Doctor Who: The Claws of Axos

Don't worry- I like this a lot more than The Mind of Evil!


Part One


"Oo arr? Oo arr? oo arr? Oo arr.."


This is reminding me a lot of the opening to Spearhead. But it looks impressive- those tentacles, the organic ship.

A couple of interesting guest characters; Chinn is the first really imbecilic civil servant we've seen- we're not all really like that, honest! Interesting once again to hear the Brigadier state that the Doctor is his personal responsibility. Then there's Bill Filer, who I assume is from the US branch of UNIT. Oddly enough I seemed to remember his accent being unconvincing, but this time it sounded fine to my British ears.

I'm enjoying this a lot- Pigbin Josh has something to do with it, but also the Doctor's abrasiveness is less alienating when directed against a true imbecile, Chinn, and his arseheaded nationalistic witterings. I can certainly see the value of that kind of character as set against this Doctor. Other nice sci-fi touches; science that's taken an organic path. This is so good I don't even mind the blatant CSO and "freak weather conditions"! a promising start from a new writing team.



Part Two


"Who leads the investigation?"

"Why, you do, of course."


The conversation between Chinn and the minister is good fun, and also signals to us that we shouldn't get too frustrated about Chinn's inane splutterings; he's there to provide comic relief, not to be a true obstacle. Which is a relief, because he's even more of a pillock here than he was last episode.

So, the Time Lords were not mentioned at all for six years and now the Axons know of them? The currency seems to be devaluing before our eyes...

Once more there are some nice touches- both UNIT and the Master are trying to achieve the same goal for very different reasons. In fact, Chinn is unwittingly doing good whilst UNIT are unwittingly sealing the world's fate. That's clever. I feel sorry for Winser though- the Doctor spends the whole episode being rude to him and then he dies!


Part Three


"Oh, I suppose you can take the usual precautions against nuclear blasts. Sticky tape on the windows and that sort of thing."



So, apparently "Axonite is simply bait for human greed." Actual subtext? Nah, probably not. Still, there's nothing wrong with not being very deep if it works as entertainment, and this does. I like Chinn's videophone, incidentally. There have been a lot of those lately. Almost enough to make you believe we're a few years in the future. Except everything on screen screams that we're not.

Bill Filer's saying urgent stuff while in a coma. We've been seeing a fair bit of that recently too...

We finally get our first sight of the TARDIS interior in colour. It's clearly the same set, and getting very tatty. And we get the first indication that the exterior is no longer a contemporary piece of street furniture as Hardiman calls it an "obsolete police box". The Master's just as scathing about the up-to-dateness of the interior too! these scenes are advancing what seems to be the season's Doctor / Master arc, mind, with the Master getting the measure of the Doctor's TARDIS. It's an interesting season to see in sequence.

Delgado is magnificent in this episode. I love both the delivery and the facial expressions at the exchange with Hardiman towards the end: "Are you trying to tell me you can absorb the total output of this complex in a police box?" "Yes."



Part Four


"Goodbye, Jo. I shall miss you."


I certainly raised an eyebrow at the Doctor slapping Jo!

A nice sense of crisis is achieved here- Hardiman going down with his ship is a nice touch. And I note that Chinn, who we haven't seen for a while, has now been relegated entirely to comic relief.

Previously I've not liked the ending to this story because the Doctor's apparent betrayal felt wrong. But this is a case of a story rising in my estimation because of the marathon; here his apparent betrayal feels exactly right. Whether intended or not, it comes across as a satisfying climax to the Doctor having been such an arse recently. There's a suspicion in the back of our mind that the increasingly nasty Doctor of recent weeks might actually be serious. Yet again Jo looks sympathetic as she refuses to believe in the Doctor's treachery.

Of course, not only was the Doctor not intending to leave his friends in the lurch (although escape from Earth, naturally, was part of the plan), he was selflessly risking eternity in a time loop. So he does care about others above himself, however much he might whinge.

In other news, we see the exterior to the Master's TARDIS- is this its undisguised form, a brown cupboard?



Overall, good fun. Not the greatest story ever told, but at least we get a script that tells us to enjoy ourselves, which makes the silliness of the setup work. And the Doctor's a lot more likeable here, partly because of the climax making it clear that he's just a big teddy bear underneath, but also because his rudeness is better targeted most of the time.

Doctor Who: The Mind of Evil

Part One


"He drowned. In the middle of a perfectly dry room."


Back to black and white, only this time we can imagine all the garish colours that we're missing. Interesting opening, though: "Smile, Jo. You're on camera." It's 1971, and a CCTV camera, even outside a prison, is seen as a sinister Orwellian presence. How times have changed. The Doctor's changing too; he may not be too pleased about it, but this time he's carrying a pass.

Hmmm. It's ambiguous, but the Doctor could have implied he supports capital punishment in this episode. He certainly doesn't like mind control as part of criminal justice though, or indeed as part of anything. In attitudes to mind control, and up to a point computers, this Doctor is not so unlike his predecessor. He's quite extraordinarily rude to Kettering here, interrupting everything he says and pooh-poohing everything. Kettering's not too sympathetic himself though-, as some of his dialogue implies: He will take his place as a useful, if lowly, member of society". The science is a bit dodgy too- what are these "negative" and "evil" brain impulses, and who defines them as such?

I'm not sure about UNIT's role here- in what way does providing security for a peace conference relate to dealing with "the odd, the unexplained"?

For the second time, the Doctor almost implies he's lived for thousands of years! Definitely a real continuity problem here. Perhaps when he said he was 450 years old in Tomb, which can't be more than a few years ago in the Doctor's timeline, he was speaking "in Earth terms"? He starts getting well mardy at the end. Which makes him look bad. And jo sticks up for him. Which helps us to like her, even though the Doctor's acting like a tit.

Keller installed the machine "over a year ago". We all know who he is, so either this is a whole year after Terror of the Autons or You-Know-Who's been around for longer than we thought.



Part Two


"Depends on how you look at it. An idiot or a saint..."


It's quite jarring to see the Doctor actually scared. Although it's comfortably familiar to see Benton spying in his civvies. He's not as good at it as he was in The Invasion though- sign of the times.

There's some good plot structuring going on here- the Chin Lee and Keller Machine subplots are beginning to intertwine at just the right moment and we're being fed plot developments at just the right pace. We also get introduced to the Master at just the right moment- his disguise is obvious but I think it's supposed to be.

The Doctor speaks to Fu Peng in Hokkien, and for the first time ever in Doctor Who we get subtitles! And the Doctor's apparently quite chummy with Mao. Such classy mates he has.

I'm fairly sure that's Jaws from the Bond films...



Part Three

"Don't point that thing at me, my man! It might go off!"

Blimey- the Doctor speaks Cantonese as well! jo gets to show her talents as well though- she does a pretty good job of escaping, if not for long.

At last the Master and the Doctor meet. And the Masters still making the same mistake as last time: "It can't harm me- I created it."

Part Four


"I do have remarkable powers of recovery, don't I?"


I like that- the Master's greatest fear is apparently the Doctor laughing at him.

Interesting to hear the Doctor say that an aspirin "could kill him"! I seem to recall him taking aspirin at least once, back when he was William Hartnell. He don't half look sweaty, incidentally.

I like the Doctor and Jo's escape. but this episode has problems. Why is the missile so incredibly lightly guarded? And I think this may well be one Keller machine cliffhanger too many.


