A review by scampr
Doctor Who: Evolution by John Peel
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Taking place between the events of The Brain of Morbius and The Seeds of Doom, Evolution is a story that feels right at home with the concepts and atmosphere of season 13 and its gothic horror vision.
The setting of 1880s Dartmoor and a monstrous dog-like creature makes it apparent fairly quickly that this novel is riffing on The Hound of the Baskervilles. The presence of the author Arthur Conan Doyle makes this even clearer, implying that the events of this story influenced that particular novel and that the Doctor himself inspired the character of Sherlock Holmes. This is an idea I quite liked, particularly because of the low-key way it was handled as merely a result of the plot, and not the aim/focus of the whole novel.
In giving a Doctor Who explanation for the hound, the story expands upon it's inspiration to explore the principle of evolution and how people may try to interfere with it. The Victorian setting facilitates this concept perfectly because of the industrial revolution, socioeconomic changes and advancements in science at the time.
Although there is an alien element to the plot (which I won't spoil because it's a cool reference) it is more of a tool/power that the humans in their greed choose to exploit - and the result is something that feels supernatural, which altogether creates this really interesting balance.
In execution, this makes for a very strong story. A great historical setting that is full of atmosphere and and appropriately gothic imagery. The Doctor and Sarah are written particularly well, and on the whole the characters and dialogue are good. There are some nice moments of humour and adventure to balance against the overall darkness and brutality of the story. The mystery at play has a clever and grounded basis to it all but is intertwined with the grander adventure and fantastical elements that Doctor Who brings in.
If you can get past the couple of issues I point out in the content warnings section, there is a rather good story here if you like this particular tardis team and the vibe of that era.
The setting of 1880s Dartmoor and a monstrous dog-like creature makes it apparent fairly quickly that this novel is riffing on The Hound of the Baskervilles. The presence of the author Arthur Conan Doyle makes this even clearer, implying that the events of this story influenced that particular novel and that the Doctor himself inspired the character of Sherlock Holmes. This is an idea I quite liked, particularly because of the low-key way it was handled as merely a result of the plot, and not the aim/focus of the whole novel.
In giving a Doctor Who explanation for the hound, the story expands upon it's inspiration to explore the principle of evolution and how people may try to interfere with it. The Victorian setting facilitates this concept perfectly because of the industrial revolution, socioeconomic changes and advancements in science at the time.
Although there is an alien element to the plot (which I won't spoil because it's a cool reference) it is more of a tool/power that the humans in their greed choose to exploit - and the result is something that feels supernatural, which altogether creates this really interesting balance.
In execution, this makes for a very strong story. A great historical setting that is full of atmosphere and and appropriately gothic imagery. The Doctor and Sarah are written particularly well, and on the whole the characters and dialogue are good. There are some nice moments of humour and adventure to balance against the overall darkness and brutality of the story. The mystery at play has a clever and grounded basis to it all but is intertwined with the grander adventure and fantastical elements that Doctor Who brings in.
If you can get past the couple of issues I point out in the content warnings section, there is a rather good story here if you like this particular tardis team and the vibe of that era.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Sexism
The writer, John Peel, is the same who wrote Timewyrm: Genesys, which is notorious for being a bit misogynistic, creepy toward women and having some confused attitudes about sexual assault. I wouldn't say this is as bad and there's nothing intrinsic to the story I have faults with, but there are a handful of pervy and/or sexist moments with the female characters. The worst part was the story going out of it's way to mention that an orphaned girl of around 11 years old was not only controlled/abused by her guardian, but sexually assaulted. This story occasionally feels the need to affirm the bleakness and depravity the time period could be guilty of, but this felt unnecessary.