Red Dawn ⭐ - They say don't judge a book by its cover, but this proves the exception to the rule. Boring and pointless, with a terrible villain and a truly inane late-game plot twist, the embarrassing cover is very much reflective of the quality inside

The Spectre of Lanyon Moor ⭐⭐⭐ - I love some spooky shit on the British moors but this isn't what it could have been. It's fun to hear Six and the Brigadier together but this is more functional than anything, and it's far too long

Winter for the Adept ⭐⭐⭐ - This is fun as an atmospheric ghost story...I just wish it was only an atmospheric ghost story. Big Finish is really struggling to figure out how to use Five effectively

The Apocalypse Element ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Watching Classic Who has made me extremely skeptical of both Gallifrey stories and Dalek stories, so I'm surprised I liked this one as much as I did. The Dalek's ultimate plan is comically roundabout and convoluted, but this is a big and exciting story with lots of action and the much-appreciated return of Lalla Ward as Romana.

The Fires of Vulcan ⭐⭐⭐ - I like that Big Finish has excavated the classic historical as a story format, but this one is simply Fine™️

The Shadow of the Scourge ⭐⭐ - I love the idea of Seven getting it wrong, of having to deal with the consequences when one of his complicated plans backfires. I just wish that had happened in a better story - this is long and full of some really tedious attempts at grimdark horror that had me checked out by the end

The Holy Terror ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - What starts as a fun and funny story starring a penguin who talks in an outrageous New York accent becomes something increasingly dark, strange, and sad as it progresses. Robert Shearman is oft-revered as one of Big Finish's best-ever writers, and with this as his debut it's easy to see why

The Mutant Phase ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I had a great time with most of this, which conjures a good sense of mystery and manages to use the Daleks without overwhelming the other elements in the story. The ending though is frustrating and confusing - when Nyssa is uttering "But Doctor that doesn't make sense!" you may have a problem

I recently started on the probably-insane journey of listening to Big Finish’s main range of Doctor Who stories from the beginning. We’ll see how far I get, but I thought it might be fun to do these little capsule reviews!

All scores use a five-star scale

The Sirens of Time ⭐️⭐️⭐️ - It's fine! It’s fine. I like that Five, Six, and Seven get to go on their own little one episode mini adventures, but the ending is tedious

Phantasmagoria ⭐️⭐️⭐️ - A formulaic-but-solid "alien mucks about in a historical time period" story. It's nothing special but it gets the job done and the early-18th century period detail is fun

Whispers of Terror ⭐️⭐️ - Six's solo debut gets points for a killer concept and an attempt to lean into the audio format. Unfortunately this ends up being an utterly predictable murder mystery that brings back the worst aspects of Six and Peri's relationship

The Land of the Dead ⭐️⭐️ - Arctic terror and unhinged James Bond-villain millionaires should be fun. But the monster here is boring and the treatment of indigenous characters is tone-deaf and embarrassing

The Fearmonger ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - This tense political thriller leans into the best aspects of Seven's run while avoiding many of its pitfalls. Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred slip back into their wonderful dynamic like an old glove, it’s so nice to have them back

The Marian Conspiracy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - A delightful throwback to the historicals of the 60s and by far the best Sixth Doctor story to date. New companion Evelyn Smythe, a grouchy matronly history professor, is an absolute delight, and her strong personality goes a long way in smoothing Six's rough edges

The Genocide Machine ⭐️⭐️ - This is, unfortunately, the latest the long tradition of tedious Dalek stories that fail to find an interesting angle on Doctor Who’s most iconic monsters. At least Davros isn't here