Doctor Who: Revenge of the Cybermen

Part One

“I don’t want to lose my arm, I’m rather attached to it. It’s very handy.”

Another direct continuation, as with every story since Planet of the Spiders, and we’re back on Nerva. According to Sarah, the TARDISeers have just spent “weeks” on Earth and Skaro. But this is Nerva in a much earlier period (although the TARDIS is going to travel back to meet them) and it’s full of dead plague victims. Except this plague seems to show symptoms rather similar to those we saw in The Moonbase…

Nerva’s crew are using PCs which look hilariously dated to the modern viewer- although once again this could just be a retro design. Come to think of it, are these the first desktop computers seen in Doctor Who? Their operators are a rather dull bunch, if heroic, the sole survivors of the “plague” who are determined to keep Nerva running. Apparently it has a very important role as a “beacon” near Jupiter.

So, an asteroid, Voga, has drifted into Jupiter’s orbit? How completely unlike The Tenth Planet this script from Gerry Davis is. Already the story has a distinctly retro feel. There’s something very Wheel in Space about this first episode. It’s good to see more recent continuity being maintained though, with talk of “transmats”, but it’s even better, once we’re introduced to some Vogans, to hear mention of the Cybermen! It’s been so long!

Surprisingly early we discover that Kelman’s a traitor, and also that this 30^th century space station is using some very retro tape spools. Pleasingly, the TARDISeers aren’t treated with suspicion for very long (that sort of thing can get very tiresome), they get to work on the “plague”, and we cut to the Vogans for some exposition - the Cybermen died out centuries ago; there was a Cyber-war; Voga was attacked.

Finally we get to see some Cybermen! In colour! A bit more hydraulic in appearance, but not that much different from last time. But last time was ages ago- it’s good to see them again!

Part Two

“The beacon is ours!”

Amusingly, the Cybermat attacking Sarah is clearly being moved by Elisabeth Sladen. But there’s not much else to amuse in this episode, much of which is taken up with a dull Vogan power struggle. After a promising first part things are getting a bit dull. 

Still, we get our traditional end of part two reveal of the Cybermen, and they still seem pretty cool at this stage, with their immunity to gunfire and guns in their helmets.

Part Three

“You’ve no home planet, no influence, nothing. You’re just a pathetic bunch of tin soldiers scuttling about the galaxy in an ancient spaceship.”

So far there’s not much that’s fundamentally wrong with this story, but the guest characters just all seem dull. Unfortunately, from this point on things start getting worse. For a start, the Cybermen open their mouths; This is a problem: their voices are awful.

We discover the Cybermen have a weakness to asphyxiation by gold dust- not necessarily a problem at this stage as gold dust is rare and only effects them in a specific way for which you have to get close. 

Unfortunately the Cyberleader seems genuinely riled by the Doctor’s taunting, completely unlike the logic-driven, emotionless creatures we’ve seen before, as shown in dialogue such as “Only stupid Earth brains like yours would have been fooled” and “Clever, clever, clever”. Er, yes.

But what is a serious problem is that these Cybermen seem indeed to be “total machine creatures”; they have “parts” to “build” a Cyber army. Cybernisation and body horror is no longer an issue and the Cybermen are just robots. Oh dear. Still, not to justify it, but perhaps there could be an explanation? We’ve never had a Cybermen story set this far into the future before, so perhaps they did indeed die out centuries before, after or even before the events of Tomb, and these few “total machine creatures” are just the remnants?

The plot thickens- Kelman is really working for these dull Vogan chaps. And the Cybermen have bombs. Unfortunately there’s an embarrassing example of as-you-know-Bobbery here as two Cybermen explain their plans to a listening Sarah.

Part Four

“We’re still heading for the biggest bang in history.”

I love the “Harry Sullivan is an imbecile” scene at the start. The Doctor’s being a bit of a git, of course, but there’s no real nastiness. Tom Baker can get away with this sort of thing in a way Pertwee couldn’t.

There’s a bit of NASA stock footage as the Skystriker rocket is launched, and the Cybermen escape from the rocket. There’s an interesting comment here from the Doctor: “Nice sense of irony. I thought for a moment he was going to smile.”

We end with a summons from the Brigadier from the “space-time-telegraph”…

Something of a missed opportunity, this. The plot was actually ok but the characters were too dull to care about, both because of the writing and because of some workmanlike performances. And although we got lots of Cyber-tropes these “total machine creatures” just didn’t feel like Cybermen. 3/5.

