4.5/5, a wonderfully fun story that I'd happily recommend! Spoilers throughout.

I thought it was clever how, for the Third Doctor's first trip off Earth, the story still centred around very human politics and recognisable allegories and examples of human problems that we still struggle with. This indicates very effectively that, even though the format may be changing, the show will still explore the same political ideas that is has been committed to throughout Three's run.

The allegory with the native americans was lost towards the end, which is a shame, because I thought the serial could have been going somewhere really interesting with it, but even so, the story had other underlying themes whcih it did carry through to the end succesfully, with the exploration of the politics around settlers being especially noteworthy. Spinning thehuman colony not as a hostile takeover of an already inhabited planet but as necessary for survival and freedom for this group gave a dimension to this story that allowed me to care for the settlers whilst still acknowledging the faults in their intentions.

The characters introduced were easy to care about, and felt more real than these side characters usually do, so, hats off to Hulke! Even though I suspected that all but Ashe had survived the explosion, I still wept when the ship blew up. The relationship between Winton and Ashe, two characters with conflicting views and personalities, who were yet able to honour and respect one another, was the highlight for me. Honourable mentions for Mary Ashe as a female character who was not treated as a damsel in distress, or as a heartless iron lady, but as a competent, brave, and confident young woman who was treated by the story no different than if she'd been a man. Norton, a spy taking advantage of Ashe's kindness, played the ominous and slimy role well. Caldwell's position as a traitor out of conscience was an absolute treat; his attempts to do good to counter his evil boss's schemes and his own guilt while still showing his fear and reluctance to leave the IMC were driven home by the context of a time where work was hard to find in a way that meshed well with the political messaging of the serial, whilst also making him feel fleshed-out and 3-dimensional. I'm always a big fan of found family, so his final decision to stay with the colonists made me choke up a little. Wonderful stuff.

As always, I applaud the anti-capitalist messaging, with the politics of mining corporations that harm the people living in the area and the environment terribly, as well as disrupting any chance at normal life, being a prevalent contemporary issue that the serial was not afraid to raise loudly and unasbashedly.

I thought the dynamic with Jo and the Doctor being helpless against the Master, unable to make the others around them listen when they try to warn them, was an innovative new way to use the Master. The format was the same as always with the threegado era, and yet their new position as nobodies made their warnings worthless and suspect, evoking new feelings as I felt helpless alongside them.

The ending of the serial was so funny - the Brigadier's bemused expression at Three and Jo's antics was absolutely priceless! However, the serial did suffer a little in my eyes from the obvious problems in the scientific side of the plot - you don't have to be a genius to raise an eyebrow at the idea that exploding the city-weapon would somehow *reduce* the amount of radiation! And, as I said before, the twist away from the Native American allegory was disappointing, though did not bring the story down too far, as it still had strong characterisation, good pacing, and managed to wrap everything up in a neat little bow. An enjoyable serial with good ol' fashioned Classic political messaging, this one gets 4.5/5 stars from me!

A solid, well-paced serial that was mighty enjoyable, with an engaging new one-off character (with a classically classic Who terrible American accent!) The relationship between the Doctor and the Master was interesting, and the end of episode three had a wonderful scene that I've only seen before now in Tumblr GIFs talking about the thoschei relationship - oh, what fun! This serial lived up to it's reputation, and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

Just finished this wonderful serial; another classic 3/Delgado format with "Master forms an alliance with an alien who turns on him and then he needs the Doctor's help to defeat the alien and then the Master escapes at the last possible second". And, if you're wondering why I used the slash between "3" and "Delgado", I think the Guide's screenshot says it all (:

The pacing felt appropriate, the plot was intriguing, and the character development throughout the serial was wonderful (thinking especially of how the Brigadier began smiling a lot in the last couple episodes, admitting to himself that he's happy to be keeping the Doctor around, and allowing himself to feel relief and joy that his men are alive). 3 and the Brig were acting like such an old married couple in those last few minutes! Love to see it!

I thought the Master killing Barnham felt sudden and cruel. I didn't expect Barnham to survive this, but this felt out of nowhere, and totally out of line with the Master's usual behaviour. I was also quite unhappy with the lack of willingness to engage with the ethics of the Keller machine as it was (removing the autonomy of prisoners, and any chance at an actual, honest rehabilitation), not just as it could be used. I also felt that the writers didn't even try to adhere to science in any way whatsoever - it was funny at first, with the idea that the nerve gas missile could be safely disposed of by tossing it in the ocean, but it really started to get on my nerves with the Keller machine "removing evil impulses". It would have been so, so easy to just say that it "identified areas of the brain associated with violent thoughts/actions and damaged them using electricity, but really it was the alien feeding on brain waves that damaged the brain", something like that.

That said, the Brig being able to show more emotion than just annoyance made me enjoy this immensely, so overall, giving this one a 4.5/5.

I'm afraid I don't have anything more coherent to say than "Now, that was Doctor Who!" I have always been the biggest Master fan, and I am very pleased to finally have watched his first story (and no, I will not tolerate any "what about the war games?" jokers). It was exactly what I expected - in a good way - and very much fit the format I've grown to recognise and love from Delgado era stories. Apart from the wonderful and (relatively) subtle homosexual undertones, the excellent use of Autons, and the general criticism of the military, the other thing I thought was done very well was the introduction of a new companion - Jo's character was established quickly and efficiently, and I found it was very easy to grow attached to her and worry for her wellbeing, even though this was her first story. Bravo!

