Cryptobiosis

En route from Madagascar to New Orleans, the Lankester is making good time as always. The Doctor and Peri are on board, the Doctor having promised Peri a soothing calm sea voyage as a treat, but he did not bank on a murder on board, and the weapon a knife made of something that looks like coral. First suspects, then recruited as allies, the Doctor and Peri investigate and discover that the Lankester is carrying a cargo of a different sort, if one can indeed refer to a lady locked up in a cabin as cargo, and if it's considered normal for her to have a second set of eyelids specially suited for seeing underwater...

Yup, there be mermaids! And kidnapped ones at that. But this isn't Disney's Litte Mermaid by any stretch, and when the other mer-people come looking for their kin it's not pretty. It's not much of a surprise by the time it's revealed that we're dealing with mermaids, but the possibilities that are raised before then are entertainting; are we dealing with Sea Devils? Or is this some of the fish people escaped from Zaroff's Atlantis? And whoever they are, is the Doctor going to allow them to be exploited by their kidnapper?

Cryptobiosis is another of those special CD releases that Big Finish gave away with their subscription services, and even though it's a freebie they put as much effort and enthusiasm into it as they would have a full priced play. Colin Baker and Nocila Bryant deliver another stellar performance as out time travelling duo, reminding us yet *again* of what a raw deal it was that their time together on the show - indeed, Colin Baker's time in total - was so brief when they had potential to do so much more. Ah well.. lament lament lament. The Doctor always said we can't change the past but with every good piece of material that comes along we can at least make it seem not so bad in hindsight.

NEXT EPISODE : I, DAVROS - CORRUPTION