Archipelago (audio story): Difference between revisions
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|featuring = | |featuring = | ||
|enemy = | |enemy = | ||
|setting = | |setting = [[Fortuna (planet)|Fortuna]] | ||
|writer = Tim Foley | |writer = Tim Foley | ||
|director = [[Helen Goldwyn]] | |director = [[Helen Goldwyn]] | ||
| Line 27: | Line 27: | ||
|isbn = ISBN 978-1-80240-134-9 (physical); ISBN 978-1-80240-135-6 (digital) | |isbn = ISBN 978-1-80240-134-9 (physical); ISBN 978-1-80240-135-6 (digital) | ||
|series = ''[[The Ninth Doctor Adventures (audio series)|The Ninth Doctor Adventures]]'' | |series = ''[[The Ninth Doctor Adventures (audio series)|The Ninth Doctor Adventures]]'' | ||
|prev = | |prev = Face of the Apocalypse (audio story) | ||
|next = | |next = | ||
}} | |||
'''''{{StoryTitle}}''''' was the third story in the audio anthology ''[[Star-Crossed (audio anthology)|Star-Crossed]]'', produced by [[Big Finish Productions]]. It was written by [[ | '''''{{StoryTitle}}''''' was the third story in the audio anthology ''[[Star-Crossed (audio anthology)|Star-Crossed]]'', produced by [[Big Finish Productions]]. It was written by [[Tim Foley]] and featured [[Christopher Eccleston]] as the [[Ninth Doctor]] and [[Alex Kingston]] as [[River Song]]. | ||
== Publisher's summary == | == Publisher's summary == | ||
River Song has one last request. If the Doctor undertakes a dangerous journey with her on the planet Fortuna, she’ll never bother him again. But this is no ordinary voyage. | [[River Song]] has one last request. If [[Ninth Doctor|the Doctor]] undertakes a dangerous journey with her on the planet [[Fortuna (planet)|Fortuna]], she’ll never bother him again. But this is no ordinary voyage. | ||
As the storms batter their tiny vessel, the travellers are confronted with some brutal home truths. There is a captain in search of a husband. There is a ship in need of a light. And there are lovers lost in the maelstrom who will always be | As the storms batter their tiny [[vessel]], the travellers are confronted with some brutal home truths. There is a captain in search of a husband. There is a ship in need of a light. And there are lovers lost in the [[maelstrom]] who will always be [[island]]s apart... | ||
== Plot == | == Plot == | ||
''to be | [[River Song|River]] summons [[the TARDIS]] to the [[planet]] [[Fortuna (planet)|Fortuna]], which is beset by [[time storm]]s preventing [[Ninth Doctor|the Doctor]] from leaving, and requests the Doctor's help in return for leaving him alone in the future. She introduces him to [[Thaddeus Grey|Captain Thaddeus Grey]], who is launching an expedition by [[skimmer]] to the [[research station]] where his husband [[Harvey Grey|Dr Harvey Grey]] was working on temporal experiments before the storms. The Doctor declines to join them, believing that Harvey is likely [[death|dead]], but River assures him that she knows that Harvey is alive and reminds him that he cannot leave Fortuna by TARDIS. He joins them in the skimmer with [[the Doctor's Gladstone bag|his Gladstone bag]] and informs River that, according to the TARDIS's readings, the journey will take months due to the time storms and [[temporary time]] which will cause the time they spend inside of it to "unhappen". | ||
To protect the skimmer's [[dimension]]s from being caught in the temporality of the temporary time, the Doctor brings the TARDIS's lamp and breaks apart his Gladstone bag to create new rooms in the tight skimmer using the bag's [[dimensional transcendentalism]]. They pass through temporal time and find themselves eating [[algae stew]] with no [[memory]] of what occurred during that part of the journey. The Doctor becomes even more sceptical of the mission when he learns that Harvey has been missing for over a decade and Thaddeus, who keeps seeing visions of him, has not captained the skimmer for years. He also finds that the skimmer is covered in dark [[coral]] and that the same coral, albeit emerald in colour, covers the back of one of Thaddeus's hands. This reminds Thaddeus of his first date with Harvey on a natural landmass covered in the coral. | |||
