Once before the Doctor battled the sadistic Rocket Men and once before he won. But when the dreaded pirates of the skies raid a remote frontier planet, he’s not the only member of the TARDIS crew for whom they are old enemies.
Steven Taylor knows them well. Back in his days as a pilot, on his twenty first birthday, Steven’s ship was brought down by the malevolent Van Cleef. He barely escaped with his life. And now he’s going to have to go through that again.
But this time round, he knows what happens. And he knows there’s no way out. Steven Taylor has to make a choice. A choice where either way… he loses.
THE COMPANION CHRONICLES: RETURN OF THE ROCKET MEN
Sequels in the Companion Chronicles have generally been reserved to single authors, like the various Simon Guerrier arcs. But in “Return of the Rocket Men,” sequel to one of the best stories in the entire range, Big Finish gave the nod to Matt Fitton to pick up where John Dorney left off. And while the end result isn’t quite as spectacular, it’s still very much worth hearing.
To be fair, “Return of the Rocket Men” is only a sequel insofar as the titular Rocket Men make another appearance. There aren’t recurring characters (apart from the Doctor) or anything like that. But thematically and structurally the stories are quite similar: both involve companions coming to a realization about their time in the TARDIS and both include a twist revelation involving rocket packs. I think both of these are examples of why “Return” is inferior to its predecessor. “Return” revolves around Steven and the mindset that will eventually drive him to leave the TARDIS in “The Savages.” He spends the story contemplating when you know it’s time to stop doing something you once loved, and he reflects upon all the death and loss he has experienced during his time with the Doctor. (Looking back, has any companion seen as much horror?) Unfortunately, the death Steven witnesses in this story isn’t as meaningful to the listener as so many others were – and as such the story isn’t very convincing as the “last straw” that it intends to be.
The twist in “The Rocket Men” was remarkably elegant: Ian had been wearing a rocket pack for quite some time, but had never mentioned it – and since there weren’t any visuals, there wasn’t any way for the listener to know. “Return of the Rocket Men,” however, attempts a time travel-themed twist: we flash back to Steven’s days as a pilot when a rogue Rocket Man saved his life, and later we learn that Rocket Man was Steven himself in disguise! It’s a neat idea, but it’s incredibly predictable – I think the decision to make the Doctor audible in Steven’s headset during the flashback was a mistake, as it spells out what’s going on in gigantic flaming letters. I’m also not sure that Steven intending to make the ultimate sacrifice to save his younger self is as impactful as it could otherwise have been. It doesn’t feel like the culmination of his time in the TARDIS it should be; rather, it feels self-directed and a bit aimless.
I admit it’s a bit unfair to compare “Return of the Rocket Men” to its predecessor, if only because that story was on a short list of Big Finish’s greatest material. And indeed “Return” is a strong story: Peter Purves gives a fantastic, emotional performance that has the listener in his corner from the first moments and never lets go. Despite the predictability of the story, it’s still effective in large part because of Purves and the emotional journey Steven is on. Tim Treloar is very good as the Rocket Men leader Van Cleef – including his brief moments of narration – and the sound design from Howard Carter and Lisa Bowerman’s direction are both top notch. In short, you should definitely pick up “Return of the Rocket Men” – just don’t expect it to reach the stratospheric heights of the original.
Highly recommended.
8/10