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UNIT: The New Series #7
UNIT: Revisitations
Over the years, UNIT has faced hundreds of extra-terrestrial threats. The Black Archive holds relics of many such encounters, and UNIT’s files are filled with reports of strange and dangerous aliens.
And sometimes, they come back.
7.1 and 7.2 Hosts of the Wirrn by Chris Chapman
After the world’s strangest interview, UNIT’s latest recruit, Shana Siddiqui, hits the ground running to help Osgood with her latest assignment.
The Master left UNIT a parting gift – something alien and deadly. The Wirrn have come to Earth, and now they are free…
7.3 Breach of Trust by David K Barnes
An alien vessel arrives on Earth, its occupants seeking refuge, and Osgood takes them in.
But there is reason to mistrust this cry for help. The files show that UNIT has faced the Kalvyri before. What else they reveal will set Kate at odds with her most trusted friends.
7.4 Open the Box by Roy Gill
In the years since the Stangmoor Prison incident, Captain Chin Lee found a new calling. She now heads up an international organisation, dedicated to meditation and ‘mental fortitude’ training.
But there is a menace deep inside the Pandora Institute. And Kate, Osgood and Josh must face their darkest fears…
And sometimes, they come back.
7.1 and 7.2 Hosts of the Wirrn by Chris Chapman
After the world’s strangest interview, UNIT’s latest recruit, Shana Siddiqui, hits the ground running to help Osgood with her latest assignment.
The Master left UNIT a parting gift – something alien and deadly. The Wirrn have come to Earth, and now they are free…
7.3 Breach of Trust by David K Barnes
An alien vessel arrives on Earth, its occupants seeking refuge, and Osgood takes them in.
But there is reason to mistrust this cry for help. The files show that UNIT has faced the Kalvyri before. What else they reveal will set Kate at odds with her most trusted friends.
7.4 Open the Box by Roy Gill
In the years since the Stangmoor Prison incident, Captain Chin Lee found a new calling. She now heads up an international organisation, dedicated to meditation and ‘mental fortitude’ training.
But there is a menace deep inside the Pandora Institute. And Kate, Osgood and Josh must face their darkest fears…
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First published November 21, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
May 30, 2023
7.1 and 7.2 'Hosts of the Wirrn' by Chris Chapman: 4*
7.3 'Breach of Trust' by David K Barnes: 5*
7.4 'Open the Box' by Roy Gill: 5*
7.3 'Breach of Trust' by David K Barnes: 5*
7.4 'Open the Box' by Roy Gill: 5*
December 3, 2018
7.1 Hosts of the Wirrn by Chris Chapman (part 1)
Chi conosce i Wirrn, e "The Ark in Space" e uno dei pochi episodi di 4 trasmessi in Italia che ricordavo dagli anni '80, sa che non sono creature simpatiche... e in questa prima parte lo dimostrano ampiamente.
Molti riferimenti alla Classica, tra gli appunti di Harry Sullivan e la morte verde. Ma non manca la scifi moderna... "call me Ripley" dovrebbe bastare.
7.2 Hosts of the Wirrn by Chris Chapman (part 2)
Conclusione per il tentativo di conquista da parte dei Wirrn.
Le cose si concludono come previsto, con un piccolo twist gradevole... da un certo punto di vista.
7.3 Breach of Trust by David K Barnes
Gioco di (s)fiducia da parte della UNIT nei confronti di una coppia di alieni e dei loro inseguitori.
Kate si rivela tosta come sempre, con un finale non del tutto negativo ma amarissimo.
7.4 Open the Box by Roy Gill
Kate, Osgood e Josh visitano un nuovo "centro benessere" che nasconde un segreto (al solito) pericoloso per l'intera umanità.
Ottimo per scoprire le vere paure dei nostri eroi, qualche citazione classica... nel complesso sulla norma.
La serie UNIT resta un buon prodotto, come ormai la Big Finish ci ha abituati.
