Bringing the four-boxset-long Dalek resurgence arc to its conclusion, War of the Morai brought with it a hefty set of expectations. With a final Dalek face-off and an epic climax to resolve, the burning question on everybody’s lips was whether it would be able to meet these expectations and still manage to stick the landing…

Unfortunately, this final act ends up being rather underwhelming.  

The Doctor and friends dash back to the Vanishing Point, hoping to warn Ananke and the Morai of an impending invasion. However, what they discover is a fiendish plan in operation and a population in exile.

Zoe must resort to an extraordinary use of her own mental powers, while the Doctor, Raven and Jamie fight to restore order and save the universe.

Big Finish Synopsis

Closing out the Potential Daleks trilogy, War of the Morai finds team TARDIS travelling back to the Vanishing Point, in hopes of making it there before the Daleks. What they find, however, is the space abandoned and the Daleks already putting their plan of Skaros throughout the universe into action.

Despite its high-octane story beats, the way that this adventure is presented isn’t nearly so action-packed. Instead, the story focuses more on high sci-fi concepts and dialogue-heavy scenes. Throughout the adventure, these key aspects are split, with The Doctor, Jamie, and Raven undertaking the difficult sci-fi concepts in their dealings with the Morai in hiding. Meanwhile, Zoe has a battle of wits on her hands as she’s forced to work alongside the Dalek Emperor to further its schemes.

While neither of these aspects necessarily puts a foot wrong, putting them at the end of a four-boxset-long arc wasn’t exactly the best of ideas. The Doctor’s interaction with the Morai’s barrier of emotions, for example, whilst certainly intriguing conceptually, ultimately hurts the tension built up for this climax. Not only are all characters completely safe within because the Daleks can’t cross, but the time required for the explanations slows the pacing down to an unfortunate halt.

Although Zoe’s scenes with the Dalek Emperor are stronger, they too suffer from their own problems. Zoe’s confrontations with the Emperor show her strength and how far she’s come since travelling with The Doctor. Beyond that, however, these interactions aren’t particularly memorable and slow the pacing to a crawl, much like the scenes within the Morai’s barrier.