Classic Who Reviews: The 7th Doctor

Having recently finished marathoning through Classic Who on iPlayer, I’ve decided to do a series of posts giving short reviews on each story, starting with the 7th Doctor.

Sylvester McCoy as the 7th Doctor

Season 24

Time and the Rani

A story deserving of its reputation. Time and the Rani epitomises every issue that crops up in eighties Who at one point or another. A dull story with lots of corridor running and a constantly screaming companion; there’s absolutely nothing redeeming about this story.

Rating: 3/10

Paradise Towers

Written by Stephen Wyatt, Paradise Towers was, until recently, one of my most hated serials in all of Classic Who. Much like a fine wine, however, it took until my latest viewing to finally appreciate all this story has to offer.

Packaged in a neat punk dystopia aesthetic, the story sees The Doctor and Mel come face to face with a cavalcade of interesting cliques and characters. Vicious residents, rule-stickler Caretakers, and the different coloured Kangs all add to the distorted view of a tower block under the rule of anarchy. Clive Merrison’s performance as the Deputy Chief Caretaker, in particular, is a highlight of the story.

Sure, not everything about the story is perfect. The grungy sets and The Great Architects’ design can take you out of it at times, but they don’t detract too much from the overall fun ride.

Rating: 7/10

Delta and the Bannermen

From a step in the right direction to two steps back. Delta and the Bannermen is yet another story that helps earn season 24 its less-than-stellar reputation.

Doctor Who does Hi-di-Hi in this three-parter. Unfortunately, the premise does very little for me, and the stereotyped Welsh people always seem to rub me up the wrong way.

Rating: 5/10

Dragonfire

The series finale and my personal favourite of season 24, Dragonfire, acts as both the end and beginning of an era.

An underrated classic, the serial takes a darker tone than the rest of the stories in season 24. Iceworld’s titular leader, Kane, greatly contributes to this shift in tone. He easily gets under the main cast’s skin as he knows exactly what to say to get people to sign up for his deadly deals. Moreover, the story does a great job of balancing Mel’s exit alongside Ace’s introduction. 

Rating: 7.5/10

Average season rating: 5.63/10

Season 25

Season 25 Serial – The Happiness Patrol

Remembrance of the Daleks

Remembrance of the Daleks kicks off the new era with a bang. Aaronovich’s script makes for the perfect Dalek Civil War trilogy finale with a renewed 7th Doctor who leads them around by the eye stalk.

What sells this story for me is the effort made into the world-building of the ‘60s era. It doesn’t shy away from the societal strife of the time. Moreover, the story has some great side characters with the Counter-Measures team, making for great historical stand-ins for UNIT. It’s just a shame that Davros’ role in the story is reduced to nothing more than a screaming head.

Rating: 9/10

The Happiness Patrol

A planet where sadness is illegal and those found guilty face the wrath of a killer robotic liquorice allsorts man. The Happiness Patrol is another 7th Doctor serial that I find underrated. It’s got the same punk dystopia aesthetic that Paradise Towers had, only this time, they’ve improved the formula.

The Kandy Man lands on the right side of playful, and Terra Alpha’s secret police force are suitably menacing. The only weak parts of the story come from the bland set design and the lull in the action that happens around episode 2.

Rating: 7.5/10

Silver Nemesis

The last truly terrible story in the classic era, the Sliver Nemesis, ends the Cybermen saga on a rather sour note.

In theory, this story has all the makings of an epic adventure. There’s a cyber-invasion involved, Timelord weapons, 17th-century villains, and the resurgence of the Reich; the story had everything necessary for an action-packed romp. Unfortunately, the end product is an uninteresting runaround that barely puts the main leads under any threat. 

Unlike Time and the Rani, however, this story does have some redeeming aspects. Lady Peinforte has a few good moments. Her liberal views on death and her comedic conversation with the American heiress at least provide something different to the monotonous running around this serial does. 

Rating: 5/10

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

Rounding off McCoy’s second season at the helm, The Greatest Show in the Galaxy is a strong entry that I’ve come to appreciate over time.

It always surprises me that it took 25 years of the classic series before someone came up with the idea of a story that features creepy clowns. It was well worth the wait, though, as Stephen Wyatt’s take on an alien circus is suitably psychedelic and provides an excellent introduction to the Elder Gods.

Rating: 8/10

Average Season Rating: 7.38/10

Season 26

Season 26 Serial – Survival

Battlefield

As someone who doesn’t usually like unserious and light-hearted stories, Battlefield is an exception.

