The Legacy Of Time

THE LEGACY OF TIME

The Legacy Of Time is such an event, each review will be the length of a main range review, because I have so much to say. Let it begin:

Lies in Ruins by James Goss

From the beginning, let me say that Lies in Ruins is the best box set opener that I’ve ever listened to, better than even Beneath The Viscoid. This episode absolutely delivers, it’s an incredibly dark character study on the Doctor and the Time War’s effect on him, with River and Benny simply along for the ride. Utterly fantastic performances all around, with a tight cast of only six, Two of which barely have any lines. If the rest of Legacy is this good, we’re in for a heck of a ride:

Bring me Knitting: This would be the ultimate Eighth Doctor story if it wasn’t for the fact that his range of Big Finish has always been one of if not the most prolific in fantastic writing. Paul Mcgann is so somber here, broken and defeated. The most cuddly of all of the Doctors himself gets this as his box set story. We’ve never ever seen the Doctor this emotional in any story ever, and I couldn’t take much more of it.

Hello Sweetie: River is fantastic here. The timeline issues of her being around is only barely addressed, and frankly, that’s all we need. She is the main protagonist in this, not the Doctor. The bickering in the story is fantastic, especially when she’s talking the doctor down. There’s some great lamp shading of her backstory, which I HAVE to include below: In reference to her timeline: ‘Isn’t that massively complicated?’ ‘Yes.’ On dating: ‘Selective Amnesia was our box of chocolates and bunch of Roses.’ And on the series 6 finale: ‘Where did you get married?’ ‘On top of a pyramid during an apocalypse.’ I don’t know much about Benny, but she is quite likable instantly. I’ll have to pick up a few stories. 

The Other Professor: Bernice Summerfield is a being made entirely of snark, and it took absolutely one story for me to completely adore her. Granted she was made by Paul Cornell, so I can’t really complain, as he wrote Human Nature Of all things. 

Benny is really here as a double act for River, as it’s mainly River who fixes the plot. 

She’s fantastically funny though, but not in a way that her character is entirely jokes like Strax for instance. You can really tell she’s the Doctor’s best friend. 

Tomorrow: isn’t it astounding that James Goss can create a fully developed Companion in one story? Ria is instantly off, but reminds you of TV Mel in a fantastic way. She’s incredibly annoying when she needs to be, but not to the point where you’re too mad at her. In a way, she’s the worst companion the Doctor could ever have. Himself. She’s part of the reason the story works so well. 

The Monsters: The brilliance of the story is how weak the monsters are. Random Voice filter aliens that we don’t care about… that aren’t incredibly evil, just greedy and stupid. They’re such of a non presence, that the Doctor’s rage towards them is beautifully understandable. 

Overall: A masterclass of a story, and even if the following 5 are awful, I wouldn’t even be that mad. Okay, well, I would. But if the rest of the box set lives up to this, it’d be the best thing Big Finish ever produced. 10/10

The Split Infinitive by John Dorney

The Split Infinitive has many problems, but ultimately I came away from it with a positive feeling, because the story does have a few fun surprises. This story features Seven, Ace, the Counter Measures *twice over* and the Rocket Men. That’s a lot of characters to cover, and ultimately none of them feel developed. The story at least is original, and with this much timey wimey technobabble, it at least manages to not be confusing. That is, when the characters don’t bring it up. The story deals with one of Doctor Who’s basic time travel ideas, that two eras of time run concurrently, and proceeds to say every five seconds that this doesn’t make sense. I’d love to see the counter measures in a Steven moffat story, because if all they do is say this doesn’t make sense, they’d make the River storyline far more entertaining than it was. (I still liked it.) The story also utilizes the fade away rule from Back to The Future, and acts as if this is a revolutionary Sci Fi idea. Lovely.

Unlimited Rice Pudding: I really like Seven. Sad thing is, all he does in this story, is ask what the Counter Measures team remembers. It’s a pain, as even Ace has more to do than the most manipulative and conspiring Doctor we’ve ever seen. 

Don’t Call Me Small: Ace is amazing. That is all. She takes control of the story in a way the Doctor doesn’t. It’s a shame the Seventh Doctor era of Big Finish is so bogged up in story arcs, as I love Ace, and feel I don’t see enough of her. What other companion carries around explosives on a regular basis? She’s almost Doctor ish in the story, and reminded me of Thirteen a lot. Well, Thirteen in a great story, Thirteen.

Shame the counter measures exist.

Counter Measures: I’ve never understood Big Finishes appreciation for the counter measures. They’re sort of crap UNIT that were almost instantly forgotten as soon as Kate and Osgood were given a spinoff. Remembrance of the Daleks is a great story, and you can see how they are precursors to UNIT, but they just seem so much worse to me. At least they have some fun moments, like Jensen shooting the Rocket Men or Gilmore stealing a suit from the Rocket Men… wait, are all of their good moments merely good by association to the Rocket Men? 

