The Doctor and Bliss arrive on a world whose survival is threatened by the Time War.

There are lots of consequences to war that aren’t necessarily usually seen as the meat of drama – war stories can often go for the ‘gung-ho’ Where Eagles Dare-esque exploits, which are clearly more cinematic and in your face. However Lisa McMullin’s thought provoking story focuses on those whose food supplies can no longer come through an area that’s the centre of disputes between the Time Lords and the Daleks, and who are consequently starving. Someone has come up with a bright idea to deal with the situation – but is the solution worse than the problem?

McMullin doles out the clues carefully, and there’s more than a few hints that things are going in a rather different direction than they end up. There’s also something of an Original Series Star Trek vibe to it – a planet facing Armageddon and trying to sort it out its own way, only to have outsiders come in and show them the error of their ways. But whereas Captain Kirk has the Federation behind him, the Doctor has the powers that be on Gallifrey – and they sense an opportunity.

Verdict: Taking things in a different direction, this is an intriguing tale. 8/10

Paul Simpson

Click here to order The Time War Volume 3 from Big Finish