Just going to be a quick one today, lads. With spoilers.

Just finished this serial. I really enjoyed it - very different from what I'm used to from that era in regards to the music, but I liked it! Felt pleasantly incongruous. There was a good balance of humour against the, you know, death. It was also spectacularly well-paced. Some of the worst fake fighting I've ever seen, though. I was under the impression for most of the serial - and still think I would have preferred this version - that there would be no aliens. It would all be fear and conspiracies - but then again, what else could I have expected from the bug-eyed monsters era of Who? (Yes, that is pretty much all of Who, I know). Still, I think they communicated the destruction that fear of the foreign can cause - and the General's madness - very well, and so overall I thoroughly enjoyed this serial.

I was lucky enough to be at the first live event, and I had a spectacular time, so, 5/5! Spoilers ahead!

I immediately made friends with the person I was sat next to, and got to meet up with loads of TARDIS.guide people, so that was all wonderful! The lighting was superb, as were the sound effects, the dramatic gestures, and the general atmosphere. As an anniversary story it was exactly what you'd expect - Big Finish's big draws; their Master, their Doctor, their Doctor's first BF companion, and, of course, the Daleks. I very much enjoyed the exploration of Cornish folklore - it reminded me a little of 73 yards in that it explored myth and treated it as something that actually existed, not something that was sci-fi'ed away.

The careful balance of old monsters/characters/plot devices (the TCE and masked Master with a stupid translated name meaning 'Master' my beloved!!!) with the new genre (the recent fantastical leanings of BBC Who) was expertly crafted and immensely enjoyable. I also loved the sapphic crush, though wish we could have had a touch more on the side of thoschei romance - if you're making it gay and appealing to the classic fans, may as well go full throttle and make it heavy on the thoschei too - although I did enjoy the "Doctor has to rescue Master and he's all begrudging about it" thing.

I also felt like the non-main characters of Foley, the Captain, and the Innkeeper were well fleshed out and had strong personalities, making them immediately easy to connect with, and making me feel as strongly about them as any other character - not an easy thing to do, and so it was lovely seeing it done well.

The audience inclusion was another part of the show that really made it feel special - if you listen hard, you might just be able to hear my voice amongst the other thousand people pretending to drown!

It was gay and it genuinely taught me things, so of course I loved it! This is exactly what Who should be, if you ask me - a theatre full of trans people cheering as Alex MacQueen eats a biscuit and a one-off companion flirts with the Doctor's female companion. What a wonderful first experience of MacQueen's Master for me to have! If you have a chance, I highly reccomend going to see the last live performance today (not yet sold out!), or getting your hands on the live recording.

omg this one made me cry so much on the longhaul flight. Okay so I'm gonna go 4.5/5, and I'm going to talk about politics, suicide, the writing, the gay people, the doctorification, and the kittens. The suicide is both very spoilery and possibly triggering, so, read on at your own discretion. Take care of yourself, lads ladettes and ladles!

Let's start with the politics. Sam is an upper-middle class girl (who I'm 90% sure was white). She is in a very privileged position - and she wants to fight for marginalised people's rights. She fights for gay rights (let's fckn goooo vampire science!), she goes to greenpeace rallies to save the environment - she's your regular SJW. Well, a 90's version, anyway. This book challenged the way she thought about activism and allyship - how could she, with her privilege, understand the necessity of the rights she fights for? Is she really fighting, or is she just performing? A wonderful critique of performative 'activism', these challenges really fleshed out Sam as a character, and challenged my own way of thinking about this stuff as well. Sam took charge of her life: she decided that she didn't want to be performative, that the reason she was fighting was from a real place of seeking justice, and so her actions were real, too. Reading her figure out what activism is to her hit home hard - I am also in a privileged position and interested in activism, and so I heavily related to what she was talking about. As she became more confident in her motivations, so did I - I read that passage and then immediately joined an activism group.

And, if "character relatable and fleshed out enough to make real changes in a reader's life" isn't enough of an endorsement, then I am also happy (well. emotionally devestated) to report that the book made me cry. Several times. Including when I finished it on a long haul flight - pretty sure I got some weird looks from the other passengers for that one! The reason is one I will get into in a few paragraphs, as first, I have to establish the web of relationships and contrasts in this story.

We have Sam, the girl who'd left her ordinary life to travel with a mysterious man who showed her great wonders, but was finding it very difficult to cope with the danger and the trauma she was put through in said adventures, and so was considering going home, versus Caroline, the woman who had always waited, wondering if her hero would return to rescue her from her dull life and make things really matter, considering running away from her happy little family to join a mysterious man who could take her to see the kind of wonders you only dream about...

We have Dr. Shackle, the poor doctor faced with constant tragedy and no reprieve, the weight of every life he's failed to save dragging him deeper into depression. Everyone around him notices too late, and, even though they do everything right, they can't save him. This is a man in the trenches, doing real good, but who can't take another step, compared to Sam, the bright, young, enthusiastic girl who faces tragedy but keeps looking forward, keeps hoping for better, keeps deciding that if there is no better, then damnit, she will make there be better. And again, Shackle - his name is a little cratyllic, I think, with the metaphorical shackles of his duty as a doctor and his desire to do good preventing him from taking a break, from being able to think about things other than the people he's failed to save - compared to the Doctor. Doctor versus Doctor, the two men have the same duties, the same moral compass, the same damn title, and yet only of them is able to keep going: The one who is old enough to know that history repeats itself, old enough to have seen tragedy beyond the mortal's comprehension, and old enough to know that life always begins anew. He can see the possibilities, the hope for a better way, that Shackle, trapped in the trenches, bombarded by death, can't look up to see. He doesn't have the time.

