After the success that
was The Triumph of Sutekh Big Finish
commissioned a third box set for Bernice Summerfield, but decided to move her
back towards her original series where she was on her own. She should be the top billed for these sets
and this third set is the compromise Big Finish have is that they took Benny
out of the regular universe, and forced her together with the Unbound Doctor
from Sympathy from the Devil and Masters of War as played by David
Warner. It is a great idea as David
Warner’s Unbound Doctor has been celebrated by fans and a return to these
alternate universes have been a request from fans since they disappeared
completely in 2008. Now I haven’t
actually listened to the Unbound range before this audio which is okay considering
that it really isn’t necessary for understanding this box set. You really only need to know that the
question in mind when David Warner’s timeline was created is the premise of
“What if the Doctor hadn’t been UNIT’s scientific advisor?” altering the timeline
after the Second Doctor.
I was initially blown
away by David Warner’s alternate take on the Third Doctor, as he comes across
as pretty much the Doctor who has had too much power. His universe is dying and he breaks into ours
as a way to escape, except the TARDIS doesn’t let him and he drags Benny into
his universe. His habit of calling
Benny, Summerfield, and refusing to help out gives us a very interesting take
on the character. This story seems like
they are going to set up an arc to make him more Doctor-ish and it is really
good. Warner is great as a Doctor as he
just doesn’t take anything from anyone, even Benny, yet even if he refuses to
admit it, he feels genuinely bad for Benny being stuck in his universe. He just wanted to use her to get out of his
dying universe, not put her in the same fate as that universe. Of course they’re going to try and save the
universe because Benny really won’t let it just die and is going to find a way
back into her own universe at least by some time. He also is the one who caused the death of the
universe making him feel like what the War Doctor should have been
Lisa Bowerman as Benny
has a lot of fun in the role. Her
opening scene is just hilarious as she is giving a lecture when the TARDIS
shows up, and she actually says goodbye to the room of students saying she’ll
be back in a minute. It’s just hilarious
to see her have to deal with the new situation which shakes up the status quo
and the performance is a powerhouse from Bowerman. As Warner’s Doctor is apathetic, it is Benny
who has to investigate the goings on in this library where they’re going to be under
attack from a race that wants to destroy all knowledge. Benny is just great in this story as she is
the lead role. Bowerman deserves the top
billing she gets on the story’s cover as this is not Doctor Who, it is The New
Adventures of Bernice Summerfield, she’s the star, she gets top billing.
The actual plot by James
Goss is also just really fun as it takes this library where all knowledge can
be found and makes it a hostile environment.
There are invaders trying to destroy all knowledge as they believe it is
the root of the war and if it goes away everything will be find. The Doctor of course thinks they’re just
being silly, but they’re essentially the villains with no real interesting
motivation. The twist about halfway
through is that the library is actually the mouth of a giant parasite. It goes around inviting everyone in and then
takes all their knowledge by showing them what they think they want to see and
then eats them. It’s a really funny idea
but the plot gets a bit convoluted as it introduces the Master, as played by
renowned pantomime actor and arch nemesis of Mark Gatiss, Sam Kisgart, there
for a cameo, because he is going to be the big bad of the box set which doesn’t
really go anywhere, and everything is needlessly complex and could just stop a
bit earlier to have a better conclusion.
The side characters of
the story are also just a bit weird. The
Librarian does a great job at being a villain in the actual library while the
Kareem are out in space being villainous.
It really isn’t anything that goes anywhere with these villains except a
way to close the story by destroying it.
Benny plays off them great, but other than that nothing else really is
interesting about them. There are also
some singing nuns who are there for comic relief singing classic British songs
in numbers which is okay, I guess. I
really have no opinion on them
To summarize, The Library in the Body is again a
really good opening for the third box set of The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield. Sure the plot gets a bit complicated near the
end and some of the supporting characters really don’t have any depth, but it’s
just exploring this new universe for Benny to explore. 83/100
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