Tag: doctor-who

Doctor Who Audio Review: Hooklight Will Not Be Dimmed Easily

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Doctor Who-Hooklight 2 brings a twelve-episode audio saga from Big Finish Productions to a most satisfying close. Tom Foley has done quite well with writing a very lengthy audio drama featuring the Fifth Doctor, played by Peter Davison. Janet Fielding, Matthew Waterhouse, and Sarah Sutton continue to bring formidable performances in their roles as Tegan, Adric, and Nyssa, respectively. Ken Bentley returns to the director’s position with his extensive experience with this company.

We also have Paul McGann in the mix as the Eighth Doctor, who is also using the moniker, the Oracle. Alan Cox, Kieren Bew, Shogo Miyakita, Celia Imrie, and Theo Solomon are included in the guest cast.

The force known as Hooklight is attempting to control Nyssa. The Doctor and his friends have been scattered throughout various planets and times. They have to make their way to something called the Dark Forge where they must face the Oracle. The Oracle knows the Doctor quite well, and their connection is much deeper than the Time Lord can anticipate. The Doctor has to find a way to free his friend from the influence of the Hooklight and reunite with his TARDIS. Of course, forces are aligned against the Time Lord, and it will take all of centuries of experience and cleverness to keep a certain light from being lit.

Foley used the extra time quite effectively to explore the main characters and the significant guest characters. We get to see how Tegan fares in a long-term relationship, which is quite interesting and even moving at times.

The appearance of the Eighth Doctor is also well-handled, and Foley sort of avoids some of the usual tropes whenever a story features more than one incarnation. Paul McGann is still compelling and has a perfect voice for audio performances. He is just an interesting actor all around.

I thought the Fifth Doctor was an interesting choice to create a huge saga around, but it works quite well. I also thought Waterhouse was particularly good at almost sounding as he did when he originally played Adric forty years ago.

Davison’s voice has aged and deepened noticeably, but I think he makes a good choice in not trying too hard to imitate his younger self. I still enjoyed his performance, and there was an interesting and poignant moment between the Doctor and Imrie’s Kessica Myles. The Doctor has figured out that Myles is terminally ill and offers to be there for her if she needed to grieve her situation. It was a moment of sensitivity from the Doctor that would often be absent from the television series. It was beautifully performed because the emotional significance was played with that famous British subtlety.

I: am usually rather leery of this superlong sagas in Doctor Who because there is some drag. Although there are some moments that it strikes me how long this thing is going on, I enjoyed this one very much.

Big Finish chose to release this in two parts. If more of these hefty stories are to be produced, I think I would prefer the whole story to be released at once. I hope that Foley is willing to do another one of that size because he really seems to rise to the challenge.

Hooklight as a whole is likely to be the best release of the year. There is still plenty of releases to be announced, but this one will likely remain in the top tier of my favorites for some time.

Big Finish Audio Review: On The Isle Of The Dead, Morbius Lives Again

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Dark Gallifrey: Morbius Part Two is the continuation of a trilogy of audio dramas from Big Finish Productions that seems to be a very promising and poignant piece of entertainment. The series explores various Time Lords from Doctor Who and delves into the history of their home planet and their roles. The warlord known as Morbius appeared in the television series during the Tom Baker era, and now we get a taste of his history.

The story is written by Tom Foley and directed by Samuel Clemens. Samuel West is in the title role with Mina Anwar, Rachel Atkins, Justin Avoth, Mark Bonnar, Andrew French, Janet Henfrey, Lara Lemon, and Hywel Morgan making up the rest of the cast.’

The Gallifreyan battleship known as the Proteus has crashed into a realm known as the Isle of the Dead. The crew members find themselves in more peril than they understand when an old enemy thought dead is about to be resurrected. Captain Argento, played by Rachel Atkins, finds herself facing down doubts from her crew and her own health concerns. Meanwhile, the cult of Morbius is awaiting the return of their idol, and the galaxy is in the direst of jeopardies.

I don’t normally enjoy much Doctor Who that doesn’t feature the Doctor, but this is becoming rather fascinating. West has played Morbius in some previous audio plays, so it makes sense to continue to have him stretch himself a little further. West does a great job.

The story is actually supposed to remind the audience of the old sea adventures. The crew of the Proteus aren’t pirates really, but the mannerisms of the characters sort of put forth that vibe. Big Finish almost always gets the casting right, and this adventure is no exception. I kind of find the first mate, Mr. Middlewitch, a rather compelling character. Hywel Morgan has that role and just seems to relish it. I also think the name Middlewitch is kind of cool.

