This was one of the first audios I ever listened to, and years later it still holds up as one of the best stories to be made in the Whoniverse!

The Doctor feels very out of character in this story, but when he's thrown in a situation like this, he doesn't have time to be kind-hearted and naive - he has to be the strict Time Lord who can't change Mondas' fate, which is clearly eating him up inside. He's often short with Nyssa and regularly lashes out at the Mondasian Government. It's great to see that warm, lovely front that the Doctor puts up fall away as the story develops, revealing a darker, angrier man underneath. It's such a nice change to hear him really struggling to hold back and even become terrified, screaming at the possibility of being converted. Immediately, the atmosphere is unsettling, as previous adventures has seen the bond between the Doctor and Nyssa strengthen a lot, but when they arrive, he refuses to tell her where they really are. Because of this, it leads to her meddling in history and getting involved, throwing the pair of them in at the deep end in a fixed point in time. Nyssa's very brave and resourceful, trying to be selfless and follow in the Doctor's footsteps, but still being scared out of her mind after her previous encounter with the Cybermen. It's clear that she is still haunted by the loss of Adric, and this time around, it's a very traumatic ordeal and she feels like she's responsible for his death if she doesn't do something about it, against the wishes of the Doctor.

The Cybermen are so deeply disturbing, right from the start. I love the cyborg-y, not finished Cyberman design - it's absolutely something the BBC would not get away with, a disfigured, blank expression reigning tyrannically over the public is a nightmare, truly terrifying. There's so many horrendous moments, such as the Cybermen forcing Constance to be upgraded, the introduction of Zheng, Yvonne getting upgraded. There's such a tragic tale being told here and it blends so well with the terror that the Cybermen impose, making people feel like they have to become like them. Their dominance and power is handled so well, ruling a society that accepts them and aren't scared of them, it feels so wrong to hear people living "harmoniously" with creatures that act like dictators. It's so horrifying to get to know all these side characters and have most of them be converted. It's nice to hear the Cybermats, but it's not actually explained as to their function in this society, which I would've appreciated. However, there's some great imagery over them, such as the way they crawl all over the TARDIS. I love the shocking ending to this story - Zheng is alive, and they're starting again! All of this was for nothing! I love the idea of the Committee being the model for the Cyberplanner, ruling Mondas logically and without human reasoning. However, I found it a little difficult at times to understand what they were saying. This is a phenomenal story for the Cybermen, they're done with justice, they're scary and imposing, and they feel very real, which is the worst part! Marc Platt definitely used our knowledge of the Cybermen to his advantage, as each development brought the story closer and closer to a doomed end, raising the stakes to unbelievable heights.

Of course, the Cybermen wouldn't work as well without the context of what's going on with Mondas. There's immediately a great start to this bleak tale, with a beacon of hope getting crushed as the first man to walk on the surface goes insane - this already sets us with pretext that the people are doing everything they can to survive. The desperation in the environment is sold so well, with the curfew, the deathly silence, the way the Cybermen show disregard for the people they control by easily digging up the graves of their loved ones - so many tiny factors contribute to the inevitability of the Cybermen - this planet's fate is fixed, and each little scene shows that there's nothing that can be done to help them.

This story spends so much time developing the side characters, that it packs so much more of a punch when a lot of them are killed off - they're adapting to a very dodgy community, and barely surviving, but they still find ways to continue with their life - enjoying Christmas, doing work, hanging out with friends like Eric Krailford. Thomas Dodd is a very creepy bloke, but for the way that Mondas is heading, that's normal. He praises the Committee but is secretly terrified of them, and is a little annoyed that they're ruining his business of transplants, a shop that can easily be found on a high street. The Hartleys are a very stereotypical family, in a lower class and really struggling, having to sell their mother/wife for whatever. It's so heartbreaking when Yvonne breaks down after being converted, it's definitely the best moment of the whole story. You can't help but feel the pain that her dad is feeling when she realises what has happened to her. It works so well when you spend a lot of time with these characters and they're shockingly killed off, and even now it's so dire to hear the twist.

The music is dark and depressing, and really helps to sell the low mood of the story. I really like the way it sounds like the 60s score, varying the way the Cybermen theme was back then. There's nothing too standout in the music itself, it's really just for the background to set the scene, but the sound design of the episode itself, with the Cybermats, the Committee, all of it is just brilliant.

Favourite Line: "Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad..."

Absolutely exceptional story. I can't praise this enough. The themes are told in an effective and haunting way, the characters are handled with great care, Marc Platt and the actors make sure that they sell these people as real which makes it so much more uncomfortable to hear, the story is so perfect. Absolutely adore this.

"Father must see my new suit"

Heartbreak, horror and humour. This audio has it all, Marc Platt hits it out of the ball park with a suitably eerie story that tells the tale of one of the many origins of the Cybermen. Definitely one of the standout releases from the first 50 Main Range stories and probably the best 5th Doctor release from those 50, it weaves a chilling atmosphere and the suitably cold setting of Mondas only aides this. The reveal that the people going to the surface of Mondas from their subterranean dwellings is great and always sends shivers down my spine.

