The Thousand Worlds surprised me with how connected it was in plot to the previous episode. As the box sets are described as "anthologies" and the plot was well wrapped up, I thought we were going to get into a completely unrelated adventure here. In an ingenious twist, however, we get both a sequel and delve into the Time War at the same time.
WRITTEN BY
Nicholas Briggs. I wonder how many hours of Doctor Who he's written in comparison with the supposed record-holder, Steven Moffat.
PLOT
The Doctor is drafted by Cardinal Ollistra to recover a Time Lord lost in the "Null Zone" part of Dalek territory, where no time travel can occur. To his horror, however, he finds that the Null Zone is in fact a devastated, future version of Keska that the Daleks are using as a laboratory to regain their advantage in the Time War...
ANALYSIS
It's brilliant. That's all there is to it. I'm completely engrossed in the story and the intrigue. There's a sensible hero, real stakes, mysteries... this is Doctor Who. This is science fiction. I think I've just been converted into a Big Finish fanboy. The thought of going back to Moffat and JNT after this is kind of depressing, lol.
I loved the twist of revisiting Keska because as I said, I didn't expect to return here at all. And the hellish industrial landscape was exactly the sort of place I'd imagined the War Doctor to be in. So I got what I thought I wanted and what I didn't even know I wanted. How great is that?
The story's still far from a resolution, but I'm eager to find out what the naughty Time Lords are really up to with this mission...
CHARACTERS
John Hurt continues to absolutely nail it as the War Doctor. But first, I do have a slight criticism: I think there might be one too many witty lines(at one point, he actually has to whisper them under his breath in front of Daleks, risking extermination for a great number of people). It's nowhere near the pantomime levels of recent TV Who, but it's a mild issue nonetheless.
Other than that, though, he's a fantastic, gruff lead and a great hero for a series where pretty much the entire universe is out to get him. I've really fallen in love with the War Doctor, guys. I may actually kind of like him more than some of the 'proper' Doctors.
Rejoice returns! Battered and aged, but as loyal and inherently wise as ever. Whilst I miss the innocent attitude, her experience adds a new layer to the complex dynamic she has with the War Doctor. And by complex, I mean it's the same old "he needs someone to remind him he's not a monster" thing, but actually done right. It's in their personalities, not some artificial nonsense like in the TV show.
Veklin, Bennus and Arverton(played by Beth Chalmers, Kieran Hodgson and Barnaby Edwards, respectively) are a curious trio. It's a lot of fun to see more Time Lords(or Gallifreyans) with interesting personalities and I have a feeling that we'll be exploring their backstories soon. As far as characterisation goes, Veklin's cynicism and obsession with duty is maybe slightly overplayed, but she bounces off of the simple-minded Bennus wonderfully.
Then there's Seratrix, played by Alex Wyndham, who is eerily reminiscent of the renegade Straxus from Dark Eyes, although the soft-spoken actor and storyline seem to suggest he's not as treacherous as he looks. We'll see.
Jacqueline Pearce continues to charm as the Doctor's equivalent of a nasty aunt.
NOTES
*Would one Time Destructor really set the Daleks back so far that they have to resort to working with minor genocidal aliens? They didn't have another fleet ready or something? I thought the Time War was waged throughout the universe, not confined to certain battles. Now it just feels like a regular war again.
*Also, why don't the Time Lords send someone back in time to find a flaw or plant a weakness in the Daleks' technology so they could strike them in the future when they're supposedly at their weakest?
*Nicholas Briggs also directed the story, and I must give him extra credit for using sound effects so well that the story came to life despite the restricting audio format. It's a bit late for that credit I suppose, given that he's no doubt done this so many times before, but as a newcomer, I find it amazing how easy it is to follow the story.
CONTINUITY ADVISOR
1) When pressed to tell his name by a desperate slave, the Doctor refers to himself as "John Smith". A nice touch, although it feels a little weird to hear the War Doctor use the name.
CONCLUSION
The plot thickens. But will it pay off?
No comments:
Post a Comment