Once, long ago, in a land of monsters and corridors, a fair maiden was captured, and placed in a deep sleep.
She was used to being captured, and she had a hero who rescued her on just such occasions. But this time the hero never came.
And the fair maiden slept on.
Eventually, a King rescued the maiden, and made her his bride, which many wise old women might tell you is just another way of capturing fair maidens.
And still the fair maiden slept on.
Then, the hero had another stab at rescuing the maiden from her prison, but he was too late. And, more importantly, he had forgotten the rules of fairy tales.
He didn’t slay the dragon.
THE WIDOW’S ASSASSIN
The end of 2014 and another trilogy begins for Colin Baker’s Sixth Doctor, following on from the loss of Flip and reintroducing Peri to the range. The first story, Nev Fountain’s “The Widow’s Assassin,” is witty and interesting, as you’d expect from the author – but it’s also overcrowded, cluttered, and far too interested in Doctor Who continuity for its own good. Still, it’s the sort of thing I class as a success, in large part because its tone is so much different from the usual Big Finish release.
There’s no doubt that “The Widow’s Assassin” has all the trappings of a comedy story, and even the style of the comedy varies from episode to episode and sometimes scene to scene. This isn’t surprising, as Fountain is a rather eclectic writer, but it’s unusual to directly mix pantomime aspects (a walking sheep as a character) with Python/Adams humor (guards so generic they are actually named Guard One and Guard Two). This style isn’t to my taste – I much preferred “The Kingmaker,” which was equally bonkers in terms of its plot but had a much more focused comedic style – but it’s difficult to make “not my thing” the basis of a review. Besides, there were several laugh-out-loud moments, including the body-swap sequence. I’ve mentioned before that, for such a sci-fi staple, Doctor Who stories rarely indulge in that plot device, but it certainly works here with Baker and Bryant doing fantastic impressions of one another.
Much like Fountain’s “Omega,” there’s a big reveal here, about how we all misinterpreted the conclusion of “The Trial of a Time Lord.” I appreciate the effort to retcon what was one of the dumbest resolutions in the history of the TV series – seriously, Peri marries Yrcanos? – and I think it largely works, though the script goes one twist too far when we learn what’s actually in Peri’s head. While I appreciate that resurrecting Kiv would have led to yet another Mentor story about the evils of unrestrained capitalism, introducing an unrelated mind parasite from the depths of the Doctor’s subconscious struck me as little more than a plot device, and the fourth episode suddenly becoming about the Doctor’s fear of rejection is an uneasy fit with the farcical tone of the rest of the story. There’s nothing wrong with telling a serious story with comedic overtones – look at “The Myth Makers” for an early Doctor Who example – but I think “The Widow’s Assassin” hews too far in the comedic direction for its dramatic points to be taken entirely seriously. Also, Flip’s story is resolved, largely as an afterthought – and it can’t be accidental that a story so devoted to erasing Peri’s terrible exit turns around and gives that same exit to Flip!
I feel more positive about this story than this review sounds, though, largely for the multitude of entertaining moments scattered throughout the script. I loved the Guard One (Andrew Dickens)/Guard Two (John Banks) interplay, the double-act between Pteratrark (Banks again) and Flitamus (Dickens again), the clever hints in the sound design that Wolsey (Tim Chipping) is a sheep before the revelation comes, and many other elements besides. I greatly enjoyed the conversations between the Doctor and Peri and the rare opportunity to see the Doctor apologizing for (however unwillingly) abandoning a companion. And while I didn’t know if the tones worked together, I did enjoy what Fountain had to say about the Doctor’s fears – it’s an interesting look at what motivated the Doctor during the classic series.
The production is successful as ever. There’s a lot going on here for sound designer Steve Foxon, but everything is convincing, and the score from Howard Carter is fitting. Ken Bentley’s direction is unimpeachable as usual. Overall, “The Widow’s Assassin” is a guarded success, and that’s based largely on my appreciation of the humor. For me, the mix of tones was too much to take; if this is to your liking, however, you just might think this is a masterpiece.
Recommended.
7/10