Doctor Who: The World Traders

Set primarily in the modern day, this story sees the TARDIS stolen by an evil finance corporation and the Doctor and Leela attempt to get it back. It's immediately apparent that there's more to the company than meets the eye, and the investigation leads not only to the presence of aliens but also to time travel (hence the tyrannosaur on the cover). Indeed, the villain belongs to an alien race from the TV series that hasn't previously made it into the Big Finish audios and at least makes things a little bit different.

Whether it also makes things better is debatable. In particular, the closing section of the story is a little confusing and not terribly exciting, being based more around finance and contract law than anything more traditional. But, on the plus side, the writing for the Doctor and Leela is good, and both actors are on top form, as is Siân Phillips as the main villain. Leela also gets to show off her hunting skills, coming face-to-face with, among other things, that tyrannosaur. It's these elements that pull it up to... let's say 3.5 stars, along with a reasonably complex plot that makes use of the time travel theme to bring in some extra settings to liven things up and prevent the two-hour length from dragging.

On the downside, one of the subsidiary villains is shallow and a less villainous antagonist just seems to be wandering around in the background being confused. In fairness, it does all make sense, and there are some moments of action and humour in between the corporate shenanigans, but it's really Baker and Jameson that lift this above the average.