Fractures (2006)

Well after the hugely impressive conclusion to the second series of Gallifrey. I had high expectations when I started listening to this story. Stephen Cole has been given the task of continuing the momentum of the good stuff that was built up at the end of Imperiatrix. The story is that Gallifrey is in the middle of a civil war with Romana II on one side and the Imperiatrix Romana is on the other side. Most of the stories from series two were on the whole enjoyable because they didn’t meddle too much in science jargon and I am able to enjoy the political battles that take place. Sadly though it seems some of that jargon has wormed its way back into a Gallifrey story. The story spends a large chunk of this story dealing with the civil war and this is the pay-off from all the build up over the latter half of the second series. I have to say that it doesn’t work entirely well in my opinion as there is too much of Romana and Pandora apart from each other. There is something quite eerie about having Mary Tamm back as the first Romana which she played but isn’t really. It is good though that they have Tamm back because she is bloody good.

In this story Leela is blinded and continues until the assumption that like in Horror of Fang Rock where her eye sight returned that it would do the same this time. This wasn’t the case and this led to a moment which I thought I would never witness and that is Leela crying. It’s a landmark moment for the character who is still defiant against her blindness which I found impressive. The blindness comes after Leela and Narvin have been planting bomb and then it quite literally blows up in their face.

All the cast put in good performances especially Lalla Ward, Mary Tamm and Louise Jameson. Jameson in particular was impressive because we have seen the fiery side to the Leela character but on this occasion she stood out because of the crying, just because of that. I do think that Lynda Bellingham took a bit of a back seat for this story but she was still great in it.

Hopefully we will get a bit more action in future stories because this is the point where something new needs to come in and move the series in a new direction. Fractures isnt the strongest story in this spin-off series but its still a good offering and it bodes well for the rest of the series.

K9 and Company (1981)

Long before Sarah Jane Smith got to battle the Bane and the Slitheen in Bannerman Road, our favourite companion got a what would be typically called a pilot but is more like a special. The story is written by Terrance Dudley who is one of the worse writers in Doctor Who history. The first thing that hits you is the god awful intro with possibly the various points of Sarah Jane reading a newspaper on a wall and typing away in a bus shelter. Well thankfully the theme tune is about as bad as it gets, it’s a story about Black Magic and a town where the residents aren’t what they seem. It the 1981 version of Hot Fuzz except without the film references or the comedy.

It’s an odd choice to pit Sarah Jane and K9 together considering they never appeared on screen. However it’s a relationship that works and so a superb duo was born. The way that K9 was introduced was built up very well as he just appears in a box and once released there is a nice play of the Doctor Who tune. That’s about as close to Doctor Who as we get and that’s a good thing because if a spin-off of Doctor Who is to survive then it needs to show it can do without the Doctor.

The plot itself is fairly standard and would probably have had better effect when it was transmitted at Christmas in 1982. The whole thing moves along at a fairly slow pace which is surprising because the running time is a shade under 50 minutes. Some of the scenes are painfully slow, not because of John Black the director but because of the dialogue. Some of it is not exactly exciting and the sets are a bit drab and doesn’t live up to the impression that it’s a big house and not filmed in a BBC studio. On the upside the location stuff does work very well and it helps create the right impression.

Elisabeth Sladen is very good as Sarah Jane and takes the lead very well. She has grown since she left in The Hand of Fear in 1977. She is more like the Sarah Jane we saw when she debuted in the series and this makes the character even stronger for me. She is only let down by having Brendan around her all the time. Brendan is totally annoying .From the very moment he comes onto the screen he is immediately unlikeable. His laugh when he hears K9’s name totally grates me and its at that point that I wished K9 would zap him. Ian Sears comes across as too much of a smartarse for my liking and I was glad when they said he had disappeared though disappointed when he returned. I’m not a massive K9 fan but I would prefer him to Brendan.

I liked Colin Jeavons performance as George Tracey purely because I think he’s brilliant as Stamper in The House of Cards. In this he someone who is suspicious from the moment he appears on screen and that proves to be the case. In fact all the residents of the village are suspicious due to the ritual rubbish. I also liked Linda Polan who plays the wonderfully named Juno Baker. I was almost disappointed when it turns out she wasn’t on the dark side because her performance was wonderful and it came close to pantomime which with this story airing at Christmas is appropriate.

On the one hand it’s a shame that this story didn’t lead to a full series but that was due to BBC executives and not how the story was received because it got 8.4 million viewers which even by today’s standards is a fantastic achievement. On the other hand I’m glad it didn’t lead to a series because it made her return to the Doctor Who world in 2006 even more important and the subsequent series in 2007. As a part of Doctor Who history it’s a good story that could have benefited from a better writer but is watchable partly due to Elisabeth Sladen and also due to some of the supporting characters.

The Sentinels of the New Dawn (2011)

The latest companion chronicle from Liz Shaw was one that I was looking forward to. Partly because I liked last year’s Shadow of the Past so much and also it was a prequel of sorts to the Lost Story ‘Leviathan’. Written by Paul Finch this is a story that starts of a year after Liz Shaw left UNIT (1975?) and move to 2014. This is because of the New Dawn movement. It’s claimed that the listener doesn’t need to have heard Leviathan to understand this story but I disagree because I think to have heard that Lost Story would mean a great understanding about the New Dawn group. Not having listened to that particular story since it was released in early 2010.

The story sees Liz becoming involved in a colleague’s time travel research and soon afterwards gets the Doctor involved and it’s a this stage that they are flung into the future and it becomes a race against time (forgive the pun) to stop the technology from being misused by the New Dawn. After a good start the story seems to get bogged down and the story struggles to try and find something big that it can throw at the listener. Sadly this doesn’t come when it should but instead comes in the last part of the story with Liz being sad how she left UNIT. Sadly we never go a proper final episode for Caroline John and as a result her departure feels somewhat unsatisfactory. The regret that Liz has about leaving UNIT echoes what people think if they were travelling with the Doctor. Why would you want to leave the Doctor?

Caroline John puts in another great performance but unfortunately isnt really given much drama to get excited about. I still think that Shadows of the Past is her best story but its always good to hear Caroline John and I also enjoyed Duncan Wiseby’s performance. He does a good job with the Beauregard character and hopefully he will return. I think that the character is one that has something odd about him from the outset and when its revealed who is really is then it makes the character even better.

The ending was very interesting as Richard Beauregard shows that he involved with New Dawn and its at this point that I was starting to wish that we could hear more about the New Dawn. The Sentinals of the New Dawn is an interesting story that unfortunately doesn’t have the dramatic punch that I would have expected. That said, its still a good story and a much better adventure that ‘The Forbidden Time’ and hopefully over the course of future Companion Crhonicles and even main range stories we will get more stories because there is lots of potential.

The Age of Steel (2006)

At the end of the first Cyberman story since the show returned, the regulars were surrounded by the Cybermen who were shouting ‘Delete, Delete, Delete’ which is their new catchphrase. The way they got out of it was quite clever because there was no attention drawn to it since the beginning of the previous episode. Whereas in the first episode the story was about the Cybermen ‘rising’, this episode is about them taking over the country. We have two Mickey’s (nod to The Chase where they had two Doctors) and this is where Mickey goes from zero to hero because he takes Ricky’s place and its at this point that learn that Ricky is London’s Most Wanted for Parking Tickets. I found it slight amusing but couldn’t help feel that they missed an opportunity to make the Ricky character a serious and strong one. This just made him look like Mickey.

John Lumic’s transformation into the Cyber Controller is quite impressive. In fact when he comes out as the Controller it’s the ‘throne’ that he’s on that is what I thought was brilliant. Also its good how they distinguished him from the ‘normal’ Cybermen by having a bit of Perspex on his head showing his brain. It reminds people that the Cybermen are part human.

The revelation that Pete Tyler was the informant was a little bit predictable. I must admit that I’m a little bored of this Del-Boy light character. He’s trying to be a wheeler-dealer but I don’t think he’s witty enough to pull it off. No disrespect to Shaun Dingwall. The thing that stands out are the visual effects used throughout these two episodes and in particular in this one. Such as the shots of Battersea Power Station with the Zeppelin above it. Also the cyber conversion area and the head coming down about to go on the head on a new Cyberman/woman. It’s quite a dark tone for this episode and it does well in adding to the drama.

They are a few examples of what Russell T Davies is good at and that is putting a bit of emotional drama into proceedings. This was done firstly in the form of Sally Phelan who is just about to get married and wonders why is she cold and that her fiancée cant see her like this. Then there is the sudden death of Mrs Moore. What she lacked in the previous episode she more than made up for it in this episode. The ultimate one though is the goodbye between Rose and Mickey. It’s been on the cards for a while that whilst the Doctor is around, Mickey doesn’t stand a chance with Rose and yet she doesn’t even see it. Credit to Noel Clarke and Billie Piper for the effort in this scene but really it’s Clarke’s episode and it’s the goodbye that he deserved.

I wasn’t totally impressed with this story when I first watched it upon transmission but having watched it since, I did find it quite charming and it was a good story for the regulars but probably wasn’t the strongest story to feature the Cybermen. Though it wasn’t a bad outing for them. I think that they were used well as it introduced to them a new audience who wouldn’t be as familiar with them as they would be with the Dalkes. Tom McRae’s first (and to date only) contribution to the show but it’s a good offering and it it’s the first two parter that has worked both sides of the cliffhanger.

Invasion of the Bane (2007)

The pilot sees Sarah Jane Smith return in her own series. Having returned in 2006, I have to admit that I wasn’t as keen on this series purely because it was going to air on CBBC and not prime-time Saturday night. Whilst watching these I have to be careful not to compare it to Doctor Who or Torchwood because this is aimed at a different audience. We’re introduced to Maria who’s just moved opposite Sarah Jane Smith with her dad who is in the middle of a divorce. So she’s just moved into a new house and her family are splitting up, this sounds like classic teen angst and the perfect opportunity to join Maria up with Sarah Jane. That’s probably a little harsh but it’s the standard series set up.