There’s just something about this story that pushes all the right buttons for me. A tasteful use of fan service and an Arthurian treasure hunt played out with magic and guns, all pulled together by fantastic guest performances from Jean Marsh and Angela Bruce. They give their all to their performances, and it’s a shame we never get to see their characters again on screen.

Rating: 8/10

Ghost Light

In the second serial of Season 26, Ghost Light takes a trip down Ace’s tumultuous past.

This is a great story as a character study of Ace. It shows what makes her tick and how her impulsivity can cause problems. Unfortunately, Ace’s character arc is muddied by a slightly confusing story and a Victorian aesthetic that I personally feel is overplayed in media. 

Rating: 7/10

The Curse of Fenric

Usually battling it out for the best-rated story of the 7th Doctor era alongside Remembrance, for me, this story always wins.

A Brilliant setting and flawed yet ultimately human characters set this story apart from all the others in this era. It exemplifies all the wonderful changes made after the disastrous season 24 and why it still saddens me that Classic Who was cancelled just as it was getting good again.

Rating: 10/10

Survival

Whilst it may not be perfect, Survival is my absolute favourite story of the 7th Doctor era. Given that this story holds so many memories for me, and is one of the reasons why I continue to love Classic Who to this very day, it’s hard to think of this serial objectively.

Everything in this story clicks with me. I love how it poses questions for Ace in a way that isn’t facilitated by The Doctor. I love the world-building involved with the Planet of the Cheetah People, the eco-system of the Cheetah People and the Kitlings and how they influence the planet’s longevity. And I love Dominic Glynn’s scoring for the story. The electric guitar motif perfectly underscores the cast’s fight for survival.

Rating: 10/10

Average Season Rating: 8.75/10

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The Eighth Doctor Adventures: Audacity Review

Audacity Cover Illustration

Synopses:

The Devouring by Lisa McMullin (1 part)
Lady Audacity Montague – strong-minded and unconventional – has been gazing at the stars. But unfortunately for her – and everybody she knows – they’ve been staring back. She’s made inadvertent, intergalactic eye contact with a malevolence known as The Devouring. Now it wants to consume her. But Audacity is already consumed. With rage.

The Great Cyber-War Part 1 by Tim Foley (1 part)
The Great Cyber-War. Humanity and her allies versus the horror of the Cybermen. This is no place for the Doctor to take his new best friend. But on the Aurum, the war seems far away. There are parties and cupcakes and all the gold of Voga – and not a Cyberman to be seen…

The Great Cyber-War Part 2 by Tim Foley (1 part)
The Cyber-War has come to the Aurum. The best hope of survival lies with the great Oberon Fix – the finest scientific mind of his generation, working to protect humanity. But the Doctor is worried that his own presence will affect history’s outcome. And for Audacity, life with the Doctor will never be the same again…

The Devouring by Lisa McMullin

Following a spectacular run of adventures last year, the Eighth Doctor Adventures range returns, this time with a companion in tow, Audacity Montague.

Written by seasoned regular Lisa McMullin, The Devouring starts the boxset off with a typical companion introduction story as The Doctor intervenes in the companion’s life as they come under an alien threat. In this case, the story follows The Doctor as he becomes involved with Lady Audacity Montague. A headstrong woman with her eyes firmly set on the stars, she catches the attention of a rather nasty species all about consuming.

As expected of a story looking to introduce a new main companion, the majority of the plot is focused on Audacity and her character. Expertly portrayed by Jaye Griffiths, Audacity is immediately recognisable as a strong, independent woman whose first impression amongst audiences is likely to come across as prickly and unlikeable. For all her dogged negativity towards men and dangerous levels of self-reliance, however, McMullin has been clever not to write Audacity into any traps commonly seen for this type of character. 

Throughout the story, Audacity develops many layers, although the character herself may view these as weaknesses due to her intense need to keep up the façade. These “weaknesses” are best displayed as The Devouring intensifies its threat as the story progresses. Through these moments, we’re given a glimpse of an Audacity away from the public eye, the one with an unconventional yet happy marriage and the one who’s all too comfortable playing with the taboo of hanging around the lower classes. 

Whilst the character work of The Devouring can be considered a strong point, the same can’t be exactly said of the main plot. Overly simplistic, the alien threat of the story wants for nothing but to consume. Beyond character work, it is only saved by Audacity’s in-character self-sacrifice and her inability to stay within her own time at the end of the story.

Furthermore, The Doctor has little to do within this story. Likely a consequence of wanting to focus on Audacity, The Doctor’s capacity as part of the story is to deliver exposition and save Audacity from The Devouring’s ever-lasting hunt.

