature's birth from afar. You don't quite get a good look at it, which leaves something to the imagination. It lays a new egg to replace the old one before it flies away in peace.

Wrap up time.The Doctor makes a stirring speech about today being a turning point for humanity. Lundvik thanks Clara for stopping her from destroying an innocent life. Courtney heads for double Geography in the knowledge that she was the first woman on the Moon. All's well that ends well. Except when it doesn't.

Clara has been fairly subdued throughout, but is furious with the Doctor for leaving her with such a huge decision that she could so easily have got wrong. He gently tries to convince her that he knew she would always make the right decision, but it doesn't wash with her. He's patronised her and scared her out of her wits, and she makes a good point - he walks our world and breathes our air, so when we need him he bloody well needs to be there for us. The exchange ends with Clara telling the Doctor to go away and stay away.

Capaldi and Coleman are both excellent. The Doctor is still blunt, rude, and difficult, but he shows a slightly softer side towards Courtney and shows no hesitation in rescuing her, and a certain manic glee as he rushes around investigating. Likewise, he's warmer than usual towards Clara and clearly trusts her to make the right choice based on her character and his bluffing about history, despite how it backfires for him. The fangs are out however, when he makes his comment about the bike stabilisers. This Doctor feels he was in the right to step back and let history decide itself, and feels vindicated when the creature swoops off and the crisis is over. It's a bold choice to let the Doctor do this, clearly the 'Am I a good man?' arc is heading somewhere. How much of this he'll take on board is anyone's guess, but I'd imagine his mind will be well and truly made up by episode twelve.

Coleman, meanwhile, is notably less bubbly than usual for the bulk of the story, but is startling at the end. We've seen a tearful Tegan Jovanka say that it's not fun anymore, and a brave-but-upset Martha Jones leave the TARDIS to be there for her traumatised family - but Clara's scathing fury at the Doctor is something new. Leaving was never like this before. And it really feels like goodbye.

A brief coda follows, with Clara pouring her heart out to Danny, who tells her that if she was really done with the Doctor, she wouldn't be so angry. This feels tacked-on, doubtless to give a note of hope that Clara will reconcile with the Doctor, (of course she will) and to give a little hint to the continuing mystery of Mr Pink's army days - but personally I feel this takes away from the brilliant scene that precedes it.

Anyway, this quibble aside, this is an excellent, thought-provoking, and very grown-up piece of Doctor Who. It's not a comfy ride - and it's sure to prove divisive from its themes and the Doctor's vanishing act, but it's fair to say the stabilisers are off for this one.

Tweet

Reviewed by Tim Hunter

Before we get to Peter Capaldi’s seventh episode as the Doctor, Kill the Moon, halfway through the season would seem a good time to see what we’ve learnt about the Doctor. Not surprisingly, nothing is cut-and-dried. If anything, every episode thus far has shown a different side to the Doctor, and a different mood, not all of them pleasant. In fact, they’re mostly bad moods, but that’s not necessarily a negative thing. Let’s have a look at the first six episodes, and the moods the Doctor displays.

Deep Breath: Angry Doctor
In his first story, the Doctor is angry for a number of reasons: he’s just regenerated, he’s confused, and he’s not happy with an older face – especially those eyebrows (but he quite likes the new accent). He’s experienced some memory loss, he’s not sure how to relate to people, most importantly Clara, but by the end of the episode, he’s calmed down enough to know he needs Clara’s friendship – and he asks her for it too, with a little help from his previous self’s phone call.

Into the Dalek: Cold Doctor
While the Doctor finds the thought of a good Dalek confronting and challenging, his focus on the mission to go inside Rusty and ‘fix’ it is very tight, and he can’t spend time showing compassion or grief when Ross is killed by the Dalek antibodies. He’s removed, emotionally distant, and even he isn’t sure if he’s a good man. It’s all a mask, of course, to protect him, in the same way his previous selves used bravado and gleeful excitement as masks, but not as endearing.

