Colony of Fear [AUDIO/2021.1.9]

★★★★☆

  The rumours are true, this really is a knockout release from the last days of the Big Finish monthly range. What starts out as your typical base under siege tale with mad scientists and even madder alien creatures turns into a mind-bending, unexpectedly hard-hitting revelation and exploration of the Doctor's moral compass, and a surprise incorporation of the Season 6B plotline as a former companion the Doctor doesn't remember (in true Terror Firma fashion) who acts as the main/secondary (interchangeable) villain. Don't you just love it when Dr. Who still manages to catch you lacking and throw surprises at you? 

  I've read some less charitable reviews of it online where they claim Colony of Fear is only notable when the Season 6B revelations kick in, and I think that's rather unfair. It'll all depend on how much modulated alien insect noise you can take, but I think this audio drama more than earns its merit as a tense thriller. We've all been in the 'bugs infecting inhabitants of a base and placing them under their thrall as the Doctor races against time' business before, but when it's recycled with such polish, I have no real problem. Colin Baker and Miranda Raison are old hands familiar with what makes their characters tick, and their riveting performances are very much appreciated. Colony of Fear deals with consequences, at the end of it all, and as Who adventures concerning consequences go, I couldn't have asked for a more pleasantly gripping one. It's always a treasured moment whenever a villain actually listens to the Doctor and changes for the better, and I'm glad that was the case with a former companion we never knew before. I have a feeling Tarlos is going to pop up later down the line, so I'm keeping an eye on him.