Non si capisce ancora in che punto, rispetto alla serie madre, ci troviamo e mi chiedo se, prima o poi, incontreremo anche la seconda Osgood... potrebbe essere interesssante.
Chi conosce i Wirrn, e "The Ark in Space" e uno dei pochi episodi di 4 trasmessi in Italia che ricordavo dagli anni '80, sa che non sono creature simpatiche... e in questa prima parte lo dimostrano ampiamente.
Molti riferimenti alla Classica, tra gli appunti di Harry Sullivan e la morte verde. Ma non manca la scifi moderna... "call me Ripley" dovrebbe bastare.
7.2 Hosts of the Wirrn by Chris Chapman (part 2)
Conclusione per il tentativo di conquista da parte dei Wirrn.
Le cose si concludono come previsto, con un piccolo twist gradevole... da un certo punto di vista.
7.3 Breach of Trust by David K Barnes
Gioco di (s)fiducia da parte della UNIT nei confronti di una coppia di alieni e dei loro inseguitori.
Kate si rivela tosta come sempre, con un finale non del tutto negativo ma amarissimo.
7.4 Open the Box by Roy Gill
Kate, Osgood e Josh visitano un nuovo "centro benessere" che nasconde un segreto (al solito) pericoloso per l'intera umanità.
Ottimo per scoprire le vere paure dei nostri eroi, qualche citazione classica... nel complesso sulla norma.
La serie UNIT resta un buon prodotto, come ormai la Big Finish ci ha abituati.
Non si capisce ancora in che punto, rispetto alla serie madre, ci troviamo e mi chiedo se, prima o poi, incontreremo anche la seconda Osgood... potrebbe essere interesssante.
January 6, 2024
7.1-7.2 Hosts of the Wirrn - The (War) Master has left a gift for UNIT after his last departure. But who exactly is it a gift for? What starts with a new recruit and an interview by ravens turns into a xenomorph nightmare. This is a big one, literally, as it is a two-part and two-hour special event (3/5).
7.3 Breach of Trust - Moral quandary. Ethical dilemma. Yep. This one is so deliciously gray, it’s positively intoxicating (5/5).
7.4 Open the Box - The return of a familiar face (or rather voice) from the Pertwee era, and some rebuilding of the lost trust among the UNIT team. Not quite as powerful as the previous episode, but still really good (4/5).
7.3 Breach of Trust - Moral quandary. Ethical dilemma. Yep. This one is so deliciously gray, it’s positively intoxicating (5/5).
7.4 Open the Box - The return of a familiar face (or rather voice) from the Pertwee era, and some rebuilding of the lost trust among the UNIT team. Not quite as powerful as the previous episode, but still really good (4/5).
April 8, 2019
Very enjoyable stories. Jemma Redgrave and Ingrid Oliver are wonderful.
September 20, 2021
A collection of three stories linked solely by the theme of UNIT facing a re-appearance of something they have faced before. Albeit, in two out of the three stories, not directly on TV. It's not the strongest set in the series, which seems to be running short of new ideas and isn't developing its leads as much as it might, but each of the stories has something to recommend them.
• Hosts of the Wirrn – We start with UNIT facing off against the Wirrn, which, of course, they only know about from Harry’s reports of his experiences in The Ark in Space (although, in fairness to him, his report seems to have been quite thorough). Here, UNIT rather unwisely decides to experiment on a Wirrn egg they have recovered, and much of the story is told from the perspective of the entomologist they bring in from academia to help them. Naturally, things go wrong and build to a dramatic situation in the second half. There are plenty of references to the original story and quite a few moments of humour alongside the inevitable body horror. There’s also an original take on the Wirrn’s hive mind and some changes/enhancements on the basic format explained by them being a different ‘strain’ than the ones seen thousands of years later on the Ark. There are a couple of weak points, however. Firstly, many of the characters spend a lot of time in hazmat suits that muffle their voices; they’re easy enough to understand, but it’s not a great effect for audio. Secondly, the solution, when it eventually comes, really doesn’t make any sense, which is rather a pity given some of the effort in the rest of the story. 3 stars.
