Doctor Who BF-024 The Eye of the Scorpion

“Egypt is in mourning. Pharaoh, the great God-King, is dead. The future of the Two Kingdoms of Egypt is shrouded in uncertainty as the Council of Priests debates the claim to the throne of Pharaoh's only heir."

I know that I’m not the first to say it, and I definitely won’t be the last. But Peri (Nicola Bryant) is hot. Even in audio form, she is extremely attractive. Ok, that’s enough of that. I just thought that I’d get it out of the way.

I quite liked this story. The image of the Doctor riding a chariot through the desert is a very entertaining one. I often forget that the Doctor is wearing a cricket outfit, and a piece of celery on his lapel. This doesn’t seem to match his personality, since the fifth Doctor is quite laid back, relaxed, and finds it easy to blend into a crowd. But how does he do so wearing such ridiculous clothing?  

This isn’t the first time I’ve listened to a big finish story involving Erimem, (because I bought and stupidly listened to “The Bridge of Pelodon” which turned out to be Erimem’s leaving story.) But never the less, I really enjoyed seeing the change in companion dynamic. Throughout the fifth doctors run, the TARDIS seemed to become a home to the family which was the Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan and Turlough- even though they had their arguments, like any other family. The combination of The Doctor, Peri and Erimem creates a whole new dynamic then what we’re used to. Two women, against the sheepish Doctor. He has finally met his match.

There is a running theme in Doctor Who that religion usually ties into things. This story is not an exception. This is a shame, because their hasn’t been many Doctor Who stories set in Egypt, and I think it would have been interesting to play with the usual layout of a story.

I had foreknowledge that Erimem was going to become a companion. So it wasn’t a huge mystery to me as to why “Erimem never become pharaoh.” The Doctor knows the names of all the pharaohs of Egypt, and he’s certain that he would have remembered a female leader. I found it amusing when Peri tried to convince Erimem that women can be great leaders as well- and her first thought was of Margaret Thatcher. The Doctor would later meet Margaret Thatcher, in “The Ultimate Adventure” but more from that later.

In conclusion, this is a decent story, and it’s worth a listen. I’ll admit, though- it’s nothing to write home about.

6/10