Doctor Who: The War Games

Part One


"It is rather worrying not being able to remember things."



I saw this via the original video release, so the picture quality started out as absolutely the worst yet and it's going to get much worse. Still, this is a cracker of an opening episode. All the supporting characters are great, not just the likes of Carstairs and Lady Jennifer but even relatively minor characters such as the put-upon Major Barrington are nicely sketched out.

For the most part this could almost be a pure historical, but there are two indications of something bigger going on- why is the mysterious General Smythe able to hypnotise people with those specs of his, and what's that screen behind the portrait of King George V? No one can quite remember how long they've been here either, which is another hint of something much bigger about to be gradually revealed. Things are going to get epic, but not before a magnificent cliffhanger...




Part Two



"Did I hear you say that someone had escaped?"



...Which is rather predictably resolved. I don't care, though- I'm loving this. And the true state of affairs is gradually revealing itself- General Smythe has a TARDIS type thing materialise in his room, and it's doors sound as if they were made on Skaro! And of course there's the shock reveal of the Roman Zone behind the mist at the end.

But all that's by the by, cos this episode contains my absolute favourite Troughton moment, his impersonation of a VIP from the ministry. Troughton plays it quite wonderfully. It's all filler, of course, but it's top entertainment all the same. And, of course, not only does the Doctor's penchant for disguise (of a sort) hark back to Troughton's early stories, but he's masquerading as an "examiner" in his last story, just like his first. Brilliant. And it's nice to see the Doctor's recorder being used as a telescope too.


Part Three



"Everything seems to be difficult for you to explain!"


Once again, mostly filler, but this episode is great! So many great moments- Carstairs shows great bravery and character in believing the Doctor, and he reminds me very much of the Brigadier. And Jamie makes an allusion to The Space Pirates which I never picked up in previous versions of this story: "Aye, with a tuning fork?" We also get our second ever "Doctor John Smith" and our first proper look at the Sonic Screwdriver. One slight problem, mind- Jamie's from 1745? 1746, more like.

Best of all though is the German general with the monocle and the duelling scar (stereotype much?) and his screen behind the portrait of Kaiser Bill. Or possibly the Doctor's escape from the Germans, which harks back to The Highlanders: "Oh, we've got lots of tricks like that. Let me show you. Catch, Jamie!" This is a great send-off for my new favourite Doctor.

And then we get to see the real baddies, and their fab looking base, and their groovy 3D glasses. And the War Chief. Whose thoughts we hear, for the first time ever in Doctor Who: "Time travellers? I wonder..."




Part Four



"But who else would have space / time machines like the TARDIS?"



Interesting how the American Confederate general is the same bloke as the German general, complete with duelling scar- an early sign that the baddies' plan is being done on the cheap! Also interesting that Jamie keeps saying "How long are we going to be kept here?" rather a lot.

The character of Harper is played by Rudolph Walker, a black actor, and the script makes clear that the character was written as a black man as one of the Confederate soldiers calls him "boy", a racist epithet in parts of America. Not much is made of this, but it's pleasing that the first character shown to be free-willed enough to shake off the mind control is a black character from the 1860s American South. He's also shown as a senior and respected figure in the resistance. We've come a long way since Toberman.

The Doctor deprocesses Carstairs- fitting that the final story of this Doctor, who's shown himself to detest mind control above all things, should see him pitted against the biggest mind control threat yet.

And the Doctor and the War Chief clearly recognise each other! We know at this point that Big Things are going to happen...




Part Five



"Better leave him on simmer."



Zoe gets interrogated in a room of more than sufficient grooviness to be worthy of Austin Powers, and by my favourite silly character in all of Doctor Who- the Security Chief. I don't know why James Bree decided to play him in such a peculiar fashion, but for some reason it not only works but is in fact genius.

Also great is the way the Doctor runs rings around the Chief Scientist. But best of all is the wonderfully arch bickering between the War Chief and the Security Chief. Loads more episodes of this to go- wonderful. And I mean that!



Part Six



"Send. The prisoner. To me. FOR. QUESTIONING!"



I'm loving the sound effects for this story, as well as the occasionally Stockhausen-esque soundtrack.

More of the same this episode, but the Chief Scientist gets a line which is arguably a bit significant: "Are you suggesting he's bringing in his own people- the Time Lords?" Watching all of this in sequence means that line really sent a shiver up my spine...




Part Seven



"Now, I am tired of this eternal bickering!"



We add Philip Madoc's splendid War Lord to Edward Brayshaw's splendid war Chief and James Bree's splendid security Chief. Now we get three baddies to bicker in an arch manner. Splendid!

Once more we get loads of filler, but if it's as fun as this, who cares if the Roman Zone is blatantly reusing the same footage? And it's fun to see the 1917 zone again, this time in a completely different context. I love the way Smythe wants to shoot the Doctor for no other reason than he's being a git! Although admittedly the Doctor being saved from the firing squad in exactly the same way as before is a bit much. But I'll forgive this story anything.

It seems to be implied that the Doctor can't speak French. This never happened when he was William Hartnell...