Part Five


"A fortress? I suppose there couldn't possibly be a secret underground passage or something?"

Nice scene with the Doctor and Jo playing draughts, pointedly ignoring the Master. Particularly nice that Jo wins. It's also nice to get our first nostalgia sequence under the new Doctor, with brief flashes of stock photos of an Ice Lord, Cybermen, a Zarbi(!) and a Dalek. Almost enough for me to forgive yet another use of the Keller Machine.

We get our first real Moment Of Charm here, as the Doctor namedrops Raleigh to Jo and reminisces about how he "kept going on about this new vegetable he'd discovered".

A cliffhanger not involving the Keller Machine for once, and it's a good 'un for once- Mailer just shoots the Doctor. Sometimes the simple ones are the best.


Part Six


"Thank you, Brigadier. But do you think for once in your life you could arrive before the nick of time?"


Blimey, the Doctor is just so rude to the Brigadier after having his life saved. And he carries on being a pillock right through the scene: "Apart from losing the Master and the missile, you're doing very well, Brigadier." This really is a bit much. Part of this, admittedly, is Pertwee's acting choices- I suppose he could have delivered his lines in a less abrasive way. But ultimately he's playing the character as written. And the Doctor's actually not all that likeable at the moment. I know he's been exiled and we should cut him a bit of slack, but for the first time in the marathon the character of the Doctor is actually alienating me a bit.

We don't really get a very satisfactory ending aside from the generally well done Doctor / Master ongoing arc scenes. If the missile can be blown up, why recklessly transport it to the coast with a ridiculously tiny escort in the first place? And there's an extraordinary exchange following Barnham's rather unnecessary death where Jo regrettably says to the Doctor that "We should never have left him there". And instead of offering any sympathy the Doctor barks at her "How do you think I feel?"

The very last scene is nice, though. The contrast between the Doctor's exile and the Master's new-found freedom is very poignant, and it looks as though this arc will continue.





Overall- well, the first real clunker of the Pertwee years- 2/5. And worryingly the things I didn't like about it tend to sum up the way the programme's going at the moment. This was dull at times, and over-reliant on a single MacGuffin, but I've given 3/5s and 4/5 to other stories with those faults. Far more worrying, I think, was the tone. Like Terror of the Autons, this was fundamentally a fairly silly bit of fluff which only makes sense if you assume (as I think you're supposed to) that the Master is just essentially larking about and trying to get the Doctor's attention. But unlike Terror of the Autons, this isn't played for laughs. I like silliness, but silliness only works if the script gives you the occasional nod and a wink. And it doesn't here. Instead we get silly events but no signpost from the script that it's supposed to be fun.

Just as bad, UNIT are suddenly a tiny, very cosy organisation who are made to look useless. And I hope the Doctor gets himself into a better mood soon. Fortunately there are signs this could be a planned character arc. We'll see...

Doctor Who: Terror of the Autons

Part One



"Now look at it, you hamfisted bun vendor!"


A circus, and the clear sound of a TARDIS materialising- and it's not the Doctor! Oh to be watching these genuinely in context, with no appreciation of what's going to happen next. Because this is a milestone- the first story to actively exploit the fact the Time Lords have been introduced and show features a new character who's explicitly a Time Lord from the beginning. Plus Delgado is great, especially in this opening scene. Such charisma.

The Doctor sings "I don't want to set the world on fire" before he, er, does. And what on Earth has he done to his hair? The scene introducing Jo is fun and, much as I have reservations about the idea of a ditzy blonde replacing our capable scientist Liz, I like the actress and I like the character, if not necessarily what she represents. The lovely Katy Manning is great here.

We're also establishing a new tone- lighter and more kid-friendly. and this is for the best. Impressed as I was with last series, I imagine the kids would have enjoyed it rather less than I did. Still, at least Liz gets a mention; she's "gone back to Cambridge". There are some obvious other changes too- UNIT's new uniform, this new chap Captain Yates.

Another TARDIS sound sees a Time Lord appear before the Doctor dressed as a city gent- how very Robert Holmes to puncture their godlike aura from The War Games in their very next appearance! We're told the still unnamed Time Lord planet is 29,000 miles away, and given an introduction to the Master in a way which nicely establishes his rivalry with the Doctor. His trap for the Doctor establishes him immediately as a threat and the shrunken scientist, Goodge, gives him a quick effective set piece.

I like the way it's implied Yates has been around some time by getting him to give a brief synopsis of Spearhead from Space for Jo's benefit. Also nice is how the Doctor denies UNIT the technology from the Doctor's bomb. And how Farrell's office is the absolute epitome of the 70s. Shame these Autons look crap.



Part Two



"He sat down in this chair here and... just slipped away."


Before the marathon I'd always loosely thought of this story as "traditional" Who. But this time round those elements that seemed "traditional" seem very new and fresh in context. L think the core of it all is Holmes' script, with its irreverance and frequently dark humour. This is an episode that features Death By Chair and Death By Doll, both played at least partly for laughs, and this sort of thing is far more typical of what we'll come to see as "traditional" Who over the next few seasons and of Holmes' writing style than is usually acknowledged. The Doctor is often flippant or casual about characters' deaths in this story, which seems a little uncomfortable in context but, again, that's Robert Holmes. "Never cruel nor cowardly" is someone else's idea entirely, but at least for the moment he's script editor."

On less pontificatory matters, Roy Stewart is back. As, er, another strong and silent type, as even the Doctor points out. Also, we get a great couple of lines ("Gentlemen never talk about money." "Nonsense! Gentlemen never talk about anything else!"), our first example of CSO'd windows to make it look as though a car set is moving, and nasty Auton police. Holmes really seems to be having fun here, pushing it as far as it'll go.



Part Three



"You know, Jo, I sometimes think that military intelligence is a contradiction in terms."



The Brig saves the Doctor's life from what is, oddly, our first scene with actual Autons, and the Doctor proceeds to spend five minutes being extremely rude to the Brig before setting out to bugger right off in the TARDIS? Hmmm. yes, he fails, but it looks as though he may have been about to leave his friends in the lurch. Plus, he really is very, very rude here. There's a very revealing line: "What's wrong with being childish? I like being childish!" This isn't just, as is often claimed, Pertwee's performance (which seems fine to me), but the script. I wonder if, in context, this will end up as a character arc for the Doctor, chafing increasingly against his exile? It'll be interesting to see, because he really is so much of a mardyarse here (I'm a Leicestershire country boy. Please indulge me.) that it's almost like watching The Twin Dilemma at times. Characterisation-wise, that is!

Ironic that the Master is now also exiled. And interesting that the Doctor seems to belong to a London club where he hob nobs with Lord "Tubby" Rowland.

Incidentally, as a British civil servant there are certain aspects of this era that make me want to go "oi"!

Pertwee has a phone conversation with the Master, his first contact with him... interesting to watch this for the first time after seeing The Sound of Drums! Cue the gurning...



Part Four



"As a matter of fact, Jo, I'm rather looking forward to it."



Once again the Brig's plan seems sensible- bomb the baddfies now to avoid civilian casualties later- and the Doctor throws a hissy fit. But once again, I get the impression we're supposed to think that.

Jo says "Hello Greyhound. This is Trap One." I wonder if that phrase will assume any later significance?

The Doctor rather conveniently gets the Master to realise he's doing a Tobias Vaughn and switch sides. A shame- that's not a very satisfying way to end. And I can't help noticing how the Doctor pretty much allows Farrell to die!




