Archeological Adventuress: Like some twisted version of the
dream Tegan suffers in Kinda, Bernice has to decide which of the three realities
that she is hopping between is real. She better get it right because by all
accounts (or at least given past form) the Epoch have the ability to snuff the
other two out with all the effort of blowing out a candle. Bernice knowing
about the White Rabbit is a nice dovetailing of Doctor Who and this series, the
Doctor passing down the knowledge of its existence to her after his adventures
with Ace and Hex. She has learnt a great deal about time travel in her time
with the Doctor and since, she knows that it is something you shouldn’t take
for granted and you have to tread (in case there are any butterflies around
that you might step on) very carefully. Benny talks passionately about the
dinosaurs and finds it a sheer joy to be surrounded by them when all she
normally gets to explore are dug up dusty old bones and now she can actually touch
them. If she was really trapped in the 1800s she would be of to the
Diogenes Club quick as a flash. Bernice describes herself as one tiny,
insignificant person but let’s face it, that’s modesty for you because she’s
never been that. There’s only one pod and Bernice gives that up for Ruth who is
so much younger and hasn’t lived a fraction of the life that she has.
Priestess: ‘I’ll perish on a world that never should have
been with memories of a life that never was…’ Ruth very quickly reminds
Benny that she isn’t stupid when she answers her questions in a particularly
condescending way. There’s definitely hope for her yet. Given Benny’s logic of
interfering in the past she concludes that they should technically be standing
still and saying absolutely nothing…although that would make for rather a dull
audio. Ruth has latent memories buried in her subconscious and vicinity to the
Epoch is freeing them. It takes Ruth to tell Benny that if she is so certain
that theirs is the primary reality then she should switch the other two off
without a moments hesitation, thus exposing her doubts. It seems that Bernice
and Ruth are destined to split and live their lives apart which seems a shame
since a lot of effort has gone into ensuring that their relationship clicked.
Standout Performance: ‘Belching flames, thank you. Nobody breathes
flames. Do you have any idea how difficult that would be?’ Jack’s character is
completely re-interpreted in the final story into something that suits David
Ames’ performance. He was turning up in the first three adventures as a
sinister reminder of what Bernice has lost but Ames’ fey, almost camp turn of
phrase meant that these potentially striking scenes felt oddly discordant. He
is revealed to be Springheel Jack, an eccentric, nimble, resourceful fellow
with more knowledge of the situation than is healthy. He’s an electrifying
presence now the pretence is dropped away and another intriguing ally for Bernice.
Unbelievable that this is the same actor tucked away in the thankless role of
Nathan in Planet of the Dead. Clearly he had much more to give as an actor than
was exploited on screen. Jack wants to be creepy and live up to his reputation
but hilariously can’t help mincing it up and looking the fool. He’s great fun
to be around.
Sparkling Dialogue: ‘Destroy the human race now and there’s
nobody around to say ‘I told you so…’
‘We can still outrun them! Evolution’s on our side
remember!’
‘What’s six inches between friends?’ – oo-er!
‘Barrier down. Year Zero officially scuppered!’
‘You’re the best might have been friend I could have never
maybe hoped to have!’
