Tag: bbc

Doctor Who Audio Review: Kaerula, A Banshee, And The Brigadier

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Ruins of Kaerula is a Doctor Who audio boxset from Big Finish Productions, which has a few promising features, but it’s a bit middle of the road in many ways. Tom Baker is reunited with Louise Jameson as Leela and John Leeson as that well-known robotic dog designated K9. There are three episodes to examine a bit, however two of them are directly linked to each other.

The guest cast includes Robyn Addison, Zora Bishop, Jonathon Carley, Barnaby Kay, and Reece Pantry. Jon Culshaw also returns to portray Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, whose role initially belonged to the late Nicholas Courtney. Helen Goldyn, Nicholas Briggs, and Jamie Anderson share the directing credit.

Scriptwriter Phil Mulryne starts it off with The Remains of Kaerula. The TARDIS is forced down to the planet Kaerula where the Doctor, Leela, and K9 encounter containment camp and strange creatures lurking in the nearby caves. There is a rupture in Time, and the Doctor learns that a catastrophe from the planet’s past has invaded the future as well.

Tom Baker still does well in the lead role as the Fourth Doctor. It’s one of my favorite TARDIS teams, so it was still a worthy effort to listen to this one. As usual, the performances were fine. I was just underwhelmed by the story. Multyne captures the main characters well enough. I just didn’t fine the plot to be all that memorable or as interesting as some of the more recent episodes this past year.

The Ruins of Kaerula is also written by Phil Mulryne and serves as a prequel. The Doctor and his companions have been forced back to Kaerula in the past where they meet some different versions of those encountered in the earlier episode. An experiment is about to go very long, which could bring some serious temporal damage to the universe.

I found this to be a little better than the earlier story. It is an interesting idea to have the Doctor deal with both the cause of a catastrophe and the result. There’s a risk of that idea being overused since he is a time traveler.

The third episode, which is written by Tom Foley, is entitled Cry of the Banshee. This one was quite a bit better mostly because Brigadier Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart meets Leela and K9 for the first time. The Brigadier has requested some help during a peace conference when a delegate from Ireland dies mysteriously. The Doctor learns that it is believed a Banshee is lurking around the conference, however he suspects that it is something else.

The Brigadier joins the Doctor and Leela in the TARDIS after the Doctor finds that the source of this phenomenon originates in a space station orbiting Jupiter. The Brigadier ends up adjusting to his strange, new surroundings as everyone knew he would.

The growth of respect between the Brigadier and Leela is pretty fun to hear. They get off to a tough start when they first meet, but circumstances force them to figure out how to work together.

Jon Culshaw’s impression of Nicholas Courtney’s distinctive, authoritative baritone is quite uncanny.

The story seems a little self-indulgent, but it works. The resolution is somewhat surprising in a pleasantly unexpected way.

Anyway, the set as whole is fine, but I don’t think it’s going to be remembered as one of the great ones. Still, more Tom Baker performances are always welcome. In spite of my nonchalance about this release, I am still glad to have listened to it.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Someone Still Has To Fight The Monsters

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Doctor Who: The War Doctor Begins: He Who Fights with Monsters continues the saga of the War Doctor, originally portrayed by John Hurt, and leads to a fascinating confrontation with a mysterious adversary known as the Barber-Surgeon. The set has three parts and was written by Robert Valentine and directed by Louise Jameson.

Since Hurt has been deceased for a little while now, Jonathon Carley has taken on the role which has been known in Doctor Who fandom as the War Doctor. This was a once unknown incarnation of the Doctor who had rejected his name since he had to fight in the Time War and use methods that his other selves would abhor. Carley does an increasingly amazing impression of John Hurt’s distinctive voice and puts forth a powerful performance.

The first part is entitled The Mission where the Time War Council enlists the War Doctor to hunt down and assassinate another Gallifreyan renegade known as the Barber-Surgeon. The Barber-Surgeon has been a thorn in the side of both the Time Lords and the Daleks. The War Doctor doesn’t like the nature of this mission, but this incarnation is the one most capable to complete it

The Abyss has the War Doctor on the Barber-Surgeon’s trail through the devastation of the Time War and his own past. The Daleks have also sent a Dalek Hunter-Killer played by Jason Merrells. The War Doctor and the Daleks have another confrontation in which the maniacal robotic conquerors may finally exterminate their most persistent enemy.

