The Harvest [AUDIO/2004.6.26]

★★★★☆

  Odd to listen to an audio drama set in a general hospital in London, 2021 without a single mention of masks or quarantine. COVID-19 really did have a big effect on our way of thinking, didn't it?

  Cybermen as the overlords behind the shadows of a 2021 hospital, using and offering spare parts for critical paients, is such a great concept for a Dr. Who story. The Harvest, thankfully, uses that concept to the fullest and we get to listen to a smooth, slick and confident four-parter that's easy to listen to and get excited about. There's plenty of action here (Ace and Hex's motorcycle chase sequence, the Cyberman runarounds) mixed with body horror (the various gruesome operations and the decapitation) and a chilling look at the (then) near future. Gary Russell excels once again as a director, bringing 2021 London to life so effortlessly and using aural space so well. 

  Sylvester McCoy is ultra confident by this point, knowing exactly what he's going for as the silky, behind-the-scenes Doctor manipulating events with ease and secrecy, and Sophie Aldred is having the time of her life being almost the mentor/Doctor figure to new blood Hex. Philip Olivier brings such a refreshing dynamic to the tried and true Seven/Ace TARDIS team, forming part of a trio that would (in my opinion) be the frontrunner of Big Finish original TARDIS teams in the years to come. As first introductions to new companions go, The Harvest is up there with the best of them; Hex is immediately charming, a normal 20-something guy you'd see at the pub grumbling about his miserable hospital job just getting by to pay his rent, and he displays just the right amount of awe and disbelief at the concept of the Doctor, the TARDIS and Cybermen. I'd say I prefer the creeping dread and mystery of the first two episodes rather than the explosive chases and villainous speeches of the latter two, but this is simply the way with many Dr. Who adventures. The Harvest is still an amazing piece of work, a thrilling and chilling Cyberman tale and exactly the kind of audio drama which will leave you utterly engrossed.