It is this tragedy, if you hadn't figured it out yet, that made me cry so often. The type of depression Shackle is faced with isn't the clinical 'born with an imbalance, developed in early teens, it's a chemical thing' that you may think of when you think 'depression': this is the one we all face, if we pay attention to the news, or if we can't afford to look away from it. As a trans person, whether or not I am even allowed to exist is constantly in debate. I am the news. I can't look away. As someone who wants to do right, wants to help people, I have to pay attention so I know how to help them - I can't look away. But with this constant barrage of terror and bigotry and bad news, is it any wonder that we become weary? Every headline strips me of a little more hope, until I have nothing left to give. This is a problem facing so many of my generation, in this terrible day and age where in a supposedly 'safe' country, I watch my people flee in fear every day. I see our faces on the news reports: lists of the dead. I see war and terror. My TV screen is bloody. It's exhausting, to live like this. And that's why Shackle makes me cry: he is on the front lines, fighting to save people's lives, but it's not enough. Every life lost weighs him down, every headline, every face in the paper. His depression is our depression. But he doesn't come out the other side. He dies, and when that doesn't lift the weight from his shoulders, he's forced to ask: what next? Where can I go from here? I don't know what he picked, but I hope he chose to keep on living, in whatever form that meant. I hope we all make the choice to keep living. If I had one wish, I would ask Orman and Blum if I could continue Shackle's story, because especially in this day and age, I think his story is too important to be over.

There are a couple other relationships I'd like to explore a little, and then I'll get into the overall structure of the book, the gay, the doctorification, and the kittens.

I thought the contrast between Caroline, the wealthy doctor in the fancy lab, and Shackle, the emergency doctor in the poor part of town, was really interesting because there was a sense of camradery, but also of hostility, of you don't know what my world looks like. It felt a little like Sam's struggle with performative vs real action, how can she really make a difference - however, there was a sense of urgency vs comfort, of obsession, of being consumed by your work until you don't know anything else from the two doctors that there wasn't really with Sam's struggle, so they aren't fully comparable.

The last relationship I'd like to bring up is the Doctor and Joanna's. I really enjoyed how heavily the book explored the pain Sam felt at watching the Doctor, this man she'd devoted herself to, finally find someone he could relate to, but only in the form of the woman leading the people who'd hurt her. The Doctor held the Master in his arms and forgave him as the people he'd imprisoned looked on, hurt; the Doctor and Joanna form a very intense bond to the point where they are part of each other while Sam looks on, hurt. Joanna was immortal, and around the same age as the Doctor; how could Sam, a mere mortal, ever compare? But in the end, what mattered most wasn't just their similarity in age or experience; it was ideals. It was morality. The Doctor chose where he stood and he chose it well; he showed Sam he cared, that he tried, and that the wonders were worth the pain. The vampires were worth it for the sake of butterflies.

The entire story was a really interesting character breakdown of the Doctor, and of Sam's attachment to him/the overall process of doctorification. A must-read for any scholars in that department. That bit of "do you want me to be the man with a plan who always mean to commit murder or the guy who pulled it all out of the hat at the last second, adapting because I had to" really encapsulates the great struggle of how different writers choose to write the Doctor. Always a binary, always a division - is 13 the mentally ill alien in a powerful position manipulating and stringing Yaz along, or is she really just that happy and bouncy and enthusiastic, with the dark stuff being one-offs? Did 12 push that man, or did he fall? Was 11 a golden retriever or did he have serious anger issues? Was 10 naturally all TLV and that was held off by his companions, or was the TLV stuff something new that he ended up heading towards because of specific events and he wouldn't have done all that had everything in waters of mars not played out how it did? Also, see *waves hands* all of 7's era. This division is so key to how we understand the Doctor - the fact that we never know for sure. Is he a manipulative asshole or a good person gone momentarily astray, are his eyes green or blue, is he half-human or fully strange and alien and eldritch? We never get a consistent answer, and that's part of who he is. Really interesting stuff all around. A star to Kate Orman and Jon Blum, they sure did understand the source material!

The whole thing was so well written. Admittedly I did feel that it was a bit odd the way they waited for the last few pages to get to the climax but it all worked so I'm not complaining.

Now, the one you've all been waiting for: the gay. Why was David Shackle never more explicitly gay. Literally, these two authors showed me the most queer-coded man I've ever met and then went "yeah... he can't stop thinking about this girl he knows though". Like, this book had two main characters be explicitly bi, first scene in a gay club, and whatever the f**k was happening when the Doctor was slowly undressing for that circle of vampires, and yet they couldn't take one sentence to mention that he liked guys but was too depressed for the dating game right now. Come on. (Not really that mad, excellent representation in other ways, just complaining in that gossipy way because I can).

I know I've discussed Sam a lot, but there is something I have to mention - her assault. The VNAs have a reputation for gratuitous violence, including of a sezual nature, and I am glad to say that this has not been the case for this EDA (can't comment on the rest of the EDAs yet, I'm afraid, but I have hope). There was violence, but it was necessary, and not at all gratuitious - I am referring, of course to when Sam was assaulted on the dancefloor of the club. Orman and Blum leveraged the status of the Vampire as a predator, a representation of lust and otherness and terror, to tell a story about the effect that assault has on people's lives, and how it is so interwoven with the club scene. She was young and often seen as someone who needed 'protection', and then she was violated. The rest of the book was her taking back control after feeling like it had been stolen from her; the authors allowed her space to grieve, to fear, to feel, and most of all, to fight back. I really respect the way her trauma was explored throughout the story.