Whilst trying to set up the characters there is a main plot which centres around Bubble Shock which is a fizzy drink that is a tad too addictive and Sarah Jane is investigating it. There is another Russell T Davies trait with ‘celebrity’ appearances, this time from Konnie Huq and Gethin Jones from the CBBC show Blue Peter. It’s brief but does a job in trying to lure kids to enjoy this drink.

Sarah Jane Smith is quite odd at the beginning because she’s quite hesitant in getting to know Maria or her dad. Though she does have her own Sonic Lipstick and she is closer to her journalistic roots that she had when she joined Doctor Who in 1973. Elisabeth Sladen continues to impress and she’s just as good as in School Reunion. She even gets into a fight when the secretary tries to kill her. It’s very brief (this is a kids show remember) but it shows that this new Sarah Jane is just as tough as the original. We get a nice little back story to what happened to Sarah Jane after she left the Doctor right up to return with the Tenth Doctor. Having to try and find something to do after all those adventures and dealing with bills and stuff.

Yasmin Paige is a perfectly good actress who is does well in being the sad little girl who discovers a scary yet exciting world just across the road. Luke (Thomas Knight) would go on to be quite an interesting character and he does have an interesting debut into the story being the archetype. But it’s Maria’s story and as a result Luke doesn’t get much development in this story. Mrs Wormwood is the standard baddie who is just right for the show. She is the leader of the factory and Samantha Bond is highly enjoyable in the role.

The character of Kelsey Hooper (Porsha Lawrence Mavour) is irritating beyond the relax standards that I have when it comes to approaching characters. It’s not hard to see why she didn’t come back in the series. Also this story does seem very cheesy with the whole Bubble Shock thing. Whilst watching it I thought that the story lacked any dramatic punch which is a shame really. When I was watching CBBC during the early 1990’s there was stuff like The Demon Headmaster which had good characters, drama and was scary.

This was just the beginning of a long series and with the recent death of Elisabeth Sladen I agree with what Russell T Davies said when he said he was glad he got Elisabeth Sladen to do this and I think every fan of Sarah Jane echoes that sentiment.

The Impossible Astronaut (2011)

Well Doctor Who’s back then huh! After a sad week we ended it on a brighter note with the first two-parter to open a series since the show return in 2005, its also the first time that the show has filmed in America. I don’t count the TV Movie as it was filmed in Canada. The story sees the Doctor meet up with Amy, Rory and River in America in 1969 where soon after arriving the Doctor gets killed mid-regeneration. We were promised that someone would die within 20 minutes and we weren’t disappointed with the Doctor being the one that kops it. There was a certain amount of shock and when I watched this with my friends one was particularly delighted but that delight was short lived when he came out into the diner totally oblivious of what River, Amy and Rory have just witnessed. I did enjoy how he was totally dumbfounded as to why they were shocked and River calling him ‘cold’.

The story then moves on to the White House which after watching Doctor Who Confidential afterwards and it was a set that they built from scratch and it totally fooled me because its one that I thought had been used by another TV show. We meet President Richard Nixon who I cant see without thinking of his Head in a Jar bit in Futurama. I don’t think that they got the look exactly right but the voice was just about there and it was enough to believe that this was Nixon that we were seeing. Milligan (previously seen in Jonathan Creek) played the President as someone terrorised by a young girl. His role was a lot less involved than I was expecting but it may be addressed in part two. Mark Sheppard was arguably the best of the supporting cast as Canton Everett Delaware III, the 1969 version. Having seen him previously in the Battlestar: Galattica series. His reaction to being in the TARDIS and coming out of it was played brilliantly.

The Silence are possibly the best monsters that have been created since 2005. The Weaping Angels are good but they are beaten by the Silence in terms of terror. There were moments when things were dark and you then see them that it adds to the scary factor. The look of them is scary and also the fact that they are in a suit does something. It was very clever to give them the option and wiping someone’s memory the moment they turn away.

All the main cast are on fine form. Especially Karen Gillan who put in a superb performance in the moments when the Doctor had been killed. Yet again she is the one that the story seems to float around. She announced that she’s pregnant and this must have some importance in either this story or series. I thought that Matt Smith was on fine form again and has really got a handle on the role. Alex Kingston is also very good and River is a interesting character who’s story needs to be resolved soon. One of the things I don’t understand is how River ended back in the prison and more importantly, how was she able to get out of prison so quickly. Arthur Darvill performance is just like it usually is and that is understated. I quite like Rory and think that it was an unexpected bonus of the first season.

As a cliffhanger it was typically Moffat because it seemed to lack a certain bit of drama but ended with a question. Such as who was the girl in the astronaut. It’s always difficult to give a proper review of a story when we haven’t seen the other half but this story bodes well for the next episode. As for the theory about River Song, I wont mention it to until its revealed but it’s a clever one. As season openers, The Impossible Astronaut is the better than The Eleventh Hour and its also the best opener since it returned. I just hope the rest of this half of the season will match it.

Ghostlight (1989)

Ghostlight has the distinct honour of being the last Doctor Who story to be made in the classic era even though Survival was transmitted last. This story is also entirely studio bound which in some cases helps the story but in other’s it restricts it. Written by Marc Platt who would go onto write some impressive stories for Big Finish has written a story that is quite odd and is something that does require more than one viewing.

There is a mystery at the beginning and it is wanting to know what the Doctor is upto. The mystery is resolved in that the house they are in is the one that in about 100 years time, Ace will burn to the ground. This is great and quite different for the Doctor to do. Never before has he turn psychiatrist and forced a companion to face their fear.

The story isnt still to this day 100% clear to me but it seems like Josiah has been forced to into watching over Light and Control. Why this is the case isnt clear nor is why they ended up on Earth in the 19th Century. That said there is an intrigue to this story with some very interesting characters. Michael Cochrane is wonderful as Redvers. His character is made and that makes him instantly likeable. Ian Hogg is another wonderful actor as Josiah. He shines in the role and doesn’t stop being wonderful for the entire serial. He clashed well with Sylvester McCoy. I also found Inspector Mackenzie to be a nice bit of comedy relief to an otherwise emotional intense story. Frank Windsor gives a lovely performance and is great throughout the two episodes that he appears in.

The story has lots of wonderful moments such as the moment when Reverend Matthews mutated into an ape. It was subtle and not expected but it was totally enthralling. I also liked the moment when Light turns Mrs Pritchard and Gwendoline into stone. These two characters were very good and played wonderfully by Sylvia Syms and Katherine Schlesinger respectively.

Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred are superb in this story and their chemistry is clear for everyone to see. In particular Ace who been on quite a journey since she first appeared in Dragonfire and it’s good how the character is so much different to Mel and it shows that Ace suited the Seventh Doctor and also by this point the quality of stories had also improved. McCoy spends a lot of time talking to people and this was refreshing but McCoy is such a good actor that every speech he gives is memorable.

The production value in this serial is of the highest quality because the one thing that the BBC does well is period drama and this was another good outing for them. The sets were impressive and they were used for just the right amount of time. The lighting is also very good because the one thing that spoilt a large number of 1980’s Doctor Who (and maybe earlier) is the insistence of using bright lights. Ghostlight sees the lighting reduced to a very low level. What a refreshing change.

Control is the only disappointing thing about this story. The build up to find out who or what it is was one of the things I was desperate to find out when watching this for the first time however I was disappointed by it. Also Light was not what I was hoping for. He seemed a bit whiny and didn’t really live up to the tension and drama that had been building up from the beginning.

Ghostlight is a highly enjoyable story. The whole of the 1989 series seems to be about Ace and the series is making conscious decision of giving us someone who is compared to (is compared to) Rose. Ghostlight is one that no matter how many times I watch it I find myself still trying to work things out (and failing) but still wanting to watch it again and again. That is the true mark of a good story.

Delta and the Bannermen (1987)

Delta and the Bannermen is a poor story but its perfectly suited to the 24th Season which is the worst season in Doctor Who history. Written by Malcolm Kohll this story focuses on a civil war that has spread to Earth in the 1950’s. Doctor Who meets Hi-Di-Hi in this particular serial. This was the first three parter in Doctor Who since Planet of the Giants back in 1964. This would be a regular thing in the Sylvester McCoy era but I always think that a three parter is a good thing because it cuts out any padding and just gets to the action.

The opening scene is quite a good start with a battle sequence. Where Gavrok (Don Henderson) is trying to kill Delta (Belinda Mayne). Sadly the story throws away anything dramatic to insist that we engage in the scenario of a welsh holiday village in 1959. I’m sorry but I didn’t like the setting and thought that some of the characters just didn’t work. I honestly think that Weismuller (Stubby Kaye) and Hawk (Morgan) could have easily being written out and this could have been replaced with more Gavrok. Gavrok spends most of the story trying to kill Delta and not doing a very good job of it.

Famous faces wise we go from seeing Don Henderson to Ken Dodd. Yes, Ken bleedin’ Dodd. It’s staggers me beyond belief that he is in this story. Some of the so called Stunt Casting worked during the John Nathan Turner era but in this case it didn’t. Though I was glad to see the character written out pretty quickly after being shot in the back by Mr Henderson. Don Henderson is superb as Gavrok and is easily the best thing in this story. It’s the only thing that’s really worth watching in this serial. Sylvester McCoy isn’t very good in this story but its because he is given so terrible dialogue and things to do. Thankfully after this series his Doctor gets better but in this particular serial he’s just bumbling around not being very Doctorish. I do feel bad, joining in the Mel-bashing that regularly takes place but she wasn’t suited to Doctor Who because she is annoying throughout and the only time she contributes anything to the story is when she screams.

