Dodo finally gets a Companion Chronicle! She's been such an underdeveloped character, so it's great for her to get this. I like what this story does with her, and I really hope that we get more like this with Dodo.

A. Maybe B.

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

“THE Y FACTOR – DODO GOES UNDERCOVER AS ALIEN FUNGI SPREAD IN POST-WAR LONDON”

Rounding out the Companion Chronicles: Families  box set, The Y Factor places the First Doctor and Dodo smack in the middle of a foggy, suspicious 1947 London. Post-war paranoia and creeping fascism are the backdrop, as Dodo gets the rare chance to take centre stage in an audio that gives her welcome agency and purpose. Narrated with charm by Lauren Cornelius and acted alongside Stephen Noonan’s Doctor, this story is a gently-paced, quietly charming historical-sci-fi hybrid with a few choice moments of intrigue.

Dodo is the driving force throughout, doing most of the legwork as she pokes around a mysterious research facility while the Doctor does a fair bit of scene-hopping and occasional Venusian aikido. Dodo’s companion for much of the story is Edith, a spirited 74-year-old jujitsu expert who easily steals every scene she’s in. She’s an utter delight—witty, sprightly, and more capable than most UNIT soldiers.

Edith and Dodo form the emotional heart of the piece, and their slow uncovering of a Nazi-sympathising conspiracy involving a mysterious "paperweight" is satisfyingly low-key at first. There's a whiff of Remembrance of the Daleks in how a seemingly ordinary post-war setting harbours deep, dangerous secrets.

FUNGUS AMONG US

By Part 2, the plot properly kicks in with the realisation that the “paperweight” is actually a transmat leading to a crashed alien spacecraft buried beneath London. There’s a classic Hartnell-era pulpiness to this twist—fungal aliens that feed off the evil thoughts of humans and amplify them into violent actions. It’s exactly the sort of lo-fi sci-fi threat that would have fit neatly into The Sensorites or The Ark.

The alien influence isn’t especially action-packed, and Sanderson—the story’s Nazi-adjacent antagonist—is more of a lurking presence than a true villain. Still, the concept of gendered immunity to alien control (women being immune) adds an interesting thematic layer, even if it could have been explored in greater depth.

There’s a notable absence of large-scale stakes, and while that isn’t always a problem, it does mean the story often feels like it's meandering rather than building. Still, the gradual revelations and slow-burn tension offer a very era-appropriate pace—reminiscent of early Hartnell historicals or the sci-fi-tinged The Space Museum.

NOONAN’S DOCTOR AND A VENUSIAN TWIST

Stephen Noonan continues to refine his take on the First Doctor, blending the charm and eccentricity of William Hartnell with a few playful flourishes of his own. Here, he dials up the confusion a touch, misnaming Dodo as “Susan” and Edith as “Barbara,” which adds authenticity to the portrayal. He also gets to show off a bit with a surprise burst of Venusian aikido—a neat Easter egg for fans, even if it’s a clear nod to a Third Doctor trait.

Noonan’s chemistry with Cornelius is growing, though the Doctor feels slightly more peripheral here than in The Demon Song or The Incherton Incident. Still, his scenes are full of gentle humour and moments of genuine curiosity, keeping the energy afloat even when the plot itself meanders.

PRODUCTION NOTES

As with the other stories in the Families set, this is a Companion Chronicle in spirit and structure. Lauren Cornelius does most of the narration and character work, slipping easily between Dodo’s thoughts and dialogue, and giving real life to the supporting cast. Her range continues to impress, and her scenes with Noonan feel authentic to the 1960s tone the story is emulating.

Sound design is subtle but effective. There’s a decent balance of moody post-war ambiance and sci-fi weirdness, while the music remains understated, allowing the story’s slow pacing to maintain its deliberate tone.

📝VERDICT: 6/10

The Y Factor isn’t a game-changer, but it’s a charming and character-led finale to this First Doctor set. Dodo finally gets a story that centres her with intelligence and initiative, paired beautifully with the scene-stealing Edith. The central mystery is a little too slow to unfold and Sanderson is underused, but the blend of alien intrigue and post-war paranoia is enjoyably Hartnellian. With fungi-fuelled fascism, a judo-chopping Doctor, and a wholesome Dodo-Edith double act, it’s a solid if understated adventure.

