The Ring of Steel [AUDIO/2010.8.5]

★★★☆☆

  You know, I'm almost always very satisfied with my own rating system. I don't feel the need to extend my explanations and what have you about what a three-star means or what a four-star means. They're self-explanatory, they sum up my thoughts rather succintly. In the case of The Ring of Steel, however, I feel I must elaborate -- most other BBC Audiobooks are three-stars because I feel a 6/10 around them, but in the case of this bad boy, I'd confidently give it a 7/10, if that was my ranking system. It caught me by surprise with how fun it is and how crazy it's willing to be, with a manifestation of one of my childhood fears (and, guessing from how Stephen Cole utilised it, the fears of many others, it seems) of pylons moving about like giants with their enormous "arms". The audiobook starts off so unassuming, then wham -- you're smacked in the face with the massive revelation that Cole's adventure is willing to get incredibly imaginative and silly, and that put a smile on my face.

  The Ring of Steel isn't an audiobook that'll change your day, but it will give you an hour of pure fun. Apart from the first ten minutes or so, mainly for reasons of establishing the main conflict and the main players, the story never drags (and if you know your BBC Audio releases well enough, this is something of a miracle), and as soon as them pylons start walking around like people, the insanity factor is turned up at least several notches. The resolution is quite literally the Doctor steering a helicopter and Amy rallying a bunch of protestors in making the loudest noise they can -- against a bunch of gold dust! Sometimes, Dr. Who can be as silly as it wants and it's all the more fun for it.