There is loads wrong with this story. For one the relationship between Delta and Billy is totalling stupid. It’s also mad how whilst trying to stay hidden form Gavrok, Delta decides to indulge with Billy in some bloody bee hiving. Also it doesn’t make sense how Billy just buys the fact that Delta is an alien and doesn’t get either freaked out or question it. He just buys it and goes along with it. Sorry but that just doesn’t work for me. Also the incidental music really got irritating after about 10 minutes, it fitted in with the style of the setting but there has to be a limit and Keff McCullouch should have used less of that style and more of the standard incidental music.

Despite my issues with the story there are somethings that are good with this serial. The bit where the Chimeron baby pops out of the egg towards the very end of episode one is quite grim even by today’s standards, so in 1987 it was totally gross. That said it was about the best bit in that first episode, though it is spoilt slightly by Mel screaming which is something that is badly wrong for the character. Also the explosions are quite impressive which is something that continues throughout the McCoy era. Apart from the casting of Don Henderson, I also thought that Hugh Lloyd was another good piece of casting. Never heard of him before this story but all of his scenes were superbly played with the right amount of comedy and it was right that he was the last thing that we see in Episode 3.

Delta and the Bannermen continues the poor start to Sylvester McCoy’s first season as the Doctor. The only mercies to this story were Don Henderson and the fact that it’s three parts. Thankfully the next story wouldn’t prove to be a total washout for Season 24.

Heroes of Sontar (2011)

Over the last few years, Big Finish has treated us to old monsters who perhaps didn’t hit the mark as well as the Daleks or Cybermen. We’ve had the Ice Warriors, Zygons, the Spiders, Autons and now the Sontarans. It’s really surprising how long it’s taken Big Finish to get round bringing them back considering they appeared in several stories since their debut in 1973. This story was a substitute because Alan Barnes (author) wanted to do a Winston Churchill story but was told by Cardiff that he couldn’t because he would appear on TV.

Set on the planet of Samur, the Doctor and his band of merry men (and women) arrive to find the planet covered in a purple moss and it infects Nyssa and part of the story is about finding the cure to stop it killing her. The main plot is about the Sontarans and we meet seven of them and it’s clear they are not normal Sontarans but we learn that there is a curse which can only be lifted when seven souls have been sacrificed. It’s a different story that I wasn’t expecting when I heard that the Sontarans would be making their debut for Big Finish.

I thought all the regulars were very good. In particular I was impressed with Janet Fielding and Mark Strickson. I thought that they both had some of the funniest lines and in particular Strickson going on his holding flying with speech. Fielding was on fiery form with her Napoleon digs at the Sontarans. The mere fact that Tegan wasn’t scared of them was the right move by Alan Barnes.

There was one thing that I wasn’t so keen on and that was that Nyssa didn’t have much to do for large chunks of this story and this is something that became a problem on TV and did show itself in the previous series. Thankfully it wasn’t a massive problem because the story itself is very good an.

There are more things that I liked about this such as the mentions of the Rutans (previously appeared in Castle of Fear) and this makes another reference to their war. However I found the moment when Nyssa fears that she is about to die she makes a revelation about the Doctor’s future that she can’t let him find anything about. This refers to the 2007 story Circular Time and the winter part of that story. I wasn’t expecting that because I thought it was so long ago that it ceased to really have any importance to the Doctor’s timeline. That said it was well written into the story.

The Sontarans that we got to begin with are not the brightest bunch. Now normally I would get really irate about this but on this occasion I found it hilarious and that’s what I like about it. It’s clear that there is something not right because they make mistakes like leaving orders somewhere else and not sounding particularly bright. It would have been so easy to have a Sontaran versus Rutan battle but hopefully that wont come round just yet but what they did to add a bit more drama to was the introduction of the Witch Guard who are extremely miffed with the Sontarans and are powerful enough to be able to put a curse on them and at times occupy someone’s body.

Heroes of Sontar is a fun story that doesn’t take itself too seriously but doest go the full hog and does retain a certain amount of drama. Big Finish’s track record of bringing back characters from the classic era is getting stronger every time they try. Hopefully it won’t be long before we get another Sontaran story. It’s another cracking start to this Fifth Doctor/Nyssa/Tegan and Turlough series and shows no sign of waning.

Thin Ice (2011)

When the Classic era of Doctor Who ended in December 1989, there were loose plans for what would form the 27th season in 1990. Thin Ice was due to be the story (back in 1990) where Ace would have been written out of the series. Written by Marc Platt I didn’t really know what to expect from this story because all I had heard was what was mentioned (briefly) in the documentary of the Survival DVD. The Doctor and Ace arrive in Russia in 1967 where they encounter Ice Warriors who have been in hiding for nearly 40 years. They are after a relic that is hiding in a vault and the story is essentially around them retriving it and then it all goes wrong when Raina has the helmet on and becomes an Ice Warrior called Sezhyr but we discover that she’s pregnant and what we get in an instant pregnancy which will come back to the next story.

This is a relatively straight-forward story for Marc Platt and that is a refreshing change. Platt’s track record went through a bit of a dip with stories such as The Skull of Sobek but recently he has undergone a resurrection in form and this stories continues that with a story that has a lot happening and never gets bogged down in anything. I thought that the characters in this story were particularly strong and no-one under performed. I found Ricky Groves to be a bit annoying at first but soon got past that and thought that his performance was very good and added a bit of comedy to a story that at times is very serious. Beth Chalmers is also good as both Raina and Sezhyr. I thought she was better as the Ice Warrior but still good throughout.

Both Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred are very good in this story and it did take me a while to get use to a McCoy story without Philip Olivier. Since 2004, every Seventh Doctor story with Ace has had Hex in it and this is perhaps one of the things that gives the story a different feel. Aldred is very strong in this story as she has to do a lot of the drama stuff as Ace is being considered to join the Timelords. I did like how Ace was really miffed that the Doctor had set her up as it mirrored the annoyance that Ace felt against the Doctor in The Curse of Fenric and she felt that the Doctor was testing her like he did in Ghostlight and Curse of Fenric. The final scene with these two was a very emotional and well acted scene and a good ending to the story.

If I do have an issue with this story then it’s the ending. When watching the documentary on the Survival DVD about this story then I was under the impression that Ace would go onto the stay on Gallifrey but for some reason Platt or Big Finish have lost their nerve and had the Doctor and Ace fallout before patching up and leaving into the audio sunset. Personally I think this was a missed oppertunity as they had a chance to give the character of Ace the send off that she deserved and some closure because it’s always been one of my biggest gripes that she didn’t get a send-off despite being one of the best female companions of the 1980’s.

Despite that slight disappointment, Thin Ice is a exiciting story that uses the Ice Warriors in a different way yet still remains true to what they were like in their earlier adventures. It’s a great start to this Seventh Doctor series of Lost Stories and hopefully the rest will live up to this standard.

The Seeds of Death (1969)

With the Ice Warriors returning to Big Finish in ‘Thin Ice’. I thought it would be good to return to their second adventure in Doctor Who. Their first sadly doesn’t exist and the thing about this story is that this is how the Ice Warriors should be, not how they end up in The Curse and Monster of Peladon stories a few years later. The first thing we see is a model shot and that is one thing that continues throughout the entire story. Viewers in 1969 would have been familiar with the Ice Warriors but its still clever that they don’t show them straight away. Something that seems quite odd is the introduction of the regulars. It’s eight minutes before they appear and when they turn up there is a nice sequence in the TARDIS. This is their sixth adventure (including Wheel in Space) and this relationship is very strong.

The story sees the Ice Warriors invade the moon where they plan to send little fungus pods to the earth to make it uninhabitable for humans. It’s quite a simple idea and its cleverly padded out over the six episodes with the first four episodes taking place largely between the Moonbase and the T-Mat base on Earth before shifting to the Weather Station in the latter half. It was a common trick in six parters to do this because its at the half way point that the story starts to sag and it needs a change of direction and the focus on the weather station is what was done here. I have to say that I found the way that they defeat the Ice Warriors was quite clever. They plan to throw the Ice Warriors invasion fleet off course by giving them the wrong homing beam.

There are things that don’t seem right to me. Firstly it seems bizarre that they wouldn’t have a proper back up plan in the event that the T-Mat goes wrong. I know that they are pretty confident in it but they should still have a Plan B. Also it takes a long time for them to work out that water is the thing that stops the fungus and to make it rain. Surely, water would be the first thing that you would try.

The supporting cast are very strong. Miss Kelly (Louise Pajo) starts off as a sort of Ice Queen (which is quite appropriate really considering the villains). She is portrayed as a sort of Emma Peel character. Pajo is very good throughout and is a sound character. She is quite proactive considering the way that female characters were portrayed in Doctor Who. Eldred (Philip Ray) is a nice character and is well played. He runs the space museum and is the only one who is still in love with the rocket despite everyone else preferring the T-Mat. He is quite a stubborn character and it starts to get a bit annoying when he is being pessimistic for so long but thankfully that changes.

Commandor Radnor (Ronald Leigh-Hunt) is the friendly stranger that the viewer is suppose to like. He is willing to listen to the Doctor and this means the Doctor can save the day. He is a fairly standard sort of boss but that’s not necersarily a bad thing. I was most impressed with Terry Scully who played Fewsham. He spends most of the time with fear on his face and everyone on earth thinks that he is working for the Ice Warriors but there is a mystery as to whether he is helping them. His demise was very sad because he sacrifices his life so that the Doctor and can hear what the Ice Warriors plan.