Finally, the War Doctor has to escape the Daleks and confront The Horror. Nicholas Le Prevost plays the rogue element in the Time War known as the Barber-Surgeon. He and Carley play beautifully off each other when the Doctor and the Barber-Surgeon finally meet.

Not that much known is known about the War Doctor other than he was the one who ended the Tine War by obliterating both sides. He was rejected by his subsequent incarnations following that event.

This set reveals how the War Doctor may have been influenced into that horrific, if necessary, decision.

It took me a bit to warm up to the first two episodes, but Carley’s performance kept me engaged, and the finale to this set was worth it.

This is probably one of the best sets in this range. Carley may be able to sound a lot like John Hurt, but he also demonstrates excellent instincts as an actor. He mastered how this version of the Doctor carries such determination and weariness in his voice.

The sound effects are excellently executed. There are times when the action sequences seem a little jumbled, and it was hard to picture what was happening in the imagination. Still, the performances of Carley and the guest cast more than make up for it. Louise Jameson even reprises her role of Leela, which was not unexpected but still pretty fun.

Anyway, I think I have resolved any misgivings I had about the creation of the War Doctor. This set is just great.

Doctor Who Audio Review: A Different Kind Of A Trial For A Time Lord

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Trials of a Time Lord is a recent Doctor Who audio drama released by Big Finish Productions and is another effort to celebrate forty years of the Sixth Doctor, portrayed by Colin Baker. It is a six-part saga with writing credits shared by three writers. Bonnie Langford and Nicola Bryant, who play Mel and Peri, respectively, join the Doctor against his battle against a plethora of old adversaries.

The writers, who ended up splitting up the story with two episodes each, are Katharine Armitage, Stewart Pringle, and Rochana Patel, and I have little objection to this slate. Jonathan S Powell directs this saga. The story does hold up pretty well in spite of a premise that sounds on its face, to be somewhat chaotic.

David Banks returns to voice the Cyber-Leader alongside Nicholas Briggs as the rest of the Cybermen. Terry Molloy reprises his role of Davros, the twisted creator of the Daleks. John Culshaw is also a part of the cast and does a passable impression of the late Anthony Ainley as his iteration of the renegade Time Lords known as the Master. Other cast members include Aruhan Galieva, Holly Jackson Waters, Samuel Jones, Rufus Jones, and George Naylor.

The Doctor and Mel arrive in a prison camp known as Cyberia in response to a distress signal and find themselves about to embark on a televised series of challenges which reveals all manners of menaces and allies.

Some themes are revisited such as the idea that the Doctor is being televised as he faces all sorts of threats and obstacles. This was already explored in the television story Vengeance on Varos, however I don’t mind the repetition here. There is enough of a creative effort to have this one come off as a bit more special.

Fans finally have Mel and Peri meet and interact, which was kind of cool to hear. Peri returns after living a life as a warrior king alongside King Yrcanos, who fans met in the original serial, The Trial of a Time Lord. Peri comes with some seasoning as a mother and a fighter. Normally, I would find such a character transformation somewhat implausible, but Bryant sells the performance well enough.

Jon Culshaw filling in for the late Anthony Ainley was kind of a surprise and may count as a spoiler, which I normally try to avoid. He does well enough, but he may need to practice that impression a bit more. It was still fun to imagine that version of the Master cropping up again, and Culshaw doesn’t really miss the mark entirely. It just wasn’t a bullseye impersonation. I will say this about Culshaw himself. I really enjoy his insights and comments during the cast interviews. He knows Doctor Who lore, probably better than most of the actors who portrayed the Doctor. He has such an infectious enthusiasm for the show and just seems like a joy to the rest of the Big Finish cast and crew.

Colin Baker still sounds energetic and credible in his role. The characterization of the Sixth Doctor has been improved greatly under the care of Big Finish writers over the past couple of decades. It was a sweet moment when he realizes that his friend, Peri, has really been reunited with him.

This is a story that feels a little chaotic and self-indulgent at times. I am somewhat leery of stories that just unleash all of the past enemies and story ideas, however this particular release handles this direction better than most. I also tend to sneer at three writers on one story, however the construction here kind of makes sense. The writers did work well together, but they worked on two episodes apiece separately. This division of creative labor would likely only work in a saga like this.

