Time Works [AUDIO/2006.3.15]
★★★★★
Time Works is a Dr. Who adventure that grows on you... if you let it. It's certainly one of those stories that work best with multiple revisits. I certainly missed a lot of the finer details of this audio drama on my first listen; I remember I thought it was rather a dull piece of fiction with only the sound design that stood out. How wrong I was, looking back after all these years. There is an incredibly imaginative, vivid and detailed world with a clever use of time as an oppressive force and a precious commodity, with down-to-earth characters bogged down by by weight of an Industry shaped for efficiency (thereby creating fictional wars and scares to boost morale), a corrupt kingdom with tragedies of its own, and -- true to Dr. Who's mission statement -- a group of terrifying monsters, both in concept and execution. You will never think of the sound of cogs ever again; just listen to those wordless creatures walking towards their victims in service of their Figurehead. Look at the cover, too -- one of my all-time favourites from Big Finish -- with the haunting photo edit depicting these mysterious creatures. Something about clockwork, that ever so steampunk look, aligns so well with my artistic tastes, and Steve Lyons creates one hell of an adventure using all these elements.
The Doctor, Charley and C'rizz have rarely been stronger, with each player having standout moments to save their own or each other's skins. I know many people have bemoaned (and still bemoan) the souring of the Eighth Doctor post-Zagreus, but I truly think this dramatic, borderline doomladen story is much more fit for the the melancholy and morose Eight. Paul McGann seems to truly appreciate the material, anyway, giving perhaps his strongest performance since Terror Firma. Listen to Time Works, it really is a sleeper hit from Big Finish and one of the company's most remarkable outputs. If I were to point out an audio drama where the production side of things are just as strong and polished as the narrative, it would be this one. Andy Hardwick's score (even if you don't plan to purchase the audio drama itself, you really must listen to the music) is one of my personal favourites from Dr. Who ever. Who would've guessed that an insane high-concept time-warping tale could blend so well with a cry for workers' rights and revolution against the wealthy?
Time Works is a Dr. Who adventure that grows on you... if you let it. It's certainly one of those stories that work best with multiple revisits. I certainly missed a lot of the finer details of this audio drama on my first listen; I remember I thought it was rather a dull piece of fiction with only the sound design that stood out. How wrong I was, looking back after all these years. There is an incredibly imaginative, vivid and detailed world with a clever use of time as an oppressive force and a precious commodity, with down-to-earth characters bogged down by by weight of an Industry shaped for efficiency (thereby creating fictional wars and scares to boost morale), a corrupt kingdom with tragedies of its own, and -- true to Dr. Who's mission statement -- a group of terrifying monsters, both in concept and execution. You will never think of the sound of cogs ever again; just listen to those wordless creatures walking towards their victims in service of their Figurehead. Look at the cover, too -- one of my all-time favourites from Big Finish -- with the haunting photo edit depicting these mysterious creatures. Something about clockwork, that ever so steampunk look, aligns so well with my artistic tastes, and Steve Lyons creates one hell of an adventure using all these elements.
The Doctor, Charley and C'rizz have rarely been stronger, with each player having standout moments to save their own or each other's skins. I know many people have bemoaned (and still bemoan) the souring of the Eighth Doctor post-Zagreus, but I truly think this dramatic, borderline doomladen story is much more fit for the the melancholy and morose Eight. Paul McGann seems to truly appreciate the material, anyway, giving perhaps his strongest performance since Terror Firma. Listen to Time Works, it really is a sleeper hit from Big Finish and one of the company's most remarkable outputs. If I were to point out an audio drama where the production side of things are just as strong and polished as the narrative, it would be this one. Andy Hardwick's score (even if you don't plan to purchase the audio drama itself, you really must listen to the music) is one of my personal favourites from Dr. Who ever. Who would've guessed that an insane high-concept time-warping tale could blend so well with a cry for workers' rights and revolution against the wealthy?
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