The Beast of Babylon

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary E-Shorts #9

by Charlie Higson

When a girl called Ali pockets a silver orb that falls from the sky, little does she realize it's her ticket to seeing the universe! Desperate to retrieve the mysterious object, the Ninth Doctor agrees to let her join him on a dangerous trip to ancient Babylon. Together they must join forces to stop a giant Starman from destroying Earth before it's too late!

Eleven Doctors, eleven months, eleven stories: a year-long celebration of Doctor Who! The most exciting names in children's fiction each create their own unique adventure about the time-travelling Time Lord.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Fiction, Short Stories, Fantasy, Time Travel, Audiobook

40 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Higson was educated at Sevenoaks School and at the University of East Anglia (where his brother has taught since 1986 and is now a professor of film studies) where he met Paul Whitehouse, David Cummings and Terry Edwards. Higson, Cummings and Edwards formed the band The Higsons of which Higson was the lead singer from 1980 to 1986. They released two singles on the Specials' 2-Tone label. Higson then became a plasterer before he turned to writing for Harry Enfield with Paul Whitehouse and performing comedy. He came to public attention as one of the main writers and performers of the BBC Two sketch show The Fast Show (1994-2000). He worked with Whitehouse on the radio comedy Down the Line and is to work with him again on a television project, designed to be a spoof of celebrity travel programmes.[1:]

He worked as producer, writer, director and occasional guest star on Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) from 2000 to 2001. Subsequent television work has included writing and starring in BBC Three's Fast Show spin-off sitcom Swiss Toni. He is currently starring in Tittybangbang series 3 on BBC Three and has appeared as a panellist on QI.

He published four novels through the early to mid 1990s which take a slightly dystopian look at everyday life and have a considerably more adult tone than his other work, with characters on the margins of society finding themselves spiraling out of control, leading him to be described by Time Out as 'The missing link between Dick Emery and Brett Easton Ellis' [2:]

In 2004, it was announced that Higson would pen a series of James Bond novels, aimed at younger readers and concentrating on the character's school-days at Eton. Higson was himself educated at Sevenoaks School where he was a contemporary of Jonathan Evans, current Director General of MI5. The first novel, SilverFin, was released on 3 March 2005 in the UK and on 27 April 2005 in the U.S. A second novel, Blood Fever, was released on 5 January 2006 in the UK and 1 June in the U.S. The third novel, Double or Die, was published on 4 January 2007 having had its title announced the day before. The next, Hurricane Gold, came out in hardcover in the UK in September 2007.[3:]In this year he also made a debut performance on the panel show QI. His final Young Bond novel, By Royal Command, was released in hardcover in the UK on the 3 September 2008.[4:]

Charlie has signed a deal to pen a new series of children's books for Puffin. According to the author, "They are going to be action adventures, but with a horror angle

Reviews

[Jim C · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short story based on the television show. This one has The Ninth Doctor and he basically fights Galactus from the Marvel comics. It isn't Galactus. He fights Starman who is a being who eats planets. I could not help but think of Galactus while reading this story.

This was a very quick read. And I am not kidding when I say this is quick. That is where the flaw lies in this story as it definitely needed to be fleshed out more. The Doctor visits ancient Babylon and along the way he picks up a new companion. This companion isn't human and I actually enjoyed this aspect quite a lot. I just wish it was explored more and I can say that about this whole story. Everything needed to be explored more. We visit Babylon but I never had a sense we were there. And that is the case of not enough exposition. Same thing with the antagonist. I needed more. I liked everything about the book but it left me feeling unfulfilled as each aspect was truly never explored.

This is the case where we have an interesting story but it needed it to be longer. I really wish this story was made to be one of the novels from this universe. I might be a little bias about my enjoyment because The Ninth Doctor is my favorite. That being said there are some cool concepts in this story that was just touched upon rather looking into them deeply.

[Alejandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the ninth book in the 50th Anniversary event of eleven short stories featuring the eleven doctors with eleven different companions. Now, it's the turn of the Ninth Doctor and for this particular adventure, Charlie Higson, the author, chose to create a new companion, Ali.

