Doctor Who review: The War Doctor: The Thousand Worlds heads deeper into the Time War
By James Aggas
The War Doctor goes behind enemy lines and discovers a new Dalek plan in the second episode of his own Doctor Who box set, Only the Monstrous.
Following the low key but strong opening episode The Innocent, Doctor Who: The War Doctor continues with an episode that feels much closer to the kind of story that you’d expect from the Time War. While The Thousand Worlds doesn’t have the kind of temporal warfare that we’d see later in the series with stories like The Neverwhen, it does feature a huge sense of scale, and time travel is a core part of the story.
At first, The Thousand Worlds comes across as a separate story from The Innocent. While the events of the previous episode are discussed at the start, it’s clear that the mission that the Doctor is to be sent on is entirely unconnected to what we’ve listened to so far. So we think, anyway.
However, as the episode unfolds, it becomes clear that the previous episode was more important for establishing the overall story of Only the Monstrous than we’re initially lead to believe. Without giving too much away, we’re given a strong sense of how big a war fought across time itself can truly be…
While the opening episode of Only the Monstrous was quieter and more character focused, The Thousand Worlds feels a lot closer to the sci-fi war story that you’d expect.
Image Courtesy Big Finish Productions
More from Winter is Coming
- For All Mankind finally gives us information in Episode 405, “Goldilocks”
- Watch a stunning VFX breakdown of The Wheel of Time season 2
- Of course Steve Toussaint (Corlys Velaryon) thinks Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen) should rule Westeros
- Confirmed: The Last of Us season 2 will air in 2025
- Final season of Star Trek: Discovery will have “a lot of action, a lot of adventure, a lot of fun”
Behind enemy lines
Writer Nicholas Briggs has often made it clear – either through his writing or through behind the scenes interviews – that he’s a big fan of war movies, and The Thousand Worlds certainly comes across as a classic example of that. There’s the “behind enemy lines” aspect to it, with the Doctor and several other Time Lords having to sneak into an area that no other Time Lord can dare travel into.
Naturally, the Daleks are featured in a big way in this episode. Nicholas Briggs is a consistently strong writer for the Daleks – in fact, he even created his own spin-off series Dalek Empire – and The Thousand Worlds feels like a strong start to a classic Dalek story, even when considering the Time War setting. There’s an evil scheme that the Daleks are up to and the Doctor needs to find out what. It’s a simple idea that’s driven many Dalek stories before, but the Time War does allow for a different take on it, at least.
Along with John Hurt continuing to play the War Doctor brilliantly, Carolyn Seymour is equally great as the Slave. It’s clear that her world has been through a lot, and we’re given a clear picture of how much both she and her race have suffered. Her relationship with the Doctor is also great to listen to, as they share a close bond that’s developed quickly but believably.
The Thousand Worlds is in some ways different to The Innocent. Certainly, it comes across as something a lot closer to what you’d expect from a Time War story. But at the same time, it’s also a natural continuation of it. More than that: it sets the scene up nicely for the last episode of the box set, The Heart of the Battle, as we’re given a rather effective cliffhanger…
Next. 5 things you should know about the War Doctor’s own audio series. dark
After The Innocent was made available for free last week, did you continue listening to the rest of Only the Monstrous? Did you think it was a strong box set overall? Let us know in the comments below.