Phobos

Eighth Doctor Adventures #1.5

Released: 28 January 2007

Listened: 9/12/21

The new-series vibe continues in this one, when the Doctor and Lucie land on Phobos, the moon of Mars, part of which has become an extreme-sports mecca, attracting thrill-seekers from Earth and beyond. But there’s something else on this moon, and it’s killing the thrill-seekers, so of course the Doctor needs to investigate. The Doctor is once again more harsh than he was with Charley; he responds badly to threats, and is willing to take down monsters instead of learning more about them. Lucie isn’t too sure about that side of his attitude, but she seems to trust him a bit more than last story. The resolution is a little bit too easy, one that the new series goes to a bit too often, and once again the Doctor leaves before making sure of the clean-up. The extras mention that because of BBC 7, there’s a hard limit of 50 minutes on these stories, but this one still feels a little rushed. The secondary characters are well-drawn, and have their own personal issues that are also very much new-series, and that makes the story. This is another good one.