Although the Doctor assumes that the coral is dimensional debris caused by the destruction of the [[island]]s, River forbids him from taking away Thaddeus's [[hope]]. The coral spreads across Thaddeus's body and the skimmer and the Doctor spends his time below deck, scribbling [[hypostatic equation]]s on the walls and calculating that the coral is endangering the skimmer by anchoring things in [[time]]. River connects this to Harvey's research into [[fixed points in time]] and she and the Doctor go to speak with Thaddeus, whom they save when he falls overboard. Having left the light of the TARDIS lamp, Thaddeus is almost completely covered in coral and the Doctor uses [[Ninth Doctor's sonic screwdriver|his sonic screwdriver]] to release a final burst of light in an attempt to get rid of the coral. Thaddeus disappears, however, and the Doctor and River are left without the lamp's protection. | |||
River is overwhelmed by shattered time and sees the history of Fortuna and the Doctor's many faces, but she holds on by holding onto [[River Song's diary|her diary]], which the Doctor reads, and she and the Doctor take refuge beneath the deck. The skimmer leaves temporary time and jumps a [[time track]], after which River realises that the Doctor has looked through her diary and they argue about what the Doctor sees as an unequal [[marriage]] between the two of them. Coral, which they come to realise echoes the future, starts to cover the two of them and they agree to be friends, spending time reading and re-reading River's diary and coming up with new entries in which they get a happy ending together. They finally reach the base and River is distraught to learn that Harvey is dead as he was supposed to go on to invent the [[vortex manipulator]]. | |||
The Doctor decides to use his and River's [[temporal field]]s to power up the base's equipment and skip back time tracks to before the explosion and avoid the [[temporal paradox|paradox]] of Harvey's death. However, it will result in the two of them not meeting on [[Crell]]. After spending time together, the equipment powers up and time is reset; the Doctor receives a message from Fortuna and travels there to stop the explosion. Meanwhile, Thaddeus meets Harvey for the first time. | |||
== Cast == | == Cast == | ||
* [[Ninth Doctor|The Doctor]] - [[Christopher Eccleston]] | |||
* [[River Song]] - [[Alex Kingston]] | |||
* [[Thaddeus Grey|Captain Thaddeus Grey]] - [[Trevor Cooper]] | |||
* [[Harvey Grey|Dr Harvey Grey]] - [[John Banks]] | |||
== Worldbuilding == | == Worldbuilding == | ||
'' | * The Doctor compares River to a [[thesaurus]]. | ||
* [[Harvey Grey|Harvey]] enjoys [[cocoa]]. | |||
* The Doctor has [[The Doctor's Gladstone bag|a dimensionally-transcendental Gladstone bag]]. | |||
* [[River Song's vortex manipulator|River's vortex manipulator]] is useless in the [[time storm]]s. | |||
* The Doctor, River and Grey eat [[algae stew]]. | |||
* The [[Falls of Fortuna]] are living [[hurricane]]s which resemble [[horse]]s. | |||
* The Doctor plays [[Patience (card game)|patience]]. | |||
* Three [[mistgull]]s fly past the [[skimmer]]. | |||
* Harvey worked on [[Kontron tunnel]]s and invented the [[vortex manipulator]]. | |||
== Notes == | == Notes == | ||
''Archipelago'' was recorded in [[March (production)|March]] [[2023 (production)|2023]]. | * ''Archipelago'' was recorded in [[March (production)|March]] [[2023 (production)|2023]]. | ||
* [[Christopher Eccleston]] stated that ''Archipelago'' was his favourite episode for [[Big Finish Productions|Big Finish]] up to that point. ([[BFX]]: ''Star-Crossed'') | |||
== Continuity == | == Continuity == | ||
