Book Review: Doctor Who: Touched By An Angel - Jonathan Morris

 

In 2003, Rebecca Whitaker died in a road accident. Her husband Mark is still grieving. Then he receives a battered envelope, posted eight years ago, containing a set of instructions and a letter with a simple message: "You can save her." Later that night, while picking up a takeaway, Mark glances at a security monitor - to see himself, standing in the restaurant in grainy black and white. And behind him there's a stone statue of an angel. Covering its eyes, as though weeping... except, when Mark turns, there's nothing there. As Mark is given the chance to save Rebecca, it's up to the Doctor, Amy, and Rory to save the world. Because this time the Weeping Angels are using history itself as a weapon...

I collect the David Tennant-era 10th Doctor BBC DOCTOR WHO books, and have read the majority of them (and even listened to the ones that Tennant himself narrates on audio book [a treat, I guarantee you]). I liked those books more often than not as decent DW stories with which to fill the time between watching the show.

As only the second expanded universe/tie-in media book that I’ve read with Matt Smith’s 11th Doctor (and Amy & Rory) Jonathan Morris DOCTOR WHO: TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL had some making up to do. The first of the 11th Doctor books I read was Michael Moorcock’s DOCTOR WHO: THE COMING OF THE TERRAPHILES, which felt less like a DW book, and more like a random sci-fi book starring caricatures of The Doctor and Amy. It was not good.

So when I grabbed DW: TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL I did so based on the fact that the enemy of the piece was…dunh dunh dunh…the Weeping Angels of course! I also liked the sound of the plot about a man who’s wife has died 8 years previously, and he receives a letter from himself claiming that he can “Save Her!” It sounded like a great adventure.

And it is, but there are a few things working against Morris here. The first of those is that The Weeping Angels are Steven Moffat’s brilliant invention, and the last time we saw them on the show was FLESH & STONE and THE TIME OF THE ANGELS two-parter from Series 6 (arguably the best outings on that Series altogether). Morris also has to contend with the fact that attempting to subvert and defeat the Weeping Angels requires a keen mind if it’s going to avoid the pitfalls of repetition, but I’ll get to that.

Basically the Angels here are kind of an amalgam of the scavenger Angels from BLINK, and the more advanced and vigorous ones from Series 6. These Angels are searching for a paradox to feed on, and widower Mark Whitaker is the perfect choice since if given the option of saving his wife he will go to any length to do it, even creating a big, messy [tasty] paradox. Of course The Doctor knows this is bad and with Amy and Rory in tow they set out to prevent this, while trying to help Mark (both a past and present version of him) in the process.

The pacing is great and the story clips along quite well, though there are moments of “Amy did this, and then she did this, and then this” but it wasn’t as often as it could have been so I was okay with it. A lot of time is spent on both Mark’s and that’s the key to enjoyment here since it is his story, which will tug at your emotions. And that’s the main reason why this book can stand above a lot of DW books, since so often they descend into fighting the monster and ignoring the people involved. Mark is as front and center to the proceedings as the Doctor and Co. are so for that Morris ought to be applauded.

Two things fell a bit short for me. Firstly, Morris’ voice for both Amy and Rory ring very true to the characters as they are played on the show. Sadly, his Doctor is less so. Matt Smith’s voice is a difficult thing to capture in word form properly, and though Morris does an admirable job and there were definitely a few 11th Doctor-isms on display here I found that there were passages where the Doctor said things that didn’t really ring true. In a DOCTOR WHO book that is tough to overlook since it’s a key element of the show. The second thing I didn’t much care for is when and how they defeat the Angel’s. It’s a variation on the way they were beaten in BLINK. While not exactly that, it was close enough for me to groan a bit. I’ll admit to early on having the notion that it might have been a rogue Angel sending Mark back in time to HELP him save his wife…but sadly that was not to be, brave though it would have been to take a villain and create a rogue one who does a good thing.

Other than that, this book succeeds on the laurels of the story through and through. So much attention is paid to Mark’s story that the Doctor and Co. almost seem peripheral, and here that really works. Like a Doctor-lite episode. The Doctor did get to invoke a very lovely line that shows respect for the original Angel story where he talks about a past package set up by the person to give to their future selves and calls it “The Full Sally Sparrow Set” and I really loved that bit.

A decent outing for the 11th Doctor, Amy, Rory and a story that will definitely pull at your heartstrings (I always like my DW with emotion best). Is it better than the best of the Tennant-era books? It is better than a few of them certainly, but not better than others. If I am ranking though, this would definitely be in the top 5 of all the ones I’ve read, so that’s probably saying something. As far as DOCTOR WHO books, you could do very well by yourself to read this one.

