Doctor Who: Once and Future: Two's Company

Doctor Who: Once and Future #4

by Lisa McMullin

The Time War. The Doctor has been injured and brought to a Time Lord field hospital. His body glows with energy, but this is no regeneration into a future form – instead, the Doctor’s past faces begin to appear as he flits haphazardly between incarnations.
Staggering to his TARDIS, the Doctor sets out to solve the mystery of his ‘degeneration’. Who has done this to him? How? And why? From the Earth to the stars, across an array of familiar times and places, he follows clues to retrace his steps, encountering old friends and enemies along the way. Tumbling through his lives, the Doctor must stop his degeneration before he loses himself completely.

Further story details to follow.

Genres: Doctor Who, Audiobook, Science Fiction

Audiobook

First published August 16, 2023

Reviews

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I might have to reassess this rating once I go through this anniversary series again, once the whole run has been released. I might have to give it 5-stars. It was pretty close this time through. Great script. Excellent sound design. Evocative music. Wonderful performances. This one was a lot of fun with everything contributing to the synergy.

(And we’ve reached the halfway point for Doctor Who: Once and Future! Can hardly wait for the next installment!)

Update: Second time through this series, as I’m anticipating the release of the final chapter. And yep! This one is getting 5-stars now. This one is just bonkers. With Harry Sullivan, Lady Christina de Souza, Jackie Tyler, and the Sixth Doctor and involved this is a wild ride through the Time War and all the absurdities and paradoxes that result from these kind of chronological contradictions.

[Emilija · Rating 5 out of 5]

2020 52 Book Challenge - 13) Written By A Female Author

This was a zany Doctor Who story featuring the Third Doctor, the Sixth Doctor, Jackie Tyler, Harry Sullivan and Lady Christina de Souza. I mean zany in a good way, because I never would have thought that this combination of characters would ever work, but it was actually a really enjoyable story.

If you're reading/listening in regards to the overarching series plot, I'd say that it was one of the more relevant stories, but even then it's still a mostly non-existent plot.

[Marcel Driel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun story, only I don’t have a clue who The Two/The Renegade was.

Edit: listing to the behind the scenes, I realize The Two is going to be The Eleven.

[Nicolas Lontel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

ジャッキーがレイディ・クリスティーヌの屋敷にハウスクリーニングにいってジャッキーのネックレスをオークションにかけたら結構な額だったけどそれを競り落とそうとしていたドクターが手に入れられず困ったら、ハリー・サリバンもドクターと一緒に動いていてそちらはなりすましだったのと、デリジェネレーションをとめる手がかりをようやく得られたっぽいっていうのはなんとなくわかったけど、6以外のドクターが、ドクターに成りすましてるだけだからそれでいいのかもしれないけれど何になりすましてるつもりなのかよくわからなくてすっきりしなかった。

8のオーディオに登場するキャラらしいんだけど...むむん

[Mark Caza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Depending on who you are, this entry will either delight, be surprisingly meh for lisa's standards or be a disapointment.

for me this lovely FULLY ACTED RADIO PLAY felt like a typical big finish romp if a bit more fanfictiony...which is what a lot of people incorrectly assume BFPs works USUALLY are.

Jackie and Six are as delightful as one would anticipate but they arent sharing scenes as often as i'dve liked. surprisingly Lady Christina (From The TV Series 4 Special about a dead world and a bus fulla folks) and Jackie are more of a Dynamic Duo and In my opinion its worth it just to hear them be sassy friends from different social worlds.

Unfortunately to nobody's surprise the ending hits us with a return to status quo. one that makes very little sense to me given the only person whom SHOULD forget the story to maintain said Quo would be The Doctor themself...

Still this story gives us a bit of a Early look in on a particular Renegade, A cheeky bit of 60th anniversary cameo moments, a lovely romp with lovely characters and a very odd potential backdoor pilot being squashed but so help me someone better make a Lady and Jackie Furthur Adventures

[Thomas Sherlock · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have you ever eaten a sandwich with no filling? Then you’ve had the experience of listening to this.

There’s no substance, no purpose to any of this. Characters meet, share dialogue and go where the plot needs them to with little in the way of drama. Even the continuity busting memories that would be left get a hand wave solution that just happens to arise. There’s a reveal with the villain’s identity but frankly if you’re familiar with Big Finish’s villain roster and read the publicity about “the renegade” it’s not rocket science to figure out.

I would rank this lower but it’s so empty I can’t get angry about it. Frankly I’ll have forgotten every word within the week.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had a feeling that the title had a double meaning and am kicking myself for not knowing what it meant until it was revealed. Great use of all of these familiar characters from different eras!

[Jamie Revell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fourth in this 60th anniversary series sees the Doctor transform back to his Sixth self. For the first time, the plot arc is relevant to the main story, with the Doctor tracking down an unusual substance that may be involved in what has happened to him. It's a fun, breezy story, following on from the introspective second episode and action-oriented first and third, showcasing some of the variety that the TV series is capable of.

Classic series nostalgia is provided by the presence of Harry, as well as by a particular plot element tying into the TV show's early years. The modern equivalent - nearly 20 years in the past itself by now - comes from the presence of Jackie Tyler and Lady Christina, brought together by an off-screen River Song. On the other hand, if you're not familiar with the audios in general, the villain might be more confusing, since he's never explained (or named) - although, if you are, it's a different spin on him.

