Head Games is the forty-third Virgin New Adventures novel. It features the Seventh Doctor, Bernice Summerfield, Roz Forrester and Chris Cwej. It also features Melanie Bush, who departed the TARDIS in Dragonfire and Ace, who joined in that story and last appeared in Set Piece when she also stopped travelling with the Doctor. There is also a cameo appearance of Brigadier Winifred Bambera. This novel is also a sequel to Conundrum published in 1994.
Publisher's summary
"This isn't Hell," the Doctor assured her. "It's only a sequel."
Stand by for an exciting new adventure with Dr Who and his companion, Jason. Once again, our time-hopping friends set out to seek injustice, raise rebel armies, overthrow dictators and beat up green monsters.
But this time, Dr Who faces a deadly new threat: a genocidal rogue Time Lord and his army of combat-hardened, gun-slinging warrior women. To make matters worse, this foe is a twisted version of the good Doctor himself - and if Dr Who and Jason can't stop him, he'll end all life on Detrios and Earth.
Armed only with their wits and with the modest power of control over reality, our heroes must face Dr Who's evil double: the megalomaniac scientist who calls himself simply... 'The Doctor'.
Plot
to be added
Characters
References
The Doctor
- The Doctor rarely sleeps, fearing his dreams.
- Benny laughs until her sides ache when she finds out that the Sixth Doctor regenerated because he hit his head on the console.
- Ace regards the Doctor as "a bastard, but our bastard".
- The Doctor gives Benny a UNIT pass that used to belong to Jeremy Fitzoliver.
Individuals
- Before Benny met the Doctor she had only been knocked unconscious once.
- Benny enjoys verbally torturing Mel.
- Roz Forrester judges a captured Mel not worth rescuing.
- Chris wonders whether he and rebel Kat'lanna might end up sleeping together.
- Melanie Bush left Sabalom Glitz after six months and tried to hitch hike to Earth. Six months after that she was stuck on the planet Avalone. The Doctor knew she was there and thought she'd settled down on the planet.
- Ace's body count is 423.
- Blinovitch's first name was Aaron.
- Jason resurrects the Queen (after she dies).
- Dr. Who is the the Master of the Land of Fiction's construct of the Doctor.
- Wolsey is also known throughout some scenes as 'Power Puss', he also gets a cape and mask.
Organisations
- UNIT / Brigadier Winifred Bambera investigate one of the Land of Fiction incidences on Earth.
Other realities
- Detrios, the Miracle, ACME Lizard Monster Eradicator are all creations from the Land of Fiction / the Master of the Land.
Timeline
- Benny kicks a soft drink can in London, 2001 which through a seemingly unrelated set of events leads to a slightly less eloquent speech writer writing a speech on the eve of the Draconian War, leading to many more deaths on both sides.
Notes
- The cover of this novel was used often in many articles about The New Adventures as it showed a recognisable Doctor (in the question mark jumper), companion Mel screaming, and the Doctor holding a gun, supposedly all indicators of a New Adventures novel.
Continuity
- Mel was last seen (chronologically) in TV: Dragonfire. Head Games continues her story after Dragonfire, and explains what led her to leave.
- This novel is a sequel to PROSE: Conundrum, which in turn was a sequel to TV: The Mind Robber.
- Kadiatu Lethbridge-Stewart is mentioned near the end of this novel, leading into PROSE: The Also People.
- Blinovitch was given some further history in PROSE: Timewyrm: Revelation.
- In this novel it is revealed that Brigadier Winifred Bambera had twins by Ancelyn, an Arthurian knight whom she met during the events of TV: Battlefield.