Mother Russia

A story that takes Steven in a really interesting direction, while being held back by its age, obvious twist and lower production value.

 

The Party lands in a Russian village, 1812. After meeting the locals, they decide to just hang around for a while. However, two invasions are coming. One is a small man from France, the other is a bit more… otherworldly.

 

As soon as this start, you can tell this is one of the older Companion Chronicles. In fact, it is the first Steven Taylor centered Companion Chronicle. And for a first outing, it kind of asks a lot from him.

 

Peter Purves has to do Steven’s voice, of course. But he also has to do the Doctor, which he has clearly not pinned down yet. On top of that he also has to play his own Russian friend and several other French voices. He aside from one other role. He is everyone.

 

And on top of all that, this is also a story with a shapeshifer, that tries to imitate almost everyone Steven comes across. So now he also has to do subtle differences in presentation for each of the character. Like an angrier, irritable Doctor.

 

And that kind of pushes it all past the breaking point. Peter Purves can act brilliantly, but this is his first go and he basically has to do everything. Amidst all the voices, some nuances and emotions get lost. Sometimes an accent slips. And while I understand why this happens, it does still take away from the experience.

 

What really would’ve helped, was one more voice actor. Any actor would do. Let Purves do the Doctor and companions, and let someone else tackle the Russian friend or the side roles. I’m sure that would’ve really supported the actual narrative.

 

Which is pretty good, by the way. The party settles down and enjoys life for a bit. Steven in particular just gets to rest for a while. No job, no mission, just… Steven. Which is really nice! He goes fishing, gets some new hobbies, he makes a friend. He lets slip some of his doubts about travelling with the Doctor. It fits the tone of the first half of season 3, while still being calm and relaxing.

 

But like I said, it all gets a bit more complicated when the shapeshifter gets introduced. And it feels a bit contrived at times. The story opens with our interrogator saying “I’m Steven Taylor”, follow by actual Steven correcting him: “No, I’m Steven Taylor. After that, several moments happen where characters act irrational and distinctly out of character. If you’ve seen any sci-fi in your life, you now know exactly what’s going on. There is an impostor among us.

 

But the story doesn’t want you to actually know that yet. It keeps that a secret until the final 10/15 minutes. So get used to Steven asking “What’s going on?” over and over again, while you’ve already known for ages. It gets a bit tiresome.

 

Overall, the story isn’t quite as good once the shapeshifer is introduced. This is mostly because of the aforementioned nuances asked from Peter Purves, which he just can’t deliver on yet. He hasn’t even gotten a full grip on the Doctor yet, but now you ask him to play a fake Doctor.

 

And the early performance hurts other moments as well. Like the interactions between Steven and his Russian friend. Nuances in the friendship are lost because of a performance that can’t capture them yet. How can someone express deeper emotions for someone if they can’t even handle their accent sometimes?

 

And I do feel a bit snobbish about it. It’s early work. I’ve heard that things get better. I’m used to things being better. Purves is a brilliant performer. But when judging this on its own, you can’t ignore that the presentation harms the storytelling. Details get lost in the scuffle.

 

But hey, what’s there is still pretty decent. There are no huge gaps in the writing. And while struggling, the performance is certainly trying. On the writing side, it could do with some tidying up in places. When exactly does the writer want the audience to know about the shapeshifter? On the performance end, just add another person. Lighten the load between actors a little. That way, this story gets more room to breathe and explore characters.

 

“Mother Russia” would be a prime candidate for a modern rerecording. It’s age and the inexperience of its leading man hinder it in places. Polish it up with some modern experiences, tighten up the script a little and you might have something great! But currently, it isn’t. It’s just decent. A sign of good things to come.