The Ninth Doctor meets River Song in the latest (and possibly final) set of Ninth Doctor Adventures, reviewed here by Daniel Mansfield

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If you’ve been following my Ninth Doctor reviews for a while, you’ll know I’m tired. Tired of the one-and-done stories, tired of the need to shoehorn in elements from Doctor Who‘s past once per boxset, tired of the lack of direction for the Doctor, and most of all tired of there being no supporting cast or recurring characters. But what’s this? Three stories featuring the Ninth Doctor and River Song? Character development for the Doctor? Could this be the kick up the backside the Ninth Doctor Adventures range needs?

While John Dorney‘s opener Swipe Right isn’t perfect, it’s certainly a step in the right direction. The Doctor and River are investigating a world whose citizens are forced to go on dates or die, and their investigations soon intersect. Christopher Eccleston gets given some of his most interesting material to date, his Doctor acting completely indifferent to River, who, thanks to a great performance by Alex Kingston, seems genuinely devastated at her husband’s disinterest.

The story itself is a little simple, but touches on some thought-provoking ideas, like the AI paperclip apocalypse problem and what it means to be asexual in a world that hinges on romance. Francesca Mills impresses as Bethany, who feels at odds with the world she lives in, while Beth Chalmers and David Holt are hilarious as bickering couple Natalie and Barclay.

There’s no denying this is the most successful Ninth Doctor story in a while, thriving on the fact that it actually has something to say about the Doctor. A strong opener to the set.

Almost as strong is Lizzie Hopley‘s Face of the Apocalypse, which sees the Doctor and River reunite under very strange circumstances. River’s face has appeared across history X. Like some of Hopley’s other stories, this feels very scattershot in the first half, throwing us from location to location with barely a moment to catch our breaths, but things eventually settle down, and the second half feels a lot more thought-through.

Central to this story is Abel (Charlie Tighe), a character whose life is intertwined with River’s in a very very creative way. I won’t say any more, as Abel’s identity is a big twist in the story, but his character is a really fascinating idea, cleverly seeded earlier on, and Tighe portrays his detached petulance very well. His final showdown with the Doctor is great too, and easily the best moment for Christopher Eccleston in the episode.

Last, but definitely not least, is Archipelago by Tim Foley, not only the best story in the set and one of the best stories of 2024 so far, but one of the best Ninth Doctor Adventures full stop. River has one last request for the Doctor – one last request and she’ll leave him alone. But as she and the Doctor head out into the archipelago of Fortuna in search of a lost seafarer, there are secrets to be revealed. This is the final adventure for the Ninth Doctor and River… but where does it take them?

Without going too far into spoiler territory, this is one of the definitive Doctor/River stories. We see the two characters more vulnerable and raw than ever before here, Christopher Eccleston and Alex Kingston giving some of their best performances as the Doctor and River as they cut to the heart of Foley’s emotional, heartbreaking script. Touching, characterful and full of beautiful imagery, Archipelago is a gem of a story from start to finish.

As the Ninth Doctor once said, everything has its time and everything ends. What a shame, then, that this range has to end after a boxset like this. I’ve spent years lamenting that the Ninth Doctor Adventures could be so much better than they are, and Star-Crossed proves my point: characterful, beautifully performed and full of insanely brilliant ideas. Let’s hope that, if this range ever comes back, this set is used as a template. Star-Crossed, you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.

Star-Crossed is available on CD or as a download from http://www.bigfinish.com