For once, this review DOES NOT contain spoilers!
Now here’s a play to silence those who say that Big Finish have gone off the boil! “The Kingmaker” is absolutely amazing; I enjoyed every single minute of it! Oddly, when Big Finish published the blurb and the original front cover on their website there wasn’t really anything there that made me think “Here comes a classic..”, although Jon Culshaw’s name didn’t go unnoticed. When the CD arrived with a slightly different front cover my interest was piqued – a Target-style “Doctor Who Discovers Historical Mysteries” book cover bearing the image of the fourth Doctor had been added. The fourth Doctor? Jon Culshaw? They said they’d never do that… well I’m glad they did! From the minute I pressed ‘Play’ for over two hours I was completely engrossed in the story. The genius who penned “Omega” has really excelled himself this time!
To begin with, the characters are absolutely fantastic. I have become a huge fan of this particular TARDIS crew; Peri and Erimem have become such good friends, and their playful relationship with the Time Lord is a joy to listen to. Nev Fountain, I feel, has written for all the regulars particularly well here. All three of them have their fair share of the plot (and as far as plots go, it’s a corker!), and what’s more the plot is delivered in style – the dialogue simply sparkles. As with “Omega,” Fountain has written a great science-fiction story that would stand up without the underlying comedy, but with both combined “The Kingmaker” is impossible to turn off. For example, in the same play Erimem has a lovely running gag where she breaks the arm of anyone that touches her bottom, and she also has a scene where she seriously contemplates killing not only herself but Peri too – her best friend! Oh, and just for us perverts, there are some lovely Peri tit jokes. Brilliant.
The Doctor (or should I call him ‘Doctor Who’?) spends most of the play on his own, separated from his companions by a couple of years thanks to a “hiccupping” TARDIS. His time is primarily split between scenes with ‘One-armed Clarrie’ and Richard III himself, and like his companions his story is a deadly serious one with hilarious undertones. Davison’s performance is very dry and it works superbly; in the past he stated that he wouldn’t really be interested in doing an out-and-out comedy the like of “The One Doctor” or “Bang-Bang-A-Boom!”, but with “The Kingmaker” he is able to have a little fun without the story descending into farce. I found it amusing in itself that Doctor, at some point after “Terror of the Zygons”, became something of a celebrity, but the fact that he turned down “the celebrity cookbook” and “the chat show circuit” to write children’s books is sheer genius and serves as a wonderful introduction to the story: a publishing robot from the end of time materialises in the TARDIS, threatening the Doctor that he needs to finish his book “Doctor Who Discovers Historical Mysteries,” or else! For those of you incredulous about the ‘Doctor Who’ part, the book’s original title was to have been “The Doctor, Who Discovers Historical Mysteries”, but presumably Target’s design department got a bit confused, whipped up the classic logo (lovely bit of nostalgia, by the way) and bob’s your Uncle: Doctor Who. I wonder if that’s where WOTAN got it from…?
“You see past, present and future and make sure we all act according to the rules. You’re worse than a god. At least a god allows his subjects to repent.”
To finish his book, the Doctor decides to go back in time and find out what actually happened with Richard III and the two princes in the tower. Did he actually kill them…? Well, “The Kingmaker” certainly contains some “Omega”-like twists that I don’t want to give away, but suffice it to say that Nev Fountain’s take on the infamous historical mystery certainly contradicts Will Shakespeare’s! This brings to me to Stephen Beckett’s Richard III. What a character! Beckett’s Richard III is a fascinating man; more so than Shakespeare’s take on the character or even Blackadder’s! He’s one of these brilliant baddies that are completely and utterly deplorable, but they are still cool. A lot of this, I think, is down to Beckett basically playing the crippled King of England as a twisted version of the ninth Doctor – I had to check the booklet to make sure that it wasn’t Eccleston, and that this wasn’t some massive surprise story angle Big Finish had cooked up! There’s even a red herring in there pretty early on, where it is revealed that the ninth Doctor drops off a note for Peri and Erimem. I don’t think I’m spoiling it for anybody by saying that at the end of the day, Richard III is Richard III, not the ninth Doctor. He does say “Fantastic!” a lot though, mind, and has all the same vocal mannerisms. As the play progresses, it becomes clear that Richard III is far from the madman that history paints him as – in fact, he’s not an unreasonable man and he actually wins several moral arguments with the Doctor. I know it’s not the newest idea in the world, but it always works incredibly well. The Doctor may be a freedom fighter and a hero, but, as Caroline Symcox touched upon in the fifth Doctor’s most recent adventure, he will let people suffer if he thinks it is for the greater good – if he believes that time wants them to suffer. As Nev fountain puts it so concisely in his author’s notes, “Bad things happen in history. Right almost never triumphs and evil often wins. To keep the universe ticking over, the Doctor has to let bad things happen to good people.”
