‘Just a taste of Armageddon, Romana. It’s what happens when acquisitive minds are left unencumbered by conscience.’
The Doctor, Romana and newly elected President Sheridan Moorkurk take on the all-consuming powers of business tycoon Cuthbert and his vast Conglomerate. But the situation goes beyond a struggle for political power. Cuthbert is intent on revenge on creatures he feels have attacked his interests. But when his revenge looks like leading to inter-species war, the Doctor knows the stakes couldn’t be higher.
The Laan are on the move. Is it too late to prevent the destruction of all life on Earth?
WAR AGAINST THE LAAN
The third release in the second series of Big Finish’s Fourth Doctor Adventures, Nicholas Briggs’ “War Against the Laan” concludes the story begun in “The Sands of Life” and sows the seeds of a potential future conflict. And while it improves on its predecessor in some ways, it still runs into the same problem faced by so many of these Tom Baker releases: it’s incredibly straightforward with barely a hint of surprise or true drama.
I will say that I enjoyed the central conflict, once it was laid out, largely because it gave the play importance that the previous story lacked. A race of aliens wants to use Earth to spawn, but if they do so, they will wipe out the human race – so is the human race justified in wiping out the aliens before that happens? Cuthbert (David Warner) obviously thinks so, but not because he’s a deranged maniac: he’s seen the Laan destroy a space station and kill hundreds before learning that they’re a threat to existence. The Doctor accuses him of looking out only for his own interests, and I actually think that’s unfair – Cuthbert certainly isn’t a moral man, but acting to preserve his species isn’t automatically reprehensible. Briggs clearly recognizes this because of the internal debate he writes for the Earth President (Hayley Atwell): she acknowledges that wiping out the Laan is a dreadful action, but argues that the alternative makes the choice understandable. Of course, in great Doctor Who tradition, when two impossible choices are on the table, the Doctor manages to find a third alternative that keeps everyone happy: sometimes this feels like a copout, but in this story it works rather well.
The problem, though, is that most of that debate takes place in the second half of the second part. The majority of the play follows the pattern of “The Sands of Life:” lots of running around and yelling with little actually happening. The story is way, way too long, and Briggs making the characters frustratingly unable to communicate pads its length out. The Laan, driven by the urge to birth their children, ignore or disbelieve everything told to them – until it’s time for the play to end, of course, and then they suddenly believe everything Sheridan tells them and immediately leave. Cuthbert runs everything in the galaxy, but then the President brings two guards onto his station and he immediately gives up, but then at the end we learn he can’t be touched because he’s too powerful. I understand that stories of the era were often excessively padded, but there’s no reason to recapture that feeling along with all the others.
This extends to the acting, too. Tom Baker does well with his more intense lines, which are enjoyable to hear, though Mary Tamm trips up on the desperate line readings, which sound mildly irritated at best. Cuthbert isn’t as clichéd this time around, but he’s still not very interesting – but David Warner could make the dictionary compelling, so I can’t wait for his return at series end. I thought Toby Hadoke was one of the best things about “Robophobia,” so to have him in such a generic role here seems like a waste.
I can’t even say I’m thoroughly satisfied by the production. While I like Briggs’ direction, and his music once again nicely captures the era, Martin Montague’s sound design relies far too much upon explosions and loud noises, often for long, multiple-second stretches that add nothing except confusion. Overall, though, I liked “War Against the Laan” slightly more than “The Sands of Life” because it actually had something, however brief, to attract interest. But is that good enough? This is a story that pits Tom Baker against David Warner – something this obvious is mishandling their talents.
Better, but not great.
6/10