Review by Daniel Mansfield

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After a diversion to explore the Last Day and his adventures with ghost hunter Thomas Carnacki, we return to the Seventh Doctor’s adventures with Harry Sullivan and Naomi Cross. And this time, it’s the end of the road for the timey-wimey twosome as they leave the TARDIS behind for pastures new.

Opening and closing the set is John Dorney‘s two-parter With the Angels, taking us back to Earth, where the travellers are called upon by UNIT to investigate a terrifying new breed of Weeping Angel. Like some of the other Harry and Naomi stories, this feels very much like one of the Virgin New Adventures novels, with a more serious TARDIS team taking on a more serious threat.

Dorney’s scripts put a great new spin on the Weeping Angels, making them deadlier than ever before. This leads to a fantastic showdown between the Doctor and the main (human) villain of the piece that feels so perfect for this particular incarnation of the Time Lord. Their eventual defeat is also brilliantly handled – what better way to get rid of creatures you can’t stop looking at than by… well, that would be telling.

Speaking of whom, Sylvester McCoy is at his purring, mercurial best as a more manipulative Doctor here, pulling strings from behind the scenes as his companions reach the final stop of their journey. Josh Cowderey also impresses as sinister businessman Irving Bledukis, whose determination to be recognised by his father has led him to ally himself with the Weeping Angels, to devastating effect.

That effect is the departure of Harry and Naomi from the TARDIS. Just how their travels end won’t be revealed here, but it’s a delightfully understated pair of exits that perfectly cap off their complicated time with the Doctor while leaving the door open for further adventures.

Sandwiched between the two parts of With the Angels is Catastrophix by Lizzie Hopley, which both serves as a coda to Harry and Naomi’s time in the TARDIS, and introduces a new companion to join the Seventh Doctor going forward.

And who might that be? Well, it’s none other than Ray from Delta and the Bannermen, brought back to life by Sarah Griffiths! I loved Harry and Naomi – they reminded me a bit of Chris and Roz, who I also adore – so I wasn’t hugely pleased that they were leaving so soon. I must say, however, that what we’ve heard of Ray so far is great – she feels like a cross between Ace and Mel, hands-on, but chirpy. I’m interested to see where her journey goes next.

Catastrophix itself doesn’t hold a candle to With the Angels, but it’s not a bad story. It’s a little jumbled at times, and not particularly memorable, but it has some good, important moments peppered throughout that justifies giving it a listen.

Overall, then, Past Forward is the best Seventh Doctor boxset we’ve had in a long while, crammed with gorgeous ideas and character interactions. Tying up loose threads from the past, and propelling us headlong into the future of the Seventh Doctor Adventures, this collection of audio adventures comes highly recommended.

Past Forward is available on CD or as a download from http://www.bigfinish.com