Following on from Big Finish’s Sontarans vs Rutans series that began in 2024, April’s first Doctor Who release starts a whole new saga in their endless wars, looking at it from a different perspective.

Kicking things off, the arc takes us to before the war began, to a time when Sontar was under the control of the Kaveetch Empire. Seeking safe haven from Division, the Fugitive Doctor’s arrival on the planet is about to trigger a chain of devastating effects.  

On the run from the mysterious organisation called Division, the Doctor has come to the planet Sontar – home of the Kaveetch Empire and their armed forces, the Sontarans. She wants sanctuary… and she’s offering the secrets of the Time Lords in exchange.

But with the whole of time and space up for grabs, the stakes are high. Can everyone on Sontar be trusted?

Big Finish Synopsis

Opening this new Sontaran saga, Dorney’s story, Betrayal at the House of Sontar, is a bit of a naughty, little trickster. From the outset, this first adventure seems all too standard, a little slow even, as it spends its first half setting the Sontarans’ and Kaveetch’s place within the current timeline and having the Fugitive Doctor mix into the framework. Beyond the world-building, this part of the story doesn’t feel particularly impressive, but that’s the whole point. Listening with your guard down and not expecting anything lures you into a trap because this story is actually one big, massive lore dump and one of the best you’ll likely ever encounter.   

Dorney’s idea with this adventure is to give a proper explanation behind what started the war between the Sontarans and the Rutans. This new exploration of the lore works on two levels. The first is a reasonable explanation for the start of the eternal war, which sees the Fugitive Doctor unwittingly helping the Division to create. The second (and most important) gives a secret Time Lord society like Division large enough fangs to become such a problematic entity for the Doctor to deal with. Throughout the entire ordeal, this group of ruthless Time Lords orchestrate a series of domino-effect-like events that lead to one of the most infamous wars throughout the Doctor Who franchise with pinpoint accuracy. For them, these actions are mere trifles, and that’s exactly what makes such strong, overarching antagonists for the Fugitive Doctor’s era.

To go alongside this story’s fleshing out of lore, Jo Martin as The Fugitive Doctor puts in a stellar performance throughout. This adventure requires her version of the Doctor to don several different hats, including charisma, bravado and a little sprinkling of naivety, all of which is seamless in her performance. Jonathon Carley, too, is great as Division operative Drammal. His performance exudes the matter-of-factness required from his shadowy, bureaucratic character.

The only issue with this instalment comes from its portrayal of the Kaveetch Empire and of Sontar itself. Despite being rulers of several planets, Sontar, the home world, feels completely empty throughout the episode. Other than the six listed characters and a Rutan, there are no signs of life anywhere to be found. No voices, no other characters walking about, no screams or cries as an explosion rings throughout the royal palace. It’s a strange decision to make that slightly takes away from the immersion in an otherwise spotless story.