Second Doctor Summary

When summing up the number of stories, you might have thought that I would finish the 5th Doctor next. In fact, when doing something like this, unless going in order, I would think that the Second Doctor would be nearly the last one to finish just due to the volume of reconstructions that have to be tackled. Personally, I think it stands as a testament as to my enjoyment of the Second Doctor that he is the fourth Doctor for me to finish his stories.

Now, it should be pointed out that while I would rate the Second Doctor as my favorite, his stories can leave a lot to be desired. Obviously there is the whole issue with the fact that most of them have one or more missing episodes, but on top of that, you have a number of stories that are very heavily padded and can just drag things out to no end. I've lost count on the number of six-part or more stories that I admit that I would have rated higher if they had just been trimmed down a bit. The Abominable Snowmen is one that immediately comes to mind in that regard. So it is important to note that while I will consider the Second Doctor to be my favorite, at least of the classic era, there is a good chance that he will not have the highest average rating as far as his stories go.

So what is it about the Second Doctor that sets him above say the Fourth Doctor, who is the default favorite Doctor for many fans, certainly of the American persuasion? For me, I think it's the balance the Second Doctor has between being on his heels and also in control of the situation. The Second Doctor has a scene in nearly every story where he appears to be caught off guard or surprised or in some kind of trouble. But at the same time, he also almost always has a scene where he leans back and simply out-thinks his enemy. He maneuvers in such a way that he'll use their strength or an unknown weakness against them. It's a control such as we see with the Seventh Doctor, but not so much control as to make the plot seem completely irrelevant due to his ability to see so far forward.

Another aspect of the Second Doctor that I find appealing is that he is probably the warmest of the Doctors. If the First Doctor developed into a more kindly, grandfatherly type figure, the Second Doctor fully embraced the pleasure in just being with others and helping people. One of the Second Doctor's most famous moments is his little pep talk with Victoria about mourning her father in The Tomb of the Cybermen. It is nearly impossible to imagine any other Doctor giving that kind of warm reassurance just because of how alien and removed from humanity they become. While you want the Doctor to have a measure of alien-ness, it's nice to have that reassurance that he is looking out for those he cares about while battling the various "beasties" as Jamie would say.

The companions are another aspect of the Second Doctor era to think of. Jamie is great stand-out as he is the Second Doctor's companion for all but his first story. He also was a fine example of how a person from the past could make a great companion as he is forced to need a bit more explanation than a more modern companion would. He also was the staple man of action, both for good and for ill as he occasionally would wreck the Doctor's plans with his bull rushes.

Jamie's addition was to the detriment of Ben, who was not a bad companion but was short-changed by the loss of lines and action moments to Jamie. Polly got it a bit better at times but the temptation to due to the kettle joke kept her in an overly passive roll too often, although I think that would have happened to just about any female companion.

Then you have the contrasts with Victoria and Zoe. Victoria took over the Polly role with the damsel in distress but unfortunately didn't ever add much. While Polly had moments of dynamism and charm, Victoria was almost always demure and the first voice to suggest fleeing. Victoria never caught the spirit of adventure which did make her departure in Fury From the Deep feel that much more natural.

In contrast, you have Zoe, a sharp dynamic woman who wants nothing more than to go out, have adventures and grow as an overall person. Her personality also lent itself so well as she would often go toe-to-toe with the Doctor in intellectual sparring matches, adding more comedy as she bested him on occasion. Zoe could be the damsel in distress but she wouldn't go lying down and would at least put up a sharp fight. Unquestionably, the companion relationship was at it's height in Season Six with Jamie and Zoe.

Overall, the Second Doctor is just one that I enjoy and I'm rather sad that I've finished all of his stories. Obviously I can go back and watched them all again, but there's something special about seeing a story for a first time. Of course, perhaps we'll get lucky and someone will discover more missing episodes of his era. It's about as close as we could get to new classic episodes and I would imagine that it would only raise the Second Doctor's profile if more of his era could be seen. But for now, I'll just appreciate what we have and enjoy that.