Anyway, I will soon be listening to the third and final episode of this ongoing series. Dark Gallifrey has delivered on an intriguing premise, and I am fascinated to hear the fate of the crew of the Proteus.

Doctor Who Audio Review: The Light That Must Never Be Lit

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Big Finish Productions has started the Fifth Doctor on a very epic audio adventure with Tim Foley’s Doctor Who-Hooklight 1. Peter Davison is joined by Janet Fielding, Sarah Sutton, and Matthew Waterhouse. Ken Bentley returns to the role of director. There is a very intriguing surprise with Paul McGann lurking the shadows of the story as the Eighth Doctor. The guest cast is also impressive with Kieren Bow, Alan Cox, Ruby Crepin-Glyn, David Holt, Celia Imrie, Harriet Kershaw, David Shaw-Parker, Theo Solomon, and Issy Van Randwyck.

This release if the first six episode of what is going to be a whopping twelve when it is all over.

The TARDIS crew has basically landed unwilling on a planet called Morning. The Doctor has become aware of the presence of ancient and powerful substance known as Hooklight. Tegan, Nysse, and Adric are caught up in one of the Doctor’s more epic adventures that could lead to the end of all of the universe. The Doctor rarely plays for lower stakes. There is a being known as the Oracle, and he seems to know the Doctor very well.

This is a very promising story. The main cast puts in a typically compelling performance. Peter Davison is a solid performer, but he seems a little more energetic than usual with this one. Waterhouse is now a man in his sixties playing a teen-ager, and he kind of pulls it off. He sounds very much like he did when he first started in the role in the early 1980’s. Fielding and Sutton remain consistently enjoyable as Tegan and Nyssa.

The soundscape is well executed, but Big Finish has a lot of practice with that. I rarely notice any real problems on the technical end with their recordings,

There is a second half to this story to be released soon, and I am pretty anxious to hear that one. I am a little leery of having more than one Doctor in an episode, but Big Finish is usually considerably more successful in the writing of these adventures than what was aired on the television series. Paul McGann is also pretty much guaranteed to deliver his own captivating performance.

Hooklight appears to be on track to hold a special place in the hearts of Big Finish listeners. It’s a long one and will require a bit of patience, but I am enjoying the journey to unravel the layers of mystery alongside this Doctor and his companions.

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: The Doctor Just Keeps Digging Up Danger

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Buried Threats is one of the audio releases from Big Finish Productions that continues the Doctor Who range featuring the Ninth Doctor, played by the brilliant Christopher Eccleston. There are three episodes directed by Helen Goldwyn. Lisa Bowerman returns to the mic as Professor Bernice Summerfield, which is indeed welcome. The set is pretty good, but not much really stands out.

The first story by Lisa McMullen is entitled A Theatre of Cruelty. Alexander Vlahos takes on the role revolutionary artist and theatre director Antonin Artaud. Artaud is having dreams that are breaking into reality, and the Doctor suspects an alien influence as usual. The episode did introduce to me a new historical figure of which I was unaware. It had an interesting plot, but Eccleston has usual really elevates the story with his energetic performance as the Doctor. I enjoyed the episode, but I doubt I will remember much about it until I replay it.

The Running Men is the second entry written by Mark Wright and takes place in present-day Halifax in West Yorkshire. Fiona Wade is the main guest star alongside Eccleston. In this one, I learned about an infamous gibbet and an old legend about the spectral Running Men. In case anyone wants to know, a gibbet is like a gallows where people were executed long ago. A mysterious death brings the Doctor to the scene where historical tragedies are intruding on the present.

It’s also a good story where an uncommon legend is revealed to me. That helps me find some enjoyment and appreciation. It highlights a small piece of British culture and a town which apparently has some renown.

The performances are quite compelling here as is almost always case in a Big Finish release. Yet again, it’s an episode even with its interesting elements still doesn’t stand out as anything quite that unique.

Finally, Professor Bernice Summerfield encounters a new Doctor to her in Matt Fitton’s Ancient History. Benny is looking into a long-ago disappearance of a warrior race known as the Korravin. When she sees a battered blue police box, she knows an old friend is nearby and another danger is about to be unearthed.

This time, the Doctor has initially slipped in incognito with an alias. Benny doesn’t recognize him at first due to the Time Lord’s propensity for regeneration. When she does figure it out, she is not too pleased, but they get past that soon enough and work together like the old days.