In spite of certain misgivings about a nastiness in trhe Doctor's chatracter creeping in, I must admit I enjoyed that very much indeed, and even the bits I had to officially disapprove of I couldn't help but enjoy- that's the magnificent nauightiness of Robert Holmes. The Doctor is a complete arse in this, but you have to laugh. And I have to say, in spite of this story's reputation, although the baddies' plan didn't make too much sense, I'd say the plot did. If that makes sense. 4/5. But it's only my conscientious misgivings about where the Doctor's character is going that stop it from being higher. It'll be interesting to see where this "the Doctor as an arse" arc goes. Somewhere, I hope!

Doctor Who: Inferno

Part One



"I'm a sort of temporary civil servant?"

"Broadly speaking, yes. How do you like the idea?

"No comment."



Nice use of stock footage for the story title! We're now fully settled in to the new era; the sight of the Doctor driving along in Bessie whilst singing to the background of yet another industrial complex is already beginning to seem very traditional indeed.

We have a new writer for this story, Don Houghton, and an actor we've never seen before, Christopher Benjamin. I wonder whether he'll get to play any iconic characters in future?

The story certainly ticks all the appropriate boxes to belong in this season. Stahlman is an example of a character type we've come to know well both this season and in the still recent Troughton base-under-sieges. He and the Doctor quickly establish an adversarial relationship which is most enjoyable to watch.

The TARDIS console is looking rather tatty, mind. And it's green. Also- "megga volts"?

Part Two



"You, sir, are a nitwit!"



It's slowly dawned on me that some of these actors are rather familiar- Derek Newark, Za himself, is playing a different character as Greg Sutton. And we have Walter Randall back as well!

More good Doctor / Stahlman sparring this episode. Plus our first incidence of "Venusian karate"!




Part Three



"But I don't exist in your world."

"Then you won't feel the bullets when we shoot you."


Things start getting really good here as we start to explore this fascist alternate world. Our first sign that something is wrong is a rather Orwellian poster proclaiming that "Unity is Strength", but more shocking is the sight of Liz in a military uniform shopping the Doctor to the Brigade Leader, with his eyepatch and no moustache. This is extremely well done, and the different performances are especially good, although the apparent duelling scar over the Brigade Leader's eye is arguably one Nazi stereotype too far.

This is a very different world in lots of subtle ways- everyone's much more formally dressed (Greg Sutton particularly presents quite a contrast with his other self), and Sir Keith is killed. Although, if Britain has been a republic since the royals were all executed prior to this "Defence of the Republic Act 1943", how come he was ever "Sir" Keith?

This is a very hierarchical world, as demonstrated in the very different treatment Greg receives, and also a very sinister one. There are pictures of a dictator everywhere and the facility is a "scientific labour camp" making use of slave labour. Justice is harsh and arbitrary and those who make themselves unpopular can just disappear. Interestingly though, Petra, as "Dr Williams", has a higher status here.

The Doctor gets some outstanding dialogue here: "Can't shoot me until you've filled in all the forms. Is that it?"



Part Four



"What did he do? Park in a restricted zone?"



More very effective world building stuff here; as Sutton, an engineer rather than "a good party member" is outspoken his probable fate is to "disappear". And in the meantime he's subject to periods in the "punishment cells". Meanwhile the Doctor is interrogated, suspected of involvement with a "crackpot free speech group", and told that if he convinces the counterpart Liz that he's a harmless crank he can "get away with a few years in a labour camp".

Of course, we eventually switch the focus to Stahlman's drilling, and as this is a parallel universe no one's survival is assured...



Part Five


"It's marvellous, isn't it? The world's going up in flames and they're still playing at toy soldiers!"


This story essentially revolves around the idea of scientists meddling with forces they don't understand, but it's interesting that there's no explicitly environmental slant to this. In fact, in Greg Sutton we have an oil man who's presented unambiguously as a hero, which arguably would not happen today. Also notable is that, four stories into the new format, the writers are playing the alternate universe card. A sign that the Earhbound format is already proving a little restrictive.

Things are getting desperate here, and as doomsday approaches the fascist regime, established as a tyranny in previous episodes, is shown to be increasingly impotent in the face of the crisis, most notably by Sutton's increased outspokenness: "I'd like to know what your precious dictator can do for you now." On the other hand, the crisis, and the collapse of this society's rules, are bringing Greg and Petra together. Things look bleak, though; we finally see the full metamorphosis of the creatures, and even Benton is infected.

Meanwhile, in "our" reality, Sir Keith's car crashes...



Part Six



"What did you expect? Some kind of space rocket with Batman at the controls?"


We don't know what's happened to Sir Keith, of course. Is he definitely dead...?

In another reality, the apocalypse is here and Camfield shows it very well, with even the blatant use of stock footage of a volcano managing to look acceptable in context. This Brigade Leader is a nasty piece of work, and Courtney is excellent in playing his increased desperation and bullying as power gradually leaks away from him.



Part Seven



"Nothing like a nice happy ending, is there?"



Back in our universe, the project is not so far advanced, and Sir Keith is alive. Apparently, this means that "Free will is not an illusion after all". This seems to mean that alternate realities infer different decisions being made, resulting in divergences. But surely that's pretty much implicit in the concept anyway, given the differences between the two realities?

A good ending, nicely parallel to events we've already seen. Plus we get more Venusian karate. I'm not sure about the ending though- the Doctor's being just a little too rude to the Brigadier here.

We finish with Liz laughing. No doubt she'll be back next series...



That was great, 5/5. good characters, good concepts, good directing and performances, and a story that genuinely felt it needed seven episodes. A strong ending to a strong season, which at exactly 4/5 holds joint first place with Season Five.

Doctor Who: The Ambassadors... OF DEATH!

Part One



"My dear fellow, I simply don't happen to have a pass."

"..."

"Because I don't believe in them, that's why."




Interesting device with the story titles, and as we'll see a very successful way of extracting maximum drama from the cliffhanger resolutions. An intriguing start, too- a British Houston during a British space mission. Possibly the most fantastical concept to appear in Doctor Who so far.

This is very promising- David Whitaker's back (yes, I'm aware of the behind-the-scenes script chaos, but still..)and Michael Wisher makes his first appearance. The first episode is very Apollo 13- how very 1970! The establishing scenes with the Doctor and Liz are nice, too, if a little out of keeping with the general serious tone. It's nice to see the TARDIS console again, though (in colour!) and also nice to have the ending of the previous story referenced- it's not overdone but, importantly, establishes the Doctor's lasting outrage.

The link-up of the capsules to music is very 1968- this story is very much of the Space Age. Great modelwork, incidentally.

Pertwee continues to be magnificent as the Doctor- there's some magnificent rudeness directed against Cornish. But, significantly, the Doctor is not (so far!) unlikeable, partly because he's right and partly because of his obvious frustration at his exile.

It's a bit of a coincidence that the warehouse from which the reply to the alien signal is being sent is only seven miles away. But we get the debut appearance for John Abineri, and a strangely gritty and realistic gunfight which is both very cool and seemingly from another genre entirely. This is something new for Doctor Who, with the sci-fi elements being left in the background and the human reaction being strongly foregrounded.



Part Two



"How many beans make five?"


