The Big Finish Catch-Up January 2022

For those of you new to this section of the blog, I started listening to the Big Finish Doctor Who releases when they started back in 1999, getting them as they were released up to mid 2002 and release No 33 Neverland. At that time I left Uni and due to being a bit busy with life and what not I only heard one or two releases over the next few years. I started getting back into them around 2008 and was 6 years behind at that point. Due to wondering off into the Lost Doctor range and a relaxed listening pace I fell further behind. In order to catch up I'm listening to two releases a month (or more when its a 60 min single disc release, plus without seeing the cover or knowing anything about the story) and my mission to catch up continues; 

However as I've fallen behind its time for some snap reviews of the last years of my Big Finish listening, these contain first time listens and relistens to old favourites: 

Faustian - The first story in the Eric Roberts Master boxset. After listening to this disc I'm of the opinion that this is going to be more of an over arching story split into chapters rather than a number of interlinked stories. As such we have a very atmospheric opening chapter, it picks up where things left off on TV for this incarnation of The Master (or certainly feels like it) as we get a story involving experiments and temptation as The Master from the side lines engineers an escape from the Vortex. The main character is Lila Kreeg who is given a fine performance by Laura Aikman as we're introduced to her situation. I look forward to seeing these characters move forward and how their relationship develops, 8/10.

Technophobia - Hear we are with the first story in the first boxset from David Tennants 10th Doctor along with Catherine Tate as Donna. Its a fun breezy little story set in near present day London with loads of good fluffy bits for the regulars to do. Its fun enough but uncertain in tone as it tries for most of the story to be fun and fluffy but then wants to do a bit of horror which comes across as out of place. What we get is fun but it feels a bit bite sized and for the 10th Doctors debut for Big Finish I wanted something completely OTT. It does feel a bit rushed in places and I wouldn't have been adverse as a full length two disc release. 6/10 but will get a higher mark from me on a re-listen down the road when its not the big flashy debut of the 10th Doctor.