Whilst the alien threat is nothing to write home about, The Devouring more than makes up for it with character development. This story makes for an excellent introduction to The Doctor’s new companion, Audacity. Through an intense focus on her throughout the adventure, the writer manages to layer her character with a litany of complexities, providing a solid foundation for Audacity and The Doctor’s further adventures together. 

My Rating: 7/10

The Great Cyber-War (Part 1 + 2) by Tim Foley

Featuring Audacity’s first venture in the TARDIS, The Great Cyber-War, written by Tim Foley, finds the travelling duo thrust into an adventure filled with danger.

Landing on the Aurum, The Doctor and Audacity find themselves at one of the most turbulent moments in human history, the height of the Great Cyber-War. Those who have reached the Aurum have done so in anticipation of a final end to the conflict. Its chief resident, Oberon Fix, is an inventor of great renown who may finally have invented a weapon capable of destroying the Cybermen for good. With Oberon Fix set to become the galaxy’s great saviour, there’s something amiss amongst the glaring opulence. Why are rebels attempting to assassinate Oberon? And why haven’t the Cybermen decided to attack such an obvious target such as the Aurum? 

Part 1

The two-parter starts off with a good impression as the first non-Earth environment that Audacity sees is an all too familiar scene – objects of opulence and a noble banquet. Upon this discovery, Audacity comments about people’s obsession with artificial beauty over the natural world around them. It’s an important scene that’ll set The Doctor and Audacity’s allegiances for the rest of the episode.

The true start of the story, however, gets started once The Doctor and Audacity get separated as a result of a failed assassination attempt on Oberon Fix. Par for the course in a lot of Doctor Who stories, this separation finds The Doctor mixing with the higher-ups on The Aurum, whilst Audacity becomes embroiled with the rebel plot on Voga.

For Audacity, the rebel plot on Voga quickly becomes a cause for her to champion. Building Oberon’s glitter gun has consequences, ones which are felt more by the commoners on Voga. Those working in the gold mines have become ill, and the society around them has chosen to ignore their plight for the sake of money and safety. Meanwhile, The Doctor’s storyline sees him dig for information about the progress of the war. As he finds out, The Great Cyber-War has affected everyone in one way or another.

These scenes throughout the first part help in building the world and the wider universe’s complexity. It provides an interesting perspective on how the galactic war has affected everyone and the sheer desperation it’s driven them to. Moreover, Audacity’s plot expands the world-building that first started in Revenge of the Cybermen. It shows Voga as an entire world, not just the council shown in its first appearance.

Part 2

With the Cybermen appearing as part of the first episode cliffhanger, the second begins with an important scene between The Doctor and Audacity. As Audacity’s hatred of the higher-ups starts to cloud her mind, The Doctor brings her back towards the reality of the situation by explaining who the real enemy is.

Whilst I find this part to be the weaker of the two, this speech, emotionally performed by Paul McGann, would definitely be in line for the best moment of the boxset. The speech captures the essence of the Cybermen masterfully – an overwhelming force who only convert or destroy.

As for the main plot of the second part, it follows the newly assembled group of rebels and Aurum guards, including The Doctor and Audacity, as they attempt to stop the Cybermen from getting their hands on their recently developed super weapon. It serves as a solid resolution to the series as their perilous journey lays claim to many victims – an expected feature when the Cybermen are around.

Unfortunately, the Cybermen overall feel underused within the wider context of the story. Aside from the story’s conclusion, it feels as though the Cybermen are only used as generic alien enemies, and we never see any of their more dastardly plans come to fruition.

Thankfully, though the Cybermen themselves are lacking, the revelations behind the ultimate Cyber-killer more than make up for it. As it turns out, the ultimate weapon against the Cybermen isn’t some glitter gun but a pulse weapon specially designed to force a gold weakness on the Cybermen at a molecular level. While this effect is all well and good, “quantum gold” has another consequence. To destroy the Cybermen, all gold throughout the universe would need to be utilised, destroying Voga and the Vogans as a consequence. With death and destruction in the conclusion inevitable, it is no wonder that The Doctor needs to go for some rest and recuperation by the end of the story.

Overall, The Great Cyber-War is undoubtedly the strongest story of the boxset. Filled with excellent character moments, its true test of strength comes from the painstaking effort to imagine a Voga beyond the confines of Revenge of the Cybermen. Throughout this story, its writer, Tim Foley, creates a full Vogan society as well as a perspective on how the wider galaxy sees them and their potential. As a result, The Great Cyber-War makes for an entertaining listen for any fan of classic Doctor Who!

