Valarie Lockwood and Compassion should meet up to talk about who the doctor took them apart in horrific ways, put them back together in a different way that the Doctor considered better and then the doctor acted like their trauma that he put them through was an inconvenience and made it all about himself.
Honestly I think Valarie may be my second favourite companion ever now after Compassion.
Me when the Doctor puts their Companion through hell and then refuses to take accountability.
Oh we're really picking up speed now if I do say so myself - it's wild to me that the massive event these books are leading up to is only half way through the entire book series. (These were previously in another post but I needed to spread them out a little bit)
#21 Revolution Man
8th February 2025
Jesus christ Fitz has only been here a few weeks and he's already been put through the wringer and brain washed. Sam is facing the Vash the Stampede issue I see where you have to accept that sometimes talking isn't enough because people just don't listen and refusing to take action can get people killed. Sometimes, your hesitation to do the necessary thing just leaves you as the good man who did nothing.
So did the TARDIS jolt Fitz to hit the right lever, or did she move it to be under his hand. Also this implies that The Doctor knew the TARDIS liked him already. How? When? I need answers.
The irony of accusing Fitz of running away while exonerating The Doctor, when The Doctor is the king of running from things he doesn't want to face only to have to do the very thing he hates above all else. Her yelling that the Doctor can do no wrong though reminded me of Lucie Miller hitting the same problem. Only she had The Doctor there to tell her that yes he is fallible, just like everyone else, and you shouldn't be putting him on a pedestal.
#22 Dominion
10th February 2025
I like stories that have The Doctor backed into a corner and the mask slips. It slips a lot in this book. I have another post that will go into my feelings about the TARDIS acting as a mental support for The Doctor, which started because of this book. He seemed very panicky, switching from despair to anger over and over very quickly. Like a manic metronome. -rubs my little gremlin hands together- I enjoyed this one a lot!
Genuinely, it amazes me how much patience The Doctor has for humans, especially when it's stupidity from within UNIT he's having to deal with. That just feels like an extra slap in the face.
Hmmm thats some delicious foreshadowing
Fitz Kreiner; Doctor to Human translator
#23 Unnatural History
17th February 2025
I actually had to pace myself with this one because I was enjoying it so much I just near reamed through it. But OUUGHGHG lots of heartbroken Doctor over the state of the TARDIS but with the additional seasoning of guilt. Eight seriously considering having to settle down somewhere because the outlook is that fucking bleak.
The use of the Wild Hunt to act as a metaphor for the changing of time through a person was really fun, also the repeating question of what really makes a person who they are. Seems like that's gonna be the main philosophical query throughout these books...
TY to this book for confirming what we all knew, that the Doctor absolutely does drugs but he can control how much it messes him up.
Just tear me to pieces it would hurt less I think
WHY HAVE I NOT SEEN ANYONE MENTION THAT THE DOCTOR LITERALLY CALLED UP GRACE FOR A BOOTY CALL, HELLO???
(I had to look it up but Joyce is apparently his father, excuse me? No wonder he was reluctant to ask him for help. I think he'd have rather walked into oncoming traffic)
#24 Autumn Mist
22nd February 2025
Took a bit of a break since I know where I'm heading soon and this one was a short one in comparison to the others anyway, but no less enjoyable to read actually. Sam is once again Schrodingers Companion, Fitz is having a horrible time contending with the fact that his part- German heritage is for once saving his ass, and all the while The Doctor is getting seduced by the Fae. Local alien could not be less interested, more at eleven. A lot of events bringing up the idea of settling down to him lately...
Oh yes, Fitz absolutely has your number Doctor
Oh good it goes both ways, The Doctor has Fitz's number too
Well. That's ironic given how Eight ends up, isn't it?
"I suppose there's no need for a Doctor anymore"
#25 Interference Part 1
3rd March 2025
Gotta say, I did not jive with the pacing in this book or maybe it was the way the story was broken up?
Content was good - basically about how perceptions are important and how powerful they can be when informing one's actions - but getting all the pieces was not conducive to the way I like to take in information unfortunately so my attention kept drifting to other things.
They're pretty spot on with that codename huh. They should bring this back for Nuwho given UNIT is alive and well again. Just saying.
#26 Interference Part 2
15th March 2025
I think the problem I found with these books is that there were too many POVs, so when one track started to build momentum and get my attention it would then shift away to someone else. Because as soon as the POVs started combining I was able to get through it a lot more smoothly and enjoy the horrors and HOOO BOY did the last 50 or so pages just absolutely rip me to pieces.
I was near slack jawed the whole way through those last scenes on Dust.
