Freema: 'We really didn’t know what Martha was going through during that year on Earth – we see her embark on it and we see the conclusion of it' - well, SOMEONE seems to have forgotten the Story of Martha novel. Despite the fact *checks* yup, that SHE read the audiobook version...

1.1: The Last Diner:

I found myself simultaneously outraged that Martha rated the Sacred Music of the Who theme tune - who does she think she IS! - and that she'd been denied her OWN theme tune - such disrespect to the Saviour Of Earth!

Why is Martha hanging round for ages cliffhangering at some Americans who can't afford to feed her instead of moving on?

Why are 'those left alive' being moved all across the world in shipping containers?

Holly's asking a lot of suspicious questions for someone who, it eventually transpires, ISN'T a spy.

Why isn't Martha more suspicious at the staggering coincidences of bumping into an old friend AND her mother on the wrong continent?

So, er, 'I got away' when the Master stopped being afraid of Martha, stopped watching her family...Yeah, Francine might get away with that if she hadn't been on THE VALIANT, you know, that thing IN THE SKY that's pretty escape-proof...and yet Martha asks precisely no searching questions about this alleged escape?

'Aren't you going to ask how we are?' - well, QUITE.

Even while being ruled by an alien, people are arguing that the ghosts were a mass hallucination and the standing-on-the-roof thing a CIA thought experiment? This is the one time that everyone on Earth could actually believe in sodding aliens for a change without screwing up subsequent stories...

The Doctor 'makes the best of everyone he meets' - claims Martha. 'Is that so' sneers her dear old mum. I'm siding with Francine here - he sure as hell didn't make the most out of HER.

'It's paper, it can't malfunction' claims the Doctor of the psychic paper. Well, it does in Apollo 23 and A Christmas Carol but then they both happened to Matt so maybe Ten just doesn't realise it CAN malfunction...

'Probably dead now, most people are' - OK, I realise the Master's had a good few genocides since the original decimation but has he really wiped out most of humanity?

'I've heard other stories about him. Stories told by Harold Saxon' - OMG. Even when Saxon is decimating her planet and (no doubt more importantly in Francine's eyes) enslaving HER, Francine will still believe HIM over Martha's boyfriend. (How does poor Mickey-the-Idiot cope with this? Maybe it makes him feel right at home after Jackie's campaign of persecution...)

'Mum, he's not even human!' - THAT'S the worst thing Martha can think of to say about the Master? Not, say, HE'S JUST GENOCIDED HUMANITY ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS? What a racist. Has she forgotten that CATS and THE DOCTOR aren't human either?

'Maybe I should move on from here before the Master finds me' - no ••••, Sherlock, how the hell have you SURVIVED so long if you'd lived in blissful ignorance of such a concept?

1.2: Silver Medal:

Does Martha even remember Army of Ghosts' Cyber-invasion? (You know, the one her identical-cousin DIED in?) Cos she's not even THINKING about Cybermen when some silver monsters are converting people...

'If the Doctor's not here maybe he's doing something to save us' - could Martha BE less inspiring to the poor old miners...

'I'm not exactly in a storytelling mood' - you have ONE JOB, Martha...

1.3: Deceived:

Francine and Martha don't seem remotely worried about the Master taking her escape out on their relatives on the Valiant.

So Martha finally manages to contact the Sovari and totally fails to ask any questions to ascertain whether they're Earth-saving aliens or fakes.

Oh, now Martha n'Francine are discussing Holly's potential treachery casually like it isn't their LIVES and the FUTURE OF EARTH at stake.

'Who's the person I want to see most in the world' - SERIOUSLY, Martha? I realise this bizarre opinion was backed up in Stolen Earth but it's not making any more sense here.

Martha: 'I wasn't sure about you, y'know, not at first.' Francine: 'You thought I was a dream?' - no, she thought you were a spy, moron. It's not like it would be the FIRST time you'd sold your daughter out to Harold Saxon...

'Francine has been instrumental in my success' Beecham tells Martha. 'Well, here I am, come and get me' is a rather odd reaction to learning that mummy is a traitor. (Unwitting clone. Whatever. Er, remind me exactly HOW she was instrumental to Beecham's success?)

'Dying man's request' - that's nice of them to indulge the traitor-to-humanity.

Beecham threatens to execute loads of people to get Martha to talk; Martha says that's on Beecham not her. That wasn't her attitude in Last of the Time Lords when she sacrificed herself for the nearest humans...