Peter Davison and Sarah Sutton give good performances and are backed up by strong performances from the supporting cast and the monster voices from Mr Briggs are as good as they always are.

Overall, a fantastic Cyberman story, proving that they lend themselves perfectly to body horror, backed up by excellent performances from the cast make this audio story a must listen for any fans of Who.

The Monthly Adventures #034 - “Spare Parts" by Marc Platt

Alright, let’s get this over with. Spare Parts is good, it’s really, really good. There is a reason it’s such an immensely popular audio play and that is due to the sheer writing capabilities of one Marc Platt, an author famous for his grand designs and vivid alien worlds that effectively create the Cybermen’s very own Genesis of the Daleks, moulding a bleak and oppressive tale of grim fates and a doomed world. But, is it perfect? Many would say so, besides The Chimes of Midnight, it fights for the spot as most popular Big Finish audio play and for many it is the quintessential Cyberman story. However, Spare Parts is no perfect story for me; despite its undeniable brilliance, there are just a couple things that bug me.

Mondas: the twin planet of Earth and a world on the brink of annihilation. Living in subterranean cities, the dregs of the population battle for survival, desperately trying to break free onto the poisoned surface. When the Doctor arrives, he can do nothing but watch as human kind turns to machine. But with Nyssa getting more and more involved in the plight of the Mondasians, maybe he won’t get to choose his role.

(CONTAINS SPOILERS)

I don't think calling Marc Platt an inconsistent writer would be a controversial statement. Although he has created a couple fan favourite stories, most of his work falls under fire for being slow, or convoluted or just plain boring. But seemingly, his most consistent element is his world building; often praised for his bizarre and wild creations, Platt is undeniably a visionary author, with a lot of grand, expansive ideas that always seem to translate well to paper. Frankly, I can't think of many people who would've done Mondas this much justice. It is a bitter world, choked in dust, without sunlight, without joy - a subterranean 1950s London with cybernetic horses patrolling the streets and digging up the graveyards. It's a decidedly grim landscape that is expertly made real to us and is the primary reason this audio is so skilled at making you feel hopeless. This is a bleak story and it perfectly conveys a world at the brink of destruction. You can very easily buy into how the Cybermen slowly and insidiously took over, the central, cybernetic committee of Mondas expanding the bracket of who would be converted wider and wider until even those who could oppose it were stripped of their souls and individuality. And can I just say that Platt gets the Cybermen; they're a villain I love in concept but find to be rarely well realised, but  not here. This may very well be my favourite depiction of the Mondasian tinmen ever. And through our metal friends, Platt creates this lingering sense of doom and turns the whole story into a ticking time bomb of melancholy and imminent annihilation. What really helps the immersion are our cast, as every one of which is on top form. Leading the audio are Davison and Sutton returning as Five and Nyssa, who are at what is by far their most interesting outing so far - Platt truly giving them some much needed character. Nyssa is the tortured scientist desperately trying to save a fated world after losing her own and is the main sympathetic link here whilst Davison hands in a stellar performance, becoming increasingly desperate and conflicted as he fights his instinct to save a world he knows he cannot help. Playing alongside our main duo are a near perfect cast of incredible characters, chief among them the Hartley family, who take Nyssa in when she becomes separated from the Doctor. All three of them feel astoundingly real and make for the emotional crutch of the whole script, their fantastic performances allowing the trio to become alive as the plot progresses and allow the reader to be hurt immensely when they start to fall apart. Perhaps the most famous part of this whole script is when Yvonne, the compassionate and lively eldest child of the Hartleys, is partially converted, left human enough to regain her memories and stumble back to her home, where we watch in horror as her family attempts to comfort their daughter as she is slowly becoming more and more a machine. It's one of those moments where the lines just land in the most spectacularly horrifying way: "Father must see my new uniform.' 'Look how tall they've made you!'. Considering Yvonne was basically one of our main characters in the first half, this reveal hits like a truck and is the perfect example of the sheer brilliant misery that persists throughout the entire story.

And yet, for all its near perfections, there's just one too many things that disappoint me. Chief among them is how much this story circles. The middle parts are somewhat aimless and mostly consist of the Doctor getting chased at nauseam around the city, not to mention the plot has a couple contrivances that annoy me personally, like the Hartleys apparently being the one family on Mondas considering how often the Doctor and Nyssa coincidentally run into them. It's not egregious but can be quite tiring, especially when the ending seemingly forgets it's meant to be the Cybermen's origin. It ends like a completely normal Cybermen story, with the threat beaten and the day saved, before Platt hurriedly injects one last scene that shows the Cybermen magically survived and all is doomed. For being an origin story, it's strange you could remove one scene and turn it into any other Cyberman story, if a particularly good one. There's also the... odd plot beat of revealing that the template for every single Cyberman was the Doctor's physiology which, whilst not being the most damaging retcon the show has ever seen, is a decidedly pointless one that makes the Doctor, once again, seem too large a figure in history; he had to cause every single major historical event, no exceptions! And another thing that got on my nerves was the sound design, occasionally. Specifically when it comes to the Cybermen themselves - I adore the monotonous, slightly human sounds of the Mondasian Cybermen as much as the next guy but that, constantly, paired with the utterly incomprehensible Committee, is murder on the ears.

