An Autist Reviews: Their Finest Hour (The Eighth Doctor Adventures: Ravenous 1.1)

*This is an older review, it is not as detailed as my more modern reviews*

*All Reviews Are Spoiler-Free Aside From Any Spoiler Sections*

The TARDIS is calculating where Helen and the Eleven have wound up, but whilst it does that, The Doctor and Liv need to keep themselves entertained. Winston Churchill has called, an invisible menace is attacking Great Britain with anachronistic technology and the Doctor needs pilots to take him into the skies. Sadly, Winston Churchill can’t spare any pilots. Luckily, a couple of Polish pilots are looking to prove themselves.

I LOVED this story the first time I listened to it, and after listening to it again it was just as good! It’s well written, witty, and serious when it needs to be. The period of time in which this is set can be hard to portray, especially Churchill, but it’s all done so authentically it’s amazing. The story of the entire thing is filled with intrigue, action, and doubts about what’s happening. I know I didn’t guess the ‘twist’ of this episode until the very end! Sadly, there are some downsides to this story. The twist isn’t exactly perfectly executed or set up. And let’s talk about the ending… both parts. There’s a death at the end that feels shoehorned in, and the entire story does, sadly, end very suddenly. It’s a bit of an anticlimax, I must say. Luckily, the journey is so much better than the ending, so, it’s easy to move on from.

As for acting, I can’t say enough good things. The raw emotion, the accents, the way the material is handled, it’s all perfect. The bad guys are a little less than perfectly acted, especially in their final scenes, but it’s once again something very easy to overlook. Liv and the Doctor are awesome, and Winny Churchill as played by Ian McNeice is always a treat of fine acting. Even the slightly less than perfect lines are delivered in a way that can almost make you ignore them!

The effects suite of this episode is lovely! The music is fun and intense, and the vocal effects are great, except for the alien voices… those were less than great. The general effects suite is also very close to perfect. You always know what’s going on, but there are times when the effects need to be heightened, but interestingly enough, there are no times where I would add some effects, which is uniquely intriguing and lovely.

As for replay value, I’d listen to this over and over again. You don’t get too much out of listening to it again, but you’ll want to. It’s just so fun and intriguing.

All in all, I don’t know why this story is rated so low. Sure, it’s simple, and it has its problems, but that doesn’t mean that the bad parts outweigh the good parts. The story is superb, the writing is pretty darn good, and the emotions run throughout this story heavily. The acting is superb except for some small issues involving the bad guys’ voices, and those are also where the vocal effects take a dive. The effects are great, and the music suite is epic. It has a good enough replay value, especially if you just want to enjoy a short, sweet, and simple story. This is easily the best of the box set, but even so, I can’t wait to do the rest of this box set!

Total - 9

Plot - 9
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Story - 9
Writing - 8
Enjoyment - 10
Twists - 7

Acting - 10
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MCs - 10
SCs - 10
BGs - 9

Effects - 8
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Music - 8
Voices - 8
Actions - 9

Replay - 8
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Re-Enjoyment - 10
New Details - 6

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