Absolute Power (Big Finish)

Written and Directed by Jamie Anderson
 
Cast: Colin Baker (The Doctor), Miranda Raison (Constance Clarke), Paul Reynolds (Lyam Yce), Jenny Bede (Florrie/Medical Doctor), Arian Nik (Ammar Elkady), Neil Edmond (Professor Aryan Wyke/Mine Worker), Gary Martin (Kohrbal), Esther Hall (Pheenan)
 

Big Finish Productions – Released December 2016

AbsolutePower is a solid story from Big Finish’s newest regular director Jamie Anderson who continues to prove his own ability with a competent first full length script for the Doctor Who audio range (having previously contributed the single episode Come Die with Me to last year's You are the Doctor and other stories) and clearly demonstrates that he's not here because of cult TV nepotism. Judging by the comments of other reviewers, this story has clearly been well received and why not when there’s a lot to recommend it.

 As ever, Colin Baker and Miranda Raison are on sparkling form as the Doctor and Constance find themselves in full-blown detective mode. They head up a cast which includes an enjoyable turn from Paul Reynolds as the morally dubious galactic entrepreneur Lyam Yce. Reynolds has previously appeared in 2008’s FortyFive as the first incarnation of the villainous Word Lord, although for those of a certain age he will forever be remembered as Colin from TV’s Press Gang. Also worth mention are Jenny Bede as Florrie and an extremely impressive debut from Arian Nik as Ammar, a young man who falls very much under Constance’s spell and allows for some enjoyable final scenes.

However, when all’s said and done, for this reviewer, something about this story didn’t quite gel as a piece of Doctor Who. Every now and then, we all encounter an episode which, for whatever reason isn’t quite our cup of tea even if we can’t always put our finger on what we didn’t like, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that most others seem to have very much enjoyed this story. I will posture that perhaps there were a few too many rather obviously stereotypical characters woven into the plot which felt as if had more in common with the sort of adventures that Anderson is used to writing, almost as if the Doctor and Mrs Clarke had inadvertently landed in an episode of Captain Scarlet.

Most listeners will however find this a very enjoyable listen and it is inevitable that after 16 years of monthly releases, Big Finish aren’t going to manage stunning originality every time but this play is worth persevering with for the ending which segues very neatly into Big Finish’s final main range offering for 2016, Quicksilver.

AbsolutePower is available now from Big Finish and on general release from January 31st 2017