A couple last thoughts - omg the kittens. guys there's a whole scene where the Doctor keeps pulling kittens out of increasingly unlikely places. read it if just for that. Also, I haven't had space to talk about them but James and the general are such interesting characters - it's lovely to see how fleshed out they are, and how much space is given for the people left behind by the Doctor. The people who have to deal with the disasters he leaves in his wake. An easy-to-follow and terribly emotional story all around; the only reason I knocked it down half a star is because the emotions don't stop to the point where I had to take a break from reading it for a week or so because I was so overwhelmed. The fact that his story from nearly 30 years ago still has so much relevance to what we are going through today is testament to it's understanding of the issues it deals with, it's strong writing, and the writers' dedication to the story that they're telling.

There was a lot more I could have commented on but if I said everything I'd a) have to reread the whole thing again just to make sure I got everything, and b) be here forever. All I can say is: Read this book. It's really good.

(5/5 - vague spoilers towards the end)

Just finished The Ark in Space for the first time, and man, was that a fun ride! Well, 'fun' might be a stretch - the tone was darker and less, well, silly than I'm used to (coming from mainly watching 3's era and parts of 7's so far), and although I usually prefer my entertaining Sillies, for this particular story, the graver tone worked in it's favour. Good start for Philip Hinchcliffe!

Apart from the tone, the pace was also not what I was used to - it was slower, more methodical, more well thought-out than what I've seen of Classic so far. It really felt like everything had been carefully planned so it wouldn't feel like too much was squeezed into one episode, and that paid off. This serial was well-made and full of suspense; a classic that'll leave you on the edge of your seat!

I do have a few minor gripes - Sarah Jane's damsel-in-distress demeanour was often too much for me to take, though nicely offset by having another woman who was both in charge and not at all damselly. Still, could've done with a little less of the hysterical screaming! I did also notice the odd flub here and there. I remember there was one that annoyed me early on but I've forgotten it now - the other more serious one was that the station was repeatedly said to be in deep space, and then suddenly they seemed to have moved as Earth was nearby and in the shot! But these things can easily be explained away, even if the serial itself did not explain them, and so they weren't such major issues as to in any way diminish my enjoyment of the story.

Tom Baker's performance was marvellous, and I really felt like I got a taste of the new TARDIS crew dynamic, and the new crewmember! The romance/loyalty between the doomed lovers was actually quite moving. I'm normally a bit biased against these hetero romances because they often feel like they're shoved in just for the sake of it, but this one was plot-relevant and genuinely heartrendering. The monsters were interesting (and reminded me rather of Dot and Bubble's slugs - RIP Wirrn, you would have loved those slugs! Fellow racist-eating creatures). All in all, a very well made and well thought out story!

If you've read any of my reviews before, you'll know I always comment on the politics - and oh, what a juicy one this was! Again, a little like Dot and Bubble - we got a crew full of uptight upper class racist nationalists who were worried about the contamination their species might face by aliens... sound familiar? The way the Doctor theorised that this ship was carrying all that was left of humanity, all differences forgotten, *all colours and creeds*, only to find out just how wrong he was... marvellous. Breathtaking. We were immediately faced with a bunch of white people looking down on the Doctor and his companions for the way they talked, people who had been chosen, the best of the best, to survive while all the other humans perished. They would be the saviours of the human race, and all else is, what, filth? Ah, no, that's right - 'regressives'. The idea of these select snooty white rich (well, upper-class, so the rich part was more implied) people thinking that they represented the best of the human race and their disregard for other species (and even other humans!) certainly stinks of white nationalism. Perhaps my mind is drawn there because of the race riots that are rampaging across the UK right now, a bunch of white people thinking that all other people are lesser, that they are somehow more human, more patriotic, 'better' than everyone else... yeah, this serial really hit home. 50 odd years later and it's still relevant.

And then at the end, how (real spoilers here!) Vira seemed to be more open to the idea of aliens, and of other humans who weren't 'chosen', simply because a few of them had done nothing but help her. Positive human interaction being the way to change people's mind, the way forward, instead of immediately resorting to violence - I think that's a lesson we can all learn from.

So, interesting and relevant politics, excellent acting and storytelling, and a dark tone with well-thought-out pacing have really paid off to create one of the - rightfully! - most beloved and consistently highly-rated serials of Doctor Who.

Just watched the last episode tonight, and I have to say, I'm disappointed. I went in expecting to like this a lot more than I did. I've always liked the idea of the Silurians, these Terran 'aliens', but just didn't really enjoy their introductory story. Vague spoilers from here on out. (3/5)

For one thing, the serial went on way too long. I understand that it was likely some financial thing or quota they had to meet - X number of 7-episode serials in the season, something like that - but it really felt detrimental to the story, or, should I say, stories. It felt like two in one - the first couple episodes were a murder mystery with the possibility of humanity and the Silurians reaching a compromise, with the pace methodical and measured, and then there was a sudden jump to people rushing about and viruses (never tell me these old episodes aren't relevant to today!) and so many bodies piling up... it was just too big a change. I think that it would have worked much better if it had been split into two serials, with the first being the murder mystery and the tentative truce resolution, and the second coming later in the season with a rogue faction of Silurians who want to kill humanity, similar to the zygon invasion/inversion double.

