The Sweeney: Queen's Pawn

 "I'm not a gentleman. And I don't like losing."

Oh, I like this episode: hard boiled and clever. It's a simple premise: arch robber Johnny Lyon gets off at court and Regan is given free rein to bring him in by any means necessary, working on his two associates playing clever, amoral mind games- this is personal, and Regan will do absolutely anything. He's a moral man, in a way, but the ends justify the means.

Yes, like other episodes, this is policing from another era, and it's fascinating seeing the nation as it was half a century ago, shortly before I was born. The social mores, the gender roles, the conventions are all subtly different. But the scene where Johnny (Tony Selby is superb here as Regan's ever-more-desperate prey) loses at chess to his lawyer (a typically suave Julian Glover) in a fool's mate serves as a microcosm for the entire episode which consists of Regan playing ten dimensional chess. Even the title is a clever pun- it;s just a matter of which of Johnny's cronies will end as Regan's pawn, and turn queen's evidence.#

The twist at the end is shocking... and Regan's fault. But this is a hard world. One fascinating to watch, if not to live in. And Regan's bosses... such cynical ***s. This is good telly.

The Sweeney: Thin Ice

 "I merely strangled the hound with my bare hands..."

This is the best episode yet. Oh, the plot is clever and entertaining, and we're getting to know Regan, Carter and the rest of the Flying Squad, but more than anything else this is just bloody good writing.

This episode is basically ten dimensional chess between three parties. Bishop (Alfred Marks is a splendid presence) is a criminal  mastermind on the run to France, and there's a rivalry between Regan and one Superintendent Pringle (a perfectly cast Peter Jeffrey) on how to deal with him, and how. It's fun to see how things play out, with Regan ultimately outsmaring both his adversaries.

Yet it's more than that. It's dialogue that is witty but also very real. People talk at cross purposes, there's wordplay, there's perfectly played cynicism. These characters feel real, despite us not knowing them much, purely because of the deftness of the words and the performances. Little things, like the unfriendliness of the local constabularty or the dark hints of domestic abuse at the end.

Yes, this is certainly the quintessential showabout maverick '70s cops who cut corners to get results. But damn, it's clever.

The Sweeney: Jackpot

"There's got to be a perfectly logical explanation for all this..."

Another excellent episode to follow-up the pilot, perhaps no surprise as it's scripted by Troy Kennedy Martin. Realistic characters, naturalistic dialogue- a very hard thing to do- naturalistic action and naturalistic, shaky camerawork, surely an even harder thing to do with the size of TV cameras in 1974.

The plot- a bag with £35,000 goes missing after some villains are apprehended after a robbery, and it's suspected that Regan or one of his men may have nicked it- is conceptually simple. But the resolution is quite clever, and the conceit works quite well in drawing out the characters and relationships between Regan's men. I wonder if we'll get a proper ensemble feel, looking ahead. And the main villin, a man universally despised and looking at a fourteen year stretch, looks a truly tragic figure by the end. That's good writing.

Again one has to raise an eyebrow at the casual attitude to warrants and waiting for the suspect's solicitor before interviewing him.. but this is the Dark Ages, before 1984. Waterman is superb, and so is Thaw... and that's his natural Mancunian accent, isn't it?

I'm already enjoying this a lot. It's much more serious than it's popular reputation so far. Let's see if this continues.

Jack the Ripper: The Highest in the Land?

 "You should see some of the names in the papers we haven't let you see..."

And so we have it... or do we?

The centrepiece of this final episode is the tale introduced to the world by Stephen Knight and then popularised by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell in the exquisite graphic novel From Hell. Essentially, no less a figure than Prince Albert Victor ("Prince Eddy"), Duke of Clarence and eldest son of the Prince of Wales and thus right in the line of succession to the throne, has an affair with a shopgirl, "marries" her, and hasa child by her... but she's a Catholic. And, should a royal be thought to even consider marrying a Catholic... well, the world could not stand it, and nor could the Act of Settlement 1701.

But the illicitly married couple had a servant... one Mary Kelly.The muders were all done to target her. The other four victims may have been cases of mistaken identity, or to make the killing look to have been done by a madman. And the killers were a combination of coachman John Netley and royal physician Sir William Gull.

All this is related by Joseph Gorman, or Sickert, the real person, not an actor. This is the same source used by Stephen Knight in his book just a few years later. It's gripping viewing.

Plausible? Well... Gull was seventy-one years of age, hardly matching the ages of the witness descriptions. He was also rather busy, in late 1888, being in the midst of the series of strokes that would soon kill him. Plus... Gorman would later retract his claims. I'm unconvinced.

