Teeth and Curls: It’s heartening to hear that when people are told that the Doctor is the sworn enemy of the Daleks, they automatically think he is okay. He doesn’t want the villain to explain his nefarious plot because he is so over the top he doesn’t think he can bear it. How wonderful to hear the Doctor call somebody a ‘deluded, pathetic imbecile!’ I laughed until my sides hurt when the Doctor, right at the end of the adventure, suddenly remembers that Ann exists. Clearly it isn’t just me then.
Bobby on the Beat: In possibly her best moment yet, Ann loses her shit when she is trying to rescue the Doctor. Something is seriously off with her in this story. Perhaps it is a little bit early to suggest that she is acting out of character but she is pushing away from the simple bobby on the beat and becoming somebody quite obsessed. I don’t think anybody was prepared for the moment where she murdered somebody in the pursuit of her mission, but at least it was something surprising. The twist that she is a sleeper time agent is a good one, and it does explain away quite a few of my complaints about the character. Let’s see where they go with this one. I actually felt rather sorry for Zephon. She isn’t the first companion of the fourth Doctor to murder her way through adventures, but this is the first time a murder is used to reveal new shades about a character. It’s really rather well done.
Sparkling Dialogue: ‘I knew that frilly face was familiar!’
‘A basement full of monsters and you the worst monster of all!’
‘You can never have enough power to be safe!’
Great Ideas: Zephon’s father was once involved in an interplanetary incident with other high-ranking officials from various solar systems. A top-secret conference. His father was executed because the Doctor meddled and took his place. It’s as somewhat skewered sense of history (isn’t it always when there is a personal stake) but it does have a grain of truth to it. Zephon’s family were disgraced and the information about what happened was passed down by the Delegate from Celetious. You can understand why Zephon has a personal stake wanting to bring the Doctor down. The Zephon species are so arrogant they name everybody after the same thing. A man who only makes ethical weapons. What an alarming prospect. Imagine you could send all of your enemies into a fixed continuum bubble hidden away at a constant remove, a permanent couple of minutes in the past. Holding back something in time permanently…not existing anywhere. The Doctor’s DNA might be the key to making this insane prospect possible. All Elmore is doing is causing untold damage to space time.
Isn’t it Odd: Oh why not? Why not The Delegates from The Daleks’ Masterplan? There was a time when you could take in Big Finish’s output and point to the number of instances where they have used TV series continuity. Nowadays the reverse is true. You can point at a few stories that they haven’t provided a sequel/prequel/alongside story for. Pyramids of Mars? The Age of Sutekh! The Ark in Space? Wirrn Isle! Curse of Fenric? Gods & Monsters! Even when you get into more obscure stories like The Invisible Enemy and The Horns of Nimon. Have a go and this game, it’s really quite fun. This pilfering of Doctor Who’s continuity has gone beyond 80s Who’s propensity for wank, it has gone beyond fan service. Glimmers of originality abound but the company does tend to be a machine churning out fan service storytelling these days. The fourth Doctor range is particularly guilty in that respect, but the 8th Doctor and Lucie Miller range was just as culpable. What’s wrong with provided guilty pleasures for fans, I hear you ask? Nothing at all and I’m not saying that all of these examples are especially bad ones. My issue is that if you are pouring all of your energy into old continuity then you’re spending any time building up anything new. Which means you get remembered for picking over the husks of classic Who rather than created a bold, new version of the show to proud of. When the result of all your hard work building somebody up for a big return is ‘In the name of Zephon, die Doctor!’ is it really worth it?
Standout Scene: I wonder if they should have chosen somebody other than the Doctor to vaporise during the cliff-hanger because it must be obvious to a blind spielsnape that he isn’t utterly vapourised because there are three and a half other stories left in the set and I think some people would have something to say if Tom Baker doesn’t appear in them.
Result: ‘The single most powerful organisation for mayhem and terror the universe has ever seen!’ You’ve got to be careful when you advertise your Syndicate like that because you have to live up to that kind of hype. This is bonkers, insanely over the top and featuring a villain who speaks in every villainous cliché turned up to eleven. He’s rubbing shoulders with people turning into Varga plants and trying to kill everybody and a nutty as squirrel shit fella who thinks he is Chen, Guardian of the Solar System. The whole story is a Daleks’ Masterplan wank-fest but you don’t need to be a big fan of that story to get something from this. Guy Adams keeps the madness frothing, the twists coming thick and fast and gives Tom Baker a chance to waltz wittily through proceedings, treating nobody with any great respect. Is this the sort of thing that Big Finish should be indulging in? As far as I’m concerned it should be shining a light on new ideas and characters and giving the continuity a rest a little but if you are going to indulge then this is probably the right approach – not holding back and drowning the story in past references and ensuring there is plenty of energy, enjoyable exchanges and surprising moments. Bask in the insane performances of a cast who have realised that this is a licence to go a bit crazy and let themselves go. Relax into a story that is happy to suggest big things are coming whilst unleashing chaos on Kembel. Ever wanted to hear the Doctor trapped in a Chronon wave front with no way back? Well now’s your chance! The soundscape for these sequences is something else and you might just feel like you have snorted line by the time the story has finished. Ann Kelso is the weak spot again, but only in the first episode. Something massive is revealed about her in the second episode that goes some way to explaining why she has been so ill defined until this point. This is doing exactly what a mid-season story should, paying off the earlier parts of the season and promising things for the latter half whilst providing a mercilessly entertaining ride: 8/10
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