As with
practically any short story anthology, the offerings are necessarily a mixed
bag. Surprisingly, given that the Eighth Doctor is on the cover, he
featured only in a small role in the last story, “The Glass Princess” by Justin
Richards. Richards, is, by the way, obsessed with glass, but I have to
confess I was almost in tears as I finished this story. It was easily my
favorite, though it was highly sentimental, and yet the fairy tale quality
really charmed me. It was with surprise that I realized Steven Moffat had
freely adapted the idea for “A Christmas Carol.”
For the
first half of “Confabula,” by Ian Potter, which featured the Fifth Doctor and
Nyssa, I was extremely impressed by the intricate class-based sci fi
critique. However, he rather spoiled it by his too-clever reveal.
Highly enjoyable, too, was Simon A. Forward’s “The Astronomer’s Apprentice,”
where Victoria, Jamie, and the Second Doctor visited Traken long before the
Fourth Doctor ever got there. I’m such a sucker for Traken, even though I
guessed the twist of this one.
“Katarina
in the Underworld” by Steve Lyons was a good tribute to one of the least-liked
companions, and the First Doctor was beautifully portrayed. I think it
would make a great Companion Chronicle, in point of fact. “Teach Yourself
Ballroom Dancing” was a surprisingly touching story for the Sixth Doctor.
It’s not every day he gets kissed on the lips by ballet dancers. Alas,
I’m not sure I really got the point of “An Overture Too Early” by Simon
Guerrier.
2 comments:
Soz. It's too long a story really. Pleased to finaly fail for being too clever for once! Thank you for looking on it as kindly as you have.
Ian
Ian--I thought it had potential to be a longer piece. Did you consider making it full-length?
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