My Rating: 8.5/10

Overall Boxset Rating: 8/10

The Ninth Doctor Adventures Vol. 3: Lost Warriors Review

Boxset Art for Volume 3

A pick-up from the recent Scribe Awards sale, for my latest review I thought I’d take my first foray into Big Finish’s newer series, The Ninth Doctor Adventures.

1) The Hunting Season by James Kettle

The Hunting Season Cover Art

Synopsis:

3.1 The Hunting Season by James Kettle

Duberry Hall is under siege, as aliens maraud through the estate. It’s a frightful business, and as Lord Hawthorn battles the Fleshkin, the Doctor finds new friends below stairs. Can he convince the household to unite to save itself? (Source: BigFinish)

Starting off the Lost Warriors boxset and the Doctor finds himself at Duberry Hall during a siege. Around the country grounds, the Fleshkin are on the hunt and the Doctor will have to try his hardest if he’s to find a peaceful solution.

Hunting Season is a solid, fast-paced adventure to open the third set. Having Eccleston’s Doctor mingle with the upper classes is a sight to behold. Clearly uncomfortable with the situation, you can tell this version of the Doctor more than any other has a real distaste for the way these people treat others, especially those considered lower than themselves.

The entire Hawthorn family are a piece of work, from their gun-loving daughter and misplaced rose-tinted view of war to the way they choose to deal with the Fleshkin and their abhorrent treatment of their servants, the author wants us to dislike them and it works, even if its a little over the top. It’s not all madness with the Hawthorns though, as there’s a clear acknowledgement between Lord Hawthorn and the Doctor about his experiences in war and his stance on the matter.

Beyond the rich folk, there are the servants who work downstairs each with their own sets of dreams and ambitions. Annette Badland is the standout performance here as Mrs Goose, protecting the others from the harsh punishments brought about by Streatham’s sadistic mind. Her character is also instrumental in the peace talks between the humans and the fleshkin making what would’ve been a revolutionary vegetarian meal for the time.

As for the supposed alien threat of the episode, the fleshkin, well they’re not actually a threat. They’ve come to Earth in search of a war criminal and have no interest in killing humans or even animals since they’re vegetarian. Very much a “looks can be deceiving” kind of deal and as I found out by the end of the series, it becomes a running theme.

As it turns out, Lord Hawthorn is the alien in question and has been in hiding on Earth ever since the war. Whilst he may have calmed down quite a bit since the war days he still needs to pay for his crimes and with him gone, the house disbands and the servants can go out and follow their dreams. A nice end to a fun story.

Overall, Hunting Season, the first story in the boxset is all in good fun. It’s not particularly groundbreaking but does a good job of getting the pace and the feel of a Ninth Doctor story. There are some great performances and a nice bit of humour thrown in as the Doctor struggles with the higher-ups in society making for a good comfort listen.

My Rating: 7.5/10

2) The Curse of Lady Macbeth by Lizzie Hopley

The Curse of Lady Macbeth Cover Art

Synopsis:

3.2 The Curse of Lady Macbeth by Lizzie Hopley

The TARDIS is drawn to Scotland again – to the troubled Kingdom of Moray, and its Queen Gruach. Or, as the Doctor knows her better, Lady Macbeth. While some believe she is the cause of her people’s woes, she may yet become their saviour. (Source: BigFinish)

Medieval Scotland is the stage for the second story in the boxset as the Doctor meets the figures used as inspiration for the infamous play, Macbeth.

Queen Gruach and the Kingdom of Moray are under threat, not by King Duncan or the Vikings, but by an unseen foe. With the Kingdom’s children being taken and returned as mouthless ones, will the Doctor be able to solve the problem before Gruach’s people turn on her?

In contrast to the first story, The Curse of Lady Macbeth gives a darker tone to the series as the Doctor comes across children in cocoon-type structures and people struck by fear and ready to turn into a mob at a moment’s notice.

What Hopley does well in this story is in her creation of well-rounded characters, none more so than Lady Macbeth. In very much a man’s world, she does her best to serve her people. Hopley and the actress Neve McIntosh do wonderfully in showcasing the characters’ necessary ruthlessness alongside the pivotal motherly side that ensures The Doctor can get a head start in identifying the alien being.

As for the story itself, it’s fine. The twist of Prince Kinade having killed Lady Macbeth’s former husband was done well but the main alien threat is just another alien being that feeds on the emotional state of humans – not an all too uncommon motivation in Doctor Who.