The Good

Not matter that the Ninth Doctor only lasted one season in the "new" era of the Doctor Who TV series, I think that he is quite interesting and he brings an unique visual impact that no other doctor offers. Also, I think that he did an important job with just standing in front of the camera with his very comtemporary british look declaring: "This something new, this is something updated, this is darker, BUT it's still a TV British show and still is Doctor Who".

A new companion: Ali. I can't elaborate much about her because I can spoil a lot of surprises about her, but definitely she is a fantastic companion for a doctor, any doctor, and certainly I wouldn't surprise that her participation in this short story can open an untried angle for companions of doctors. Also, the interactions between Ali and the Ninth Doctor were very rich and really interesting to read. Definitely, Ali is the best of the short story.

New villain: Starman. While the relevance of the villain is not so important as only a vehicle to justify some other elements of the plot, it's still an interesting concept for a villain in the series.

Historical visit: They go to Babylon, and always it's good when they visit some recognizable historic place.

Surprises: The short story keeps surprising with unexpected twists at each part.

The story is set just after of the TV episode Rose but before of The End of the World.

The Bad

Maybe that as I commented before, the villain is not such a complicated threat but only a necessary evil to be able to move other elements in the short story.

The Odd

I think that the Ninth Doctor is more at ease as he supposed to be at that particular moment of the season. He must be more "at edge" behaviour. But it's nothing that ruins the tale or anything.

[Just a Girl Fighting Censorship · Rating 3 out of 5]

For what it is, it's pretty good with a few extra special awesome moments.

The story itself is average, if feels a little rushed, but it is a short story after all.

The Doctor's companion for this story is a girl named Ali whom I almost instantly liked, but not everything is as it seems and the twist that is slowly revealed is more interesting than the actual plot.

BUT, here is the real reason this short story is a MUST-READ: Canon! Remember episode 1, season 1 of the new series entitled Rose? Remember how at the end of that episode the Doctor offers Rose the chance to travel with him and she responsibly turns him down to stay home and take care of her mother and Mickey? Remember how the Doctor leaves but then reappears to mention that he can also time travel and Rose runs to the TARDIS?

Well this story takes place in between the Doctor's disappearance and reappearance! Yes it is timey wimey and so awesome!

[F.R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

What happens when a Tom Baker or a David Tennant or a Christopher Ecclestone dematerialise for just thirty seconds or so in the Tardis? Our human minds assume that time passes for the Time Lord like it passes for us, but what if it doesn’t? What if a moment for us is a whole other adventure for The Doctor?

That’s the conceit Charlie Higson goes with in the latest anniversary tale. Seizing on a fleeting disappearance in the adventure ‘Rose’ and conjuring up a dangerous jaunt in time and space for Christopher Ecclestone’s Doctor (largely captured here by describing his facial expressions) in what is a brief moment for Rose herself.

The new series is often criticised for a lack of planet building, of not having the time (or inclination) to show the society of whichever world The Doctor and his companion have landed upon. As such everywhere – be it the end of the universe or Shakespearian England – becomes little more than a back-drop for all the fun running around. This story suffers massively from that exact problem. It takes place in ancient Babylonia and at a future spaceport, but does nothing really to conjure either. Both are just hastily sketched and so nether ever feels that much in peril. The Doctor, for all we have a sense of where he is, may as well be standing in front of a charcoal doodle of the moon. Maybe like the TV series, the brevity of the form is to blame, but it’s a pity as it just makes a very slight tale even slighter.

Still, nice meerkat joke.

[Bill Meeks · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one was a wash for me. The whole Starman premise was interesting enough, but it fizzled out before they did anything interesting with it.

The main problem I had with the story was *SPOILERS* how it connected with the original 9th Doctor episode 'Rose'. It tried to close the gap between the Doctor leaving and coming back, something I really don't think should have happened. That's when the Doctor should have been visiting the Kennedy assassination, etc. from 'Love & Monsters' among other things. It's really the one 'dark spot' we have in the 9th Doctor's timeline and this story filled it in a little too much for my liking.

Ali's insistence that the Doctor go back to get Rose as well as the Doctor's feelings about her felt really forced. Yes, I know Rose is a very special girl. I don't think the Doctor should have at this point.

Maybe I was expecting to much from this since it was a 9th Doctor story, but it was a struggle to get through. I wouldn't recommend this one unless you're a completist.

