Good Night, Sweet Ladies

The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield #1.2

Released: 13 June 2014

Listened: 3/4/21

This story takes a very sharp turn, being dark, mysterious, and an emotional wringer for Benny. Significantly, she’s separated from the Doctor, she’s looking for Ace, so Benny has to be the one making all the calls and being brave, which makes sense, as it’s her series. She gets a temporary companion, but a rather useless one, who she has to keep safe, but that gives her an exposition target. And there’s one other character doing the “knows more than they seem” trick, and admittedly, does it quite well. Una McCormack does a great job of writing both snarky Benny and vulnerable Benny, so that the emotional climax is really effective. In the larger story, it’s not clear where this is going yet, but the contrast between the first two stories is excellent.