The cliffhanger to part one was fairly tame compared to others at that time. We knew it they were Ice Warriors and yet they choose the very last moment to reveal them to us. It’s sort of like the Dalek Invasion of Earth when the Daleks appear at the end of episode one. I also thought that episode five’s cliffhanger was quite good with the Doctor about to be killed by the fungus whilst Jamie and Zoe are hiding from the Ice Warrior.

This story falls victim to the ‘one of the regulars wants to go on holiday’ syndrome. This time it’s Patrick Troughton who becomes unconscious after breathing in the fungus gas. I have an issue with this because ok it had to happen during the first couple of years because Doctor Who was on air for about 10 months of the year but at this stage there was a longer break and it could/should have been possible to insist the regulars take their break during that off-air period. Patrick Troughton is on good for in this story showing why he is such a good doctor. My favourite line comes from him. “Your leader will be angry if you kill me, I’m a genius!” It’s the way that he delivers the line that makes me smile. Wendy Padbury and Frazer Hines are on good form as well and do well in the episode where Troughton is on holiday. I do like the moment in episode six when the Doctor is falling through the entrance after Zoe lets her in and Wendy Padbury can clearly be seen with a massive grin on her face.

The Seeds of Death is a good six parter and its one of the three top stories from Patrick Troughton’s final season but its sadly the last time that Ice Warriors would be used until they return via Big Finish in ‘Frozen Time’ in 2008. Good story, good characters and good production values are the reason why its worth watching again and again.

The Invasion (1968)

The Invasion is my favourite Cybermen story ever. Episodes one and four are missing presumed wiped and normally this would prevent 2Entertain from releasing it on DVD but what they decided to do was to animate these two episodes and release the whole thing on DVD. The animation is very good and works quite well alongside the audio recording. Credit should go to Cosgrove Hall for making it work. Now if only they would do it on The Daleks Master Plan then life would be fine and dandy. The story is eight episode long (only The War Games is longer) and sometimes there is a tendency for stories longer than four episodes to drag but thankfully this serial doesn’t suffer from that.

This serial sees the return of Nicholas Courtney and the introduction of UNIT which was set up after the events of The Web of Fear the previous year. Though their introduction was more sinister than expected. We first meet Benton and another person who are following the Doctor and Jamie and these spend most of episode one following them until they take them to the Brigadier in episode two. The music does a great job of making Benton seem sinister. For those who watch his scenes with the third Doctor will know that this is the only time he is like this.

The story is set sometime in the future (1972 is the best guess) where the Doctor tries to locate Professor Travers (from The Web of Fear) but is soon distracted by International Electromatics who is led by Tobias Vaughn and working with the Cybermen are planning an invasion. It’s not the most original plot idea but in a way its not the plot that makes this story what it is but the characters and the directing. There are some memorable scenes such as the Cybermen walking through the sewers and perhaps the most iconic of images is of the Cybermen walking along the streets of London and walking in front of St Paul’s Cathedral.

Quite oddly the Cybermen don’t appear until the end of Episode four, we get to meet the Cyber-director but he’s not called that. The first half of this story is to allow Tobias Vaughn to be his best. When the Cybermen do appear they are effectively servants to Vaughn who in his many rows with the Cyber-director who insists that they follow his plans but as things like this always turn out. He realises that he hasn’t been in control of the Cybermen but the other way around. This sudden realisation leads to a fun and action pack last episode. Vaughn gives his life so that the signal can be turned off and it sort of redeems the character. The Cybermen have a different look again, I personally prefer the very first design because it’s the closest that suits the creation. However this version of the Cybermen is the one that is used for the rest of the classic run.

Kevin Stoney is fantastic as Tobias Vaughn. In fact there is no word that could truly describe what I think of Stoney’s portrayal of the role. He is very smooth and calm for large sections of this serial except for when he’s shouting at Packer and arguing with the Cyber-director. Peter Halliday is also fantastic as Packer. He is the muscles behind Vaughn but is talked down to by Vaughn and is badly treated. He is pretty useless and is one of those sort of people who are all talk.

The regular cast are on good form as usual with Patrick Troughton leading the performances as he has to pit his wits against Tobias Vaughn. There are several scenes where they are together and its fun to see it every time. The ‘regular goes on holiday’ syndrome occurs not once but twice with Wendy Padbury absent in episode four and Frazer Hines amazingly absent from the final episode. Seriously, if he was going to have a holiday then couldn’t it be earlier in the serial? However despite the odd choice of when to allow the actors to have their holidays the actors themselves are very good as they are joined by Louise Faulkner as Isobel. There is a fun moment when Isobel is told that she cant be the one to take pictures of the Cybermen because she’s a woman and her shocked reply is to simply call the Brigadier ‘a man’. Then Jamie agrees and Zoe and Isobel decide that they are going to try anyway and use emotional blackmail to convince Jamie to join them. This leads to a very good cliffhanger where they are down in the sewers and they have Cybermen coming either side of them. Wendy Padbury really shines in the last two episodes where she uses her brains and helps destroy all the Cyber-ships that are orbiting the moon. Everyone dismisses her but she is quick to show them that it can be achieved with just one rocket. Frazer Hines is ok but doesn’t really do anything special compared to Troughton or Padbury. That said he does have some comedic moments with Troughton and is involved in a good cliffhanger where he is sharing a pod with a Cybermen about to wake up from a deep sleep.

I love The Invasion and every time I watch it I am still engrossed in its story, the characters and the feel of the whole thing. A congratulations should go to everyone involved and it’s the highlight of Patrick Troughton’s final season as the Doctor and as I mentioned earlier, the best Cyberman story ever.

The Trial of a Timelord: Mindwarp (1986)

The next instalment of this epic Trial of a Timelord season is written by Philip Martin who wrote the previous years Vengeance of Varos and this story is memorable for two reasons. One is that it marks the departure of Nicola Bryant as Peri and also we get the booming voice of Brian ‘Gordon’s Alive’ Blessed. The story is the second piece of evidence that is used against the Doctor and the story is very different in terms of tone compared to The Mysterious Planet. This story sees the return of Sil who had appeared in Martin’s previous story. I saw this before I saw Vengeance and so any references to that story were lost on me. That said I’m glad they bought Sil back because it’s a very good character that would be annoying if it were played by anyone else but Nabil Shaban is so good that he becomes a good part of the story.

The story is set on Thoros Beta where they soon stumble across Sil and Kiv and the wonderfully mad Crozier. What seems like a normal story is made even more fun with the Doctor going a bit mad. To the point where he has Peri tied up on the rocks and is willing to let her die. Now there is some debate as to what the Doctor’s mindset is at this point (a debate started by Colin Baker himself on the documentary on the disc) and I have to say that as far as I am concerned he is still under the influence of the process and its not the matrix lying or the Doctor faking it to Crozier. I am starting to find the inter-cutting court scenes to be very tiring. It was OK to begin with in the early episodes but now we have established the format isn’t it time to just dispense with these scenes and just one a big one at the beginning and one at the end.

The cave sets are wonderfully claustrophobic. I remember the first time I saw this I remember the unsettling feeling of being crammed in like sardines. Doctor Who stories work best when the lighting is turned down and the atmosphere is created and it worked in Earthshock and it worked in this. Thankfully these sets are then replaced with the more expansive lab where Crozier is working. Credit must go to the set designers because all off the sets (apart from the first studio one) are very good and there a very real sense of this story taking place over a vast amount of area.

I thought that Patrick Ryecart was wonderful as Crozier. He was bordering on camp at times and I thought that there was a wonderful sense of someone whose professional greed is matched by that of his desire to survive. Christopher Ryan is also good as Kiv. Ryan was well known for appearing in the BBC sitcom ‘The Young Ones’ and he would return to Doctor Who in the 2008 two-parter ‘The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky’ as well as a brief appearance in the 2010 story ‘The Pandorica Opens’. As Kiv, his contribution to the story was good but unfortunately drowned out by that of the booming Brian Blessed. Every single second that he is on screen he overshadows everyone. Even Colin Baker can’t compete against Blessed. He is perfectly cast and adds a lot of humour to what is otherwise a very dark and at times grim story. It’s amazing that he hadn’t been in Doctor Who before because there are plenty of roles he could have done. Another actor worth mentioning is Trevor Laird who plays the very stern Frax which is a character that I didn’t like at first but towards the end he was actually very good. Laird would return to Doctor Who in 2007 as Clive Jones, the father of Martha Jones.

As exits go, this is a superb one for Nicola Bryant. The character never really had much of a chance to become a strong companion but merley one that ran around in pink leotards and other forms of inappropriate clothing. The idea that a companion is killed by having her mind replaced with Kiv’s is quite a horrific idea and then to add to her woes she is killed by Brian Blessed. The worst thing about this story is that they chickened out saying that she survived and is living with Brian Blessed. What? Why didn’t they just leave it as it was because it would have been a far better ending for the character. As it stands the ending just doesn’t make sense.

As a story on its own, Mindswap is a story that has plenty of things going for it including some wonderful characters and superb actors chosen to play them. It could have lost all the courtroom scenes because what was going on over the four episodes is more exciting and dramatic that anything that was going on between the Doctor and the Valeyard. It’s a story that serves the departure of a companion well and when you think of Peri, don’t think about Episode 14.

The Trial of a Timelord: Terror of the Vervoids (1986)

The third story in this Trial of a Timelord season is the one where we are introduced to a new companion and the story just goes bonkers and not necersarily in a good way. Written by Pip and Jane Baker this is their second contribution after the previous years Mark of the Rani which I quite liked despite it not being liked by many. I think that story doesn’t start well because it is set in the future and it immediately leads to the end of the season because if the Doctor has a future then it implies that he gets found not guilty at the trial which makes the whole court stuff redundant. Anyway once we get past that we find we have a new companion in the form of Melanie Bush as played by Bonnie Langford. It’s never explained how far in the Doctor’s future this story takes place and as a result we are expected to warm to Mel under the idea that she has been travelling with the Doctor for sometime. This is quite a bold idea by JNT of introducing a companion without witnessing their introduction into the show.

