I'm not really sure what to make of this one. Generally speaking, I hate the "dartboard" critique BF often receive, but this release did stick out to me as one of the oddest crossovers in the Whoniverse. That said, I'm always one to give it a go and see if I love it. I can't help but feel this was a wasted story, and the mind wipe was just predictable.

Despite the long runtime, the episode does quite a good job with the pacing so it doesn't drag in any one given segment. The story itself just lacks a certain punch for me, which I think had it that punch it would've landed better. I needed more of a reason to be invested in this story, and crossover, than what we actually got. The fairies are rather reminiscent of the Moffat era as creatures and it does stick within that theme, but ultimately its a very safe story that doesn't push the boat out or cover new ground.

I wish I could rate this higher or claim it to be a stronger audio. I was so excited for Fairies at the Bottom of the Garden since it included Missy, who is always delightful, and the surprise return of Caitlin Blackwood to reprise her role as young Amy. Since Blackwood always lived up to that role really well as Karen Gillan's real life cousin, her return in Big Finish was really cool to see.  It is interesting to learn behind the scenes that they Blackwood and Gillan never met before they were originally cast.  Just an interesting bit of trivia, really.

Either way, the familiar resemblance went a long way to help the plausibility of these two being the same character. Now that Blackwood is a little older, it makes sense she can bridge the gap between younger and older Amy a little bit, so I'm really excited to see if she comes back one day.

As for the story itself, the parts where Missy is working as therapist to Amy is all really great. That character struggle Amy is going through after being abandoned, nobody believing her about the Doctor, and her life quietly and subtly falling apart thanks to that crack in the universe - it's all present in the writing here and in my opinion was done really well.

What I don't care for were the fairies. Now I'm not against fairies as a plot concept. Supernatural (the show) did a great job of using fairy folklore while still keeping the tone of their show intact - even if the fairy episode was played for laughs a little bit. Doctor Who, on the other hand, feels like it really struggles with making this content blend well with its franchise. I feel like we have the exact same problem with them as we do in the Torchwood episode Small Worlds. The effects in that and here aren't great around such content, and it doesn't add anything to the story or the character's situation.

It's also so unnecessary here. The story between Amy and Missy was interesting enough and plenty of story that the fairies simply don't have to be here. Missy trying to meddle with a companion before the Doctor even met Amy is a cool idea and more than sufficient to drive an audio special like this. So, I really wished they pushed for that instead of forcing this fairy content is. The fact that it does blend well with the fairy-tale nature of the Eleventh Doctor in the show isn't even enough to save this one from feeling very mid-range. I really wish I liked it more than I did.