Season 12 overall gets 3.8/5, giving it a surprisingly lowly eighth place. Still, I have reason to believe things might be about to pick up…

Doctor Who: The Highlanders

Part One

"You'll pick it up!"


The new Doctor continues to fascinate and entertain. He leaves the TARDIS sporting his stovepipe hat, and it's not long before he's examining a highlander's hat, once again exclaiming "I would like a hat like this". Within seconds though he's dismissing its inscription as "romantic piffle" and throwing it to the ground. Unfortunately this leads to the TARDISeers being captured by two Jacobites, Alexander and Jamie. Still, it's not long until Alexander is killed- no doubt we'll not be seeing much more of Jamie either.

The Doctor's German accent is somewhat eyebrow-raising, not to mention the WOTAN-friendly alias of "Doctor Von Wer".

Polly's magnificently indomitable in this, although she's momentarily allowed to show a less likeable side when she snaps and calls Kirsty a "stupid peasant". Still, this is all good swashbuckling fun so far.


Part Two


"Why do we always get mixed up in this kind of stuff?"

"I'm glad we do. I'm just beginning to enjoy myself."


Is it me, or does the Doctor seem rather more unstable than he was in the last story? He plays the recorder in a filthy cell, and proceeds to be utterly magnificent as he contrives to lock Solicitor Grey in a cupboard and persuades his underling Perkins to lie down on a table blindfolded. This Doctor is bloody fantastic! And then there's the washerwoman disguise...

Still good Kidnapped-esque fun which just rattles along. As things stand we're looking at another 5/5 but we're only halfway yet...

Part Three

"You wouldn't want another headache, would you?"


By now I'm actually starting to notice the bagpipe music that opens each episodes. It could have been cliched, but it gets away with it. It's a nice touch. I'm also noticing that, with Ben and his highlander mates in a spot of bother, the Doctor springs into action, makes straight for the pub and orders a pint. I like this new Doctor! And he's still able to manipulate Perkins. Just a little implausible, perhaps, and arguably it's only the circumstances which save it from sailing too close to bullying, but it works.

Ben, the Laird and the others are in a position of real horror, in spite of the story's light tone; the practice of debt bondage on plantations in the West Indies is one of those less well known niches of history and it's nice to see it mentioned,.Although at least a mention of the existence of African slaves, with no seven year limit to their bondage, would have been nice.

The Doctor wanting to sleep rather than help Polly and Kirsty plot the escape of their friends is a brave touch, showing a willingness to make the Doctor looking unheroic for the sake of quirkiness.



Part Four

"Oh no, not after all that! I give up!"



Ben runs into the Doctor, in yet another disguise! Something of a coincidence, but as I often do I'll let it pass on the grounds that I'm having huge fun watching this story.

More great Doctor stuff throughout the episode: another "I would like a hat like that", more running rings around Grey, and forgetting" about Grey's contracts at the end. For all his apparent scatterbrainedness, this Doctor knows exactly what he's doing and never really seems to lose control of the situation, whilst at the same time no one but Ben and Polly is taking him seriously. This Doctor is fascinating.

The ending is highly satisfying- it's particularly apt that Perkins, who's spent the whole story being the butt of everyone's jokes including the Doctor's, should turn out all right in the end. And what could be an unbelievable scene- Ffinch arresting Grey but letting the others go, in spite of the fact that one (Jamie) is an obvious Jacobite- is rendered believable by his obvious fondness for Polly, who gives him a peck on the cheek. Aaah.

I'm glad to see Jamie aboard the TARDIS, although I hope he gets a proper introduction to the TARDIS interior next week. The gender balance inside the Ship is getting a bit wonky, mind!


I loved that! Huge fun throughout with not one slow or tiresome moment. There may have been nothing big or clever about it but as a swashbuckling adventure story it was perfection. 5/5. The historicals end with a bang, and I for one am very sorry to see them go.

Doctor Who: The Tenth Planet

Part One

"I don't like your tone, sir."

"And I don't like your face. Or your hair."


So, the "tenth" planet? But of course, Pluto was still canon back then...

We open with some stock footage, and some astoundingly advanced IT. The TARDIS doesn't land for a while, and instead we get some contemporary(ish) scientists and some naturalistic acting. However "traditional" an opening this may seem in hindsight, watching it in the marathon it's really quite jarringly new. There are some very effective nods to realism, not least of which is the girlie pics on one man's locker. The series has changed completely over the last season or so; this is a Troughton story in all but lead actor, and in hindsight the best arbitrary cut-off point is not the change in lead actor but the arrival of multi-episode story titles with The Savages.