The main ‘threat’ comes from the Vervoids and to be honest the look of them is ridiculous because they look quite rude and its hard to get past that. Their motives are quite interesting, that they see humans in the same way that we see trees and this leads to an good and credible threat. The crew and passengers on the crusieliner range from bland to irritating. Lets start with Honour Blackman who famously appeared in the James Bond film Goldfinger as Pussy Galore but in this story she plays Professor Laskey and spends most of the story really angry and it doesn’t seem like she’s doing too much acting. It’s almost like she took on the role and then changed her mind as soon as it began.

Unfortunatley the Mel that we get on TV is not a very good one. Part of me thinks it is down to the acting but then part of me thinks it is down to the writing. It has to be said that since the character appeared in several Big Finish stories since 2000, the character and actress have improved drastically. In the first cliffhanger we get a prime example of what is wrong with the character. It seems that Bonnie Langford has been hired because she can scream and man alive can she scream. It’s quite good how her scream mixes into the closing credits but aside from that she is irritating beyond believe throughout this story. The appearance of Commodore Travers is a curious one because he and the Doctor have met before in an unseen adventure. Like Mel were expected to believe these two have history from the beginning and for one person this is fine but for two its stretching it a bit. That said I did like the character of Travers as he doesn’t get on well with the Doctor at first and even by the end their friendship isn’t easy.

The story does have two very good cliffhangers. The first being the one where Mel screams after that bloke puts his hand on the hydroponics door and gets electrocuted. One does have to ask why he wasn’t more careful considering what was inside. The second good cliffhanger was at the end when after watching the events unfold and realise that not one Vervoid had survived, the Valeyard wanted the case to involve the charge of Genocide. This was a nice dramatic moment but the sudden change of what the case is about is totally preposterous. In no legal system anywhere in the world would you be able just change the charge at the drop of a hat.

The main cast do well with Colin Baker really coming to the front when he’s away from Mel. The relationship between Colin and Nicola seemed very strong on TV and it was always going to be difficult for Bonnie Langford but unfortunately this pairing isnt one the best in Doctor Who history. Michael Jayston and Linda Bellingham do well in their brief scenes but it wouldn’t be until the next story that they really show why they are there.

It’s not a bad story, certainly not on par with The Mysterious Planet but there are things that the story could have done without but we are now approaching the final two stories and as a result I have to say that at least the series was heading in the right direction. Pip and Jane Baker have written a story with good intentions but its sadly let down by some dubious production decisions and a mix quality of supporting cast members.

The Trial of a Timelord: The Ultimate Foe (1986)

So it comes down to these two episodes. The longest season single story arc in Doctor Who history is about to reach its conclusion. This story has the most turbulent of stories just to get it to the TV screen. Episode 13 and 14 was suppose to be written by Robert Holmes (author of The Mysterious Planet) but after writing 13, he became ill and Eric Saward took over except. However due to ‘creative differences’, Eric Saward withdrew his script and according to the documentary to accompany this story on DVD, John Nathan-Turner had to get Pip & Jane Baker to write Episode 14 in just a few days. It’s an amazing achievement that they were able to do it.

This is arguably the best part of the entire Trial season. Partly because it ties up all the loose ends from the previous twelve weeks, partly because its where the story goes well and truly bonkers and also partly because Anthony Ainley returns to Doctor Who for his penultimate performance as the Master. The Master reveals the big twist about the Valeyard by informing us that he is the dark side of the Doctor. I cant quite make my mind up about whether it’s a good idea but something that was quite a joke clearly was when the Doctor said that the same person cant be the prosecutor and defendant. This is the same judicial system that can change a simple investigation into a Timelords activities and then on a whim change it to a charge of genocide.

This story does boast a relatively small cast, not including the regulars there are six actors and The Inquisitor and the Keeper of the Matrix don’t appear in it much. Michael Jayston is on fine form and it seems that Jayston has been saving this performance for the previous twelve weeks and he shines. It’s also good to have Tony Selby back as Sabalom Glitz and he acts as a sort of comedy relief to what is otherwise a very dark and intense two part story. I quite liked the bit when he arrived in the courtoom and got sidetracked by looking at part of the scenery and then also getting sidetracked when the Master is trying to hypnotise him.

It’s a shame that they waited until episode 13 to bring Ainley back because I genuinely feel that he could have livened up proceedings. The moment where he returns was a genuine surprise to me and it was perhaps the most exciting moment of the entire series. The cliffhanger was also very dramatic despite watching it in 2011 it does look slightly iffy but it was a good attempt and the resolvement in Episode 14 was also very good.

This story marks the end of the Colin Baker era. It’s a shame that his final words were ‘Carrot Juice, Carrot Juice, Carrot Juice’. It was a shameful way by the BBC the way that they just discarded of Baker’s services because I think that he wasn’t given enough support by the BBC and it wonderful that Big Finish have reinvented the character to be one of the best Doctor on the range. The Ultimate Foe isnt quite the ending that the story should have been but considering the obstacles that Pip and Jane Baker as well as JNT had, it was a good solid story.

As a season, this wasn’t a particularly fine one. There were flashes of good storytelling but there was too much wrong with it to enjoy it. I think out of the four stories that formed this season, Mindswap was the one I thought did best. The next time we would see Doctor Who it would be the final stretch for the classic era and there would be a new intro, new theme tune and more importantly a new Doctor. This is a story that should be watched because it’s an important part of Doctor Who history.

The Five Doctors (1983)

Back in 1973, Doctor Who celebrated it’s 10th Birthday by having the three actors to play the Doctor to return and work together to battle Omega. That was well received and fast forward 10 years and John Nathan Turner has decided to bring back the five incarnations of the Doctor back for a bumper Doctor Who episode. Sadly, William Hartnell died in 1975 and is replaced by Richard Hurndall and Tom Baker refused to take part so it’s technically three and a half Doctors. Terrance Dicks was given a tough job of trying to get five Doctors, six companions, four Timelords and the master into a story along with brief cameos by former companions and aliens. It’s a task that on the whole works – and works well.

The story sees previous incarnations of the Doctor as well as companions picked up from their own time and dumped on Gallifrey. It’s a mystery for a long time as to who or what is responsible for doing this though to highlight the fact that they have been picked up there are cute little statues placed on a sort of map. The revelation of who is responsible I must admit came as a surprise to me because Lord President Borusa seemed such a good character but alas I suppose that was the curveball that Terrance Dicks was working on. It was at the point of revelation that the character really stepped up and becomes the best baddie of the story and pays the ultimate price for his greed.

The pairings of the Doctor/Companions is very good. The First Doctor and Tegan is a good one because you have the Doctor who is a crochity (even though its Hurndall) and a gobby Australian and they clash in a fun way and Richard Hurndall and Janet Fielding work well together. Then we have the Second Doctor and the Brigadier which whilst is an odd choice (I would have gone for Jamie or even Zoe) its one that works the best partly because Troughton is having a ball returning to the role and Nicholas Courtney is bang on form. The third Doctor and Sarah Jane is a well worked one and despite the dodgy first moments it’s a relationship that is enjoyable to watch. Peter Davison was all on his lonesome having the majority of his scenes on Gallifrey with the various Timelords. He manages to shirk having to wander around the welsh countryside (sorry Gallifrey) but being the current Doctor it allows Peter Davison to have the best bits and the more dramatic scenes. But I thought that his scene with the Master was very good and I thought that Anthony Ainley was very good in this story because he was actually being a good guy for once but is mistrusted by everyone. His best moment comes when he tricks the Cybermen across the giant chessboard. The only partnership that didn’t work was the Susan/Turlough one. It seems like they suffered from too many characters and not enough story syndrome. They spend a long amount of time just standing at the console, looking at the scanner and being concerned with the Cybermen building a bomb. Sadly for Carole Ann Ford she suffers the same problem that she did during her time on the show from 1963 to 1964. She spent most of her time having her ankle bathed because she tripped over a leaf and she comes back and does exactly the same thing. She must have wished she never bothered turning up.

The most embarrassing scene comes when Sarah Jane falls down the hill and has to be helped by the Doctor dragging her up using Bessie. My mom could get up that hill and she has a bad leg and it clearly looks like a slight slope so it was an uncersary moment and they could either have a) not done it or b) found a slightly bigger hill. There is also the Richard Hurndall issue. Now I understand that William Hartnell was dead but to be honest, it didn’t work. Hurndell did look like Hartnell but he was too nice. He didn’t have any of the crotchetiness that we use to get with Hartnell. Also the Daleks and Cybermen were badly used in this story. The sole Dalek is on screen for just a few minutes and just gets blown up. The Cybermen got on better because they had much more screen time but the scene where they were blown up on that giant chessboard is rather weak. I remember the very first time watching it I quite liked it but watching with my 27 year old eyes I wondered what I liked so much about it. They were used well in one of my favourite scenes where the Raston robot kills them us and one gets it arm blown off and one is decapitated. This was a fairly dark moment.

The Five Doctors doesn’t quite have the punch that the first one did and that might have something to do with fitting so much into one story or the format. 90 minutes might be too long as with an episodic format it forces the writer to structure the story into have more dramatic moments. That said it’s an enjoyable episode and with the 50th Birthday coming up in just over two years time it puts all the positive things that made Doctor Who a success into one story and it screams THIS IS DOCTOR WHO AND THIS IS WHY IT’S THE BEST SHOW ON TV!!. Or is it just me that does that?

