Okay, so this story had been in my queue for a while, but
grinch's comment compelled me to move it to the very top. I just finished listening to it and I have some
thoughts.First off, boy oh boy is this story familiar. Bletchley Park? Sentient Radio waves? It sure
feels like a story I've heard before, a half-dozen times. Which isn't to say it was bad--just a bit cliched. Certainly I don't think this story could stand well on the strength of its plot, but fortunately the characters do a lot of heavy-lifting to keep things interesting and engaging throughout. Constance was great, but I was also pleasantly surprised with the Nazi spymaster who was depicted as much more of a nuanced character than I'd expect.
The titular Agent Criss-Cross... I have more mixed opinions on. Or, at least, I'm a bit hesitant to wade in. First, a confession: I didn't expect his betrayal. I know, I know. He's got a cockney accent. He's a double agent. The episode is named after him. I still didn't
predict the turn, if that makes any sense: I wasn't surprised, exactly, but I
was caught off-guard.
The truly weird thing here is that when Big a finish is trying to be subtle about there twists, and build up to them slowly... I typically figure out what they're doing way, way sooner than I think I'm supposed to--sometimes almost immediately, as in the case of the recent
Tenth Doctor and Rover Song's final story--but when it's something simple and obvious that they don't care to conceal, the twist blindsides me.
Yes, yes, I'm an idiot, I know: my point is that I appear to be a very particular kind of idiot.
Also, I'm also curious about his accent. Which I'm 90% spsure is cockney? Maybe someone in the UK could elucidate matters for me. What kind of social connotations does this accent have? Is it associated with specific ethnicities or subcultures? Because it occurs to me that literally every character I've ever seen who spoke in a Cockney accent has
also been ignorant and amoral. Well, there are one or two exceptions, perhaps (like the kids in
Hustle, and Yangus, if he counts), but you know what I mean.
Regarding Constance, I'm not totally sold on her as a companion yet, though I do really like her dynamic with the Doctor here--well, aside from the stiffness with her insistence of formality. I do find it interesting that she's not the companion the Doctor sought out--he wanted the younger, prettier girl. I feel like this is the writer doing a not-so-subtle, "not the friend you want, but the friend you need" kind of thing.
And I do like the idea that, for whatever reason, the Doctor is drawn to young Earth women--but when it comes to what he needs from a friend and traveling companion, he (the 6th Doctor especially) needs someone with more age and experience. Someone who will treat with him more as an equal than from a subservient companion. I'm not yet sold on Constance being the equal of Evelyn, but compared to the 6th Doctor's
other companions she definitely ranks very high.
And look, I promise I'll try to curtail this tendency more, but I just cannot overstate how awful Peri is. She drags down every scene and every story she's in.
....
So, that's that. Not sure what I'll listen to next. I suppose I could/should keep going with Constance, but it appears that the next story deals with the Rani? How is the Rani in Big Finish? All I really know of the character is that she's treated as a complete joke by the fandom.