Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Three Eighth Doctors, 10 Feb 2005
Since his exile to another universe at the end of Zagreus, the 8th Doctor's audio adventures have fallen into a boring formula during his extended quest to be reunited with the TARDIS, with every story bookended by taunts from the mysterious Kro'ka as the Doctor passes through the Interzone dividing the wildly differing regions of the planet he is stranded on. Thankfully the Doctor finally fights back in Caerdroia, and by the stories end has defeated the Kro'ka and won back his TARDIS, yet despite being so dependent on continuity that this story would be pointless for casual listeners to try, it frustratingly ends up telling us very little about the Kro'ka and the Divergents either.The bulk of Caerdroia consists of a battle of wills between the Doctor and the Kro'ka in the sort of fantasy dreamscape that has been used dozens of times before in Doctor Who (most recently The Axis of Insanity), with the characters running around in circles as they encounter various threats. Curiously these threats are all very visual in nature, so rather than playing to audios strengths Lloyd Rose ends up highlighting it's weaknesses, and gags about being chased by monsters that no-one can be bothered to describe for the listener just do not work. The one real highlight of this otherwise pedestrian release is Paul McGann, as thanks to his Doctor being split into three he gives three entirely separate performances, as joining the 'normal' 8th Doctor we also have a hopelessly optimistic 'Tigger' version and a more moody alien version. As with the Three Doctors they bicker constantly, which is great fun. Caerdroia is a very lightweight romp, and quite fun in a mindless way - but as part of the ongoing adventures of the 8th Doctor in the Divergent Universe this is a major disappointment.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A-mazing, 16 April 2009
The Doctor's adventures in the so-called 'Divergent universe' finally come to an end in this story. And many faithful listeners will say than goodness for that. The labyrinthine world in which the time-travellers find themselves harbours the answer to how The Doctor can regain his TARDIS and escape this universe, meanwhile there is more than enough of the Timelord to go round and C'rizz holds the key that will help them to win the day...
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
An average but necessary middle chapter, 17 Jul 2007
"Self-exiled to a new universe, separated from his TARDIS, opposed and manipulated by the Divergence and their agent the Kro'ka, the Doctor has been struggling to work out the nature of the cosmic game in which he's an unwilling pawn. Now, at last, he has a chance to find the answer - and regain his TARDIS!
"Threatened and desperate, the Kro'ka abandons his behind-the-scenes machinations to confront the Doctor directly. But will both of them lose their way in the maze of the strange world in which they find themselves? A world in which a clock may have a cuckoo but no hands, a labyrinth imprisons a paradox, and a Garden of Curiosities reveals something the Doctor has never seen before.
"As the Doctor faces these challenges, Charley and C'rizz provide valuable help. But with the TARDIS itself at stake, the Doctor reaches deep inside himself to find some surprising new allies."
"Caerdroia", by Lloyd Rose, is one of those occasional stories set in a fantasy world where anything goes. Generally speaking, I don't much care for such stories, as the events within them tend to be rather inconsequential and unreal. "Caerdroia" isn't really an exception to this rule and, for me, probably represents the weakest link in Big Finish's second Divergent Universe season.
However, it's not all bad. The cast is restricted to regulars Paul McGann, India Fisher and Conrad Westmaas as the Doctor and his companions, plus recurring guest Stephen Perring as the Kro'ka, and as a result all four characters get something interesting to do and the cast make the most of it. McGann comes off particularly well, as the Doctor is split into three versions of himself: the sensible one, the adventurous and abstract one, and the nasty one. The scenes between Fisher's character Charley and the Nasty Doctor as they descend through the workings of a giant cuckoo clock make particularly good listening.
Indeed, it's character moments such as these that make "Caerdroia" worth listening to, as the "fantasy world" plot is somewhat weak, serving primarily as a means to delay the Doctor's retrieval of his TARDIS for three episodes. The best moments of the story, rather, are probably those between the Doctor and the Kro'ka in episode one, before the travellers first arrive in the world of Caerdroia.
A perhaps unmemorable but perfectly listenable slice of Divergent Universe "Who", and a necessary link in the chain between "The Last" and "The Next Life".
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