[Artur Nowrot · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this one, but it rubbed me in all the wrong ways, from the completely out of character Doctor (which makes me glad that I haven't watched most of the other Doctors, so I can read their stories and not suffer because of the way they are written) to the companion who knows everything about the Doctor, gives him advice on how to get Rose to come with him (this happens during 'Rose', before the Doctor comes back to tell Rose that the TARDIS also travels through time), then, after knowing the Doctor for about half an hour gets insanely jealous, then turns into a murderous psycho – because she's a woman (of a different species, I know, but it still irked me). The reveal halfway through was pretty clever, but it didn't alleviate my feelings.

[Michael Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Charlie Higson is a fluid, interesting writer, and his depiction of the Ninth Doctor is spot on. But this book is dreadful for two reasons.

The first is a problem which has dogged all these short story ebooks: it's TOO DAMN SHORT! The plot is laughable: big thing shows up and the Doctor just happens to have in his possession the single thing in the cosmos that will banish it (good job, as there's no time for him to find any other way of dealing with it). There's no room to detail any of the locations or supporting characters, it's all a bland rush that leaves no impression at all.

The second problem is a writing conceit that I loathe:

***SPOILERS***

I hate it when a writer conceals information from the reader which would be evident in any other medium. When reading, our imaginations need to be able to visualise the characters and situations. So it is extremely annoying when the companion character Ali is revealed half way through the damn book to not be remotely humanoid. Worse, we're only given hints at that point as to her actual appearance: things are casually thrown in as if we're expected to know them. "Oh, so she has venomous antenodes which can stun or kill? Oooookaaaay... Oh, so now she has armour too, does she? ... better scratch that visualisation of her and start all over yet again, then..." Only at the three quarters point do we discover she's actually a crustacean with six legs. This results in a complete lack of reader empathy with the character who is supposed to represent our viewpoint. And it's a false method of withholding information, because if we were really present and immersed in the story, we would KNOW these things, they would be instantly obvious to us.

I HATED this book with a passion. This series has been mostly a severe disappointment (with the exceptions so far of the 2nd, 4th and 8th Doctor tales), but this one really is the worst.

[Kribu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad story at all, but it suffered from the same problem I've had with nearly all of these stories - a lengthy, relatively detailed introduction followed by the middle part (where the actual plot happens) that is hurried and not nearly meaty enough, and a short, rushed ending.

I wasn't initially happy to find out Nine wouldn't have Rose as his companion in this one, both because I liked Rose a lot better with the Ninth Doctor than with Ten and because I expect this means she'll be in Ten's story instead of Martha or Donna (both of whom I liked much better in Ten's era), and, well, Nine & Rose just seem like an inseparable package deal.

That said, and slight disappointment aside, I actually ended up liking the way this was handled. It was nice to get an alien as a companion even though she thought and acted a bit too human-like for me to suspend disbelief entirely - I assume it was part of the whole reveal, to make Ali sound like a regular human girl to start with and then only gradually reveal that she's not from Earth and then, in a way clearly designed to surprise the reader, describe her very much alien looks and beliefs. And also, it fit into the canon TV timeline better than I'd expected, and Rose was certainly present enough in spirit, if not in body.

The plot itself... not the worst I've read and not the best I've read. Ancient Babylon was a cool destination, but I felt the Starman part of the plot was rather weak.

On the plus side, I could actually hear Christopher Eccleston's voice for Nine's dialogue, so at least to me, Higson got Nine's voice down just right.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Beast of Babylon is a short story written by Charlie Higson and is a part of the year-long celebration for the fiftieth anniversary for Doctor Who (2013). This short story is the ninth installment of what would eventually be twelve parts – one for each Doctor. The Beast of Babylon focuses on the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston).

This short story was written really well. I particularly liked the new companion Ali, who I connected virtually instantaneously. As a companion, I thought she was, in the words of the Ninth Doctor, fantastic! Her interaction with the Ninth Doctor was very rich and really interesting to read and dare I say that she was perhaps the star of the story. The Ninth Doctor was written really well and was in character, which I really appreciate. The villain, Starman, was not such a complicated threat worthy of the Doctor – at least in my opinion.

All in all, The Beast of Babylon was a well written short story, dare I say fantastic even. More importantly I got to know the Ninth Doctor a tad better, although he's written a tad mellow that I remember him, but a good rendition nevertheless. Fantastic!

