THE TRANSCENDENCE OF EPHROS, PART 1

The first episode of this Third Doctor Adventures box-set from Big Finish is available as a free download to newsletter subscribers, so I took the opportunity to listen to it last night.

The first issue to address is the recasting of the 3rd Doctor as Tim Treloar.

I’m pleased to report that Treloar does a very passable impression of Jon Pertwee as the 3rd Doctor.  At times his 3rd Doctor is a little less exuberant than you would expect but, at others, he nails Pertwee’s vocal inflexions and mannerisms spot on.  I wouldn’t be put off listening to the rest of the story by Treloar being the 3rd Doctor.  I’ve no doubt that he’ll hone his impression over time.

That’s the good news.

Teaming up on this story is Katy Manning as Jo Grant.  This is, unfortunately, what lets the adventure down.  Whilst Treloar does a passable Pertwee from the 70s, Manning sounds absolutely nothing like Jo Grant.  Whilst I could listen to Treloar for the duration, Manning puts me off every time she has something to say.

It’s clear that Manning is trying hard to do ‘Jo Grant’ here, but she seems to feel the character is a hyperactive air-head.  That wasn’t Jo Grant, really.  She might have looked all “pretty and no brains” but she was courageous, brave, and indomitable.  She never sounded like a scatty woman with little to no grip on reality.

It really is a pity that we have no other surviving companion to team up with Treloar and make a real go of these third Doctor adventures.  I’d rather they team him up with some other classic companion than to stick with this version of Jo Grant.

The adventure itself has the feel of a third Doctor adventure, with the Doctor landing on a planet and not being too sure what or where it is (shades of the early scenes from Death to the Daleks).  Then they get mistaken for representatives of some galactic organisation (shades of Peladon).  And so on.  This helps set the adventure in familiar territory and gives you ample time to get used to Treloar’s impression.

It’s difficult to get a grip on the second thread of the story with the other characters at this point and, as I don’t have the remaining episodes, I’ll stop my review there.  If the set comes down to a cheaper price at some point, I may well buy it, but I’d much rather consider any future release that doesn’t involve Katy Manning.  I may also consider the solo “Short Trips” adventure that features just Tim Treloar.