4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
READ THIS BOOK!, May 16, 2000
This review is from: Matrix (Doctor Who Series) (Paperback)
I happened to think this was one of the best Seventh Doctor novels that have come out since "The Hollow Men". Something is affecting the Seventh Doctor, something familiar, and he decides to face it alone and leave Ace with his old friends Ian and Barbara. But when he arrives in 1963 he comes to realize that everything has changed and neither of his former travelling companions know anything about ever travelling with a Doctor. And when The Doctor and Ace reach the source of the problem in Victorian England it becomes clear to Ace that the Doctor has apparently become evil and she must flee from him before he kills her. I feel that the Doctor Who novels work the best when you could picture them as an actual episode. That's when I start feeling sad. But this book is a must have for fans of Sylvester McCoy's Doctor and fans of the series. Robert Perry and Mike Tucker, PLEASE WRITE MORE!
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1.0 out of 5 stars
Ugh.., November 5, 2011
This review is from: Matrix (Doctor Who Series) (Paperback)
I ordered this book specifically because it had the Valeyard in it, and really wanted to enjoy it, but it was just terrible. : The doctor doesn't know who he is for 70-80% of the book, and it just drags and drags and drags on.. And the Valeyard is handled terribly. Skip it, sad to say.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Darkness Falls Upon A Time Lord..., March 11, 2010
This review is from: Matrix (Doctor Who Series) (Paperback)
Considering the fact that the seventh Doctor and his companion Ace (though to a lesser extant) were the stars of sixty different novels as part of the Virgin New Adventures range, it would be hard to believe that there was much else to be said about these two characters. Yet as this BBC Past Doctor Adventure (PDA) by Robert Perry and Mike Tucker from 1998 shows us that is most definitely not the case. Like the best books from the New Adventures range, Matrix pushes its main characters to their limits while all then while adding a new dimension to the Doctor Who mythology. The result is a page turning Doctor Who story.
It all begins with the main characters. Perry and Tucker know their lead characters of the seventh Doctor and Ace well (having written for them previously in the PDA Illegal Alien) and the novel is without a doubt their story. In fact this perhaps more of a story for Ace then it is for the Doctor as he seemingly disappears during the middle part of the book. The result is that, in the middle at least, Ace is left fending for herself in 1888 London which is perhaps more alien to her then any place she had visited in the TARDIS. This gives the reader a great insight into Ace as a character as she tries just to survive throughout without the Doctor or really anyone else to help. But when the Doctor is around, it is clear he is a man at war with himself as his darker side threatens to unleash itself (and apparently does so at the end of Part Two, making it one of the most shocking pieces of Who writing I've ever read). Somehow it seems appropriate that the seventh Doctor, known for his darkness, should be the one who ends up doing battle with his dark side once and for all. The result is that these two characters are pushed to their very limits and the reader is there with them on one heck of an emotional roller coaster.
There's an interesting cast of supporting characters as well. There's Joseph Liebermann as a strange seemingly immortal Jew who becomes involved with a strange man named Johnny, thought to be the Ripper, who floats in and out of the novel's 1888 sections. There's Malacroix, the owner of a circus freak show, who plays a sizable role during Ace's time away from the Doctor and becomes the victim of a wonderful piece of irony. There's also some wonderful characterization of characters like the deaf mute Jed and the various members of Malacroix's circus. Perhaps the highlights of the supporting characters are three from the show's past: Barbara Wright, Ian Chesterton and the novel's villain. The writers handle all three of these characters well and even though the first two are alternate versions of the familiar TV characters, are both recognizable and yet more then flimsy cardboard copies of the TV versions. The novel's villain, who will undoubtedly become obvious as the novel goes on, makes a very effective appearance here nonetheless and makes for some dramatic sequences as well. Plus there's the climatic confrontation between villain and the Doctor is one of the most exciting pieces of Who prose you're ever likely to read. All together the supporting characters help to make this story all the more interesting.
Matrix is a considerable page turner which helps as well. From the opening pages, it's clear that what is about to follow is a dark but fast-paced novel and Matrix never in those regards. The novel is undoubtedly one of the darkest Who stories of all time with some dark looks at not only the seventh Doctor and Ace but at Victorian society throughout. This is due mainly to the inclusion of Jack the Ripper and his influence on events both in the alternate timeline seen in the novel's second part and the sections set in Victorian London. This darkness is peppered with several different action pieces including chases, fights and the aforementioned climatic confrontation. The novel does contain quite a few references to the show's mythology as well besides the sue of the three characters mentioned above including references to events throughout the seventh Doctor's TV reign and stories such as Genesis of the Daleks and The Caves of Androzani (which really is a section that needs to be read to be believed). Thankfully the references aren't too heavy and in fact seem to almost grow organically out of the story which makes them not only palatable but even welcomed. The result of all this is one of the best paced Who novels out there.
All in all, Matrix is a winner. From its excellent characterization of the TV leads, the supporting characters and the writing itself this is a novel that takes the Doctor Who universe and pushes its boundaries considerably. Perhaps more importantly then all that...it succeeds with flying colors in all those areas. While it may not be on the level of say Paul Cornell's Human Nature this is still a fine Who novel nonetheless.
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