Part Eight



"Don't worry- I'm not going to hurt you!"



It's a really nice character moment for Jamie as he gets put in temporary charge of the resistance movement, and that's a real strength of this story- yes, it's ten episodes long and blatantly padded out, but even when nothing's happening we're being entertained, and all the regulars get loads of great character moments. I love the scenes with Jamie, Zoe and Arturo Villa, for instance.

The conversation with the Doctor and the War Chief is also a charged and powerful moment, all the more so for watching the series in sequence. The revelations come thick and fast: "You may have changed your appearance, but I know who you are"; "We are both Time Lords. We both chose to leave our race." This story changes everything about Doctor Who. It can never be the same programme again.

I love the Resistance montage too. And what a cliffhanger!



Part Nine



"What. A stupid. Fool. YOU. Are."


Crikey! the Doctor's a traitor! the Security Chief recorded the war Chief plotting with the Doctor, the sneaky devil! It's all kicking off!

This is a satisfying ending to the main story. The baddies may be rather easily defeated at the end, but we've known along that they clearly come from the Planet Of The Jobsworths. But more important is the imminent arrival of the Time Lords, something we're set up to dread in no uncertain terms...




Part Ten


"I was bored!"



Wow. I've seen this many times before, but in context this really knocks your socks off. So many first, so many lasts, so many revelations. And it manages this in spite of the fact that this is mainly comprised of running around, some of it featuring clips from some of this Doctor's greatest hits, The Web of Fear and Fury From the Deep.

The scariness of the Time Lords is built up early on, and the scene in which they inflict pain on the War Lord is uber-scary, as is the way they erase him and his mates from existence. Admittedly, they're a bit underwhelming in appearance, but we're left in no doubt that their powers are pretty much godlike. And there's much more; the Doctor leaving his home planet out of sheer boredom, the specially filmed clips of all the best monsters (plus the Quarks), the Dalek even appearing to that throbbing sound. But the last few minutes pack the biggest punch of all.

Jamie and Zoe having their memories wiped is horrible, easily as emotional as for Donna more recently. The goodbye scene is poignant, but most upsettingly even as Jamie tells the Doctor that "I won't forget you, you know", the Doctor knows he will. still, it's a little jarring to see the Doctor chuckling as Jamie runs to his certain death, if not now then very soon! Why isn't he on that ship with all his mates, anyway?

Finally, the Doctor is exiled to Earth and has his appearance changed. Blimey.



Well, that's a 5/5 and no mistake. I'll make no bones about the fact that I've always loved this story, and it doesn't get any worse even when you've seen it so many times I can almost guess the next line. And in context there are even newer things to enjoy. Brilliant, second only to The Massacre, and I won't hear a word said against it.



I liked this season as a whole a lot more than I thought I would. It's pretty much on a par with the rest, apart from Season 5, which is way out in front...

Doctor Who: The Reign of Terror

A Land of Fear

"When you entered our hideout you entered our lives!"



No reprise at all this time. And I notice the TARDIS lands without the “vworp vworp” sound- it'll be interesting to see when exactly that convention becomes established.

In spite of the last episode's ending there's no real animosity towards the two schoolteachers from the Doctor- significantly neither of them seem worried about being abandoned and the scene is played for laughs to an extent- nice bit of comic acting from Jacqueline Hill as she fusses over the Doctor while Ian placates him! The Doctor has long since been incapable of any real malevolence towards them. And Ian and Barbara are noticeably much more sanguine about their fate.

So this is the Doctor's favourite historical period. Interesting.

This episode ends with a real sense of threat for Susan, Ian and Barbara which feels very real. I'd like to comment on whether it's obvious or not that the Doctor will be rescued by the boy, but having seen the story before I'm not qualified to comment!

Guests of Madame Guillotine

"I suppose you think you're very clever?"

"Well, without any due modesty, yes. Would you mind standing aside?"



Very truncated opening titles here- I assume the episode overran? The opening scenes, of woodcuts and stock footage, look cheap yet effective in setting the mood. There's a real sense of peril here; any sense of comedy from Jack Cunningham's inexplicably Lancastrian gaoler is immediately undercut by his obvious propositioning of Barbara and his attitude when he doesn't get his own way. For all his ridiculousness the character has real power.

The rescued Doctor begins an epic journey to footage, and this special occasion is marked by some actual location footage! Although they have to use Edmund Warwick in long shot instead of Hartnell, of course. Whenever we do see Hartnell he's clearly back in Lime Grove. The scenes with the overseer (with his rather excellent sombrero) are most entertaining. This is the first time I can recall in the series where the Doctor is unambiguously made to play the part of the hero, and it suits him.

The scenes with Barbara and Susan in the cell are nice character scenes, and very well acted by Ford and Hill. There's no real sense of hope for them; even the escape attempt feels more of a token effort.

The Doctor's plan is most clever, but the blow on the head the overseer receives with his spade seems to have rather gruesome results going by the reactions of the others.

Hmmm... so the Doctor's 5km from Paris? Wasn't it 4km from the house last episode?