I love the (clearly magical) sleight of hand by which the Doctor confounds Taltalian. There's an interesting technological footnote too- an "analogue-digital converter" sounds very modern for 1970! There's a bit of a throwback to Troughton, though: the Doctor says of computers that he "never did trust those stupid things"!

All this focus on the capsule returning is all a bit Quatermass Experiment. now, I've not read the rest of the thread so I'm going to guess- am I the, er, seventh person to mention this?

There's a very expensive-looking fight scene around the just-landed Recovery 7, no less impressive for the shift into monochrome. We get another shift in tone shortly though- Bessie's "anti-theft device" is very Batman!

Ah, computer paper. Brings back memories of my '80s primary school days, that does...

Some more top drawer Pertwee rudeness towards Sir James Quinlan towards the end. I'm loving this so far!



Part Three


"I don't know what came down in Recovery 7. But it certainly wasn't human."



More great stuff here. It's great to see Cyril Shaps again. And General Carrington is most interesting- Columbo-style we've known he's behind it all from the start but we don't know how or why. Plus Liz continues to be great, in her choice of hats as well as her general fabness. I love the car chase, and that's a very well edited cliffhanger.



Part Four



"If that rocket goes up, it means disaster for the entire world"



The bit where Liz flags down a car and it turns out to be Taltalian is an obvious example of whole sequences which are obviously just filler to pad out the time- a real criticism. But although it's often blatant it doesn't annoy me as much as it did in the previous story. I'm not sure why not.

So the Doctor's going to pilot the rocket- or "primitive contraption", as he call it with delightful rudeness. This harks back to The Seeds of Death, of course, and is one of the signs that this season is closer to its predecessor than often assumed. It'll take a while though, as the Brig has to get some parts in from Japan. That'll help to fill in a bit of screen time then.

Another great cliffhanger here, well edited again. Cliffhangers have never been better handled than in this story, and the title sequence has a lot to do with it.



Part Five


""Stop the countdown!"


Colour again! And also the return of Sergeant Benton for the first time since The Invasion. More good stuff here- Lennox's death scene is great, as is every scene with Liz, who gets the best line of the episode as she's being threatened: "It's all right, I won't hurt you."

Another scene in which a rocket leaving orbit too quickly will automatically plunge into the Sun. The tone may be very different, but this story has an alarming number of parallels with The Seeds of Death!



Part Six



"Your Doctor friend's as dead as a doornail."


I couldn't resist using that quote as I remember Terrance Dicks using it as a chapter title in his novelisation of this story. Anyway...

Finally the Doctor gets some answers from the aliens and we begin to understand what's going on- ie exactly what we suspected. Crikey, this story really is very slow indeed! Still, for some reason I don't seem to mind. Oh, and we also get a bit of bad CSO to simulate the weightlessness.

I love the way the Doctor maintains radio silence until he's landed out of pure ego. Oh, and of course to further stretch things out to seven episodes, of course.

We get our one and only glimpse of an alien face, in an oddly underplayed moment. The aliens are much more menacing under those blank visors, moving slowly, with that music heralding their zombie-like advance.

Strangely late on, Carrington says "It's our moral duty" for the first time. It's certainly not the first time a cliffhanger has revolved around someone pulling a gun, though!



Part Seven



"I had to do what I did. It was my moral duty."


Mere moments after he was about to shoot the Doctor, Carrington explains his plans to him. Interestingly, he genuinely craves the approval of this man he was just trying to kill. Realising he's insane, the Doctor "understands". This is very good writing, and foreshadows the end of the episode.

I appreciate the way the brigadier is shown as both capable and heroic here, arguably saving the day. It makes a nice and necessary contrast from his role in the previous story.




Overall, I loved this. I can't in good conscience give it a 5/5 after the way I criticised Doctor Who and the Silurians for being over-long, as there were some obvious and very cheeky bits of filler. But I loved this. It's not necessarily something I'd like to see repeated, but I appreciated the foregrounding of the non-sci-fi elements for once. A reluctant 4/5, with the feeling that perhaps I'm being a bit stingy.

Doctor Who and the Silurians

Part One


"I take it you're yet another member of this UNIT team?"

"Yes, depressing, isn't it?"



Scenes on video, in colour- there's a first. And our first glimpse of Bessie. Oh, and a scientific research establishment. Suddenly the new era seems to have clicked entirely into place. I'm still loving this new Doctor: "My dear Miss Shaw, I never report myself anywhere. Particularly not forthwith!"

This one has quite a cast- Peter Miles and Fulton MacKay, and once more the tone is quite adult. we have yet another link to the past, though: the Sonic Screwdriver gets a welcome mention. This is a strangely different programme, yet somehow still Doctor Who.

Suddenly Jon Pertwee is playing an unmistakably new character, and not just a different-looking version of his predecessor. So far (can you see where I suspect this might be heading?) I'm impressed.



Part Two


"That's typical of the military mind, isn't it? Present them with a new problem and they start shooting at it."


Paul Darrow! The cast just keeps getting better and better! The direction's very good too- I'm particularly impressed by the creature POV shot.

More yokels here, and this time a pitchfork too. The Pertwee era tropes are coming thick and fast. Still- a Mummerset accent? In Derbyshire?


Part Three



"It is rather like the reptile house in a zoo, isn't it?"



This episode is all about the Faustus-like Quinn, and we get to see how the acting talent of Fulton MacKay stretches far beyond Porridge. The scene between the Doctor and Quinn in the cottage is very well written and acted by both Pertwee and MacKay. Quinn having kidnapped one of the creatures is simultaneously both a big revelation and the moment we know he's going to die.

Some extremely odd music at the end there! This is great stuff, but the pace is a bit too slow nonetheless- there seems to be a fair bit of foot-dragging.



Part Four



"The man's a raving lunatic. He's insolent. He's impertinent. He shows no respect for my authority."


This episode is where the ethical conflicts really start to fissure. We start off with the Doctor trying to talk to the Silurian in Quinn's cottage, but before long he's lying to the Brigadier about what happened. This is interesting for a number of reasons- it's the first real disagreement between the two characters; it's happening early on in the new format and will help define their relationship; and it showcases their different philosophies. The Doctor, a scientist, wants to understand the Silurians, and his idealism means he sees room for negotiation. The Brigadier, meanwhile, sees the Silurians as a threat- more narrow-minded, certainly, but given his responsibilities not necessarily unreasonable. The situation is well handled; we, the audience, are able to sympathise with both characters and aren't told what to think.

More bizarre music as the Doctor and Liz explore is followed by a glimpse of the rubber dinosaur and our first ever bit of bad CSO. And the casting finally breaks the sound barrier with Geoffrey Palmer appearing as a civil servant- a relatively unannoying one, thankfully. There's a great line from the Doctor though: "I've got no time to talk to under-secretaries- permanent or otherwise..."

It's all about the ethical dilemma though- once Miss Dawson discovers Quinn's death she turns into our genocidal warmonger-in-chief, while the Doctor's behaviour is looking uncomfortably like betrayal...



Part Five


"Traitor!"


Lawrence is in denial about everything- he's clearly not going to survive the story!

The situation is quite awful, really- the humans and Silurians both have a valid claim on the planet but the Doctor's hopes of them sharing it seem awfully naive. Both groups have bigots among their number (Miss Dawson, the Young Silurian) who seem to be in the ascendancy. But the awful thing is that each side is fundamentally right to consider the other as hostile, however much other opinions may exist on both sides. The Doctor's never going to win here, especially as it's the Silurians who seem the more intolerant.

