Cyber-marathon!: The Sword of Orion

GARAZONE SPACE PATROL. REPORT K/5703.

Classification: Security rating red.

In the early days, Big Finish decided to adapt three stories from their fan-based predecessor, Audio Visuals, for a new audience under a new licence. Unlike Minuet in Hell and The Mutant Phase, Sword of Orion remains much as it was from its initial release in 1985/6. The setting aboard the Vanguard and Star Destroyer is indistinguishable and the cast of characters remain the largely same. However, there were a few key differences between the two, which I'll share below.

Originally, the AV!Doctor was alone when he arrived on Vanguard. Much of his dialogue has been shared between the Eighth Doctor and Charley, with some of his more biting lines given to the latter. There is no appearance of the Garazone Bazaar in the Audio Visuals version. The AV!Doctor instead spends a great deal of time aboard the TARDIS with companions Truman and Ria struggling against his sargol withdrawal. Something that, in hindsight, could easily have been retrofitted to explain the televised Sixth Doctor's also erratic behaviour (i.e. spectrox withdrawal). In the remake, two characters are renamed: Chev becomes Kelsey and Chava becomes Chev.

Only one cliffhanger exists within the original story: Grash and Chava are ambushed by the Cybermen storming the Vanguard. Interestingly, the version used for this research lacks both the opening titles and the cliffhanger. If the original were split into four 25-minute instalments, each could theoretically have fallen as follows:

1. The Doctor is discovered over the body of Chev (“I've found his body and the murderer.”);
2. The Cybermen storm the Vanguard (“Run for it, Chava!”);
3. Chava leads Vol to the Cybermat (“Hey... It's that Cyber-thing...”).

Unlike its self-contained successor, there's no final coda to round out the story either. Taking a leaf from stories like Enemy of the World, we don't discover if or how the Doctor survived until the next instalment, Carny. Nick Briggs would later employ this trick for another story involving a returning foe at Big Finish some years following Sword of Orion.

Jim Mortimore's original soundtrack has a wonderful leitmotif taken from the “Space Adventure” track used for The Tomb of the Cybermen. Lovely though it was, I can see why it didn't make the transition. Securing copyright for each influence would've been a nightmare. That said, that didn't stop the opening overture for the Audio Visuals version being used as the backing track for the McGann version's trailer. Adding to the chilling atmosphere, Mortimore's soundtrack also took partial inspiration from The Omen. The spectral mantra you can hear in the background is Heather Barker who plays Ria.

As for the Cybermen, their Audio Visuals counterparts feel (quite naturally, in retrospect) like the Neomorph Leader and Lieutenant we'd seen recently in The Five Doctors. The dynamic between the two feels quite reminiscent of David Banks and Mark Hardy. Although, interestingly enough, some of the supplemental art shows them as CyberTelosians, fitting the backstory of the Star Destroyer. The Big Finish versions occupy a similar niche. Their backstory, as relayed by the Doctor at the Bazaar, is reminiscent of Revenge of the Cybermen, but their design is much more reminiscent of the CyberFaction we'd seen in The Invasion. The archetypal Big Finish Cyberman these days.

(Author's note: I like the subtle addition of transparent fluidic tubing in the McGann version's ears on the cover.)

While much the cast remains the same, there is a keen difference between the two versions of Deeva Jansen, which has a great deal to do with the final climax. We're familiar with the McGann version being wounded and offered passage aboard the TARDIS in exchange for erasing the information taken from the Cybermen. She agrees and joins them just before they're attacked by the Cyberleader. The AV!Doctor, on the other hand, is faced with a far grimmer scenario. When they reach the conversion chambers, hoping to free the Vanguard's crew, Deeva sees no reason why the procedure shouldn't continue. She tells the Doctor about the humans' purge of their android counterparts after the riots on Earth (“mass deactivation” being synonymous with Blade Runner's euphemistic “retirement” of replicants). When faced with a partially cybernised Ike, pleading for release from the conversion unit, Deeva asks the Doctor sharply if killing him wouldn't be: “the humane thing to do?” Despite his protests, he doesn't have the answer.

Nevertheless, both versions of Deeva Jansen choose to sacrifice their own lives to save someone else. Either the Doctor or Charley in their respective versions. Exercising one last act of empathy in reaction to the Doctor's compassion:

I'm cheating a bit and using my review from the **********.com

I don't think I need to harp on about the plot too much, the blurb and other reviews will outline it well enough.

But I do love Sword of Orion. The motley collection of characters aboard the past-its-best refuse collection ship The Vanguard soon find themselves out of their depth when their new and very efficient captain, Miss Jansen, instructs them to board a derelict space ship for junking purposes.

Various horrors await, and we then get an Alien-esq fight for survival. The 8th Doctor and Charley find themselves not only battling against the inhabitants of the derelict ship, but also the treachery of the embattled crew of The Vanguard.

The supporting cast are fantastic, including the part-time mobster/union rep Grash who has a hold on a number of the crew.

The sound design is superb. Old doors on rusty bearings sliding open, comms links with interference and even scratchy radio broadcasts that the crew are listening to.

One of my go-to audios from Big Finish, brilliantly atmospheric with a great score. An excellent 8 out of 10.

I love The Sword of Orion, it's very much a traditional Doctor Who adventure that ticks all the right boxes. Charley and Eight are very enjoyable in this too. The Sword of Orion is definitely one of the stronger early Eighth Doctor stories for me.

Its a story i realised i should return to more often for a re-listen

This is still one of my favorite Eighth Doctor stories. I do love a good base-under-siege story and the Cybermen are the perfect antagonist for such stories because they threaten not just military might, but the loss of identity, making the stakes very high. I agree that it's a pretty straight forward Doctor Who adventure, but it's certainly a fun one with a lot of exciting moments and great atmosphere.

I like it.
The market scene in the beginning is amazing.
The atmosphere in the abandoned ship is creepy and haunting.
8 and Charley are great together and 8 in general is enjoyable here.
I even found the Cybermen- plot to be engaging.
Yes, the story itself is a bit basic, but I do not understand why this is so underrated.

It got absolutely slated in DWM as I understand and Nick wasn't too impressed. It was apparently formulaic. I was amused in Ascension / Timeless to find a massive Cyberarmy on a desolate hulk floating around in a battescene!

Nick did the original music for the AV release at short notice - from memory the original got lost. I actually quite like all the sound work on this

The reviewer is a friend of Nick's which didn't help