Doctor Who: Short Trips: Erasure review (Fourth Doctor audio)
By James Aggas
In this month’s Short Trip release, the Fourth Doctor encounters the shady CIA operative Narvin from spin-off series Gallifrey in Erasure!
In case you didn’t know already, we’re massive fans of the audio spin-off series Gallifrey at Doctor Who Watch. One of the many reasons why Gallifrey is brilliant, and perhaps one of the biggest, is original character Narvin.
Played by Seán Carlsen, the shady Coordinator of the Celestial Intervention Agency has proven to be a hugely popular character with the fans. So imagine our delight at learning that he gets a Short Trip, all to himself?
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The Short Trips releases are, as the title implies, all short stories, usually with just one narrator for each tale. These stories usually last for at least half an hour. So essentially, this release was just half an hour of Narvin talking. Which really has to make you ask: why on Earth didn’t they release a story like this sooner?
The first thing that leaps out about Erasure is that it’s told in the first-person. Narvin is telling a story to Leela. On the surface, it seems to be a story from when he was younger, specifically of how he first met the Doctor. But why is he really telling Leela this story?
The popular character Narvin from spin-off series Gallifrey features in this month’s Short Trip.
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish.
Image obtained from: bigfinish.com.)
Narvin’s story
Seán Carlsen does a really good job of carrying this story single-handedly. Particularly as he has to balance between acting and narration by performing it in character. He does a good rendition of Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor. But it’s really finding out how Narvin sees the Doctor and everyone else that makes it so much fun. Especially as Narvin is telling the story of when he was relatively new in the CIA, with far less power and far less experience, too.
But it’s the ending that really stands out. While most of the story is a relatively light one, the action Narvin takes at the end is shocking, to say the least. Not just the action itself, but how he feels about it.
The ending really highlights what’s special about Erasure, and about Narvin himself. While it’s marketed as a Fourth Doctor story, this is really a Gallifrey story. Narvin was always at the center of Gallifrey, and Erasure completely acknowledges the journey his character has been on. Gary Russell has written a really great story that fits perfectly into the earlier seasons of Gallifrey. It’s not surprising, either, as Russell was the producer and creator of the series.
Gallifrey fans are sure to enjoy this one. For those who’ve yet to listen to the series, this is a great introduction to one of the most important characters of the series.
Next: Retro review: The Time Warrior (Third Doctor story)
Have you listened to Erasure? What did you make of it? Are you a fan of Gallifrey, or just curious to try it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.