A deadly pandemic- it's all kicking off! That's two stories in a row with hospitals...

Part Six



"Did what hurt? oh, yes. It was agony."


It's clear from early on that this is all going to be about the disease and the race to find a cure. Fine by me, as it's certainly entertaining, but I can't help noticing the plot seems to have pretty much stopped.

Masters pays the taxi driver 7s 6d! If decimalisation was brought in at the same time as our world then this can't have taken place any later than 1971. And that's impossible- The Web of Fear was stated to have taken place over forty years since The Abominable Snowmen, which took place in 1979. And The Invasion was four years after that. So that would mean this story was set in 1979 at the very earliest, well after decimalisation. But it's not just that- the fashions, the decor, everything- it all points to the end of the '60s. UNIT dating is already insoluble this early in!

The montage shot with the pictures bleeding into one another is extremely well done. There's some fantastic direction in this story.

Interesting line from the Doctor- "I'm beginning to lose confidence for the first time in my life. And that covers several thousand years." Interesting because it can't be true- if the Doctor was 450 years old in Tomb he can't be much older now as Jamie aged no more than a few years at the most after that and he was there right until the end of the Second Doctor's tenure, there's no significant gap between The War Games and Spearhead (Season 6b Schmeason 6b!), and this story can't be more than months later, about a year at the most. Not sure how to explain this one.

Anyway, enough continuity. Good episode. I like the bit where Lawrence starts ranting and then dies suddenly. And dramatically.



Part Seven



"But that's murder!"



Hmmm, so the Silurians want to destroy the Van Allen belt, essentially killing all warm blooded creatures? Hmmm. Not a very clever way to treat the ecosystem, chaps. Food supply and that. Besides, they don't seem all that cold-blooded to me. There's not an awful lot of sun-basking going on in those caves.

"I'll try fusing the control of the neutron flow" says the Doctor. I'm wondering, for no particular reason, if we'll ever hear him say anything similar again? Incidentally, it's most unnerving to see the Doctor in a t-shirt!

The Doctor's plan of gradually awakening the Silurians one by one is reasonable and workable, but immediately undercut by the fact that the Young Silurian is still alive and still in very much genocidal mood. He, interestingly, is allowed to be noble and self-sacrificing in staying so that his fellow Silurians can hibernate- he may be a racist but he's capable of moral and admirable behaviour with his own kind. That's good writing.

Once again the facts can support both the Doctor's point of view and the Brigadier's, which is important- the viewers must continue to like both characters to support the premise of the show. And the Young Silurian's survival helps achieve that by giving the Brigadier a supporting argument, albeit one visible only to the audience.

None of this diminishes the power of the final scene. Liz shows quiet solidarity with the Doctor, and the silence finally hangs in the air.



A truly excellent script, this, using the extra time to really flesh out the characters and themes in a way that arguably hasn't been seen before. Even minor characters shine in terms of script and acting. And this may be the finest cast we've seen yet. And yet... I can't quite justify giving it 5/5 as in the end the pace is just too slow. I don't usually have a problem with long stories- I loved The Invasion and The War Games- but compared with both of those stories, full of twists and turns and lots of story, there just didn't seem to be enough plot to justify the running time here. Not enough things happened to justify seven episodes, however skilfully the script filled up the time with character and theme. Still, a very high 4/5.

Doctor Who: Spearhead From Space

Part One


"Little blue men with three heads?"

The theme tune seems to be the same, but the titles are very different- and very brightly coloured of course!

Meteorites- this is all very Quatermass II, as I'm sure the casual viewer would have noticed at the time! I suspect Nigel Kneale must have done. Still, with all the jobs this story has to do it's no bad thing to hang event around a familiar plot.

Sam Seeley is the first of many poachers we'll be seeing during this era (I've not read the rest of this thread yet- if no one else is keeping a tally then I might!). He's also a very different kind of Holmesian comical anti-establishment individualist to Milo Clancy.

The Doctor's not in this episode much, and our first sight of him is rather unclear. But we still get a connection to the recent past in the shape of the Brigadier. Nicholas Courtney is great as always, but the fakeness of his moustache is rather more noticeable in colour! Caroline John is also fantastic playing a superb character, sharp-tongued at times but instantly likeable.

The Doctor has two hearts then! Interesting that the use of a mirror harks back to The Power of the Daleks. but I suppose it's a rather obvious idea in these circumstances.



Part Two



"An alien who travels through time and space... in a police box?"



I've seen this story many times over the last twenty years (I feel old!) but never before in episodic form, and it's very noticeable here that the dialogue is changed from last episode in the reprise.

I love the whole scene with the Doctor's escape from the hospital, accentuated by some brilliant incidental music. The "Doctors only" door is inspired! It's quite obvious that the Doctor has a very naval looking tattoo, mind.

The story's very well directed by Derek Martinus too- the POB shot of the crashing Land Rover is particularly well done. In fact, this story hasn't put a foot wrong so far. Holmes's script, the acting from all concerned, even the fact it's all on film- this feels very like a feature film.

The Doctor's bluffing his way into UNIT HQ is great, as well as practically all his dialogue with the Brigadier and Liz: "How do I know that you're not an impostor?" "Ah, but you don't. You don't. Only I know that." It's great how he immediately takes charge of the situation here.


Part Three


"Just... testing..."



A pivotal moment here as the Doctor, after a bit of trickery, tries to leave in the TARDIS- and it won't work. There's some great comic acting from Pertwee, here and elsewhere.

The scene where Meg Seeley is attacked by an Auton is very well done- the bit where the dog suddenly stops barking is creepily effective. The scene with Channing looking through the distorted glass at the Brigadier is also creepily effective.



Part Four



"My dear chap, I don't want money. I've got no use for the stuff."



The iconic scenes of the Autons from the shop windows are great, although we ever actually see the glass breaking! It's strange in these scenes to be seeing a 60s London bus stop of a kind I've come to associate with Monty Python.

The one thing in this story which disappoints in any way is the realisation of the Nestene's physical form. Plus the gurning- oh dear!

The story ends satisfactorily and at the end the new format is firmly established. I'm looking forward to it- I immediately like this new Doctor and companion team.



Overall, damn near perfection in script, acting (from all concerns, direction and overall look. An easy 5/5.

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 Space Pirates

Part One



"There's only one thing we can do- run!"



Some top incidental music here, Dudley Simpson's best score so far. And with the music and modelwork (also excellent) together, it's all looking a bit 2001. The recon is excellent too, with lots of CGI and clever repeated use of existing footage.

We get a lot of awkward exposition from the strangely Gerry Anderson-esque Space Corps though- lines like "The beacons, as you know, are constructed of Argonite" are the ultimate in As-You-Know-Bobbery. In fact this feels more like a Gerry Anderson programme than Doctor Who at this point, until we're reminded of what we're watching by the fact the space corps' doors sound as if they're from Skaro. Absurdly late, 15 minutes in, the TARDIS materialises- will we ever see such a late appearance by the TARDISeers in a first episode again?

All that aside, though, you can appreciated how tightly constructed the episode is by the end. And I like Caven's Ned Kelly outfit.


Part Two


"Is it all right if I blow my nose, or is that another offence?"


The Space Corps' scanner looks like an old telly from the 60s. Odd, that.

