Ainda vivendo seu hiato, Doctor Who continuava suas aventuras nas mídias alternativas enquadradas no que hoje chamamos de Universo Expandido. É chegado 2003 ano em que a série completava seus 40 anos de existência, a história comemorativa de aniversário ficou nas mãos da BIG FINISH. Foi então lançada pela empresa a Trilogia Villains, três áudios cada um deles focando em um vilão especifico do Doutor, Omega, Davros, Mestre finalizando com o especial de 40 anos, uma viagem alucinante de quase quatro horas de duração, Zagreus. A primeira história dessa saga comemorativa conta com o 5° Doutor em um passeio turístico no chamado “Sector of Forgotten Souls”, lugar onde há milhares de anos a nave do Omega desapareceu enquanto o mesmo detonava uma estrela. De repente a nave original do vilão materializa no local para fazer um pedido inesperado ao Doutor – Eu considero que Nev Fountain está na lista dos seletos escritores da BIG FINISH que possuem um jeito único, uma marca registrada em suas escritas que distingui das demais. Assim como em The Kingmaker, The Doomsday Contract por exemplo, aqui o roteirista repete o mesmo feito aplicando perfeitamente uma mescla entre algo cômico agindo com seriedade na trama, notamos perfeitamente isso nos turistas da Sector of Forgotten Souls (principalmente nas duas senhoras), Professor Ertikus é uma espécie de Wikipedia humana que obviamente sabe de todos os detalhes da história dos Senhores do Tempo, Daland o obcecado em incorporar Omega em uma peça para os turistas, entre outros detalhes. Além do áudio abordar muito bem uma premissa onde o Omega está decidido em querer fugir para seu universo paralelo, temos uma expansão, um enriquecimento na lore do vilão trabalhando em uma continuação quase direta dos eventos do Arc Of Infinity – Por mais que muitos considerem a primeira metade como a principal responsável pelo primeiro áudio da Saga ser considerado o mais fraco dos quatro. Esse bloco inicial executa perfeitamente o papel de trabalhar e desenvolver a relação entre Doutor e Omega cautelosamente, além de trazer várias memórias, histórias e reflexões bem interessantes dos envolvidos – A forma como o Omega mostra ao Doutor que a importância de um legado não é tão simples e raso como ele imagina é muito bem bolado, de certa forma influencia diretamente as pessoas que tomam conhecimento desse registro histórico. Depois de criada por completa essa estrutura de carga significativa de desenvolvimento entre os dois personagens, Fountain começa aplicar calculadamente seus ótimos plot twist trazendo mais emoção ao enredo, recomendo que evite ao máximo os spoilers desse áudio, eles são essenciais para a experiencia (o cliffhanger da parte 3 é coisa de maluco de bom). E o que dizer da fantástica voz de Caroline Munro interpretando a Sentia, uma guia turista que transita por várias emoções e decisões ao decorrer do enredo. E por fim, toda a visão inicial que acreditamos e conhecemos vira de ponta cabeça surpreendendo o ouvinte. É quase que um áudio obrigatório para os que apreciam os vilões de Doctor Who, principalmente por trazer uma visão mais profunda do Omega.

The villains trilogy begins with "Omega" and it's absolutely brilliant. The story greatly expands on Omega's character and backstory, while cleverly still leaving some things unclear, his characterisation is fantastic and Ian Collier, reprising the role from "Arc of Infinity", plays omega brilliantly. Peter Davison is given a lot of interesting things to do in this story and his performance is brilliant.

The story is fantastic, it keeps you second guessing until the very end, and has several incredible twists, the main twist of the story in particular was genius and is one of those twists that changes everything. This story is a must listen, as is the whole Villains trilogy.

Perhaps the moral of this story is that you should never meet your heroes. Or maybe your heroes should never take your corporeal form?

This story provides a great example of a world that would be difficult to show on TV but which works well on audio - it’s hard to imagine how they would have visually represented The Doctor’s conversations with Omega.

