Released: Feburary 2015
Range: The Main Range
Range Number: 196
Starring Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Sarah Sutton, Mark Strickson, Annette Badland, Nickolas Grace, Joanna Kirkland, John Albasiny & Ella Kenion
Written by Matt Fitton
Directed by Ken Bentley
Still looking for a way out of E-Space, the TARDIS crashes to Isenfel - a realm of snow and ice. Snarling beasts stalk the frozen plains, a feisty princess leads the hunt, and a queen in an ice palace rules over her loyal subjects.
But this is no fairytale kingdom, and everyone in Isenfel knows the price of survival. While Nyssa and Tegan uncover deadly secrets hidden in the palace, Turlough flees for his life across the tundra.
And as for the Doctor... he only ever wants to change things for the better. But in a world such as Isenfel, such a hope may not even be possible.
While Mistfall may have been a story that was inspired by the past, Equilibrium is one that pushes forward with a very different style of Doctor Who. Stories set in medieval kingdoms aren't anything new, nor are Doctor Who stories that deal with the concept of mathematics. However, Equilibrium combines the fairytale with the poetry of maths to create prehaps one of the most orginal main range audios since The Fourth Wall back in 2012. Oh yes, there have been good releases in between these two, some better than these two, but Equilibrium is prehaps the ultimate example of taking of a story idea and making it completely original and unique in that time.
The idea of a society that must maintain ultimate balance is an intriguing one. Stories about population control aren't very original, but one that needs one to maintain it's whole world, not just the society and status quo, but the world itself is incredibly orginial. Matt Fitton certainly knows his stuff, because, with Isenfel, he has managed to create a full and complete society. That can be particularly difficult to do, because Doctor Who stories often need to keep moving at a strong pace to tell all the events that they need to do. However, because all the story elements in Equilibrium need a fully realised world to work, this built-up society is perfect. It's a story about the different mechanics of the society, and how it is the Doctor's blundering that has caused the society to face the danger that it does. Certainly, the Doctor has faced such difficult societies before, but never has it made the Doctor look so weak and powerless. This idea also works because it is grounded in hard science. In many ways, it's the sort of story that Chris H Bidmead would have been proud to put in his era, especially because it revolves around the science of equilibrium. It's hard science, but not to the detriment of character. People are what drives the story, while the science grounds it. In that way, it fits perfectly into this second E-Space trilogy, because it's full of science. No way would this story have worked outside of this framework, because it really does need the idea that it's set in a different universe to work. One thing that does get a little lost in this story, however, are the elements that connect it to the last story. That's prehaps the problem with having characters from different stories crossing over, because it's a similar problem to Starlight Robbery. Equilibrium manages to deal with the problem a little better, but it does just feel like a quick fix to the cliffhanger left by Andrew Smith at the end of the previous story.
The characters in this are crucial, because it's the characters who drive the story. In particular, Karlina and Skarsgard are the most interesting, because they are little more than tools to control the equilibrium of Isenfel. Yet, because Fitton has given these tools emotion and feeling, the drama that is created from this is utterly heart-rendering. Their final scene together is particularly brilliant, simply because it shows that there is no place for them in their world anymore. The idea of redundancy is one that rings particularly true, and it helps to create some utterly potent drama. The remainder of the characters fair very well too, with plenty to intrigue and excite about them. And the regulars all get a fair share of the action as well, which makes me wonder why Fitton hasn't written for them before. The Doctor and Turlough, especially, do very well out of the story, Fitton getting to explore the more vulnerable elements of this incarnation of the Time Lord, while giving Turlough a rather unconventional romance to follow. However, Tegan and Nyssa aren't ignored and given plenty to do. The cast in this one are a massive step up from Mistfall, with Peter Davison heading a incredibly strong ensemble. Annette Badland is brilliant as Karlina, never making her too hostile, but determined to do the best by her people, while Nickolas Grace is perfect as the logical and efficient balancer. Joanna Kirkland, John Albasiny & Ella Kenion fill the other roles perfectly, while the regulars are dynamic and exciting. This is by far one of the best set of performances from this TARDIS team from their run of stories. Ken Bentley is back on fine form too, focusing on the actors, rather than the action. He paces the story perfectly, and this something which shows in the final story. His work is ably supported by Richard Fox and Lauren Yason's sound design and music, which is wonderfully composed and produced. These two really need to be used on more Big Finish stories, their that good.
While Equilibrium isn't the greatest main range story in modern times, it's one of the most orginal, and positive proof that Big Finish aren't running out of ideas, even in a range that's been running for 15 years. It has everything going for it; a great script, an amazing cast, excellent direction, stunning sound design and music. It has everything going for it, and while it may not be a Big Finish great, it's one of there best 'experimental' stories. If you've found the Peter Davison audios over the past few years to be a little too stale and traditional, listen to Equilibrium. The balance has been struck.
Rating - 8/10
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