Doctor Who review: The Companion Chronicles: Daybreak explores deceptive history and complex morality

In the second story of the latest Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles box set, Vicki heads into her own history, into an era of clear-cut heroes and villains in Daybreak. But is everything really that simple?

Like opening story E is For… (and all the other stories in this volume of Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles, in fact), Daybreak explores the idea of heroes. But while the previous story explored the idea of superheroes in a very different way, Daybreak looks at the heroes and villains of history, and how some people are never as black and white as we’re made to believe.

John Pritchard’s story is primarily from Vicki’s perspective, and the history that she knows that this story explores. While the era and place that the TARDIS crew explore in this story is the future for Ian and Barbara, for Vicki, it’s major established history. She’s grown up with knowing about the brave heroes who sacrificed themselves against a terrible regime, and whose deaths inspired a major revolution.

However, the truth she learns is far more complicated. Not just from the “heroes” she meets, either. A great deal of the story features her being questioned by “the Judge”, a rather infamous figure in her history. Vicki knows that the man is a tyrant and a fascist. But is there more to him than that?

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Opposing perspectives

John Pritchard gives us an absolutely fantastic story with Daybreak. I love stories that explore both morality and the nature of good and evil, especially when things aren’t quite so simple. And Pritchard explores both of those key themes in this story.

Daybreak is essentially told in two ways, each of which works brilliantly. The first is the usual narrated story, as told from Vicki’s point of view. The story that she tells is exactly why The Companion Chronicles work so well in the first place, as we really get inside her head and see her perspective on these events. The fact that it takes place in her history and no one else’s makes the story feel that much more personal to her.

The second way Pritchard tells this story is with the scenes shared between Vicki and the Judge. What’s interesting about these is that, in terms of overall plot development, this portion of the story is much slower compared to the narrated portions. But that doesn’t matter, as the scenes provide absolutely fantastic drama.

Pritchard writes the Judge to be a character with a lot of depth, one who provides strong reasons for the terrible things he’s done. We may not agree with those reasons, but both we and Vicki can understand them. These scenes are fantastic to listen to, and both Maureen O’Brien and Clive Hayward give brilliant performances.

Daybreak is an instant classic in The Companion Chronicles series. It’s a story that takes a seemingly black-and-white situation and makes it far more morally gray. It also gives a great story to Vicki and feels personal to her in particular. Overall, a challenging but extremely rewarding listen.

Do you think Doctor Who should explore the idea of heroes and villains more often? Should companions dive into their own history in more stories? Let us know in the comments below.