Big Finish Review Round-Up: 2019 – Part 1

Feature by Gustaff Behr.

While the television series has been sleeping, Big Finish has been at play with over a hundred titles released this year alone, and from every corner of the Doctor Who universe. 2019 also saw several milestones being reached, box series’ coming to an end, new ones being announced and more than a few welcome returns. While not everything is 10/10, most Big Finish titles dance a very thin line between great and gorgeous, putting the fans’ expectations first and making sure we get what we pay for…most of the time.

Before we begin, take note that I have not listened to the following titles as they either do not appeal to me, I have not had time, or I have listened to their predecessors already and that experience left enough of a bad taste in my mouth to not continue the series:

• Short Trips
• Class
• Torchwood One, Series 3: Latter Days
• Rose Tyler: The Dimension Cannon
• The New Counter-Measures, Series 3

Now, then, here’s a look at Big Finish in 2019…

Doctor Who, Main Range

It was an unusually consistent year for the main range, but in terms of both good and bad. None of the stories achieved the epitome of a perfect rating, but the bulk of the stories managed to fall between a seven and an eight (out of ten), which shows promise.

Big Finish chose Kamelion as their redemption character this year, and it paid off nicely with a trilogy of stories that managed to explain why he was so absent in-story in the television series, and better than that, make us sympathize with this poor dishevelled robot of a character. Black Thursday and The Kamelion Empire are both solid scripts with lots of character beats and drama to them. Once again Big Finish does the impossible in making the listener not only care about a scrap pile character, but making us want more of them.

The Seventh Doctor trilogy consisted of reintroducing the character of Mags from The Greatest Show in the Galaxy and making her the new companion. The stories here also have a classic monster theme to them, with werewolves among other things. There is also an ongoing story featuring Mags trying to come to terms with her lycanthropian mutation. Admittedly these stories fail to live up to the brilliance of the previous trilogy, but the character beats still manage to even things out even if the plot is sometimes bland in places. Given the repeated emphasis on werewolves and mutant transformations, the stories do kind of blend into one another, which Doctor Who should never do.

After five years, Six and Peri return in possibly the best stories of the year. Memories of a Tyrant explores the age-old question of whether it’s right to punish an amnesiac for a crime they genuinely can’t recall. The interactions between Peri and said tyrant are highlight worthy, but the mystery of what happened takes a few unexpected turns that manage to keep listeners on their feet. Emissary of the Daleks has a few good ideas, but overall it’s a fairly generic story. Harry Houdini’s War on the other hand is a masterpiece. It manages to feel like a proper Doctor-lite episode and a Doctor-centric episode at the same time. Fans have wanted a meeting between the two for years and Big Finish exceeded all expectations. The dialogue is top tier, the pacing gorgeous and John Schwab, who portrays Harry Houdini, does such a phenomenal job that part of me wishes we can make Harry Houdini a permanent fixture in the TARDIS.

The Fifth Doctor returns with Tegan and Nyssa in another trilogy of stories, but they are joined by ancient Roman Slave ‘Marc’. Tartarus feels too much like Nightmare Country and does a good enough job introducing Marc to the TARDIS, but the episode still feels like a generic companion introduction story. Interstitial and Feast of Fear are two one-hour stories, which damages their entertainment value greatly, as Interstitial is good while Feast of Fear is a slogfest, exploring the concept of an evil Nyssa. The idea is barely utilized at all.

Much like The Kamelion Empire, Warzone / Conversion is the perfect season finale, bringing Marc’s story to a close in a spectacular Cybermen fashion. There are elements of “Dark Water” and “Death in Heaven” in there, but for the most part, this story manages to feel like its own thing. The Doctor and his team take part in a deadly foot race where winners get to upgrade part of their body while Conversion brings the Cybermen into the fold, tying Earthshock for the best Fifth Doctor Cybermen story.

