Subject: Who Reviews: Goth Opera

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 16 May 1995 18:41:02 GMT

The Who Reviews
			         Volume III #1
				      by
				   Ray Tate

Goth Opera: Paul Cornell

	Finally!  The new Doctor Who books have reached American shores.
They still may be hard to find.  Barnes & Noble and Borders were empty, but
little ol' B. Dalton and unbelievable, my own campus store had the Doctor in
stock.

	Paul Cornell entertained Who-fans with TYMWYRM: REVELATION, LOVE and
WAR and NO FUTURE.  He's due to fall on his face, but he hasn't reached the
deadline yet.  GOTH OPERA is a Missing Adventure featuring the fifth Doctor.
Readers may recall Mr. Cornell's excellent characterization of the cricketer
in TYMWYRM: REVELATION.  I suspect Peter Davidson was Mr. Cornell's favorite
Doctor as he really knows this character.  The fifth Doctor wasn't the most
vulnerable.  He was the most moral.  Though often faced with the same
dilemmas as his previous incarnations and his future selves, he always
searched for a peaceful solution.  His Doctor never wanted to fight evil.
He wanted to seek knowledge and enjoy life.
	GOTH OPERA places the fifth Doctor with Nyssa and Tegan at a time
shortly after the wise removal of Adric and is tensously linked to Terrence
Dicks' excellent BLOOD HARVEST.  As one might deduce from the cover, GOTH
OPERA is about vampires.  SPOILER ALERT!  Nyssa is unwillingly "brought
across" by one of the most vile creatures in Who-history, Child.  Her
transformation is truly painful.  Readers can hear Sara Sutton's hurt voice.
SPOILER ENDS.  I've become jaded when reading vampires.  I'll read the rants
and raves by reviewers, pick up the book and yawn.  Seen it.  The Anita
Blake vampire hunter series by Laura K. Hamilton is an exception, and recent
episodes of "The X-Files" have tread new ground; the aforementioned BLOOD
HARVEST surpassed "State of Decay" and now GOTH OPERA makes fascinating
comparisons between vampires and Time Lords.  It offers a compelling
scientific argument for vampiric powers and wards, and it morphs the
vampires from oh-so-sexy blood-thirsty rapists to individuals treating their
afflictions/blessings in different ways.
	GOTH OPERA explores the fifth Doctor's relationship with his
companions and hints to juvenile deliquency on Gallifrey.  It reveals the
fifth Doctor's determination to save lives no matter the cost and shows the
Doctor's crimes against his people to be more serious than grand theft
TARDIS and malicious interference.  Surprise guests aid the Doctor in his
battles, and Tegan and Nyssa are well drawn.  The same guts Tegan displayed
when facing down the Cybermen shine in this novel.  Best of all, the opening
chapters foreshadow the vampires' ultimate defeat.  The Doctor's victory is
logical and satisfying.  This is a fairplay how-does-he-win-this-time and
highly recommended even for non-fans.

%A Paul Cornell
%T Goth Opera
%I Vigin Pub. Ltd.
%C London
%D 1995
%G 0-426-20418-2
%O pb, U.S. $5.95
%S Missing Adventures of Doctor Who

					"When I say run, run....Run!"
						--The Doctor
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--Alan Wexelblat, Reality Hacker, Author, and Cyberspace Bard
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