Shadow of the Past

Companion Chronicles #4.9

Released: 30 April 2010

Listened: 5/25/21

Finally, we get a story featuring Caroline John as Liz. This story is by Simon Guerrier, who knows how to twist a plot, and it really uses the Companion Chronicles structure well. An older Liz has returned to UNIT to follow up on an investigation that she was part of in the 1970s. There’s a soldier there on guard, so she ends up telling him the story of what happened originally. The writing for the Doctor is strong, as it often is. It takes advantage of the fact that this is early in the Third Doctor’s life, so he’s feeling frustrated at being stuck on Earth, and his relationship with the Brigadier is still forming, so he’s more likely to act on his own and disobey orders without explaining. The story takes a while to get rolling, appropriate for this era, but once the enemy is revealed as a Mim (a race of shapeshifters who don’t turn up too often), there’s a typical UNIT response, with an unfortunately high body count. Part of the shapeshifting shenanigans hinges on the fact that Liz doesn’t really know the Doctor all that well, which wouldn’t have worked as well with Jo. Liz also comments on changes in UNIT procedure since the original event (having an HQ in London, for example), which positions it nicely in Season 7. The plot twist isn’t too hard to figure out, but it does wrap up nicely. It’s a quality Companion Chronicle story.