Doctor Who: Earthshock
by Ian Marter
Doctor Who: Target Novelisations: Doctor Who Library order (78), Doctor Who: Target Novelisations: Publication order (78), Doctor Who: Target Novelisations: Broadcast order (121), Doctor Who {non-TV} (Novelisations — Novelisation)
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A group of palaeontologists have been savagely attacked while carrying out a study of fossilised dinosaur remains in an underground cave system on twenty-fifth century Earth. A party of troopers and Professor Kyle, the only survivor of the attack, are investigating the deaths of her colleagues when they discover the Doctor and his companions at the site of the massacre. The time-travelers are immediately suspected. In trying to establish their innocence and find out who--or what--was show more responsible for the killings, the Doctor is confronted by an old enemy... The Fifth Doctor himself, Peter Davison, reads Ian Marter’s complete and unabridged novelization, first published by Target Books in 1983; Nicholas Briggs provides the authentic voice of the Cybermen. show lessTags
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Reading the early chapters of this book, I decided that the descriptions of people being melted into puddles of liquid by the androids must be yet another gruesome addition of detail by Marter, and was rather surprised when I checked on-line sources to find that, for once, he has stuck pretty closely to the original story - I think more so than for any of his other novelisations. Unfortunately this does also emphasise the flaws in the plot of "Earthshock" which are numerous - not, of course, Marter's fault but among many crimes which must be laid at Eric Saward's door. Apart from the shock ending, it's not a story that can stand up to much analysis - Why are the Cybermen hiding on the spaceship? Why show more aren't their weapons as good as their androids'? How did they get the bomb onto Earth in the first place? Faced with this material, Marter did a barely adequate job of the novelisation. show less
Reading the early chapters of this book, I decided that the descriptions of people being melted into puddles of liquid by the androids must be yet another gruesome addition of detail by Marter, and was rather surprised when I checked on-line sources to find that, for once, he has stuck pretty closely to the original story - I think more so than for any of his other novelisations. Unfortunately this does also emphasise the flaws in the plot of "Earthshock" which are numerous - not, of course, Marter's fault but among many crimes which must be laid at Eric Saward's door. Apart from the shock ending, it's not a story that can stand up to much analysis - Why are the Cybermen hiding on the spaceship? Why show more aren't their weapons as good as their androids'? How did they get the bomb onto Earth in the first place? Faced with this material, Marter did a barely adequate job of the novelisation. show less
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17+ Works 2,478 Members
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Is an adaptation of
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Doctor Who: Earthshock
- Original publication date
- 1983-05
- People/Characters
- The Doctor (5th); Adric; Nyssa of Traken; Tegan Jovanka; Scott [Earthshock]; Kyle [Earthshock] (show all 14); Briggs [Earthshock]; Berger; Brooks [Earthshock]; Cyber-Leader; Ringway; Vance [Earthshock]; Buchanan [Earthshock]; Cyber Deputy
- Important places
- Briggs' freighter
- Important events
- Extinction of the dinosaurs
- First words
- The towering cliffside resembled a gigantic human skull with the dark openings of caves gaping like empty eye-sockets and nostrils.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)With a sad smile he dropped it in his pocket and turned resignedly toward the console...
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 270
- Popularity
- 120,226
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.40)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 7
- ASINs
- 3
