Well, i've finally done it. I finished Sam's run of being with the 8th doctor. and...the culmination of this two parter was...well...uneventful. That's the best way to put it.
The 2nd part of the story is very complicated in Lawrence Miles fashion, so suffice it to say, Wacky complicated shenanigans ensue, the doctor and Sam save the day, and Sam peaces out.
That's the main part of the story. The weird part of this book is that, i was hoping for something but it didn't pan out the way i wanted. i was hoping and expecting that Sam leaving would be a big deal. It was not. I was expecting 3 and 8 to hang out. They did not. This book was a lot of missed opportunity while also being confusing.
The first book was so much build up, when, in essence, it didn't really need it. That's the crux of this two-parter. Did it NEED to be a two parter? The answer is no. No it did not. This story could have easily been told in 1 book with just removing needless stuff like the point of view of this arms dealer named "llewis" and just removing the 3rd doctor's story entirely.
I SEE what the author was trying to do by including the 3rd doctor, but it took up way too much time and only really amounted to one thing they could have easily accomplished in a much smaller time. Now don't get me wrong, i LOVE the third doctor, but he didn't really need to be here for more than a quick cameo.
These 2 books essentially do 3/4 8th doctor story 1/4 3rd doctor. and they really don't intersect. And it's kind of annoying. I was hoping for like a 5 doctors or a "twice upon a time" where they hang out, but no, they hardly even interact. I almost feel like it was a marketing ploy for this. Get your hopes up and then be like "lol just kidding. no. you get no fun crossover." I know it didn't promise it persay, but your imagination and hope runs away with you.
I raced through this book as i excited to see what happened. Sadly, my excitement did not pay off. It was....fine? but it's sad the majority of the book is Sarah Jane and Sam while Fitz is stuck in goofy land and 8 doesn't really start doing anything until about 1/3 of the way through the 2nd book.
I AM excited to see what they do with Compassion, and the next book is written by Paul Magrs who i like, so we'll see how that goes. As for this one, I KNOW they're setting something up for "Ancestor Cell" With this book, but for now, i wasn't very impressed with this one. Not enough payoff for the 450 page buildup it had me read.
All in all, 2.5 out of 5. But...how to round it? i REALLY want to give it a 2.5...but.......since i can't...... just from the disappointment i can't in good conscience give it a 3. sorry. rounded down to a 2 out of 5.