5.1 - The Guardian of the Solar System

The conclusion of the Sara Kingdom trilogy tells of how Sara, Stephen, and the Doctor landed at a powerful clock and where Sara encountered Mavic Chen before the Dalek's Master Plan for him and after it, for her, as she knew how Chen would betray Earth. It's a puzzle and a bit of a destiny trap that plays out.

Overall, the story is good. Although the House's powers almost seem impossible to view as any sort of science no matter how advanced as seen in a key plot twist. The finale is nicely done and in many ways, it brings the story full circle and like the two proceeding stories offers an uncertain and open ending.

Jean Marsh reprises her role as the wonderfully under utilised companion, Sara Kingdom, the Boba Fett of Doctor Who as I like to think. She certainly in a microscopic exposure in the televisual world of Who was a fleeting glimpse or something that could have been a real change of companion for the Doctor. I think an element that was a bad move on the producers part at the time to insert for that small moment. However, we move on and upwards and thanks to the wonderful people at Big Finish, they have given a platform for more adventures and stories featuring the character to be produced and in some respects grow a bigger and more detailed back story for the character. This release see's the cleverly talented Gurrier place Sara or at least the spirit of her to be the narrator and story teller of a Mavic Chen story. Albeit wrapped around the story of Robert who comes to the "house" to trade his life for his daughters, after a plague creates desecration in his world. As Robert states everything requires to be paid for, and for him the payment is to spend his time in the house with Sara. However, when his daughter leaves at the age of 21 to see more than the house and the island that it sits on, Robert also realises that his time is now done. Sara sensing this tells him that he can leave, but Robert also realises that so does she, and, the price of her leaving is to tell Robert one last story.


Jean Marsh who is a superb actress anyway weaves a wonderful tale of her travels with the Doctor, and her meeting with Mavic Chen, and how she nearly crosses the across the golden rules time travel, by not only crossing her own timelines, but nearly creating a paradox by telling her brother of the future. One of which holds a fatal outcome for her brother. Also we get a glimpse into a time before the Daleks and Mavic Chen have joined forces. All of which the Doctor have seen, and yet is to come.


This is complex story when you view it from the themes and the way in which the story is written, however, what soon becomes apparent is that you get lost in the language and the pictures that it paints, if you couple that with the wonderful talent that is Jean Marsh and the superb supporting role of Niall McGregor, they deliver what is essentially a modern day fairy tale. So switch on, curl up somewhere for a hour or so and let the magic of this just wash over you.

The Guardian of the Solar System is the finale in Simon Gurrier's Sara Kingdom Trilogy. As a finale the story follows up from the ending of The Drowned World where Robert has spent years in the house and now decides for one last wish. This final wish of course is a way to escape the house and it allows for Sara to escape the house. This of course happens after one final story to be told and boy is it a powerful one. The premise of men working in clocks gives the story some great imagery and how it ties everything into The Daleks' Master Plan really works. The plot isn't that large but it is mainly character driven with Sara's guilt of killing Brett Vyon being explored and how she feels about her travels. I won't spoil the ending because it gives a really good second chance that I don't think is resolved.

The final story in the Sara Kingdom trilogy (make sure you've heard the first two). Sara tells her last tale, about how she was brought face to face with her past and had to confront not only Mavic Chen, but her own murder of her brother. The setting, a giant clock, is vivid and fascinating. But the best part of this is the framing story. I won't spoil it for you, but the final ending will give you chills! A perfect conclusion to the trilogy.