The Yes Men

Early Adventures #2.1

Released: 15 October 2015

Listened: 9/23/20

Although the last story had a new-series feel, this one mostly has a more classic tone, appropriate for an Early Adventure. The crew goes to visit one of the Doctor’s old friends, and as often happens, finds that they’ve died. There’s a lot of references to the last time the Doctor was here, in his previous incarnation, with Dodo along, a story that’s never been told, but it causes some problems here, probably the earliest chronological instance of the “I was here before, but I looked different” problem. In proper classic fashion, the Doctor and Polly get split off from Jamie and Ben early on, and don’t meet up until close to the end. (Ben is mostly absent for Part 3, as if the actor had some time off.) The Doctor and Polly are busy trying to solve a murder, while Ben and Jamie get caught up in a robot revolution, which gives them some more time to bond. There is one distinctly new-series concept, though: what happens to the people left behind when the Doctor saves your world and then goes away. There’s a little “Christmas Invasion” twist going on. In keeping with the Big Finish revamp, Polly gets to be a bit more action hero when Ben and Jamie aren’t around, and also shows off her soccer skills. Since the Doctor has a larger role this time, Frazer Hines spends more time playing him, and some cracks show; his impersonation slips a bit when the Doctor needs to be forceful, or give a lot of exposition. Still, the Early Adventures tone is a nice contrast with the other stories so far.