1.1 - The Destination Wars

A very good cast recreates the first Doctor and his companions.
This is a slow and gentle story, reminiscent of the exploration days of the Doctor. The TARDIS lands and we have time to let the world slowly unfold before the threats arise.
While spoilers have already ruined the surprise identity of the Inventor, it is still fun to hear the reveal unfold. Once this is out of the way we spend the third part witnessing a battle of wills against the backdrop of a world going mad.

This takes a bit of getting used to. The cast are not trying to imitate the original First Doctor team but rather create their own interpretation of these characters. While they will never make me forget that wonderful original cast, the actors all turn in good performances, particularly David Bradley. James Dreyfus makes a fantastic early/first Master, turning in a very brilliant traditional performance.

The story offers a very solid time travel tale, that may be slightly different than would have been made in the 1960s, but just as ambitious. Overall, I enjoyed this story. It's different than the Hartnell era, but I think it is very good for what it is trying to do.

The TARDIS team land in the 'Space Year 2003' in a Utopian city that appears to be somewhere on Earth. Hover cars flood the streets, tall skyscrapers fill the landscape, and all seems prosperous thanks to the development of new technologies by a mysterious and legendary scientist simply known as the Inventor. But all is of course not as it seems and it isn't long before dark secrets in the city's underbelly come up for all to see. Ian and Barbara are forced to handle the realities of a futuristic world at war while the Doctor and Susan are brought to face a old figure from the Doctor's past with long-lasting repercussions for the future. It's an interesting premise and one that seems perfect for what it's trying to do in bringing an encounter with the First Master into canon. It almost feels like an introduction story for the character along the same lines of "Terror of the Autons" (though it's thankfully not an origin story) except even farther back in the timelines than we've ever seen before. But it also works as a good story without that baggage and it still follows what's been established thus far in that no mention of Gallifrey or the Time Lords occurs even with the Master on hand. There are many big twists and turns to shock long time Whovians and Big Finish listeners but on the whole it is a tad predictable especially in the beginning. It's quite apparent that the travelers aren't where they think they are but it plays around with time travel, suspicious settings, and details aplenty in unique ways for all to chew on. The cast is a little bit more hit and miss than I had anticipated. David Bradley as the First Doctor as portrayed by William Hartnell is perfect. While I liked his onscreen portrayal in "Twice Upon A Time", I will admit that some of his eccentricities weren't perfect or even really accurate. Listening to this story with Matt Fitton's script (who has had experience writing for this incarnation before), these flaws with the character are now gone and it truly feels like like we have the First Doctor back again in audio form. James Dreyfus as the new (or should I say old) Master is also brilliantly good in a very different way compared to what we've seen so far. There's a quieter subtlety to his evil compared to the outwardly psychotic edge of Simm or Gomez and he very much reminds me of a combination of Jacobi and Delgado with his tone of voice and manner. Dreyfus is charming and manipulative never once raising his voice and feeling much more restrained with less of a direct scheme and willingness to kill than usual but it makes sense considering how far back it is for this character. It doesn't make this Master any less threatening especially to our main leads in how he coerces and manipulates them against the Doctor and his most prominent traits are still here and recognizable even this early in his life. In short, it's the perfect precursor to the Delgado incarnation and I really hope we get to see more of him in future stories. When Bradley and Dreyfus finally meet as Doctor and Master about halfway through, it's an electrifying moment for both of them and a real treat to hear. Their sparring is strong in a Pertwee / Delgado sort of way and the fact that it's this far back really allows the history that we don't know to speak for itself rather than it being said outright. Jamie Glover works fine as Ian Chesterton / William Russell. The personality is definitely there with his character even if his voice isn't quite at least not in this first story. On the other hand, I wouldn't say Jemma Powell is a good Barbara Wright and Claudia Grant is definitely no Susan Foreman at least from what I heard here. Powell's demeanor and traits for Barbara are there but it's hard to distinguish her from the other female voices in this set which Jacqueline Hill was always so good at. Grant's voice for Susan feels entirely too high and too valley girl and her personality feels much more like a pretty face most of the time as opposed to the true alien naivete and personality brought by Carole Ann Ford. We'll see if they get better in story 2 but right off the bat I wasn't impressed. There are a ton of other things to like and dislike about this story. There is a fantastic musical score in this one and the soundscape feels like it was appropriately ripped straight out of the 60's time period for this team. The pacing is brisk and it keeps and holds your focus the whole way through even with the extended length. But it is a little slow and boring whenever the focus isn't on the Master and certain voices are a little hard to get used and distinguish at first listen. But it does work fine and none of it brings the story down too badly compared to other stories where these flaws were a major hindrance. In short, 'Destination' has problems that do detract at times but is still a fine story for the First Doctor especially for its place in canon in bringing the First Master into the Whoniverse. We'll see if the problems it has are better handled in the second story or if they will remain a major problem for this series as a whole. 

Really enjoyed listening to this first story; at the time of reviewing I haven't listened to the second story so I'm not sure how everything about this set plays out. There is something that doesn't feel right about this set though, although its trying to be the First Doctor and co, it feels modern, like it would have during the 60s. This is very much a "reinvention" as Big Finish promised. It feels like we're starting again. This still fits into continuity, with references to the Aztecs, Edge of Destruction and even to some of Big Finish's own stuff like "The Beginning." As the original announcement claims, these aren't impressions of the original cast, they are a reinvention; they are still the characters we've come to love in the last 50 years but with slightly different voices saying the lines.
It does make me want to go back and watch some of the classic Hartnell stories such as the Aztecs, The Edge of Destruction and the Romans, to just dive back into that era of the show.
Now, the Master. In this story, his motives are very much the Master we all know. But I don't know why it had to be the "First Master", it makes it such a long time between him and the Delgado incarnation that I think Big Finish want to later fill in, when I like the idea of a story where the Master burns through a few bodies because of some freak experiment he was conducting fails. However, Dreyfus puts in a great performance and in some scenes is scary in a way that i've never thought of the Master in that way and you remember how evil this guy is supposed to be. I would like to see this incarnation again, so i'm glad that there are rumors he will be appearing in the 4th Doctor Adventures in the near future.
Overall, I can't recommend this story, or boxset to anyone who wants a faithful Hartnell era adventure, if you can put in mind and get over the fact that this is a re-telling or reinvention of that era, that still fits in our precious continuity then I would highly recommend the purchase. :)