Since Big Finish have been doing
series the one thing that has always been the same is that it features one
Doctor, the stories might not necessarily be linked but it always has the same
Doctor so this series of adventures marks a change. After the rather dark tone
of stories that we had with the Seventh Doctor it was nice that we have what in
spite of the cover is a rather lighter story. This is also the first time since
I think Omega in 2003 that the Fifth Doctor features in a companionless story. The
story sees the Doctor land on a ship which is looking for a lost princess and
on this ship is a prince who has a bit of a fiery temper. There is the added
threat the if the prince doesn’t find the princess then peace will not be
possible and war will ensue. The story doesn’t waste anytime in telling the
story as it is action packed from start to finish.
The story has a fairly linear
plot and there aren’t really any surprises in this but to be honest I don’t mind
that because the story is so action packed and the characters are so well
written that its almost a relief that the story isn’t complicated. After Gods
and Monsters it was nice to be able to follow a story from episode one to four.
There wasn’t an episode that really stood out as they were all very strong and
also I liked the cliffhangers which weren’t over the top and weren’t lacklustre,
they all served a purpose and I liked them.
Peter Davison gives one of his
strongest performances in quite sometime. I think it was the fact that he didn’t
have Nyssa or Tegan or Turlough with him. Don’t get me wrong I like the chemistry
that the Doctor has with those characters but its nice that the Doctor is on
his own as it gives Davison the chance to play the Doctor different and it feels
like he is revelling in it. The supporting performances are very strong. I
liked George Rainsford as Prince Kylo. It didn’t take long for the fiery side
of his character to come out and Rainsford did a good job in coming across as a
nice guy that has this dark side. However the standout performance for me was
from Kirsty Besterman as Princess Aliona. It’s one of the standout performances
of the year in my opinion.
The Burning Prince is a highly
enjoyable adventure that would be my favourite story from the main range had
Protect and Survive not been released. The story is solid with some perfect
performances and a story that never gets boring and never feels like its
getting bogged down in things and it was a shame when it ended. Rating - 9/10
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