And lastly, because Chris Chibnall refuses to do Christmas, Big Finish takes the liberty of giving us a special that is funny, entertaining, fresh and silly. Not only that, but the four stories are linked together in a way that makes you want to go back and listen to them again just so you can spot all the things that tie into the villain’s master plan. Like the best mysteries, the evidence is hidden in plain sight.

There is one story though, featuring Peri and her new boyfriend, that deals with the morality of growing perfect children that felt out of place, only because Peri becomes extremely attached to some kids she barely knows. It’s not every day that a Doctor Who Christmas special ranks so high in the episode rankings, but there you go.

• Devil in the Mist – 7.0
• Black Thursday / Power Game – 8.0
• The Kamelion Empire – 8.0
• The Monsters of Gokroth – 7.0
• The Moons of Vulpana – 7.0
• An Alien Werewolf in London – 6.0
• Memories of a Tyrant – 8.0
• Emissary of the Daleks – 6.0
• Harry Houdini’s War – 9.0
• Tartarus – 7.0
• Interstitial / Feast of Fear – 6.0
• Warzone / Conversion – 8.0
• Blood on Santa’s Claw and Other Stories – 8.0

The Fourth Doctor Adventures, Season 8

Season Eight featured John Leeson as K9 and added a new companion in WPC Ann Kelso, played by Jane Slavin. The stories here are set in between Season 15 and Season 16 of the television series and are collectively titled The Syndicate Master Plan. Unusually for this series, the season was released in two separate box sets rather than a new release every month.

The series featured a lot of consistently good-to-great episodes with more than enough attention paid to the titular Syndicate Master Plan arc, which had a presence in almost every story. Information is drip-fed to the audience at well-timed intervals to make sure we don’t lose interest. The character of Ann Kelso also proved to be a welcome addition to the TARDIS team, receiving a lot of focus. Barring the extremely subpar Fever Island, the series as a whole contains several extremely satisfying twists that end the season on a high note.

Status: Highly recommended

• The Sinestran Kill – 7.0
• The Enchantress of Numbers – 9.0
• Planet of the Drashigs – 7.0
• The False Guardian – Part 1 – 7.0
• Time’s Assassin – Part 2 – 8.0
• Fever Island – 4.0
• The Perfect Prisoners – Part 1 – 7.0
• The Perfect Prisoners – Part 2 – 8.0

The First Doctor Adventures, Volume 3

David Bradley continues to shine as the First Doctor. Claudia Grant as Susan Foreman, Jemma Powell as Barbara Wright and Jamie Glover as Ian Chesterton aren’t too shabby either. Tick-Tock World is wonderfully satisfying if you’re a Susan fan. Most stories have her stuck in ‘screaming, feeble granddaughter’ role, but here not only is the story interesting, featuring a great mystery and the return of the actual Susan Foreman in Carole Ann Ford in a mystery role, but Susan’s character is finally given a little substance.

Status: Highly recommended

• The Phoenicians – 7.0
• Tick-Tock World – 8.0

Torchwood: Gods Among Us, Volume 2

The Torchwood box sets, especially those continuing the series after Miracle Day, have been hit-and-miss for me. The stories feel like they’re trying to be interesting, but often come off as less impressive. Volume two flip-flops the normal trend by starting and ending strong, but stumping its toe in the middle bits. Flight 405 is a fantastic resolution to the last box set’s cliffhanger, while Eye of the Storm in similar fashion ties the mini-arc of this set together while also setting up the next box set in style with a very Torchwood-y feel reminiscent of TV Season Two.

Unfortunately Hostile Environment feels too tame while Another Man’s Shoes completely saps the momentum by featuring a Freaky Friday plot where Jack and Mr Colchester, Andy Davison and Yvonne Hartman, and Tyler Steele and Norton Folgate switch bodies. The episode is a character study, but most of the usual body swap jokes don’t land and feel intrusive to the overarching plot the box set is trying to get through.

Status: Recommended

• Flight 405 – 8.0
• Hostile Environment – 5.0
• Another Man’s Shoes – 4.0
• Eye of the Storm – 8.0

Join us tomorrow for round two…