Attack of the Cybermen (1985)

This story is quite an important story. It’s the first story of Colin Baker’s first season as the Doctor and it’s also the first story that was intended to be aired in a 45 minute format. Resurrection of the Daleks was aired in a 45 minute format but it wasn’t made like that.

The story sees the return of Lytton who had previously appeared in the Peter Davison adventure ‘Resurrection of the Daleks’ and it’s a welcome return in my mind because Lytton is a superb character and is played just as well. The story is also the first time in the shows history that the TARDIS changes it’s shape. There is a theory that producer John Nathan-Turner was planning of changing it permanently but I don’t think this is the case because its one of the things that will stay the same. This was the first appearance of the Cybermen since the 1982 adventure ‘Earthshock’ which is one of the best Cybermen adventures of all time and whilst this isn’t on par with that story this is still a damn good story. This is set during the same time that ‘The Tenth Planet’. Now for a fan this would be a nice little tie in and I myself quite liked this but to a new viewer it wouldn’t mean anything. I was half expecting to see Anneke Wills or Michael Craze pop up.

Set twelve months in the future there are a few nodding references to previous stories such as An Unearthly Child where in this story the TARDIS arrives and during the course of the story there is a mention to the 1966 story ‘The Tenth Planet’. This is the time of Doctor Who where references to past stories were starting to take over the telling of a good story. I always have the approach that light mentions are ok but when they get as big as they do in this story then that’s when problems occur. The story spends the latter half of its running time on Telos where the 1967 story ‘The Tomb of the Cybermen’ is set.

The story sees the Cybermen trying to change the events of Earth in favour of them. The thing that I like about this story are the scenes set in the sewers because they are a rare thing in classic Who of dimly lit sets. This creates an eerie impression and that is well created by Matthew Robinson (who directed Resurrection of the Daleks) who also does a good job giving the rest of the story a grim feeling. There are issues with this story. The first being the Cryons. There rubbish, they do naff all and they look silly and they are just too unbelieveable and as a result everytime they are on screen I just get bored. Sarah Greene is perhaps one of the ‘celebrity’ guests of this story but sadly is hidden under the mask of the Cryon as is Faith Brown. Also, when do Cybermen eat? I ask this because the Cyber Controller (played by Michael Kilgarriff) is on the portly side. In fact if there was a Cyber version of a gym then the Cyber Controller should go there. A lot is made of the moment where the Doctor kills the Cyber Controller and to be honest whilst I don’t think it should be a regular thing, there are times when the Doctor has to do things that he wouldn’t normally do and that includes killing aliens that would quite happily kill him.

Colin Baker is very good and is so much better than in The Twin Dilemma. There is a nice moment at the end of the story after Lytton has been killed where he realises that he has misjudged him and I thought that this was a brief sign of how nice this version of the Doctor could be. Nicola Bryant does very little apart from running around in a bright pink leotard (not that that’s a bad thing) but like Colin Baker, her character has improved greatly since the last story and the character’s relationship whilst strange is still quite intriguing. Maurice Colburn steals the show though with his superb performance. We learn a bit more about the character and despite how were suppose to dislike the character I actually find myself liking him and thought that his final few scenes were very sad and well played by Colburn. Also worthy of a mention is Terry Molloy, making his only appearance without the aid of a Davros mask. His character is totally different from what we get with Davors.

I like Attack of the Cybermen. There are a few issues with it but there is something really good about it. Eric Saward who through some convoluted reason wrote this has written a story that has some very good characters and scenes. Matthew Robinson directed the story well and together this story is one of e highlights of Colin Baker’s first full season.

Imperiatrix (2005)

This second series of Gallifrey has been brilliant. The difference in quality compared to the first season is vast and I was hoping that this final story was be a fitting way to sign off. It’s clear that they mean business on the duration alone because at 100 minutes, its by far the longest story in the Gallifrey series so far. Written by Stewart Sheargold this story has a lot to live up to and a long time to fit it in. Thankfully he does this well.

The story does a good job in keeping my interest throughout the whole 100 minutes, despite the action really only getting going in the latter half of the play but even in the first half it doesn’t feel like their just playing for time. The story has Romana battling against Darkel and trying to fight against the future as told by Pandora and Leela who has to try and track to the Free Time terrorists. Leela also has to come to terms with the death of Andred who had been killed but Leela chooses now to admit her feelings and avenge his death.

I am going to repeat myself again here by praising the performances of Lalla Ward, Louise Jameson and Lynda Bellingham. Lalla Ward is fantastic as she has to fight harder than she ever did and excels in the role. Louise Jameson has more emotional stuff to do in this one as she tries to deal with the loss of Andred. I am continuing to be impressed by how the character has developed over the course of the nine stories. Lynda Bellingham is in danger of becoming my favourite character of the series. Considering how two dimensional the character was in Trial of a Timelord it hard to believe that the character we get in this story is the same one. That said, Bellingham appears to be having a ball. The character is totally horrible but brilliantly played.

There are numerous scenes that I thought were very strong and shows what is so good about these characters. One that instantly comes to mind is when the bomb has gone off and killed lots of people and one of the K9 units. There is a lovely quote that accompanies this scene;

“Look out there Romana. Look at that wasteland of ash. That is what we will become under your rule.”

The story goes mad towards the end with Romana declaring herself a dictator after the Great Key has been found. With the return of Romana 1 it was a shock to think that Romana 2 had killed Romana 1 and at the end there was a moment where Romana 2 asks Leela to kill her. It’s a this point the story cranks up the tension. It was good to have Mary Tamm back because as one of the Romana’s she should be in it more but there can only be one Romana. I was listening to this in my car and I was surprised at how abruptly it seemed to end. It’s clearly a cliffhanger to series three (only time will tell) but if this is the case then the first story of series three should be a humdinger. We have Romana effectively locked up and her relationship with Leela which has been one of the highlights of the entire series is very fragile and it’s made even more noticeable thanks to Ward and Jameson. Overall the second series has been a delight to hear with some solid scripts and some superb direction but most importantly the acting has been high rate.

Pandora (2005)

Panadora is the second of an unofficial two-parter which hopes to clear up the mystery of who this mysterious figure was that arrived and interrupted Romana and Leela’s holiday. The thing that I wanted from this adventure was for a satisfying conclusion to the identity of this mysterious figure and that is exactly what we got and more importantly we got a satisfactory answer. Written by Justin Richards (Red Dawn), this story manages to build on the foundations laid down in Spirit. The story does a great job of balancing the main story arc but also give the conclusion that the mysterious individual deserves.

The replay of what happened to this figure who is called Wynter is truly horrific. We learn that Pandora is planning on using him to help get power but one he realises this he tries to prevent this from happening. as he tries to drink a flask thinking its poison but it is in fact a regenrative mutagen. There is then a sense of desperation as he tries to kill himself with K9’s nose laser and then crushing his hands in a door before biting off his own tounge. This is all in vain as Pandora keeps him alive. This was totally engaging and its one of the finest scenes that I have ever heard in this series. It was brilliantly played by Ian Hallard as Wynter. Another great performance was from Miles Richardson as Cardinal Braxiatel who seems to make the ultimate sacrifice as he tries to control Pandora in his mind but is forced to leave Gallifrey to save. Braxiatel is a very good character that is well played and goes through all the possible character moods but I felt quite sad when he left because I liked the character so much. That said it might not be the last we hear from him.

I have really liked this series so far because the quality of storytelling is far greater than in series one This was a very good conclusion to the unofficial two-parter with the last two stories potentially going to be superb stories. On its own this story benefits from some truly great acting mainly from the supporting cast. I think that the series has found itself and it seems to benefit more from having less complex time stuff and more from what we know (or think we know) about Timelords and the politics and backstabbing that goes on.

Spirit (2005)

The latest instalment sees the story move away from Gallifrey. Written by Stephen Cole, this followed the very complex opening story and thankfully this story isn’t anywhere near as filling on the brain but it’s still a nice story. Leela is still getting use to the truth about what happened to her husband is neglecting her duty of protecting Romana.

The story does quite a long time to get going because it sets up the idea that Leela wants to leave Gallifrey and Romana thinks that a holiday would do her some good. The story is pondering along and whilst I am wondering when the story is going to get going I am enjoying the gentle pace that the story is undertaking. Then the story gets going properly completely out of the blue. There is an arrival of a ship with a Timelord who’s had his tongue removed and seems to be under some tremendous mental agony. There is no way of finding out who he is and there is a discussion of a ‘forced regeneration’ but its never done. Then the story moves along a bit more because whilst enjoying some water-tank relaxation thing there appears to be a mind swap where Leela is saying words in a manner which isn’t like her and Romana seems to have lost some of her intelligence. This is an amusing idea and it doesn’t drag on too long before it’s resolved.

It’s a regular row that these two characters have and that is ‘Who’s methods are best?’ Is it Romana with her scientific and level headed approach or is it Leela with her do or die attitude. This is never resolved in this story but it’s clear with the two experiencing each other’s way of relaxing that both methods have merits. Typical. This is another good character piece with Romana and Leela finding out about the others beliefs. I thought that Louise Jameson was more convincing as someone who isnt herself. Lalla Ward, who is normally very good, somehow doesn’t quite seem to get a good hold of Romana with a mix of Leela. I also thought the supporting characters were very good because we get different Timelords though we don’t go without Narvin or Braxiatel but they aren’t in it as much as they usually are. I thought that Melyin was the most interesting because she is someone who is based on Davidia but has seven more years before she can leave. It seems like she’s happy but she is planning her way out and purposely gets herself into trouble so that she will have to leave. It’s a clever transformation of the character in such a relatively short amount of time.