This one is probably the stand-out of the set because of Bernice’s presence. Lisa Bowerman slips into the role with such ease, and the chemistry with Eccleston is quite evident. I think Benny actually pairs up well with any of the Doctor’s iterations. The moment of recognition is as deliciously volatile and funny as I hoped. There is even a little time for Fitton to tug the heartstrings a bit as Benny tries to figure out what the Doctor has been up to since they last met.

Overall, the set is enjoyable but is only really notable in that Bernice and the Ninth Doctor meet. The three writers are well-chosen for their reliability. Some of the more obscure elements of British history given a spotlight is pretty cool. Eccleston still has the chops to keep his Doctor compelling in all of his manic and often morose behaviors. This Doctor has survived the Time War and the terrible choices he had to make and live with.

This set of audio dramas may not be listed as one of the iconic releases by Big Finish, but it is once again not one that deserves to be ignored, and I am certainly up to more Ninth Doctor exploits.

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 Destiny Of Mondas Revisited

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Doctor Who: Genesis of the Cybermen is an audio drama from Big Finish Productions that revisits the origins of the Cybermen, a feat accomplished already in a previous release entitled Spare Parts. This story was originally conceived by Gerry Davis and adapted by David K. Barnes. Peter Davison returns yet again to the role of the Fifth Doctor and is accompanied by Janet Fielding as Tegan, Sarah Sutton as Nyssa, and Matthew Waterhouse as Adric. The director is David O’Mahoney. Nicholas Briggs again fires up the voice modulator to portray the Daleks. The remainder of the guest cast is comprised of Michael Abubakar, Nuhazet Diaz Cano, Kelly Price, Colin Tierney, and Evie Ward-Drummond.

The TARDIS has crashed on a world where a king is dying, and one of his sons is trying to save his civilization from a catastrophic shift in the planet’s orbit. The Doctor and his friends offer their help, but he soon realizes that he has arrived on the planet of Mondas at the birth of one of his greatest foes. The Cybermen are about to rise yet again and plan to survive by any means necessary.

This release is one in the range known as The Lost Stories. It was a script that was considered for the television series many moons ago and was ultimately scrapped.

Although this one isn’t bad, I still prefer Spare Parts. Genesis of the Cybermen is still worthy of a purchase and a listen though. The performances of the main cast members remain strong and distinctive. Davison still puts in a compelling performance even is he sounds noticeably older than he did forty years ago. The banter between the main cast is still compelling and amusing at times.

The guest cast is also well-chosen as is usually the case. Colin Tierney in particular has a complex role as the one who is fiercely loyal to this people and creates the Cybermen, one of the most horrific races in Doctor Who lore. It’s a suitably complicated story without going overboard. There are some interesting themes involving family and leadership explored.

The descriptions conveyed of the conversion process to become a Cybermen are as horrific as ever. Genesis of the Cybermen still does better than merely getting the job done as a source of entertainment. More Fifth Doctor is never a bad thing anyway.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Ghost Safaris And Stolen Memories

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The range of Big Finish Doctor Who audio dramas featuring the Fourth Doctor continue with the latest satisfying release entitled The Hellwood Inheritance. Tom Baker and Louise Jameson reunite as the Doctor and Leela, respectively, for two stories contained in this set. Ken Bentley and Jamie Anderson share directing duties. Both stories turn out pretty well, but with Baker and Jameson in the lead, that’s going to be a likely outcome.

Alan Barnes starts off with a bit of spookiness in The Hellwood Inheritance. The guest cast includes Rosie Day, Chris Jarman, Richard James, James Meteyard, and Tamzin Outhwaite.

The Doctor and Leela arrive on the grounds of Hellwood Manor where they have a troubling encounter with a headless knight that pursues them through the grounds. After that escape, they meet the architects of what is planned to be a ghost safari and shown the “ghost catcher”. The Doctor is not sure that he is being told the whole truth about what powers the device, and a more sinister plot than a mere supernatural entertainment park is revealed.

I wouldn’t call this a real standout story, but it gets the job done as far as being entertaining. Tom Baker still sounds strong and engaged in the role even though he is close to his ninth decade at the time of recording. Jameson still slips into her most well-known character with ease.

I love a good ghost story in Doctor Who, and this fits the bill. There are not many scares or chilling moments, but the humor makes up for it. The performances are solid enough. The writing is not all that bad. Barnes has been associated with Big Finish and Doctor Who for some time, and his reliability as a writer remains evident here.

