"We are the future. We will survive".

"When faced with oblivion, some people will do anything, even sacrifice their humanity, to guarantee their continuing existence. For the citizens of Mondas, a twin planet of Earth which long since drifted out of orbit, survival has become impossible without recourse to drastic measures. Temporary protection from an inhospitably frozen atmosphere is achieved by living in an undergound cities beneath an artificial roof, but disaster draws ever closer as the planet's course is dragged towards a nebula which will bring that stone ceiling crashing in.

A workforce deployed on the surface strive to use Mondas' generous reserves of power to avert catastrophe, but the human body cannot withstand the demands of working in such conditions. Enter the dubious practice of augmentation, the primitive results of which resemble something horribly inhuman and all-too-familiar to the Doctor. He arrives with Nyssa in tow, sensing something is not quite right with what appears to be a typical winter night in 1950s London. Soon, they are confronted by the tragic legacy of Mondas' desperate bid to survive.

Spare Parts is a deeply unsettling story; the parallels between society's real-life obsession with physical perfection (manifested in everything from plastic surgery to the more sinsiter implications of genetic engineering) and Cybernetic augementation may be fairly obvious but they are no less potent because of it. That the otherwise-doomed denizens of Mondas are forced by circumstance into finding a mechanised solution only adds to the poignancy.

As proved during his televised adventures in the 80s, Peter Davison fairly thrives when given emotionally and idealogically rich material. Firmly back in touch with the dynamic that characterised his Fifth Doctor onscreen, Davison gives a magnificently energised and multi-layered performance throughout. Dogged and forceful when he has to be, then by turns frequently witty and withering, this is the finest encapsulation yet of the qualities he brings to the role.

Episode Three delivers a heartbreaking scene, arguably unrivalled in all Big Finish thus far, while the writing is of a superb standard overall. Inevitably there is the usual tumultous climax followed by a rushed and rather trite passage of dialogue, but a closing twist ensures it hardly detracts from a truly memorable addition to the range."

SCORE

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