Hive of Horror [AUDIO/2009.12.3]

★★★☆☆

  Final confrontation stories, otherwise known as finales, are often pretty hard to nail, especially when their predecessors have done such a great job setting up the main threat. Hive of Horror is definitely the weakest of the Hornets' Nest epic, but for its credit it still maintains the spark of imagination Paul Magrs is well known for. Saving the universe inside a stuffed zebra is the kind of bonkers nonsense I live for, after all.

  The standout element of Hive of Horror, of course, is Mike Yates confronting his role in all the proceedings. Richard Franklin has always been wonderful in these past installments as a listener to the Doctor's tales, but it is here that he brings another dimension to the ex-Captain. Here is a man scarred from previous experiences of mind control, having devoted to the rest of his life to ready himself for future occurrences. There's a wonderful moment when the credibility of the Captain, who is seemingly under the thrall of the deadly Hornets, is questioned, and the Doctor responds that he has faith in him. It's a lovely moment that shows just how close they were all those years ago, and how the Time Lord never really blamed Mike for what happened, not in his hearts. Susan Jameson also gets to sink her teeth into meatier stuff as Mrs. Wibbsey, facing interpersonal conflicts and (sometimes) acting as the voice of reason.

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  I do love a story that ends with a lovely Christmas dinner (lovely parsnips, so I'm told), with the Doctor and his friends laughing about their adventures and what's to come. Hive of Horror is a thoroughly entertaining story, an ending that more or less ties up all the knots, and it's an end to an overall wonderful set of stories from the mind of Paul Magrs. I can't wait to jump onto Demon Quest.