The rest of the supporting characters are all just as entertaining; Arthur Smith deserves far more praise than I have room to write for his portrayal of ‘Clarrie’, as does Marcus Hutton for ‘Bucko’ and Chris Neill for the hilariously camp torturer, Sir James “Exciting isn’t the word” Tyrell. Of course, Jon Culshaw is also in there, credited for the rather small role of ‘Earl Rivers,’ but undoubtedly his most important contribution to the play is his uncredited impersonation of the fourth Doctor. He plays Tom Baker’s Doctor in an old audio recording that the fifth Doctor is using for his research, and to be fair I couldn’t tell that it wasn’t Tom Baker. I’ve always been impressed with his uncanny impersonation when I’ve seen it on TV in Dead Ringers and The Story of Doctor Who, but like a lot of people I’ve always been against using soundalikes to play the other Doctor’s in these audio plays; it just doesn’t seem right. Used sparingly as it is in this play though, it works tremendously well and I can’t say that I have any complaints. On audio, the impression is even better than on TV because visually, no matter how good the costume is, we know it’s not Tom. Take away the image though, and, well… I wonder if Big Finish are testing the water here, hmm? I’m still uncertain how I’d feel about a full length Jon Culshaw play, though I must say after “The Kingmaker “ I’m not entirely opposed to the idea. Remember Richard Hurndall…
I don’t want to say too much about the real villain of the piece in case I spoil the story, but I will say that the black-clad pointy-bearded Mr. Seyton (Michael Fenton Stevens) has popped up in Doctor Who before, and I hear he may be turning up in the TV series next year…
In all, you simply cannot go wrong with “The Kingmaker.” It has all the cleverness and charm of the new series, with a bucket load of nostalgia and even a little bit of fanwank for us continuity buffs. It’s without doubt up there in my top ten Doctor Who audios, and I only hope that Nev Fountain will pick up his pen once again for Big Finish in the near future.
“All things considered… Fantastic!” Interfering in history really is becoming old hat in the WHO spin off universe. The timewyrm and meddling monk arcs in the Virgin NA's and the interminable Players and (to an extent) Sabbath and his crew in the BBC run.As for BIG FINISH, so many alternative timeline stories that I'm surprised the crew don't put paradoxes on their cornflakes. Despite my feeling that this has been overdone, I did rather like THE KINGMAKER.
I liked it cheifly because- well, let's separate out the reasons a little. Without giving too much away for starters, the plot revolves around a missed publishing deadline (who collected those DOCTOR WHO DISCOVERS books as a child? There's a surprise coming....!) which sends the fifth doctor back in time to find out who did kill the princes in the tower. Everything is set up to reveal a certain well known villain- who then turns out to be someone completely different.....Okay, the good bits now.
Sparkling dialogue. Richard III has a wonderful world-weariness about him as fate overtakes him and a lot of wry lines which help to make this play. Davison's penchant for wryness is also used to the hilt.
An effective tongue-in-cheek take on history. An amusing start with the publishing droid leads into a sharp plot. The Doctor walks out into 1485, wherupon the TARDIS promptly takes the companions back a couple of years. Cue lots of fears that they will have a hand in taking the story's subject to its bloody end. The intercutting between the two years is well done via letters and conversations and it all links up very well indeed. Then we are all set up to expect a certain villain from our hero's past and we get- well, wait and see. The script drops red herrings galore and very well too. Is it really going to to be the Doctor who does the deed to preserve the sanctity of the web of time?
Hear it and see..