I also thought the costumes weren't great, (though the 'third eye' design was quite cool), the noise the Silurians' eye made was downright horrendous (my sensory processing disorder was screaming in agony), and the ending was abrupt and unsatisfying.

However, the serial wasn't a total loss. Caroline John and Pertwee's acting was splendid, and I felt that the first couple episodes were compelling and entertaining. When there weren't so many people rushing about, just Liz and Three talking about the lengths that UNIT might go or the secrets they were keeping, the serial was at it's most interesting. And the sombre tone at the end and the examination of UNIT's actions and intentions were certainly moving and thought-provoking.

So, that brings my review to an end - I didn't personally enjoy it much overall, but there was some great acting and some fantastic moments that makes the serial worth watching.

I literally just finished this about five minutes ago and I'm kind of awe-struck so I apologise if this is incoherent and sweary - I'll censor the swears for the sake of the censorship bot's delicate sensibilities. Spoilers, beware! (4.5/5)

HOLY F*CK HOLY F*CK WHY DO I NEVER HEAR THIS AUDIO TALKED ABOUT IT WAS SO GOOD WHAT THE F*CK

*breathes* okay, it's okay, I'm good. As was that audio! The use of the radio broadcasts as a framing device and a way to do things like allow the theme music to play in a way that made sense in-story was lovely, it's absolutely my favourite thing when an audio does that, refuses to draw a clean line between the story and the real world. Gorgeous. The focus on music in the audio format was an interesting one too, and definitely a cool avenue to explore.

The anti-fascism was well-done and pronounced, though I thought they could have made it even more explicit how turning people into mindless drones with the escapist music and drugs could lead to susceptibility to fascist thinking. They did this a little with the way the Doctor and Gustavo discussed religion, and the focus on religion's relationship with fascism was chilling even to a non-religious person (me), but I just think an even stronger link could have been made with the music and the fascism. What I'm saying is, what we got was good, but I would have loved even more. What can I say? I like my political themes heavy-handed and explicit.

Often, the "long lost family member I never knew about" trope becomes too cliché and so becomes annoying, but I feel like the Rapture really pulled this off. It tied in well to the storyline, so was used as a plot device rather than a surprise twist ending type of thing.

The exploration of Cat's disability and Liam's need to take care of her was really interesting, and very well done, with the parallels between Cat's addiction to drugs, Liam's addiction to Cat, and Jude's addiction to Gabriel (And the unspoken McShane addition to the Doctor, of course) making the story feel both relatable to real-world problems, and also exploring issues unique to the premise of Who. It's rare to find stories that successfully balance the two, and the Rapture did this very well. One minor annoyance though is that I felt Brian wasn't really brought into it enough - he was their friend, he was killed, and they barely mentioned him, even though he was missing? I just would have expected a couple more references to my boy Brian.

There were times when I thought McCoy and Aldred's acting was slightly over-the-top in the fourth part, which took me away from the story a little, but it wasn't so needlessly melodramatic as to actually change how I feel about the audio. I liked the resolution, and 7 finally calling her McShane at the end really hit hard in a trans-and-trying-out-a-new-name way. That post-credits scene left me with a lot of questions, though - it was trying to scare the listener and I think it did that well, but I don't really understand why. We'd had a good resolution with everything neatly tied up - the scene didn't really tie into anything, and left me with a lot of questions. I think I would have preferred the audio without it.

The few criticisms I have are very minor and honestly more personal preference (and quite possibly driven by the fact that due to my schedule, I had to listen to the story in roughtly 20-minute-chunks over several sessions, which really is not how it is meant to be listened to and was definitely detrimental to my enjoyment of the story). As I said before, liked the music-focus, liked the antifascism, the religious themes hit hard, and it was overall a very cohesive and well-made story. I therefore pronounce this another absolute banger from Lidster!

Hello!!! I posted my review of this story https://forum.tardis.guide/t/neverland-down-the-rabbit-hole/816 here, before the website had reviews, but now there is actually a place to review stories, I'm putting the review in it's proper place. This is basically the same as what I wrote before, just with some minor edits for clarity/formality. (4.5/5 stars)

I listened to the story in March 2024, so it's been a few months, but it certainly was a memorable one! It was so long, so took me a while, but it was worth it! I loved the story overall but I’m going to be a bit critcal of stuff so if you really love the story and hate to see it criticised (I know I’m like that with my favourites), maybe skip ahead. Also, be warned - spoilers from here on out!

So, first off, obsessed. The arc has finally come to a close, only… the story’s just begun??? Hello Zagreus!Eight??? Like, I knew it happened At Some Point because I’ve seen fanart (never not thinking about https://heimeldat.tumblr.com/post/710911657643294720/i-had-so-much-fun-animating-eight-yesterday-i), but I didn’t know that was this story, so it wasn't wholly spoiled, and can I just say wow. Amazing ending. I know it’s a bit weird, starting with the ending, but seriously, it terrified me. I was scared to go to sleep. It shook me deeply, and has truly left me awestruck. Mcgann is so talented ngl, such range on that man.

