N.B. there might (or might not) be spoilers in this article!

Doctor Who‘s first webcast, Death Comes to Time, is a curious beast.

“I fear in my courageous dive for the nearest bush I’ve lost nothing but … face.”

The Minister of Chance, Death Comes to Time, Episode Two

Ambitious? Yes. Overlong? Probably.

Poetic? Occasionally. Frustrating? Sometimes.

While the animation in Death Comes to Time, given this was produced for early twenty-first century Internet speeds, is understandably limited, it’s nevertheless an epic, continuity-baiting tale with a fabulous cast, counting Stephen Fry, Anthony Head and Jon Culshaw among many others providing top-notch support.

Sylvester McCoy is also excellent — perhaps as a result of having had a couple of years at Big Finish cutting his teeth on the audio version of the Seventh Doctor.

“Twilight falls, and the strange dream ends.”

Casmus, Death Comes to Time, Episode Four

Its ending, though (like General Tannis, I can’t give it away!), does make it seem an odd way to kickstart any potential audio or webcast series. I have read Death Comes to Time was also seen as an opportunity to provide a finale for Doctor Who — and in a sense it does achieve that aim, albeit with something that contradicts “The TV Movie”.

As such, Death Comes to Time won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if nothing else it remains an interesting experiment in what was then a new medium and channel for Doctor Who content.