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Doctor Who review: The UNIT trilogy comes to an end with Warlock’s Cross

By James Aggas

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The Seventh Doctor and his former companion Klein are reunited in the Doctor Who audio Warlock’s Cross. But who else is joining them?

Back in April, Big Finish began something a little different with their main range of Doctor Who audios, to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of UNIT. In the Fifth Doctor story The Helliax Rift, we saw UNIT featured in a big way.

However, no old friends were brought back. In fact, the Doctor had to struggle with dealing with a completely new UNIT team. One that no longer relied on the Doctor to solve their problems, or even trusted him.

But the Doctor had some help in that story. In this case, from UNIT Medical Officer Daniel Hopkins. During The Helliax Rift, he became a sort of temporary companion to the Doctor. But he was too happy with the life he had on Earth to travel with him.

However, as revealed in Hour of the Cybermen, that happiness wasn’t to last. A lot had changed for Daniel Hopkins, and not for the better. By the end of that adventure, it was clear that he was no longer in a good place.

Returns and resolutions

The trilogy that began with The Helliax Rift is brought to an end this month with Warlock’s Cross. Once again, UNIT is focused on heavily, and the Doctor still faces opposition from some new faces. But he does see some familiar ones, too. Not only does he meet Daniel again, but he’s also reunited with a former companion: Elizabeth Klein.

I’m glad that for this final story, Klein has been brought back. She’s one (or two) of the more interesting characters from Big Finish. Originally a Nazi from an alternate timeline, her history was changed and she became a better person as a result. Unsurprisingly, her relationship with the Doctor has been complicated, but they do seem to be strong allies by this point.

Tracey Childs is fantastic as ever as Klein. She brings both the distinctive dryness and charm that have made the character work so well for almost two decades. It’s been five years since she’s last played the role, and while I wasn’t too keen on her last story, Warlock’s Cross is a more than welcome return for her.

Daniel Hopkins first met the Doctor in The Helliax Rift. But how much has he changed since then?

(Image credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.

Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)

Daniel Hopkins

So how well does Warlock’s Cross resolve the trilogy? Does it resolve everything with a bang? Especially after how incredibly high the stakes were in Hour of the Cybermen?

Surprisingly, Warlock’s Cross is actually a little more low-key than that. This isn’t a story of huge alien invasions or even major revelations.

Instead, Warlock’s Cross takes more of a quieter approach. One that goes more for atmosphere than epic. It can feel a little too slow-paced at times, but it does allow for plenty of focus on the characters.

It’s nice to see Daniel Hopkins return, one last time. Blake Harrison’s performance in the role has been one of the best things about this trilogy. Even though he’s playing the same character in all three stories, at the same time, it’s never the same character twice, not really. Daniel changes so much from story to story, and as such, the role required a very strong performance to make that change believable.

It’s a challenge that, thankfully, Harrison has more than lived up to. He’s been able to play Hopkins at three very different stages of his life. As such, it’s been quite the journey to follow. One you certainly didn’t expect back in The Helliax Rift, but it’s definitely been interesting.

If there’s one complaint I have, it’s that Warlock’s Cross didn’t focus on him more. He’s a really complex character, and one that I hope we still get to hear from at some point in the future. But for now, his story has been resolved. And overall, it’s a very tragic story indeed.

Elizabeth Klein first met the Doctor in Colditz. But she was a very different person back then…

(Image credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.

Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)

Klein’s return

Thankfully, we’re given plenty of the Doctor and Klein together to enjoy, too. McCoy and Childs are consistently brilliant in their roles, and their characters’s interactions with one another have always been wonderful to listen to.

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Warlock’s Cross is no exception. Steve Lyons gives them plenty of scenes together, ones that really explore their relationship and how much it’s changed over the years. It’s not surprising, really. After all, Steve Lyons created Klein himself all the way back in 2001 with Colditz.

If I’m honest, I do wish that this trilogy had been wrapped up a little more neatly. There were certainly one or two threads that I thought could have been resolved just a little better.

But on the whole, I really enjoyed Warlock’s Cross. Once again, we’ve got another strong story with the Seventh Doctor from Big Finish, and it’s wonderful to hear more of the quieter side of his character.

But more than that – it’s a story that fully shows just how successful the UNIT trilogy has been this year. It’s given us three very different stories that have ranged in both scale and tone. But it’s also given us a very different kind of journey in Doctor Who that was overall a very satisfying one, too. Highly recommended, especially if you’ve listened to both The Helliax Rift and Hour of the Cybermen.

Next. Demons of the Punjab review – a stronger story for Series Eleven?. dark

Have you been following this UNIT trilogy closely? Which was your favorite story of the three? Do you want Klein to appear more often? Let us know in the comments below.

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