Going backwards now - I almost wish that this was the end of Who, because it was such a perfect ending story! My English teacher was telling us about how, at the start of The Duchess of Malfi, her future husband praises the Duchess as if he is giving a eulogy. The way people were talking about Eight near the end (mainly Rassy and Romana) reminded me of this - it was as if he was already dead. The way they sort of tied back into and summed up all the key themes: Hope, kindness, all those things that make Who, well, Who. Only to have it turned on it’s head and the rug pulled out from under itself by Eight’s survival, as Zagreus represents the antithesis to those themes. Zagreus is the end of time, so quashes all hope, and is anything but kind.
(Meme: G1: Dude, why are you crying? G2: The themes got to me. G1: Alright)

The other thing I absolutely loved was the music. It was perfect in every way. I think the story would have been unrecognisable and would not have had that effect without the strong music throughout. I’m tone deaf, so I’m really not a music person and cannot tell what a piece of music is supposed to do or make you feel or anything like that, but it still felt very powerful, I suppose would be the word? Really forceful and dramatic.

And, of course, as a Deca fan I can’t not mention Vansell! I knew he died in this one but it still hit me hard. “I do this… gladly” sniffs don’t talk to me for a week akjsdfhasjdkf I miss my awful evil horrible little traitor already. Can’t help but wonder if all the Oublietting was the anti-time’s influence, to help grow their numbers, or if it was just Vansell being a little sh!t (censoring because I’m scared of the censorship bot, although I say the word with love). Although the story heavily implied it to be the former, it is honestly pretty fitting with his character for it to be the latter, and I hope that it was at least partially that, too. Like, maybe the Anti-Time couldn’t have had such a hold if he hadn’t already been willing/inclined to act like that? Something about innate potential being exploited and brought to the surface by forces beyond your comprehension.

Now, characterisation. Here’s where I get a bit salty - I feel like Charley was a bit of a damsel in distress. She definitely seemed more sort of whimpery and ‘crying out for help’ than in her other stories so far (I haven't done any 8DAs yet, only Main Range). That being said, she was whimsical and full of joy, clearly enjoying annoying Levith and Kurst when she ran off to the forest (either just out of an abundance of curiosity or to p!ss off her captors), which was very fun. And there were definitely times where her damsel-y reaction made sense. I just wish we’d seen more of her being brave throughout the story, as I feel like that is an important aspect of her character that was sorely missed until right at the end. Her acceptance of death was really interesting (really long but like, as I said earlier, the audio Feels like a last hurrah, like a goodbye, so it makes total sense for it to be long. As I was listening, I was aware that it was way longer than it would be if this was Just Some Random Story Of The Week, but because it feels so much more climactic than that, it’s allowed a little drama. As a treat).

Liked the characterisation of Eight - felt consistent with earlier audios. Vansell as well was every bit the snivelling traitor I know and love him as, until right at the end… Part of me wonders if he was putting on a brave/loyal face so he’d be well remembered. Seems like the sort of manipulation he’d pull. I love him so much, he's my scrunkly little sh!thead (:

Romana. Her banter with the Doctor was fun and very in-character, and I think she should have been cold some of the time, but I feel like in emphasising the way the Job had made her cold/insensitive, they overdid it a little. She felt a little, well, flat, I suppose. Kind of like Charley - she wasn’t one dimensional, but I feel like they’d forgotten at least one key dimension of her character, so she had about one less than she should have.

I thought the stuff with Rorvan and Taris was interesting, and Sentris’ character intruiged me, as does Zagreus’. Oh, and, one final characterisation point - Rassilon. On one hand, Rassilon isn’t like that smh. He’s calculating and imperialistic and on his own side, not this caring/watching omnibenevolent figure. One could chalk it up to ‘oh, well, this is the Matrix Rassilon, with all his best qualities/ the way people idealise him as’, but I think that should have been made clear in the text and discussed/played on a bit, not something the listeners have to figure out to make characterisation work. Then again, I suppose by that time we hadn’t had much of a view of his imperialistic tendencies, and he hadn’t been through the War, so it’s not a fault with the writing I’m finding here - more a retrospective “with what we know now, it would have made more sense if his character was more X”.

However, this leads me into my first real critcism: What the hell was Rassy doing in that story. He was just kind of… there??? It really made no sense. He just popped in and had the Doctor explain his adventures to him, then popped off again? I know he appeared earlier throughout the story, and later, too - he was well threaded in - but he very much felt superfluous. I liked his parts of the Zagreus myth, but very much felt that he shouldn’t have been in the audio. Aside from maybe as the hologram early on, to help with the misleading as to what was in the casket (which was a really fun slight of hand).

My other real issue with the story is that problems kept cropping up, only to be immediately solved. Things like “oh no, I can’t open this door! Nevermind, it’s fine, I have the sonic”. Generally, there was a lot of that back and forth that made the story feel a bit slow and clunky, and I think should have just been removed, as it would have tidied it all up better, in my opinion.

I think that’s pretty much it - great themes, great music, great Vansell, great ending, some qualms with the characterisation of the gals, and Rassilon and the constant ‘immediate solves’ felt unnecessary. Overall, I’m giving it a 4.5, because it was a brilliant and gripping story that has wormed it’s way into my heart, despite a few minor flaws. The gravity- sorry, mavity. Wait no, sorry, gevity- of the story overrides my qualms.

No spoilers in paragraph one; yes spoilers in paragraph two.

So, finished my first EDA! It did not disapp- well, actually, that's a lie. It very much disappointed. I found it dull for the most part, with little emotional depth. Had I not, yano, consumed other eighth doctor media, I would not have cared for the character at all. It often felt like reading a script with a lot of stage directions, rather than a novel. It's a real shame, as I know Terrance Dicks was an absolutely prolific novelisation writer and TV serial writer, but I just could not enjoy this novel. There were a few moments that made me laugh, and a couple interesting tidbits lore-wise that aren't original to the novel, but that I hadn't heard before. Those funny moments brought the book up a little for me, but not enough to give it three stars.