Most of the awkward comedy of this story lands well. The fact that The Doctor you've been following through the first three parts of the story is not the real Doctor is quite a monumental twist! But the complex plot is quite hard to figure out without rewinding back some key scenes. To the point that towards the end a character essentially turns to camera and explains what's going on.

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time! 

"Omega: A Tale of Time Lords and Betrayal”

The Fifth Doctor encounters the legendary Omega once more in this audio drama, the first in a trilogy of villain-centric stories. Set against the backdrop of a peculiar historical tour, the narrative explores how fictional reenactments blur into reality as Omega manipulates events to facilitate his return. His earlier, ambitious scientist self takes centre stage, offering fresh insights into his tragic fall from grace.

The plot’s strength lies in its character dynamics. The relationship between Omega and the Doctor is richly layered, with parallels drawn between their shared Time Lord heritage and contrasting moral choices. This nuanced exploration of the Doctor’s darker tendencies is rare for pre-Time War incarnations, making it a standout element.

Professor Ertikus, a delightful addition to the cast, provides both comic relief and intellectual sparring for the Doctor. His enthusiasm for uncovering Omega’s truth mirrors the eagerness of my favourite, Chronotis from Shada, and adds a touch of whimsy to the story. His untimely demise at Omega’s hands in Part 3 is a poignant moment, further raising the stakes.

Ian Collier reprises his role as Omega from Arc of Infinity, delivering a performance brimming with menace and pathos. While he doesn’t match Stephen Thorne’s operatic intensity, Collier’s portrayal brings a quieter, more introspective menace to the character, making his desperation and manipulation deeply compelling.

The story shines brightest in its final act, where a clever twist reveals Omega’s use of the Doctor’s biological imprint to frame him for murders. This revelation reframes the entire narrative, injecting tension and urgency as the real Doctor only steps into the spotlight in Part 4. However, the climactic stretch, though impactful, feels overly drawn out at 40 minutes.

Omega’s supposed marriage to Sentia offers a darkly humorous subplot, though its absurdity recalls the twisted dynamic of the Master and Lucy Saxon in The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords. The closing moments, featuring an agent of the Celestial Preservation Agency, add a surreal but intriguing coda, hinting at the Doctor’s enduring legacy among the Time Lords.

📝Verdict: 7.69/10

Big Finish celebrates 40 years of Doctor Who with a tale of twisted history, dark reflections, and a renegade Time Lord's desperate bid for freedom.

Omega is a slow-burn exploration of the titular villain’s psyche, balanced by strong character interactions and a late-game twist that revitalises the plot. While the pacing sags in parts, its introspective tone and compelling performances make it a worthy addition to Big Finish’s celebratory releases. 

Random Observations:

• It's weird how the Doctor claims he is pushing 900 years of age here, which would mean he’s barely aged between his fifth and his ninth incarnations.

I feel like the odd ones out here, because some of the criticism I hear are some of the strongest points for me. It’s definitely much more flawed as a Story than the other two that follow, but, and this is a big “but”, as BF goes for that time period, I think they nailed it (for the most part).
Especially the first Half of the Story is incredible. Ending with such a good Cliffhanger Ending, easily one of my favorites. The second half loses some of its focus and at times can be frustrating, still the good outweigh the bad for me.

A Highlight here is easily Ian Collier, who returns from Arc of Infinity and while there is a point to make that every time Omega returned, they didn’t nail him as they did the first time. For me while weaker, it’s still an improvement over Arc and gives Collier more quiet Moment, which he works much better than the more shouty approach we are used to Omega. Some Exploration of Omega was done rather well, I thought, even if at times it fell into the trap of the Timelord feeling too much like human society. They are at some of their best, when we get the more alien aspects to them.

Davison gives here a stellar Performance, the other Voices do a solid job and nobody fells too out of place.

As far as a first Who Script goes (Fountain apparently wrote a Benny Short Story before, but this is its own thing entirely), I think it’s marvelous, despite being consumed by some of its ambition.