I've been extremely excited for this release ever since I first heard about it. A continuation of the Second Doctor's era, with room for new companions? Big Finish actually releasing Second Doctor stories? On paper, this set is a dream come true. In reality, it sadly falls flat of its lofty goals. Of course, this isn't the first time we've seen a version of Season 6B. It's been around since just before the Pertwee Era, with the TV Action comic strips. After that, we saw a bit of it in the Past Doctor Adventures novel, World Game, by Terrance Dicks. However, this is its first appearance in an Audio Drama (assuming we ignore The Annihilators, also released earlier this year, although that addressed it somewhat less directly). The first thing to note is that this set also features a new actor for the Second Doctor: Michael Troughton, son of Patrick Troughton, the original actor for the Second Doctor. Honestly, this is one of my favorite ways to do a recast. Using family members feels like it honors the original actors more than hiring someone random who can do the voice well. We've seen this recently with the casting of Sadie Miller, and in both cases, I think that the family member they chose as a recast works wonderfully. Michael Troughton doesn't sound exactly like his father, somewhat less so than Hines' impression, but it is still successful. I found that if I closed my eyes, I could imagine Troughton himself acting, with his clownish movements and facial expressions. It's honestly wonderful to be transported back to the late 60s, and that is one thing that this boxset manages to do really well. The Final BeginningWell, here we go. The Final Beginning starts off where the War Games left off, and introduces a new character, Raven, who might just be the most exciting part of this set. She works for the CIA and ropes the Doctor into her shenanigans, and he's sent off to a planet to save a missing CIA agent, and in doing so, fights the Daleks again. The Second Doctor and the Daleks is a somewhat interesting prospect, given their encounter in Evil of the Daleks, but their return was already dealt with earlier this year in the newest Companion Chronicles set, so it doesn't really feel like this story is doing anything new. It's also somewhat frustrating that when we only get six Second Doctor stories this year, after getting so few every other year, two of them are Dalek stories. I wish that this story had omitted the Daleks completely, or even replaced them with another Second Doctor villain. What about the Cybermen, or even the Krotons? While it may not have the same intended punch, it would be refreshing. It does seem that the Daleks are going to be the main villains throughout this series, as it's hinted at that the Dalek Emperor will return, and as such, this story is likely a combination of exposition and build-up to the next sets. I'll admit that I didn't follow the plot all that well, but I felt that the Daleks were wasted. The rest of the story was certainly interesting, and the highlight was certainly the chance to hear Two again. Big Finish also returns to the format of four fifteen-minute minute episodes on a single disc, which we've seen previously in the early Companion Chronicles (I believe it's used in The Blue Tooth and The Beautiful People). I do wonder how this story would have been different if it had been two thirty-minute episodes instead, and whether it would have been more or less successful. Wrath of the Ice WarriorsBig Finish seems to be trying to blend together the Second and Third Doctor eras with this release, which makes sense, considering that Season 6B is the border between the two. With the casting of Katy Manning, Tim Treloar, and Jon Culshaw, this release attempts to be reminiscent of the Third Doctor, and that is especially evident with this story. Whereas The Final Beginning is focused on moving the general plot of the series forward, this one serves as your typical UNIT story. Based off a single line from The Five Doctors, this story is a fun romp with the Second Doctor and the Brigadier, a pair that is enormously underrated. Two's lines calling the Brigadier 'Great Dane One' instead of 'Greyhound One' were fantastic, and it was a delight to see the two characters together after their initial meeting in The Web of Fear. Sheena was a good one-off companion, and it's nice to hear the Ice Warriors again. I'd much rather hear new stories with them than the Daleks (though it does seem that there have been a lot of Ice Warrior stories this year). Beyond that though, this story is somewhat average, making the set rather disappointing. ConclusionsBig Finish could have done absolutely anything with the Second Doctor, yet neither of the stories in the set are all that great. While Wrath of the Ice Warriors was fun to listen to, it's not really anything more than an average story, and the same goes for The Final Beginning. A lot of the excitement in this set is the prospect of new ground for this Doctor, but I feel that this will come to better fruition in later sets. As such, I can't really recommend this boxset, and that's a shame. I really wanted to like it. I really did, and hopefully the next one will be better, but out of the two Second Doctor releases of the year, I'd much more likely recommend The Companion Chronicles Volume 3.
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