Robot of Sherwood: Grumpy Doctor
This less-than-endearing Doctor continues here. He’s disappointed that Clara wants to meet a legend rather than a real historical figure, and he’s irritated by Robin Hood, his merry men and their laughter and banter – maybe it reminds him of his previous selves’ modus operandi. And he’s annoyed that he’s proved wrong about Robin Hood. But then at the end, he drops the pretence, and we see the unwilling hero behind the mask.

Listen: Scared Doctor
The mask drops further here. There is something under the bed, it scares the Doctor because he doesn’t know what it is, and he doesn’t like that. So he sets out to find out what it is. Rather than putting himself on the line, he uses Clara to explore this universal dream. Thanks to her distraction though, it’s Danny Pink who’s the unwitting subject, until Clara is taken to the Doctor’s own childhood and his own fears.

Time Heist: Driven Doctor
In the same way the Doctor did in the Dalek mission, he takes control of the bank heist and assumes command, seemingly unconcerned by the other team members’ feelings. He’s not sure who the Architect is, and why they’re breaking into the bank, but he knows they’ll only find out by completing the impossible mission at any cost. Luckily the actual cost isn’t that dire – something that he himself set up, and once again, showing that under his brittle exterior two very compassionate hearts still beat.

The Caretaker: Jealous Doctor
While he goes undercover at Coal Hill Secondary School, ostensibly to see k out the deadly Skovox Blitzer, the Doctor is secretly investigating Clara’s private life, specifically her ‘boyfriend’. And he gets that wrong too. He knows, despite the feelings he still has (and can’t quite express) for Clara, regardless of his regeneration, he’s not her boyfriend, and won’t ever be. But he still wants her to be happy. That’s why he looks at Adrian and sees something of his previous self, and assumes that this is Clara’s love interest. He’s not happy when he discovers Danny is her actual boyfriend, and he’s jealous. Because he doesn’t like military men and takes an immediate dislike to Danny, and because he believes Danny’s not good enough for Clara – something that Danny challenges him on.

The Impossible Girl
But enough about the Doctor. Let’s talk about Clara. What does she think of the Doctor? Because she really is the voice of the audience, whether they are hardcore fans or just casual viewers. In Deep Breath, not only do we see her struggling to accept this new/old face of her friend, but it’s addressed overtly, specifically in the conversation she has with Madame Vastra about veils and perceptions. In subsequent episodes it’s obvious that she still enjoys travelling with the Doctor – with reservations – but she’s not yet ready to let Danny in on the secret, at least until she is forced to in The Caretaker. She is, like the audience, slowly getting used to this new Doctor and his moods. She may not like everything he says or does, but she remains faithful to him and is willing to give him a go. And that too is made obvious in Time Heist, when Psi notes how often she excuses his bad behaviour. And with Danny in the picture now, we’re seeing a more complex Clara. She’s not just the perky cheeky Impossible Girl – she too has her secrets and faults.

In the Pink
As for Danny Pink, he’s a character that’s developing quite nicely. Cast from the same mould as Mickey and even Rory, but with more baggage and backstory, it didn’t take him long to work out the Doctor, and seeing that develop will be quite the treat. So bring on the next six episodes and let’s see what else we learn about the Doctor, Clara, Danny – oh, and Missy too…

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

The Lost Stories - The Mega
Written By: Bill Strutton
Adapted by Simon Guerrier
Directed by Ken Bentley
Released December 2013

If The Mega had been made in 1971, it could have been a classic season finale. There are so many strong Pertwee-era ingredients that it feels perfectly at home in Season Eight, the only thing missing is the presence of the Master. Here, it's lovingly nursed from a storyline by The Web Planet writer Bill Strutton by Simon Guerrier, and performed by Katy Manning and Richard Franklin.

