Zagreus

Main Range #50

Released: 21 November 2003

Listened: 8/12/21

This was intended to be Big Finish’s blockbuster anniversary story, celebrating not only the 50th release, but the 40th anniversary of the show. It came after “Omega,” “Davros,” and “Master,” and it features just about every Doctor Who actor involved with Big Finish at that time, as well as the Big Finish originals. However, almost none of them are playing their Doctor Who characters, except for Paul McGann and India Fisher. Everybody else appears as different characters in holographic scenarios created by the TARDIS. (Except for Lalla Ward, Louise Jameson, and John Leeson as the Gallifreyan contingent; this also marks the first appearances of Leela and K-9 in the Big Finish.) In particular, watch out for Anneke Wills and Elisabeth Sladen as Charley’s mother and school-mistress, respectively. Neither really sound like themselves, and Elisabeth Sladen’s Big Finish appearances are really rare, so that’s a prize. The story is quite long, around four hours, and split into just three parts. Most of the story has the Doctor semi-possessed by Zagreus, and he wanders around raving to himself (or listening to random, barely-audible lines from Jon Pertwee, pulled from an unreleased project). Meanwhile, Charley encounters a series of holodeck scenarios created by the TARDIS, populated with characters played by other Doctors and companions. At least she has a holographic Brigadier who’s willing to give her straight answers. The first scenario is a time experiment at Cardington base sometime in the 60s, in which Peter Davison plays a semi-sane minister tasked with observing the project, but of course it all goes kablooie. The second scenario is set on Gallifrey during the time of Rassilon, and Colin Baker plays a high-ranking Time Lord who’s actually a vampire. In the third, Sylvester McCoy plays a Walt Disney pastiche who was cryogenically frozen while his animatronics went to war over the park, and eventually relocated it to Gallifrey. It’s quite silly, but it’s the shortest of the scenarios. The final hour takes place in the Death Zone on Gallifrey (or a Matrix simulation of it), and has Charley teamed up with Leela and Romana. This is the first official meeting of Leela and Romana, and Romana is quite dismissive of Leela, to the point of rudeness. It’s hard to see them becoming friends, but this does set up the Gallifrey series. There’s an awful lot of exposition in this part about anti-time and the nature of the Divergence, something that Rassilon imprisoned a long time ago. The Doctors at least get to act more like themselves in this part. The end of it requires the Doctor to venture into the Divergent Universe, never to return. Charley chooses to go along without the Doctor’s knowledge, having admitted her love for him. It’s very much the sort of thing Rose would do, but we know from the new series that there’s a price for that. On the whole, it was loud and bombastic, but not really the most engaging plot. It does set up the future reasonably well, though.