Highest Rated Story: The War Games - 5.0

Lowest Rated Story: The Underwater Menace - 1.5

Average overall rating: 3.36

The Power of the Daleks
The Power of the Daleks (animated)
The Highlanders
The Underwater Menace
The Moonbase
The Macra Terror
The Faceless Ones
The Evil of the Daleks
The Tomb of the Cybermen
The Abominable Snowmen
The Ice Warriors
The Enemy of the World
The Web of Fear
Fury From the Deep
The Wheel in Space
The Dominators
The Mind Robber
The Invasion
The Krotons
The Seeds of Death
The Space Pirates
The War Games

The Evil of the Daleks

Jamie, Doctor... friends.

This is the last of the Second Doctor stories for me to review and I was planning on holding off on it a bit longer, but with the news of Deborah Watling's passing, I couldn't think of a more apt time to revisit it. I say revisit as I have actually seen it once before. I recall it being interesting but a bit drug out, being seven parts. But perhaps that was also in how I watched it as I tend to watch recons in large chunks rather than spacing them out as I do with most classic stories. We'll see how it goes a second time around.

Plot Summary

At the airport following Ben and Polly's departure, the Doctor and Jamie see the TARDIS being hauled away on the back of a truck. They head to a hanger and talk to a man in maintenance coveralls called Hall. Hall notes the taking of the TARDIS but only comes alive when the Doctor mentions getting the police. He give them a fake delivery company name and they leave. Hall then contacts a fellow conspirator named Kennedy who was watching from a distance.

The Doctor and Jamie duck behind some pumps and watch Hall leave. The Doctor suspects something and follows Hall's car in a cab. Kennedy also leaves and meets with Hall at a prearranged meeting point. He pays Hall for his job of posing as a worker and tries to get him to knock the Doctor and Jamie out. Hall refuses so Kennedy knocks Hall out instead and then bolts out of the room when Jamie and the Doctor enter. They find a matchbook for a coffee bar with the name of The Tricolour on it. Hall wakes and runs out of the room. Jamie and the Doctor try to follow but lose him. With no other options, they head to the coffee bar. Kennedy, watching from the shadows, leaves by another route.

Kennedy reports to his employer, Professor Waterfield, who sells Victoriana. Waterfield is pleased that the Doctor is heading to the bar and opts not to worry about Hall's flight to the north of England. Waterfield calls in his shop manager, Perry, and asks him to go to the coffee bar and request that the Doctor and Jamie meet at his shop at 10pm that night, giving Perry pictures of the Doctor and Jamie. Perry agrees and sets off while Waterfield heads into a locked back room filled with futuristic equipment where he demands answers from an unseen entity.

The Doctor and Jamie arrive at the bar and ask about the man named Kennedy. They have no luck but are approached by Perry who delivers Waterfield's request. Jamie and the Doctor agree to come by that evening. Perry tells Waterfield who in turn orders Kennedy to prepare. Waterfield leaves to change his clothes as well but Kennedy slips into Waterfield's office after he leaves. Kennedy finds the key to the secret room and enters. He activates the machines before discovering the safe. While he cracks the safe, a Dalek materializes from the machine behind him and demands to know who he is.

Kennedy tries to run but the Dalek kills him just as he exits the room. Waterfield comes in and finds the body and the Dalek. He is appalled but the Dalek threatens him and orders him to continue. Waterfield then takes a picture of the Doctor and tears it in half. He puts one half in Kennedy's hand and the other sticking out of a box next to the machine with a glass vial inside.

The Doctor and Jamie sneak into Waterfield's shop at 9:30 to find extra information. They quickly deduce that Waterfield may actually be from the Victorian era as his antiques seem genuine but brand new. The hear a noise and hide as Perry enters to listen at the door. They surprise him and he tells them about taking the TARDIS. They are about to go and try to recover it when the study door opens.

