Nyssa becomes caught up in the hatred of the Time War…

This is one of those stories that’s predicated on not knowing a certain twist before you go into it, but which is instantly spoiled by the cover – we are aware that the Eighth Doctor is involved in proceedings, and with only a few people in the story, it’s clear up front exactly who he is. It’s a bit of a shame, because the story is topped and tailed with the music from Nyssa’s era on the show and although you’d pretty much instantly guess that Dr Foster isn’t quite what he appears to be, there would be some element of uncertainty.

The other problem with this story is the style of the narration; ideally this should have had two narrators, as Sarah Sutton is both the older Nyssa, and a third party narrator for the scenes where Nyssa isn’t present (and where the Doctor explains himself). Sutton does play the scenes differently, but this is more of a structural problem.

When this story was first announced, I wondered how the Time War would play into Nyssa’s timeline, and it does rather feel as if she lives through the period it takes place (in the same way that, say, Ian Chesterton lived through the Second World War) rather than it being an all-encompassing rewriting of history. It somehow makes it feel almost parochial, particularly when compared with the way it’s been treated in the War Doctor and other Eighth Doctor adventures.

I realise the above makes it sound like Rob Nisbet hasn’t written a good script, but that’s not the case – the issues are at a more fundamental level. Nisbet captures the post-Terminus Nyssa well, and he’s also got a good handle on the Eighth Doctor.

Verdict: Good characterisation in a story that conceptually has issues. 6/10

Paul Simpson