The Eight Truths

Eighth Doctor Adventures #3.7

Released: 30 May 2009

Listened: 10/20/21

The end of the season means another big two-part adventure, and also the return of the Headhunter and Karen. As often happens with these two-parters, the first part is almost entirely setup, but it’s pretty good setup. The Doctor and Lucie have landed on Earth in the near future, and the Doctor immediately pops off to help with a lost space probe, waving his UNIT credentials about. Lucie doesn’t tag along, because the plot calls for them to be separated early. Instead, she meets up with Karen, gets introduced to Karen’s life-coaching service, which turns out to be a cult, and promptly gets brainwashed. That means Sheridan Smith gets to play Evil Lucie, or at least Mind-Controlled Lucie, which is pretty fun, because Lucie can be quite forceful when she wants to be. The Doctor gets a temporary companion in Kelly Westwood, a journalist who’s trying to expose the cult. Unfortunately, the cult’s prophecies start coming true, which leads to a reappearance of the stellar manipulator from “Orbis,” and a callback to a classic series villain. Knowing that it’s all setup lets you appreciate the minor characters more, and the cliffhanger is pretty good on the first listen.