Peri and the Piscon Paradox [AUDIO/2011.1.?]

★★★★☆

  Big Finish is well known by now for bringing alive characters from the classic series of Doctor Who who haven't been treated and received the best during their original tenure: the Sixth Doctor, Leela, Steven, even Adric. It's a shame, though, that not many people mention one of Big Finish's most resounding success stories — the triumph of Peri Brown. Nicola Bryant was always a far better actor than most people gave her credit for, and her run of audio adventures proved (and still proves to this day) how good she and Peri can be. Out of all the amazing writers who've contributed to this renaissance of our favorite botany major, Nev Fountain has always stood out as one of the best... and so it's no surprise that his script for Peri's Companion Chronicle proves to be one of the most insightful yet.

  Peri and the Piscon Paradox is as hilarious as it is tragic, presenting the same narrative in two different perspectives (hence the two-hour runtime as opposed to the one-hour norm of the Companion Chronicles range) with plenty of style to boot. Young Peri is an idealistic and happy-go-lucky friend of the Doctor's, while old Peri has lost much of her zest towards life and trudges through her career as a TV relationship counselor ("In your face, Dr. Phil!"). The narration allows us to see into what both Peris are going through and what they're thinking during any given situation, and the result is either laugh-out-loud funny or sad in such a real way. Bryant plays the older version of Peri with such conviction that, for a moment, you forget she's supposed to have been playing almost every character — she's that good at portraying these other characters, especially her younger self. As for the Piscon plot itself, it's set to lull you into thinking it's some wacky comedic story before the rug is pulled from under you to reveal that it's a cleverly done ruse by the Sixth Doctor (played so wonderfully by Colin Baker, as always) to keep causality in check. I'd say the adventure is worth purchasing purely for the prospect of Baker using a ring modulator while acting as a maniacal fish villain, gurgling his lines and shaking his fins in dramatic villainery!

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  Dancing the line between fantastical comedy and solemn reality, Peri and the Piscon Paradox is a beautiful slice of drama that uses time travel to its advantage, and to great effect. It also provides a rather wonderful explanation for Peri's fate after Mindwarp, and an opportunity for Nicola Bryant to flex her acting muscles more than usual. Fantastic stuff, I can't recommend it enough.