The Fearmonger

Overall, I had a great time with The Fearmonger and think it is an example of an early Big Finish story actually being pretty fantastic. I love the introduction with the Doctor interrupting the radio show. It really relies on Sylvester McCoy to pull off a scene like that and he does it phenomenally, selling me on the Seventh Doctor audio adventures and the fun of Big Finish all in one fell swoop back when I first heard it.

It's a really strong introductory episode for the Big Finish month range. I love how nakedly political it all is, which fits a franchise that has been political since the very beginning, and how well acted the audio is by all players. This is less surprising from McCoy and Sophie Aldred, who are both so great reprising their roles, but also the supporting cast. Jacqueline Pearce, Mark McDonnell, and Vince Henderson were all pretty memorable too me. The effects largely work well to give a feel of this being an adventure that could easily have come out of McCoy's original run of television episodes.

Now, leaning into that trend some of the writing can be a bit clunky, and like some of the other early Big Finish audios, the balance with sound effects isn't quite achieved - things get very crazy around the riot scenes, for example, and are a little hard to follow - but I found the story itself very easy to follow and had a lot of moments that were either entertaining or compelling. You can very easily tell the direction of this story for its final part, but that didn't make me enjoy it any less. I still had quite a bit of fun with the Fearmonger and would absolutely recommend it.

The Fearmonger is a very good Seven & Ace story. The plot moves along at a decent pace, but doesn't seem rushed. There are enough twists and turns to keep it interesting, including some surprising ones. I really like the main theme that was explored, and it was done with heaps of commentary, but it didn't let anyone off the hook. It was great to hear Sophie Aldred back behind the mic as Ace, and even having not played her for a decade, she still had the attitude and spunk that I love from her.

An excellent play. We get two tightly interwoven stories, either of which could likely stand by itself.

First, there's the science fiction plot about the titular fearmonger, an energy being that creates and feeds on people's fear. An excellent treatment of the emotional impact of dealing with such a creature raises the plot to something much more.

There are sufficient political twists and dramatic turns here that you can sometimes forget that there is anything other-worldly happening in the story. This story is the context where we get to know the guest characters best; we're granted a cast of genuinely complex individuals. No one's hands are spotless, but even the worst have moments with the listener's sympathy. There's a strong cast on hand to bring these characters to life.

These two stories explore the ambiguities and contradictions of the Seventh Doctor. He is simultaneously compassionate and callous. With the full complexity of the Doctor in play, we also get a good view of Ace's ambivalence towards her friend and mentor. Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred are at the top of their games here.

Finally, this story gives a textbook example of how a story twist should be handled. Every surprise in the story was set up well by what had gone before. In an unusual experience, I spotted the main twist at the episode three cliffhanger.

It is a strong outing that illustrates the scope of stories that Doctor Who is capable of.