M054 - The Natural History of Fear

The Doctor is not the Doctor, he's the Editor. And Charley and C'Rizz aren't themselves either. Everyone is afraid of committing Orwellian thoughtcrime while being force-fed adventure stories about the Doctor and his companions. It's almost meta, and there are a few interesting lines when that starts becoming more apparent. Otherwise the criss-cross of betrayals and revolutionaries, characters being "revised" into new personalities, and dystopic jargon make for a more confusing narrative than usual.

It does come together and prove interesting, though. And the altered theme music, which winds down like a broken tape, and the sound effect and voice of the society's warning announcements are all nice audio flourishes that make for a fun listen.

M053 - The Creed of the Kromon

Continuing in the Divergent Universe, the Doctor and Charley find themselves in a kingdom ruled by the Kromon, giant insect creatures who have enslaved the humanoids. They capture Charley with plans to turn her into a new queen. The Doctor must save her by bartering his knowledge of inter-spacial travel.

Other than the introduction of a new recurring companion, C'Rizz, this story is creepy and a little over the top. Perhaps it's just my lack of interest in bugs and all things disgusting, but the whole arc of Charley being genetically and psychically tortured into a new bug queen was unappealing. C'Rizz seems like a nice enough guy to add to the mix, but when the three of them left the Kromon behind to continue their search for the TARDIS, I was happy to go with them.