*This review was originally written before I changed the review format but has been kept in its original form (mostly because I couldn’t be bothered to rearrange it…)
It’s funny that I’ve gone this far without reviewing a Second Doctor Companion Chronicle, then when I finally pick one it’s the one story where its actually more of an audio drama than a traditional CC two-person reading. It’s cleverly written and well acted though, as I remembered, which is why I threw it in here… So let’s take a look!
Synopsis:
A cell. Four walls, one door. Jamie McCrimmon can escape, but it means unravelling a puzzle of extraordinary complexity.
And there are more than just two players in this game. The Doctor is there. So is his opponent Side.
As a hero turns killer, and a rebellion becomes anarchy, the lines between good and evil are blurred. And so does the distinction between cause and effect …
*spoilers appear from here on out!*
The Good:
The gist of the story is that Jamie is trapped in a prison cell and is interrogated by a man named Moran (Dominic Mafham), but he suddenly experiences a flash-forward of a time when he’s holding Moran’s gun and the man is dying in front of him. Confused, he is suddenly back on the other side of the table. This is where a being known only as “Side” communicates with Jamie through Moran, and likewise The Doctor talks to Side through Jamie’s mind. The challenge is soon set and Jamie starts experiencing several different moments out of order and in if he wants to escape the room he has to correctly piece together the true sequence of events to cause the exit to appear. It’s very clever, and very fun to “play along”, so to speak.
There isn’t much more to speak of. We hear a bit more about Moran and his species and how they subjugated Side and its people, so this was an act of revenge, so to speak, but at the end of the day it’s all about trying to follow along, and it’s really fun, even though we know Jamie isn’t actually going to die at any point…
The Bad:
Not much, honestly. I can’t say it’s perfect but for a single hour and two cast members it certainly gets the most out of it.
The Continuity:
A simple but effective cover. Not sure why The Doctor’s in his woolly hat from “Fury from the Deep”, but whatever…
Again, not much. When The Doctor refuses to believe that Jamie would kill someone Side correctly points out that The Doctor met Jamie in the middle of the Battle of Culloden and the idea he never hurt anyone during that or surrounding conflicts is being a bit naïve. This first meeting happened in the TV story “The Highlanders”.
Overall Thoughts:
A very short review, but then the Companion Chronicles were like that, short little hour-long bites of eras of Who that weren’t able to be recreated in full cast (as Big Finish was against recasting for quite some time!), although again this is technically full cast. It’s also a very fun and clever story, so while I feel its too unsubstantial to give it a 5, I’m happy to give it a…
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