The Mega deals with an attempt to force the West to disarm and put an end to war by Prince Cassie of the fictional nation Golbostan, backed by the alien Mega - beings of pure energy. The story begins with the Doctor, Jo, and Captain Yates heading through a sea of protesting youngsters to a demonstration of a horrific new weapon - a nerve gas which can choose its victims. A regular army General comments that the gas can be used on the protestors, much to the Doctor's outrage - at which point the General is assassinated by the Mega, and things begin to unravel. The Doctor and Jo are led to Cassie's castle in Golbostan by the Mega, whilst things get worse - the Prime Minister is the next target, live on TV, the Brigadier is placed under arrest, and Yates and Benton try to keep order when panic-stricken rioting breaks out amongst the public.

The story resonates with both period and modern concerns about war, protest, and the use of WMDs, and given Malcolm Hulke-like moral shades of grey. The whole conceit of the nerve gas that can pick its victims by their genetic make-up is very similar to the chilling Janus virus in Channel 4's recent Utopia. The murky concept of 'the greater good' also comes up, despite things having descended by episode six into borderline armageddon. In an echo of his apparent treachery in The Claws of Axos, the Doctor at one point seems to side with Cassie and the Mega's plot, and indeed is seen as a traitor by the top brass at home. He has to appear to co-operate to an extent to save lives - including Jo's, and is every bit the clever, resourceful, and flamboyant Third Doctor we remember - bursting with moral outrage.

The whole tale is carried beautifully by Katy Manning and Richard Franklin, with Derek Carlyle and Bo Poraj in supporting roles, and directed by Ken Bentley. Manning in particular deserves props for not only her note-perfect performance as Jo Grant, but managing to evoke Jon Pertwee in the lines she reads for the Doctor. It's not perfect, but it's a testament to her considerable skill with voices. Franklin plays basically all of UNIT. His own performance as Yates is as good as ever, and his Brigadier in places evokes Nicholas Courtney very well. As for Benton, he doesn't have so much to do - but Franklin leans perhaps a bit too hard on John Levene's West Country accent and makes him sound like he's auditioning for The Wurzels.

Nonetheless, this is an excellent story, and well worth three hours of your time.

Tweet

Reviewed by Richard Watts

Revenge of the Swarm
Written by Jonathan Morris
Directed by Ken Bentley
Released: Aug 2014 by Big Finish

Both a prequel and a sequel to 1977’s Fourth Doctor story, The Invisible Enemy, the latest adventure for the Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) and Ace (Sophie Aldred) picks up where 2013’s Afterlife left off. Hex (Philip Olivier), now known as Hector, and in possession of an entirely new set of memories, has re-joined the TARDIS crew, and his relationship with Ace has grown more intimate. Unfortunately, his condition has also left him psychically vulnerable: in the opening minutes of the adventure Hector is infected by The Swarm – a telepathic virus with delusions of grandeur that has lain in wait inside the TARDIS for centuries, having previously been defeated by the Fourth Doctor and Leela.

What follows is a solid but somewhat by-the-numbers story involving return visits to two prominent locations from The Invisible Enemy: Titan Base and the Bi-Al Foundation (aka the Centre for Alien Biomorphology), though at different time periods from the original television story. And just as part three of The Invisible Enemy ventured into a new, albeit derivative location, so too does part three of Revenge of the Swarm. Instead of Bob Baker and Dave Martin’s pastiche of the Sixties SF film Fantastic Voyage, however, writer and stand-in script editor Jonathan Morris references a more recent film, 1982’s Tron, in this audio adventure.

Major scenes in parts three and four of Revenge of the Swarm take place inside the Hypernet: a galaxy-connecting virtual world whose visual representation doesn’t seem to have much evolved beyond William Gibson’s 1984 novel Neuromancer, in which Gibson described cyberspace as: “A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding.” In Revenge of the Swarm, Morris similarly and somewhat unimaginatively describes the Hypernet through the mouths of Ace and the Doctor as resembling “glowing green lines of numbers in the sky … square buildings and skyscrapers but as outlines… symbolic representations of blocks of memory”.