And putting all these elements together is very much the point of this, with Jackie, in particular, as entertaining as ever, especially when she interacts with Lady Christina, who comes from such a radically different world. If you're after deep plot, or even much from Harry beyond his mere presence, you may be disappointed; it's a light piece of fluff that brings certain characters together and works better as part of the anniversary series than it would standing on its own.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, Doctor Who: Once and Future: Two's Company is a pretty enjoyable romp, all things considered. While its actual story isn't quite as engaging as last month's installment, A Genius for War, Two's Company still makes great use of its cast and delivers an enjoyably light and fluffy romp. And after all, what more could you hope for when combining such chaotic forces as the Sixth Doctor, Jackie Tyler, and Lady Christina? It's not gonna convert any Once and Future holdouts or anything. But for what it's going for, it's an all-around fun listen. Next month sees the combination of David Tennant's Tenth Doctor and Michelle Gomez's Missy, so it looks like the chaos might only be beginning.

Full review on: Geek Vibes Nation.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd seen a lot of unfavourable comments regarding this Once And Future story, but honestly I thought it was better than its reputation suggests. Although there are some pacing issues, and the story is rather basic, Jackie Tyler and Lady Christina make a heck of a fun pair. It's interesting hearing Jackie with a Doctor like the Sixth, who is so different from either the Ninth or Tenth Doctors. The Sixth Doctor is also unafraid of calling Harry Sullivan an imbecile like his predecessor!

[Danny Welch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once and Future has been an incredibly fun series of adventures so far, I've been enjoying every minute of it. It has been very mixed amongst fans so far, however, but personally, I think Big Finish is doing a fantastic job with this series for the 60th. Haven't been too fussed about Doom's Day but this more than makes up for it.

Back on Earth, The Doctor in his third incarnation has found a clue and soon finds Harry Sullivan working on a temporal device when he degenerates into his sixth incarnation. Meanwhile, Jackie is hoping to get a job as Lady Christina's cleaner of sorts when they stumble into a spot of bother with a mysterious necklace. Soon our four friends must come together to defeat a common foe, but are they really a future incarnation of The Doctor, and if so what are they up to?

Lisa McMullin has written a fantastic fast-paced script, it's a story with some wonderful characterization, a delightful twist, and a really engaging and fun adventure with plenty of subtle references to enjoy. I wasn't too sure when this story was announced considering the odd cast of characters. But after listening to the trailer I had hoped, it'd be something really special, and by golly was I right!

Overall: It's a really fun and engaging story with a fantastic cast of characters and a very interesting returning villain. Very excited to see what happens next. 8/10

[Ellen Schoener · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it is fun, and it is well performed.
But It is too many different characters thrown together for my taste. None of them has any time to breathe!
I also think there is not really a lot of substance to this, sadly.
But it got a few laughs out of me, so that is a bonus.

[MrPouley · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s better than I expected

[Philip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actually not quite as pointless as we all thought it was going to be.

[Donavon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not familiar with many of these characters, so was lost a few times, but always invested in story.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one seemed to fly past and I think that means I enjoyed it? In any case, Jackie is always entertaining.

[Debra Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

The doctor fights an early version of the eleven.

[Piper Huxley · Rating 4 out of 5]

another fabulous addition to the series !!

love jackie and christina together <333

4/5

[The Post Monument · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I shocked myself when I realised this is by far the best adventure in the ‘Once and Future’ arc so far. I don’t have much of a connection to the 6th Doctor, probably being one I’ve seen the least. I love Jackie Tyler, I always find Camille Coduri a delight! But I have only seen a handful of episodes with Harry Sullivan and Christina De Suza seemed like such a rogue choice! And yet, I loved every minute of it. The pacing is on point throughout, there’s a lot of intrigue surrounding Harry’s secretive boss and they manage to tie the plot into the overarching one quite neatly!

There is a certain character who I won’t be spoiling who seems to have a larger role within the Big Finish Whoniverse who I found very interesting. I enjoyed how he was introduced and I didn’t feel like I was missing out not hearing the rest of his episodes, just more intrigued to check them out. The interview segment at the end was very good fleshing out this characters history a little bit, giving me a little more context to his role in things.

As always, Big Finish, the cast and crew have knocked it out of the bag! I really feel Lisa McMullin has really written us a corker of a story here and it really stands out as one that feels it fits the Once and Future Arc much better than the rest. I can’t wait to finish these adventures and see how it pans out!

[Jamieson · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I've stated in my reviews for the previous installments of this series, I'm of two minds on Once and Future. On one hand, the series arc of "who shot the Doctor with a degeneration weapon and why?" is barely existant. If it's not given a satisfactory answer in the conclusion, I'll be at the very least disappointed if not outright mad. On the other hand, we've gotten four (five by the time I'm writing this) fun stories that feature the grab bag approach to storytelling in you take a random Doctor and various characters from the whole 60-year history of Doctor Who and throw them together in a story. And the various stand-alone stories have been a lot of fun.

This particular story sees Jackie Tyler (from sometime in Series 2) getting a job as a cleaning lady for Lady Christina de Souza. Throw into that an older Harry Sullivan, the Third Doctor who then turns into the Sixth Doctor and a brilliant use of a Big Finish villain, it's the Two (the second incarnation of the Time Lord who will become the Eleven), played wonderfully by Michael Maloney, and you have a really fun adventure. If you're getting these for the series arc, you may be disappointed. If you go into these knowing the arc isn't resulting in much and are just there to enjoy good stand-alone stories, you'll probably have a lot of fun.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this 5 stars for the fun I had with it and the great character interactions but...

1. The Once and Future plot... is non-existent apart from "the doctor is degenerating and they don't know why" which has been the story for the first 4 out of 8 stories and has not been built upon at all.

2. That ending. It just cuts off where I feel that it should have had at least a bit more time to wrap up. Making the whole story seem a bit like a rushed mess instead of a fun mess.