The Doctor, Liv and Helen are rescued – but have they Escaped into Danger?

Matt Fitton’s opener for this set of Eighth Doctor stories hits the ground running and doesn’t really let up, as the threat of the Ravenous becomes clearer. They’ve been very much in the background of the previous two sets – in fact, virtually invisible at times – but they’re coming front and centre here. It’s not very often that something can scare the Doctor (and certainly there’s been nothing like it in Liv or Helen’s time travelling with him), but the Ravenous clearly do. We don’t get all the answers, but sufficient to ensure that we understand at least some of what drives them.

Benji Clifford’s sound design, Jamie Robertson’s score and Ken Bentley’s direction all mesh well to keep the listener caught up in the story. Fitton knows the characters of Liv and Helen well, and plays to their strengths and it’s good for once to have a Time Lord involved in a story who’s not being driven by some other agenda (at least as far as we know). I hope we hear more from Damian Lynch’s Rasmus – the sort of friend of the Doctor that we encountered during less febrile days on Gallifrey.

Verdict: The Doctor’s fear adds a new element to the Eighth Doctor’s adventures that gives this story an extra edge. 9/10

Paul Simpson

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