Think it’s Gonna Be A Long Long Time: Yeah, I renamed the category for this episode, because I’m that kind of person. The Rocket Men are really cool, and although I’m unfamiliar with them, they’re such a 60s Doctor Who idea that is stupidly ordinary when you say it outside. Pirates with Rocket Packs? It’s almost as ordinary an idea as Big Finishes other famed creation, the Vortisaurs, who are literally space pterodactyls. They’re quite good here, and I like the Rocket Men. Now, all we need is a Rocket men story with Benny Summerfield so we can call it “Benny and the Jets.”

That’s just too good an idea. 

Overall: The best moment is when the UNIT dating controversy is solved. If you’re that kind of person that gets annoyed by it, this may be your story. Ultimately, this is run of the mill Doctor Who bogged up in simple Sci Fi ideas that it thinks are complex. At least Ace is great. 7.5/10

The Sacrifice Of Jo Grant by Guy Adams 

The Sacrifice Of Jo Grant is a character piece, very similar to Lies in Ruins, and I applaud it, as character pieces are always the best of Big Finish. The story focuses on the damage to Time established in the Split Infinitive, and the news of Jo’s apparent death. There’s a problem with this, as everyone knows that they aren’t going to Kill Jo Grant, one of the series’ most popular companions in an audio drama. In fact, the BBC actually forbids them from doing so in their contract. The story makes you nearly think they’ll do it though, so it feels a bit less like a cop out. 

I mean it is, but the character work is so excellent You don’t really care one bit. 

Jo Is Making A Thing: Jo Grant when she was first introduced disappointed me, as it seemed the show decided to replace one of the most intelligent companions they’d ever written with a hippy girl who instantly gets possessed by the master. Fortunately over the years, Jo and Three formed a rapport, and they really are perfect for each other. The focus of the story here is almost entirely on Jo and she is definitely part of why it’s so strong. Her meeting Three again is perfectly portrayed, and although Jo has never been my type of a companion, she makes this story absolutely exquisite.

We Also Have Ravens of Death: Kate has always been likable to me, a perfect next generation character to the Brig, much like a regeneration in a way. Although Jo’s in the title, Kate also pulls a lot of weight. Her storyline with her father is the emotional climax of the story, and although she has less screen time, I liked her storyline more than Jo’s. 

James Bond in Space: The Third Doctor is Here merely to make Jo’s arc in the story work better, similar to the brig. He’s introduced karate chopping a man, and his scenes in the pub with the Jo are some of the best written they’ve ever shared. I couldn’t tell Tim Treloar wasn’t John Pertwee. He’s really, really good.

A Really Big Fan: Um, Osgood doesn’t do much. She’s nice when she shows up but her highlight is freaking over the fact that Three’s there. The bit with someone impersonating her is freaky and intriguing. Here’s hoping Ingrid Oliver gets to play the impersonator later in the box set. I do love when main characters also play the villain.

The Monsters: Osgood? Maybe? 

Overall: The best done cop out in Big Finishes arsenal. With this and Lies In Ruins, the box set is shaping up nicely. 9/10

Relative Time by Matt Fitton

Why does everyone adore Matt Fitton so? He’s written far more mediocre stories than excellent ones, and Relative Time is the Mona Lisa Of mediocrity. 

The script just feels basic, and although Jenny is excellent, she’s also a less important TV character, one who only got an episode on TV, and doesn’t deserve a highlight as much as other guests from the modern series. I will loathe the day Madge from The Vile Narnia Christmas Special gets a boxset. 

Brave Heart: This story works on the principle that Jenny’s actor is actually Peter Davison’s Daughter. She’s also David Tennant’s wife. (Glad that angle wasn’t explored.) The Fifth Doctor is always sort of bland. At least, that’s the illusion. He’s actually the most unstable and vindictive of the Doctor’s, often yelling at his companions, and being generally mean. Somehow though, the fandom sees him as Nice. Six didn’t berate his companions and make them feel terrible, although he on one occasion, did strangle one. I’m not really making my point, but my point is, is that none of Sixes companions left because they couldn’t find any joy in life with Him whatsoever. (Tegan.) My other point is that this is an important aspect to the character, and Relative Time fails to make that work, ultimately making five a fill in the blank Doctor. No Doctor should fail to be a presence in the way Five does here. 

Generated Anomaly: Jenny is good fun. Not as fun as Paternoster Gang Jenny, but still highly enjoyable. Her trying to be moral when she acts not so much is an interesting mirror of the Doctor. Her brashness of being born a soldier and not feeling opposed to fighting, is genuinely fascinating, but the pity is, that she was adequately explored in the Doctor’s Daughter on TV. What a strange choice for a 20th anniversary special. 

