Big Finish Main Range
A relatively good start to the entire series. If I was just starting to listen and this is the first drama I listened to, I would’ve been impressed (first was Minuet in Hell for me!). After years of inattention by the entertainment industry (aside from the books), Big Finish started off with a very good idea—a 3-doctor adventure. Gave them a big challenge to overcome, with the mysterious bad guys the Knights of Eleysia, who are destroying the Time Lords.
On the other hand, the destruction of the Time Lords is accomplished quite easily, from what we hear. Though the beginnings of that conflict may have made the audio too long. But it’s hard to totally believe that the Time Lords are so easily defeated. A convenience of the story, ultimately. And the Doctor seems a bit ignorant to it all. Wouldn’t he remember something of the other sirens when he encounters her in later incarnations? Or is this the sort of thing where it’s all happening “at the same time,” relatively speaking, so he can’t remember? Sometimes he can remember, sometimes he can’t, depending on what the story needs. One of those odd powers used for convenience thing, much like his ability to make everyone want to cooperate with him that sometimes just goes awry.
This is a very solid beginning but not a story I’m interested in listening to very often. And re-listening interest is ultimately a huge part of how good an audio is! Not bad at all, considering it’s the start of a glorious new empire of Who’s but as part of the whole Big Finish universe, it’s not the best. Thus 3 jelloids out of 5.
Colin Baker, Peter Davison, Sylvester McCoy
Writer/Director: Nicholas Briggs
Release: July 1999