Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures, Volume 1

The Tenth Doctor Adventures #1.1 - 1.3

by Matt Fitton, Jenny T. Colgan, James Goss

1.1 Technophobia by Matt Fitton

When the Doctor and Donna visit London’s Technology Museum for a glimpse into the future, things don’t go to plan.

The most brilliant IT brain in the country can’t use her computer. More worrying, the exhibits are attacking the visitors, while outside, people seem to be losing control of the technology that runs their lives.

Is it all down to simple human stupidity, or is something more sinister going on?

Beneath the streets, the Koggnossenti are waiting. For all of London to fall prey to technophobia...


1.2 Time Reaver by Jenny T Colgan

Calibris. The spaceport planet where anything goes. Where anyone who doesn't want to be found can be lost, and where everything has its price. Where betentacled gangster Gully holds sway at the smugglers’ tavern, Vagabond’s Reach.

The alien Vacintians are trying to impose some order on the chaos. Soon the Doctor and Donna discover why. An illegal weapon is loose on the streets. A weapon that destroys lives… Slowly and agonisingly.

The Time Reaver.


1.3 Death and the Queen by James Goss

Donna Noble has never been lucky in love.

So when, one day, her Prince does come, she is thrilled to have the wedding of all weddings to look forward to. Though the Doctor isn’t holding his breath for an invitation. And her future mother-in-law is certainly not amused.

But on the big day itself, Donna finds her castle under siege from the darkest of forces, marching at the head of a skeleton army.

When it looks like even the Doctor can’t save the day, what will Queen Donna do to save her people from Death itself?

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Audiobook, Fiction, Time Travel, Aliens, Adventure

240 pages, Audio CD

First published May 1, 2016

Reviews

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technophobia

The Doctor and Donna arrive in London and discover that everyone is afraid of technology.

This pretty simplistic plot brilliantly replicates the RTD era, it's a solid season opener as Tennant and Tate are having a blast with being reunited again.
It's the perfect nostalgic listen to a pairing that hadn't been seen together on TV for 6 years.

Time Reaver

Set on the spaceport planet of Calibris, the TARDIS team try and stop the dangerous Time Reaver weapon falling into unsavoury hands.

Really brilliantly realised alien world with some really unique characters!
The concept of the weapon itself is fascinating, the ability to slow time and inflict so much pain on a scared victim sounds horrific.

Death and the Queen

The strongest of the three stories sees the Time Lord and companio travel back to the 1700's.
Donna soon finds herself falling for the prince of the kingdom, whilst The Doctor is baffled that he hasn't heard of Goritania.

A really strong character piece as Donna is the main focal point of the play, though the Doctors angst of potentally losing another companion is also interesting.

[Jim C · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an audiobook based on the television series. This collection has three stories with The Tenth Doctor and his companion Donna. The two actors who played these characters on the television show return and provide their voices for their characters.

This was a lot of fun. I enjoyed all three stories. I did think the second story was the weakest but still likeable. The first and third stories were a delight to listen to. The audio production is top notch with its presentation as well as the actors. And let's face it. How can you go wrong with David Tennant and Catherine Tate returning to their characters. Their chemistry is fantastic. One can sense the enjoyment of David Tennant returning to be The Doctor as well as Catherine Tate giving life to her character once again. The banter between the two is perfect and made me laugh out loud so many times. Having these stories as an audiobooks actually provided more enjoyment than the written word with the actors and the production. That being said the stories are good stories for this universe.

I believe I had a smile on my face while listening to this. I loved hearing David Tennant and Catherine Tate reunite to play their characters once again. The only flaw in this book was loving the pairing of these two and realizing that their time on the actual show was way too short. Any fan of the show should give these a try as we get to have more adventures with these characters that are not on the show anymore.

[Molly™☺ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used to be a huge Doctor Who fan but fell off the show during Whittaker's run. However, I thought it time to dive back in before the 60th anniversary rolls around, and where better to start than with my favourite Doctor and companion duo. The magic of this team is captured just as well in audio format as it is on screen. Tate and Tennant still bounce wonderfully off each other, and they give performances that really bring these stories to life. The stories all felt true to the essence of Doctor Who, and whilst they might not be the most memorable, none are bad. The last is the strongest and it's great to see Donna shine as the focus. Definitely carried by the chemistry of the leads, it's a great listen for fans.