Mighty Number Nine: I mean, I’m not sure why the Nine is a thing. He’s a budget Eleven and doesn’t have much personality other than “I want nice things” but he’s played so charmingly. The Eleven always seemed much more nuts and unstable and violent and that’s why I like him more, his unpredictability, but the Nine is just suave and silly in the right ways. although it has little in common with his future self, it is entertaining in it’s own right. I’m just annoyed Thana just shows up as if she’s a big deal and never shows up for the rest of the boxset. Speaking of which, where’s clone Osgood? 

The Monsters: VORTISAURS. I love some space pterodactyls in my big Finish.

Overall: One Of Big Finishes less harmonious efforts, but still entertaining in it's own right, Relative Time gets its plot by throwing four characters they have the rights to and just bouncing them off each other. Jenny is the highlight, but while she’s present you wonder why this is a 20th anniversary script. 6/10

The Avenues Of Possibility by Jonathan Morris

Six and Charley. Six and Charley. Six and Charley, Six and Charley, Six and Charley.

These two are so great for each other. Actually Charley’s great for anyone, really.

The Avenues Of Possibility is a love letter to early Big Finish, with it's ambitious ideas and grandiose atmosphere. It’s what they would have made back then at the time, just you know, ...two hours…? This is a two hour idea if anything, and deserves more time, but It builds to a genuine fever pitch and is fantastically exciting. 

The ideas in the story are the best aspect, an alleyway where you can walk into  another century, the times of history being avenues on a street. There’s so much potential here, so much fun, and Modern day police teaming up with Victorian Scotland Yard is wonderfully entertaining. 

Entitled To Melodrama: Six is one of my favorite Doctor’s because of how full of himself he is. The period that he travelled with Charley was unprecedented, a future companion with a past Doctor. It makes sense for it to be a 20th anniversary story. Also, the Doctor knows the Chief Of Scotland Yard. 

Charlie Pollard, Edwardian Adventuress: Charley spills the beans to the Doctor about the future to save him from the Sirens, and it’s the highlight of the story. 

Her just shrieking all of the highlights of what her character has been through is enormous and its magnificently played by India Fisher. Her shrieking “Edward Grove is Alive!” Nearly made me scream with joy. 

DI Menzies: A Walking Coma

The Monsters: I’m not familiar with the Sirens, but they’re Big Finishes first monster, and here, they’re genuinely scary. Women with dragon wings, screaming out horn like music that blends into the soundtrack, and signals to you that they’re coming, and you are absolutely doomed. Who cares about Curse of The Black Spot when you have these guys?? I wish the series doubled down and said that the alternate world in the story was the one from Inferno though. It seems the Sirens are responsible for everything in the set, at least minus most of Relative Time, because that was the Nine’s fault. Speaking of which, where’s Thana? And Speaking of Which, Where’s Clone Osgood? 

Overall: The Avenues Of Possibility is the first Big Finish Script I listened to where I felt the battles were dangerous. Obviously Charley and The Doctor won’t die but the tension skyrockets. there’s something raw and intense about it, even more so than The Apocalypse Element, it just feels like, oopsie daisy, the sirens could WIPE YOUR SPECIES FROM HISTORY. The other stories were fanservice, but this one feels like old times all over again. I can at least appreciate that. 8.5/10

Collision Course by Guy Adams 

This story is averagely enjoyable at the start, and envelops into the literal Nine Doctors. So for that alone, it’s instantly worth listening to, and despite having not too much substance, it manages to still hold up the Sirens as villains convincingly, and to include Nine Doctors is a lovely achievement.

The Holy Scarf: Tim Trelour isn’t even an actual TV Doctor, and he got a full episode to himself. Granted the Sacrifice Of Jo Grant is exceptional, but Tom Baker is such a Doctor, that it seems unfair to him that he gets about half a story before everyone shows up to steal his thunder. At least he’s quality while he’s present.

Move Aside, Bent Face: Holy Crap, Leela is chillingly good here. Her going absolutely bonkers at Fours “Death” May be one of the highlights of a nigh-perfect box set. 

Fred: Romana and Leela are so different, yet their characters bounce off of each other perfectly. If Romana’s appearance seems a little perfunctory, it’s at least a ringing endorsement of the Gallifrey Series.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

The Doctors:

You probably ended up Spoiled that David Tennant appears in this story as well as all of the other Doctors which they didn’t bother to hide. I’m at the very least satisfied with what each of them does here. I even wasn’t spoiled about David Bradley, so that’s nice.

The Other Professor: Benny is the one that saves the day oddly, and it feels appropriate that the woman responsible for bringing Doctor Who to Big Finish (and thus could be credited for it’s return to television) saves the day here. I’ve never really been a Benny Maniac but this and Lies In Ruins do quite a good job of endorsing her character.

SPOILERS END SPOILERS END SPOILERS END SPOILERS END

Overall: Collision Course is an admirable conclusion to the box set despite being mostly fanservice, and the first half seems like killing time for the Doctors to show up. 

Tom Baker deserved a full story, but this is such a conclusion I’m not sure I mind. 

8.75/10

Is this Box Set Worth It?

That’s like asking if Big Finish is worth it. I’d say yes.