Prisoners of London

Prisoners of London #5

Released: 5 July 2023

Listened: 8/20/23

Placing this here because they’ve just come from London, and they mention the loss of the sonic screwdriver. This is one of the line of audio novels, although as the fifth, maybe I should stop thinking of them as “new.” It’s written and narrated by Matthew Waterhouse, who presumably knows these characters pretty well. It’s also the second entry by him, so I guess Big Finish is happy with his work. Personally, I find his ideas to be somewhat surreal, and a bit over-descriptive. On audio, some things just have to be described visually, I get that, but Waterhouse seems to delight in bizarre landscapes that can only exist in novel/audiobook form. In this case, the image of a giant theme-park London, with four Tower Bridges and oversized monuments, patrolled by police boxes that continually appear and disappear. It’s a novel, so it’s longer than the usual Big Finish story, but once you’re finished with it, not all that much seems to have happened. The team is split up very early, which almost always happens, but Tegan specifically gets packed off to a prison on the moon, for the crime of being rude to an officer of the law. Although we check in on her periodically, she doesn’t really have any agency in the story. Adric and Nyssa don’t fare a whole lot better, being kidnapped by rebels who want to make changes to the government of the planet. They’re together, so we’re treated to Adric’s inner thoughts much more than Nyssa’s. Which makes sense, given the author, but is kind of a lost opportunity. What’s unusual is that the Doctor intervenes in the assassination of the Emperor, gets arrested, and is almost immediately believed, freed, and trusted (by the Emperor, anyway). In fact, the Emperor remains honest, trustworthy, and responsible throughout the story, which is really rare. Waterhouse does a decent job imitating the Doctor’s breathless delivery, but he’s got a few too many “posh” characters who aren’t easily distinguishable. I’ve enjoyed some of the audio novels, but this one was a slog for me.