Ngl, I do kind of love it when The Doctor gets resentful of humanity, their love for humans is not unconditional and their patience is not infinite.
Genuinely didn't think we'd hit Fit'z Canon Event so soon in the series, yikes. It's highly ironic that the Original Fitz left The Remote to join The Faction in order to keep himself who he was, and not falsely remembered, actually ended up changing the most of all. This is so very Vader-esque I love it. The corruption of his humanity through hatred.
Eighth Doctor writers be like
Y'know, given how I've seen people talk about this bit I assumed The Doctor would have been way pushier 'talking someone into suicide' but it sounds more like Kode wanted to when given the option. The Doctor just showed him the choice, told him the truth, about who he used to be and Kode wanted that back for himself... because there was always that little fragment of Fitz that clung on, that didn't want to get swallowed by The Remote. That wanted to keep being him.
The exact thing the Original Fitz wanted.
#27 The Blue Angel
19th March 2025
... I was looking forward to this one and it was fucking wild. My mind rebels over there being no concise conclusion but it allows the reader room to form their own. Was hoping for more of the mudane slice of life parts but thats what the fanfics are for <3
Again, love to see The Doctor being goaded and absolutely devastated - fleeing. Also the abstract body horror of the crystal beings was amazing, the inherent fear of being so brittle and ungainly.
We get to see Compassion as a Companion for the first time and hoooo boy, this is not going to end well. I'm not sure who will destroy who faster honestly but they are SO not compatible travelling together. The Dcotor can't fathom anyone being so reserved and Compassion can't relate to how The Doctor can be so animated all the time.
Im struck by how casual Fitz is thinking about all this, followed by the admission that he's weighing up his chances of sleeping with Iris or The Doctor. There's no internal panic really, just slight resignation that he's ended up thinking about this at all.
CACKLES he's so uncomfortable!
#28 The Taking of Planet 5
31st March 2025
Compassion is fascinating as a character - we would not get on one bit, but the way she does things is really entertaining.
Eight, once again, on top form being completely unhinged and using the first thing that pops into his head to solve a problem. Even if that's self harm. They don't play with The Doctor's tenuous grip on their mental stability like they used to.
Some truly horrendous insinuations as to how the War is going on Gallifrey and what they do with ... excess personnel.
Going through these books sometimes just throws you a line of two of delicious foreshadowing, especially when it's dialogue said by an antagonist for instance, "I’m going to save the universe and commit genocide. Now there’s moral ambiguity for you." HMMM
Love the fear people have for The Doctor as if he's the embodiment of Chaos itself
Crying with laughter, local alien despairing over their companions apparently never ending sex drive
#29 Frontier Worlds
6th April 2025
This book had me hooked just from the summary and the first couple of chapters. I hit Chapter 2 and The Doctor is already being hunted for sport. Fitz wanting to be comforting but not knowing how to with The Doctor orz only for The Doctor to start worrying that Fitz isn't looking after himself... 10/10 useless pair.
This is the book with the Doctor dreaming of dancing with the TARDIS while he's in a healing coma btw.
This book also describes Fitz as having strong arms - as he hauled The Doctor through an emergency roof hatch - which is funny because I always thought of him as being quite weedy. Then again, working at a garden centre does give you arm muscles (I know this from personal experience) and if he'd been hauling gig equipment prior to TARDIS travels.
Thought there would be more gene splicing shenanigans but as a Plant Pathologist I really like how they highlighted how dangerous 'engineered' cultivers can be when a single company controls the seed stock.
Aww - I do like how Compassion seems to come 'alive' when connected to a system. Otherwise, without the signals, the world is boring and lifeless around her. My god she is so ruthlessly efficient <3
I love how incensed this incarnation gets honestly - also lmao, Compassion effectively juggling with what is tantamount to a live grenade and Fitz diving in to throw it out of harms way
#30 Parallel 59
8th April 2025
Solid story I thought with a devastating ending. All of the characters fighting to have control over their decisions only to have it swept away. Legitimately fucking horrifying twist about halfway through - I'd guessed the virtual world subplot already but not WHO the people were in that virtual reality and what it meant for them to be 'sent home'. Christ.
Fitz not necessarily going through the physical horrors just yet but good god does the Universe keep scrambling his sense of self and reality. Poor fucker.
As out of context quotes go, this one sure is up there. Oh Eight, absolute freak that you are.
Compassion and The Doctor clearly don't agree with how the other does things but they're both trying to get along and you can tell by the end of the book they've just sort of accepted that's just how the other does things and they have to be left to it.