Inside the study, they find Kennedy's body. Perry tries to call the police but the phone is giving off static. He heads out to find a policeman while the Doctor examines the body. He finds the picture and deduces that there must be a hidden room behind the bookcase. They search and find the keyhole. While searching for the key the door opens. They enter and Jamie sees the other half of the picture. When he pulls it, the lid of the box pops open and releases gas from the vial. The gas knocks out both of them. Waterfield emerges from his hiding spot and closes the box. He then activates the machine and all three of them disappear.

The Doctor wakes the next morning in the house of Theodore Maxtible, Waterfield's backer in his time experiments. After a maid revives the Doctor, Maxtible and Waterfield take the Doctor down to the lab where they explain that while they were experimenting, they accidently opened a doorway for the Daleks. The Daleks captured Waterfield's daughter Victoria and forced him to steal the TARDIS and kidnap the Doctor. A Dalek appears from the cabinet where Waterfield's machine is located and tells the Doctor that they will be putting Jamie through a test and extracting a human factor from the results.

Jamie wakes from the gas but before he is fully roused, a thug named Toby enters and knocks him back out. He also knocks out the maid and then takes Jamie out of the house. He takes him to a nearby barn where Toby is paid off by Arthur Terrall, fiancé to Ruth Maxtible. Arthur seems to be under some sort of mind control and has occasional fits where he is able to fight it off. Relapsing, he leaves as the Doctor enters and takes Jamie back to the house.

The Doctor allows Jamie to overhear him talking to Waterfield about the experiment the Daleks are setting up. Meanwhile, preparations are being made for the test. The Daleks move Victoria from her regular cell to a locked room in the south wing of the house. Maxtible also takes a mute strongman Turk named Kemel and sets him as a guard inside the first door of the passage, gives him a picture of Jamie and tells him to fight him off if he arrives.

Angry at what he feels is a trick by the Doctor, Jamie argues with the Doctor and Waterfield and storms off. The Doctor however, manipulated his words and is confident that Jamie will ultimately take the noble action and try to rescue Victoria. He is justified a while later when Maxtible informs the Daleks that Jamie has moved just outside the entrance to the south wing.

Jamie meets the maid, Mollie, outside the door and she gives him a plan of the house as he requested. They hear a scream (the Daleks just murdered Toby who had snuck back to the house to steal more money) and Jamie orders Molly back to her room. He opens the first door and eludes a booby trap of spikes falling from the doorway. He proceeds through where he meets Kemel at the end of the passage.

Kemel and Jamie fight but Jamie manages to stun Kemel and gets past him. Kemel follows Jamie but Jamie locks himself into a storage room looking for a weapon. Kemel rushes the door and Jamie sidesteps it, allowing Kemel to burst through. Kemel's momentum carries him out a window where he grabs the edge of a gutter. Jamie grabs a rope and hauls him back into the room. Once Kemel is safe, Jamie moves on to look for Victoria. He spies a handkerchief in Victoria's old cell and bends down to look at it. Kemel rushes in and pushes Jamie just as another booby trap falls on the spot.

The Doctor points out that Jamie's act of mercy saved his life to a skeptical Dalek. Meanwhile, Waterfield and Maxtible find Toby's body. Waterfield wants to tell the Doctor but the Daleks insist on disposing it. Waterfield admits he can't take it and will confess his crimes when Victoria is rescued. Maxtible takes a gun from a drawer and follows Waterfield. In the barn, Maxtible berates Waterfield for his weakness while Arthur listens in the shadows. As Waterfield heads back to the house, Maxtible turns to shoot him but Arthur grabs him and insists it not happen yet.

Jamie and Kemel become friendly and Kemel insists on helping Jamie to rescue her. They head down the corridors, following the occasional Dalek. Jamie sets off another booby trap, which they manage to avoid. The Doctor points out that instinct is also necessary rather than a cold reliance on logic.

