Doctor Who Review: ‘Sword of Orion’ (Eighth Doctor Audio)
By James Aggas
The Eighth Doctor and his new companion Charley encounter the Cybermen, as their first season continues!
Straight after their first ever audio story with the Eighth Doctor, Big Finish released another major story with ‘Sword of Orion.’ Not only was it the first production in which the Eighth Doctor faced the Cybermen, it was also the first Big Finish story to include the Cybermen at all! But is the story itself any good?
The tale does feel very familiar, as far as ones about Cyberman go. Humans in the future come across Cybermen in deep sleep on a spaceship, the Cybermen start waking up, some of the main characters want to make a deal with the Cybermen, etc. There are really strong elements of the very best Cybermen stories, such as ‘The Tomb of the Cybermen’ or ‘Earthshock.’ Even Telos, their adopted home planet, gets a mention.
I think the story’s biggest problem is that, quite honestly, there are times when it feels too familiar. In terms of both plot and production, the story feels closer to an eighties story, rather than a story released in 2001. If the story had included any other Big Finish Doctor at the time, this wouldn’t have been a problem. Big Finish have been brilliant at recreating the feel of an era while being able to tell something new.
The problem here is who the story’s for: the Eighth Doctor, the “current” one at the time of release. I can’t help but feel that something more modern would’ve been better suited to his Doctor. ‘Storm Warning’ somehow felt more fresh by comparison, despite its thirties setting. Perhaps because it had been specifically written for McGann’s Doctor.
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Originally, ‘Sword of Orion’ had been a fan production by Audio Visuals, the unofficial predecessor to Big Finish. I don’t know how closely Big Finish’s new version with Eight followed the original. (Fans who know more than I on this subject, please comment below on how they compare.)
Still, I can’t help but feel that a story originally written in the eighties was somehow unable to shake its original period. As I’ve mentioned, this would be less of a problem if it wasn’t in the first season for what was, at the time, a modern Doctor.
Thankfully, Eight would later get three Cybermen stories that would compliment his Doctor much better. These were ‘The Girl Who Never Was,’ ‘Human Resources,’ and ‘The Silver Turk.’ All three are very different stories, but all somehow suit the Eighth Doctor equally well. Rest assured, I’ll be covering all three of those stories at a later date.
Now that my main criticism is out of the way, here’s what I did enjoy about ‘Sword of Orion’: I really loved the background given on the Orion War. This was a plot element that was introduced and covered a lot in the story and added crucial depth to it. It fleshed out the situation, the other characters, and their motivations really well. It also helps to make the story stand out a lot more effectively. In fact, it’s such an effective bit of backstory that it was later used for the spin-off Cyberman, which I’ll be reviewing very soon.
There is also a good mix of characters, too. While some come a little too close to typical Doctor Who clichés (especially one really angry character with an itchy trigger finger), most are fleshed out quite nicely. My favourite in particular is Deeva Jansen, a captain who you’re never quite sure of where her motivations and loyalties truly lie.
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