Girl, Deconstructed

The Ninth Doctor Adventures Series 1 #2.1

Released: 11 August 2021

Listened: 9/20/22

This second box is “Respond to All Calls,” and if you think that means the Doctor answering distress signals, you’d be right. Nick Briggs takes a back seat this time, so this story is written by Lisa McMullin, and directed by Helen Goldwyn. And it’s a much smaller, more personal story than the previous set. It’s a missing-persons story, which takes place in Scotland, so it’s full of gorgeous accents. The Doctor continues to be aggressively protective of innocents, and blows off figures of authority. Even with his allies, he’s not interested in explaining much, or rather explains in a way he knows won’t be understood. The actual plot has unfortunate similarities to “Fear Her,” but without the things that made that episode terrible. Detective Jana Lee makes a nice substitute companion, mostly by not being nearly as baffled as other characters.