A Dalek calls out and forces Victoria to state her name. Jamie and Kemel spot her and plan her rescue. While they do so, Arthur catches Mollie who had heard Victoria calling her name. Arthur angrily dismisses her when Ruth enters and stops his tirade. She tries to get him to leave but he rejects her.

Maxtible tries to get the Daleks to leave and hold up their end of the bargain. The Dalek dismisses Maxtible but does state that they will share a specific secret with him. As it leaves, Ruth enters and demands to know what is going on. Maxtible does not come clean but states that soon he will know the secret of transforming ordinary metal into gold. As he does so, he takes on the appearance of a man becoming unhinged.

A Dalek calls for Victoria to stand for inspection a second time. As that completes, Jamie and Kemel pull a rope across the room and crash it into the fireplace. They then throw the rope up to the banister allowing Jamie to climb the rope up to Jamie's room. Kemel follows him up the rope. Jamie knocks on the door but as he does so, a Dalek emerges with a second entering the area below. Jamie pulls the rope around and uses it to send the Dalek crashing to the floor below. He and Kemel then run into Victoria's room and bar themselves in.

In the kitchen, the Doctor gets himself something to drink and runs into Arthur. The Doctor talks with him but notes that he doesn't eat or drink. He also magnetizes metal objects when he holds them. The Doctor returns to the lab as Arthur struggles again with his natural mind and the programing the Daleks have placed on him. He heads into the hall where he finds Maxtible hypnotizing Mollie and urging her that all that happened was a dream. When she returns to her room, he tells Arthur to retrieve Victoria from her prison via a secret passage.

Having isolated Jamie's emotional responses, the Doctor sets about implanting them in the dormant Dalek brains brought to him. Waterfield fears that the new Daleks will become a superior race and will destroy all of humanity. He tries to stop the Doctor, but the Doctor restrains him, noting that the Daleks still have Victoria and Jamie.

The Daleks begin to melt their way through the door to Victoria's room. While Jamie and Kemel try to block the door with additional rubbish, Arthur opens a secret passage and grabs Victoria. She cries out in the passage just enough for Jamie to realize that there is a secret door. He manages to open it and he and Kemel run down the passage after her. Victoria manages to get loose from Arthur at a fork and runs down the other passage. Arthur, knowing he is pursued, runs the other way. At the fork, Jamie and Kemel split up.

Jamie emerges in the trophy room and is attacked by Arthur with a sword. He manages to duck and grabs a sword of his own. They fight in the room, their clashing blades attracting the attention of Ruth and Mollie. Ruth sends Mollie for the Doctor while imploring Arthur to stop. As the Doctor enters, Jamie catches Arthur in the back with his blade, loosening a small control box. Arthur immediately drops to the ground as the Dalek control over him is lost. The Doctor urges Ruth and Mollie to take Arthur in the carriage and get away from the house as fast as possible.

Kemel emerges in the lab and find Victoria unconscious. He bends over her as a Dalek emerges from the cabinet. The Dalek orders Kemel to take Victoria into the cabinet. He hesitates but finally does what they say. A few minutes later, Jamie, the Doctor and Maxtible enter the lab. Jamie is still angry at the Doctor and implies that he will leave due to the Doctor's callousness. The Doctor urges Jamie to have patience and see what has happened. He unveils three Daleks that have been implanted with the "human factor". They push their way towards the Doctor and take him for a ride around the lab, playing a game with him.

After finishing their games, the Daleks enter the cabinet to return to Skaro. The Doctor and Jamie leave to go find Victoria, unaware that she and Kemel have been taken to Skaro. Maxtible meanwhile tries to dismiss Waterfield's concerns about Victoria, implying that she has been freed by the Daleks and must be wandering about the house. He shoos Waterfield away but Waterfield stays near and overhears Maxtible insisting that the Daleks give him the formula to transmute metal into gold. The Daleks ignore him and insist he bring the Doctor to them while setting up a device in the lab.