• Breach of Trust – The ‘returning’ aliens here turn out to be ones that UNIT encountered in an untold story, meaning that they’re essentially new. They are, admittedly, quite original, and the core concept is one that works well on audio. They are also, at least initially, ambiguous, and the focus of the story is on whether or not the alien that has walked into UNIT headquarters with an offer of help can be trusted. It moves nicely along, managing to do quite a bit in its one-hour length as we initially explore the mystery of what the alien is and why it’s here and then onto a more typical UNIT threat – albeit one that cannot be countered with infantry soldiers. There’s some good characterisation of the leads, showing their different approaches to what seems an impossible situation, although the sort of fallout that we’d expect from it in future episodes is unlikely to surface. 4 stars.
• Open the Box – Finally, we have an investigation into a New Age Wellness retreat that (of course) feels suspiciously like a dangerous cult. It’s this story that features a monster from the original TV series and it’s good to see that it’s one that presents a more nebulous threat than, say, Silurians would. This uses an admittedly common SF trope to get inside the character’s heads and explore what makes them tick, but it is one that’s used well here. As is the initial mystery as to what our heroes are really facing – helped by the fact that, for various reasons, it’s changed from the details that we saw before. While it doesn’t have the action elements that the longer first story in the collection has, it has the advantage of working well with its shorter length and being an effective follow-up to a TV adventure that’s often underrated and overlooked. 4 stars.
• Hosts of the Wirrn – We start with UNIT facing off against the Wirrn, which, of course, they only know about from Harry’s reports of his experiences in The Ark in Space (although, in fairness to him, his report seems to have been quite thorough). Here, UNIT rather unwisely decides to experiment on a Wirrn egg they have recovered, and much of the story is told from the perspective of the entomologist they bring in from academia to help them. Naturally, things go wrong and build to a dramatic situation in the second half. There are plenty of references to the original story and quite a few moments of humour alongside the inevitable body horror. There’s also an original take on the Wirrn’s hive mind and some changes/enhancements on the basic format explained by them being a different ‘strain’ than the ones seen thousands of years later on the Ark. There are a couple of weak points, however. Firstly, many of the characters spend a lot of time in hazmat suits that muffle their voices; they’re easy enough to understand, but it’s not a great effect for audio. Secondly, the solution, when it eventually comes, really doesn’t make any sense, which is rather a pity given some of the effort in the rest of the story. 3 stars.
• Breach of Trust – The ‘returning’ aliens here turn out to be ones that UNIT encountered in an untold story, meaning that they’re essentially new. They are, admittedly, quite original, and the core concept is one that works well on audio. They are also, at least initially, ambiguous, and the focus of the story is on whether or not the alien that has walked into UNIT headquarters with an offer of help can be trusted. It moves nicely along, managing to do quite a bit in its one-hour length as we initially explore the mystery of what the alien is and why it’s here and then onto a more typical UNIT threat – albeit one that cannot be countered with infantry soldiers. There’s some good characterisation of the leads, showing their different approaches to what seems an impossible situation, although the sort of fallout that we’d expect from it in future episodes is unlikely to surface. 4 stars.
• Open the Box – Finally, we have an investigation into a New Age Wellness retreat that (of course) feels suspiciously like a dangerous cult. It’s this story that features a monster from the original TV series and it’s good to see that it’s one that presents a more nebulous threat than, say, Silurians would. This uses an admittedly common SF trope to get inside the character’s heads and explore what makes them tick, but it is one that’s used well here. As is the initial mystery as to what our heroes are really facing – helped by the fact that, for various reasons, it’s changed from the details that we saw before. While it doesn’t have the action elements that the longer first story in the collection has, it has the advantage of working well with its shorter length and being an effective follow-up to a TV adventure that’s often underrated and overlooked. 4 stars.