I love Milo Clancey, especially the stuff with the boiled egg. Robert Holmes has truly arrived! Although, er, that's an interesting accent. It's also interesting that Clancey, the independent individual oppressed by government red tape, is presented as a hero- not the last time that Holmes seems to show a glimpse of possible libertarian politics in his scripts!

As this episode actually exists we can see how well shot this all is. And also that the Doctor seems to be carrying a perfectly ordinary screwdriver, not a sonic one. Oh, and Madeleine Issigri, she of the interesting headgear, is clearly a baddie.

Part Three



"Why don't you do something useful? Why don't you make us all a pot of tea or something?"


The General suspects Clancy of being the pirates' ringleader for no reason whatsoever. With other writers I'd peg this as poor characterisation, but from ex-policeman Holmes it may be based on his real life impressions of police work!

The scene where Zoe's worked out the destination of the pieces of the beacon is rather fun, especially the Doctor's reaction. Reminiscent of Holmes' earlier The Krotons, in fact.



Part Four


"I like drawing pins!"



At last the TARDISeers start to become sort of engaged with the main plot. That'll be a typical late Troughton six parter then. This is possibly the best episode yet, what with Troughton's antics with the tuning fork. And Jamie, inevitably, opening the door by hurling it across the room. Of course, the Doctor was carrying it in his pockets, along with some drawing pins. The one-day-to-be-traditional trope of the Doctor having capacious pockets starts properly here, and it starts with Bob Holmes.

Milo Clancey's a bit of a prototype for Han Solo, isn't he? aside from the minor detail of being completely different, that is. He's definitely the real hero though- you really feel sorry for him when the TARDISeers make their nasty accusations!



Part Five



"I do all the dirty work- the space piracy, the capital larceny, the first degree homicide..."


Suddenly (well, the pace hasn't exactly been that quick so far, but...) things are beginning to drag a bit, what with the Doctor & co being locked up in the second cell this episode and the Space Corps' continuing incompetence.



Part Six



"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"



The last missing episode! Ever! Hooray! Much rejoicing! Etc!

It's only just occurred to me this far in how uncannily similar to the Star Trek theme tune the incidental music is. I wonder if that was deliberate?

Interesting how the Space Corps never actually meet the TARDISeers. And annoying how it all ends with some Hanna Barbera canned laughter...




Overall, there's no denying it drags and gets especially repetitive towards the end. Holmes is not exactly the finished article here, and this is not exactly one of the best stories ever, but this is nowhere near as bad as its reputation. Some of the dialogue sparkles and this is unmistakably Bob Holmes in the way The Krotons wasn't. A solid 3/5- quite conceivably higher if it'd been a four parter.


Ten whole episodes to watch and review tomorrow, then that's the Mighty Trout done for me!

Doctor Who: The Seeds of Death

Part One


"Look at the size of this one, Doc!"


The last Troughton story on DVD. Blimey- we're getting very near the end. We start with one of those funky sequences based around the title that this era has been doing so well, and then we get eight full minutes (I checked) before the TARDISeers turn up- surely a record. Still, the characters are engaging, from the cold, efficient,, yet sexy and charismatic Miss Kelly to the sympathetic coward Fewsham. For the first time in a while all the guest characters are at least memorable, and there are some nice touches- I love the briefcase!

The way the identity of this story's returning foe is hidden from us is rather clever in terms of concept and its execution by Michael Briant. As usual in these circumstances it's suspense, not surprise, that's the real point, but it leads to an effective cliffhanger. These Ice Warriors are immediately sleeker (well, relatively!) and more deadly than they were before.

The scenes with Eldred are mainly plot filler, of course, but the world's backstory is being sketched out for us, and we get some interesting stuff- notably that mankind hasn't yet gone beyond the Moon, and it's arguably implied that this is after Zoe's time. There's a definite character to the futures of this era, from artificial food (here we get a "synthetic carbohydrates factory") to moonbases to rockets to an uber-planned utopian society which is vulnerable to elements from outside the plan. And here' of course, the Doctor's dislike of computers (big, centralised society-directing things) and championing of individualism comes forth. It's a fascinatingly dated idea of the future.



Part Two


"She's after your job, Julian!"



Eldred's refusal to allow his rocket to be used is pure padding ("It's nowhere near ready, woman!"), but it's quite an effective way of fleshing out some of the major characters so it gets away with it. There's a parallel with The Wheel in Space here in that the main plot won't really get started until next episode, but unlike in that story things may be slow but there's excitement and tension, and we're actually getting to know these people and their world.

Interesting admission from the Doctor: "I'm afraid the TARDIS is not suited to short range travel." We also get a very silly line from Eldred about how there's "only enough food and water for three days". Er, oxygen, anyone?



Part Three



"We've been invaded. Aliens have taken over!"



A rocket landing on the moon- how very 1969! And the cliffhanger ending to part three signifies the actual beginning of the plot- how very this era! but it's still chugging along nicely in spite of that. Mind you, isn't it convenient that the seed should be transported to, of all cities, London.

Otherwise it's more of the same: Miss Kelly is still efficient, kick-ass and oddly sexy, the Ice Warriors are still more of a threat than in their previous story, and the direction is still good. We get an interesting line from the computer about "primitive areas". It's political correctness gone mad...

Oh, and finally the Doctor gets to confront the baddies, after a rather fun chase scene and the rather magnificent "I'm a genius". And then gets knocked unconscious, no doubt for the whole of the coming episode. ho hum.

Part Four



"All these tunnels look the same!"


Foam? In a Patrick Troughton story? Well I never...!

Terry Scully continues to be excellent as ashamed coward Fewsham- his reaction when Slaar gloats he's just destroyed his own species is superbly done. Other great things are the Ice warrior wandering around London, seemingly impervious to all harm- these monsters really present a physical threat, something often forgotten.

We get a great cliffhanger, also a great Zoe moment...




Part Five


"You know, I find T-Mat travel rather disappointing."



Fewsham's arc can't help but be believable and genuinely affecting, no matter how entirely predictable it may be. He turns a corner when he saves Zoe, and we instantly knows he's going to a) redeem himself and b) die. Cos this is Doctor Who and them's the rules. But the moment, when it comes, with Fewsham being shot by Slaar after revealing vital information that will genuinely save the world, is suitably heroic.

40°? That's a bit warm, innit?

So, foam, a moonbase, weather control- this is Patrick Troughton's greatest hits! There's even a bit of traditional bad science as the Ice Warriors' Grand Marshal says that "If we overshoot the Moon, nothing will stop them going straight into an orbit around the Sun". Yeeees...



Part Six


"Oh, there's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip."



The story ends satisfactorily with the Doctor getting a confrontation scene with Slaar and everything being nicely tied up. I can almost forgive the blatant re-editing of the cliffhanger. As is by now traditional our heroes slip off at the end as soon as the camera's off them. Interesting that there's still a Security Council of a United Nations at this point in the future, incidentally.




That was good fun overall, competently done if rather par for the course- 3/5. This is undoubtedly the story I'd pick as the most representative of the era to this point.


Incidentally, for the first time in the Marathon I've had to tamper with my pre-existing rankings by demoting The Dominators from 3/5 to 2/5- it was just too poor for the company it was keeping!

Doctor Who: The Krotons

Part One



"They're vandals. Look at that!"



Robert Holmes makes his debut with a rather uncharacteristic hard sci-fi script, and we get to see Philip Madoc for the first time. What with Terrance Dicks on board as well, it's beginning to feel as though since the new recording block started with The Invasion a new era has made its first steps into being. Very much as things felt around the time of The Savages, in fact.