It’s an enjoyable and proper celebration of Colin Baker’s era, and I am glad that we are likely to get more adventures from Big Finish for some time to come.

Doctor Who Audio Review: The Early Days Of Exile

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Doctor Who and the Brain Drain is a Doctor Who audio drama from Big Finish Productions with great performances but a bit too long of a running time for the plot. Nicholas Briggs serves as director and co-writer alongside Richard James while Tim Treloar returns as his version of the Third Doctor as originally played by the late Jon Pertwee. Daisy Ashford portrays Liz Shaw, who was originally performed by her mother, Caroline John. John Culshaw once again fills in for the late Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart.

The talented guest cast is comprised of Mark Elstob, Susan Harrison, Rosalyn Lendor, Glen McReady, Callum Pardoe, and Milo Ratter.

This story begins soon after the Doctor is forced to regenerate by the Time Lords and sent to earth in exile where he joins forces with UNIT alongside his old friend, the Brigadier. He has yet to obtain his antique car he had named Bessie. The Master has yet to make his first appearance.

The Doctor, Liz and the Brigadier attend a symposium that introduces a new revolutionary treatment for memory loss and dementia, however there are also peculiar reports of sightings of mythical creatures around the site in Scotland. The Doctor suspects a malevolent alien influence at the heart of the mystery. The supposed miracle cure appears to be anything but. The Doctor disappears, and Liz and the Brigadier have to conduct their own investigations.

There seems to be an enemy who knows the Doctor, but he has yet to meet them.

This was an effort to recreate the seven-part episodes that were prevalent in the program’s seventh season which introduced the Third Doctor. The problem is that even in Doctor Who, those serials can feel a bit of a drag.

Treloar’s version of this Doctor is still quite compelling. Culshaw and Ashford also do well with their roles, which they have taken over from previous actors.

I also liked that the Doctor was absent for a couple of episodes, giving Liz and the Brigadier a chance to shine a bit as they proceed with their search for answers. I enjoyed how the Doctor re-entered the fray toward the climax of the story which seems to draw inspiration from The Hound of the Baskervilles when Sherlock Holmes is also left out of much of that story.

The story’s exploration of dementia is handled with some appropriate sensitivity in spite of the science fiction elements. It does demonstrate the heartache experienced by family members and caregivers of those afflicted effectively without slowing the pace of the story much. Other aspects slow the story down but not that.

There are some flaws that have more to do with the bloated length of the story, but it’s still pretty good. I just wish that Big Finish did more to represent the era without feeling like it needs to copy every aspect. I mean, it’s okay to have shorter stories.

This particular release is pretty good, but I don’t know that it’s the most shining example of the talent available to the company.

I don’t really like to quibble too much about a new Third Doctor adventure from Big Finish. This story is better than what the title would indicate. Pertwee’s era did have a few clunkers when it came to titles, but this is still a more than adequate release in many ways and certainly worth the time it takes for a listen.

Doctor Who Audio Review: The Doctor And Stephen Taylor Reunite For One More Escape

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Living Darkness is a new Doctor Who audio play from Big Finish Productions and has a really moving reunion between the First Doctor and Steven Taylor. This play was written by Jacqueline Rayner and directed by Helen Goldwyn. Stephen Noonan reprises his efforts to emulate William Hartnell’s portrayal of the First Doctor and is really getting better at it. Peter Purves returns as former companion and ruler of another world, Steven Taylor. He is quite a bit older than when he traveled with the Doctor, and Purves puts in an awesome performance.’ Lauren Cornelius turns up later in the play as Dodo Chaplet, originally portrayed by Jackie Lane in the television series back in the 1960’s/

Other guest actors include Jack Ayres, Trevor Littledale, Dido Miles, and Helen Phillips. As usual, everyone does a stellar job with their roles.

Steven Taylor was once the ruler of a planet where he had been left by the TARDIS. He had a family and is still grieving the death of one of his daughters. He is around the century mark in terms of his age, but he has remained relatively fit and is as sharp-witted as ever. He had thought that his adventures had ended when he parted company with the Doctor and Dodo, however he has regained conscious aboard the spaceship that seems to be some type of prison transport. He has met other unwilling passengers and is investigating whatever terrors lie within the dark corridors when a familiar old man arrives introducing himself as the Doctor. The ship crashes on a planet where the most violent criminals are also sent. Someone or something has taken Steven and the Doctor out of time and placed them in a grueling fight for survival.