Good things about the novel - Sam Jones. At the beginning, the part with the drugs felt too much like Terry was trying to be "down with the kids", using as much slang as he could get in there. This took away from my enjoyment of the character. However, the part right at the end, Sam's introduction to the TARDIS? That was funny, witty, and a great introduction to the character. If only we'd seen more of her, I think I would have enjoyed the book more. I am very chuffed that I get more of her in the next book, which I've heard amazing praise for, so, very excited for Vampire Science! The other thing about The Eight Doctors that I thought was interesting was the Seventh Doctor's depression. I really hadn't expected this novel to go into mental illness, and so it certainly surprised me when we got to that part! I liked that Terry tried to deal with the Doctor's depression and loneliness, as that's not something that's often said in those exact words in Who. We see the effect of it, but we rarely hear people go "The Doctor has clinical depression". I wish that the section had been longer, with more time to explore the effect of the Doctor's illness on his life.

Alright, that's all for now!

This is my first review here, so, sorry if I mess up the formatting or anything like that, still getting used to it all. Also, please don't expect this to be very formal or properly organised- I tend to go on tangents a lot! Spoilers only from the political section onwards.
So, first episode of the new season! I give it a 3/5- it was fun, it was entertaining, and it had some truly fascinating political ideas that RTD just failed to drive home. The dynamic between Ruby and 15 was well-developed and so much fun! So, let's talk about all this in more detail. First, a warning that in the 'politics' section, I'm going to be talking about some pretty dark themes like euthanasia of babies, so if you think that will upset you, please steer clear.

Overall
I saw a tumblr post refer to this episode as a "rent-lowering gunshot", and I think that's pretty accurate. It felt like RTD was so used to having to be implicit with his political ideas that now that he is able to be more explicit, he doesn't quite know how- something I'm sure will change as the season progresses, if TDC is any indication! But I also feel like it was almost there to scare off the people who aren't willing to stick with Who through it's lows as well as it's highs, or to keep with the show through it's genre change. It's a big shift, and so it's no surprise that there's some teething problems. I definitely don't think the new era should be judged on this episode, and again, I think it makes sense to have this out here to sort of scare away the people who the new era isn't made for. The people who are stuck in their ways, who think Who has "gone woke", and who don't want to see it become more fantastical. (More on that in my review of The Devil's Chord... I have a lot more to say with that one!). I liked it. I really did. It was fun, it was silly, it had it's heartwrenching moments, but it definitely wasn't carried through properly and there were a lot of themes that were just left dangling when they could have been driven home much more steadfastly. More on that in the next section...

Politics
One thing you cannot say about this episode is that it shied away from the big political debates. Abortion was the obvious one, though I also saw links with disability and anarchism. I am aware that the disability part of this especially seems to be grasping at straws, so I want to clarify: I don't believe RTD intended to explore this, but I think as a disabled person it is very difficult to ignore the implications.

Abortion. This one is pretty obvious- right from the beginning of meeting the babies, there was rage and a terrible kind of heartache. Who would do this to these children? Who would be so heartless as to allow this to happen, for children to be forced to become leaders and technicians and grow up so fast while still so young, all with only one adult to take care of so many? And the answer was, of course, the government. With the overturning of Roe vs Wade hanging over all our heads, I think the message being sent is clear: Not being allowed to turn off the baby farms is not being allowed to abort babies who will have no parents. The connection to our real-world issues around abortion continues to develop the more you think about it- the government, controlling the growth/birth of babies against the wishes of the population (those videos of the crew decrying this as cruel at the start); the babies who are produced like a commodity. The children, left with no supervision (ending up in care), because no support is provided for them to be looked after (by the parents/crew), forcing them to grow up too fast. A common pro-choice sentiment is expressed very explicitly upon meeting the real "Nan-E":

"Hang on, so the planet down below who refused to stop the babies being born... But once they're born, they don't look after them?"
"It's a very strange planet."
"It's not that strange."

I won't lie, I cried at that last line. It's not that strange. How much more clearly can you condemn the actions of a goverment who forces people to have children against their will (It's against the law to turn off the baby-making machine, just as there are places in our world where it is illegal to have an abortion), and then forces them to leave said children with no support, exactly as we do on Earth. And it's not that strange because that is what happens here. A heartbreaking moment of true, human emotion about what we are being forced through here in the real world. And, as much as this new season is all about the fantasy, we can see the show keeping it's sci-fi roots- sci-fi has always been there to criticise the present by showing it as a future dystopia, painting that issue in a clearly negative light. It has always been didactic, and always been political. I don't think we have to worry about Doctor Who stopping that any time soon.

And, if I may make one more connection on this issue- we saw that more babies were being grown. If those embryos had been born, and there were new, younger babies on that station, who do you think would have had to take care of them? Jocelyn wasn't supposed to stay behind. Logically, if no one was left to take care of the new babies, then the slightly older babies would have been forced into that role, despite being no more than children themselves. A sickening reminder of the fates of child sexual assault victims, forced to carry to term, despite this often leading to the victim's death. Again, RTD leaves no holds barred here; by making it clear that the babies are running out of food and oxygen, and so will die from lack of care and resources, he has once again presented a scathing indictment of the supreme court decision to overturn Roe vs Wade, and what this has led to.

