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Business as usual? Not at Hulbert Logistics, where the
staff are facing a menace far worse than the prospect of embarrassing
antics on Red Nose Day or the office Christmas party. Lucie
Miller has made some new friends, while the Doctor has met
some very old enemies - the dreaded Cybermen. But why is a
usually peaceful species, the Shinx, taking such aggressive
action against the cyborgs? What is the role of the Time Lords
in all this? And who will become the Headhunter’s new
apprentice? Welcome to the job interview from hell...
This is the second and final part of this story and also the
last episode in the present series of BBC 7 adventures featuring
the Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) and Lucie Miller (Sheridan
Smith).
There’s a change of emphasis from the
previous instalment, with less of a focus on the
humorous aspects of the office environment - though Jerry
(Owen Brenman) does get one amusing scene in which he mistakes
a communication from the invading Cybermen for a crank call
from one of his workmates. The spotlight shifts to the threat
of the Cybermen and the machinations of the Time Lords. Nickolas
Grace as the devious Time Lord Straxus plays a greater role
here than he did in the last episode. So does Katarina Olsson’s
recurring character, the Headhunter, whose voice is particularly
slinky in this instalment. Not to be outdone, Roy Marsden’s
urbane Todd Hulbert adapts his business model to suit the
situation - in other words, he switches sides and claims allegiance
to the Cybermen.
The depiction of the monsters borrows the motif of stomping
footsteps from the
Cybermen of the new television series, while Nicholas
Briggs’s Cyber-voices contain more than a hint of the
sing-song delivery of the Tenth
Planet versions. These are quite early Cybermen,
who are regrouping following the destruction of their home
planet, Mondas, in 1986.
In another kiss to the past, the Doctor’s time ring is
temporarily mislaid, just as it was in Genesis
of the Daleks. As in Genesis, the Doctor
anxiously reminds his companion (and the audience!) that the
time ring is vital as their only means of getting back to
the TARDIS.
The Time Lord/CIA plot is rather convoluted, while some of
the battle scenes are also somewhat confusing and may need
to be listened to again. I’m sure the battles would have
looked great on screen, but this is audio.
I’m also a little disappointed that some of the material
from the behind-the-scenes Beyond the Vortex programmes,
which followed the original BBC 7 transmissions, has not been
included among the CD extras. I distinctly remember Briggs
discussing his development of the Cyber-voices and the production
team talking about this series’ relationship with the
mythology of the new television show - and the sad fact that
they are unlikely to depict the
Time War or the Doctor’s regeneration into
his ninth incarnation.
Nevertheless, this is a respectable resolution to the current
series.
Richard
McGinlay
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