Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles: Return of the Rocket Men Review

One of the breakaway hits of the Companion Chronicles series was John Dorney's "The Rocket Men", a powerfully emotional tale that introduced a brand new foe for the Doctor in the form of the Rocket Men. The jetpack-wielding pirates were a surprise hit with listeners, as was the story's emotional content, and a sequel was quickly developed. Now with a new writer and a new companion, however, could this sequel capture the same magic as the original, while still offering listeners something new and fresh? In a word - yes. Emphatically. "Return of the Rocket Men" is a perfect sequel, in that it recaptures what you loved about "The Rocket Men", but it also offers a completely new take on what made it a success. It makes, therefore, for a sequel that won't leave you disappointed, no matter what your expectations are for this story.

Opening with the same question Ian posed to himself in "The Rocket Men" - 'when do you know?' - we enter into a space-age take on an old Western film with Steven as an almost Lone Ranger figure. The TARDIS lands on a ragged frontier world that is under siege from the Rocket Men, and, when Steven, the Doctor and Dodo try to interfere, their brutal leader kidnaps Dodo and some of the other colonists. But Steven has encountered the Rocket Men before: on his 21st birthday, when they shot his ship down. And, to his horror, Steven is about to find himself walking around in his own past. A past in which he saw his future self die... In the extras, writer Matt Fitton talks about how, in contrast to the original "Rocket Men" (which told a simple story in a complicated way), "Return of the Rocket Men" tells a complicated story in a simple way, and there is a lot of truth to that statement. The plot involves a number of twists and turns, some of which it is quite difficult to talk about without spoiling the whole story. However, Fitton never lets the story run away from him, and you are never consciously aware of it being difficult to follow. This isn't a twisty-turny, time paradox story - rather it is a story about destiny and the approaching inevitability of fate. Tapping into the themes of Simon Guerrier's Oliver Harper trilogy, Fitton looks at Steven's decision to leave the TARDIS in a reverse sort of way, looking at what may have lead him to decide that a life in the TARDIS was no longer for him. By bringing his past self into it, it gives Steven a chance to see the life that he had before stumbling into the TARDIS, as well as the people who he left behind. The Companion Chronicles are at their best when they focus heavily on the companion telling the story, and "Return of the Rocket Men" is a prime example of this approach paying dividends. There's plenty of action and adventure certainly: it's gritter and a bit more rough-and-ready than the original "Rocket Men", but it in the character work for Steven where this release really shines. The best Companion Chronicles focus on giving a character who perhaps didn't have a fair time of it on TV a better crack of the whip, and "Return of the Rocket Men" gives Steven a real chance to shine in a story all about him.

As I touched on above, this is very much a story for Steven, but it isn't exclusively about him. Not only does Peter Purves voice a wide range of characters (including his uncanny take on William Hartnell's Doctor), but he's supported by Tim Treloar as the villain of the piece, Van Cleef. We even get some sections narrated by Cleef, in a very unusual move for the Companion Chronicles. Far from being a gimmick, however, these are really important at fleshing out the character of Cleef, and giving us a direct look inside the head of our villain, something which is quite a rare occurrence in the Companion Chronicles. It makes for a very different tale, and the play, especially the fight sequences, have a dynamic quality to them that might have been missing otherwise. It helps that Tim Treloar is a perfect fit for the villainous Van Cleef, and is able to do the scenery-chewing menace that the genre demands, as well as the genuinely threatening stuff that makes Cleef more than a stock-in-trade villain. Like Ashman from "The Rocket Men", Cleef is a genuine threat, and it does make his comeuppance at the end feel deserved. I mentioned above that Purves gives a great performance in this release, and he builds upon what he was doing in the Oliver Harper trilogy with great aplomb. All this is tied together by Lisa Bowerman's first-rate direction, which brings the best performances out of her players, and provides the right energy for the script. She is very much the pro when it comes to the Companion Chronicles, and knows how to balance the action and the narrative elements of these releases perfectly. Finally, Howard Carter's wonderful music and sound design brings the worlds of the story to life, and conveys the emotion of the story well. Like pretty much every Big Finish production, "Return of the Rocket Men" helps showcase the strengths of the audio medium, and just how Big Finish have been able to corner the market with regards to this type of high-quality production.

Overall, then, "Return of the Rocket Men" is another standout Companion Chronicle for the First Doctor. Building on all the work that has been done with Steven up to this point, this story really pushes at the reasons why he left the TARDIS, as well as being a damn good sequel to one of the more popular Companion Chronicles. Taking all the elements that made the original popular, and using them in a new context, "Return" isn't afraid to push the boat out, while making sure it has all the elements that made the original "Rocket Men" a success. With two superb performances and some fantastic production, "Return of the Rocket Men" is, without doubt, a fantastic release, and a great example of Big Finish taking the limitations of a format and really pushing them as far as they can go. For fans of the later First Doctor era, this is an essential purchase.

You can purchase "Return of the Rocket Men" as a digital download from the Big Finish website (see below). Just type "Rocket" into the search bar at the top of the page.

All pictures copyright to Big Finish Productions/the BBC. Thank you very much for reading.