UNIT: Encounters

Unlike the previous releases in this series, this consists of four hour-long stories, three of which are linked by a loose plot arc, but which are otherwise standalone. Colonel Shindi makes a return, but Sam Bishop fails to make his usual appearance, his absence being used more as a running gag than anything else.

• The Dark Transaction – The first story sees the UNIT team travelling to a fictional South American country where guerrilla forces are holding an injured Dalek captive. The result obviously has a lot in common with the TV episode Dalek (itself based on a Big Finish audio, and 12 years old by the time this came out), which it directly references. It does, however, ring a number of changes on the story, presenting a Dalek foe having to resort to rather different tactics. It makes a few hints at a larger plot arc, which I gather is properly followed up on in the next release. 4 stars.

• Invocation – Entirely unconnected to anything else in the collection, this is essentially a ghost story. Sightings of terrifying spectres spread across London and are somehow linked to an old UNIT facility in southern Scotland and a ‘60s era space satellite that has started transmitting again. The science behind what's going on makes little sense even by the standards of Doctor Who and I'm rarely a fan of supernatural elements in the show (yes, I know; The Daemons... not one of my favourites, I'm afraid). It's atmospheric in places, I suppose, and Osgood is used effectively, but it's one where I find it hard to suspend my disbelief. 3 stars.

• The Sontaran Project – Colonel Shindi rather obviously takes the Sam Bishop role in this story (one wonders if it was originally written for the latter) as UNIT follows the trail of a stranded Sontaran soldier from Belgium to, well... Sevenoaks in Kent. To my mind, it's the best story in the set, making good use of the Sontarans' unusual biology to tell a tale that, in some ways, is rather dark, despite the amount of action. The Sontarans are antagonistic here, and the events of The Poison Sky are not forgotten, but it's clear from the opening teaser that they are not the true villains in this particular tale. 4.5 stars.

• False Negative – Of the original UNIT stories from the ‘70s, one of the hardest to do a follow-up to is surely Inferno, given how it ended. Nonetheless, Dorney has a crack at it here, in an alternate reality story featuring an ‘evil' mirror universe. Although not, presumably, the same one. The story focuses on Josh and Osgood (whose relationship is very different in the mirror universe), but has fun with the alternate versions of the other regulars, too. I'm not a huge fan of Inferno but that's largely due to the rather dull Primords, and by cutting them out, this story leaves itself with the good bits. Arguably, it's as much Star Trek as DW and there's perhaps a bit too much snogging, but there's quite a bit of comedy in it, which helps. 4 stars.