These Lost Stories are always such fun. There's a bit of a game inherent in sniffing out what parts were from the original script, and what parts are fluff or rewrites done by the writer adapting it. In this instance, we have another audio by the very capable Simon Guerrier, who seems like a safe pair of hands for this sort of thing. And the original author, Bill Strutton, of course was the mind behind The Web Planet back in Season Two. That serial was probably the most ambitious story to have been attempted in the early history of the program, and I still think I'm very fond of it. Aside from the ambition that both scripts have, though, it's hard to see how Strutton's second contribution to Doctor Who could be any more different from The Web Planet.
The inherent change to the program's premise in the Pertwee era is probably mostly responsible for this dissonance, allowing us less imagination in terms of the setting. But there are still loads of intriguing ideas in this story, even if three and a half hours makes them feel spread rather thin. Firstly, it is obvious but worth saying regardless that this story, about peace and the means to achieve it, was originally conceived during the war in Vietnam. To me, it reads more specifically as an allegory for weapons of mass destruction and the disarmament movement. Although nuclear warheads aren't explicitly used (like they were in the previous story I watched, The Mind of Evil), the chromosome gas that the British military is trying to get off the ground is almost as heinous. On the other side, the alien tools given by the Mega to Prince Cassie are weapons of mass destruction too, in their own way. The Doctor is appropriately outraged by the chromosome gas, and speaks favorably of the protestors outside, warning General Wiley that the "young people" of this country are the future, and should be listened to.
I was pleased and a little bit surprised to see this in the story, having read that Strutton was a Second World War veteran, and a POW in Germany to boot. You might recall that while writing up my review of The Dominators, I talked about how people of that generation would view pacifism differently because of their experience with the threat of the Nazis, but it's natural that different people would have come from that episode of world history with different perspectives. I also took note of the Doctor's warning to Prince Cassie, that a change to the world, no matter how good the intentions, sets a dangerous precedent when it's made through terror and violence. It reminds me very much of the Twelfth Doctor's warning to Zygella during The Zygon Inversion, many years later. The story probably has the most nuanced understanding of the issues of pacifism that we've had so far, and for that complexity it certainly has my respect.
In terms of execution, the performances, I thought, were very good. Katy Manning is always wonderful on audio stories, and I thought Richard Franklin did good too, even though I've still yet to warm up to Yates. Katy's Pertwee impression took a bit of getting used to as well, but it's evocative enough. The sound design, particularly in the first part, could have done with a bit of love, but was never all that distracting. Bo Poraj also really impressed me as Cassie, who is one of the more interesting villains we've encountered so far.
Overall, it's a smart story, and well adapted, although being more than three hours long doesn't do it many favors. If you aren't intimidated by the length, I'd certainly recommend it, as it pieces beautifully into this era. Although he passed away almost exactly a decade before its release, I have to imagine Mr. Strutton would have been proud.
The Claws of Axos will be next.
(Modified from the original posted at Gallifrey Base on 27 March 2021.)
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