Audio Review: Doctor Who: Dust Breeding

[wshaffer]

Doctor Who: Dust Breeding by Mike Tucker

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


An audio that manages to juggle a surprising number of elements, creating an overall effect that is somehow more solid than really impressive.



For example, the idea that the Warp Core invaded the mind of the artist Edvard Munch until he banished it into his painting, "The Scream" is intriguing, but it never really goes anywhere. It also seems like more could have been made of the fact that another work of art provides the means for the Warp Core to physically remanifest itself, but that's also glossed over.



Other aspects of the story, like Guthrie's quest for revenge, the reintroduction of Bev Tarrant, and the presence of a crashed Dalek ship at the heart of Duchamp 331, seem similarly rushed through. Mike Tucker deserves a lot of credit for keeping the story from becoming a mess, but I think I'd have preferred a story that had fewer elements but took more time to explore them.



Geoffrey Beevers's return as the Master is quite wonderful. I'm afraid I found the characters of Damien and Madame Salvadore to be a bit over the top, but everyone else gives a good performance. It's a perfectly good story, but I can't help feel that it could have been even better.



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Comments

[paulgreaves.livejournal.com]

I agree with much of what you say. However the entire thing is worth it for the cliffhanger to Episode 2. "I am The Master. And you will obey me..." No-one was expecting that when it was released. It was a total surprise, made all the more special by the fact that Beevers is an excellent Master. It's a shame that the new series has left BF unable to use the character, as his other appearance, in "Master" is superb.

[wshaffer.livejournal.com]

I knew that cliffhanger was coming, and it was still an incredible thrill. It must really have been mind-boggling when the audio first came out.

I would think that now that the new series has wrapped up its plot threads involving the Master, the character might be available to BF again. (Unless Steven Moffatt's got plans up his sleeve.) I think someone asked about it in a recent issue of Vortex or something, although I don't think the answer was very informative.