'' | * The Doctor uses [[The Doctor's Gladstone bag|his old Gladstone bag]], a staple of [[First Doctor]] stories in [[TV Comic]], first seen in [[COMIC]]: {{cs|Shark Bait (TVC comic story)}}. River knows that it was a gift from [[John Who|John]] and [[Gillian Who|Gillian]]. | ||
* During a temporal shift River remembers [[Melody Pond's regeneration|dying on the streets on New York]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Day of the Moon (TV story)}}) | |||
* The Doctor mentions [[Gruach]] giving him the Eye ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|The Curse of Lady Macbeth (audio story)}}) and a lady in Yorkshire giving him Chipsticks. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Auld Lang Syne (audio story)}}) | |||
* The Doctor reads the stories of River's adventures in [[New York]] ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Angels Take Manhattan (TV story)}}), facing the [[Dalek]]s ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Big Bang (TV story)}}), the [[Silent]]s ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)}}/{{cs|Day of the Moon (TV story)}}), and a dance on the [[Byzantium (spacecraft)|Byzantium]] with the [[Weeping Angel|Angels]] ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Time of Angels (TV story)}} / {{cs|Flesh and Stone (TV story)|Flesh and Stone}}) | |||
== Cover gallery == | |||
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true"> | |||
Archipelago (audio story) textless.jpg|Textless cover | |||
Archipelago (audio story) alt.jpg|Alternate cover | |||
</gallery> | |||
== External links == | == External links == | ||
Latest revision as of 03:32, 3 November 2024
Archipelago was the third story in the audio anthology Star-Crossed, produced by Big Finish Productions. It was written by Tim Foley and featured Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor and Alex Kingston as River Song.
Publisher's summary[[edit] | [edit source]]
River Song has one last request. If the Doctor undertakes a dangerous journey with her on the planet Fortuna, she’ll never bother him again. But this is no ordinary voyage.
As the storms batter their tiny vessel, the travellers are confronted with some brutal home truths. There is a captain in search of a husband. There is a ship in need of a light. And there are lovers lost in the maelstrom who will always be islands apart...
Plot[[edit] | [edit source]]
River summons the TARDIS to the planet Fortuna, which is beset by time storms preventing the Doctor from leaving, and requests the Doctor's help in return for leaving him alone in the future. She introduces him to Captain Thaddeus Grey, who is launching an expedition by skimmer to the research station where his husband Dr Harvey Grey was working on temporal experiments before the storms. The Doctor declines to join them, believing that Harvey is likely dead, but River assures him that she knows that Harvey is alive and reminds him that he cannot leave Fortuna by TARDIS. He joins them in the skimmer with his Gladstone bag and informs River that, according to the TARDIS's readings, the journey will take months due to the time storms and temporary time which will cause the time they spend inside of it to "unhappen".
To protect the skimmer's dimensions from being caught in the temporality of the temporary time, the Doctor brings the TARDIS's lamp and breaks apart his Gladstone bag to create new rooms in the tight skimmer using the bag's dimensional transcendentalism. They pass through temporal time and find themselves eating algae stew with no memory of what occurred during that part of the journey. The Doctor becomes even more sceptical of the mission when he learns that Harvey has been missing for over a decade and Thaddeus, who keeps seeing visions of him, has not captained the skimmer for years. He also finds that the skimmer is covered in dark coral and that the same coral, albeit emerald in colour, covers the back of one of Thaddeus's hands. This reminds Thaddeus of his first date with Harvey on a natural landmass covered in the coral.