[Fern A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three tales with the Doctor and Donna, excellently narrated by David Tennant and Catherine Tate. I think these are some of the better Doctor Who audiobooks and a great place to start for new listeners

[Dev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn't like this one quite as much as volume 3 [which I listened to first because I'm just Like That], but still really good overall. The Technophobia episode had me rolling my eyes a little bit, but the Time Reaver episode was pretty good and Death and the Queen was absolutely hilarious. Poor Donna just has the worst luck with weddings ;) And as always Tennant and Tate are just amazing and play off each other so well. I wish there were more of these that they did together.

[C.L. Cannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Doctor and Donna doing what they do best, yelling, bickering, being best mates, and saving the universe. This was a wonderful little adventure to dive into after watching the 60th anniversary eps!
Also, yes, queen Donna!

[Tamara✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tennant and Tate just play off each other so well I don't even need to see their physical acting to be entertained. THEY'RE JUST SO FUN ALWAYS!!!!!!!!! Even the weaker story in this trio was still enjoyable because of them. The first story, Technophobia, was my favourite as it really felt like a classic RTD era story as short as it was. However the last one, Death and the Queen, is the one that gives you the classic "Doctor doesn't want to be alone but loves his friends enough to let them go" feels. UwU

[The Post Monument · Rating 3 out of 5]

Technophobia - 4 stars
Time Reaver - 3.5 stars
Death and the Queen - 2.5 stars

Overall - 3.5 stars

[April Mccaffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm rewatching the RTD of Who and I'm trying to get out of my slump a bit so I decided to give this another relisten and I enjoyed it so much more the second time round.

Technophobia: 4/5
Time Reaver: 3.5
Death and the Queen 4/5

These two just work so well together on screen and audio and it's just nice to have good old doctor who again.

[Tarissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anything narrated by David Tennant will always be worth a listen to me. Returning to his role as the tenth Doctor, we find the fantastic DoctorDonna duo back in action again! 3 memorable audio stories in this volume. Excited to listen to volume #2 soon.

[Jurgen · Rating 3 out of 5]

1.1 Technophobia by Matt Fitton: 4*
1.2 Time Reaver by Jenny T Colgan: 3*
1.3 Death and the Queen by James Goss: 3*

[Boone Bluemel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always nice to hear from Donna, AKA the best companion of New Who

[Connor Coulborn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second episode drags the box set down a little but the first and third are genuinely some of the most fun I’ve had with Doctor Who in a while.

[Azar Farehi · Rating 4 out of 5]

More Doctor and Donna?? Oh yes!

[osoi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aww yiss! Десятый и Донна снова штурмуют время и пространство. Это мое любимое сочетание всея докторофраншизы - пою дифирамбы бигфинишу, который в очередной раз возрождает самые волшебные проявления DW (первым был Торчвуд ;)).

Technophobia by Matt Fitton
История про внезапно пробудившуюся тотальную технофобию. Это все, что я помню :D Серьезно, сплошная беготня в духе филлерных серий.

Time Reaver by Jenny T Colgan
Повествование настолько скачет, что без должного внимания основная линия легко теряется. Персонажи показались предельно неадекватными, а мотивация странной. Вроде бы присутствует философское допущение, но оно объясняется в самом конце и выглядит неумелой привязкой для придания дополнительной драматичности предыстории. Зато у планеты и местной таверны потрясающие названия - Calibris & Vagabond’s Reach.

Death and the Queen by James Goss
Это то, ради чего стоило слушать весь том) Джеймс Госс прокручивает вечную невезучесть Донны в любви через очередные фантастические декорации - и как же роскошна эта женщина в роли яростной защитницы своего народа! Выпуск сочетает нетривиальный сюжетец и лучшие моменты взаимодействия парочки Доктор-Донна :D

Overall brilliant.

lukk.svbtle

[Melenia · Rating 4 out of 5]

#1 (5 Stars) - March 2017 - I so loved this audio!

#2 (3 stars) - March 2017 - Not bad. Not my favorite. This one did not ring as true to the tenth Doctor as the other audio's in this series and that bothered me a bit, but still worth listening to.

#3 (4 stars) - March 2017 - I very much enjoyed this audio; although, Donna was pretty annoying in this one, which resulted in the four star rating. Definitely worth a listen though, for sure!

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures Vol. 1 is a collection of three short story adventures from my favorite Doctor. Oh! And did I mention that they are in audiobook format? With the original cast lending their voices to make the adventure all the better. Yes, please!

This was originally published by Big Finish Productions, however I got my copy of the series through Serial Box. In fact, I hadn't even heard about these adventures until they hit that platform, so I'm pretty grateful.