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Higson has created my favorite e-short so far. In it the Ninth Doctor picks up a girl called Ali and they head to Babylon, under the rule of Hammurabi, to face a god-like power.

The Ninth Doctor is captured perfectly, in his speech and in his characteristics. Higson uses the Ninth Doctor's cheeky grin to brilliant effect and I couldn't help but feel transported back to 2005 when a 12 year old version of me sat watching the first episode of the revived series.

The story is also great in many ways. Higson gradually reveals more as the story goes along and everything you think you know at the start of the story is wrong. He also does a good job of putting a bit of history in, with an appearance by Hammurabi and the Doctor mentioning how he stood for law and order. Plus this e-short is perhaps the most tied-in with the series as it is set during "Rose".

Fantastic!

[Natalia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The very last chapter was the BEST part of the entire story. Gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

[H.J. Swinford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is set during New Who S1 Ep1 in that moment when Nine leaves at the end, then comes back. I actually LOVED that. Higson did a fantastic job at capturing Nine and his quirkiness. The end seemed to be kind of fan-servicey, but heck. I'm here for it.

[Iris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This felt average and rushed.

[Helen (they or he) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars.

The Doctor is out of character. The story is kind of all over the place and I couldn't guess what the author wanted me to focus on. Also, revealing Ali's physical identity is not a good twist. It's like I've been imagining all the scenes in daylight but then it was suddenly revealed that it was in the middle of the night with no lights. Didn't like that one bit.

[Lis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was in state of lazy-to-read, so I think this condition might've biased my opinion. I was, in fact, not interested to keep reading this.

Ninth Doctor is my first doctor and my favorite doctor--it even feels like he's my first love on Whoniverse. That's why I picked this novella. But it failed on me. Other people say Higson depicts Ninth perfectly--perhaps I'm both a bad Ninth fan and in need to re-watch the entire series 1, but I barely heard Christopher Ecclesont's voice on my head when I was reading his dialogues. I didn't get it.

Speaking about the plot, I presume it's average. Regular Doctor Who episode.

I like Ali, though. It's good to see an alien companion. At first she wasn't like Rose or Martha or other companions, she didn't have the guts to disobey the Doctor, and somehow it makes her relatable. But in the edge of danger, she got that mad Karkinian frenzy.

Aw man, I really, really, wanted to enjoy this like other people did. After all, Ninth is my favorite doctor.

[Adam Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Beast of Babylon features the ninth Doctor and is set during the period at the end of the episode Rose where leaves and then returns to the same spot to remind Rose that the TARDIS also travels in time. The Doctor here is very much the ninth Doctor as seen on screen and it also makes a few points clear such as the one that he was newly regenerated at the start of Rose and he had gone to the Earth after he had been made aware of the Nestene presence there. The story takes the Doctor back to the ancient time of the Babylonians thousands of years in the Earth past where he has to stop this entity from destroying the planet.

[Ilse · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 stars

Even though nine only had one season and it's been quite some time since I watched it last he was once again very vivid. I love how all these authors from these little books got the doctors very right and vivid on paper.
The story was really interesting and Ali was a very interesting character, it's nice to actually be able to read from one of the aliens minds. To see what they think and read how their thoughts lead to certain actions. Really interesting!

[Leilani · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to see the Ninth Doctor visit a non-human civilization for a while, to get the chance to see him without Rose for once, and to have a perfectly plausible explanation for why he prefers traveling with human companions. A brisk little story, not bad for something that could be finished in the length of one afternoon dog walk.

[Uve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reseña completa: http://miradasenlatadas.blogspot.com....

3,5 Se podía sacar muchísimo más partido a la historia. Me han encantado varias cosas: la acompañante, la situación temporal de esta historia (enlazándola muy bien con la serie), y los diálogos del doctor y Aly.

No se ha sacado mucho partido al periodo al que han viajado.

[Sophie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The comment about sentient creatures at the outset of story infuriated me, meerkats and humans... what about Susan the horse.

I felt the Doctors casual acceptance of the atrocities commit by his obnoxious companion went against his very nature and morality.


A let down.

[Shruti Buddhavarapu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst of the lot. Apparently punctuating every other sentence with "manic grin" is an acceptable form of representing Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor. The story started well, but I got really exasperated in the middle and abandoned it.