I had a little trouble following this story, but the presence and performance of Peter Purves was too compelling for me to mind that much. It’s not a bad story, and Rayner is a long-time writer for the franchise with some real talent and love for the series. It’s actually not a bad epic, and I will enjoy listening to it again in the not-too-distant future. Stephen Noonan continues to improve his portrayal of the First Doctor. He is getting closer to imitating Hartnell’s particular verbal inflections. Of course, the best William Hartnell is always going to be William Hartnell, but I appreciate Noonan’s efforts. Noonan actually sounds very different when using his normal voice, so his impersonation of Hartnell is quite impressive. I am always open to more First Doctor stories.

I can respect that Purves has really changed very little vocally even though he is well into his eighties. I also liked that just because Steven is even older than that, he sounded anything but frail and soft. Steven still retained that tenacious, bulldog tendency that was so prevalent when he was introduced into the series over fifty years.

This is one of those times when the performances really help when the plot is a little soft. The plot is actually pretty good here, and there is some interesting character development occurring throughout the story.

When Steven and the Doctor really recognize each other as genuine, it is actually rather moving. Purves still sounds great in these releases, and I hope he has several more left to do.

I was not sure about Noonan when he first started out in this role, but his interpretation of the First Doctor has grown on me. It is noted in the cast interviews how much work and research he puts in, and it really shows here.

2025 seems to be off to a great start with this release, and I hope more First Doctor stories are in the can.

Doctor Who Audio Review: A Celebration Of The Sixth Doctor

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment
Doctor Who: The Sixth Doctor Adventures: The Quin Dilemma

Big Finish Productions releases an enjoyable Doctor Who audio boxset celebrating forty years of Colin Baker as the Doctor’s sixth incarnation. The Quin Dilemma contains six interlinked stories written by three authors and directed by Samuel Clemens. Bonnie Langford and Nicola Bryant reprise their roles of Melanie Bush and Peri, respectively. Miranda Raison and Lisa Greenwood return as Constance Clarke and Flip Ramon, a pair of companions created by Big Finish. Phil Labey accompanies the Doctor as a certain Herbert George Wells in one of the stories.

The Exaltation by Jacquelin Raynor kicks off the set and has the Doctor and Mel on the planet Arunopel where the Time Lord is checking out a temporal anomaly. The king is about to step down, but he is uncertain as to which of his five sons is going to inherit the throne. The king believes the Doctor responsible for the disappearance of his wife many years ago and sets his sons out to find him in various points in his timeline.

Chris Chapman picks up the story with Escape from Holy Island where the Doctor, Peri, and a young HG Wells are visiting an island in the year 739 on the eve of a Viking invasion, however the raiders that are coming may be something else.

It’s a pretty good continuation, and the idea of HG Wells being in the TARDIS beyond the one television adventure Timelash is a fun if rather predictable idea.

Robert Valentine brings in a two-part story featuring the Doctor now traveling with Mrs. Clarke and Flip Ramon on a planet in the midst of a civil war, and Sontarans interfering. Sibling Rivalry and Children of the Revolution are the titles of these two episodes. Also, the Doctor has to contend with potential kidnappers in the shape of two of the quintuplet princes on the hunt for him.

Chris Chapman returns to the story roster with The Thousand Year Thaw in which the Doctor and Peri encounter another of the Quin princes, a pleasant walk turns into another familiar fight for survival.’

This story is pretty notable because there is a very charming and enlightening scene in which the Doctor and Peri reflect on their friendship and recall the Doctor’s rather manic reaction to his regeneration. I always thought this Doctor’s introduction was one of the clumsiest introductions in the series. In The Twin Dilemma, the Doctor nearly throttles Peri to death in a fit of mania induced by the trauma of his transformation. Chapman comes up with a pretty plausible explanation as to why Peri decided to continue her travels with the Doctor after that horrendous episode. It was a great scene, and Baker and Bryant perform it masterfully.

