Reviews

Doctor Who: Blood of the Daleks, Part 2 by Steve Lyons

Only show reviews with written explanations

trin's review

2.0

Not bad but sort of boring/standard Doctor Who Dalek story in which an evil/misguided human teams up with Daleks and oh no curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, etc. Hayley Atwell (!) is fairly wasted as a cookie cutter version of this character; they don't let her be nearly camp enough.

The Eighth Doctor also has a new companion who sort of feels like a mix of Rose and Donna (she's also dropped into the TARDIS suddenly), but with some potential interest in that she's been sent to the Doctor by the Time Lords, who, this being a pre-War adventure, aren't dead for the thousandth time yet. That's not really developed here though so...we'll see.

Except I won't right away because I'm switching to some Two stories. Sorry, Eight!

eleanorflovver's review

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

really nice conclusion to a solid story. i'm intrigued to see how the dynamic of unwanted stowaway and grudging camp paterfamilias plays out because it's certainly different to the way eight has played things before, and it's nice to see him knocked off his feet (i love him but he can be such an arrogant git icl). i'm a teeny bit worried that lucie is just going to infil a weird kink some dw male writers seem to have for mysterious women who know how to put the doctor in his place, but i grew up with moffat so i realise that is a bit of a prejudice. and things seem fun so far, so yeah. looking forward to the next one.

rebelbelle13's review

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

Part 2 of this series delivered and I my attention was focused almost the entire time on the Dalek invasion and 8's and Lucie's part in defeating them. Lucie is still antagonistic towards the Doctor, as she's attempting to remember why the Time Lords placed her with him in the first place, and is angry she is being manipulated. As it often does, the Dalek's downfall focuses heavily on their intent of being a pure race. Production quality is top notch, as is the acting, and I had a really good time listening to the conclusion of this story. There are tons of extras as well, including interviews with the cast, producers and directors, as well as a preview of the next story, Horror of Glam Rock. I'd highly recommend this audioplay to anyone who loves a good Dalek story, or wants to hear the story of Lucie's origin.

amerasuu's review

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4.0

Fab conclusion and great set up for the series

mistwhisper117's review

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mysterious

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

melsage1823's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Another chilling audio drama that truly showcases the terrifying nature of the Dalek perfectly.

Blood Of The Daleks Part 2! An absolute master piece of a sequel that uses the Daleks perfectly. Lyons nails the high stakes and intensity of being up against the Daleks. It also perfectly shows how much the events of Genesis Of The Daleks ways on the Doctor and why he's so desperate to prevent other Daleks from causing harm and destruction. If both parts were one whole story I'd definitely rate it five stars, it's masterful and perfectly well crafted.

So many positives about this story but before we do that I'll get into my two main negatives.

Listen I really like the concept of flipping the Companion narrative from one of admiration and wonder to bitterness and frustration but it just doesn't work. As the side characters ironically point out it in the story it just turns to senless arguing and doesn't make me route for Lucie and The Doctors reluctant partnership. We only got a hint of Lucie respecting the Doctor but half of the time both were just sour and unempathetic to each other. I'm hoping and praying this improves the more stories I listen too.

Secondly like I mentioned as a full story Blood Of The Daleks is amazing with Part 1 being the build up and Part 2 being the twisty conclusion but on its own it feels like tropes we've seen before. I also think the ending was a bit too rushed for my liking just like the beginning of Part 1 was. I get this audio dramas want to match the average length of a TV episode but I feel like that's wasted potential. I like my endings slowly and nicely wrapped up not speeded through.

Other than that though I enjoyed this story so so much. Doctor Who expanded media just perfectly slaps at Dalek Stories. I've enjoyed some of the Dalek novels a bit more but this was still great. I was absolutely in awe as I listened to the story, it was a perfect mix of suspense and hope. The performances were once again out of this world and peak. Paul MacGann is thriving clearly after being given the chance he never got on TV. There's so many things I could rave about but to keep it short I'm gonna pick out my highlights.

The Daleks are actually scary! It's a miracle and brilliant that the Daleks are getting good treatment in other places like Big Finish and the novels. Lyons writes the Daleks exactly as they are suppose to be cold, merciless and prideful. Nicholas Briggs is wonderful as usual adding to the threat of the Daleks by performing them perfectly. He also performances both types of Daleks differently to shows us the difference between them. Regardless Lyons writing really elevates the Daleks level of threat and how full of themselves they are. The eugenic supremacist nature of The Daleks is portrayed at his best here and how they only serve to destroy. If Big Finish keep portraying the Daleks as well as they have in this story I'm all for large box sets of Dalek Stories.

Secondly the development and complexity of The Doctors character here. Paul MacGann does a great job of portraying a Doctor who's not only tired of The Daleks and in a sense The Timelords destruction and meddling in his life but also guilty, the events of Genesis Of The Daleks weighing on his mind. I haven't seen that episode but through Paul's performance and Steve Lyons writing I can still feel the incredible weight that decision has on The Doctor. You can feel the High Stakes as The Doctor tries to protect the people of Red Rocket Rising but also prevent another set of Daleks causing destruction. There's also tiny specs of The Doctor that will willingly turn into The Warrior. You can already feel the weight dealing with the Daleks chaos has on the timelord. They really do genuis foreshadowing to The War Doctor with Eight here and it adds to the story so much.

Finally I'd have to say the themes of the story. After listening I'm left thinking about the ethics of eugenics and genocide in our own world. Media can be good for escape but I think its main purpose is to not only teach us but also let us think and reflect. The themes and questions posed in this story do this perfectly. We are left questioning the ethics of even The Doctor and thinking about how important it is to fight back against The Daleks we know in our lives. Like Doctor Who is suppose to do the story teaches the listener important lessons.

Overall another brilliant, mind blowing, reflective and perfectly immerse audio drama. I'm excited to listen to what else Big Finish has to offer from The 8th Doctor and other Doctors too.

Highly recommend, some of Big Finishes work has become free on Spotify if you can't afford to buy anything off their website.

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