Starring William Russell & Gus Bown
Written by John Dorney
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
The TARDIS has landed on Platform Five, a floating city in the sky of the planet Jobis, and for a time the Doctor, Ian, Barbara and Vicki get the chance to enjoy this idyllic place.
And then the Rocket Men arrive, led by the sadistic Ashman...
When the only other option to certain death is suicide, Ian Chesterton takes the gamble of his life...
If you've ever wanted an example of why the Companion Chronicles shouldn't have ended, then this story would be a perfect example of why that would be the case. This story has everything that makes the Companion Chronicles work: a strong central voice, some brilliant direction, a lovely central premise, a brilliant lead actor, wonderful music etc. etc.. From the moment that The Rocket Men starts until the moment that it ends, the story gives every fan of The first Doctor era a nostalgic thrill, and also pushing it's characters in every direction possible. It's the reason why these Companion Chronicles are the best: because they do things with there characters, not just pushing them through an average story.
Well, John Dorney's plot is out of this world. His script has some brilliant ideas behind it, and has a real grasp upon the characters of the time period. By placing the story out of order, we get to see some wonderful twists that normally, we would just expect to be part of the story. However, because of them being in the positions where Dorney's placed them, we get to understand the whole story a little better. More simple things like a disguise becomes a plot twist, and it's an interesting narrative feature to use, if you want your story to stand out a little more from the rest of the crowd. But that's one of Dorney's greatest assets: the fact that he doesn't need clever gimmicks to use in his stories to make them stand out. His skill as a writer is something which empowers his stories and allows them to have a strong basis before the actors and direction even get to see the script. In this case, his plot may seem simple, but as the story progresses, the layers really unravel, and we really get to gaze upon the emotional core of the story.
That emotional core really feeds into the characters, especially Ian and Barbara. They both go through hell and back, and at the end, there changed people. That's one of the joys of the Companion Chronicles: that we get the chance to really explore these characters in depth, and in ways that the TV series never could at the time. In this case, we really get to see the romance angle of there relationship shown in all it's detail. And it's really touching to see. Certainly, one could argue that Barbara isn't given enough to do, but this is Ian's story, really, not her's. Both The Doctor and Vicki are sidelined, but that's ok. Besides, The Doctor needs to be out of the way of the plot so that Ian can be put in the position he needs to be in. The rest of the characters, even Ashman, at times just fade away into the background, to allow the romance story to blossom. The Rocket Men are certainly villainous, and there delightfully retro in there style and approach, but we never really get a sense of what drives them, apart from the obvious factor of money. They instead look a little like 'cliched villain', which is a bit of a shame, especially considering the subject matter of the story. Certainly, however, one could argue that Gus Brown's Ashman alleviates all ills. He creates Ashman as a nasty piece of work. He pretty villainous, especially in his rough handling of prisoners and his psychological examination of Ian before he tries to kill him. Gus certainly lifts the role, but, when one is working against William Russell, with material like this, it's easy to become seen as unimportant. Russell is fantastic, making the material come to life with such gusto. It's quite easy to forget that Russell is getting on, because he gives such a dynamic performance. He creates something great, giving his performance a real vibe and the material a real edge that might have been lacking had he phoned in his performance. It makes everything easier for Lisa Bowerman's direction, which as usual is outstanding. And Howard Carter's sound design and music is exemplary, really giving the story some extra gusto. Some of the scores for the Companion Chronicles can be quite unmemorable, but Howard Carter really gives The Rocket Men score an almost filmic quality, without it being obtrusive or interrupting on the narrative.
The Rocket Men is a golden gem: one of those stories that's so good, you really want to just listen over and over again. Every single element that makes up this story is pretty much nearly faultless. If it wasn't for the little niggles I mentioned earlier, this would be a 10 out of 10 story. As it is, however, it's still an excellent story and still one of the best Companion Chronicles.
TARDIS Rating - 9/10
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