Hogan Reviews

Another year with Doctor Who barely on TV (which is still better than all the years it wasn’t on TV at all, but still…) so once again this list is heavy on the Big Finish audio side, though it’s also heavy on the more modern Who side due to the switch to boxset format not going too well for Doctors 6 and 7, quality-wise. Still who’d have thought Christopher Eccelston’s Ninth Doctor would appear so frequently on a list from any year other than 2005? (not that this blog was here to make this list then, but you know what I mean…) Great stuff. Let’s take a look and hope Russell T. Davies’ return to showrunner will make the next few year’s lists a bit more interesting, though Mr. Chibnall’s run may end on a higher note than it frankly deserves…

Just fighting for the Number 10 slot was the first two parts of War Master: Escape from Reality, Paradox of the Daleks and this, Rewind. I ended up going for the latter because the second half of Escape from Reality didn’t live up to the first half, and so I had to choose between a really good example of a paradox story or a really good example of a timeloop story. I chose “Rewind” because of the melancholy ending really left me momentarily gobsmacked, and I like it when any story from any medium leaves me thinking about it for a while afterwards. Can’t go wrong with either though! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

Auton Infinity is a big celebratory blowout of the Fifth Doctor era and at three hours could have easily overstayed its welcome or been too overcomplicated but instead it managed to tell a single story across multiple locations in a really fun way, touching on all the little mini-eras and trademarks of Mr. Davison’s era well. It’s not perfect by any means, but given its length and all it had to squeeze in it deserves praise for being really good regardless! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

He Who Fights Monsters jumps in at the literal last moment after I finished listening to it yesterday as of this writing, but I’m glad I squeezed this in because it was great fun and deserves a place on this list. A proper “epic in scope” story featuring our young War Doctor that keeps getting more and more bleak before pulling off a classic fist clenching turnaround. The only reason it isn’t higher is because they poured on the character deaths too much too soon so you knew the story was heading for a reset ending quite early on. Still though, a fun three hour story… there are a few of those on this list now that I think about it! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

Kaleidoscope is yet another three hour story (though at six parts it fits in very well with the Third Doctor’s era!) and once again it keeps its locations fresh and tells a really fun, unique story. The first half is stronger than the second but overall it was a really enjoyable story that skirts that fine line between nostalgia for the era and modern storytelling. Could’ve done without the fake “Kaleidoscope” TV theme that jokingly plays throughout the latter half of the story though… (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

Albie’s Angels is another December release that has snuck its way onto this list before I’ve even had a chance to review it! Telling an emotional yet also at times light-hearted story about often mistreated companion Helen and her estranged brother Albie who she suddenly brought up once and then never again in the past and featuring the Weeping Angels used in a new and interesting way it ticked several boxes at once, and was a great way for the Eighth Doctor to go out on in 2022. (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

The “season finale” of the first run of Ninth Doctor boxsets followed the Russell T. Davies tradition of going out on a two-parter featuring either the Daleks or in this case, the Cybermen, plus it ticked that “this version of the Doctor hasn’t met the Brigadier” box that always needs ticking! Joking aside, it was a really good story, mixing in emotion and action and even had a cheesy name pun / twist for extra of-the-time flavour. It was a thrill to hear Mr. Eccleston back in the role, and I’m more than happy to say this isn’t the only time he’s on this list… (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

The Annihilators had me worried as it was three hours, featured a brand new recast of the Second Doctor and was at least in-part written by Nicholas Briggs, who previous multi-Doctor story featuring Doc #2 was… pretty awful. Thankfully the story plays out slowly but really well timed, Michael Troughton is great in his father’s role and it managed to once again prove to be one of Mr. Briggs’ better scripts. You could argue the stakes and “budget” were too high for the time period but when you’ve got audio why not break free of the time period once and a while? Good fun, just not quite as good as the next multi-Doctor audio story, oddly enough! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

Wink is the third of the trilogy of the Tenth Doctor meeting his earlier selves, Two Doctors style, and manages to perhaps be the best (it’s close between this and the first one, anyway). Not only do the two Doctor play off each other well but the setting is really fun and for the second time this list the Weeping Angels are used brilliantly. It’s a shame we don’t have one for Docs 7 onwards because as a once-a-year little guilty pleasure these stories were really fun, though I guess Mr. Tennant is a busy man now the country is no longer in lockdown, including his landing the role of the Fourteenth Doctor?! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

Auld Lang Syne is possibly the story actually deserving of the number 1 spot here, if nostalgia is put aside, but oh well… I’m a sucker for nostalgia. This story is near-perfect in its goal of the Ninth Doctor being a regular figure in the life of an ordinary woman every New Years and has a great twist with its “villain” as well. Possibly too sappy in places? Possibly, but it all plays out so beautifully that I can’t find myself caring. (My review can be found by clicking HERE)

The Thirteenth Doctor’s finale, as a regeneration story for her, is a let down… but only because it does such a good job pulling on the nostalgia heartstrings of us Who fans who enjoy the earlier Doctors. Seeing Doctors 5 – 8 on screen in their outfits was great, seeing Five and Seven interacting and even putting to bed some old storylines with Tegan and Ace, who have a starring active role in the episode, was fantastic. Sacha Dhawan’s Master was also a highlight, the scene of him playing the Second Doctor’s flute on a barren alien world for seemingly no reason still puts a smile on my face thinking about it and hell even the actual regeneration scene was great, simple and yet brilliantly shot with a fun cliffhanger. So despite some serious flaws in regards to all the actual new content it’s been a long time since I enjoyed new Doctor Who on my TV that much. Roll on the 60^th! (My review can be found by clicking HERE)