[Shannon Blake · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ouch! The worst story in the series, Higson at no point captures the 9th Doctor's voice, it feels as if I am reading a nine-year old's fan-fic.

[Myrthe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first one of the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary E-Shorts I've read, because the Ninth Doctor is awesome. The story was okay, nothing really special but still a good, quick read for Whovians.

[Alayne · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Ese final <3

[Melenia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't like how when I reread them it gets rid of my original review... This was a great read tho.

[Evgeniia · Rating 4 out of 5]

– Итак, мы приземляемся на Земле! – крикнул он.
– За две тысячи лет до рождения Иисуса Христа…
– Кого?
– Он был вроде Шерлока Холмса. Знал ответы на все вопросы. Очень хорошо решал загадки.

​Читать про Докторов, которых знаешь намного занятнее. Во-первых, лучше понимаешь мелочи, черты характера присущие тому или другому Доктору. Во-вторых, можешь визуализировать написанное. И в-третьих, имеешь возможность оценить смог ли автор передать образ экранного Доктора.

Девятый Доктор получился на редкость правдоподобным. Сразу же перед глазами эта безумная улыбка и чудаковатая манера разговаривать. В рассказе понравилась Али, раса которой не раскрывается почти до самого конца. И логично, что читатель представляет её не иначе как гуманоидом. Тем более когда Доктор берет её с собой на ТАРДИС. Поэтому первые упоминания об усиках немного сбивают с толку. Я не очень люблю античные темы, но история получилась интересная.

[Zara Day · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story belongs to a special club of maybe ten that I felt had bad pacing because it was too short, rather than too slow. I liked this story as much as I can imagine is possible with a short story about Doctor Who. It had an interesting setting, and the Doctor and his temporary companion had interesting chemistry. I just really wish Charlie Higson had had the opportunity to either tell this story in a longer format like an audiobook production for BigFinish or possibly adapted it for the screen, though I do understand the twist makes that latter option less likely.
I will say that going into it, I thought it was going to be a Rose story because the canon of the show is that he regenerated right before meeting Rose, and obviously still has her by the end. Interestingly, though, it actually does fit into the space between when the Doctor leaves Rose behind in the pilot and when he comes back seconds later.
I would have given it five stars if it hadn't been bite-sized, but whatever.

[Jamieson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Beast of Babylon was the 50th Anniversary Puffin eShort for the Ninth Doctor and was written by Charlie Higson. It features a solo Ninth Doctor teaming up with Ali, an alien girl, kind of a crustacean-like species, from the far future to defeat a Starman (think Galactus from Marvel, sort of) in the ancient city of Babylon. This story takes place at the end of Rose, in between the Doctor’s first and second invite for Rose to travel with him. The Doctor defeats a Starman (a creature created when a star dies and warps the fabric of spacetime) on Ali’s homeworld, but this causes ripples in time. The Doctor and Ali then travel to Babylon to defeat a second, more-powerful Starman. It was a good story, but nothing great. It’s short and characterizes the Ninth Doctor well. I listened to the audio which is read well by the author.

[Trin · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is way too much crammed into this novella to make any aspect truly satisfying: an original alien companion from a spaceport planet, ancient Babylon, a transdimensional villain, characterization for the Ninth Doctor that (in a slightly overcomplicated way) pins his timeline to near the end of his first episode, "Rose." Yet somehow Higson also manages to accidentally fit in some xenophobia, implying that the Doctor only travels with humans because they're the only species that has "humanity." (Violent warrior aliens can't help being violent, and warriors, and, y'know, aliens!) Ew! I don't think this was quite Higson's intention but it is what he wrote. Disappointing.

[Mary Archer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully, poetically written Dr Who short which takes different narrators thousands of years and galaxies apart. A sleight of hand reveals a character’s appearance no one would’ve guessed. Probably the best tie in to the Dr Who episodes of the twelve series e-shorts as it exists in two moments of time with the introduction of Rose Tyler. Really a gripping narrative, as the protagonist rivals the Doctor in contrasts and opposes him in his morality. And with this narrator the 9th Doctor is brilliantly characterized as the mad grinning, almost sneering, sharp tongued Doctor he is. Riveting!