If you're just going to get the Toclafane to execute Beecham, why bother claiming that Mr Master has come for her (he's mysteriously silent - it really shouldn't have cost anything to get Simm to record an extra line or two when he was doing Masterful) and transmatting her aboard the Valiant and holding a repetitive conversation with her and THEN execute her?

Whatever happened to Martha's Sound of Drums teleporter?

and here is my review of this set.

To be honest, I'm not mad about some of my grammar in this one....

To be honest, I'm not mad about some of my grammar in this one....

I'm not sure it counts as grammar, but you shouldn't capitalise the 'The' for the Master any more than you should for the Doctor and it's Time Lord not Timelord!

'it was a great vehicle for the then-current Doctor (played by David Tennant) and The Master (played by John Simm)' - actually I tend to agree with Space Helmet for a Cow that it's unforgivable to let Simm •••• all the air from the room here AND in End of Time...

Well I’m glad you approve of my review….

Your disappointment rang through every line, so yeah...

I found myself simultaneously outraged that Martha rated the Sacred Music of the Who theme tune - who does she think she IS! - and that she'd been denied her OWN theme tune - such disrespect to the Saviour Of Earth!

Even PELADON gets its own theme tune for heaven's sake! And it's certainly not as if Big Finish LIKE Peladon...

Freema: 'We really didn’t know what Martha was going through during that year on Earth – we see her embark on it and we see the conclusion of it' - well, SOMEONE seems to have forgotten the Story of Martha novel. Despite the fact *checks* yup, that SHE read the audiobook version...

Oddly enough, script editor Matt Fitton hadn't: 'I didn't want to tread on the toes of The Story of Martha, which has got her crossing Europe and parts of Asia.' Is Big Finish actually showing the NSAs some RESPECT? Unlike all those NAs and MAs and EDAs and PDAs...

If you're just going to get the Toclafane to execute Beecham, why bother claiming that Mr Master has come for her (he's mysteriously silent - it really shouldn't have cost anything to get Simm to record an extra line or two when he was doing Masterful)

Obviously I'm not the only one feeling like this - DWM: 'Is it too much to ask that he comes out onto the balcony and waves a tentacle in series two?'

'I didn't want to tread on the toes of The Story of Martha, which has got her crossing Europe and parts of Asia.' Is Big Finish actually showing the NSAs some RESPECT?

Yeah, it made a pleasant change and I didn't spot any direct contradictions when rereading The Story of Martha, but it's deeply weird she never seemed to give the Drast or Griffin a single thought...

I found myself simultaneously outraged that Martha rated the Sacred Music of the Who theme tune - who does she think she IS! - and that she'd been denied her OWN theme tune - such disrespect to the Saviour Of Earth!

Even PELADON gets its own theme tune for heaven's sake!

Also...Rani Chandra of all people.

As I'm catching up (and I eventually want to invest in more Eccleson Doctor 9's and those are a bit pricier), I'm curious of this one, but almost wonder if getting details may ruin the time gap we know. That and Martha's story/tale seemed a bit much in the original thinking of what we know Canon wise of that year-- would I want details of Martha's journey as she goes from one continent to another in the dystopia, courtesy of John Sims Master? I don't know. It may have been more interesting to have a story at the boys' prep school or maybe adventures from 1969 ("Blink") instead of this year that never was.

I eventually want to invest in more Eccleson Doctor 9's and those are a bit pricier

If it's any consolation, MOST of 'em are...actually quite good. Totally contradictory of everything we discovered on-screen about his pre-Rose days, mind you...

I'm curious of this one, but almost wonder if getting details may ruin the time gap we know. That and Martha's story/tale seemed a bit much in the original thinking of what we know Canon wise of that year-- would I want details of Martha's journey as she goes from one continent to another in the dystopia, courtesy of John Sims Master? I don't know.

She's stuck on the American continent for this, as far as I remember, and it's more in keeping with what we know than The Story of Martha's bizarre messing-around with other alien invasions in Japan...

It may have been more interesting to have a story at the boys' prep school or maybe adventures from 1969 ("Blink") instead of this year that never was.

*Sigh* It's not an either/or situation, you just KNOW that Big Finish will get round to those too, sooner or later...(Well, once they've sorted out their bizarre aversion to having Ten n'Martha in the same audio...)