What’s it about: Responding to multiple maydays, the TARDIS lands on the planet of Death’s Deal, but the distress calls are old, the final echoes of terrified lost souls. This is an exotic world of lethal creatures, nicknamed ‘The Deadliest Planet in the Galaxy’, and only the brave, foolhardy or greedy would ever dare to visit. Finding themselves stranded among a motley bunch of space-tourists, the Doctor and Donna must lead a struggle for survival against the frenzied wildlife, as they slowly realise that other members of the group have very different agendas. And soon the Doctor learns of an even bigger threat hiding on Death’s Deal. Somewhere deep below the surface, is something that must never be unearthed. Time is running out, and only an impossible survivor holds the key…
Mockney Dude: A madman in a brown pinstripe suit, a lanky
streak of madness. The Doctor leaping about the TARDIS, yanking on levers and
dancing instantly takes me back to the tenth Doctor’s period (can you be
nostalgic about an era of the show that is only five years ago?). He’s always
ready to shake a tentacle. There is always one with a gun, the Doctor notes,
disappointed. The eleventh Doctor knows the tenth Doctor best of all and
recognises that he is so good with danger (‘After me, you’re the
greatest!’). All of the tenth Doctor’s famed trademarks are present; the
righteous anger, his absolute faith in his companions, lust for adventure and
his way of explaining the situation at such a speed that it doesn’t really
matter why something is going on because he makes it sound so dangerous. If he
doesn’t protect the cosmos, who else will?
A group of aliens that remind Donna of a Saturday night hen
party? That’s the sort of mad observation she was always making. When she spots
the next Doctor she declares that he has had more than a little nip and tuck to
transform to such an extent. She’s seen ‘that Tom Hanks movie’ and
recognises narrative conventions in disaster movies, enough to know that the
survivor is the safest person to hang with. At one point Donna genuinely thinks
that she is going to die and her trademark fire deserts her for a moment. The
Doctor has complete faith in Donna, knowing that she will always make herself
useful. When she learns of aliens that use tentacles to attract the light she
isn’t having any of that malarkey, even though they do make a useful torch. Until
very recently, Donna had never seen a corpse but since travelling with the
Doctor she has seen many. Donna had hated zorbing on holiday but tried to bring
the experience to mind when she was locked inside an alien shell. Donna’s heart
leaps for joy when she finally catches up with the TARDIS. More than any other
companion from the new series I got the sense that that crazy old time ship was
more than just a trip around the universe but a chance at a second life.
Standout Performance: Hearing Catherine Tate bringing Donna
back to life gives me chills, simply because she is the character I would most
like to see resurrected (and yet paradoxically not because she was left in such
a satisfying place). Her interpretation of the tenth Doctor is excellent, still
fresh in Tate’s mind and Tennant’s mannerisms and tics have been embedded into
the public consciousness so it is easy for Darren Jones to give her lots of
pointers in the script.
Sparkling Dialogue: ‘Who’s leaving me messages on a random
derelict spaceship? Any ideas?’ ‘Dunno, intergalactic call centres trying to
spam you for space insurance?’
‘Are you a shapeshifter?’ ‘No, not really. Although I had a
friend who was.’
‘I promise I’m never eating scallops again!’
Audio Landscape: Jamie Robertson is one of Big Finish’s
leading lights when it comes to sound design and music so I am surprised it has
taken him this long to turn up in the Destiny of the Doctor series. Then I
guess it has been about showing of the talent that the company has overall
rather than simply selecting a few individuals for promotion. A babble of mayday
voices, a transport freighter touching down, the ground springing to life as
crab like legs emerge, the carnivorous maw of an underground beast, cones
exploding, sucking, digesting noises, Donna struggling across the coral
landscape, hard shelled crustaceans scuttling about, a heartbeat, tinkling
slaughter crystals, rushing water, walking on gravel.
Isn’t it Odd: Aside from the delightful alien mollusc that
Donna hangs out with underground (‘you get your barnacled backside into that
box!’), I didn’t find any of the rest of the guest cast particularly
memorable. This might be a problem in other stories but with so much excitement
inherent in the location and the leading lights that are the Doctor and Donna
more than compensate.
Standout Scene: Like a Russian Doll effect, Donna can only
escape the fate of being pulped by a living excavating creature underground by
being consumed by the carapace of her alien companion. Donna within an alien
with an alien. That’s the kind of glorious monstrousness that Death’s Door
flaunts.
Result: A trip to the most dangerous planet in the galaxy
lives up to it’s name and the latest installment in the Destiny of the Doctor series
throws so many terrifying and memorably disgusting obstacles at the Doctor and
Donna that it is a miracle that they make it out alive. Yes, I did say the
Doctor and Donna! My favourite new series combo are back for a one-off story
and Catherine Tate is in the driving seat. Has someone been reading my
Christmas wish list? Many of the devices from the tenth Doctor’s era are
present in Death’s Deal (‘Allons-y!’) but I wouldn’t expect anything
less from a story that is trying to skilfully recreate the era (it is what the
Destiny series has all been about, nostalgic for the past leading to the
present). Darren Jones is the only new writer to Big Finish to contribute to
the series (he cut his teeth on the AudioGo stories The Eye of the Jungle and
Sleepers in the Dust but is still a relative newbie) and he brings all the
strengths and weaknesses to his writing that you might expect from a newcomer.
On the plus side there is an energy and fervour to the writing that comes from
a fresh set of hands dancing at the keyboard, he is clearly excited at the
opportunity and his enthusiasm and dynamism infects into the script at every
turn (and helps to capture the furious pace of the era). However he can be a
little too stimulated at times and over describe events to the point where it
skips from vivid to painstaking detail. What he gets absolutely spot on is the
characterisation of both the Doctor and Donna, a sparkling team that race
through Death’s Deal with charisma and good humour. With Catherine Tate reading
the story feels utterly authentic and her reading is superlative and with John
Ainsworth bringing the appropriately named planet to life on audio you can be
sure of some memorable set pieces. It was during Death’s Deal that I realised I
am really going to miss this series when it is over. Engaging stories like this
are reason why. For anybody who has been fatigued with Big Finish’s main range
of late then the Destiny of the Doctor series has proven there is still plenty
of life in audio Who yet: 8/10
3 comments:
Still haven't listened to it but your review is great! I'm looking forward even more after half reading it (half in order to avoid spoilers).
Ten+Donna are my fav Doc*Companion couples, after Eight+Lucie. Why is it that I love those mouthy companions who aren't afraid to tell the Doctor a piece of their minds?
(Not Tegan, Tegan is just annoying ang whinning, Tegan didn't know how to have fun, unlike Donna and Lucie)
I would be trhilled to bits if BF got the license to do some New series adventures with Tennant and Tate
If you havent already , you must listen to The Forever Trap and The Nemonite Invasion that Tate read for Audio Go a few years ago . They are about twice the length of this one but just as much fun.
Thanks for the recommendations, I haven't heard them yet but I think I will get hold of them. It's nice to know that there a couple more Donna tales to enjoy!
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