An artificial life-form and an ancient race make life difficult for the Doctor and Charley in the permanent night of the Cimmerian System.
An artificial life-form and an ancient race make life difficult for the Doctor and Charley in the permanent night of the Cimmerian System.
EMBRACE THE DARKNESS
Much as when The X-Files would interrupt the season arc with a “monster of the week” episode, so too is Nicholas Briggs’ Embrace the Darkness a short break in the mounting tension of Paul McGann’s second Big Finish season as the eighth Doctor. Perhaps the quality of the preceding plays led many reviewers to attack Briggs’ production as lacking, but not-as-good does not mean bad and the play proves this.
Briggs is one of the few authors who seems to approach his BF writing by planning to exploit the audio medium to its fullest. Embrace the Darkness is the best example of this, as he sets the play’s first episode almost entirely in pitch blackness, allowing the listener to fully experience the environment inhabited by the characters. This immersive experience is enhanced by Briggs’ decision to write the first episodes as a sort of body horror exhibition, with characters losing eyes and being forced to deal with their losses. It is no surprise that the first two episodes or so of the story are quite scary, as Briggs shows a flair for dialogue and character in this type of situation.
Unfortunately, as the themes of the play are slowly worked into the environment, the play necessarily collapses because of the contrast of its opening episodes. Briggs has written his most intelligent Doctor Who script here (of the first 31 releases), something which uses darkness as a concept and wraps the characters around it, slowly converting each set of perceived villains into heroes or allies. The revelation that the Cimmerians are not killers but healers who are themselves afraid of an unseen menace is brilliant, but this is something of a Pyrrhic victory as it forces the final revelation to be that the Solarians are also a peaceful, friendly race. To keep the Solarians as villains would be to betray the play’s theme, but by using the same twist with them as with the Cimmerians, the conclusion of the play cannot be anything but anticlimactic. However, when observed from an intellectual rather than a visceral perspective, the conclusion is quite satisfying.
Both here and in the subsequent play Paul McGann sounds a bit strained in his performance as the Doctor. This is not to say that he does a poor job — indeed, he is very, very good — but his fatigue (as described in The Inside Story) is evident in his voice. These factors, coupled with Briggs’ script, makes the Doctor very unusual in this play, shifting rapidly from harsh determination to suicidal depression. That the portrayal works is a testament to McGann’s ability, but this was the first time I raised an eyebrow at his performance.
On the flip side, India Fisher is once again excellent as Charley Pollard. When the character is allowed to react naturally to a situation, she is excellent, and this is one of those times: Fisher’s performance lends the cliffhanger to episode 1 all of its powerful drama. Even her interaction with the Doctor as he prepares to sacrifice himself is good — this is the sort of scene in which Fisher often tips over the top and becomes intolerable, and she avoids any such mistakes here.
Only four people populate the supporting cast, and three of them, Lee Moone, Mark McDonnell, and Nicola Boyce all blend together. Their performances are solid, but the role of the hard-bitten space explorer/marine/pirate/etc. has been played out and it is hard to provide a new take. That being said, they all play the various stages of fear and hysteria exceptionally well. Ian Brooker, meanwhile, is wonderful as ROSM, lending the robot a Giant Robot sort of pathos, and his turns as the Cimmerians are surprisingly creepy.
Embrace the Darkness marks Jim Mortimore’s first turn as sound designer, and his work is exceptional. Mortimore opts for a very minimalist take on proceedings, keeping the score very subtle and unintrusive, while his futuristic sound effects are excellent. The Inside Story tells of friction between Briggs and Mortimore, but there’s absolutely no sign of this in the final result. Briggs also directs, and yet again brings his script to the speaker with aplomb. Clayton Hickman’s cover, like all the rest from this season, is excellent.
Many people have panned Embrace the Darkness as the weakest production of McGann’s second season. This is unfair: Nicholas Briggs has produced a solid Doctor Who tale which has dramatic flaws only as the necessary consequences of an excellent thematic backdrop. Is it perfect? Of course not, but it certainly holds up the high standard of the season and continues to build confidence for the upcoming Dalek story and the epic climax to follow after that.
Recommended.
7/10