Morris’ predictable depiction of the Hypernet extends to his plotting as a whole; his attempt to echo the plot beats of The Invisible Enemy results in a story that is serviceable, but rarely exciting; and its appropriation of Eighties’ cultural touchstones such as Tron lack the inventive flourishes that made similar pastiches during the Holmes-Hinchcliffe years so memorable.

Performances too are sometimes lacking, particularly Olivier, who comes across as unnecessarily leaden, almost somnambulistic in the scenes where he is possessed by the Swarm (especially in comparison to Michael Sheard’s vibrant performance as a similarly-possessed Supervisor Lowe in The Invisible Enemy); even McCoy seems a little bored, rolling his R’s constantly as if trying to bring some life to the script. Thankfully John Leeson, returning after 37 years as the Nucleus of the Swarm, brings some much-needed flair to the production. Supporting characters are consistently well presented, especially Phyllida Nash as Professor Oksana Kilbraken, whose invention of a particular cloning technique plays a key role in both The Invisible Enemy and the first two episodes of this new adventure.

Given that Revenge of the Swarm is the first real adventure for this new version of Hex following his introduction in Afterlife, it’s also surprising that the story is one in which he is immediately possessed, a scenario which denies both Morris as writer, and Olivier as performer, the chance to explore more of what makes Hector unique. Nor does this plot device provide the opportunity to flesh out the changed dynamics between Hector, Ace and the Doctor. It remains to be seen whether Hector’s new personality and its ramifications for a TARDIS crew who’ve been traveling together for a decade will be more successfully explored in future audio adventures.

Another problematic aspect of the script highlights issues that current Big Finish writers face with Ace: her cultural touchstones suddenly include films outside her era, such as 1999’s The Matrix, suggesting her character has evolved in the years since Ace was last seen on television. This impression is later contradicted by her curious naiveté concerning the story’s technology (“What exactly does a neural interface helmet do,” she asks in episode three, as if its self-explanatory name would not be obvious to someone who’s travelled with the Doctor as long as Ace has) and especially by her unwavering loyalty to the Doctor, when she tells Hector in the final scenes of Revenge of the Swarm that: “The Doctor’s right; he’s always come through in the end, without fail.” Fans know that McCoy’s manipulative Seventh Doctor has let Ace down before; a conundrum that’s difficult to reconcile with earlier impressions that she’s grown as a character since 1989’s Survival.

On a positive note, the dynamic between Aldred and McCoy is as strong as ever; a scene in which Ace tells the Doctor, as he prepares to enter the Hypernet, that “You don’t think I’m letting you go in there on your own?” has the perfect mix of exasperation and camaraderie; a simple but charmingly effective summation of the well-established bond between these two iconic characters.

The Invisible Enemy memorably introduced a now much-loved new companion to Doctor Who in the form of K9, as well as heralding what was to become a progressively lighter tone to the series in subsequent seasons. It’s unlikely that this by-the-numbers Big Finish adventure will prove to be as significant, in hindsight, in another 37 years’ time.

Tweet

Reviewed by Tom Buxton

The Brood Of Erys
Written by Andrew Smith
Directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released: Feb 2014 by Big Finish

The Brood of Erys packs a classic Doctor Who premise – arriving in a star system containing just a single planet and its accompanying moon, as well as an array of radio beacons lining its boundaries, the TARDIS intercepts a mysterious transmission informing its crew that their lives will be in jeopardy should they venture any further. Naturally, the Doctor and Flip (Lisa Greenwood) travel into the metaphorical heart of the danger zone, only to find themselves and their vessel latched onto by a family of “curious” extraterrestrial beings called the Drachee (think the Slitheen, but with subtler and less frequent expressions of gaseous exchange and, mercifully, far less slapstick humour).

