I haven’t been keeping up with this blog much. This is
partially for two reasons: one, I’ve been sick all week, and I haven’t been in
the mood for much writing as a result. Two, with the pause in the actual watch,
there hasn’t been as much for me to talk about. Of course, that’s just the tv
stuff – there’s plenty of other stuff I can discuss.
Like, for example, comics. Read two collections this week:
The Crimson Hand and The Child of Time, featuring the 10th and 11th
Doctors respectively. Both volumes proved to be really great, epic stuff. It’s
stuff like that that reminds me that I seriously need to read the Doctor Who
Magazine on a regular basis, as it’s amazing how much those guys really plan
ahead with their comics stuff, and how they can tie up story threads that have
been running for nearly two years, in some cases. Now got all the 8th
Doctor volumes to make my way through, and boy, am I looking forward to that.
But the piece of Who expanded universe I have to give the rave review to this
week is without question the Eighth Doctor epic Dark Eyes. I listened to this
story the moment it was available for download last week, and now I’ve just
finished listening to this wonderful story a 2nd time, to process it a little
better. This was a story that I’ve been looking forward to all year, even more
so than anything in the tv series this year, if I’m honest.
This is due to two reasons: first, the Eight Doctor is my
favourite Doctor, particularly his audio stuff, as Paul McGann really does
throw himself into the role and always gives a wonderful performance, sometimes
portraying the mad eccentric alien, sometimes the ancient traveller, sometimes
the dark, weary soul that he’s become – all shades of the Doctor are always
performed wonderfully by McGann.
Which leads me to my second point: To The Death. This was a
story that marked an end not just to the previous season, but to an entire 4
year storyline that had covered the ongoing relationship between the Doctor and
his companion Lucie Miller. That was a series that had begun light-hearted
enough, aiming to be a cross between the era of the classic series with the
style of the new series, with shorter, faster paced stories and season long
arcs mixed in with the Doctor rebelling against his own people the Time Lords
(something the new series can’t really do ever since getting rid of them) and
the occasional appearance of a classic series monster. But then the fourth season
came along, and things began to get noticeably darker and slightly more
complex, in a season which carefully looked at who the Doctor had become, how
much he valued life and how heroic he really was, before bringing that all down
in the series finale To The Death. To those who haven’t listened to it, I won’t
spoil it, but I will say this: it more than lived up to its title, so much so
that by the end, the Doctor had become a changed man, a much darker figure, and
it was unknown just what he’ll do next.
I must admit, the way
To The Death ended, I thought, "If Big Finish decide to do no more Eighth
Doctor Adventures, at least none set after this one, I'd be happy with that".
This is purely because I thought TTD was, in some ways, a really good way to end
things with McGann's Doctor. Since Big Finish doesn’t have a license for
anything to do with the new series, including covering anything relating to the Time War (in which both the Daleks and the
Time Lords were (almost) entirely wiped out) and the regeneration from Eight to
Nine, there’s only so much of the Eighth Doctor’s story they could reasonably
tell. Leaving him a considerably darker figure and more hateful of the Daleks
than ever isn’t that much of a bad way to end things – certainly, it acts as a
better bridge to the start of the new series with the battle-scarred lone
survivor Ninth Doctor than the ending of the tv movie with the Eighth Doctor
having only just been “born”, happy as ever and heading off to see the universe
with brand new eyes. So when I heard that his story would continue, I was both
incredibly excited and very apprehensive. Yes, as ever, I’m always excited to
hear more of McGann’s Doctor – especially considering how his performance in
TTD was one of his greatest ever – but how would this new story deal with the
aftermath of such major events?
As it turned out, amazingly well. Ok, so this story doesn’t
have the Doctor out on a mission to wipe out every Dalek in existence or appeal
to the Time Lords to start a war. It’s actually a lot more subtle – and a lot
better – than that. Because the Eighth Doctor clearly isn’t the man that he
once was. There are moments where he tries to be by making a joke or trying to
find just a small moment of fun, but overall, his Doctor is a lot more tired
and a lot wearier of life than the man who woke up in San Francisco and found
joy in a pair of shoes. He’s a man who begins the story without hope. Dark Eyes
is the story of how he recovers some of that back. Not all of it, which is what
I was partly afraid of, but a little, anyway. This story of a Doctor without
hope works incredibly well for two reasons. Firstly, the continuing excellent
performance of McGann as the Doctor. Like To The Death, Dark Eyes really allows
him to explore the darker aspects of his Doctor without over-doing it. It’s
amazing performances like this that continue to show just why he’s my favourite
Doctor, and probably one of the best actors to have ever taken the role.
Secondly, Nicholas Brigg’s writing. He really seems to have
found a nice balance between pushing the Doctor into darker emotional territory
and adding in a few touches of light along the way. But it’s not just the
Doctor he’s written well. The new companion, Molly, (as brilliantly played by
Ruth Bradley,) a WWI VAT nursing assistant, not only acts as a way of
introducing new listeners to the Eighth Doctor, but feels a fully fleshed out
character in her own right. She’s someone who has, understandably, been through
a lot already in her young life, but also tries hard not to let any of it get
her down. Stubborn with a no-nonsense attitude, she’s exactly who the Doctor
needs at one of the lowest points of his life.
Another excellent point regarding the script is the story.
Taking full advantage of the unlimited budget of audio, this is a story that is
both epic and, due to a surprisingly great deal of the story being effectively
carried by McGann and Bradley as Molly, personal, this is a fast paced story
that satisfies on so many levels. Whether you’ve followed all the Eighth Doctor’s
adventures so far (like myself), or whether you’re looking for an ideal jumping
on point, Dark Eyes is well worth listening to, and a brilliant start to a new
era in the Eighth Doctor’s life. 10/10
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