Finally, we get the amusing pleasure of watching several versions of the Sixth Doctor interact with each other in Rayner’s The Firstborn. The various companions also meet up to find the answers to this potential paradoxical catastrophe.

Somehow the idea of four different versions of the same Doctor meeting up seems like it wouldn’t work on audio, but it comes off pretty well without as much expected confusion. Colin Baker sounds fantastic throughout this set.

Some stories are a little better than others, and I was rather pleased that some of the seemingly inexplicable choices that Peri made in the television series were addressed.

Jonnie Broadbent is the actor portraying the Quin brothers and does a pretty good job at vocally differentiating between the characters.

I have had mixed feelings about the Sixth Doctor before Big Finish rehabilitated him with much better writing that fleshed out the more appealing sides of his personality. Although much of his familiar brashness was kept, he also displayed far more moments of compassion and cleverness than in the television series.

There is a bit of muddling in the plot, but the performances and intended celebration of this Doctor makes it tolerable. Besides, Doctor Who is a bit of a muddle anyway.

The Quin Dilemma is a set that shouldn’t be passed over. May Colin still have many more years with Big Finish as well.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Big Decisions For The Seventh Doctor As His Time Winds Down

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Big Finish Productions has released the first of a two-part audio finale for the Seventh Doctor, and it’s a bit of a confusing jumble, which is often typical of this particular incarnation of the Doctor. The Last Day- Part One is written by Matt Fitton and Guy Adams and has Sylvester McCoy returning to the mic as the Seventh Doctor. Samuel Clemens is the director.

Almost all of the Seventh Doctor’s friends and foes come out to play in this one. Sophie Aldred as Ace come back and gathers a team that includes The Master, played by Geoffrey Beevers, Edward Peel as Kane, and Stuart Margolin as Garundel.

Other followers of this audio range will recognize Lisa Bowerman as Professor Bernice Summerfield, Philip Olivier as Hex, and Bonnie Langford as Melanie Bush.

All of reality is at stake yet again. Ace is recruiting various adversaries to go against the threat, but that appears to be the Doctor, who is up to some grand plan or other.

Yet again, the performances and the nostalgia of these characters returning helps, but it does seem a little trite to have the Doctor in a such a convoluted mess.

The story is supposed to take the fans up to the moments before the Doctor regenerates in the 1996 television movie which introduced Paul McGann.

There are some interesting moments, and I am sure the second part will clear up some of the threads being laid out here. Still, the ambition by the writers seems to not take account of the challenge of keeping a coherent image in a listener’s mind as this is playing.

I have never been a fan of just throwing every major villain and allies in one story, even if it is supposed to be a finale. Also, I am not sure that McCoy is actually not going to do more of these audios. Also, the whole of reality or the universe being at stake is not a plot that really interests me. One of the best regeneration stories in the series involved the Doctor trying to save the life of his companion.

Fitton and Adams are long-time contributors to Doctor Who fiction in various mediums, but it does feel like they may have bitten off more than they can chew.

Yes, I will purchase the second part to this story and hope the conclusion is more compelling than I anticipate.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Strange Birds, Ghosts, Gigantic Beasts, And One Time Lord

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Big Finish Productions returns to the travels of the Eighth Doctor, starring Paul McCann, with an eclectic and entertaining set of Doctor Who audio dramas entitled Echoes. Nicola Walker and Hattie Morahan are also accompanying this Doctor as Liv Chenka and Helen Sinclair. Ken Bentley directs this trilogy of adventures and continues to prove himself more than capable of continuing in that capacity for future releases. The guest cast includes Derek Griffiths, Jane Asher, Fiona Button, and Dan Starkey.

Tim Foley starts off the set with his story, Birdsong. The TARDIS arrives on a world where there are apparently two women who were scouting it out for an arriving colony. There are peculiar birds in the distance but coming closer. One of the women the TARDIS encounters is strangely ill. Something in the woods appears to be watching.

Foley has become one of Big Finish’s more prolific and reliable scriptwriters, and this story is a pretty good example as to why. It’s a pretty spooky story with an interesting twist toward the end. The main cast is once again in top form with their performances. Fiona Button and Jane Asher are the only two guest actors, and they are more than capable foils for the well-tuned main cast of this particular TARDIS crew.