November 23, 2024
It's safe to say I've been getting into the UNIT: New Series range. Cyber-Reality, despite having a fairly standard opening, ended up being one of the best box sets I've listened to from Big Finish, so obviously, I'm excited to see what happens next.
Hosts of The Wirrn Part One & Two:
The Cybermen have been defeated, the Auctioneers are dead, and The Master is gone. But The Master has left a nasty surprise behind for UNIT and now they have to deal with the consequences of his help. The Wirrn have unhatched and now Osgood needs the help of an entomologist to defeat them. Shana is excited to work for UNIT, but her first few days will be the most terrifying of her life.
Chris Chapman has written a brilliant two-part story that is violent emotional, terrifying, and full of drama. Shana is a new recruit and seeing the story through her eyes makes this story somewhat unique and meaningful. You feel for her and the horrifying situation she gets thrown into. The ending of this one was in some ways what I expected but in others, not so much. 9/10
Breach of Trust:
When a beautiful singing alien and her daughter are brought into UNIT HQ, Kate Stewart, and her crew have a potential war on their hands, for a fleet of angry Kalvyri is coming. Are the aliens lying that the Kalvryi want to destroy their world and if so what will the consequences be? Nothing will be the same again.
David K. Barnes has written an emotional story where the threat is huge but focuses on its characters and the potential consequences. It's a heartbreaking tale that deals with UNIT being at its most emotionally vulnerable and an evil dictator who wishes to get what he wants, no matter the cost. 10/10
Open The Box:
It has been years since the Stangmoor Prison incident, but the consequences of the events are about to be felt. Captain Chan Lee has built a new organization to help people who need to embrace their inner fears. But when UNIT hears people have died they investigate. A sinister force from the past has returned and it intends to feed on everyone it can get.
Roy Gill has written a satisfying sequel to The Mind of Evil that tackles the consequences of the survivors of alien incursions that were forgotten about by UNIT. It's a creepy little story with some unsettling imagery, it was interesting getting into the heads of both Osgood and Josh Carter and seeing what they fear. 10/10
Overall: 38/40
Hosts of The Wirrn Part One & Two:
The Cybermen have been defeated, the Auctioneers are dead, and The Master is gone. But The Master has left a nasty surprise behind for UNIT and now they have to deal with the consequences of his help. The Wirrn have unhatched and now Osgood needs the help of an entomologist to defeat them. Shana is excited to work for UNIT, but her first few days will be the most terrifying of her life.
Chris Chapman has written a brilliant two-part story that is violent emotional, terrifying, and full of drama. Shana is a new recruit and seeing the story through her eyes makes this story somewhat unique and meaningful. You feel for her and the horrifying situation she gets thrown into. The ending of this one was in some ways what I expected but in others, not so much. 9/10
Breach of Trust:
When a beautiful singing alien and her daughter are brought into UNIT HQ, Kate Stewart, and her crew have a potential war on their hands, for a fleet of angry Kalvyri is coming. Are the aliens lying that the Kalvryi want to destroy their world and if so what will the consequences be? Nothing will be the same again.
David K. Barnes has written an emotional story where the threat is huge but focuses on its characters and the potential consequences. It's a heartbreaking tale that deals with UNIT being at its most emotionally vulnerable and an evil dictator who wishes to get what he wants, no matter the cost. 10/10
Open The Box:
It has been years since the Stangmoor Prison incident, but the consequences of the events are about to be felt. Captain Chan Lee has built a new organization to help people who need to embrace their inner fears. But when UNIT hears people have died they investigate. A sinister force from the past has returned and it intends to feed on everyone it can get.