Great Ideas: You’ve got what is by
far the best cover in the box set with the surprisingly sinister and yet
utterly camp looking Epoch robots staring out at you whilst Lisa Bowerman,
Ayesha Antoine and David Ames all look equally radiant. If we’re not going to
enjoy Ade Salmon’s gorgeous artwork anymore (and I am still a little bitter
about that, although I understand the reasons for the rebrand entirely) then
can we have more cover of this nature please (because some of the others have
looked a little…photoshopped). Swapping between realities so readily makes for
an intriguing opening gambit because there is absolutely no way of knowing
which is the real Bernice Summerfield and Ruth or whether they both are. Or
neither. You’re pretty much at sea. This is the adventure where Bernice gets up
close and personal with dinosaurs and for that allow it is worth shouting home
about. It all becomes very ipseitic when they start to wonder if it doesn’t
matter which Bernice and Ruth lives or dies and consider which environment
might be best to live in. Handcock makes the brilliant point that everything on
Atlantis at the beginning of this box set was how the audience would imagine it
being rather than how it actually was. It was such a picture postcard view of
the mythical city I’m glad somebody pointed out that it was deliberate. Murder
on the Omega Express? Jack got a little too close to Zordin when the
Epoch where re-mapping the planet and has been trapped here ever since. This
solar system represents a threat to the past, present and future of the Epoch
and that is why all of the planets have been mapped a re-mapped. That’s why
history and exploration could not be allowed. That is the scheme. Control the
system and control their fate. One Epoch watches over each of the different
worlds until it winks out of existence. There’s a forcefield around the planet that
has been cutting off this system ever since Year Zero…the whole point of the
meme in The Sky’s No Limit song is that it encourages people to think
beyond that forcefield and out into the universe. Benny and Ruth need to lock
themselves outside of time as the alternatives coalesce into one timeline, just
as the Epoch did. Strangely enough the real triumph of this story is returning
Benny to where she was when the story began – to the timeline where her son is
waiting for her to find him.
Audio Landscape: Metal clanging, creatures purring in the
night, carriage rattling along a path, Big Ben, footsteps, dinosaurs bellowing
and screaming, running on a gantry, an Epoch winking out of existence, bio
mechanical data glove.
Isn’t it Odd: The fabric of reality is shifting, the planet
is closing in around Benny and the Ruth’s…this would make for a bittersweet,
shocking conclusion to the Epoch story had this exact scenario not already
played out at the end of Private Enemy No 1. Almost to highlight the fact the
same music kicks in.
Standout Scene: It might be naughty of me to say but the
scene where a caveman picks up his mobile phone and got an ear bashing from
‘her indoors’ because he had been out hunting too long had me in stitches. Even
if he does sound scarily like Papa Lazarou from The League of Gentlemen!
Some of their dialogue is overdone but the broad performances make for some
pleasing comedy after the abstract horror of the last story. The appearance of
Brax at the climax and the way he leaves a trail of breadcrumbs to the planet
Legion is a real moment of triumph. Things are looking promising for the
future.
Result: Massively entertaining, if a complete departure from
what I was expecting. It’s the only Bernice Summerfield story where you will
experience gay cavemen using GPS and mobiles, dinosaurs grazing in the
background and verbal swordplay between our heroine and Springheel Jack.
Answers do come but in the form of more questions (why is Benny the threat the
Epoch are threatened by?) and the method of releasing them is to undo a
conceptual puzzle concerning the identity of our heroes. Given the allergic
reaction to the Epoch box set upon its release I wasn’t expecting a lot (you
should never listen to reviews but it’s a curse) but I was quite surprised at
the manifold of treats that were on offer. A massive planet wide mystery, big,
bold concepts, a new family to help Benny acclimatise, an innovative menace
with devastating powers and some fantastic imagery and set pieces. It might not
always be the tightest of story arcs (Temple of Questions was largely
irrelevant) but taken as a whole there is so much good material thrown in I
found the overall story to be rather engaging. What I especially liked was how
Bernice was dumped unceremoniously on this planet, friendless and depressed and
over the course of the four stories we have seen the character be rebuilt from
the ground up and reminded of everything about her that makes her special (her
passion for life, her intelligence, her love of a good mystery and most of all
her love for her son). The only disappointment in Judgement Day is that the
ultimate showdown and solution consists of little more than Benny throwing a
lever and bringing down a forcefield. Its hardly the climactic conclusion that
has been promised after four hours worth of adventures. What does come out of
this conclusion though is how well developed and established Ruth has been and
her sacrifice to save Benny’s life gave me goosebumps all over. In plotting
terms this isn’t a particularly clever ending (and its far from conclusive but
I have a feeling that some of the hanging questions will be answered in the
future) but switching the focus onto character and it is fantastic. I
would suggest people give this entire story another listen without the caveat
of this being a ‘bold new beginning’ for Bernice (because ultimately the
purpose of the set is for her to re-discover her old life) and focus instead on
the strength of epic storytelling, character and direction. Its not quite the
best Benny has been but its very good all the same and much, much better
than its reputation would suggest: 8/10
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