Lost Hearts is the second story and is written by Lauren Mooney and Stewart Pringle. The Doctor, Liv, and Helen have been investigating strange disturbances emanating from an ancient university. Phantoms have been seen, and something odd seems to have an important message for the Doctor. They are assisted by a nervous undergraduate and a writer of supernatural phenomenon. The student has a profound connection to Helen Sinclair, and the writer has an important destiny on the world’s literary stage.

Timothy Bentinck and Steve Brody are two of the guest actors and, as expected, well chosen. Bentinck goes a little over the top with his performance in the climax, but the whole episode is still quite enjoyable. The revealing of the full identity of the Brody’s character, Montague, is kind of a nice treat. The story takes place in a university containing a lot of shadows and dark corners, which is almost always a great place to begin a Doctor Who episode.

Dan Rebellato is the writer tasked with bringing this set to a close with Slow Beasts. The Doctor and his companions arrive on a planet with an amazing sight to behold. A settlement is watched over a group of enormous alien figures standing in the plains. The Renn gain some benefit from the tourism arriving in their midst to see this strange arrangement. It does not take long for the Doctor, Liv and Helen to discover there is a dark secret behind the majestic view. When the secret comes to life, the Renn find themselves facing a retribution that may be well deserved.

The final story is also quite compelling, although there is not a lot of detail about how the Slow Beasts look other than their immense size. Derek Griffiths, Maya Saroya, and Dan Starkey are part of this guest cast. Rebellato is a pretty new writer to me, but this story is a promising introduction. He is not a new writer overall, but he seems to be a pretty recent addition to the Big Finish stable. The story raises some engaging moral dilemmas and questions. I thought Griffiths take on the settlement leader, Mathryn, was very interesting. Mathryn does have some undoubtedly selfish and immoral motivations, but the audience is left with a sense of possible redemption.

I have to say that Echoes pretty much gets high marks from me all the way down the line. It’s hard to say which episode is my favorite because I was pretty impressed with all three of the stories, which is a rarity as much as I love Big Finish and Doctor Who. There was not reliance of old adversaries. Yes, Big Finish has visited its fair share of shady universities in its long catalogue before, but the second episode is still imaginative enough for me to forgive that trope. McGann remains as compelling as ever as his version of the Doctor. The chemistry and banter between Morahan and Walker remain on point, which is particularly impressive since this group of writers haven’t written much in this range. Although this TARDIS team have been around a good number of years for the Big Finish consumers, this collection of stories seems to have found a way to ensure that audiences want more of this particular TARDIS team.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Yuletide Terror With The Doctor

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

In the Bleak Midwinter sees the welcome return of Paul McCann behind the microphone at Big Finish Productions in another pretty solid collection of audio dramas with the Eighth Doctor. Ken Bentley returns as director for this trilogy of episodes that has the Doctor and his two companions, Charlotte Pollard and Lady Audacity Montague fighting some pretty eerie manifestations over the Christmas holidays.

India Fisher reprises her role of Charley Pollard with Jaye Griffiths as Lady Audacity for these three stories. The guest cast includes Jason Watkins, Nickolas Grace, John Banks, David Robb, and Lucy Goldie.

Long-time and prolific contributor John Dorney starts off the set with Twenty-Four Doors. As the Doctor shares the delights of an Advent calendar with his companions, Al Norton, a department store Santa, is hearing some strange singing in his mind, and he is about to meet this TARDIS crew for what could be a joyous Christmas or a tragic one.

Jason Watkins I know from a detective series entitled McDonald & Dodds, and he is quite good here as the hapless Al Norton. The episode is pretty well-written and kind of unusual, which is not surprising since it’s a John Dorney script. The dynamic between Charley and Audacity is pretty compelling well. Fisher has been playing this part for over two decades, and I am finding that Griffiths has a very distinctive vocal presence that I am beginning to enjoy.

The Empty Man is the second episode and is written by Tom Foley. This time, the Doctor and his friends meet one Eldridge Brinkwood, an old man who shares his scary stories on the radio. An entity that takes the form of its next victim is stalking him, and the Time Lord may not be able to keep him safe.