Roy Gill has written a satisfying sequel to The Mind of Evil that tackles the consequences of the survivors of alien incursions that were forgotten about by UNIT. It's a creepy little story with some unsettling imagery, it was interesting getting into the heads of both Osgood and Josh Carter and seeing what they fear. 10/10
Overall: 38/40
December 27, 2018
I loved every single UNIT series... until this one. None of the stories engaged me in any way, my mind drifted away during the second part of the Wirrn story and I could not make myself care any of the side characters. Repeatedly it felt as if this series was made up of stories that were judged as unable to prop up a full 4 disc box set but the BF team hated to give up on them.
April 18, 2019
Had a few great moments and funny lines but overall the stories didn't particularly interest me.
February 25, 2022
Every story in this set was really good, especially the third one. It was one of the best UNIT adventures, in my opinion.
January 7, 2023
Enjoyable but not UNIT's best outing. Cast and production are flawless but the writing underwhelmed me.
January 6, 2024
Story 1 (Eps 1 & 2) - 4.5
Story 2 - 5
Story 3 - 3
Story 2 - 5
Story 3 - 3
January 15, 2024
Wasn’t feeling it as much with this one.
January 15, 2025
Only listened to the third story, "Breach of Trust".
December 21, 2019
Episodes 1 and 2: "Hosts of the Wirrn." Sometimes-confusing ACTION episode where a Wirrn hatches and chaos ensues. I'm not sure I fully understood what was happening. People were turning into Wirrn just because they touched the egg?
Episode 3: "Breach of Trust." A screed against cartoonish "toxic masculinity" delivered with all the subtlety of an anvil to the head. Committed the sin of character assassination against Kate Stewart who is thoroughly dislikeable here. "Breach of Trust" is possibly the worst episode of UNIT since this series started.
Episode 4: "Open the Box." Started great, and actually gave us characters for a change, instead of plot-puppets. Ended with a confusing action sequence, wherein I am not entirely sure how they stopped the baddie.
As usual with UNIT, I'm left feeling "Meh," or in the case of episode 3, "Bleah."
This series needs an overhaul. After a promising start with "Extinction," it has yet to really live up to its potential. Is it because Kate Stewart is a boring character? (Or after episode 3 above, actually unlikeable?) Is it because all the characters are boring plot puppets? Do the writers know what to do with these people? We're seven series and 28 episodes into this thing. Is it time for me to just give up? There have been hints of potential, but nobody ever changes or grows. The closest we had was the hint of a relationship between Plastic Man and Osgood in Series Six. But there's no evidence of that here at all.
I'm sure part of it is the BBC saying that they can't establish too much about these characters so that that can be left to the TV writers. But two of the four regulars aren't even on the TV show. Three of five if you count Sam Bishop, who is AWOL again.
How is it that the very similar Counter-Measures could give us gripping stories and compelling, likeable characters (or likeable, duplicitous characters), and gets cancelled? Meanwhile this poor shadow version continues on.
(By the way, one of the reasons I say "Open the Box" started out great is because it started out feeling very much like a Counter-Measures episode. Unfortunately, it ended like a UNIT episode.)
Episode 3: "Breach of Trust." A screed against cartoonish "toxic masculinity" delivered with all the subtlety of an anvil to the head. Committed the sin of character assassination against Kate Stewart who is thoroughly dislikeable here. "Breach of Trust" is possibly the worst episode of UNIT since this series started.
Episode 4: "Open the Box." Started great, and actually gave us characters for a change, instead of plot-puppets. Ended with a confusing action sequence, wherein I am not entirely sure how they stopped the baddie.
As usual with UNIT, I'm left feeling "Meh," or in the case of episode 3, "Bleah."
This series needs an overhaul. After a promising start with "Extinction," it has yet to really live up to its potential. Is it because Kate Stewart is a boring character? (Or after episode 3 above, actually unlikeable?) Is it because all the characters are boring plot puppets? Do the writers know what to do with these people? We're seven series and 28 episodes into this thing. Is it time for me to just give up? There have been hints of potential, but nobody ever changes or grows. The closest we had was the hint of a relationship between Plastic Man and Osgood in Series Six. But there's no evidence of that here at all.
