What would happen in Doctor Who met the Apprentice? It’s been seven months since Lucie Miller left the TARDIS and the anticipation has been amazing. There was no news about Sheridan Smith’s replacement so we would find out in Situation Vacant. Four people would ‘fight’ it out to be the companion but not all is as it seems. The four candidates seemed on the face of it to be your typical group of people who seemed to have nothing to stay on Earth for but during the course of the story each one of them reveals their true colours. There was Theo (played by Inbetweeners star Joe Thomas) who was a computer geek who as it turned out to be a vampire who met a very grim ending. Asha (Shelley Conn) seemed to me to be the most likeable because she seemed to have a head on her and would have suited life with the Doctor but she was someone who had a secret. Her secret was that she had been hired to kill the person who had placed the advert and thought it was the Doctor. The one that started to grow on me during the story was Hugh (James Bachman) who was a bumbling fool but quite sweet. His secret was that he was in fact a vampire, his ending was quite good but it was shame he didn’t become a companion. The person that did become the companion was Juliet who was the first to get the boot but she also had a secret in that her name was really Tamzin who was an actress. Her speech about how she rather face the dangers of the universe than spend another day in the unemployment office. This was a nice speech by her and cemented her place at the side of the Doctor.
The main thrust of the story was about finding out who the Doctor would pick as his companion but there were some mysteries to solve. The B-Plot was something that was ok but was never intended to be a full story. It never grabbed me and it was nothing special. The only aspect that really grabbed me was who had set up the conference. There are quite a few theories that are running through my mind but only time will tell. Eddie Robson was given a tough job in many respects. Even though this story was the second story of the Fourth series it was effectively the first. There was a lot for Robson to try and cram into a relatively short time. Robson is one of the most enjoyable writers that Big Finish have and this is a fine offering. Its not his best but certainly there are a lot of things that I liked about this story.
I have to be honest the only thing I thought that wasn’t right about this was the choice of companion. I would rather they have chosen either Asha or Hugh. Both these characters seemed to have more about them that Juliet/Tamzin. Nothing personal about Tamzin but I think that only time will tell. This wasn’t Paul McGann’s finest outing. To be fair it wasn’t really about him but when he was in it he was his usual good self. I think that his relationship with his fourth companion might be his most unique.
Situation Vacant is a good starting point for what will apparently be the final separate series of Eighth Doctor adventures. The next six episodes will determine whether Tamzin will be as popular or as successful as Charley, C’Rizz and Lucie.
The main thrust of the story was about finding out who the Doctor would pick as his companion but there were some mysteries to solve. The B-Plot was something that was ok but was never intended to be a full story. It never grabbed me and it was nothing special. The only aspect that really grabbed me was who had set up the conference. There are quite a few theories that are running through my mind but only time will tell. Eddie Robson was given a tough job in many respects. Even though this story was the second story of the Fourth series it was effectively the first. There was a lot for Robson to try and cram into a relatively short time. Robson is one of the most enjoyable writers that Big Finish have and this is a fine offering. Its not his best but certainly there are a lot of things that I liked about this story.
I have to be honest the only thing I thought that wasn’t right about this was the choice of companion. I would rather they have chosen either Asha or Hugh. Both these characters seemed to have more about them that Juliet/Tamzin. Nothing personal about Tamzin but I think that only time will tell. This wasn’t Paul McGann’s finest outing. To be fair it wasn’t really about him but when he was in it he was his usual good self. I think that his relationship with his fourth companion might be his most unique.
Situation Vacant is a good starting point for what will apparently be the final separate series of Eighth Doctor adventures. The next six episodes will determine whether Tamzin will be as popular or as successful as Charley, C’Rizz and Lucie.
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