Doctor Who News Roundup: Fall/Winter 2011

I know exactly what you’re going to say.

“Scott, where is the next DOCTOR WHO re-watch review? We’re waiting!”

Well, as luck might not have it, things have been even more chaotic with my co-watchers schedules in the last week and there hasn’t been the chance to move on with Series 1 re-watch. What I might start to do is watch a few eps on my own for the blog re-watch purposes, and then watch them again when my co-watchers get time to do so. I mean it’s DW, it’s not like I’m going to get bored by it.

At any rate, there hasn’t been much in the DW way here for the past while, so I thought it might be time for a roundup of news items in said universe. Let’s get to it shall we?

Classic DOCTOR WHO

Rather quietly in the summertime BBC Books republished six Classic DOCTOR WHO stories with new introductions by current folks involved in the series in one way or another. They are as follows:

Doctor Who and the Daleks (1^st Doctor) - David Whitaker
Introduction by Neil Gaiman

Doctor Who and the Crusaders (1^st Doctor) - David Whitaker
Introduction by Charlie Higson

Doctor Who and the Cybermen (2^nd Doctor) - Gerry Davis
Introduction by Gareth Roberts

Doctor Who and the Abominable Snowmen (2^nd Doctor) - Terrance Dicks
Introduction by Stephen Baxter

Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion (3^rd Doctor) - Terrance Dicks
Introduction by Russell T Davies

Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters (3^rd Doctor) - Malcolm Hulke
Introduction by Terrance Dicks

What is nice about these is not just that they are classic stories with the first 3 Doctor’s, but that they are lovingly reproduced versions with the original cover art. It’s also quite nice to have the intro’s by those current DW folk. They are short, and easy to read and are definitely on my Christmas list.

RTD-Era

 

BBC and 2Entertain have seen fit to give fans the ultimate David Tennant DVD set. THE COMPLETE DAVID TENNANT YEARS will release later this month. The set will cover all of his stories in a 26-disc collection and is set to retail at $169.99. For fans who already have all the DVD box sets for his time on DW there is nothing new here. This is a repackaging of those discs (Series 2 – 4 + The 2009 Specials) into one convenient box. Since I already own all his series there is nothing new for me here, but a fan that has yet to bite the bullet and buy all Tennant’s Series because the price tag for the individual Series was usually upwards of $75-80 each, then this is a perfect time to get the Series and is an absolute steal pricewise!

Series 6

Well, Series 6 (which we all know my feelings on) will also be released later this month on DVD & BluRay. I will of course get it, but I am more interested to see the extras that are included on it than the eps. It will also be the first full Series I will own on BluRay (I’ve a BluRay of last years Christmas Special), and that should be a nice aspect of ownery. So look out for that in your stores if you are so inclined to want to purchase it. I also will re-watch the entire Series in one fell swoop in the hopes of changing my overall opinion of it when it is watched all at once instead of all the waiting we had to do as it aired (especially that big hiatus over the summer).

The Christmas Special

 Finally, a few things have come to light about this year’s Christmas Special, and I thought I’d share what I know. The BBC has also released a brief synopsis for the episode:

"The special, set during World War II, sees Madge Arwell and her two children, Lily and Cyril, evacuated to a draughty old house in Dorset, where the caretaker is a mysterious young man in bow tie, and a big blue parcel is waiting for them under the tree. They are about to enter a magical new world and learn that a Time Lord never forgets his debts..."

Sounds kind of C.S. Lewis-ish, Narnian even. Whatever I said about the most recent Series and my issues with it, nothing is more exciting than the prospect of a new DW Christmas Special, since last years ep was so great. It’s also key that Matt Smith’s jubilant portrayal of the Doctor lends itself so well to the holiday. It’s hard not to get excited. In fact, on Christmas Day, aside from presents and excellent Turkey/gravy-like things I get really, really giddy at the thought of sitting down after dinner with my girlfriend and her sister and watching the newest episode. The rumor is that Amy and Rory won’t appear, but there were things shot outside their house on the show, so who knows. At any rate, a standalone adventure for the Doctor at Christmas? Count me in!

That’s about it for now on the news front. This is the slow time of year for DW info anyways, and I don’t really want to speculate on the timing and direction of next season since none of the info is ever very reliable at this stage.

