Big Finish’s run of tales that play with narrative techniques goes a step too far with a concept that, while very, very clever, makes for a bit of a slog as a listen. Jonathan Morris’s timey wimey tale has two versions of the Doctor and Mel (Sylvester McCoy and Bonnie Langford) getting involved in two time periods on the human colony planet Puxatornee. The gimmick is that it doesn’t matter which of the two discs the listener plays first - black or white - as the story works either way.
Morris must have spent ages fine tuning a script that works whether you listen to one half of it first or the other but it’s a lot of effort for little reward for the listener. There’s a fair amount of repetition with both stories start with the time travellers arriving on the planet to find out it appears that they have already been there. The basic overall story concerns a space craft arriving containing slug like aliens the Slithergees, a bunch of Uriah Heeps who play the minority card even though they outnumber the human colonists. The time travellers get involved in a plot by Stewart and Reed to try to change history so that the Slithergees never get a foothold, yet, in true paradox fashion, their actions to change the past end up creating the very future they wish to avoid.
Like I say, the plot is fiendishly clever and convoluted, making Moffat’s recent TV arcs look like CBBC, but the whole affair lacks any real urgency or tension. Morris has always been one of the ranges better comic writers but here the overall structure seems to rob him of his usual assured comic touch and, ironically, the dialogue is quite flat. The love triangle between President Bailey, her deputy Mitchell and her male secretary remains undeveloped and Stewart and Reed, despite existing in two different versions never really come across as real characters rather ciphers to drive the plot. Then we come to the Slithergees, a race that uses the Politically Correct agenda to slowly take over the planet. As satire this is fair enough but, at the same time, can be read as a criticism of minorities abusing the system - not the intent I’m sure â€" rather than the absurdities of Political Correctness itself.
I’m all for narrative experiment and many of Big Finish’s releases immediately prior to this show a company growing in confidence and embracing the differences Doctor Who can achieve on audio as opposed to TV. Flip Flop however, is guilty of putting concept over story, is largely a gimmick and a chore to listen to, whichever disc you play first.
GK Rating: **
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