More new and exciting sensory impressions: it's a very international group of humans, with a lot of American characters. The snow's clearly paper, but it's good enough. And then, finally, the TARDIS lands.

Ben and Polly have landed in 1986, only 20 years after their own time- surely this is close enough to be dangerous? They could easily get themselves in a position to do a Biff Tannen once they get back to 1966... Speaking of Biff Tannen, this seems to be scripted and shot very much like a Hollywood sci-fi movie, with the unstable commander, maverick scientist and general style.

Ooh! Our first taste of the Cyber theme, and it makes the hairs stand up on the back of me neck! These Cybermen look great. Oh, and I love what they've done with the closing titles.

Part Two

"Have you no heart?"

"No. That is one of the weaknesses that we have removed."


Hmm, how shall I put it? These disguises the Cybermen have adopted are... not entirely convincing, are they? Although their entrance is great; Derek Martinus having an outbreak of superbness plus a great look equals perfection. I can't emphasise enough how great these Cybermen are. Even their voices are fab, and we're talking Roy Skelton here.

Yes, of course... Mondas is an ancient name for Earth! I'm sure we'd all heard that before, hadn't we? It's very nice of this Cyberman to provide us with all this exposition; apparently him and his mates have been to "the edge of space". Who'd have thought it? Still, this is a great scene, and there's an interesting line in the light of more recent stories: after Polly accuses the Cybermen of being just robots their leader retorts: "Our brains are just like yours except that certain weaknesses have been removed"- pretty close to the new series. Well, apart from the human hands, that is...

This story manages to be extremely tense with the lurking physical presence of the Cybermen giving enough of a sense of threat that they don't have to actually do much. One Cybermen bending Ben's gun is enough to establish how hard they are. And their calmness, and casual dismissal of the horrible fate of the astronauts, are chilling. Of course, it's best not to analyse the backstory too hard even at this early stage, but this is great.

I like the guilt Ben feels after killing a Cybermen, emphasising their humanity. Naturally, the flip side of this is the presence of the threat of Cyber-conversion in a way it never would be again in the classic series- or, indeed, the remaining episodes of this story. The ongoing debate over feelings between Polly and the lead Cybermen is brilliant. I like the chattiness of these early Cybermen!

The cliffhanger is loads of Cyberships. Bet we'll never see that one again...

Part Three

"I don't understand it. He just seems to be worn out."


Almost the first thing we see is the Doctor, clearly played by a stand-in, collapsing, and Hartnell isn't even in his penultimate episode. It seems his health was indeed bad by this point. It's also clear that has absence only became clear at a relatively late stage; Ben obviously has most of the Doctor's lines. Polly gets a line which is... interesting, mind: "Well I could make some coffee or something."

Interestingly, the small group of Cybermen has now been defeated, yet tension is still ever-present: the real core of this story is human conflict, with the Cybermen mainly acting as catalysts, leaving the excellent Robert Beattie's General Cutler to be the real threat. In fact, he's the central character of this story, and this is perhaps the finest performance from a guest artist so far. Mind you, when the Cybermen arrive things are inevitably going to ratchet up even more.

What a cliffhanger!

Part Four (Ooh!)


"This body of mine is wearing a bit thin."


Hmmm... this BBC recon is all right, but it's not as good as Loose Cannon. But at least the Doctor's back for his final bow. And once the Cybermen kill Cutler the emphasis shifts: they can stop being rubbish and start being the threat. It must be said, though, fantastic though these Cybermen may look, sound and move, their plan's a bit rubbish. Still, we know we're in trouble when one turns up in Geneva. Incidentally, I like the way they have names.

Ben's very clever here, in fact the hero of the episode. His plan with the radiation is quite inspired. And when he tells Krang (what a pretty name!) that they'll wait for Mondas to start frying, the metal man starts getting a bit, well... emotional.

Hartnell hasn't really done a lot all episode, but you've felt his presence, and his final scenes are so very powerful. I'll miss him. I've just watched all his stories and, well, he was my Doctor.


Overall, great, and I don't care about the blatant plot holes. This story reminds me of RTD: yes, the plot may be a bit dodgy in places, but the emotional beats are in the right places and there's loads of pace. And this story gave us so much iconic stuff, not all of it obvious.