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 | Reviews for The Syndicate Master Plan: Volume 2 |
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There are 2 reviews so far. To add a review of your own for this item, visit the voting page.
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| This actually jolted me at the very end! |
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| By: | Matthew David Rabjohns, Bridgend, United Kingdom |
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| Date: | Tuesday 21 May 2019 |
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| Rating: |  10 |
After the superb build up of the first half of this special Syndicate Masterplan set, I was just keen as mustard to listen to the second half. And as youd expect it didn't disappoint at all. Big Finish have definitely made series 8 of the Fourth Doctor adventures very very distinctive indeed.
Time's Assassin builds on the bonkers aspects of the first half of the story and if anything adds a new layer of delicious stupidly funny stuff to proceedings. This is not the out and out totally serious adventure. This is like a gung ho adventure youd read in a comic. But there are most certainly some very dark moments if you pay attention. And one that was very surprising and unexpected indeed but it was a good and interesting surprise, not a bad one.
Fever Island has us get the chance to hear Tom Baker in baddie mode, and its an absolute delight. He sounds like the leader of the Mysterons! And I just find this highly amusing. Indeed this story again doesnt overtly take itself too seriously, although there are some very good scenes aplenty. This really isnt just a funny set at all, but it does have more than the usual amount of ripe and funny moments though. Jonathan Barnes has woven a really enjoyable tale that is solidly entertaining and didnt let me down at all. But its the Baddie Tom Baker that is this episode's best segment. Tom is delightful!!
And then N was chuffed to see Joh Dorney be given the task of closing this brilliant series of eight stories with a very fine two disc four parter. The Perfect Prisoners actually is a lot more serious than the last three adventures in the set, and does have plenty of grim moments. And it also has superb characters. And to say the least our Ann Kelso turns out to be more than I thought she was going to be. It was a very good cliffhanger to Part 2 of this lasts tory in particular, and I like how the impact of this cliffhanger is left open at the end of the story and there is still a little mystery left with Ann's character.
And throughout all of it Jane has been thoroughly impressive indeed.Together with Tom Baker and John Leeson its just Doctor Who perfection and I for one am glad I had this set for my 33rd Birthday. Man Big Finish are just so amazing and their work just seems to keep getting better and better. So strap yourself in and get ready for a brilliant and epic journey indeed. Everything about this set is just wonderful.
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| Doctor 4 in Doctor 1 Story |
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| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
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| Date: | Wednesday 16 September 2026 |
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| Rating: |  7 |
It is not wise to listen to this box set without having already listened to the first box set. With that in mind, in general the series is an homage, almost a rewrite, of The Dalek Masterplan. It is not simply a sequel. Instead, it follows the path of its inspiration. The Doctor and crew go chasing around here and there, beset and besieged, until a final showdown with the guy who wants to rule the universe. The first story, Time's Assassin, is really a continuation of the closing story for the first box set, in which numerous strands reach a denouement, and we get a couple of new mysteries. The second story, Fever Island, is that episode of respite from the plot of the big story arc. It really has little to do with the main story. Mostly, it is a pastiche of James Bond mixed with a bit of Hammer Horror. This leads us to the closing two-volume story: The Perfect Prisoners. Finally, the Doctor arrives at the lair of the evil mastermind, the mystery of Ann Kelso is revealed, and some farewells are in order. Overall, the collection hits many fan buttons, but beyond these little endorphin boosts there is not much here. It has the flaws of the Dalek Masterplan, too little plot to sustain a story so long. It also has the flaws of the Graham Williams period of Doctor Who, constantly undermining any effort to see the baddies as a serious threat because they are all pretty much played for laughs. It's a bit underwhelming.
