Storm of the Horofax

Third Doctor Adventures #3.2

Released: 17 August 2017

Listened: 6/18/21

At this point in Big Finish recording time, they were feeling pretty confident about their recast Third Doctor series, enough to take some chances with the writing. This story is by Andrew Smith, who wrote for the classic series, but has also done quite a few Big Finish stories. Even though it has a number of Third Doctor touches, I think there are a lot of new-series elements in this story. There’s the alien with multiple agendas, a helpful minor character who suddenly has his worldview upended but sticks with it (and has a distinctly modern turn of phrase), a glimpse into the future of humanity, and a heaping helping of timey-wimey. The Doctor rather typically is on the side of the stranded alien, but also isn’t willing to go along with her agenda. It’s somewhat high-handed, but that’s the Third Doctor for you. Katy Manning was ill throughout the recording of this story, so Jo has a cold, which Nick Briggs gamely tried to turn into a plot point, but it doesn’t quite work out. Finally, there’s a UNIT major who we’ve never seen before and never see again, but there’s a reason for that, and it shouldn’t be sad, but it is, and that’s a testament to both Andrew Smith and Katy Manning. He seemed like a good character; it’s a shame he wasn’t around more. This is a pretty solid entry for this point in the timeline.