There’s something charmingly innocent about the concept of a horde of alien toddlers exploring the deepest recesses of the TARDIS in order to simply learn more of the unknown (not least due to the high-pitched voice of their leader) – and something inherently hilarious about the characteristically melodramatic and agitated reaction offered by Colin Baker’s incarnation of the Doctor – yet as is virtually always the case in narratives taking place within the so-called Whoniverse, the situation turns sour in a matter of moments. Flip is taken hostage by those same individuals who claimed themselves to pose “no danger” whatsoever, while her self-appointed protector is forced to take refuge on a damaged space yacht – and, soon enough, the planet Asphya itself – with an amnesia-prone female humanoid who can’t remember her own name, let alone her dark history or the influence it’ll have on events to come.

In spite of the commendable sense of scale conveyed by these initial eventful set-pieces, Brood’s narrative comes to focus far more on psychological demons than it does physical antagonists, a rare attribute which previously worked to great effect in televised serials such as 42 and Midnight and which certainly doesn’t do the story any harm in terms of building the intrigue surrounding its constructs and the somehow-sentient moon of Erys. Central to writer Andrew Smith’s prolonged investigation of the inner workings of the mind is this notion of an intelligent planetoid and the ramifications its sudden (or gradual) metamorphosis could have for its inhabitants. Of course, as plot elements go, a sentient moon is by no means a completely original addition to the series’ lore (although one might argue that nearly fifty-one years on from November 23rd, 1963, it’s nigh-on impossible for today’s scribes to give birth to wholly unique antagonists) – The Doctor’s Wife’s House comes to mind as a recent example of how such a conceit can be implemented efficiently within the realms of modern science-fiction (and, indeed, modern Who) – so it’s a great relief to see Smith take such a contrasting approach to his predecessors, intertwining the arcs of the aforementioned amnesiac, the Drachee (who offer up an all manner of simultaneously humorous and quasi-philosophical insights into the current predicament facing Erys and the system as a whole) and the spherical landmass which gives this particular audio drama its name to such an extent that one can’t fail to be swept up by the mystery surrounding both of them.

That said, while Smith undoubtedly manages to subvert expectations of the traditional representation of adversaries who attack via the mind rather than through any physical manifestation, Brian Shelley’s voice work as the mental embodiment of Erys isn’t quite so successful in this regard. Sure, there’s genuine enthusiasm and vigour present in Shelley’s portrayal of one of the more abstract (and therefore challenging) forces conceived by the minds of Big Finish in recent years, but when it’s juxtaposed with Michael Sheen’s chilling vocal contribution to Neil Gaiman’s aforementioned 2011 TV story, it’s all but pointless to attempt to argue that the former performance is anywhere near as memorable or layered – instead, it comes off as rather derivative, as if Shelley has dedicated a considerable amount of his spare time to watching psychologically investigative serials like The Brain of Morbius in order to hone his contribution to the ever-expanding world of Doctor Who spin-offs (if such a term can even begin to do justice to the increasingly accomplished and ambitious work of Big Finish and its various writing teams) rather than focusing on putting his own engaging spin on the dialogue afforded to him in the notably generous script (that several scenes rely wholly on his ability to match and / or surpass Lisa Greenwood’s evident enduring passion and conviction doesn’t help matters either).

If Shelley is the play’s weakest link, then Baker and Greenwood are easily the two central components which (in tandem with the near-unparalleled intelligence of Smith’s delicately-structured and thematically subversive storyline) hold it all together. Both of these talented thespians have had more than enough time to develop their portrayals and to tailor them to cater for the preferences of Big Finish’s constantly expanding Doctor Who-orientated fandom and, unsurprisingly, they’ve done so with enviable ease, to the extent that they’re now seemingly able to transform even the most exposition-centric sequences into dramatically engaging exchanges that reward the attentive listener in unexpected ways regardless of whether or not they feed directly into the narrative’s denouement. The sixth Doctor in particular is taken completely and utterly out of his comfort zone as the situation at hand shifts out of his control and unseen forces manipulate proceedings in order to suit their own ends, instantly enabling Baker to flex his performing muscles as his character’s increasingly desperate attempts to rally against his newfound nemeses begin to seem more and more futile.

