The Harvest

Main Range #58

Released: 26 June 2004

Listened: 12/4/20

Welcome, Hex! It’s a strong start, very deliberate and appropriate for a new companion. The first episode is squarely from Hex’s POV, so you get to see how he gets involved in the Doctor’s world and tries to adapt. He’s determined, if inexperienced, and contributes some good ideas to the plan. He’s also got a strong personality, and he’s big on the empathy; you can see a good chunk of Hex in Rory Williams. The story itself is part of a trilogy with “The Reaping” and “The Gathering,” but this was the first of the stories produced, so the others aren’t required listening for this. Ace says she’s been with the Doctor a surprisingly long time, and she’s definitely shifted in attitude here. She’s not necessarily the military veteran from the novels, but she’s more confident and independent, a partner to the Doctor. She very easily falls into the “big sister” role with Hex, and seems to be encouraging him to take on the companion role, if not directly. As for the Doctor, he’s not entirely inscrutable, but he’s certainly up for a big morality speech, especially when the Cybermen are involved. The story comes close to another temporal phenomenon: Although it was recorded and released in 2004, it’s set in 2021. The European Union is said to be influential in Britain’s affairs, but I think we can forgive Big Finish for not anticipating Brexit. The only major technical anachronism is System, the AI that runs the hospital where Hex works, but that’s stated in “The Gathering” to be the product of alien technology. The TV series fell into that trap a few times, usually in stories involving the Cybermen. It’s reasonable to assume that Big Finish wasn’t anticipating still being around in 2021, nor the return of the show to TV and its subsequent popularity. Big Finish doesn’t get to do enough of these “companion joins” stories, because they’ve already got so many characters to work with, but this one is a great example of the breed.