4 episodes: The Lord of Misrule, The White Hart, Sanctuary, The Empty Crown. Running Time: Approx. 138 minutes. Written by: Marc Platt. Directed by: Ken Bentley. Produced by: David Richardson.
THE PLOT:
The TARDIS brings the First Doctor, Ian, Barbara, and Vicki to England in 1400, not long after Henry IV has deposed Richard II. They find shelter at Sonning Palace, a bishop's estate, where the Doctor agrees to act as tutor to the fiery young Isabella (Alice Haig) - who, they soon learn, is actually the wife of the imprisoned King Richard.
Barbara, a long-time enthusiast of Geoffry Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, persuades the Doctor to join her on a pilgrimage, while Vicki remains under Ian's care as a companion to Isabella. But their pilgrimage is ill-timed. Not long after they leave, word arrives that Henry IV has been attacked by rebels seeking to restore Richard to the throne. This will make all strangers suspect.
Ian takes off to find and warn the Doctor and Barbara, in the company of Sir Robert de Wensley (Joseph Kloska), a knight whose loyalties are uncertain. Meanwhile, Isabella drags Vicki away from the Bishop's palace, hoping to find and join her husband's forces.
Where their paths converge, one man waits: Thomas Arundel (John Banks), the Archbishop of Canterbury - the man who considers himself the true power behind the throne. Arundel is determined to stamp out all traces of rebellion, to purify England in blood - and the Doctor and his companions are very much on his enemies list!
CHARACTERS:
The Doctor: He is named "Lord of Misrule" for a feast at Sonning, a title he seems determined to live up to. He ingratiates himself with the bishop, not only talking the man into allowing the travelers to stay but also getting himself appointed as Isabella's tutor. When Arundel arrives at Sonning just in time for the feast, the sheer fear of his ruthlessness and influence destroys the previous sense of joy. The Doctor briefly attempts to be careful and cordial - but once Arundel demands control over Isabella's education, he can't help but prod the other man for finding learning dangerous. He makes an instant enemy and a strong impression, but he does find a way to use his "Lord of Misrule" title against Arundel at the end.
Ian: Is driven by his concern for Barbara, needing only the slightest nudge from Vicki to go after her. The narration observes how much between Ian and Barbara goes unsaid while still being fully understood between them, which lines up well with their relationship as seen on television. Ian spends much of the story going by, "Sir Ian of Jaffa" - which, since he was once knighted by King Richard I, is actually a valid rank. Unlike some television stories, writer Marc Platt remembers that Ian is a schoolteacher and not a Special Forces operative. He can hold his own in a fight, but when he comes up against well-trained opponents, he's quickly outmatched. He is able to think quickly, however, which helps him to turn the tables at one point by using his environment against his more skilled adversary.
Vicki: She's stunned by the idea that Isabella is married (let alone a queen), given that the girl is a few years younger than Vicki herself is. She and the headstrong queen are well paired. Vicki, usually the one to leap into danger, finds herself trying to keep Isabella from rash actions at a few points. She's highly protective, thinking fast to shield Isabella from Arundel at one point and trying to help the queen navigate a difficult emotional moment later on. She's still Vicki, though, and her inability to stop herself from speaking her mind gets her into trouble with the new king in the final episode.
Barbara: For purposes of this story, she has a sudden obsession with Geoffrey Chaucer and The Canterbury Tales, to the point that she can orate full passages from memory. Her role is critical to the story in setting the plot in motion, which you'd think would mean a big role for her... but she ends up being the worst used of the regulars, with only a handful of appearances after Episode One. As with Domain of the Voord, Big Finish seem nervous about making full use of the characters whose actors are no longer with us. I'm not sure why. The Early Adventures format is quite similar to what was used in The Lost Stories, where it was assumed we'd be fine with the companion voices filling in for the Doctor and Barbara. Why would a new range suddenly make into a problem what previously hadn't been?
