The First Days of Phaidon

Gallifrey: War Room #1.4

Released: 23 August 2022

Listened: 7/13/23

You’re gonna need a cheat-sheet in Gallifreyan history for this one, so it’s appropriate that it’s written by super-fan Fio Trethewey (formerly known as Sophie Iles). So: Phaidon was the home of the Warpwrights, an advanced race that was just getting started with time travel, back when Romana was in charge and “the temporal powers” were a thing. Except whoops, the Daleks wiped them out in the early days of the war. (All of this being “Previously, on Gallifrey.”) And now it’s back, except it shouldn’t be, and that’s bad. Something has crashed on Phaidon, the Daleks want it, which means the Time Lords do too. So Leela and the General are sent to find out all sneaky-like, which lasts about five seconds. The other surprise is that Narvin is here, and alive, and working with the Resistance. Because we can’t have Gallifrey without Narvin, and of course there’s a Resistance. His reunion with Leela is rather emotional, drifting perhaps into the author channeling how the fans feel rather than Narvin’s actual character. Leela plays it very restrained, though, because Louise Jameson is brilliant. And the General proves himself as one who obeys orders, but who will also Do The Right Thing if properly motivated. I’m not sure that subplot was needed, but it gives Ken Bones more to do. I’m not exactly sure where the series is going. Richard Armitage clearly isn’t meant to be a recurring character, and I doubt they’ll get Timothy Dalton. So how far is this going to go, and who’s it about? That all remains to be seen. It’s not riveting, exactly, but it is interesting.