Grace is the lead guest star here and is able to hold his own with the main cast. This is another pretty interesting story once I was able to work out the method of the creature. The TARDIS also seems drawn to the Christmas season, which is a bit of a mystery to her crew. Brinkwood is a rather witty character in spite of the fearful circumstances. McGann continues to deliver a familiar yet still compelling performance as the Doctor.

Finally, Roy Gill brings us to a close with Winter of the Demon. An industrialist named Donald Shaw, played by David Robb, is going to light up a city, but he may also be bringing an ancient demon to life

I had a little harder time getting into this one. It wasn’t a bad story, but I guess the other two resonated a little more.

Overall, the collection is pretty good with the performances of the main cast submitting some excellent performances. I enjoy this TARDIS team and hope to hear some more with them together. Paul McGann continues to deliver some wonderful moments as his version of the Doctor. Hearing Fisher back as Charley is a welcome treat as well. Now that I have spent a little more time with Lady Audacity, I have come to really look forward to hear how her character develops. She has taken on the role as a kind of surrogate older sister to Charley, and the two of them have a nice spark to challenge the Doctor at times.

It may have to become a proper Christmas tradition to indulge in the soundscape of In the Bleak Midwinter.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Who Knows More About Metamorphosis Than The Doctor?

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Big Finish Productions releases another welcome Fourth Doctor audio boxset starring Tom Baker. Metamorphosis contains three new audio plays that continue the Doctor’s travels with Harry Sullivan and Naomi Cross, as played by Christopher Naylor and Eleanor Crooks, respectively.

The guest cast includes the vocal talents of Annette Badland. Geoffrey Beevers, Nicholas Briggs, Mark Gatiss, Glen McReady, and Lydia West. As usual, I have no complaints about the casting or the performances.

The first story is entitled Matryoshka by Aurora Fearnley and is directed by Helen Goldwyn. The TARDIS has been forced to land on Earth where the Doctor, Naomi, and Harry encounter a toy inventor searching for his missing daughter. They also meet a supposed psychic who has made contact with a Toymaker of the celestial kind.

Annette Badland has taken on the role of the Toymaker, who was originally played by the late Michael Gough. The Toymaker’s inclusion in this story is rather clever because the role was not really recast as a woman. He is communicating with the voice of the psychic. Anyway, the Doctor squaring off against the Toymaker is always fun, particularly when it’s the Fourth Doctor. The friendship between Harry and Naomi continues to be entertaining. Harry is not as enthusiastic about his continued travels with the Doctor as Naomi, but he still manages to brave his way through the chaotic journey. He’s a bit of a bumbler, but somehow, I would still like to have him at my side in a crisis. I did have a little trouble interpreting some of the events in the story. It’s not really a bad effort from the writer, but it isn’t that easy to follow.

The second episode is written by Matthew Sweet, directed by Nicholas Briggs, and is entitled The Caged Assassin. The Doctor and his companions encounter a radioactive tiger that has somehow gotten into the TARDIS. This story somehow seems a little more confusing than the first one. There are alien wombats involved, and the Doctor and his friends meet a historical dealer in exotic animals named Charles Jamrach. The wombats he has in his possession are a bit more exotic than he expected. I was not that impressed with the story overall, but it still has Tom Baker giving a strong, enthusiastic performance even if the actual plot didn’t quite keep me rivetted.

Finally, Metamorphosis by Lisa McMullin wraps up the trilogy. Jamie Anderson directed this entry and does a good job. Geoffrey Beevers returns to the role of his version of the Master. This is the decaying husk version introduced during the Fourth Doctor’s era. Beevers is older, but the silky malevolence in his voice is as captivating as ever. The TARDIS crew lands on a planet known as Jaxus where some of its denizens are disappearing. There is an abandoned prison nearby, but the Master has made use of it and plans to restore his health at the cost of others’ lives. This is a pretty strong finish for this collection. Beevers’ performance alongside Tom Baker really gives the story an extra punch.

Overall, this set ends up being a bit on the disappointing side compared to some of the previous releases. It isn’t terrible, but the stories were lacking a little. I think there were too many moments where the sound effects or the dialogue didn’t paint an effective or cohesive picture for the imagination. The dynamic between the Doctor, Harry, and Naomi does remain pretty amusing. The main cast is still an enjoyable combination, and no one really tanks here. I will likely return to this one, but probably not as quickly as many of the other Big Finish releases.