We take a break from all the Syndicate side plots and Daleks’ Master Plan references for a more traditional, self-contained Fourth Doctor Adventure. Fever Island manages to mix a James Bond parody with a good old-fashioned Doctor Who “force from another dimension” plot to create an enjoyable hour. Let’s take a closer look…
When is using existing continuity going too far? That’s what question was on my mind while listening to this story. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very fun story that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but I do have to wonder about… well, the continuity it uses. Want to know more? Then by all means skip to the “Spoilers appear from here on out!” part of the review and find out!
The first ever Big Finish story starring Kamelion is now in the books, meaning this second (and third, I guess) story in the run has a little less intrigue around it, and if anything highlights a potential flaw in writing for the character: originality. Both stories once again feature Kamelion being influenced by another powerful mind, the only real plot point he had on TV, and a plot point from the previous audio story… Still, are Black Thursday and Power Game still worth listening to? Well…
Blood of the Daleks holds a special place in my heart, being the first audio drama I ever listened to, let alone the first Doctor Who audio story in general. It was on the radio, and having seen the TV Movie and liked Paul McGann as the Doctor, I thought I’d give it a go, and literally hundreds of Doctor Who audios have followed since! More of note in terms of this blog is that it’s the debut of Lucie “Bleedin” Miller, one of the more fun original companions, and also saw the Eighth Doctor transfer from traditional, “old Who” four roughly 30 minute episodes per story, into the “new Who” format of roughly one hour stories, with some being two parters. Also, it’s a Dalek story! Phew, that’s a lot of baggage, but does it work? Well…
This story always stuck in my head as not a very good one, and I think that mainly has to do with how the general fan opinion is that … well, it’s not very good. Upon re-listening to it for this marathon, I can confirm that… it’s not very good. Still, it introduces C’rizz to the pantheon of Eighth Doctor companions, so that’s something! Let’s take a look overall then, and then swiftly forget about it all over again…
I actually forgot about the Eighth Doctor’s run with Mary Shelley as a companion when I announced this marathon, but I will quickly add her into it, even if she only lasts three more stories after this 30-minute one… Mary’s Story is a fun one, mind you, full of good atmosphere and two very different versions of the same incarnation of The Doctor. Intrigued? Read on!
The fifth series (or Box set, if you like) of The Diary of River Song finishes up with a second half much like the first: two stories that are really fun to listen to, but a bit light on any major story arcs or development. Also like in the first half, one story features an incarnation of The Master that had yet to appear on Big Finish audio, in this case Eric Roberts’ version from the TV Movie! … Yay? … Sort of? Let’s find out!
The Fifth Series of Diary of River Song takes a side step from the “River meets past incarnations of the Doctor” set up and instead goes with “River meets different incarnations of The Master”. The first two stories includes the Big Finish debut of Missy, the first bit of Twelfth Doctor continuity to hit the audios, and unsurprisingly, is very fun indeed! Let’s have a look at River meeting both Missy, and rather more serious “melty Master”, in this first half of the set…
What happens when you take a historical person like Ada Lovelace and place her in a plot not unlike The Terminator? Unsurprisingly, given how I phrased that specific question, you get this! Seriously though, the idea of using the woman who, for all intents and purposes, invented computer code in a story about machines going back in time to change history was a great one, but does the story do the idea justice?
The Doctor and his new companion Ann Kelso visit their first alien world together, and it just so happens to be a bit Jurassic Park-y (and Alien-y!)… but with Drashigs! I’ve always loved the Drashigs, they were heavily featured in my first Jon Pertwee story, and I always thought those shots of them screaming and suddenly twisting their heads towards the camera was unsettling… at the time. Anyway, I’m glad they’ve finally been brought back, and even made to work well on audio! Let’s take a look…