A couple of gripes. I don't like Erinem much - nice to have a historical companion again- like Evelyn Smythe, she is a wonderfully different type. But Erinem simply seems too modern to convince me that she is an ancient Egyptian princess- her role in COUNCIL OF NICEA, for instance, was exactly that filled by Barbara in THE AZTECS- trying to sift out the good from the situation so it isn't lost with the bad, but it doesn't fit with her past and place. She is a woman from a brutal, regal, ancient setting- yet she stands on the side of religious liberalism and understands historical paradoxes fluently. The structure of her dialogue is also more modern English than anything else. Yes, people learn with the Doctor, but we need to see it happening. Leela was the example of how to do it- ancient/primitive doesn't mean stupid as many ancient cultures had great knowledge, , but it does mean having a different outlook. She needs to be located more in her own time's human worldview so any changes can make sense. Like Victoria in the TV series, who's sole concession to being a victorian miss was timidity and sexual coyness, too little is given for the effect to work. An authentic accent would be a start... Peri, of course, desn't suffer from this, but given that these tales are supposed to fall between PLANET OF FIRE and CAVES OF ANDROZANI she isn't really the naive self-centred teenager we were given in 1984. I know that you can't go back all these years later and play it exactly the same, but Peri here seems too mature and advanced to be same person from seasons 21 and 22. The writing should ensure continuity here, as this is part of BF's manadate. It can't be justified by being Peri as she should have been as what is given needs to fit in with overall series continuity. If it was between seasons 22 and 23 there would be no problem as Peri had clearly changed by this point- but 'nuff said.
Also, the episodes seemed overlong in places especially at the end - things really get complicated as a certain writer apparently dies before he is born and a certain king takes his place. Very strange. Could have done with a trim, chaps. I was finding it hard to follow. But quite a few of their time paradox scripts are.....
Overall, though, a fun script. Not a BIG FINISH classic however- I am not one one of those who think they've lost the spark altogether, but their very best days do seem to be in the distant parts with the likes of SPARE PARTS, HOLY TERROR, CHIMES OF MIDNIGHT, LOUPS GAROUX, etc. But a good effort. I hate it when they do that. Really, I hate when new Doctor Who does a lousy first episode of a two part story and then follows it up with an absolute corker. They did it last year with 'Bad Wolf'/ 'Parting of the Ways' and now they've done it again.
Imaginative, brilliant in places, so funny it hurts and with enough plot to stretch out its 140 minutes, The Kingmaker is plagued by one fatal flaw, its just too clever for its own good. Clearly the script has had a lot of work put into it, it has one of those insane twists driven plots which never stops surprising which is amazing for episodes one and two, pleasing for episode three but a little wearying come the final instalment. Frankly I had forgotten all about the performances and the direction and was concentrating sole on what the next surprise would be, just so I could keep up. A script should never detract from what I feel is the most important part of audio work, the performers (who have to convince us this is all real!) but come episode four this could have been played by a bunch of trained monkeys as far as I was concerned, so intent was I on trying to keep up with and outwit the storytelling. Compiled by the some of the most talented members of the Dead Ringers team (a show which I adore with every fibre of my being), it has all the biting wit and sharpness you would expect but considering they started out on audio they should have remembered that the actors need to be centre staged backed up by the gags and the plotting.
What a shame because so much of The Kingmaker works a treat and it has been written by a guy who has explicit knowledge of the show and knows how to get us rolling in the aisles. There were so many little touches that delighted me, things like how utterly stupid Peri was throughout (but Erimem actually commenting on how bafflingly annoying it is!), the great cheat that the villain is called Mr Satan, has a evil pointed beard and a murderous expression, Jon Culshaw’s hilarious piss take out of the fourth Doctor, the Doctor’s alcoholic reaction to Ginger Pop, the Dalek, Cybermen and Sontaran nick-knacks that Shakespeare nicks from the TARDIS, the Doctor finally getting his come uppance as Richard threatens to crush moral tirade and change history…have no doubt about it, this is one for the fans but saying that there is enough humour, excitement and joy for any old git to listen. If you manage to get through the entire 2 hours 20 minutes without cracking a smile then you have no soul.
I haven’t really commented much on the every widening gap that is forming between Planet of Fire and Caves of Androzani featuring Peter Davison, Nicola Bryant and Caroline Morris. I will say that judging by the evidence on the television it is clear there isn’t room for these stories, the simple fact is the reason the Doctor’s regeneration affects Peri so strongly is because she hasn’t known him very long and she felt very attracted to the Doctor she did meet. But I also say canon be damned! The simple fact is Big Finish took a gamble assembling this team and it is a gamble that has paid off in spades. Davison, Bryant and Morris make a sparkling team, also a delight to listen to (unless the story is called Nekromentia) and I don’t give a figgy pudding about continuity or what fits where when honestly I am being entertained this much by these regulars. I’ll leave that to those anally retarded fans who feel the need to have every fit over the expense of the storytelling and performances. I think these three are fab, end of story. Works for me.
