The Middle

 

The Middle by Chris Chapman

The Middle is a sci fi story that is highly enjoyable, and although I didn't really love it, I did tend to enjoy it quite a lot in that it unlike many Main Range stories, was written precisely and efficiently, a sort of thing that really is absent quite frequently in these two hour runtime thingys. At least of recent. The Main Range is the most unforgiving of formats. You have the time to expand your story more than any other time, (unless you're writing an entire boxset and that never turns out well for just one writer woah boy) but you also have to have enough plot to fill it out. Stories like Last of The Cybermen or Absolute Power fail in this regard. They only have the basest of ideas, and aren't written very entertainingly. On the other hand, if you have a good story, your plot will shine in the Main Range more than anywhere else. I would herald the Middle as the best story in recent years if it wasn't for Quicksilver and The Two Masters, but as it stands, the Middle is the strongest story we've had that doesn't lean on a previous crutch (Order of the Daleks had the Daleks, Two Masters had Two Masters, Planet of The Rani, The Rani and even Quicksilver had Flip's reintroduction) and as such, I really do have to say it holds up as an enjoyable two hours. It has magnificent sound design, a concept that really tricks you nicely as to what is happening in the first part, some really honestly great side characters too. (Although it was weird to hear a character named Roman in an actual Who story. Well, that's my fault) The Middle is probably Flip and Constance's best performance piece yet, because it takes what Quicksilver does well with these characters, and really amplifies it. They still aren't together for much of it (the story deftly separates The Doctor, Flip and Constance to give them all some cool things to do) but even so, their chemistry shines through together. Although I am a huge Constance fan, I think Flip is probably this teams strongest Unit. I adore her. Sometimes when you listen to Doctor Who, you just want some cool hardboiled sci-fi, and well, to a degree, this feels as fresh as the ideas from the Original Series of Star Trek. You have to appreciate good unique sci fi ideas. They come up so very rarely: 8.5/10