This is part of a series of reviews of Doctor Who in chronological timeline order.

Previous Story: City of Death

Let's start with the elephant in the room, K9's voice. I respect that David Brierley tried to do something different with the voice, other than just imitating John Leeson but I can't help but feel that K9 has lost his charm. Brierley's take on the voice just annoys me and makes K9 feel too posh.

Voice aside, I think this was a fairly good story. The sets are well designed and while the creature's design is definitely surrounded by mixed opinions, I enjoyed it quite a bit.

The story itself is quite good and Tom Baker brilliantly acts his fascination with the creature in the pit, it feels very Doctor-y to desperately try and find a way to communicate with an unknown species and not judge it whatsoever. The reveal that the creature is an ambassador from another planet is nice too and definitely pushes the "don't judge a book by it's cover" moral lesson that Doctor who absolutely loves.

The effects at the end, in the TARDIS, as they hold the neutron star in place were really distracting and very unpleasant on the eyes.

It's not a bad story but it's a bit forgettable and, at times, annoying.

Next Story: The Romance of Crime (Audio Adaptation)