Doctor Who: eBook Review – "The Nameless City"

rating: 4

In honor of the upcoming 50th anniversary of Doctor Who and the BBC special that we're all either excited about or dreading, Puffin is releasing a series of eBook stories featuring each of the eleven Doctors so far. "The Nameless City" chronicles an adventure of the Second Doctor, accompanied by lovable Scotsman Jamie. As described on Amazon.com,

"When Jamie McCrimmon brings the Second Doctor a mysterious book, little does he realize the danger contained within its pages. The book transports the TARDIS to a terrifying glass city on a distant world, where the Archons are intent on getting revenge on the Time Lord for an ancient grudge."

I will come out and admit that I'm relatively unfamiliar with the Doctors that came before Nine. Like many others, I only discovered and adored the show with the 2005 reboot. So, as research for this review, I went about watching some Two/Jaime episodes. Yes, I suffer for my art. I watched "Tomb of the Cybermen," and I had my doubts right away. The episodes were in black and white, the companion wore a kilt, the serial was called "Tomb of the Cybermen"...I was therefore surprised to find that I loved it, and I became optimistic about reading and reviewing "The Nameless City." The story follows the basic framework that has been fueling much of Doctor Who for the past half of a century. Everything is relatively calm, an outside force is introduced, hijinks ensue, the companion is endangered, the Doctor wins and everything returns back to normal by the end (spoiler?). The general formula, however, isn't a bad thing; it's been successfully powering the franchise off-and-on since 1963. Still, if a reader is looking for something revolutionary, "The Nameless City" would not be the place to start. Nevertheless, the familiarity of structure allows us to jump right into the plot without plodding through exposition unlikely to be necessary for someone who is reading a Doctor Who eBook. There are definitely some elements unique to "The Nameless City" that have not been included in the show. Despite the plethora of existing Who villains, author Michael Scott has created a race called the Archons to serve as antagonists to the Doctor, and the Archons certainly are creative. Clad entirely in rags, the Archons are in the shapes of various massive aquatic creatures, all of them featuring cephalopod suckers and smelling of rotting fish. They have little little canonical connection to the show, but the Archons are mentioned as dancing to "the Music of the Spheres," a concept briefly introduced only in a 2008 video short featuring David Tennant as my beloved Ten. While Michael Scott makes a valiant attempt to create a plot understandable to a reader unfamiliar with Doctor Who, the format is too short to allow thorough explanation, and the story almost definitely falls into too much TARDIS lingo to remain sensible to newcomers for very long. As most people reading the eBook are probably fans of the show, however, the lack of introduction is unlikely to subtract much from the entertainment value. Still, the climax is very brief and jarring considering the lengthy build-up, and there is no acknowledgment of the finality of the Doctor's victory over the few remaining Archons. His solution, however, is so very Doctor-ish and his interactions with Jamie so very genuine that the excellent characterizations help to overshadow some of the problems of pacing. There is no violence or battle or weaponry; the Doctor defeats the vengeful Archons with his wits and a helpful set of bagpipes. All in all, "The Nameless City" is a short and harmless read, and it gives an endearing portrait of the Second Doctor and his very Scottish companion that could help Nu-Who viewers to understand why the series has managed to last for fifty years and counting.