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WHO HOME | BIG FINISH AUDIOS
| 8TH DOCTOR NOVELS | EPISODES
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Previous Big Finish releases have managed to show just how good a Doctor Colin Baker could have been, and 'Fires of Vulcan' showed that Bonnie Langford's Mel had a lot more potential than the carrot juice drinking fitness Nazi we saw on TV. Even so, pairing one of the show's least popular Doctor/companion teams in an out-and-out comedy could have been a recipe for disaster. However, 'The One Doctor' is quite possibly Big Finish's best release so far. After an excellent opening scene in the TARDIS, we're on the planet Generios (think about it), where the Doctor and Mel arrive just after the Doctor has just saved the planet from the evil Skelloids - except that the Doctor can't detect another of his incarnations in the vicinity. The "Doctor" is question turns out to be Banto Zame and his assisant Sally-Anne, who after "saving" the planet from invasion drop "subtle" hints about a reward that will enable them to repair their STARDIS. The Doctor determines to put everyone right on the identity of this imposter, but is soon forced to team up with Banto and Sally-Anne to save the planet from a real invasion. What follows is basically a quest story, but whereas the likes of 'The Keys of Marinus' played it straight and failed rather dismally, 'The One Doctor' knows that it's a comedy. The treasures our heroes are looking for a suitably ridiculous, involving a set of shelves that really are impossible to assemble, a futuristic version of "The Weakest Link" that's been running for simply ages and a diamond protected by a lonely Jelloid who's been waiting millions of years for a delivery. It's difficult to find fault with 'The One Doctor'. The quest aspect of the story is fairly simple, but we're not here for the story. There's some good sparring between the four main characters, and the leading actors are all on fine form. Anyone expecting (or possibly dreading) a camp OTT Doctor from Christopher Biggins will be pleasantly surprised with his performance as Banto, and Clare Buckfield's Sally-Anne works so well that you almost wish she'd been kept on as a proper companion. The other guest actors are also strong - Jane Goddard as the Anne Robinson-like Questioner, Adam Buxton and Stephen Fewell as the Smash aliens-like Assemblers and Matt Lucas as the Jelloid (complete with song). One or two recent audios have been sadly disappointing when it came to their music, but here Alistair Lock returns and gets it just right. Even the Delaware version of the theme music makes an appearance on part three. And once again, don't switch the CD off after the end of part four - there's more "Super Brain" questions and a neat nod to 'The Feast of Steven' tagged on the end of the disc. Apparently BF are intent on making a pantomime adventure every Christmas, which may or may not be a good idea. Whatever the result of that policy, 'The One Doctor' is definitely one of the best Big Finish releases to date. BACK TO THE TOP |
THE ONE DOCTOR |
