Doctor Who: The Mutant Phase Review

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.

Released in December 2000, The Mutant Phase was the 15th Doctor Who audio drama to be released by Big Finish. It stars Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor and Sarah Sutton as companion Nyssa. It is written and directed by Nicholas Briggs.

Big Finish's synopsis:

"In the 22nd century, the Daleks have occupied planet Earth. By the 43rd century, only a handful of humans survive. Still further into the distant future, a Thal scientist must choose whether to betray his heritage, or see the universe destroyed.

When the Doctor and Nyssa find themselves trapped in this deadly chain of events, they must decide who their real enemies are. What is certain, however, is that no matter where the Doctor turns, his arch enemies, the Daleks, will be waiting for him.

What could possibly be worse than that? The Mutant Phase..." 

This is a really enjoyable story in my opinion. It really does remind me of The Dalek Invasion of Earth - one of my favourite First Doctor stories. Almost everything was done by Nicholas Briggs - the writing, the directing and the Dalek voices... And he does a really good job with it all! The idea of the Mutant Phase was just great!

The story starts with The Doctor and Nyssa landing on a planet that, at first glance, looks completely un-populated. Then they hear weapons and The Doctor realises that they're on Earth... In the 2150s... During the Dalek occupation of Earth. Once The Doctor realises this, the two decide to go back to the TARDIS but thanks to the Daleks, are unable to escape.

So, the acting... Peter Davison was fantastic, much better than his average TV story! Sarah Sutton was also great and Nyssa remains one of my favourite companions. Nicholas Briggs gave us some great Dalek voices as always. Jared Morgan was great as Commander Ganatus. Mark Gatiss gave quite a good performance as Karl Hendryk. None of the other actors really stood out to me, but none of them were bad. All the characters were good but I think Davison gave the best performance.

The settings (Kansas 2158 AD, London 4253 AD, Skaro) were all great. That's all I have to say about them.

My favourite character featured in this story other than the Fifth Doctor or Nyssa is the Dalek Emperor. Seriously, it's his first proper appearance since 1967's The Evil of the Daleks and he's just an awesome character. Especially with the way he implants his mind into Ganatus' to be completely sure The Doctor and Ptolem travel back in time to prevent the Mutant Phase.

My favourite line is from the Dalek Emperor - "I am Emperor of the Daleks! Destined to be ruler of the universe!"

I can't fault much but what really I don't like is the ending - it just feels so sudden, but oh well. The story is free on Big Finish's Soundcloud and for that reason (as well as the fact it's a great story), I would recommend it as your first Big Finish audio.

Overall Rating: 9/10

You can buy The Mutant Phase for £2.99 download or £5.00 CD here.