Having never read any Doctor Who before I don't really have much to compare this offering to. As a science fiction book it's pretty mediocre. The seemingly rushed nature and enormous coincidences within the story make it feel more like a first draft of a television episode rather than a novella in its own right. Imagining Tom Baker running around doing the deeds described makes the whole thing more bearable, but this probably wasn't the best use of my Saturday morning. ( )

Having never read any Doctor Who before I don't really have much to compare this offering to. As a science fiction book it's pretty mediocre. The seemingly rushed nature and enormous coincidences within the story make it feel more like a first draft of a television episode rather than a novella in its own right. Imagining Tom Baker running around doing the deeds described makes the whole thing more bearable, but this probably wasn't the best use of my Saturday morning. ( )

Doctor Who's revolutionary zeal is pretty apparent in this book, in which he overthrows a slave planet and also ends a millenia-long quest by a very creepy starship crew. ( )

The Doctor, Leela and K-9 have materialized on a ship that's travelled to the very edge of the universe. The crew of this ship is Minyan, a race that the Time Lords attempted to help way back when, with tragic consequences, leading the Time Lords to develop their current policy of non-intervention. The Doctor has no qualms about intervening, especially when he can be of help. The Minyans are seeking the "race bank", a genetic repository of their race, from which they can colonize a new planet. But the planet where they find the bank has its own dark secrets…

As far as Doctor Who adventures go, this one was all right. The story was televised as the four-part serial "Underworld" in 1978, and I imagine the book probably moves a bit faster. It's a bit thin, but then a lot of the Classic Who novelizations are. I also liked seeing Leela and K-9. This book is just the ticket if you want some fast, light sci-fi. ( )

http://nhw.livejournal.com/1007902.html

Doctor Who and the Underworld is a bit less embarrassing than the TV original, but this is not saying much. The fact that we are not distracted by the disastrous special effects means that we can see the inadequacies of the plot rather better. ( )