Softer Six: There is such a sense of joi de vivre
about the sixth Doctor these days, a man free from the shackles of his
television adventures and riding high on a giddy number of superlative
adventures on audio. Teaming up this refurbished incarnation with the charming
combination of Jago & Litefoot is magical, further adding to his repertoire
of charming audio companions. Whilst visiting Venus is a marvellous opportunity
to show off the delights of time travel
to his friends it is also a appreciative glimpse into one of the most enjoyable
aspects of Doctor Who that rarely gets explored these days thanks to the advent
of arcs and contemplative character drama – the simple thrill of exploring the
extraordinary. Its an oft overlooked treat. He tries to act the moralistic
adventurer by condemning a poacher but is soon put in his place and mentions
visiting Venus before with Jamie and Victoria and studying their martial arts
(all I could hear ringing in my ears was Pertwee going ‘Haaaaiiiii!’ at
this point!). Telling the Doctor about a location known as ‘the forbidden
caves’ is asking for trouble, you can practically hear him salivating at the
chance to go pottering. Ultimately the Doctor gives two races a chance to work
together, averts a slaughter, prevents a generation of children from being
exploited and gives a world a second chance. Boy has the sixth Doctor come
along way. He should have used this as his evidence during Trial of a Time
Lord!
Theatrical Fellow: Every now and again we fans have a fun
game of ‘who do you wish had hopped into the TARDIS for adventures with the
Doctor?’ and somewhere at the top of my list (along with the 4th
Doctor and Amelia Rumpford and/or Amelia Ducat) is the 6th Doctor
and Henry Gordon Jago. I’m not certain if the time continuum can handle such an
accentuated attack of tongue-twisting
terminology or a clash of such a colourful calibre of characters. If Big Finish
can be exploited to make fan wish fulfilment come true I have to say I was
delighted to see this most unlikely of combinations being brought to life.
Henry thinks that the TARDIS is a trick done with mirrors and fears that the
journey might be a little choppy. More than alien worlds and heterochthonous
creatures, Jago is agog at the sight of intelligent women in the future! After
exhibiting the most artistic entertainment that Victorian England has to offer,
Henry Jago finds it a complete indignity to be put on display for the great
unwashed! Even if he says so himself he is one of the finer specimens of
manhood!
Posh Professor: As my long suffering husband always reminds
me, behind every outwardly confident and successful man there is a partner
crossing the is and dotting the ts and making sure their ego doesn’t fall out
of orbit. Litefoot might seem to get the worse deal of the two characters
because he is outwardly less colourful than Jago but their partnership wouldn’t
be a success without him quietly admiring and chaperoning his more rambunctious
friend. For a scientist like Litefoot, exploring another world is a dream he
would never have thought possible which makes his reaction even more infectious
than Jago’s. Because they are now in the distant future, Litefoot gets an uncomfortable
portent of the Earth’s future and its not quite the teeming technological
metropolis he imagined it to be. He’s still a gentleman through and through and
decides to put himself in danger before the fairer sex…although on this planet
they consider that the norm regardless because men are more disposable! Jago
tries to apologise for dragging his dear friend the Professor on this little
jaunt but he wouldn’t have had it any other way. Considering the runaway
success of their own series, they more than deserve the moment of
congratulatory back patting at the heart of this story. From any other
characters it might feel remarkably self indulgent but we’ve been on some
amazing adventures with this pair and with far more to come standing on an
alien world surrounded by wonders feels like the perfect time to marvel at
their success.
Standout Performance: Oh come on, this is an audio
spearheaded by Colin Baker, Trevor Baxter and Christopher Benjamin. If that
isn’t reason enough to pick it up then the fact that it only costs twenty
shillings makes it compulsory. Where else can you be exposed to such acting
talent for a pound?
Sparkling Dialogue: ‘That infernal device! You’d have a more
dignified restful excursion plunging over the Niagara Falls in a barrel!’ –
Jago on the TARDIS!
‘A floating city in space! A mighty metropolis suspended in
space by hot air balloons!’
‘Go out on a song? I say that’s in rather poor taste!’
‘How many songs do you know that are appropriate to soothe a
rampaging horde of Shanghorn?’
‘Everyone’s a critic!’
‘You’re using God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen as the
basis of a Venusian lullaby?’ – sometimes its glorious being a Doctor Who fan
boy.