This, however, is also where one of the main problems of the story lies, its inherently visual nature. Almost all of what the Doctor finds out about the creature comes from Lulach, a child who does not speak and can only communicate through drawings, which usually wouldn’t be a problem had this had been on tv, but this falls on descriptions which I find fail to bring these nightmarish creations to life. A similar problem occurs when giving evidence to show that Gruach hadn’t killed the children due to her motherly nature and the way she held a baby – something we can’t see.

Furthermore, this story hinges on the audience being somewhat familiar with the Shakespeare play and Gaelic mythology, which comes at you thick and fast throughout the story. I was lucky in having studied Macbeth for GCSEs so I had some knowledge of the references but I definitely needed more info on the mythology to make the story more enjoyable.

The Curse of Lady Macbeth would be fantastic…If it was on tv. As for its audio representation, it’s still a good story, the dark atmosphere is palpable and Eccleston and McIntosh play well off each other, it is just a shame the horrifying imagery never truly shines through.

My Rating: 7.5/10

3) Monsters in Metropolis by John Dorney

Monsters in Metropolis Cover Art

Synopsis:

3.3 Monsters in Metropolis by John Dorney

Berlin, 1927. The making of a science fiction legend. But death stalks the film set and history is not what the Doctor expects it to be. And this new ‘Machine Man’ is a more terrifying vision of humanity’s future than Fritz Lang had in mind… (Source: BigFinish)

Finally, we reach my most anticipated story of the set, the Ninth Doctor vs Cybermen story and one I’d heard nothing but good things about.

The story sees the Doctor arrive on the set of Metropolis, only to find that the robot central to the plot has been changed for a cyberman. With murders piling up on set, Metropolis is about to become famous for all the wrong reasons!

This story starts as a solid cyberman romp as the Doctor goes into fan mode over one of the most influential movies in history. Fantastic imagery is created as the atmosphere aims to feel like a film set during the 1920s and we often get Lang’s stage directions go off in the background.

Unfortunately for the Doctor, it won’t be your average meet and greet as history has changed, a cyberman puppeteered by Jovanovic has wrangled its way into the main role.

Originally deciding to destroy the creature, the Doctor changes his mind, giving it a chance since it doesn’t seem like an ordinary cyberman, more human than most. Then the murders take place and the story changes from a solid, generic cyberman story to a stellar piece of audio work.

At around the halfway point, the dynamic of the story changes as it’s revealed that the cyberman has overcome its programming and has fallen victim to Dieter’s manipulation, forcing it to continue killing.

There are some wonderfully human moments from then on as the story delves deep into the killers’ motivation. German history and especially the period during the 20s and early 30s make for the crux of the story. After the first world war, the people were forced to pay reparations backing an already poor populous into a corner giving them nothing to lose. Dieter is one of them and his reaction to having nowhere left to turn brings him to hatred, looking for someone or something to blame for his suffering. He chose to direct his hatred towards a movie promoting peace, others later will direct their hatred at a people, a hatred that would cause the death of millions.

Alongside Dieter, there’s the story of the cyberman, a terribly sad story of pain and suffering. Forced to continue killing as its more human side has taken over is hard to listen to. After everything the cyberman has been through, it just wants to stop, it holds no grudge and has to reckon with everything it’s done.

Dorney then creates some of the most poignant scenes in audio that I’ve heard for a long time, a scene shared between two former warriors. The Doctor decides to watch the finished Metropolis film with the cyberman allowing it to witness something beautifully human before it ends its life. I don’t think my review will quite do this scene justice it’s just something that needs to be listened to. The scene is full of emotion and completely heart-wrenching and was one of the very few stories from Big Finish to have brought me close to tears.

Concluding the third volume in the series, Monsters in Metropolis is Dorney and Big Finish at their best. A story built on solid cybermen foundations elevated to extreme heights due to the human story the audio evolves into. Masterful!

My Rating: 10/10

Lost Warriors overall is an incredibly solid set with two good stories and one that would likely be thought of as one of Big Finish’s best stories. After listening to all three, each story has similarities such as the reveal of the true threat, done to varying degrees of success in each story. Yet, each story does well to fit into its chosen era and has done well to characterise the Ninth Doctor not long regenerated after the events of the time war. Monsters in Metropolis does this best with the Doctor showcasing overwhelming mercy and showing that even some of the universes’ great evils can be misconstrued and are capable of humanity and good.

Boxset Rating: 8.5/10