I'm sure part of it is the BBC saying that they can't establish too much about these characters so that that can be left to the TV writers. But two of the four regulars aren't even on the TV show. Three of five if you count Sam Bishop, who is AWOL again.
How is it that the very similar Counter-Measures could give us gripping stories and compelling, likeable characters (or likeable, duplicitous characters), and gets cancelled? Meanwhile this poor shadow version continues on.
(By the way, one of the reasons I say "Open the Box" started out great is because it started out feeling very much like a Counter-Measures episode. Unfortunately, it ended like a UNIT episode.)
December 3, 2021
The first two parter is very action-packed and I love it when explosions can be heard all around. The Wirrn are fascinating. I like Shana and her introduction to the UNIT family. I hope we get to hear more from her.
Breach of trust focused more on the individual characters. In Hosts of the Wirrn Kate made a wrong decision and this time she tries to make the right one, even if someone has to die to keep Earth safe. The conflict she and her team face is age-old but very important even in our modern times. I love how you can hear Kate being full of emotions. It must’ve been hard for Josh and Osgood to defy their friend and boss.
Open the box is definitely one of my favourite stories so far together with Silenced. Facing your fear is always hard but being force to confront you innermost fear, is very frightening. I love how you can see that Kate is the strong one. She has fears but she battles them everyday and copes. Her speech in the end is the best. I kid you not, I shed some tears:
Kate: “Osgood! Josh! Stand by me, hold my hand!”
Osgood: “I’m so useless! No good!”
Kate: “Never to me! Never! Here hold on. I’m with you. Don’t ever doubt it!”
Osgood: ”Yes, I believe you.”
Kate:“You too, Captain, take my other hand.”
Josh: “Is that an order?”
Kate: “Yes! But one you choose to obey! Because Josh I trust you. You do the right thing.”
Josh: “Yes.”
Kate: “You are an excellent soldier. Because you want to be.”
Josh: “Yes.”
Alien: “What are you doing? You’re taking them away from me.”
Kate: “Your process showed me I can survive alone. Well, I reject that. Here we stand. Together. Unified, an intelligence task force that’s more than a match for some overgrown blob in a jar!”
One of the best dialogues I have heard.
I cannot wait for it to be April and for the new box set to come out 😍
Breach of trust focused more on the individual characters. In Hosts of the Wirrn Kate made a wrong decision and this time she tries to make the right one, even if someone has to die to keep Earth safe. The conflict she and her team face is age-old but very important even in our modern times. I love how you can hear Kate being full of emotions. It must’ve been hard for Josh and Osgood to defy their friend and boss.
Open the box is definitely one of my favourite stories so far together with Silenced. Facing your fear is always hard but being force to confront you innermost fear, is very frightening. I love how you can see that Kate is the strong one. She has fears but she battles them everyday and copes. Her speech in the end is the best. I kid you not, I shed some tears:
Kate: “Osgood! Josh! Stand by me, hold my hand!”
Osgood: “I’m so useless! No good!”
Kate: “Never to me! Never! Here hold on. I’m with you. Don’t ever doubt it!”
Osgood: ”Yes, I believe you.”
Kate:“You too, Captain, take my other hand.”
Josh: “Is that an order?”
Kate: “Yes! But one you choose to obey! Because Josh I trust you. You do the right thing.”
Josh: “Yes.”
Kate: “You are an excellent soldier. Because you want to be.”
Josh: “Yes.”
Alien: “What are you doing? You’re taking them away from me.”
Kate: “Your process showed me I can survive alone. Well, I reject that. Here we stand. Together. Unified, an intelligence task force that’s more than a match for some overgrown blob in a jar!”
One of the best dialogues I have heard.
I cannot wait for it to be April and for the new box set to come out 😍
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 9, 2020
Great 3 adventures with the whirnn, a tri mouth creature and a monter that was controlled by the master in the t as lons of wang chung.
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