After the Dalek leaves, Waterfield attacks Maxtible but Maxtible knocks him down. Realizing that the Daleks have planted a bomb, Maxtible rails against what the Daleks are doing and chases them through the cabinet. The Doctor and Jamie find Waterfield and the bomb. They grab Waterfield and the three of them also head into the cabinet to travel through the machine to Skaro, just before the bomb destroys the entire house.

The Daleks are angry with Maxtible for not bringing the Doctor with him and they imprison him with Victoria and Kemel. Shortly afterwards, an alarm is triggered when the Doctor, Jamie and Waterfield enter an access tunnel to try and sneak into the Dalek city. Discovering that the Doctor has named the three human factor Daleks, one of the Daleks attempts to pose as a human factor Dalek to trap the Doctor. The Doctor however realizes the deception and pushes it off a cliff.

The Daleks next force Maxtible to shock Victoria into screaming. The sound carries and the trio follows it to a passageway where they are intercepted by other Daleks. The Daleks take the trio into the main chamber where the Emperor Dalek is waiting. The Emperor informs the Doctor that they used his experiment to create a specific Dalek factor and they now insist that he spread it through humanity with the TARDIS, which they have also taken to Skaro.

The Doctor refuses but is told that he will and they are sent to the same prison cell as Victoria, Kemel and Maxtible. The Daleks later open the door and show a machine that appears to turn iron into gold. Maxtible runs through the door towards the machine but as he does so, he is hit with a wave across the door and infused with the Dalek factor. He becomes a mindless servant of the Daleks.

Maxtible returns to the cell and encourages the Doctor to come with him as the TARDIS has been taken out of the city. Steeling himself, the Doctor walks though the doorway and is also hit with the Dalek factor. He appears to be like Maxtible but stops to examine the machines the produce the Dalek factor and will be used to spread it to Earth. Maxtible leaves and the Doctor, now acting as his normal self, switches a pod in the control panel from the Dalek factor to the human factor he developed in Maxtible's lab. He whispers to Jamie to not be afraid to walk through when he returns. A Dalek enters and he is taken to see the Emperor.

In the main chamber, the Emperor is informed that the Daleks infused with the human factor have been questioning orders. The Doctor, pretending he is under Dalek control, suggest that the Daleks pass through the doorway to overwrite the human factor and reinfuse the Dalek factor. The Emperor orders it and several Daleks pass through the corridor, becoming infused with the human factor.

The newly infused Daleks begin to question orders from a regular Dalek and it shoots one of the new Daleks. The other human infused Daleks respond and destroy the initial Dalek. The Doctor returns to the room and orders Jamie, Waterfield, Victoria and Kemel out of the city to the TARDIS. He leaves but Waterfield follows him while the others leave the city. The Doctor points out another attack by a regular Dalek and tells the human-infused Daleks that they might fight to survive.

A regular Dalek sees the Doctor and shoots at him but Waterfield steps into the beam and is killed. The Dalek is then destroyed by the other faction. The human-infused Daleks push into the main chamber where the Emperor is destroyed in the crossfire.

Maxtible runs after Jamie, Victoria and Kemel where he attacks Kemel, screaming like a Dalek about killing. He pushes Kemel off the cliff, killing him and then runs back to the city to enter the fight. He slips past the Doctor, who is hiding behind a grate. After Maxtible goes past, the Doctor runs and catches up with Jamie and Victoria. They reach the TARDIS and observe the two factions of Daleks destroying each other.

Analysis

If The Evil of the Daleks kept the pacing and mystery of the first two episodes (and kept itself to four or five parts) I have no doubt that genuine debates would be had between fans as to whether it was the best Dalek story of all time. Unfortunately, it does not and starting in Episode Three, it begins to fall off from it's gripping beginning. It does start to pick itself back up but it does have a bit of a lull in the middle. I suspect the lull wouldn't be quite as pronounced if the episodes existed but it is there.

