Doctor Who Review: ‘The First Doctor Adventures: The Destination Wars’ (audio)
By James Aggas
Big Finish
Released on Christmas Day, David Bradley once again plays the Doctor in ‘The First Doctor Adventures’! But how successful is this new series at recreating an era? Let’s take a look at the first story, ‘The Destination Wars’.
The First Doctor Adventures is a release that I’ve been excited about for quite some time. Starring David Bradley as the First Doctor, this release is rather unique. The cast originally played the actors of the original crew in An Adventure in Space and Time. Now, they’re playing the characters themselves.
This is a very bold move for Big Finish. Get it wrong, and they could risk alienating a lot of their fans. Could stories in the First Doctor era work without any of the original cast? Or is this a leap too far for Big Finish to make?
Reinventing an era
Judging from The Destination Wars, the first story of this box set, it seems to work very well. Admittedly, the actors are clearly not the original cast. Sometimes, with a recast, it’s easy to forget, especially when there’s no visual to remind you. Elliot Chapman as Ben in The Early Adventures is a brilliant example. His voice is incredibly spot on. That’s not quite the case for The First Doctor Adventures. But the actors still do an excellent job of capturing the essence of those characters, at least.
In fact, The Destination Wars is very, very good at capturing the overall feel of those original stories. The world they land on, as well as “the City” and its people, feels straight out of a classic sixties serial. The music also helps, and the whole cast of characters feel distinctly of that era.
However, what really sells it is the First Doctor. David Bradley is absolutely fantastic in the part. He’s really got Hartnell’s vocal mannerisms down perfectly. Even better is that the script portrays the First Doctor completely accurately. Not surprising, considering that writer Matt Fitton has had experience writing for the First Doctor in the Companion Chronicles and Early Adventures ranges.
After the hit-and-miss characterization in Twice Upon a Time, hearing David Bradley in a script that completely understands the Doctor he’s portraying is much more satisfying.
It’s great that, despite so many new elements, this feels completely like a story from season one. And that’s good. Because there’s one more risky element that this story includes.
Introducing…the Master!
When Big Finish announced The First Doctor Adventures, there was one small detail that grabbed my attention. In this new box set, the First Doctor would also encounter his oldest enemy, the Master. More than that, it’s an incarnation we’ve never seen before, except as a child. That’s right: in The Destination Wars, we’re introduced to the First Master.
I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been excited about this more than anything else in the box set. I love the Master, and I love the idea of exploring the early days of him against the Doctor. So I was eager to hear what the Master was like in his early days. How does the story handle it?
Interestingly, The Destination Wars feels very close to an “introduction story” for the character. When the Master was introduced on television in Terror of the Autons, it was already clear that he and the Doctor had been enemies for a very long time. The story didn’t focus too much on their earliest days or anything like that, however.
In some ways, it’s kind of odd that a TV series like Doctor Who would instantly introduce a major villain like he had already been in the show for years. However, Roger Delgado was so amazing at portraying him that the audience easily accepted him.
Still, it does make you wonder about their earlier encounters. Especially how the First Doctor would have fought his old enemy, so soon after leaving Gallifrey. As a fan, I had to ask: what would a Master story have been like during the First Doctor’s era?
Big Finish
Revealing more with less
The Destination Wars answers that question wonderfully. What completely sells it is how much it follows the constraints of the era. For example, neither the Doctor nor the Master mention the Time Lords or Gallifrey, at least not directly. At this point, the Doctor is still secretive about his own race.
Yet at the same time, we get a little more explanation on the origins of both characters. Nothing too much or too concrete, but enough to make the First Doctor meeting the Master in this story significant. They’ve known each other for a long time, but this is clearly meant to be their first meeting away from Gallifrey. It feels big, but in an understated way, like the first Dalek story.
From start to finish, it feels like it came straight from the sixties, a lost story that introduced this brand new character. And that’s exactly how it should be handled.
James Dreyfus
I must admit, however, I was initially surprised about the casting. James Dreyfus is an actor known more for his comedy work over in the UK. He has a history of playing loud or camp characters, particularly in Gimme Gimme Gimme and The Thin Blue Line. So casting him as an iconic villain was a bold move.
Honestly, I needn’t have worried. Dreyfus is an absolutely fantastic Master. He’s nothing like Gomez, Simm or Macqueen: the modern Masters with a playfully psychotic edge. Instead, he plays a quiet sort of menace. He’s both charming and chilling in equal measure. And he has such an incredibly rich voice that enhances all of those qualities.
But just as the Doctor isn’t quite the hero he will become, Dreyfus’s Master isn’t quite the monster that we know. Oh, he’s dangerous, controlling and ruthless in his schemes. But his schemes have less ambition at his point. And he’s taking far fewer lives, at least directly. Overall, he’s more restrained at this point. But he’s no less terrifying. It’s a really great re-imagining of the character, and makes him feel like a natural precursor to Delgado.
The Destination Wars is a fantastic introduction to The First Doctor Adventures. The new version of the original team works really well. The characters, plot and production match the feel of that early era perfectly. And it makes a great retroactive introduction story for a classic villain. A very strong start to this new series.
Next: ‘The Early Adventures: The Outliers’ (Second Doctor audio)