Welcome back readers. Yes, we are
officially in 2014, but nothing solidifies it quite like listening to the first
Doctor Who audio drama by Big Finish this month. Today, it’s Antidote to Oblivion!
For this story, I’m first going
to praise the music. It’s a treat hearing the classic 80s cues in parts,
particularly the Castrovalva tunes
that are unmistakable. Secondly, I have to give Nabil Shaban (Sil) credit for
again bringing so much slimy evil and corruptness to his portrayal. Sil might
not be the most feared villain in the Whoverse, but he is certainly unique in
not just his personality, but the environment he finds himself in. This time,
it’s Future Britain, a future version of the earth dumb enough to be in bed
with the slimy Thoros Betian. I’m speaking financially people. He’s conning
them, but that shouldn’t come as a major spoiler as anybody who’s listened to Mission to Magnus or seen Mindwarp knows all too well that Sil is
only in it for the money. As he puts it, figures only make sense to him if they’re
part of a bank statement. It was such an indulgence hearing Sil’s Hannibal Lector
like laugh.
Be warned though! This story is full
of continuity porn. If you haven’t seen Mindwarp
or listened to Mission to Magnus,
you will find yourself enjoying this story less and less. It relies heavily on
the events of Mindwarp in particular,
including the scientist Crozier, who has a daughter out for vengeance.
Naturally you have the reappearance of Sil, but there are others such as what
really happened to Peri Brown.
The story itself served as
something of a reminder to me of New
Earth: A planet trying to find the ultimate antidote to every illness known
to man and tries to accomplish this by experimenting on people (not grown people
though) and later on the Doctor. Thankfully it’s not a knock off and manages to
stand on its own two legs by adding not a body swap cliché, but a couple of mind
distorting drugs in the water supply, possessing and not to mention the corrupt
government officials among others.
Lastly – the stars! Colin Baker
never seems to slip when he’s the Doctor, whether on TV or on audio, so it
comes as no surprise that his incarnation manages to blind me with the sublime
performance that ranges from tranquil lazy bum to mourning Time Lord. Lisa
Greenwood on the other hand, who plays Flip, is like Clara to me in some
respects. They both play their parts excellently, but I find myself often
wondering just what sort of character they are playing. Both their personalities
seem to hop skip and jump from story to story. Flip I feel serves as nothing
more than the damsel in the distress for this story, not really getting to do
much. Hopefully that’ll change and Lisa’s character will win me over. She’s
about half way there I believe and we still have two more stories left to go.
Rating this story: 8/10
Next month, the Doctor discovers his
ship is being raided by the imp-like Drachee, and his companion Flip is carried
away in The Brood of Erys.
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