The second and third stories in the “Pioneers” set are, um, something alright. Not quite sure what happened here but there seemed to be a bet between the two authors as to who can write the duller pseudo-historical as they both cover historical periods / characters but while both are clearly written by people who are genuinely interested in the subjects both are really… not very engaging. Oh well, let’s take a look…
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The Ninth Doctor is back and this time he actually has a continuing storyline he needs to tie up! Yes he’s still travelling with Callen and his talking dog Doyle, looking for a place the two can settle, and would you believe he ends up in a place that’s repeating a mistake from his distant past? What are odds?! Let’s take a look!
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Here we go then, Big Finish’s contribution to the 60th Anniversary celebrations is a series of audios where the Eighth Doctor (seemingly) “degenerates” into his past selves and has to go searching for a way to stop the phenomena while wearing his old faces. It’s an interesting idea though it does put my ordering of the stories completely out of whack. Do I count this as a Fourth Doctor story because the Doctor is played by and apparently looks like Tom Baker? Do I put all the stories in the Eighth Doctor page? What about the fact that we know Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant are also in the series? I have no idea, that’s why I’ve made this thumbnail template using the 60th Anniversary logo… Well, either way: let’s have a look at Past Lives and hope future entries aren’t this over-packed and muddled!
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The second story in Conflicts of Interest isn’t as frequently downbeat as its predecessor but given its set just before World War II it isn’t the light relief you might be looking for either. It’s also oddly structured in that each part has a very different feel to it, which given Part 1 goes for the “main cast are acting like normal humans living normal lives” plot point, one I never really care for, that at least came as a relief… Let’s take a look!
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Conflicts of Interest was a strange boxset, a very serious tone was present throughout but none more serious than this first story: Friendly Fire. Tackling the subject of racism and prejudice with zero hand-holding should be applauded and in that sense it is a really well written story but I have to admit I don’t normally watch/listen/read Doctor Who stories to feel downbeat afterwards, so I can’t say I liked the story, even if it was undeniably a good story. Confused? Well, let’s take a deeper look…
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Antillia The Lost is a strange one to review as it’s more formulaic than the previous story but Margaret was far more… bearable as a companion, even if it was only due to her personality being reset to “generic companion” throughout the story. Still, if you like your pulpy sci-fi clichés, um, pulpy then you’ll have a fun time, so let’s take a look!
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The latest set of Fourth Doctor adventures is here once again comprised of two four-parters thrown in a box to match the other Doctor Who releases, so I won’t be including the box title. It kicks off a “new era” of sorts as Margaret from last year’s “The Ravencliff Witch” is brought on board as a companion alongside Leela and frankly… I just don’t think it works. I said in the review for that story that I found it odd she made a big enough impression to get the permanent gig when she was one of the few potential companions that didn’t stand out to me at all, and, well… sadly my gut feeling was right, at least in my opinion. That’s the problem with recording so many stories in advance I guess! Well, either way, let’s take a deeper look into “Ice Heist!” and see what does work, shall we?
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The Return of Jo Jones’ second and third story sadly follow on from the first in being perfectly fine but a bit dull and predictable. The two-parter format doesn’t help, but I’ve heard good two-parters before so it’s not an excuse really! Oh well, let’s take a look at “The Conservitors” and “The Iron Shore”, shall we?
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“The Return of Jo Jones” is an odd boxset. Apparently this reunion of the Third Doctor and an older Jo came about from Katy Manning saying she was struggling to do the young Jo voice but honestly her performance here doesn’t sound that far removed from her other Jo voicework anyway… Still, if it makes her happier to continue then sure, why not? Sadly this opening adventure is as plain as it comes in plot and characters, so doesn’t really get the “new” era off to a flying start, but hey-ho. Let’s take a look!
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The Shades of Fear set comes to an end with a double whammy of the returning Vashta Nerada and the Vermeen from the start of the set, opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of name value but it oddly works really well. Plus a few actually interesting guest characters and a great use of the audio medium all come together to make one of the better Ninth Doctor stories to come along in a while. Let’s take a deeper look…
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Hogan Reviews 