Technophobia by Matt Fitton
The first story in this collection is probably also my favorite, and it's titled Technophobia. Written by Matt Fitton, it's a quirk adventure, but no shorter than any of the episodes. In it, Donna and the Doctor have reunited again (not literally – it's set before their parting). There is an alien race working hard to bring humanity backwards a few steps in their technology, and this was their plan.

“Good as new. Give it ten minutes, they'll knock up another dozen landscapes. You see, the beauty of robots is they only ever do what they're told to do.”

Technophobia was fast, fun, and supremely quirky. Just the way I like it! Having the Doctor and Donna yell at one another is something that I will never get sick of. Seriously, it's so funny. Even when the world is crumbling around them, they find a way. This is a perfect listen for anybody looking for a good laugh, and really just a Doctor Who adventure in general.

Time Reaver Jenny T Colgan
Next up on the list is Time Reaver. This was another enchanting tale, and part of me wants to say that it is also my favorite. Sadly, they can't all be favorites! Set on Calibris, a spaceport where something is about to go very, very wrong. As is the way of Doctor Who.

“I told you, we're not going to that Planet of the Boys. There is no Planet of the Boys.”

There is a balance between chaos and order, and a price to pay for both. One must always pay for their decisions, as this short did an excellent job of showing. It's highly emotional, with a dark twist that will leave you reeling.

Death and the Queen by James Goss
Last, but certainly not least, there's Death and the Queen. This is a short that is going to be perfect for fans of Donna. As she takes center stage here (who else could pull off the concept of queen better than her?).

“I have 36 formal titles. If you are having trouble sleeping, I can recite them to you.”

I really enjoyed this story. Not just because it was so Donna-centric, but because of everything that is portrayed. It was fascinating, as well as kind of dark and twisted, just the way I like it. Honestly, this story would have felt right at home in an episode of Doctor Who, so part of me is sad that we'll never get to see it filmed.

Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Bree Hatfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I think maybe the universe needs its crossing-places where the rules don’t apply. Otherwise, where are us space buccaneers gonna go?”
—
“Eternity: I hear you calling. But you will not have me yet.”

David Tennant and Catherine Tate are back in a big way with this box set. They are brilliant and they slip back into their roles beautifully. It was a joy to see them together again, and this collection is also very well-written on the whole, aside from the first story which I’ve elected to ignore in my overall rating.

The first story, “Technophobia” by Matt Fitton, is a lot of nothing. The plot is simply bad and there’s no character development. Every once in a while Doctor Who does a story about the dangers of technology, and they’re never good. This is no exception. 1 star.

The second story, “The Time Reavers” by Jenny T. Colgan, falls under the same category as the War Doctor’s “The Neverwhen”; the actual story was so-so, but the premise and ending was brilliant. The idea of an object with the ability to slow time is interesting, and that interesting idea pays off when it’s used on the Doctor, who spends a vast, unnamed amount of time alone with his thoughts. It’s hinted that it was years, which plays into his overarching theme of loneliness. He even has a moment of reflection on this at the end, and we see it affect him. This is exactly what I love to see in a piece of Doctor Who extended media — building off the main character arcs/themes of a given Doctor’s run.

I also really love the atmosphere and setting of the second story. It’s very reminiscent of “The Rings of Akhaten” and I think we need more of that in Doctor Who. 4 stars.

The third story, “Death and the Queen” by James Goss, is a brilliant character piece for Donna. This adventure is good all around, from start to end, and it portrays and expands upon aspects of Donna’s character in a great way. We see her desire for control morph into something good as she takes the mantle of queen seriously and rules with benevolence. We see her compassion shine as she tries to use her power for good. This is portrayed well enough in the show with the DoctorDonna arc, but this expands upon her character in such a crucial way that it’s a shame it isn’t in the show. This adventure should be required listening when watching season 4.

The plot is also very good. The stakes are just high enough to warrant the short run time, the side characters are memorable, and both the Doctor and Donna get time to shine in the climax. I also love the 18th-century setting, it really added a certain flare to it all. Also, the Doctor makes a Brigadoon reference, which makes me gain a great deal of respect for James Goss. Easy 5 stars.