This is fascinating telly, nonetheless. The Clevekand Street male brothel stuff, and the dramatised libel trial, complete with the very effete and very obviously gay man who seems to fit the popular image of Oscar Wilde, is a fascinating glimpse into the very alien values of an earlier age- the early 1970s almost as much as the late 1880s.

We end with the haunting suggestion that the cover-up continues to this day. I suspect the killer may not necessarily be as exalted as implied here... but, nevertheless, wow.

Doctor Who: Colony in Space

Part One


"That's an alien world out there, Jo. Think about it."

Time Lords! I feel as though I should be privileged for this rare glimpse, but it has to be said they're a bit, er, dull. This is important, though: it's the first time the Time Lords are using the Doctor for their own ends, and in allowing the Doctor to travel in the TARDIS, albeit by remote control, it's a blatant admission that the Earthbound format of the programme is too restricting and can't go on much longer.

The scene between the Doctor, Jo and the Brigadier is probably there only to satisfy the requirements of Nick Courtney's contract, but it's a nice character piece all the same. But the following scene is simply magical- I love it when people are introduced to the TARDIS for the first time, and Jo's reaction of wonder mixed with foreboding is great to see. This is the point from which this Doctor / companion pairing really clicks, and it's extremely satisfying to see this Doctor on his travels at last. It's a shame the TARDIS dematerialisation (it disappears suddenly rather than fade away) is crude and disappointing, and admittedly their destination is a not particularly exciting looking quarry. Interesting that a mere glance at the scanner tells the Doctor that he's heading for the planet Uxaerius. If he knows the planet's name, how come, as the rest of the story will show, he seems to have no prior knowledge of the place?

Oh, and the TARDIS doors have now become the latest thing to sound exactly like the doors to the Dalek city in Skaro! That's a sound effect with staying power and no mistake.

Jo's reaction to her new surroundings is nicely plausible- a mix of excitement and nerves. And the Doctor is notably in a much better mood when on his travels- he may be sure of himself, even arrogant at times, but he's never unnecessarily rude to anyone throughout this story.

It's admirable how in the last few minutes of this episode an entire society is sketched out very well; pioneer types, reminiscent of the American West, versus the threat of corporate exploitation.


Part Two


"What's good for IMC is good for Earth."


It's Bernard Kay! Between him and John Ringham it's quite the Hartnell era guest actors reunion. Caldwell is an interesting character- clearly working for corporate bad 'uns IMC but conscience-stricken to hear that two people have been killed. We get introduced to the IMC crew, establishing the rest of the story's main cast; the ruthlessly acquisitive Captain Dent and the sadistic Morgan. Alongside this is some more excellently done world building. At no time does the exposition feel unnatural. It's made very clear that IMC is a big, powerful and politically influential corporation that invariably gets its way and the little man has no chance. I like the scene where Dent shows Caldwell the size of his potential bonus- it's a nice character scene emphasising the conflict for the debt-stricken Caldwell between greed and conscience, but also establishes the enormous resources of IMC. Of course, all this tells us a lot about Malcolm Hulke's politics.

I like the little fight between the Doctor and the "Primitives". I do believe this is our first "Hai"?

Interesting line from Mary Ashe: "Don't worry, Jim'll fix it."


Part Three


"Ah, Caldwell. Working out your future bonuses?"


More good stuff this episode, let down only by the visual dullness of the setting. Although it must be said the amusing moustaches of several characters (especially Winton) do tend to distract from this. But whatever this story's faults, they're generally not the fault of the script.

This episode largely focuses on the character of Caldwell and his moral dilemma. He shows again, in helping Winton, that he's troubled by his conscience, but at this stage he's actualy no better than any of his IMC colleagues. He can make as many cheap and easy gestures to his conscience as he likes- they're nothing but small gestures, not affecting much in the larger scheme of things. He's still motivated chiefly by greed. It's only when he commits "professional suicide" by insisting Jo is removed from the bomb that he starts to redeem himself.

So, Dent has a 70s style tape recorder? In 2472? There's an explanation for this- retro design! Just as today's DAB digital radios are designed to look like old-fashioned wooden radios, all sort of apparent dodginess in old Doctor Who stories set in the future can be explained away.

Suddenly the story moves off at right angles as Jo is kidnapped by the "primitives". This new focus helps the story to justify its length- which it arguably does throughout.


Part Four


"Although the creature with you is of no value, I will let you both go."


Some obvious modelwork is in evidence as the Adjudicator lands. But, more importantly, the Adjudicator is the Master! At last- something actually relates to the first few minutes of the first episode! And it's an interesting new slant to the Master for him to be in a position of authority.

For this episode the focus shifts towards the "primitives" and their ancient civilisation. Not a lot happens plotwise (the Doctor and Jo get captured and escape) but we learn a lot about Uxaerian history and culture which will become important later, and it's never dull.