There are some stories that maybe don't deserve their reputation, whether that be in a positive or negative sense, but Spare Parts is not one of them. It is iconic for a reason and it's no surprise that it's been copied to hell and back in New Who and following expanded media. It's one of my favourite takes on the Cybermen ever and it's a bitterly beautiful listen that gets a little monotonous at points but sells itself as a near Shakespearean tragedy of metal men and desperate people doing desperate things. You won't see me calling it the greatest Doctor Who story ever but it very well may be the best Cyberman story we've ever gotten, and for very good reason.

9/10

Pros:

+ Mondas is sombrely and vividly realised

+ The Doctor and Nyssa are incredibly well characterised

+ The Hartleys make for great side characters and massively assist immersion

+ Yvonne's conversion is an utterly gut wrenching scene

+ Truly evokes a feeling of hopelessness in the face of Armageddon

+ One of the absolute best uses of the Cybermen

Cons:

- Cybermen voices get progressively more grating throughout the audio

- Story forgets that its meant to be an origin for the Cybermen

- The Doctor being the template for every Cyberman was a weird and unnecessary retcon

- The story begins to go in circles around the middle

🔟🔽 = MASTERPIECE!

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

“GENESIS OF THE CYBERMEN!”

Spare Parts opens with one of the most atmospheric, tense, and dramatic first parts of any Big Finish story I’ve heard. It sets the scene and the rapidly deteriorating Mondasan society effectively; it introduces the local population, all fleshed out beautifully and performed with real heart, and it slowly reveals the emerging Cyberman threat and the genesis of the Doctor’s second biggest foe.

With the Mondasian inhabitants at the forefront, Spare Parts successfully blends strong character drama with a fascinating science fiction adventure. The very humane Cybermen are the most creepy part of the entire story. Their sing-song voices, as heard in their first appearance in The Tenth Planet, are spot-on and just as horrifying as before.

Marc Platt creates a properly engaging, emotionally grating, and vivid story, and the performances help it come to life. Even Davison and Sutton carry plenty of weight as the 5th Doctor and Nyssa, and this comes from someone who isn't a big fan of either character. Davison goes in with fierce emotional energy, and Sutton brings out all the best qualities of Nyssa; the two of them interact with the guest cast effortlessly.

Spare Parts forms an ominous and tragic atmosphere from the onset, slowly revealing more and more of the story that will eventually end up being the origin story of the Mondasian Cybermen. It's horrifying to hear about the experiments made on the humans on the planet; it's terrifying to hear how Cybermen are created and how they suffer under all those metal parts; how the necessity of survival drives the surviving humans on Mondas on the brink of disaster and finally tipping over. There are some truly harrowing and heartbreaking scenes in the final two parts, so emotional and horrifying that you will never forget them.

Platt nails the 5th Doctor and Nyssa and their distinct personalities dealing with the Cybermen post-Adric. He also nails the inherently creepy original Cybermen and writes deeply humane characters that the listener cares for. The tense and dark atmosphere translates incredibly well through Platt's dialogue, and the best parts are those that force the characters to express their emotions.

The plot is fairly simple, yet effectively deep and tragic. The script doesn't attempt to hide the fact that we are following the origins of the Cybermen but truly builds up to that pivotal, harrowing moment. There is a logical reason as to why the Cybermen are created, and the story expertly ties into their later (and earlier) appearance in the 1966 TV classic The Tenth Planet. It's also refreshing to hear a story that forces the Doctor to help despite knowing that there is nothing he can do. It's like an audio version of The Fires of Pompeii.

Origin stories for popular villains are always intriguing, and Spare Parts is no exception. It's the crumbling world of Mondas and the events leading to the rise of the Cybermen that keep this story immensely engaging and deeply emotional. And the listener will be engulfed by the harrowing story, despite knowing how it all will end.

At the time of release, Spare Parts was immensely original, thanks to the way it handles the Cybermen and gives them a human edge that is usually forgotten in their other appearances. We have received several alternate origin stories since, but nothing hits quite as hard as this one (including the 2006 two-parter, which was inspired by this adventure).

The sound design and music are among the finest in early Big Finish, and they help create and maintain the dramatic atmosphere that will stick with you long after you've finished listening.

People repeatedly highlight Spare Parts as one of the most emotional and hard-hitting Big Finish Doctor Who releases, and I can understand why. It's dark, it's tragic, and it's scary. It gives the Cybermen a backstory, which, to date, is the best one they've been given.

This was a very emotionally charged and bleak release to listen to during a global pandemic - a truly dystopian depiction of life. It take a little while to warm up but culminates is something really special. I’m not sure it needed the cliffhanger ending though - as the listener surely knows that the peace will not last anyway.