Some things are very much as they have been, of course- a quarry, a model city, mind control as the main threat and this Doctor's bugbear. But this story feels very new, our first real conceptual sci-fi since the John Wiles era. The central concept established in this episode, of the mysterious Krotons selecting and then vapourising the brightest of the Gonds, is fascinating conceptually and opens up the story immediately. It's noticeable how smoothly and quickly the TARDISeers are integrated into the main plot with the minimum of tiresome questioning. I also love the way the Krotons control the Gonds' education and make damn sure they don't learn anything dangerous. An excellent start.



Part Two


"Well, Zoe is something of a genius, of course. It can be very irritating at times."


The picture quality of the unrestored video releases is generally bad, but for some reason this episode seems to be particularly awful. Still, although the picture quality may be poor and it may look cheap the big ideas and astute storycraft continue to impress. This is another great story for Zoe, with her being unable to resist the education machine, but the plot continues to zoom pacily ahead right the way through. This is great stuff...

...Although the design of the Krotons is, er, interesting. Also interesting is that they seem to have Sith Efrican accents.



Part Three


"All weak matter must be dispersed. That is procedure!"


The first cracks in the story appear here as last episode's cliffhanger gets a particularly crap resolution, one of the Krotons suddenly deciding that Jamie could be valuable. And come to think of it, Jamie doesn't seem to actually do much in this story. Still, compared to the superficially similar The Dominators this continues to impress. It's noticeable that all of the human characters, including Philip Madoc's Eelek, are intelligent and have believable motives. Well, apart from the rather wet Vana. Who's the only female character aside from Zoe.

More of the cleverness in the story's central concept emerges in this episode; the tests are just a trap so the Krotons can use the brainpower of "high brains" to temporarily reanimate them from their liquid state. They're an interesting type of life form, crystalline and technically immortal as they simply revert to liquid once they "exhaust", capable of being reanimated later.

Part Four


"We can only blow ourselves up!"


Sadly, after three excellent episodes the conclusion doesn't quite work, mainly because the Krotons are shortly due to "exhaust", thus depriving the story of most of its sense of threat. Why on Earth did Holmes choose to do this? Also eyebrow-raising is that we're supposed to oppose the democratically elected Eelek and support the restoration of what is basically absolute monarchy without the trimmings. But overall this is a disjointed and unsatisfying finale.



Overall, it's only the final episode that renders this story only a 4/5- although it never quite reaches the heights of the best stories, The Krotons benefits from great sci-fi concepts, some good character bits for the regulars even if the guest characters are a bit functional, and three episodes of tight, pacey plotting. a promising start from this Robert Holmes chap. I wonder if he'll turn up again?

Doctor Who: The Invasion

Part One



"England in Summer, I should say. Do you see the rainclouds?"


At last I'm seeing the famous Cosgrove Hall animations for the first time. Magnificent indeed, a triumph. Although, er, surely Zoe is wearing the wrong clothes?

I love the bit with the cow on the scanner! And watching the series in sequence, with all these recent fluid links issues, I'm glad to hear Jamie saying the TARDIS "keeps going wrong all the time."

This is an excellent first episode, the device of the hitchhiker-friendly bloke in the lorry really helping to portrat International Electromatics as Sinister Big Corporate Baddies and setting up some asmosphere before the story starts to pull back with next episode. it's quite a powerful moment when he's killed. Again, this is a bit Quatermass II.

Isobel's fantastic, scribbling on the walls indeed! And the Doctor's diatribe against the automatic answering device has such a contemporary resonance! The Doctor's dislike of computers harks back to The Ice Warriors and seems to stem from the same impulse as his hatred of mind control, odd though the link may seem today.




Part Two


"They may look like amateurs, but that man has the knack of being one jump ahead of everyone."


The Doctor and Jamie are being followed by two sinister men in a car! And the fact that one of them is played by John Levene and was named in the credits to last episode as "Benton" in no way reveals who they may be. Oh no.

Once again we get to meet the man I can now finally refer to as the Brig! It's been four years, and he's now part of what he's apparently happy to hear described as a "world secret police". Um, okay.

The Doctor and Jamie are known from "Planet 14". What's all this then? Of course, the different voice doesn't mean anyone has any doubt over what that thing in Vaughn's wall happens to be!

I love Zoe's "Algol" antics. So, apparently does Vaughn. More technological amusement comes as the Brig hands the Doctor an enormous mobile phone in the most dated scene for a while.

It's just struck me- this story sees the first credit for one Terrance Dicks!



Part Three


"Yes, Parker. Our clever Doctor has outwitted you. Oh, that wouldn't be too difficult, would it?""



Not that it's surprising or anything, but Kevin Stoney's great, isn't he? And Vaughn gets a most revealing line: "That's the secret of my success, you see- uniformity, duplication". Not only is he thematically linked with what we know full well to be this story's monster but both he and them are partly representative of the conformist side of corporate mass culture. Diametrically opposed to this we have the Doctor, what with his "I hate computers and refuse to be bullied by them."

It's great to see the Doctor's recorder again, this time being used as a telescope!

This Vaughn / Packer double act is shaping up to be great. Especially as it's a reason for Kevin Stoney to keep saying dastardly things in that great voice of his. And now he wants the TARDIS! Still great stuff.


Part Four


"Don't worry, Packer. You've blundered again. But fortunately it won't really matter."


Animation again, looking superb, and Klieg Vaughn's plan comes into focus- to use Professor Watkins' machine to betray his, er, anonymous allies, and to escape in the TARDIS if it fails. Yes, that'll work.
I love the stuff with the helicopter and canoe. It's almost as though the Doctor's due to turn into a lover of all things vehicular...

We get the big reveal at the end. But of course, we were pretty much told it was the Cybermen at the start of this episode. It's suspense, not surprise, that gives the cliffhanger its point and its impact.

Part Five


"Is that all gibberish or do you really know what you're talking about?"


These new look chunky Cybermen should look great but there's something lacking. They look very tough but a little less human in their shape, a little too tough, a little less prone to remind you what they once were. Still, this continues to be great. I love Isobel's attitude to finding out the Earth is under attack from aliens, and the battle of wills between Vaughn and the Cyber Planner. In fact, I care not a jot that this episode is entirely filler as it's full of entertaining characters doing entertaining things.

It's true, though: the plot treads water pretty much through this whole episode. UNIT's need to prove to their superiors in Geneva that what the organisation was apparently set up for is finally happening, while Vaughn and the Cyber Planner do nothing but talk. But we get some of the best stuff yet in this episode, from the charmingly dated feminist bit ("Oh you... you man!") to the chilling revelation that Vaughn has been partly Cybernised. And arguably Vaughn's hubris officially pushes him over the point of no return with the line "Nothing has been overlooked."

More good stuff includes a bit more of this Benton chap- wonder if we'll ever see him again?- and the comedy sixties policemen with his chinstrap and silly moustache. Who gets killed, naturally. Although I couldn't help noticing that his death is essentially Isobel and Zoe's fault.



Part Six


"The invasion could come at any moment."


More good stuff this episode, plus some actual plot. It's a nice twist that Isobel's photos look like fakes- there goes the last vestige of plot relevance for last episode then! But who cares when it's this much fun? Professor Watkin's speech to Vaughn, and his bullet bouncing off Vaughn's chest, is another great scene. Kevin Stoney here is surely putting in the best performance for an actor playing a baddie we've had yet.