Sir Robert: "Your every breath is a lie," Isabella hisses to him. Sir Robert is the wild card of the story, seeming sometimes like an ally and other times like an enemy, with his true allegiance in question until late in the story. What's not in question is his fixation with Barbara, with whom he's instantly enchanted. This is true enough to the television era, which saw Barbara romanced by Thals and by French aristocrats and more lasciviously pursued by Roman emperors and menacing fur trappers alike. Naturally, this brings out some tangible jealousy in Ian, making him hesitant to accept Sir Robert's help - though he's left with little choice after the knight saves his life.
Thomas Arundel: The Archbishop of Canterbury, and also the principal villain of the piece. It should be observed that the real-life Arundel was labeled as one of BBC History Magazine's "Ten Worst Britons" and that most historical accounts paint him as every bit as bloodthirsty as he is in this story. Within this serial, it's clear that he views himself as the true power, using the new king's name to justify his own quest to purify those whose beliefs don't accord with his own. The Doctor can't/won't do anything to harm him, as history insists on him living for decades more, but he makes clear in two big scenes opposite the Archbishop just how little he thinks of him.
GREATEST STRENGTH: A WELL-JUDGED MIX OF TONES:
I was always a big fan of the Hartnell historicals, and I have generally found writer Marc Platt's offerings to be among the better Big Finish audio stories, so it should come as no surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed The Doctor's Tale. It actually leaves me wondering why the depressingly average Domain of the Voord launched this range when this much better story was in the can.
One of Doctor Who's greatest strengths is that, more than most other series, it can effectively mix genres. In both "Classic" and "New" Who, it's not uncommon for a story to switch from absolute silliness to moments that are deadly serious. The Doctor's Tale does a fair amount of this.
Most of the Vicki/Isabella thread is played with a light and humorous touch, and yet the story's single most effective emotional moment comes from that thread. Ian's efforts to catch up with the Doctor and Barbara play like an adventure story, complete with a stop at an inn and an untrustworthy companion. But that thread leads Ian to a brutal mass execution, with the repeated sound effect of an axe falling making a chilling impact. Both grim moments happen in close succession... only to be followed by some lines and bits (mainly courtesy of Maureen O'Brien's Vicki) that made me laugh out loud while listening.
None of these tonal switches harm any element of the story, and it all feels of the same piece. Instead, the light moments shine more brightly for the moments of emotion or terror, and the darker moments hit harder for the contrast.
GREATEST WEAKNESS: A LACK OF FOCUS:
Though I think it's a very good story, it's by no means a perfect one. It falls into the pure historical pitfall of lacking narrative focus. I initially thought, with the ensemble splitting into three groups, that the script might create a tapestry of life at this turbulent time, but there's only the faintest glimmer of this. We see how Henry IV's insurrection and the changes that it brings impact the nobility and the clergy, but the regular people are all but ignored... a problem, when the ending hinges on the power that is (usually unknowingly) held by the general populace.
In the end, it feels as if there's some central theme that Marc Platt was aiming for, but that never quite comes across. It's all thoroughly enjoyable scene by scene and incident by incident. But since it never quite adds up to "something more," the story doesn't quite make it into the upper echelon of Platt's work.
Also, why is so much made of the Doctor's cold in Episode One? I kept waiting for that to build to something. Instead, it's just dropped, seemingly forgotten by both characters and story.
OVERALL:
The Doctor's Tale is highly enjoyable, and I think it shows off the "Early Adventures" format to stronger effect than Domain of the Voord did. Though the script shoves Barbara to the periphery after Episode One, the rest of the ensemble is well used. William Russell and Maureen O'Brien do their usual excellent job at bringing the tale to life, and the guest cast ranges from solid to very good.
It has issues with narrative and thematic focus, which I think keeps it from building to the greater work that I'd have liked. Still, this was mostly something I thought about while assembling the review. While listening, I was too entertained to nitpick. The story has a fairly generous running time, and there was no point at which I felt bored.
I can't help feeling that it could have been still better - but it's one of the more enjoyable Big Finish titles, and one I'm pretty sure I will revisit.
Overall Rating: 8/10.
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