Big Finish - The One Doctor

Here's another title from the Big Finish first 50 for a fiver range. The One Doctor by Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman, directed by Gary Russell.

The Sixth Doctor and Mel land on the planet Generios at the vulgar end of time, and encounter another Doctor and his assistant, Sally-Anne. Who is the imposter, and can the real Doctor save the day when an alien creature demands that the planet pay a huge price to avoid destruction?

This is apparently a bit of a fan favourite from the early days of Big Finish (released in 2001) and it is a comedy of sorts. There seems to be a fairly clear attempt to evoke memories of Douglas Adams and the Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, particularly with some of the oddball characters the two Doctors encounter on their different quests. Unfortunately it didn't work for me at all, much like Big Finish's attempt at a Monty Python script in Castle of Fear this just fell flat. Humour is such a tricky thing to pull off in a radio play and rarely succeeds for me. I've had similar problems with the 2000AD audios when they play up the comedy in their Judge Dredd stories. At the moment I'm more interested in the spooky or atmospheric adventures such as the Sherlock Holmes or Jago and Litefoot ranges, although they do have moments of humour.

There's not anything terribly wrong with The One Doctor. Christopher Biggins is pretty good as the imposter in his usual pantomime manner, and Adam Buxton and Matt Lucas provide some comedy voices for the minor characters. It just did not interest me. Even the Doctor's inevitable triumph just seemed like a bad joke that had been slowly set up over four acts. A favourite for lots of fans but not for me. 2 out of 5 evil Skelloids.

Big Finish - Seeds of War

The latest Big Finish main range release is Seeds of War by Matt Fitton and Nicholas Briggs, directed by Barnaby Edwards.

The third of the run of Sixth Doctor and Mel stories and my favourite so far. From the synopsis: 

A race against time takes them from the Great Tower of Kalsos to the Reliquaries of Earth. In an epic journey across the ten systems, their fates are intertwined with one family. The Tevelers are to feel the effects of war more than most. The Doctor has a plan. Mel is sure he can save the day. But something is lurking. Watching. Waiting. A presence the Doctor knows of old. But just how far does its influence pervade? The Eminence awaits.

A sprawling space epic with four distinct parts each set in a different location and all featuring the growing menace of a new (or old) villain, The Eminence. David Sibley does a marvellous job as the voice of the new baddie, and all the performances are very strong in this drama. Despite the shifting locations the writers wisely focus on the fate of the central Teveler family who hold this story together and give it that important human element. In fact I was a bit disappointed when we didn't get back to the surviving family members as the story concluded. They were all likeable characters and it would have been nice to learn their fate.

The fate of humanity is at stake as the forces of the Eminence try to destroy their crops and all food supplies. Given enough time the Sixth Doctor may be able to save the day but the odds are stacked against him, despite Mel's continued faith that he will save the day. Interestingly in the midst of all this the Doctor has to run a realistically portrayed resuscitation  I really felt for him as he struggled to save a life while Mel confidently promised the relatives that he would. I have been in similar situations myself and they are not pleasant  Well done to Big Finish for getting this right.

I've been a but unsure about Colin Baker recently but he and Bonnie Langford are very good here. In fact the whole cast are very strong with Ray Fearon standing out as Barlow. It's a terrific story with a memorable villain. Best of the mini series. 4 out of 5 glowing orange eyes.

Big Finish - Spaceport Fear

Big Finish's latest monthly range release is Spaceport Fear by William Gallagher, directed by Barnaby Edwards.

From the Big Finish synopsis: Welcome to Tantane Spaceport – where the tribes of Business and Economy have been at war for all of four hundred years, where a terrible creature called the Wailer prowls the corridors around the Control Tower, looking to eat the unwary, and where there is one Arrival: a battered blue Police Box containing the time-travelling Doctor and his companion, Mel.

This story feels like one of those generational spaceship science fiction stories such as Brian Aldiss' Non-Stop. The tribes of Business and Economy know no other world than this strange Spaceport. And with the power supply limited there is a lot of wandering around in dark corridors with the spooky sounds of the mysterious Wailer creature punctuating the silence. The Sixth Doctor is in fairly robust form, although this is not quite the spiky persona of his early stories. Similarly Mel Bush is an older, more experienced (and less irritating) character who uses her computer skills to good advantage. There's some clever trickery with using handheld computer games as a form of communication. Although this does beg the question as to why the Doctor with his technical know-how, and his tendency to get separated from his companions, doesn't come up with some form of communicator to use when they step out of the Tardis.

The stand out vocal performance in this adventure comes from the distinguished actor Ronald Pickup who appeared in the very first season of Doctor Who on television. Bonnie Langford and Big Finish regular Beth Chalmers are very good, and Colin Baker seems on better form than he was in The Wrong Doctors. It's another example of a skilled audio production from Big Finish but it still didn't quite do it for me. At the moment I'm getting more fun from the Big Finish special releases such as Unit:Dominion and The Memory Box.

It's better than the Wrong Doctors but still not up to the best that Big Finish can do. Although the Doctor gets a high score within this story I can only give it 3 out of 5 extra lives.

Big Finish - The Wrong Doctors

Bang up to date with the latest Big Finish monthly release - The Wrong Doctors by Matt Fitton, directed by Nicholas Briggs (does he ever sleep?)

This adventure fits in somewhere after the Sixth Doctor has said his farewells to Evelyn Smythe and is moving on to his meeting with Mel Bush (Bonny Langford) in her village home Pease Pottage. Except there's something wrong with time, Dinosaurs roam the golf course and the Women's Institute are dealing with an invasion of alien business consultants. And into this mix comes another version of the Sixth Doctor and an older, wiser incarnation of Mel. Time is unravelling and it will need two Doctors and two companions to put it right again.

I know nothing of Bonny Langford's run on Doctor Who on television and I think I've only heard her in one previous Big Finish production, The Juggernauts. Somewhat like Tracey Childs in Unit: Dominion Langford comes with a slightly dodgy 80s reputation but actually she's fine on radio. I could have done without her singing but that's what she is best known for and it seems unlikely that Big Finish would pass up on the chance for her to stretch her vocal cords. Mel doesn't seem at all annoying and while I haven't warmed to her yet she certainly didn't bother me.

Colin Baker is hit and miss with me at the moment. Sometimes he is on imperious form and others times his Doctor just seems a bit of an obnoxious bumbler. He tries to give us both versions here but I confess I couldn't tell them apart and as often happens with a timey-wimey type story I got a bit lost in the twists and turns. I'm still waiting for a main range release that will match the frenetic heights of The Burning Prince.

The supporting cast are fine, I particularly enjoyed Patricia Leventon as the commanding leader of the WI. Matt Fitton's script tries for lots of verbal word-play and Spice Girls jokes about Mel A, Mel B & Mel C, but it all fell a bit flat for me. The sound design includes several strange background beeps and electronica which stood out to me for the wrong reasons. I wasn't sure what they represented and they distracted me from the story.

All in all a bit of a disappointment really. 2 out of 5 flowing cravats. Hopefully the rather marvellous titled Spaceport Fear will do better.