[Seb Hasi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technophobia - ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This story really was in keeping with the tone, pacing, and humor of Doctor Who series 4; this was not really the most appealing thing considering I’m not a huge fan of the series. The story is quite simple, people being driven mad to almost Neanderthaloid levels; aliens responsible of course. There is a nice resolution to the story which is simple but effective, a nice twist helping make the story more enjoyable. Donna is written rather well here, and as a companion I feel no fondness for, I actually found her quite amiable. The 10th Doctor is incredibly easy to write for so it’s not surprising that it feels as if he never left the role; the consideration more that the story is just a series of skits about people freaking out over appliances. A decent story, just nothing really remarkable about it.

Time Reaver - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this story. The imagery was fantastic, and the plot quite clever. Tennant and Tate act superbly and so do the supporting cast. There are little details of the story that don’t work so well, as much as the repetitive nature of the climactic moments, and I didn’t really take to the bureaucratic aliens. Those details aside, the story was great. The alien threat was quite menacing, and the actual time reaver was a great concept. This story really feels like an alien environment, with monsters all around; unlike the actual series 4 which always felt very earthbound. There is not much to say without spoiling details, but I can say this one is a thriller that hits all the right story beats and has as I mentioned, some superb imagery.

Death And The Queen - ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

This story was a pure comedic entry and seems to be the people’s favourite of the three. I found some of comedy hit the mark but it did feel like the jokes went on for a little too long. The story builds to a dramatic climax, but given there was nearly nothing but repetitive comedic scenes in the build up; it was therefore incredibly hard to take that serious. I enjoyed the story more than most of the generic and relatively simple ones, due in part to the twist being quite clever. The humour detracted from that slightly, but I always appreciate original ideas, and this was a definite display of that.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures: Volume 1 - 4.34/5 Stars
The Doctor and Donna are back, Catherine Tate and David Tennant fall back into their roles after 6 years away from them and it feels like they’ve never been gone. It’s a solid box set with fun ideas and with rich and exciting characters.

1.1 Technophobia by Matt Fitton - 4/5 Stars
This story plays with the fears around technology in a ‘why hasn’t it been done before’ idea. Most of the side characters were interesting but a few just felt a bit bland. The story is good but there are parts where the Doctor rambles on for a bit too long.

1.2 Time Reaver by Jenny T Colgan - 4/5 Stars
Another decent Doctor/Donna story that plays with another ‘why hasn’t it been done before’ idea. I think the villain, who was initially quite fun, just got a bit annoying part way through and when it gets to the part where a character could kill them, I was just sat there thinking: “Why would anyone stop them? The Villian deserves this.”

1.3 Death and the Queen by James Goss - 5/5 Stars
The best was last. Donna and Doctor are at their one-liner best. My favourite being:
"I’ve had worse first dates. Death here’s just asked me to dance."
But the story is even better. Donna falls for a prince who then tries to sacrifice her to Death during their wedding ceremony. Despite being a grim story it’s really quite comical and definitely worth a listen.

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Technophobia: OMG! The impossible has happened! More adventures with The Doctor Donna! My favorite Doctor/companion combination are back! The TARDIS team supreme is at it again having high-jinx and saving the world. This audio drama brought tears to my eyes and laughter from my belly. This pair is just as entertaining as they were in the series. The chemistry is there and while the story might be one of the best this pair, it is delightfully entertaining. Great work Big Finish, job well done!


Time Reaver: Another wonderful adventure with The Doctor Donna. I must admit that I find myself chair dancing in under glee when the theme music kicks in. But the real joy is when The Doctor & Donna start in on each other, the chemistry is there and clearly palpable. Great performances from the entire cast and an interesting story. Wonderfully entertaining. Kudos to Big Finish.


Death and the Queen: Brilliant! Pure Doctor Who. The Doctor and Donna really hit their strides with this one. Feels just like the series. Big Finish does it again and delivers a brilliant Doctor Who adventure. ”I may have a bumpy track record, but I am NOT marrying Death!” Is clearly something that would exactly come out of Donna Noble’s mouth. I was almost in tears with the ending.

[MrColdStream · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tenth Doctor debuts on Big Finish with a set of three adventures that sounds like they'd been pulled straight out from Series 4 of the TV show. With amazing performances from David Tennant and Catherine Tate and some interesting concepts presented within the stories, Volume One closely resembles the era it's supposed to be set in.

Technophobia: 88/120

This story greatly depicts the dangers of over-reliance on technology, while showing what could happen if we suddenly lost the ability to understand the technology we've created. The fast-paced adventure contains an interesting alien threat and a sassy Tenth Doctor. The guest cast is fine, but none of the actors stands out.

Time Reaver: 79/120

A slightly slower story with a dark and touching plot and a Jabba the Hutt-like villain. The setting comes alive very well and the actor portraying Gully does a remarkable job.