Book Review: Doctor Who: Prisoner Of The Daleks - Trevor Baxendale

The Daleks are advancing, their empire constantly expanding into Earth's space. The Earth forces are resisting the Daleks in every way they can, but the battles rage on across countless solar systems, and now the future of our galaxy hangs in the balance! The Doctor finds himself stranded on board a starship near the frontline with a group of ruthless bounty hunters. With the Doctor's help, the bounty hunters achieve the ultimate prize: a Dalek prisoner - intact, powerless, and ready for interrogation. But when the Daleks are involved, nothing is what it seems, and no one is safe!

The peripheral media for the DOCTOR WHO canon have never languished under any kind of fan-hatery, like a lot of other media-based-on-television/film does (Star Wars Expanded Universe, Stargate, Buffy). DOCTOR WHO fans are always fairly easy on what they feel will make a good story. In all the BBC books I’ve read in the New Adventures series I don’t think I can ever say I walked away after reading them in a disappointed state. In fact, even the least great of them likely only made me shrug my shoulders and treat it like a lackluster (but still moderately entertaining) episode of the TV show. You never should feel as if you wasted your time though, for the simple fact that the books are never THAT long. In fact they always feel like if you wrote them up into scripts then they would fit perfectly into the 45-ish minutes of a proper episode of DOCTOR WHO on TV.

The books are always pretty fun for me, especially when I am jonesing for something DOCTOR Who-like. You can even go one better and check out one of the audiobook versions that are read by David Tennant himself. It’s great to get a book in audio form when they add special effects sounds, but then to add the actual actor who plays the hero as the narrator, that’s GOLD.

I’m getting off topic here. Usually the BBC New Adventure books have the current Doctor, and his current companion (released to jive with the seasons each was on the show), and this particular one falls timeline-wise into post-JOURNEY’S END (Series 4 finale) but prior to Ten’s regeneration in THE END OF TIME, so the 10^th Doctor is travelling alone in this one.

Trevor Baxendale’s PRISONER OF THE DALEKS is probably the BEST (non-companion) book I’ve ever read. Having the Doctor on his own is a touchy idea since we are always so used to seeing him with a well-known companion, but the 2009 Special’s proved that we can not only enjoy those stories of him alone-ish, but that they might end up being incredible (THE WATERS OF MARS). PRISONER OF THE DALEKS is one of those and it has the added interest of featuring the Doctor’s most implacable foe, The Daleks to boot. Terry Nation’s (the man who invented to villain) estate is notoriously careful with what they allow Nation’s creation to be included in, which adds an extra level of weight to the proceedings of the book. In fact I could be wrong but I don't think any other New Series Adventure features them as a villain.

Baxendale’s Doctor is pretty spot on in how he acts and how he speaks, and that’s key when it comes to the peripheral media. If the characters are not true to their TV incarnations then you get a disconnect with the reader. Thankfully Baxendale is aware of that and the translation onto the page is well executed. The secondary characters are decent enough, with Stella, and Bowman being the best among them. There is a tough guy/military muscle type called “Cutting Edge” (no seriously, that’s his name) who comes off a little bit too “Dude” to be entirely realistic, but it doesn’t hamper the story as he fulfills his job within the narrative well enough. The Daleks themselves are (of course) bang on. SEEK, OBEY, ANNIHILATE. YOU ARE AN ENEMY OF THE DALEKS. EXTERMINATE. Ect.. It’s not until later in the narrative that we get a little more insight into the goings on in the hierarchy of the Dalek Empire. 

It IS nice to see a human population that is entirely aware of the threat they pose and is at war with them because of it. The Doctor does his level best at balancing between humane (attempting to prevent a captured Dalek’s torture by the human crew), and cold Time Lord (leaving a Dalek to sit in a dark cave for eternity) and of course I love to see that. One of my favourite things that Ten does in the TV show (and he does it here as well) is give everyone a chance to “do the right thing”. Like when he fought the Racknoss Queen in THE RUNAWAY BRIDE and said “I am giving you a chance to stop this right now. Leave this planet and never return.” And when she denies him he simply says “I want you to remember that you made this choice. Whatever happens you brought this on yourself.” I absolutely LOVE that part of the Doctor, it makes him all the more heroic to give even the most vicious enemies a chance at self-redemption. The same Doctor who offered to save evil Davros from his burning ship at the end of the 4th Series. Baxendale’s Doctor is that in spades and it was one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much.

I actually think this would have made a rather stellar episode of the TV series, and of course as I was reading it I could picture that in my head.

Good stuff and definitely the best New Adventure book in the canon of DOCTOR WHO novels, though I am partial to the ones that feature Ten and Rose (I’m a sucker for that relationship).