Audio Another series galumphs to the end and although I've enjoyed it more than either Dark Eyes or Doom Coalition, why do I feel like it's time to move the Eighth Doctor on to some new paradigm? Perhaps it's because once again, the stand alone episodes in Ravenous have been the strongest by far and that just as previous attempts and serialisation have shown, this sort of thing doesn't really work in Doctor Who for longer than a few stories. When the EDAs attempted this sort of thing, it was always far more successful when it encompassed half a dozen books rather than a dozen or so, and having a single box for the Ravenous would have been far preferable to what we've had here. That said, there's still plenty of fun to be had, especially in the closing couple of episodes.Whisper
Doctor Who does A Quiet Place. Sort of. Having the Eleven as a Turlough figure seems ok in theory, but it leaves the Doctor looking like a naive idiot because once again he's in the position of assuming the best in people even if everything which has happened previously would indicate that he has no reason to. But it feels out of character for this Doctor and it's simply bizarre when it's revealed that he isn't stringing the Eleven along to see what he's up to but does genuinely believe he's changed, admonishing the very real suspicions of his companions, one of whom has already made the same mistake. The Doctor isn't Charlie Brown. He's Lucy.Planet of Dust
Doctor Who does Mad Max: Fury Road with the Beevers Master as Immortan Joe. Sort of. One of the joys of Big Finish is how they've taken a character like this version of the Doctor's old frenemy and made him a viable antagonist based on just a few episodes of the classic series (four of which this actor didn't appear in) without running roughshod over televisual continuity. He has the perfect hook, a desperation to survive and although we know how he'll ultimately succeed (poor Tremas and would you believe I've only just realised that was an anagram), it provides plenty of narrative mileage to work from as is demonstrated here.Day of the Master
Big moment for this project as the Eighth Doctor and the Bruce Master meet for the first time, or at least the first time outside of prose or the comics. The Diary of River Song has somewhat dulled the impact, the explanation for his survival having been established there already, but nevertheless hearing McGann and Roberts in a scene together again after twenty-odd years is quite the thing to behold even if it doesn't seem like they recorded together (not that you'd notice). Congratulations to John Dorney for returning him to a place at the end which means that other versions of his story also still make sense (in a way which suggests he was using the TARDIS Datacore as a reference).
The final episode is delicious. Messes Roberts, Jacobi and Gomez chomp merrily on the imaginary scenery, the latter clearly enjoying every second of this and foreshadowing her reaction to the Saxon Doctor (we have to assume this is the prequel). But the sheer number of mysteries and twists tumbling over each other to get out are incredible, to the point that I thought we might even stumble over the origins of the Eleven (was this a deliberate red herring?). Incredibly dark in places, this nevertheless has a heart as big as the ticker carried around by Kelly Hutchinson in Roger Sanchez's Another Chance video and I can't wait to see what happens next.