What has happened to Peter Davison? When he began these audios he was getting most of the drab stories and you could tell he was only half interested in what was going on. In the past three years the fifth Doctor’s audio fortunes have reversed, being treated to stories of the calibre of The Council of Nicea, The Game, Singularity and The Axis of Insanity. Davison performances have never been better and for the first time in my life I can see why everybodies loves this Doctor so much. Full of energy, always ready with a witty retort and taking good care of his friends, this is a man I would like to travel time and space with!
The Kingmaker sees Davison (and the fifth Doctor) at his height and clearly loving every second of his excellent material. There are far too many favourite moments to point out, his reaction to losing the girls and discovering they have written him a letter through time, his chat with the Chief Kosher, his moral rant at Richard and his horror when he realises the tables have been turned, his simple admission that he knows who the two boys in the tower are, his embarrassed reaction at Peri’s rant about the Master…oh I could go on all day. However my all time favourite moments are his scenes with the robot (who would make a brilliant companion!)…the Doctor trying to outwit a publishing deadline, genius!
And how well do Peri and Erimem work these days, now those awkward days of the actors and characters getting used to each other are over. They share a very natural, lively chemistry that makes their scenes together a real joy to listen to. The fact that they come from such different backgrounds (one is a bossy US teen and the other is a battle hardened Egyptian Pharaoh) but act like a squabbling sisters is hilarious, especially here where they are abandoned in the past and forced to work as serving wenches! Erimem’s constant: “We are just stupid women…” to appease the men is gut wrenchingly funny and how she rips the piss out of Peri’s all time stupidest ideas (“We could save him!”) make me want to kiss her all over. Nicola Bryant is dazzling in this story, willing to be ribbed, plucky and sounding as though she is having a ball. The best moment these two have comes in episode three where Erimem is willing to kill the pair of them to restore history to its rightful path and Peri’s terrified reaction leads her to pretend she was faking the whole thing. Brilliantly, we later discover she was genuine and she only made it seem like a joke to appease her friend. Excellent stuff.
There are other wonderful scenes dotted around that I feel compelled to mention. The whole letter swapping escapade in episode two is a treat, the ninth Doctor dropping off some letter for Peri and Erimem to find (and the barman suddenly remembering there is another letter, just when the plot needs it!). The scenes of Peri and Erimem playing tennis intercut with the Doctor and Richard discussing their deaths is both hilarious and really intense, not an easy balance to achieve. And what about the motive behind William Shakespeare’s time meddling? Love for his Queen, an excellent spiel of dialogue for Michael Feyton Stevens. The story is beautifully illustrated with such scenes that standout and would pop up on any fans top ten best moments on audio list.
The twists are good, don’t get me wrong but there are simply too many of the buggers. The last episode isn’t drama, it isn’t comedy, it’s just hopping about from one location, one time zone to another and throwing about explanations about the whole crazy story. Rather than this haphazard climax I was expecting something a little more…skilful. Its so garbled that flashbacks to earlier scenes are necessary! I only listened to this half an hour ago but I really have no idea what happened at the end. Maybe I’m too much of a simpleton to get it, but then I did understand Warrior’s Gate and The Last Resort so I dunno.
The direction and musical score are both good, but it is neither Gary Russell’s or Gareth Jenkins’ best. I fear this may come down to the script again, giving both the director and musician too much to do. We don’t really get to dip our feet into this period of history so Russell doesn’t get much of a chance to show off the local colour (unlike his earlier Marian Conspiracy which was extremely atmospheric). With perhaps more control over proceedings we might have had a more balanced final episode but his jagged cross cutting of scenes leaves the audience a bit whip lashed. Saying that he gets the comedy element perfect, especially with the regulars who he has worked with many times before and there is clearly a very relaxed atmosphere…as he gets them to loosen up like they never have before! The same with the music, there are stings that are powerful and fun but on the whole it is swamped by what is going on. Music should compliment drama not be overwhelmed by it.
So they you have it, The Kingmaker. A story which has a script so good it delights and bedazzles the audience but unfortunately has a script so good that it marches all over the performances, direction and music. I enjoyed this story a great deal but I think I would have enjoyed it even more if the writer had got his head out of the arse of Doctor Who fans and thought a little more about his conclusion. |