This is a nice story that is a shift in the sort of story that we are use to from this series. It superbly written and superbly acted with the two leading stars both giving solid performances. I really enjoyed it and hope think that the quality of stories have greatly improved in series two compared to the previous series.

Insurgency (2005)

After the wonderful two-parter, I did have a fear that the series was going to return to bombarding a story with complex science stuff but I am glad to report that it wasn’t the case. Instead Insurgency continues to follow the path that I like because this story revels in the politics and the attempts of Darkel to take power from Romana. The story is about a group of students who are at the academy, some are gallifreyans but some are off-worlders and its these off-worlders who Darkel has an issue with. It’s almost a modern day feeling when it comes to immigration and people’s fear about outsiders coming in. Leela has been positioned in the Academy because one member has been exposed as a member of the terrorist group ‘Free Time’. It’s odd to see Leela as a teacher but she carries it off very well but Leela has her own story in this adventure as Andred tries to persuade Leela that he still the man she fell in love with back in The Invasion of Time. Something I liked the most blatant nods to Doctor Who that we have had when they mention the house that the Doctor belonged to as well as the Master but no mention for the Meddling Monk.

The performances in this story were all very strong and Insurgency is another strong character adventure. Lalla Ward is very good as her once unflappable nature starts to weaken a little. She becomes desperate and frustrated at times. I thought that bit where she is talking to the Imperiatrix Pandora (through K9) were very good scenes because they were almost a spoiler for Romana and the listener. Ward has played being President very well and I like how she holds herself despite all the political backbiting that goes on. The Romana we get in this series is not the one we got on TV, likewise I could say the same for Louise Jameson who has character wise been on a different course to Ward because the main thing in series one was finding out what happened to her husband and in series two we see her almost losing that fighting spirit we all know she has and trying to deal with Andred. What has happened to Lynda Bellingham? I ask that it a total sense of disbelief of how the character has improved over the series. I was watching The Trial of a Timelord the other day and its incredible how a pretty standard two dimensional character has grown into someone who has grown into the third most important character in this series. Her political views have been evident but it’s a this stage that they really step up a gear and it almost seems like her story because everything benefits her and Lynda Bellingham is superb as Darkel.

The final scene is a wonderful moment because it hopefully sets up the final story where there is a fight for power between Darkel and Romana. Darkel has been an increasingly big influence in these stories and her political fighting with Romana has been one of the highlights of the series and the coup d’etat is well and truly on the cards. Whilst this story may not have the action that Spirit or Pandora have but the story still has something that makes it highly enjoyable but still just as good as other stories from this series.

The Forbidden Time (2011)

The Forbidden Time is the latest Companion Chronicle and it features Anneke Wills, returning as Polly after her 2009 adventure ‘Resistance’. The story also sees Frazer Hines return in the secondary role as Jamie. Hines had previously done this in the 2010 adventure ‘The Emperor of Eternity’. The story is written by a newcomer to the Big Finish/Doctor Who world David Lock. The story starts off with a wonderfully eerie scene where we hear an alien voice say that the particular period of time is now forbidden (hence the title). The alien voice is very creepy and helps create the importance of what has been done. Sadly however the story starts to go downhill from here and it’s a shame because of the great quality of recent Companion Chronicles. The story is told via Polly being in a sort of Press Conference explaining a recent adventure she had. Part of it is told by Polly and the other half is told by Jamie who has recorded his part of the story of a Dictaphone. The setting of Earth is a good one because it’s slightly greyer than expected and there are Vist’s running around and the Doctor and Polly able to run through walls and it’s a good set up. The problem however with this story is that it’s dull. I was really struggling to get through to the end because there things that were happening that never really got me excited and as a result I was just wondering how long there was left before the end. The only good bit was when it was revealed the Vist that are trying to make some money out of it by forcing people to pay a toll to move out of that time-zone. That’s about as good as it got because nothing else is of any excitement.

It’s not a total washout. There was one slight sense of curiosity occurred during the bits where Polly is talking at some sort of press conference and it transpires that the audience at this press conference had been hearing voices and wanted an explanation. This explanation turns out to be that the Vist planted these messages as a threat. That was believable and wasn’t a cop-out. I also like Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines and think that whenever they are in a story that they are going to put in a strong performance and it’s only a shame that the story wasn’t there to compliment them. I did like the bit at the end where Polly was saying goodbye to the recording of Jamie and I thought that was a lovely way of finishing the story.

The Forbidden Time is my least favourite Companion Chronicle for quite sometime. It lacks anything drama to really care about and as a result it’s a waste for Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines. The point of bringing two actors (former companions) is to bring something to a story that the lead companion wouldn’t be able to by impersonating them. However I really don’t see what Frazer bought to the story and that’s not his fault it’s because of the writer. This is definitely one that I won’t be listening to again any time soon.

Children of Earth - Day 5 (2009)

The final part of this truly fantastic series picks up after the death of Ianto. However there is yet more to come and more death. It was the fitting end that I was hoping it would be.

The children are a drug to the 456 which is quite a grim revelation almost like they shouldn’t have asked what the 456 intended to do with the children. As the children are being taken to there are some crazy scenes as people fight back against what the government is planning (cant think where they got that idea from!). There is an unusual start where Gwen is talking to a camera talking about the Doctor and why he doesn’t come and help and concludes that he looks away out of shame. Quite a grim view of the Doctor but then I am being biased. The lighting just goes over her eyes and is a wonderful start to the episode. This is the first time that Gwen is really doubting her role in Torchwood and even whether she wants the baby. I don’t really like this in her character because she is always the voice of reason.

Frobisher is asked to sacrifice his kids to the 456 for the ‘inoculation’ just to pretend in front of the cameras. This is where Peter Capaldi really shines because after all the stuff that Frobisher has had to do for the Prime Minister, The scene where he finds out and Frobisher threatens to tell the media is made even more emotional when the Prime Minister doesn’t even care. Capaldi’s final scenes involve him shooting his wife and kids dead before turning the gun on himself. Thankfully we don’t see this as it would have been too shocking and this way it was more emotional and showed the everyone was paying the price. Russell T Davies has done a superb job over the five episodes in giving everyone something to lose. Mr Dekker goes out in a blaze of glory. After a lacklustre previous episode his sneery character (who survived the gassing at the end of the previous part) is forced to try and kill the 456 despite bleating on how it’s impossible to beat them. Ian Gelder has been a delight to watch in this series.

As Frobisher is killing himself and his family there is a story that really humanises Bridget as she tells Lois how they first met some 30 years ago. It shows that John Frobisher was a good man and despite what happened over the last few stories wasn’t done because of some desire to inflate his ego but because he is trying to do the best he can. Bridget’s story shames Lois and it the first time that Lois is shown to be a bit horrible. However she is slightly redeemed because she helps Bridget get hold of the contact lenses which she uses against the Prime Minister who is looking after his own skin but gets his comeuppance. The final death is the most shocking because it happens to Jack’s grandson who is sacrificed in order to destroy the 456. It wrecks what was effectively a fragile relationship between Alice and Jack. It’s the final straw for Jack and what we get is a superb performance from John Barrowman who leaves the Earth to try and forget what has happened. Next time we see him is in David Tennant’s final story. Eve Myles has been superb throughout this entire series and it’s nice that the character has a happy ending despite everything that has being going on.

Children of Earth may have been shorter but it made up for it in terms of quality. I enjoyed every single minute of it and everyone on the show should give themselves a round of applause because it was a brilliant lesson in how to produce superb drama. I’ve been particularly impressed with the characterisation and especially Rhys who has gone from being a buffoon boyfriend/fiancé of Gwen’s to being an important part of the team.

Children of Earth - Day 4 (2009)

The penultimate part is where everything starts to go crazy. The story moves from action to emotional feelings as children have to be given to the 456 and the shock death of a regular character makes this the best episode so far. We learn a bit more about the events that we saw at the beginning of episode one. The 456 will give the humans a vaccine for a flu that will kill out a lot of people. In 1965 they just want 12 people which is what Jack finds acceptable until he learns he has to hand the kids over because as the woman he is talking to says ‘he doesn’t care’.

We finally get to see a bit more of the 456 apart from green goo and something hitting the glass of the box. However we never see it properly because of the gas and also the image from the camera that they use. Then there is the really grim image of the bodies of the children from 1965. That fact is made even worse because we see one of the bodies blinking, thus showing that it’s conscious. The reaction of everyone really shows how serious it is. Sadly we say goodbye to Clement who I have really warmed to by this stage and thought that he had contributed a great deal to the story.

When the 456 say that if they don’t hand over 10% of the children that it will wipe humanity off the face of the earth, I was thinking that it’s the perfect opportunity for the Doctor to arrive and save the day. The tension is raised when we learn that the 10% refers to each country and not of the world. The cabinet meeting is the start of the very long debate as to what to do about handing over the children. I think its great how they bicker on how to decide which children should be given to the 456. The character that stands out is Denise Riley (played brilliantly by Debroah Findlay) who is the voice of reason. I don’t know what has happened by Mr Dekker has lost some of the things that made him so enjoyable.

After years of faithful service. Nicholas Briggs gets an on screen role as Rick Yates. It seems odd having him on screen as I often think of him as a Big Finish personality. Yates is a character that is pretending to be looking after the population that would survive and tries to paint a picture that the cull would be a good thing. I might be biased but I think the character is very good. It’s nearly two-thirds of the way into the episode before the Torchwood crew start moving and head towards Thames House however it’s at this point that it start to get going again after the long cabinet session. When Lois reveals to everyone in the cabinet that they have been recorded and she threatens to publicise what they have said is a wonderful moment because everyone is crapping themselves that they will be ruined politically. Showing what politicians really care about – themselves.