After months upon months of mediocrity, then, Big Finish’s Doctor Who audio dramas may well have found their footing once again with The Brood of Erys. Andrew Smith – unlike several of his esteemed predecessors - doesn’t rely on the series’ past tropes in order to strengthen the credibility of his tale, nor does he integrate needlessly contrived references to classic or modern serials in a similar vein to those scribes who fear that they’ll lose their listeners’ attention should they neglect to include such call-backs in the mix. There’s still room to improve in future sixth Doctor productions, of course – perhaps it’d be worth Smith becoming more involved with the casting process when it comes to selecting a truly accomplished voice actor to portray his next storyline’s central antagonist, since Brood’s brilliantly subversive script certainly more than warranted such talent – but to paraphrase John Hurt’s already-beloved War Doctor, for now, for this moment, this is the show we’ve come to know and love again.

Tweet

Reviewed by Martin Ruddock

Written by Gareth Roberts and Steven Moffat

Directed by Paul Murphy
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Samuel Anderson, Ellis George
Premiere 27 September 2014, BBC One

Clara Oswald had been doing a good job of leading a triple life lately, but something had to give.
She was already a teacher of unruly teenagers at Coal Hill, and assistant/carer/conscience to a newly unpredictable Time Lord to start with. As if those two factors weren't enough to contend with, now she's in a new relationship too, with Danny Pink. She's struggling to keep them separate, as she careers breathlessly between adventures and dates. She's eating two dinners in a row, going for a run after running down corridors, fishing seaweed from her hair. She's flagging. The control freak in her is working overtime trying to keep her worlds from overlapping. She seems slightly uncomfortable that the kids all know about her and Danny. She really doesn't want the Doctor and Danny even knowing about each other. So, when a very familiar looking relief Caretaker shows up in the Coal Hill staff room, she's appalled, and Danny instantly suspects that Clara already knows this man...

The Doctor is being proactive again, and has decided to go 'deep cover' to sniff out the threat. His version of deep cover is to basically put on an overcoat. His latest incarnation can't be bothered to try and fit in with the natives, particularly the P.E. Teachers. He makes angry signs, disrupts lessons, and even breezily shows pupil-with-attitude Courtney the TARDIS interior. Imagine if this incarnation had been the one exiled to Earth, he would have gone stir crazy. The Brigadier would probably have had him locked up next to the Master.

The threat is the deadly robotic Skovox Blitzer, drawn to the area by decades-worth of artron energy. It's a curious thing, another lone-gunman, a diminutive metallic soldier awaiting orders - scurrying around like a toy Racnoss. It's certainly very good at blowing things up - and people, like that poor Policeman, who meets a grisly end.

It's not a great villain, and although the design is novel, it's hard to believe that this critter could really take out the entire world. This series is getting quite robot-heavy. That said, this story isn't about the Skovox Blitzer. It's about the Doctor and Danny's relationships with Clara, and how they meet and reluctantly reach a grudging respect for each other, despite this Doctor's pronounced dislike of soldiers, a theme that has been prominent in this series, and looks to continue. 

The Doctor and Danny predictably clash, it's an interesting clash too, as normally when presented with a boyfriend figure it's not so much of a fair fight. Danny, being more of an alpha male, gives as good as he gets. Clara, meanwhile, doesn't end up having to choose between the men in her life, but does blurt out that she loves Danny. This, and Danny's inevitable role in the resolution help his case with the Doctor, who wants to know she's with someone good enough for her. Danny, meanwhile, wants to know Clara is safe. Although all three are at peace at the end of the episode, there's clearly something building, and we're probably due some turbulence and heartbreak soon.

Capaldi, Coleman, and Anderson are all excellent in this. Capaldi gets some zingers from Gareth Roberts and Steven Moffat's very funny script, and also the chance to run the gamut from boredom, rage, and a knowing little moment of vanity when he mistakes another teacher for Clara's boyfriend. His Doctor also gets to bond with the equally bolshy Courtney, who's back next week for a trip to the Moon, where bad things are likely to happen. Jenna Coleman gets better and better every episode, Clara continues to come into her own, and her chemistry with Capaldi is a joy to watch. She's equally good in a quieter way with Anderson, who continues to knock it out of the park with a subtle, well-judged performance.