I was honestly far more invested in Edith than the actual plot, which was generally fine as plots go. Some great scenes with Dodo in this across the whole episode really. I do wish there was more dialogue from Edith, as scenes in part 2 were mostly the Doctor and Dodo speaking back and forth while Edith is just stood not saying anything. I understand the constraints with the format, but the first story of this set managed to deal with this rather well.

A strong start, but it quickly drops off and ends mediocre.

The Doctor and Dodo are investigating a mysterious warehouse in 1947, when they get split up. Dodo, now alone, flees from the men following her and soon meets Edith Garrud. A feminist with a knack for martial arts. Together, they try to find the doctor and try to unravel the mysterious happenings behind the scenes.

Let’s start with some behind the scenes “controversy”. This story is not only voiced by Dodo, but also by Stephen Noonan as the First Doctor. They caught some flack for doing this, since the companion chronicles usually only feature the Doctor through imitation or in a narrated way. Meaning this is the first time the main voice actor for the Doctor role is present in this kind of story.

I’ll be honest, I don’t see what the fuss is about. Noonan’s Doctor is always a delight, and the alternative would’ve been Lauren Cornelius reading the exact same lines in a Doctory voice. It gains way more from its inclusion than it loses and still includes the narrated style and the inner thoughts of the companion.

And those inner thoughts really shine in the first 5 minutes of this story, which is the best scene in this whole story. It almost feels modern in execution. Dodo is on the run from the aforementioned bad guys and we hear her describe every step she makes and every thought she has. And it really, for the first time, makes her feel like a proper character on audio. It felt tense, atmospheric and yet totally in character.

This comes to a close when Dodo runs into alley which turns out to be a dead end. Out of options, Dodo only has one last resort for this exact situation. She turns and faces her enemies and, without hesitations, starts screaming for help.

This moment is a highlight for me because it shows the exact strengths and potential of this range. If done well, it gives you full insight into the character. Their logic, their way of thinking and their feelings in different situations all come to light. You feel yourself standing with Dodo in that alley and you fully feel that it’s the only logical conclusion she could draw in the situation. You almost feel it before she does. It’s really impressive and I wish the story kept this type of narration up.

Instead, after Dodo is saved, the story quickly drops off. After a bit of preamble, Edith and Dodo go out to find the Doctor, who is fully in Fanservice mode. For some unexplained reason, the Doctor feels like he’s going to regenerate. In practice, this means he just keeps quoting and quoting future stories. “Change, my dear”, “The moment is not prepared for”, almost every classic regeneration gets mentioned and it really adds nothing. It feels cheap and lasts the entire first half.

Another irritation is the way dialogue is structured within the story. It relies a lot on one-sided narration, where one person talks, but the other side gets narrated. For example:

“Where are you keeping the monster, fiend?!?”

“The evil man responds by laughing and tells us that we will never find it”

This kind of narration, when used over and over again, starts to get really irritating and makes the story hard to follow.

Not that there is much else to latch on to in this story. Aside from the points mentioned previously, there’s really not much worth talking about. It’s a fairly basic story about discovering a threat, trying to fight it and ultimately defeating it. Not much that sets apart.

It tries to be something more by mentioning the feminist movement and tying that to the current narrative, but using Dodo as a vehicle for progressive feminist values was never going to be smooth sailing. It almost feels laughable. Even Dodo deserve her rights, but if you want a story that actually invests in this topic, go to “The Suffering” instead.

And that’s all we have for ‘The Y Factor’. I truly hope the writer knows what he has with those first 5 minutes and we get more of that kind of storytelling. But other than that, the story is basic and sometimes unnecessarily tough to follow. It’s a good start and I hope the Companion Chronicles keep playing with this Doctor-Companion format, but as a story this is nothing special.

The plot about an alien fungus? Whatever. Introducing me to a British feminist badass, and giving Dodo an incredible speech about women's equality? Sign me up. It actually felt like we got some serious character development for Dodo here which was long overdue. A good end to this boxset.

This is the stuff I’ve wanted them to do with dodo none of this let’s meet companions but old stuff but actual stuff like this I want more of this big finish give dodo more of THIS