I love the Doctor's silly magic trick distraction- a rare chance to see another side of Jon Pertwee. Also good is the meeting between the Doctor and the Master. There's a state of stalemate between them; the Doctor can't expose the Master as an impostor without being exposed as someone who has no ID and so no official existence- yet another topical political issue turns up in this story.


Part Five


"Whoever that man is down on that planet, he isn't the Adjudicator."

In a nice bit of continuity, the Doctor still has the key to the Master's TARDIS that he nicked in Terror of the Autons. And so we finally see inside the Master's TARDIS for the first time. And it's exactly the same as the Doctor's except it's got some filing cabinets in it. Oh well. There's another possible first as well: I think this is the first time the Sonic Screwdriver is used for a purpose other than, er, screwdriving.


Part Six


"I am offering you a half share of the universe!"


Another possible first: the Master mentions the High Council of the Time Lords. He also states the Crab Nebula to have been caused by the testing of the Doomsday Weapon- a very effective way of illustrating its deadliness! And also a nice little lesson on the life cycle of a star for all the kids. Well, our Sun won't exactly "explode", but still...

For the first time the Master asks the Doctor to join him in his megalomaniacal playpen. This says all sorts of interesting things about the Master's motivations, and how central the Doctor is to them.

The Doomsday Weapon plot strand ends in what may be our first ever Deus Ex Machina ending, but I don't really mind as this has never been more than a sideshow. The colonists vs IMC main plot gets a much more satisfying ending- we're made to genuinely think the colonists are all dead until its revealed at the end that only Ashe sacrificed himself. And it's nice that Winton survives to become leader- the impetuous young man made good. Admittedly there's more than a whiff of dodgy science to the fact that suddenly the soil is no longer being poisoned by the radiation from the Doomsday Weapon, but I'll let that pass as it works dramatically. It's also nice that Caldwell, denied his promised wishes, is allowed to redeem himself by joining the colonists. And there's another nice touch in that the TARDIS returns mere seconds after leaving.




Overall... well. I haven't read any of the other posts yet, but I voted just before writing this, and by the look of the poll results I'm one of an elite few to rate this 5/5. I thought it was great, with rich themes and complex characters, and more than enough substance to justify six episodes. There's a potential criticism, mind; this story essentially centres around the conflict between the colonists and IMC over possession of the planet. But what of the indigenous Uxaerians, or "primitives", as they're called? Why should anyone other than them be allowed to colonise the planet without their position? still, I think the script treats them with enough respect to get away with it. But it's a valid criticism all the same. And it's a little ominous that the first story to get a 5/5 from me since Spearhead is the one which ignores the new format. Perhaps the new format is outstaying its welcome?



Rankings

The Massacre 5/5
The War Games 5/5
Spearhead From Space 5/5
Fury from the Deep 5/5
The Evil of the Daleks 5/5
The Myth Makers 5/5
The Aztecs 5/5
The Tomb of the Cybermen 5/5
Marco Polo 5/5
The Crusade 5/5
Inferno 5/5
The Highlanders 5/5
The Daleks’ Master Plan 5/5
The Time Meddler 5/5
The Invasion 5/5
The Power of the Daleks 5/5
The Mind Robber 5/5
The Web of Fear 5/5
The Rescue 5/5
The Reign of Terror 5/5
An Unearthly Child 5/5
Colony in Space 5/5
The Macra Terror 5/5
The Savages 5/5
Mission to the Unknown 5/5
The Ambassadors of Death 4/5
Doctor Who and the Silurians 4/5
The Gunfighters 4/5
The Claws of Axos 4/5
The Tenth Planet 4/5
The Moonbase 4/5
The Dalek Invasion of Earth 4/5
The Romans 4/5
Terror of the Autons 4/5
The Krotons 4/5
The Ice Warriors 4/5
The War Machines 4/5
The Smugglers 4/5
The Abominable Snowmen 4/5
Planet of Giants 4/5
The Daleks 3/5
The Seeds of Death 3/5
The Enemy of the World 3/5
Galaxy Four 3/5
The Space Museum 3/5
The Chase 3/5
The Space Pirates 3/5
The Sensorites 3/5
The Edge of Destruction 2/5
The Mind of Evil 2/5
The Faceless Ones 2/5
The Ark 2/5
The Wheel in Space 2/5
The Dominators 2/5
The Web Planet 1/5
The Keys of Marinus 1/5
The Celestial Toymaker 1/5
The Underwater Menace 1/5

Season Five: 4/5
Season Seven: 4/5
Season Three: 3.9/5
Season Four: 3.889/5
Season Six: 3.857/5
Season Two: 3.778/5
Season One: 3.625/5