DW: Revenge of the Judoon

Another quick read! (Although I think I'm reading slow.) Revenge of the Judoon by Terrance Dicks.


Not much plot, so it's a race around big figures in 1902 in true Dicksian style. So, namely, we go right to the top and meet the King, Edward VII, as well as picking up Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Lieutenant-General Baden-Powell. Certainly can't say Terrance doesn't know his history (or, at least, doesn't have a "Famous People To Meet Each Year" book he's steadily working through).

Anyway, it's a straight-forward plot of alien takeover, although nothing really gets off the ground as there's a lot of running and not many pages to run around in, so the real problem introduced here is left past the end of the book, which makes the point of the book not the plot but the running (which isn't exactly a first for nuWho).

And then there's the Judoon, shoe-horned in. Terrance was probably asked to put them in, rather than gave a proposal with them, and it really is odd to have them in there as their main contribution to the plot is to teleport a castle around and them help dispose of the real enemy at the end of the book. The whole titular "Revenge" aspect is barely worth mentioning, and only really gets a few pages. (But it was probably either that or "An Adventure Which Accidentally Has Judoon In It".)

Anyway, for a quick read, it's perfectly readable and Terrance knows how to keep the pace going.


Order: could be anywhere, but given that Martha is very much a companion now in the Doctor's eyes, I'd put this in the gap after The Lazarus Pit.

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