Review of Seasons of Fear (#30)
Big Finish Release Date: March 2002
Doctor/Companion: Eight, Charlotte "Charley" Pollard
Stars: Paul McGann, India Fisher
Preceding Story: The Chimes of Midnight (Eight, Charley)
Succeeding Story: Embrace the Darkness (Eight, Charley)
I'm not familiar with many of Paul Cornell's stories, but Father's Day and Human Nature / The Family of Blood are both interesting and nicely self-consistent narratives. Knowing that Cornell wrote this story with his wife Caroline Symcox therefore gave me an optimistic outlook.
But despite the fact that it began with a direct continuation of the longer plotline centering on Charley's experiences—the impetus behind the choice of audios I'm currently consuming and reviewing—I was immediately put off by a stylistic decision by the writers. Rather than the usual "film with sound" format I'm accustomed to for an audio drama, we get a voiceover. The Doctor is narrating the events in retrospect, telling us about the first time he met a character who becomes integral to the plot of the entire play.
Although the reason for this approach becomes clear some two hours later, at the end of the story, I personally found it distracting. I'd be rolling along with the narrative as the Doctor and Charley grappled with whatever setback currently faced them, and the Doctor's voice would roll in with exposition. It pulled me out of the story every time.
Aside from that irritant, the story itself unfolds in typical, roundabout fashion. Something happens at the very beginning to send them haring off through time, getting embroiled in a good old-fashioned time paradox. I'll admit to having been led (purposely?) astray at the end of Part 1, when I thought we were getting a hint at the identity of the mysterious "masters" our antagonist served. However, what I thought I heard turned out not to have been what I heard at all, and that particular mystery didn't get resolved until the end of Part 3.
I always love Paul McGann's characterization of the Doctor in these audios, and the writers have provided him with a couple of memorable lines to deliver with his own particular relish. Two, in particular, stand out in my mind.