The only criticism? More threat next time please. Although, looking at the teaser for next week, there's unlikely to be a shortage of that. See you on the Moon.

Tweet

Reviewed by Ben Breen

Last Of The Colophon
Written by Jonathan Morris
Directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released: May 2014 by Big Finish

The fourth Doctor, accompanied by Leela, lands the TARDIS on a world designated by an orbiting spacecraft’s rather sceptical crew as a “lifeless grey rock”.

On yet another attempt to go for a holiday, they exit the TARDIS, finding nothing but a dry empty landscape, with rather “bracing” temperatures. This, in short, summarises the opening 5 or so minutes of the Last of the Colophon, the fifth episode of season 3 of the Fourth Doctor Adventures range.

Subsequently, a man, identified as Morax, is awoken by a computerised voice, relating the Doctor and Leela’s arrival. Morax also learns of the presence of the orbiting ship, which he orders to be kept under observation.

Leela and the Doctor, after seeing a vapour trail from the planet’s surface, resolve to go and meet the crew of the spaceship, the Time Lord remarking that they could give them a “guided tour” of the desolate ruin that was once a city. The comedic aspects of the Doctor’s character, as well as Leela’s seemingly constant sense of unease, allow for some rather humorous moments here, as well as allowing the occupants of the ship, now seen clearly as a survey vessel, to be introduced.

We meet a robotic nurse by the name of Torvik, seemingly intent on keeping Morax imprisoned while life-forms arrive and leave outside. However, he is not as powerless as he appears, up to now breathing through a respirator and moving via the aid of a wheelchair. He removes the citadels shielding and activates the distress signal, which the survey team manage to pick up, angering the sadistic Nurse Torvik in the process.

The survey team, along with the two Time travellers, are allowed entry to the Citadel by Morax, who is now shown to be far more resourceful than when we first encountered him. Asteroth Morax states that he was a scientist and is the eponymous “last of the Colophon”. Horribly disfigured, with his legs in a state of atrophy, kept in a “half-life for centuries”. This “persuasive case” convinces the Doctor to help, working with deputy surveyor Sutton of the Oligarch.

The story then takes a chilling turn, giving rise to a sequence that is not unlike something from a modern first-person shooter. Ending the first episode on a rather retro-inspired cliff-hanger, with his companion’s life in the balance the doctor must choose wisely if they are to survive.

The second episode does contain some clever writing, with the doctor’s objections to the many misrepresentations of his sonic screwdriver definitely being worthy of note. The familiar sequences of running through corridors are also present. The plotline of the second episode, whilst also being as gripping as the first, seems at first glance to be shorter and rather rushed. But for those readers/listeners in fear of having overpaid for an adventure, things only get more interesting. A few plot threads that were unresolved and unanswered come into their own, with the ending being a very satisfactory conclusion

The writing in this episode is well suited to the era, along with the score, whose suspenseful notes and background presence make the important moments stand out and the chilling ones attain a dark tone. The genius and madness of the villain of the piece is rather similar to that of Davros, although said antagonist does show signs of restraint when faced with a situation that requires cooperation from hostages.

This episode draws parallels to the very first episode of The Sirens of Time, featuring a wheelchair bound prisoner held on a planet that isn’t quite what it seems.

The casting compliments the clever and humorous writing well, with every character having their own comedic lines and moments in equal measure.

To conclude, this story is somewhat of a rollercoaster ride, with twists and turns that you wouldn’t really expect. Additionally, a notable point of this drama is that not only does it feel very authentic to the fourth doctor era, but it also feels longer than previous stories in the range. Whether that is because of the intricately crafted plot, or just the fact that the story is one that draws you in, it is difficult to tell. I would urge anyone who is a fan of the suspenseful classic era of Doctor Who to give this one a look as well as anyone who just wants a good story to listen to.

Tweet