The episode still falls a little short of what I think would be among the more highly regarded stories in the range, but it still shouldn’t be overlooked. Tom Baker is well into his nineties here, so I am cherishing every new performance I can get.

The Memory Thieves is written by Phil Mulryne. The guest cast includes Daisy Ashford, Ayesha Antoine, and Wayne Forester.

The TARDIS arrives on a colony world in the future where strange pulses emanate from the forest, and the colonists lose their memories. The Doctor and Leela are separated by an earthquake. They have to earn the trust of the colonists in order to help them stop the force known as the Abeyance.

I had some trouble getting into this one. Baker and Jameson are still worth the time, but I didn’t find the story all that interesting. It’s not a terrible effort by Mulryne, but I did not find this particular contribution all that memorable.

It’s always fun to get some new stories with the Fourth Doctor and Leela, and this particular set was entertaining enough for me to still recommend to my fellow Whovians to give it a go.

Doctor Who Audio Review: Puccini, Iceland, And The Mara

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Deadly Strangers is the latest Doctor Who audio boxset from Big Finish Productions to feature the always welcome return of Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor, and the three stories contained within are eclectic and engaging. The director is Ken Bentley. Jaye Griffiths and India Fisher accompany the Time Lord as Lady Audacity Montague and Charlotte Pollard, respectively. The guest cast in each story are predicably well-chosen. As usual, I will proceed with a few brief comments on each story.

Matthew Jacobs gets things rolling with Puccini and the Doctor. Tim McInnerny portrays the celebrated musician Giacomo Puccini, who wrote the famous opera, Madama Butterfly. The Doctor is not alone in being an extraterrestrial interested in the arts created by humanity. A mysterious and beautiful woman named Tura will change the lives and forms of those who are unable to answer her riddles. What is meant to be a mere visit to appreciate beautiful music and meet one of the minds who create it turns into another attempt by the TARDIS crew to protect the Earth from another dangerous alien presence.

McGann has lost none of his energy in his performance as the Doctor. Jaye Griffiths proves to be a welcome addition to this team. Charlotte is forced to grapple with some intense feelings for the Doctor. Both of the current companions perform wonderfully in their roles. Audacity is certainly one of the better recent creations from Big Finish.

The ploy itself is pretty interesting because Princess Tura, portrayed by Tania Rodrigues, turns out to be quite as malevolent as she first seems. Jacobs takes his audience on a pretty compelling and complicated examination of love.

It’s an interesting story that creates a nice blend of fantasy and a glimpse of history and culture. Not a bad start here.

Women’s Day Off by Lisa McMullen brings the Doctor, Charley, and Audacity to Iceland, 1975 where the women are on strike, but a young girl is terrified of her own powers that she cannot quite control.

Once again, another alien visitor is trying to get home, but he has an important component to find, and the girl known as Kyla may know something about that.

Molly Harris and George Watkins are included in the guest cast and prove to be quite effective, which is the usual result for Big Finish casting.

The title of this set is a little perplexing since the alien visitor once again turns out to be a likeable fellow. It is a bit of a departure that no one wants to actually conquer the Earth and subjugate everyone, however McMullen does make this suspenseful regardless.

The women’s strike in Iceland is an actual historical event but not a well-known one, so it was nice to receive a little nugget of knowledge I didn’t have before.

It’s a pretty good episode that is well-performed even if the stakes are relatively low for a Doctor Who tale.

Finally, a dangerous interloper appears in The Gloaming by Lauren Mooney and Stewart Pringle which completes this set. Gloaming is a luxury sleep clinic which orbits a dead world and contains rich Sleepers in suspended animation. A dark presence the Doctor has encountered before has entered their dreams of the Sleepers and threatens to take over the Time Lord’s friends. The Mara has escaped from the dark places of the inside once again.

This was a strong finish for this set. The Mara is a delightfully mischievous and deadly opponent for the Doctor, and it was great to have it back. Hopefully, the Mara are used sparingly because the rarity of their appearances makes their delicious malevolence a treat.

The final episode is my favorite, but the whole set really works well. Audacity is a recent addition to the gallery of companions, and she has grown on me quite a bit. Audacity Montague is an aristocrat from the Regency era of England, and Griffiths seems to have the perfect voice for someone of that origin.

Paul McGann is as effusive and charming as ever as the Doctor. Charlotte Pollard is one of the early Big Finish companions, and India Fisher still easily finds that voice after two decades of playing her.

Big Finish has another jewel with this one. Three pretty solid stories with a formidable TARDIS team make Deadly Strangers one of the better ones to start off the 2025 releases.

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.