The Drashani Empire – a galaxy-spanning civilisation, the glory of Rome set among the stars. But for decades now, the Royal Houses of Gadarel and Sorsha have been at war, each claiming the Imperial throne.
The wedding of Prince Kylo and Princess Aliona was meant to change all that – a blessed union between the Houses, a new hope for the Empire. Until Aliona’s wedding galley crash-landed on the planet Sharnax – and all contact was lost.
The TARDIS lands aboard the ship carrying the fiery Kylo in search of his lost princess – but with a sabre-toothed monster roaming its corridors, the Doctor soon discovers he’s not the only alien presence aboard.
THE BURNING PRINCE
A new trilogy from Big Finish features each of the fifth, sixth, and seventh Doctors traveling to a stellar empire at various stages of its history, interacting with famous people and places in the process. No, it’s not Excelis, it’s in the main range this time, and it starts with John Dorney’s “The Burning Prince,” an action epic reminiscent of the Saward era in many ways, both good and bad.
For starters, “The Burning Prince” is remarkably grim. Multiple brutal deaths start in the first episode and the fatality rate never slows. By the conclusion, it’s one of those rare Doctor Who stories in which every speaking part save the Doctor himself has apparently died – but Dorney never revels in this, and each death is afforded a significant impact. It’s quite similar to “Warriors of the Deep” by the end, thankfully without the deadly pantomime horse. But there is an implacable alien menace in the person of the Igris, a race of genetically modified “super soldiers” bred for slavery but prone, understandably, to violent rebellion. It remains to be seen how they’ll be used in the remainder of the trilogy, but I expect they will be – Dorney includes a scene in which Kylo (George Rainsford) is seen to take pity on one and elicit a positive response, but then never returns to the idea. Apart from that, they are used to good effect as voiceless, unstoppable alien threats, in the ‘80s action vein this story embraces.
Peter Davison is on excellent form, using the rare solo opportunity to take full command of the play. He develops an instant rapport with Shira (Caroline Langrishe), though unfortunately she doesn’t survive to see the second episode. And while the other characters don’t always heed his advice, he’s consistently right in his strategies and always driving the plot forward. It’s fun to hear a proactive fifth Doctor like this. And the end of the play is heartbreaking, bringing the same anger and dismay to the fore made famous by “There should have been another way.” Dorney knows the fifth Doctor inside and out – or at least he does a great job pretending!
There’s not a great deal to say about “The Burning Prince’s” positives – it’s a skillfully written action epic that never fails to entertain, but there’s not much to analyze. Unfortunately, two instances of characterization keep it from classic territory. First, Kylo is an absolute idiot – he’s clueless, he’s whiny, and he doesn’t understand his situation. It’s possible to write an appealing character with those traits, but this is not an example of how – after his entire family is murdered and his hand cut off, he once again immediately falls for Aliona (Kirsty Besterman)’s professions of love! Aliona, for her part, isn’t much better – it’s fine that she turns out to be a bad guy, but she’s written as such a ridiculous one-note evil stereotype that it’s impossible to take her seriously. And Dorney even has Kylo challenge her hypocrisy so she can point out that she doesn’t care – a conscious decision, then, and while it doesn’t hurt the play, it really cements the lack of subtlety.
The production is admirable – the sound design by Martin Montague is mostly effective, though there is one spaceship background effect that drowns out the dialogue, while the score from Toby Hrycek-Robinson is very good. But Ken Bentley’s direction should be singled out for praise – this has a truly epic feel for what is otherwise a straightforward action adventure, and much of that is down to Bentley’s pacing. The transitions between scenes are also allowed to breathe, using effects to communicate events like landing ships. Overall, it’s hard to say much about “The Burning Prince” – there are some characters, some deaths, and the Doctor blazing a trail down the middle. But what it lacks in subtlety it makes up for with energy, and as an action epic with minor political machination, it’s quite good. Only a couple of flawed characters keep it from receiving an elite score.
Recommended.
7/10