The 6th Doctor comes up against Beep the Meep, an old enemy from the comic series, and has to stop his plans to commit murder by television.
The 6th Doctor comes up against Beep the Meep, an old enemy from the comic series, and has to stop his plans to commit murder by television.
THE RATINGS WAR
With thanks to Chad Moore.
Big Finish’s second Doctor Who Magazine bonus story, The Ratings War, came from prolific and celebrated author Steve Lyons and featured a rare dose of comics continuity. But despite the first appearance of Beep the Meep in the audio medium, the primary focus of the story dealt with the proliferation of reality television and its impact on our culture. Ironic that I’d listen to this after viewing a certain new series episode…
I admit straight off that I’m not familiar with Big Brother or the UK reality culture, so I’m sure many of the references here went straight over my head. However, this is a fairly obvious condemnation of reality television, given that Beep intends to use it to take advantage of what is presented as the sheeplike idiocy of its viewers. Many will disagree with this assessment, but it’s not a fair basis for condemnation — thinking differently than Lyons doesn’t mean he’s written a bad script. The satire, such as it is, is amusing though fairly inconsequential, but that’s expected for a thirty minute play. There’s also the obligatory references to the Doctor Who cancellation, and I admit that they’re starting to grate by this point — but they’re done well enough for what they are.
This might be the most unusual portrayal of the sixth Doctor I’ve ever seen. His basic characteristics are there, of course, but his plan is on the order of his next incarnation: when he enters the situation, he already knows what’s going to happen and exactly how to manipulate Beep into foiling his own scheme. Colin Baker plays this well, as expected — hearing him barge into a TV studio to complain about the quality of the programming is hilarious, and his confrontations with Beep are equally amusing.
Beep the Meep is played by Toby Longworth, who brings his exceptional vocal talents to bear to produce a bad guy that is hilarious and menacing in turns. He sounds adorable when he’s trying to evoke sympathy, and his cruelty is voiced exactly how it came across on the DWM comic page. “Beep’s Song,” as mentioned in many other places, is great. Robert Jezek is okay, meanwhile, as Lowell, while Alistair Lock is annoying as Robbie McHale — but annoying in a good-’cause-the-script-called-for-it way. It’s a small cast, and, much like Last of the Titans, this is a two-hander for 90% of its length; fortunately the actors all pull it off with little difficulty.
David Darlington’s sound design is effective — I’ve heard he provides a solid parody of Big Brother’s sound, though I wouldn’t know myself. Lock’s rendition of “Beep’s Song” is great, while Gary Russell’s direction keeps the humor going strong. The Ratings War is a well-produced little gem.
Overall, The Ratings War is an improvement over its predecessor, but it still had a ways to go to achieve classic status. The satire, while amusing, is obvious, and the Doctor/Meep scenes, while funny, aren’t particularly tense. Still, this is a solid effort, produced well, and it’s very good indeed considering it’s a free giveaway.
Recommended.
6/10