Shockwave

Destiny of the Doctor #7

Released: 1 July 2013

Listened: 11/9/20

This story is part of the Destiny of the Doctor series from the 2013 anniversary. Which means it’s a short-ish story where both the Doctor and Ace act very much as TV viewers would expect of them. Which in this case means the Doctor is inscrutable, and Ace is headstrong, but with good intentions. They’re on a ship that’s trying to outrun a devastating shockwave, but the Doctor is actually after something else, which of course he didn’t explain. Writer James Swallow really nails both the Doctor and Ace’s speaking styles in this period. Sophie Aldred, as usual, plays Ace to perfection, and does great limited third-person narration from Ace’s point of view. Her Doctor continues to sound more like a parody of Sylvester McCoy, but I’m used to it by now. The communication from the Eleventh Doctor that appears in every story gets less and less subtle as the series goes on, and this time it’s right out in the open, but I appreciate that the Eleventh Doctor calls out the Seventh for the way he’s treating Ace, especially if this is right after “Ghost Light” and “Curse of Fenric.” It’s a good addition to the series.