Doctor Who review: The Mind Runners (Fourth Doctor audio)
By James Aggas
In the first of a two-part story, the TARDIS crew land in a huge city. But what’s causing the deaths of so many “mind runners”?
The Mind Runners is the start of a great Doctor Who mystery. John Dorney has combined a number of various elements and genres for this one.
But the two that really stand out are film noir and of course, science fiction. Two genres that, as we know from Blade Runner, can go together really well.
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As this is set on an alien world, Dorney spends some time focusing on building up both the world and the mystery in this first half. We get to find out what “mind runners” are – people who hack into other people’s minds, more for fun than for anything malicious.
But something – or someone – is killing them off one by one. The Fourth Doctor, Leela and K9 want to find out who.
They’re not the only ones investigating, either. Along the way, they meet Taraneh, a no-nonsense cop who doesn’t really think there’s anything to solve. Taraneh is played brilliantly by Josette Simon.
She’s a classic cop character who’s seen it all, and doesn’t really have time for amateur investigators like the Doctor and Leela. At the same time, Simon does a great job of making the character very likable. You can really empathize with her when she’s continually annoyed by our two heroes.
We also get a brand new villain with the brilliant Mr Shift. Played by Andy Secombe, Shift is absolutely psychotic, and clearly enjoys doing what he does way too much.
It can be difficult to create a new villain that truly stands out, but both Dorney and Secombe have created something really special with Mr Shift. Here’s hoping the character comes back in a later adventure.
The Mind Runners is a great start to an intriguing mystery, and will leave listeners eager for the next story.
Next: Overview: Eighth Doctor Adventures: season four (audio)
Have you listened to The Mind Runners? Do you enjoy stories that mix film noir with science fiction? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.