However, here is where RTD fell short. He failed to drive his point home. He never showed us what happened- surely, the machines should have been turned off, aborting the embryos which would have killed the already living babies, if RTD is making a point about how SA victims are essentially sacrificed on the state's need to view a clump of cells as worth more than a living human being? By not actually addressing the issue of the baby machines still being up and running, despite this soon killing the babies, RTD has left a major plot thread dangling, and is failing his strongest theme. The issue of abortion deserves more than a question; it deserves RTD's full attention. It deserves to be tied up and resolved within the episode. And RTD failed to do this.

Now, disability. As I said before, I do not believe RTD was intending to explore disability, but once you've seen it, it's difficult to ignore. Let's start with the part of this that most closely connects to the last point- the aborting of embryos who are likely to become disabled children, and the euthanasia of disabled babies. There are some disabilities that you can detect in the womb, such as spina bifida, and sometimes down syndrome. In the UK, down syndrome can be seen as "justification for termination" up until birth, and there are all-too-many stories of pregnant people with a down syndrome embryo being pressured into having an abortion when they want to keep the embryo and have their baby.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-51658631

The reason I bring up aborting disabled embrbyos, and the related issue of withdrawing care from disabled newborns or euthanising disabled newborns against parental wishes, is because of the Bogeyman. When Jocelyn attempted to kill the Bogeyman against the wishes of the other children, given the new knowledge that this was "one of the children", and the previous focus on the horror of not allowing the baby machines to be stopped even when it meant the babies would surely die, this felt to me like a statement about disabled newborns. The Bogeyman was made of boogers; seen as disgusting, as scary, as a nightmare. I've heard the same words applied to disabled infants, which is perhaps why I made this connection so readily. As I said before, I doubt other people will have/that it was intentional, but this is definitely what struck me.

Something about the fear of the Other, of the different, even though this was still a child, hits me especially hard as an autistic person. I am used to being ostracised and ignored on the playground because I'm "too weird", "too different"; because the other children see my difference as "scary". And, with the episode's theme of teaching children that "Nobody grows up wrong"- not the babies who developed physically and mentally different from what was expected, not the autistic and other neurodivergent children watching behind the sofa- how could I not apply the same statement to the Bogeyman? Nobody grows up wrong is perhaps the most powerful thing you can hear when you have have been told all your life that you are wrong. The Bogeyman has, for six years, been told that they are scary, that their difference means they shouldn't be around the other children. They don't communicate like the others or look like the others or play the same role in the story-game as the others, so they are different. But that does not mean that they are wrong, or that they deserve to die. In today's day and age's focus on neurodiversity, maybe that seems obvious to most adults reading this, but I know so many people who have hurt themselves because they were taught by all the other children around them- and by the adults who were supposed to protect them (hi Jocelyn)- that their difference made them wrong, and so they didn't deserve to play and be loved and live like the other children. The dehumanisation- being treated like a "doggo", not a child, also hits especially hard with this neurodiverse lens. However, I think again I felt let down by the way RTD never really showed the Bogeyman being given a chance to communicate in their own way, to play with the other children, the point about difference not being wrong simply wasn't driven home. It's one thing to be told that you aren't broken; it's entirely another to actually be accepted by those who rejected you in the first place. The Bogeyman deserved a hug too.

Let's move on to something a bit less heavy: Anarchism! All the Doctor's talk of freedom interested me in light of other very political episodes like 'Oxygen' or 'The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances', as in these, the Doctor has always been presented as a socialist. While this was definitely an anti-capitalist episode, what with it's condemning of "the government clos[ing] the Baby Station to save money", and this leading to the deaths of the children, I would argue that the Doctor seemed to be taking on a more anarchist stance than a socialist one. He was consistently anti-capitalist, with the consolation for him having no home being no boss, no taxes, no rent (so true. go off babes), and the focus on "freedom" is especially linked to anarchism, as anarchism vies for freedom from authority. However, the talk of having "no cause" or purpose is where this starts to fall down, as anarchists definitely do have a cause... though, that could simply be a reflection of a poor understanding of anarchism. Though I can see a link, I definitely don't think the anarchism thread is a main theme, but it is worth mentioning.

Fantasy
The new genre is here, and it's off to a swinging start- the focus on stories, fantasy bleeding through, now that there's no more anchoring... It all just fits beautifully. I have a lot more thoughts on this that I'm saving for my Devil's Chord review, but I just wanted to note that the fantasy genre in a sci-fi setting struck a neat balance, and helped the episode feel more fun!

15 and Ruby: The Relationship
Their dynamic is everything to me. That's it. That's all. They're perfect and amazing and I would die for them.

Other/Final Thoughts
I think it's also worth congratulating the episode on it's foreshadowing. The way the butterfly effect was shown at the beginning (Obsessed, by the way, with the implications of the Doctor bringing that butterfly back to life. I saw no regeneration energy, so, was it some psychic trick rather than regenerative healing? Can he do this with people? So many possibilities...), and then undone so Ruby never knew it happened, and then how in the next episode she doesn't understand when the butterfly effect does occur... Beautiful. Well done.

Fun visuals, a lot of unanswered questions (How were the babies talking and yet not talking? Why didn't they grow up physically and yet did somewhat grow up mentally? RTD, I swear, I just want to talk-) that really brought it down for me, and the themes msot rich in exploration left dangling. Plot-wise, this made the episode a bit of a let-down, but it was still entertaining and worth a watch! Unlikely to rewatch, but still a good time.