Genuinely effective cliffhanger- I have no idea (and can't remember from before!) how Barbara and Susan will be able to get out of that!

Oops! Got behind again...

A Change of Identity

"It's a pity you're surrounded by fools."

"Exactly, Citizen, exactly."


Still rather enjoyable entertainment, but it's still highly convenient that not only does the Jailer leave the key in Ian's door, but Barbara and Susan get rescued by characters we haven't previously met. Still, there was no other way out of that cliffhanger, I suppose.

The sets look very convincing as the streets of Paris; once again the tininess of Lime Grove is successfully hidden.

The scene with the Doctor conning the shopkeeper is a delight, and a perfect comic performance from Hartnell. The Doctor gives away his ring- as far as I recall this is the first time the ring is treated as significant.

Ooh, Edward Brayshaw! Once Barbara and Susan have been rescued the actual plot (aside from Ian receiving the message in his cell) starts, but it must be said the story until now, while essentially just a series of set pieces, has been thoroughly entertaining.

That Leon's a bit creepy, isn't he? Still, a very nice directorial touch cutting from Barbara and Leon about to have some wine to the jailer gulping down some cheap plonk from a jug.

The final scenes with Hartnell impersonating the provincial governor are class, and once again brilliantly played by Hartnell. A fantastic cliffhanger: "We must not keep Citizen Robespierre waiting."

The Tyrant of France

"Even now, Convention members are at work plotting my downfall. But I will triumph, even if I have to execute every last one of them!"


So, to the Loose Cannon recon, and it's a bit of a jolt after all the footage we've been spoiled with. Is it me, or is the Doctor's bravery in arguing with Robespierre the first genuinely heroic act we see from him? Not aimed just at the preservation of himself and his friends, but just being, dare I say it, Doctorish? Hartnell is fantastic here, and indeed throughout the whole story.

Leon's dismissive attitude towards the servant girl (asking Barbara why she wants to be everybody's friend) suggests he's something of a bad sort, and that the Royalists are not necessarily going to be portrayed as the goodies as they generally have so far.

Our first bits of off-air footage here, alongside loads of shots of that door opening and closing. This is clearly an earlier recon, but nevertheless invaluable.

A Bargain of Necessity

"You check your history books, Ian, before you decide what people deserve."


It would be great to see Edward Brayshaw's face as he betrays Ian...

The Doctor's plotting here is very clever- has he ever been this proactive before? He seems to have turned a corner in this story; this is the First Doctor, more or less fully-formed.

An uncharacteristically obvious history dump: "If this plot is successful, tomorrow, the 27th July 1794, will be a date for history".

Nice comment by Ian, very characteristic, when he hears about the Doctor from Barbara: "I don't know how he gets away with it half the time!" The following scene is magnificent, as Ian and Barbara debate the issues surrounding Leon's shooting. Barbara shows a much more nuanced understanding of history than she did in The Aztecs, while Ian is more interested in the friendships he's made than the wider historical implications. Of course, given the previous scenes between Barbara and Leon there's also an undercurrent of sexual jealousy. This scene is excellent drama.

For all that this story is often criticised for being a series of set pieces, in spite of the unusual structure the plotting is actually quite clever. And the characterisation is well done, not just for the regulars but for the guest characters; it's nice that we get a sense of Jules Renan's motives before the cliffhanger. And what a cliffhanger! Not least because we suddenly are treated to some actual footage.

Prisoners of Conciergerie

"Events will happen just as they are written".

(Incidentally, this is the only episode of the story I'm watching for the first time due to the homicidal tendencies of a certain VCR- the big plot twist is new to me.)

It's rather amusing how immediately after we reach the dramatic peak of the Doctor's apparent treachery being revealed everyone pauses for the episode title and Dennis Spooner's credit to appear on screen.

Good God- Lemaitre is James Stirling? That I was not expecting! But..."The Sinking Ship"? I thought it was "Le Chien Gris"...

Ooh, Napoleon! Surely the actor's a bit old to be playing a 25 year old though? Is all this stuff about Bony being a member of the triumvirate this early actually historical?

I love the conversation about changing history between Barbara and the Doctor- a nice role reversal and a nice character moment.

Hmmm... the set's a bit wobbly outside Robespierre's office. Are we witnessing the birth of a stereotype?

We haven't seen Susan for a bit. I have a feeling we didn't actually see her at all last episode.

Great line from the Doctor to Susan as they witness Robespierre being led to a cell: "Everybody lived in fear, yesterday, of that man, and today..."

The final moments of this story give us more information on the rules of changing history than we ever got in The Aztecs, contrary to popular belief. I'm not sure this is all consistent with what we will be told in The Fires of Pompeii, mind...


Overall, fantastic. Very cleverly plotted, if oddly structured, with nice character moments for the regulars. The grimness is nicely balanced with the right amount of humour; the overall tone is just right and very cleverly judged. If Marco Polo was all clever dialogue and theatricality this was all Robert Louis Stevenson and action adventure, but very nearly as good. 5/5!