Big Finish Main Range
I’m a bit conflicted about this story. I do love the “bad guy” in this story, Chairman Falco. It’s pretty easy to pick out who is the Silurian ‘slave’ from the start but it’s still a fascinating story. He actually starts banging his head against the wall to try to blow himself up, as he’s a walking bomb! Really one of the most interesting ‘slave’ villains, if you can even call him that, in all of these Big Finish stories. He doesn’t really try to hide it once he’s discovered and just goes on with what he’s doing, trying to destroy humanity for the Silurians.
The Doctor, Mel, and Ace land on an island where the Doctor has some business to attend to with the Silurians that are in hibernation underground. Another team arrives while the Doctor and Ace are exploring underground so Mel and the other team, with Dr Ruth Drexler and Gorrister, eventually join them. But the Silurian triumvirate have departed the island so the group all head off to see the leaders of both factions on the planet, east and west, in order to talk about the Silurians. And it gets complicated from there! Eventually Mel deals with the Silurians and Ace deals with the leaders and the Doctor deals with them all.
I enjoy listening to Ace’s mistrust of the Doctor in this one because it’s not the focus of everything but it does drive her actions. And it actually makes sense! Sometimes it’s just too much anger from Ace and the Doctor still in manipulation mode. He’s only partially manipulative with both Mel and Ace around in this one but I’m sure he can get back on that horse soon enough. Loved this one, despite the strangeness…
Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Bonnie Langford (Mel), Fiona Sheehan (Ruth Drexler/ Avvox), Nicholas Asbury (Chairman Bart Falco), Nicholas Briggs (Chordok), Caitlin Thorburn (Karlas), Ignatius Anthony (Gorrister), Louise Mai Newberry (Director Shen).
Writer: Matthew J Elliot
Director: Ken Bentley
Release: September 2017