Although the Doctor assumes that the coral is dimensional debris caused by the destruction of the islands, River forbids him from taking away Thaddeus's hope. The coral spreads across Thaddeus's body and the skimmer and the Doctor spends his time below deck, scribbling hypostatic equations on the walls and calculating that the coral is endangering the skimmer by anchoring things in time. River connects this to Harvey's research into fixed points in time and she and the Doctor go to speak with Thaddeus, whom they save when he falls overboard. Having left the light of the TARDIS lamp, Thaddeus is almost completely covered in coral and the Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to release a final burst of light in an attempt to get rid of the coral. Thaddeus disappears, however, and the Doctor and River are left without the lamp's protection.
River is overwhelmed by shattered time and sees the history of Fortuna and the Doctor's many faces, but she holds on by holding onto her diary, which the Doctor reads, and she and the Doctor take refuge beneath the deck. The skimmer leaves temporary time and jumps a time track, after which River realises that the Doctor has looked through her diary and they argue about what the Doctor sees as an unequal marriage between the two of them. Coral, which they come to realise echoes the future, starts to cover the two of them and they agree to be friends, spending time reading and re-reading River's diary and coming up with new entries in which they get a happy ending together. They finally reach the base and River is distraught to learn that Harvey is dead as he was supposed to go on to invent the vortex manipulator.
The Doctor decides to use his and River's temporal fields to power up the base's equipment and skip back time tracks to before the explosion and avoid the paradox of Harvey's death. However, it will result in the two of them not meeting on Crell. After spending time together, the equipment powers up and time is reset; the Doctor receives a message from Fortuna and travels there to stop the explosion. Meanwhile, Thaddeus meets Harvey for the first time.
Cast[[edit] | [edit source]]
- The Doctor - Christopher Eccleston
- River Song - Alex Kingston
- Captain Thaddeus Grey - Trevor Cooper
- Dr Harvey Grey - John Banks
Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]
- The Doctor compares River to a thesaurus.
- Harvey enjoys cocoa.
- The Doctor has a dimensionally-transcendental Gladstone bag.
- River's vortex manipulator is useless in the time storms.
- The Doctor, River and Grey eat algae stew.
- The Falls of Fortuna are living hurricanes which resemble horses.
- The Doctor plays patience.
- Three mistgulls fly past the skimmer.
- Harvey worked on Kontron tunnels and invented the vortex manipulator.
Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]
- Archipelago was recorded in March 2023.
- Christopher Eccleston stated that Archipelago was his favourite episode for Big Finish up to that point. (BFX: Star-Crossed)
Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]
- The Doctor uses his old Gladstone bag, a staple of First Doctor stories in TV Comic, first seen in COMIC: Shark Bait [+]Loading...["Shark Bait (TVC comic story)"]. River knows that it was a gift from John and Gillian.
- During a temporal shift River remembers dying on the streets on New York. (TV: Day of the Moon [+]Loading...["Day of the Moon (TV story)"])
- The Doctor mentions Gruach giving him the Eye (AUDIO: The Curse of Lady Macbeth [+]Loading...["The Curse of Lady Macbeth (audio story)"]) and a lady in Yorkshire giving him Chipsticks. (AUDIO: Auld Lang Syne [+]Loading...["Auld Lang Syne (audio story)"])
- The Doctor reads the stories of River's adventures in New York (TV: The Angels Take Manhattan [+]Loading...["The Angels Take Manhattan (TV story)"]), facing the Daleks (TV: The Big Bang [+]Loading...["The Big Bang (TV story)"]), the Silents (TV: The Impossible Astronaut [+]Loading...["The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)"]/Day of the Moon [+]Loading...["Day of the Moon (TV story)"]), and a dance on the Byzantium with the Angels (TV: The Time of Angels [+]Loading...["The Time of Angels (TV story)"] / Flesh and Stone [+]Loading...["Flesh and Stone (TV story)","Flesh and Stone"])
Cover gallery[[edit] | [edit source]]
Textless cover
Alternate cover
_textless.jpg)
_alt.jpg)
External links[[edit] | [edit source]]
- Official Archipelago page at bigfinish.com
