Now that was an unexpected treat. Obviously he's a very able scriptwriter but in his one and only attempt at a novel there was always going to be an element of trepidation as to whether it'd work.
I thoroughly enjoyed it. What a very different Doctor Who series this would have made. It's pitch black in tone and filled with drugs and sex - impersonal, alfresco gay sex mostly. It's set on a London housing estate and features a family called the Tyler's (any relation?) who have a terrible secret that's tearing them apart. Across town is Mrs Jericho and her very I'll son who looks very much like the Tyler's youngest, so much so that the already unhinged Mrs Jericho begins a rapid descent into outright lunacy upon setting him. Into this mix we have an alien weapon possessing the body of a dead cocaine dealer (and all who've partaken of his wares) and of course The Doctor and his entourage.
The giant robot ending (shades of the Other Doctor Xmas special) is a little OTT but the characters and the settings are spot on. The doctor is note perfect and the scene in the kitchen and the dining room when Mrs Jericho finally loses it and goes homicidal is utterly sublime.
There were places where I thought it dragged a little but for the most part I thought this was a real entertaining piece of work that would have made for a very, very different show.
No comments:
Post a Comment