Death and the Queen: 88/120

This is a period piece with a comedic twist, putting the focus on Donna and putting a twist on the classic concept of death. With the focus put on the characters, Death and the Queen Mother stand out particularly, and the regulars put in great performances once again.

Overall score: 88/120 = 3,7 stars

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oddly enough, The Tenth Doctor Adventures, Volume 1 is reflective of exactly how the Tenth Doctor's era was: extremely uneven. The first and last episode of the set were mediocre at best, the middle episode was enjoyable, and the characterization of both the Doctor and Donna were kind of all over the place. As always, David Tennant and Catherine Tate delivered strong performances, but those performances can only go so far. The sound design is nice, and the episodes are well directed. It's just that they're let down by some uninspired monsters and uneven dialogue. I still recommend it, if only for that middle episode, The Time Reaver. That one's lots of fun, and it's nice having more adventures with Tennant's Doctor.

Full review on my blog.

[Stefan Grieve · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Tennant and Catherine Tate return to their roles as the tenth doctor and his companion in these audio dramas, and they do a good job of enthusiastically slipping back into their skin.
The first story has a lot of action in it but is pretty standard doctor who fare, while the second one is my favorite as it deals with interesting concepts, tragedy and also fun humor (although a bit of a over-the-top pantomime villain.)
The third is good as well and really highlights the greatness of Catherine Tate's Donna Noble character.
All together I think it doesn't quite reach the heights of the TV episodes, but fans of the series, particularly the Tenth Doctor's later narrative era, will find a lot to like in this volume.

[Helen (they or he) · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. Technophobia - 4 stars

I enjoyed this story the most. It's not perfect by any means but it's enjoyable and it was the perfect thing to listen while I'm unwinding. It has been a very stressful day and it made me laugh. So it's not getting less than 4 stars.

2. The Time Reaver - 3 stars

I actually read this instead of listening to it. So I couldn't connect with Cora at all. I didn't like her and since she's an important character in this story, I wasn't able to like the story. It still get 3 stars though.

3. Death and the Queen - 4 stars

It's been a while since I listened to this. But looking back at my review, I think it's safe to say that I didn't hate it. I like it when the Doctor and Donna bickers.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories were OK and definitely had entertainment value, though honestly none of them really stood out to me. Although the voice acting and sound effects were well done, I think I prefer reading more complete Doctor Who stories rather than listening to this kind of audio play. I guess it was just not really for me. There wasn't enough detail for me to really get hooked. And I found the volume differed quite a lot throughout, meaning that when they were talking quietly I could barely hear them - which I guess is only a problem if you like me tend to listen to audio books while doing other things (exercising and housework).

[Lindsay Bray · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Rating: 4 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tropes/Themes: Sci-Fi


My Review:
This audiobook collection of short stories was FANTASTIC and I had such a fun time listening to it! I highly recommend it to anyone who loves Doctor Who. The dramatized production was spectacular and very well done. I just love David Tennant and Catherine Tate, they were my favourite duo on Doctor Who so it was only fitting for them to voice their own characters, no one else could’ve done it justice. The plots were extremely fast paced, I was engaged from beginning to end. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars was because I the last story, Death and the Queen, wasn’t my favourite.

[Tricia Schneider · Rating 5 out of 5]

Technophobia:
This was so much fun! I loved listening to the Doctor and Donna on another adventure. I really miss them a lot. David Tennant and Catherine Tate are wonderful in this and I could easily picture them in my mind. I'm so glad I bought this audio, so I can listen to it again and again.

Time Reaver:
Another fun audiobook with David Tennant and Catherine Tate! I love these two together! Great story!

Death and the Queen:
Another fantastic audiobook featuring David Tennant and Catherine Tate as The Doctor and Donna Noble. I can never get enough of these! I just love them!

[Emma Dargue · Rating 4 out of 5]

really good set of three stories about the adventures of the 10th doctor and Donna Noble. the first story in this collection was general doctor who story and was OK but nothing special. the second story was really really good and showed a more emotive side to Donna which i really loved. the third story was the funniest but underneath had quite a good monster/villain. really good overall collection and I will be continuing with this collection and or other 10th doctor stories.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will I listen to, and enjoy, anything narrated by David Tennant? Turns out I probably will! Loved Catherine Tate as the Doctor's companion so really enjoyed these three stories. There is a great chemistry between the Doctor and Donna and Tate has wonderful comic timing.
Great little listen for fans of the show.