‘I can take you anywhere in time and space…and you want me
to take you to a pub?’
Great Ideas: Just look at that evocative cover…Jonathan
Morris takes Jago & Litefoot to a world steeped in Victorian atmosphere,
steampunk technology filling the sky and exotic creatures dogging their
footsteps. It’s a vision o the future that feels perfectly suited to their
characters, giving them the feeling of pioneers exploring an exotic plain for
the benefit of humanity. Jago even mentions laying a claim to the land on
behalf of Her Majesty and fancies mounting the head of the glamorous wildlife
on the club wall! Six years ago plant
and animal life starting appearing across the surface of Venus, turning up as
if from nowhere. After they had exhausted the Earth the human race had no
choice but to find a new home and they settled on Venus but because the atmosphere
was unsuitable they modified their bodies so they could survive on its surface.
Deep down they were still human beings. The ancestors created the oxygen
factories to try and make the atmosphere of the planet breathable. I might have
objected to the momentary glance at a ‘Planet of the Women’ scenario if it
wasn’t for Jago’s humble and seasoned reaction (‘when in Rome, etc, etc…’).
Caves with specimens trapped in ice like flies caught in amber, how
evocative. The Sytherians were the
original inhabitants of Venus who exhausted their fossil fuels and rendered the
planet uninhabitable (where have I heard that before?). Greed turned Sytheria
into a desert world ravaged by storms and acid rain. Much like the Silurians
they put themselves into suspended animation until their world became habitable
again, preserving specimens so one day a new world could be created from the
seeds of the old. The creatures humanity have been using as slaves are
Sytherian children. When it came time for them to abandon their world, the
greatest minds of their society pulled their consciousnesses into a single
being - the memorial o the Sytherians – acting as teacher and ambassador. This
is the Doctor Who story where they manage to stop and alien invasion by
soothing the monsters to sleep with music. Jago and Litefoot save the
day by singing a Christmas carol! That alone is such a delightful concept, it
would have sold me on that alone. Finally we get to make sense of the third
Doctor’s immortal line ‘never trust a Venusian Shanghorn with a perigosto
stick!’ and his mention of the Thraskins in The Time Monster.
Audio Landscape: Henry and George’s first turbulent journey
in the TARDIS, travelling through a time storm, the gorgeous soundscape of
their first alien world, screaming indigenous lifeforms, the echoing caves,
dripping, explosion, the cave roof collapsing, the raging Shanghorn.
Standout Scene: Because this TARDIS team is such a short
term arrangement I rather love the fact that Jonny Morris crams in as many
elements that we would recognise as a traditional Doctor adventure as possible.
A dictator to be crushed, an exotic alien world, creatures in hibernation, a
potential disaster story, glimpses into Earth’s future, a revenge story,
monsters emerging from mythology…the fact that it doesn’t feel rushed is a
testament to Morris’ skill as a writer. The cliffhanger into the next adventure
promises great things.
Result: To stretch an analogy to its most vacuous and
populist form, there is something of The X-Factor’s One Direction about Voyage
to Venus. Take lots of fashionable elements (probably the most popular audio
Doctor, probably the most popular Doctor Who spin off series and probably the
most popular audio writer – certainly a strong contender in each of their
categories) and shove them together and hope that it is a success story in the
making. Fortunately Voyage to Venus turns out to be as much of a triumph as the
pretty-boy teen band and then some. To say that this exceeded expectations is
an understatement and to say that I wish this was the beginning of a longer run
for this alluring ensemble echoes the success of the story. A Victorian vision
of the future, an enticing mystery to solve, witty colourful characters,
dialogue that embraces you like a lover on a winters evening and an immersive
soundscape to get lost in…Voyage to Venus feels like Christmas come early. In
the wake of the torturously complicated Hex arc, the epic generation-spanning
Drashani trilogy and the drama of UNIT: Dominion, this is perhaps the ultimate
refreshment; something that reminds us of the wonders of the universe and why
the Doctor enjoys exploring. Its uncomplicated but intelligent and provides a
intoxicating dose of adventure in a time when introspection and persecution
seem to be the order of the day. A story with no baggage…just a thrilling exploit
in time and space with Sixie and his friends Jago & Litefoot. Its just lovely:
8/10
Yep - this was a wonderful piece of work. I wrote a shorter note on Red Rocket Rising
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