After getting two people killed, Isobel's making the tea to make amends! An interesting stance on sexual politics there...

The last few minutes with the transmissions starting and Cybermen emerging from the sewers are truly iconic and show just how great a director Douglas Camfield was.



Part Seven


"Well, don't look so worried. Fancy a cup of tea?"


By my calculations, if The Abominable Snowmen took place in 1935, The Web of Fear was forty years after that, and this is four years after that, it must be 1979, give or take a year or so either side. So this takes place before The Tenth Planet in 1986. This being the case, these Cybermen can't be from Mondas, which is at present heading towards Earth with an ETA of about seven years. So what's the story behind these "Planet 14" Cybermen? It's all very mysterious.

Meanwhile, in the actual episode, we get stuff happening in Russia, giving the story a globetrotting element, although of course we don't actually get to see any scenes happening there. But there's loads of good stuff pointing us toards the climax- his conversation with the Doctor sees Vaughn's hubris finally explode, just before the Cybermen casually swat him aside. And Zoe's calculating the rocket's trajectory is great.



Part Eight



"They destroyed my dream!"


Oddly enough for such a fantastic story with such a real sense of threat, not much of it comes from the actual physical presence of the Cybermen, whose fight here with Packer, killing him, is the first real physical threat they pose. And they don't say much either. Which is odd, because in a non-physical sense they pose a very real threat indeed with the threat of Cybernisation being a significant part of the danger until they switch to destroying all life on Earth with a bomb. I suppose it's the Cyber Planner and loads of stuff in the sky that provides the threat, with the individual Cybermen, who obey Vaughn until this episode, oddly irrelevant.

There's lots of energy and excitement now, and we constantly know action type stuff's about to happen because so much of this is on film. It's a great finale, and a great showpiece for UNIT. It's a shame the Doctor's not more involved though. And Jamie's hardly in this episode at all. It's a great ending though, as Isobel and Captain Turner see the TARDISeers leave. I think this is the first time we've seen this type of ending, in which the last thing we see is the reaction of some guest characters to the TARDIS vanishing.



Well, that was an action-packed and exciting bit of fun and no mistake. 5/5 again. Suddenly Doctor Who feels like a very different programme.

Doctor Who: The Mind Robber

Part One


"Who are you?"

You can tell it's DVD- the opening titles look so much cleaner than they did last story. The restoration team have done a magnificent job here, although arguably it's now more obvious just how much of the TARDIS wall consists of cardboard roundels. And, once we zoom in on it when things start to go wrong, just how tatty the console is.

This is only the second Troughton story, after Tomb, that I thought I knew quite well before the Marathon began. But as soon as the TARDIS starts going wrong my reaction is entirely different from watching in sequence- of course, the fluid links have been on the blink since The Wheel in Space. And this may explain why the TARDIS is suddenly vulnerable to outside forces- it's weakened in its current, mercury vapour emitting state. Oh, and Troughton speaks of a "power room". I don't remember hearing of this before.

Jamie's criticism of Zoe's Dulcian-inspired fashion sense is, of course, entirely correct, so she changes into a skintight sparkly catsuit. Mmmm...

Things start to get creepy as the Ship tries to persuade the TARDISeers to go outside. It's The Edge of Destruction again, except this time there may really be a malign outside force. But why is Zoe so keen to get back to her (unnamed) home city? She's only been on board the TARDIS five minutes.

Zoe slaps Jamie. And then things start getting really creepy with the white robots, the white TARDIS and the white Jamie and Zoe. The ending is excellent, surely the ultimate cliffhanger. And on top of that, er, a certain shot of Zoe towards the end...

That was excellent. It shows just what The Edge of Destruction could have been like if it'd been good...




Part Two


"This is like exploring a maze in the dark."


As strange as last episode was, it at least harked back to something the series had done before, whereas this episode is utterly strange and disorienting. Yet it remains gripping throughout because the familiar characters are a still point for all the surreal events to hang upon, and because it feels we can trust the story to eventually resolve itself. If last episode was The Edge of Destruction done right, I suppose we're now more into the territory of The Celestial Toymaker done right.

I like the way Jamie pauses in front of the redcoat and stands still to deliver his line before attacking.  But this is excellent, and really establishes a mood with elements from fairy tale and fiction which should be reassuring but instead are menacing. Bernard Horsfall is good as a certain character, who I won't name as I'm not supposed to know who he is yet.

Part Three



"Are you a woodcutter's son?"

"No, I'm the son of a piper."

"Oh, how very disappointing. Well, I think you ought to go. Goodbye."



I like these scenes of the Master, from behind, in his nifty little lair with the monitors. In fact the whole thing's extremely well designed, so much so that you don't mind the budget nature of much of it, or the clearly limited size of the sets.

And it doesn't just look good, it has substance. Great as the set pieces are, the story isn't just a string of them- the plot's always moving onwards underneath, which is a huge contrast from these pieces in The Celestial Toymaker.

Frazer Hines is back! Yay! But our heroes are lost in a labyrinth. And the string's run out. Yes, Doctor, that's right- split the party. If there's one thing all my years of playing D&D have taught me it's that's a really good idea.

Real thought has been put into the fantasy elements- in spite of the fantasy traqppings this is far from throwaway stuff for kids as could have been the case given the subject matter. Instead we get great concepts such as all of Gulliver's dialogue coming from swift's pen.

I love Rapunzel, and her wonderfully fourth wall-shattering dialogue.




Part Four



"Why, Sir, the Yahoos!"



The Medusa scene is well resolved, and subtly helps develop the audience's understanding of what's happening while it's at it. We see the White Robots again, and the TARDISeers are reunited. But there's one thing that's bothering me by now: is it me or has the Doctor changed during the last couple of stories? Some of the depth to the character- the Machiavellian streak, the ends-justifies-the-means attitude- hasn't been in evidence recently, and this story has really made me notice. I hope this isn't permanent, great though Troughton is.

With the Karkus the Doctor and Zoe reverse their roles- this time it's Zoe who knows it's fiction. And as for the bit where Zoe fights the Karkus in her sparkly catsuit- well, I've certainly seen worse scenes... Interesting that she's apparently from "the year 2000", or at least can remember it. That would place The Wheel in Space fairly early in the 21st century. I love the Karkus' dismissal: "We won't be needing you any longer. Run along." Much of the dialogue in this story is really quite witty, not something it seems to get credit for.

The revelations soon come thick and fast- our heroes risk becoming fictional characters (oh, how postmodern!) if they make a wrong step. And the Master wants the Doctor to replace him. Oh, and for the first time in a while, apparently, "resistance is useless."

I love the book cliffhanger!



Part Five



"Man would become a string of sausages!"



I'm loving this story. It's such a breath of fresh air to see something that's innovative and done well, especially after such a long string of base-under-sieges.

Yet again the Doctor shows his intense dislike of mind control as the fictionalised Zoe and Jamie lose their free will. His escape from the Master's clutches is great, but naturally it's Rapunzel who gets the best line; she agrees to the Doctor using her hair to climb down as "everybody else uses it, so I don't see why you shouldn't."

We get an epic ending as fictional characters duel against one another, and it's Zoe who saves the day by realising the computer is overloading. This is a great story for her.



Overall, that was great! Well structured, witty and bursting with ideas. Doctor Who has taken a real creative risk with this story and it's really paid off. An easy 5/5.