vivdunstan

Continuing my Benny audio listen, and taking a slight detour from the official Big Finish Benny audio season 3, to listen to another story slotting into the middle of season 3. So I'm in the right chronological order, but listening to a Benny story that was released separately from the others.

This story is the fourth in a series of linked Excelis Saga Doctor Who stories from Big Finish, set on a mysterious world, featuring the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Doctors. All 4 stories, as well as a separate music suite, are available together in a collected download bundle.

The earlier Excelis stories with the various Doctors are worth listening to. Guest star Anthony Head is particularly strong. But this 4th story is separate, and can be listened to on its own. Benny has arrived accidentally at Excelis, where she finds a decaying empire, and learns of a mysterious artefact "The Relic". And meets enigmatic time traveller Iris Wildthyme. Iris is another spin-off character from the Doctor Who books published in the Wilderness Years of 1989-2005. She is well acted by Katy Manning, and always worth listening to.

This story itself is a mixed bag. On plus, the scenes with Benny and Iris - usually together, but sometimes apart - are great value. However far too much of the rest of the script involves mega info dumps. So much for the "show don't tell" school of writing. To be fair it had material to recap from the earlier stories. But that could have been handled better, rewritten, or trimmed. It's a shame, because the core scifi idea that the story spins around is strong. And the pairing of Benny and Iris is dynamite. But the whole package needed to be presented in a different way.

I'm glad I listened to it again though. But I'm more critical this time around of the writing.

Best quote: "A handbag!"