Starborn

The TARDIS is on 20th century Earth and Vicki has put her foot in it, unintentionally insulting Barbara by saying she didn't view the 20th century as any more civilized than Nero's Rome. Keeping her distance to let things cool down Vicki encounters a fortune teller with a message from her future about the dangers of where she will land next, and a dire warning not to get into the TARDIS again. Vicki is skeptical and thinks the woman to be a charlatan and demands to know exactly who this warning comes from. And it appears to be a warning from Vicki herself.

My first gripe about this one is the timing; it's not the usual Companion Chronicle format of a tale told after the companion has left, this one is made to drop into the flow of actual series events. That's all fine if it can be done easily, but for some reason this one is designed to pick up right at the end of The Romans. Mention is made of how the TARDIS was gripped by some force but the Doctor managed to break free of it for this little sideline adventure (David A. McIntee's Eleventh Tiger was placed in the same spot as well)  but it's done so carelessly... the force that was unbreakable was that of the Animus on Vortis, taking the story right into The Web Planet, but the tension that was created by that cliffhanger is undermined by this sort of freewheeling license to interrupt the continuity. It's such a recent escape from that power that as the cover indicates the crew are still in their Roman garb while on the streets of a more modern London. One might argue that this creates a sort of story arc with the TARDIS being pursued by the force of the Animus and pulled at constantly until it is finally ensnared, but that would require a serious feat of retconning.

My second complaint is the story told by "future" Vicki through the seance. The TARDIS would, supposedly, go to a planet where the people were born to ascend into the heavens quite literally and join an intricate pattern of stars in the sky and keep the world below brightly lit forever. The world of these luminous beings is so bright that the Doctor and company have to wear protective face shields to protect their eyes from damage. Sounds a bit familiar... yes, we've heard this sort of thing before in the Lost Stories range with The Dark Planet.

These stories with information from the future coming to the present cast have to be handled carefully and although author Jacqueline Rayner made a good effort here it's not her best work. I found myself just getting a bit bored with the tale and wondering if it was supposed to be a comedy during the seance parts, all those voice changes to simulate contact from beyond. And when the final truth behind what was going on finally came out and resolution was attempted, I was left thinking "meh". Someone has been watching too much of the new Steven Moffat series drivel, I think.

So this is really my first less than enthusiastic reaction to a Big Finish audio. Let's see if they can redeem themselves to me...

NEXT EPISODE: THE UNWINDING WORLD