The last few minutes are brilliant because the viewer is left with the shock at the death of Ianto. Then it’s the discussion by the cabinet deciding that they have to start collecting the children. The final few minutes are brilliantly directed and acted because of John Barrowman, Gareth David-Lloyd and the music along with the extras who all show a wonderful sense of fear and desperation. After Owen and Tosh have bitten the dust the numbers of Torchwood personnel are getting to extremely low levels. Also the personal loss for Jack is very heartfelt and I think that it was a big mistake to kill of Ianto as he was a brilliant character. He was the only character that has been consistently strong and Gareth David-Lloyd will be missed from the series. The sight of Jack and Gwen looking over Ianto’s body is a really sad sight and is not an action packed but emotionally packed cliffhanger.

The final part has the potential to be an epic and fitting conclusion to this series.

Children of Earth - Day 3 (2009)

The middle story of the series is where the story continues and it’s at this stage that things start to get really seriously as the 456 are expected to arrive and the personal stakes rise along with the tension. They may not have the Hub but its comforting to know that they have a temporary base where they can do their scooby gang things, The Torchwood crew go on a bit of a crime spree instantly reminding me of bits from Hustle where they go on a little spree to raise some cash. Quite interesting to see how outside the law they have become. There is a great moment where after everything that has happened there is a ‘were back’ feel when the crew get their new clothes.

Lois well and truly gets involved in the action. She is quite literally the eyes for Torchwood as she is present when the 456 and Frobisher have their first meeting. It’s quite a Bond moment where Lois has to wear contact lenses. Mr Dekker has a light episode after being sinister in the previous episode. This episode belongs to Frobisher as he is pushed into the limelight by the evil Prime Minister and there is a wonderful moment when Frobisher and Jack are talking on the phone, when Jack threatens Frobisher’s family and John says he wont because he is the better man was a nice indication that the character does have morals but feels like he has to do his duty.

A bit more about the bus scene in episode one is explained with the three other people that were killed along with Jack. Clement’s role in that also become more clear. It turns out that Clement was one of the children on the bus and Jack was the one driving the bus thus bears some responsibility for what happened to them and to Clement. I am quite amazed at the child actors who are quite creepy when they are standing still and shouting ‘we are coming’. To add to the creepiness they start pointing towards the air. The line that everyone is pointing towards the UK somehow gives me a greater feeling that this is an international event.

I’m still unsure about Jack’s daughter and grandson. It’s the best performance by Lucy Cohu (Alice) but the grandson has still to do anything to impress me. There was a nice bit of bitchy moment between Alice and Agent Johnson. Paul Copley is really good in this episode and has gone from being slightly annoying to being impressive.

The arrival of the 456 coming into Thames House is when the action really kicks in for this episode. The special effects are quite impressive as they are simple yet still enjoyable. When I was watching this I really didn’t know what to expect in terms of visuals as well as how they would soon. The scene with John Frobisher, Mr Dekker and the 456 is very chilling especially as we don’t really see the 456 but just some green goo. During the first big meeting, the 456 say they want the 10% of the children and this is when the intense feeling that I felt at the beginning of the story returns.

Another big name joins the show when Colin McFarlane dons a military uniform and plays an American General. He comes into it mad that Britain has been chosen by the 456. It mirrors the bit in ‘Sound of Drums’ from 2007 when the American President is angry at The Master/Prime Minister for going ahead with diplomatic relations with an alien race. The revelation that Jack was involved in the 1965 ‘gift’ is the cliffhanger and it’s the weakest so far. It’s a big thing to say that one of the main stars was involved but it lacked the drama that the first cliffhanger had or that the eerie feeling the previous one had. Oh well, there had to be a weak one sooner or later.

Resurrection of the Daleks (1984)

Following the successful return of the Cybermen the previous year, it seemed like the natural progression to bring the Daleks back after a near five years absence. The Daleks were last seen in Destiny of the Daleks and for anyone who’s seen that story will know it wasn’t their finest hour (and a half). This story also marks the departure of Janet Fielding as Tegan who had been with the show since Logopolis in 1981. This story is famous for the fact that it has a high death count than Terminator 2 which is funny when you think about it.

After a poor previous story, it was good to see the Daleks restored to their proper glory and I mean that both in terms of storytelling and also production wise. Another thing that has improved is the character of Davros. Terry Molloy appears in his first of three performances and it’s a great performance. The mask fits Molloy and whilst its not a patch on Michael Wisher, its still a good outing.

Maurice Coburn is one of the best of the supporting artists. The character of Lytton is a very well written one and superbly played by Coburn. He was so good he would return the following year but it’s not a patch on this performance. It’s never quite explained why Lytton is working with the Daleks. It’s not that Lytton is a prisoner or a slave of the Daleks but neither is he in charge of them. Another big name in this story was Rodney Bewes who is most famous for ‘Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?’. I can’t quite make my mind up about his performance because he’s good when we think he’s a good guy but when there is the plot twist I find it difficult to believe. It’s a bit like Beryl Reid in ‘Earthshock’, it just seems like John-Nathan Turner hired him because he’s a big name.

The departure of Tegan isn’t handled particularly well because there is a scuffle with a Dalek and gets a slight mark on her head and spends the rest of the story in bed. So after spending a long time on her back she then decides to leave the Doctor. Having spent three years on the show it was clear that there was nothing more that Janet Fielding could do with the role and this was a classic example of how at times she was badly used. Mark Strickson does a good job in this story leading the fight to get the prison ship that Davros is on blown up. He doesn’t do much for the early part of the story and it’s only when he ends up on the prison ship that he gets into his stride. Peter Davison is on good form in this story. The best moment comes when the Doctor has the power to kill Davros, it’s quite a thing and it echoes the moment in ‘Genesis of the Daleks’ where the Doctor has the power to wipe out the Daleks but doesn’t go through with it.

There are issues with this story. The helmets that the Dalek troopers have to wear are very stupid. It was only noticed at a very late stage and too late to change. Well they could have taken them off and it would have improved things drastically. I also found some of the prison staff to be very annoying. I thought that Rula Lenska was miscast and deserved a more important role. Also Professor Laird was a character that was totally pointless. Well actually she wasn’t that pointless because it was another female character for Tegan to interact with. Her death was amusing purely because of the scream that Chloe Ashcroft gave.

Resurrection of the Daleks is a good story but there are some flaws to it. The Daleks are used more effectively than in previous stories and Davros is also better. Eric Saward (writer) wasn’t keen on this story but I think he’s doing himself an injustice because its well written and very dark and grim.

Children of Earth - Day 2 (2009)

Following on from the fantastic cliffhanger, the action starts immediately with Gwen and Ianto being hunted in the wreckage of the Hub which has just been blown up. This is where we start to get into unchartered territory because there has always been the comfort blanket of the Hub but now that has been blown up and the Torchwood crew being hunted down there an excitement when watching this episode. After being mentioned in the first episode, 456 starts to get more and more involved in the plot. We learnt that they are coming back which when I was watching it at the time thought it had something to do with children on the bus in 1965. It’s at this stage that we see the return of Tom Price as PC Andy. This is clearly an attempt by RTD to introduce some comedy to the story because up until now it’s been a bit intense and it was in danger of running out of tension too soon into the series. Another fun comedy moment is with Rhys and Gwen sneaking into a lorry that is filled with potatoes.

The 456 announce that they are coming tomorrow so there is already a build up of excitement for the next episode. Along with the construction of a device which will house the 456. The whole room (including the box that will hold the 456) is very atmospheric. It’s essentially a normal room but is made all the more important by the box. It’s where a large chunk of the action in the next few stories will occur.

One of the things I like about this story is the government conspiracy. It’s like the X-Files in the UK. The plan to wipe out Captain Jack and the rest of the Torchwood team is something that seems to have been in the works for sometime due to their popularity or lack of. The Prime Minister Brian Green (played by Nicholas Farrell). Farrell is utterly dislikeable from the moment he appears in episode one but he really steps up a gear in this episode. Another great character that really steps up a gear is Liz May Brice as Johnson who is a character (donned head to toe in black) is tasked with killing the Torchwood crew. This is nice little character that is well acted by Brice. The character of Habiba is fleshed out a bit more as she starts to betray her boss and starts to help Gwen. It’s the start of the fight back by Torchwood. In just two episodes my opinion has gone from not really having an opinion of an ok character to being really liking a strong character who is not portrayed as a mildly important character but is starting to be.

Episode two is quite violent and dark with Gwen shooting someone in the foot and a mutilated Jack merging himself back together. The start is quite creepy with the bag getting bigger and when the bag is opened, Jack is red raw with blood and other stuff on him. It’s quite difficult to watch even though the skeleton is only on screen for about a second. Jack goes through the ringer in this episode. He starts off being exploded by a bomb to being drowned in cement to being chucked off the edge of a cliff.

The regular characters are all very good but John Barrowman doesn’t feature in this one too much so it falls to Eve Myles and Gareth David-Lloyd who carry the story and are involved in the action sequences. Peter Capaldi, Nicholas Farrell and Ian Gelder are the main stars from the supporting cast. In particular Gelder who plays Mr Dekker and is a very sinister figure who I really really like because he is just so good as a baddie and there is a sense that Dekker is enjoying everything that is going on but is clearly someone who cant be trusted.

The cliffhanger to episode one was fantastic and whilst the cliffhanger for this episode wasn’t as explosive it was just as entertaining. It’s the revelation of the box filled with poisonous gas and ends with Dekker walking towards the box and breathing. Very sinister. Episode Two is a great continuation of the story with some impressive characters and the story is moving along at a steady but frustrating pace. I say frustrating because I always want to know what is going on immediately. But RTD is not rushing the story and allowing things to move at the right pace.

By the way the Dead Jack count is now 3.