Doctor Who Online - Reviews - BBC Audio

Format:	MP3-CD
Starring:	William Hartnell as The Doctor
Written by:	Terry Nation
Directed by:	Derek Martinus
Reviewed by:	Sebastian J. Brook
Duration:	5 hrs 20 mins
Manufactured by:	BBC Audiobooks

The Daleks threaten to destroy the fabric of time itself in this exclusive recording of an epic ‘lost’ adventure, starring William Hartnell with linking narration by Peter Purves.

The Daleks have taken possession of the Time Destructor, a weapon which threatens the safety of all who stand in their way. They have formed an alliance with the Outer Galaxies, all of them bent on destroying the human race, and called a council of delegates to the planet Kembel. In their midst is Mavic Chen, treacherous Guardian of the Solar System.

Also included is Mission to the Unknown, a single episode ‘teaser’ which sets the scene for the incredible twelve-part adventure.

£19.99

Submitted By:	Sebastian J. Brook.
Review Submitted:	29/3/2003

First Impressions:

When I first heard that the BBC were going to release 2 previously released CD stories onto MP3 CD, I thought they were mad! I remember thinking to myself "Why release this story on MP3 when its already on CD. Surely, there can't be any point to this whatsoever?".

My... - how I was wrong!

Firstly, let me tell you that the quality is far, far superior to that of the CD release. MP3 does to Doctor Who CD's, what the DVD's did to VHS - It completely blows them away!

The fact that it has been compressed in no way reduces the quality as some people might think. The BBC clearly state that the release is "...the same high-quality sound as standard CD's". To prove my point about it being better, they state is has been "...Digitally remastered for optimal sound quality".

Not only do you get the whole 12 part adventure in its entirety, but you get a special bonus episode: "Mission to the Unknown". Mission to the Unknown, is the only episode in Doctor Who history to not feature any of the regular TARDIS crew. It serves as a trailer to The Daleks Masterplan, and really sets the scene perfectly.

The Story:

Overall I found that The Daleks Masterplan had a reasonably strong story-line, helped greatly by the exposition set by Mission to the Unknown. Although I felt, at times, that some scenes were too long-winded and tiresome to the listener, I felt that the solid, believable characters and sub-plots helped to drive the journey of the adventure right through to the end. An example of this would be Episode 8 - Scene 3. I felt there were too many pauses which held up the scene and far too many random "hisses" by Celation, which sounded to me like a man tirelessly trying to learn the word "S".

Despite this minor drawback, I found the adventure surprisingly entertaining, bearing in mind that the added bonus of vision was missing from the story. Peter Purves' seamless voice-links replaced the missing visual element, with great success.

Technical Pros:

Superb sound quality - superior to CD quality.
More space means less discs!
up to 25 hours can be carried on 1 disc!

Technical Cons:

Can only be played on Computers and MP3 CD players.

Conclusion:

All in all - a splendid release from the BBC Audiobooks team! I would strongly recommend any fan with a spare £20 to go out and buy this. Its an adventure that you should listen to on at least one Sunday every year! Make yourself a cup of tea (or coffee if your craving for caffeine is that bit stronger) and curl up on the sofa - press play - and close your eyes. You'll thank me for these instructions 5 hours later!

You know... I think this MP3 thing is going to catch on!