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Reviews for Trail of the White Worm

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A brilliant return from Geoffery Beevers

By:Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom
Date:Monday 30 July 2012
Rating:   9

I have immensely enjoyed these Tom Baker adventures. They have really been great, all the stories very different in style but all true to the feel of the Tom Baker era of the show. And with Louise Jameson in on the brilliant work, then its little wonder this first series of Fourth Doctor stories works so well.

(Looking forward to listening to the next series, though it is very saddening to hear of the passing of Mary Tamm, such a brilliant actress and always one of my favourite companions on the TV show, even if it were for just a single season. She was fantastic and brought a charm to the role of Romana that I feel overall Lalla Ward failed to keep up)

Tom Baker leads a very assured cast in what is basically a four part story. And like the other stories before it Tom baker's doctor comes to life, despite Tom's obvious age. He is still that great great unpredictable whimiscal Doctor, and these stories have been a trove of gems of dialogue for his Doctor. The Fourth Doctor is captured so very indeed.

Maybe the only sore point with this story is Leela. I feel that with all her instincts she should have known she was being led to someone bad in the Master, and yet appears not to know very much at all which is at odds with many stories before. But aside from this minor quibble, this story plods along extremely well indeed. Michael Cochrane in particular impresses as yet another psychotic Colonel, a role he seems always fated to act brilliantly.

The white worm too is well realised, and I cant wait to get the last story and find out what happens for all involved as the Doctor and Leela look to see what happens when the infamous brilliant Kraals turn up for the grand finale!



Fantastic

By:Doug W, An Alternate Reality (formerly Pocono Summit), United States
Date:Monday 15 October 2012
Rating:   9

Trail of the White Worm is by far the best of these new Fourth Doctor stories so far. Script, cast, directing, performances and finished production here are excellent, and the result is an exciting two episodes, to be concluded in the next story, The Oseidon Adventure.

The cast here is particularly superb, with of course Tom and Louise, joined by Geoffrey Beevers, Michael Cochrane, and Rachael Stirling. The story is well-paced, the dialogue is well written, with a couple exceptions I'll comment on in a moment, and the performances are the best yet of this series. Tom is really back here in this one, and the other main players are all great as well.

My only little gripe is with the initial meeting of the Doctor and the Master. Considering what was happening when they last saw each other, IF this follows on from The Deadly Assassin, which was so strongly written, the tone just isn't right - the script at that point is weak, in my opinion. Just a little personal disappointment there, though.

Overall, this is great stuff. A great idea for a Fourth Doctor story.



Much in the Spirit

By:David Layton, Los Angeles, United States
Date:Saturday 12 October 2013
Rating:   8

Trail of the White Worm is more evidence of Big Finish's efforts to make the 4th Doctor adventures feel like a continuation rather than a rewrite. The production features a brilliantly over-the-top performance from Michael Cochrane, a superbly sinister performance from Geoffrey Beevers, and a nicley modulated performance from Rachel Stirling. Tom Baker is by this point falling back into the role. The story itself is classic in structure, even when it contains elements that could not have been done in 1977, such as Col. Spindleton's tank and helicopter. Alan Barnes seems to be aiming for Robert Holmes in the writing, using quirky and very English characters, mixing offhanded joking and serious danger. The major complaint that I have is that it has not much new, that the writer has tried a little too hard to recreate 1977 without stretching the form just a bit.



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