Now, to be fair, I think the effort to infuse the middle lull with action and plot development does succeed on some level. This is the Second Doctor in a state that I really enjoy: caught flat-footed initially, but now working on a plan to escape the situation. He manipulates Jamie into carrying out the task (which is also a testament to his faith in Jamie's ability to rescue Victoria) and he has an almost smug attitude towards the Daleks as Jamie advances. He's nearly mocking the Daleks for not seeing both the admirable traits in Jamie that are allowing him to succeed and the fact that he is going to create Daleks that will upend the order of the Daleks. This is the Second Doctor at his best, not all-seeing, but quick-thinking and with the ability to create plans that require patience and will result in the total destruction of the enemy.

Although Victoria is introduced in this story, she is a prisoner during the whole and does not function in a companion role. So this is the first story of the Second Doctor run where Jamie is the only companion (The Wheel in Space being the other). Frankly, he's good enough that I think they could have had a full season with just the two of them. Their dynamic might have gotten stale towards the end, but they play so well off each other that I think it would have worked. It certainly does here as Jamie goes the whole gambit of emotions with the Doctor: loyalty, feelings of betrayal, Watsonian assistant, and dashing hero. Jamie is constantly enjoyable in what he does.

Most of the other guest cast is pretty good as well. The person the most short-changed is Kemel as he is silent and that doesn't do much in a recon. Fortunately, there are some telesnaps so you can see that he was visually expressive. Arthur and Ruth were the most superfluous as I never really understood what was going on with Arthur. He was being controlled by the Daleks but for what purpose? Waterfield was controlled via the threat to Victoria and Maxtible was deep in a belief that the Daleks would give him the ability to make gold. So why have Arthur under spell? My guess would be that the Daleks wanted a mobile spy and Arthur was convenient, but that doesn't fully explain all his actions. Why send the thug Toby to kidnap Jamie? Why prevent Maxtible for killing Waterfield once the Doctor has arrived? I have a feeling that more was intended with Arthur but that subplot was dropped in favor of more action scenes with Jamie and Kemel and then Arthur, Ruth and Mollie are drop kicked out of the story just to ensure they don't die when the Daleks destroy the house.

Despite Arthur and Ruth being a bit of a dead end, the real weakest character is actually Victoria. Victoria is not a terrible companion but this story does foreshadow her primary function and that is to be the screaming damsel in distress for most of the run. She has almost no personality development aside from being generally kind-hearted in her feeding of the birds and her treatment of Kemel. She does fight Arthur when he tries to kidnap her so she must have some spirit, but nothing else is really done for her, unlike Samantha in The Faceless Ones, who was clearly being groomed to be a companion. If you didn't already know that Victoria was going to be a companion, the viewer would likely dismiss her out of hand.

The Daleks were quite good in this story. They were not as devious as in The Power of the Daleks but they didn't need to be. They held all the cards and could impose their will as they saw fit. Yet, it was not the mindless killing that we usually get from the Daleks. They had a plan and displayed cunning, both in their trap to lure the Doctor as well as the maze they led Jamie into. Even their final plan was a bit deeper than expected. So much time is spent on the idea of infusing the Daleks with a factor of humanity that it is a bit of shock to learn that it's really a means of honing the purity of a Dalek and then conquering humanity by making them more Dalek-like. I also like to think that this infusion of humanity and it's counter for genetic purity is what starts the factional fighting that first pops up in Resurrection of the Daleks, although since I haven't seen that one yet, I can't confirm that part of my head cannon.

It is a real shame that this doesn't exist as Episode Two is nicely framed and shows some interesting directorial ideas. I was completely surprised when one transition was made using a circle wipe as that seemed rather extravagant for Doctor Who. There's also so much of this story that is clearly done with visual media that you just can't capture with pictures, computer regenerations and replacement actors with their heads not showing. It's all a noble effort but it just makes you pine for the moving images that much more. The final battle in Episode Seven would be worth watching as you get enough from the behind the scenes footage available on the Lost in Time DVD to wet your appetite that much more.

As far as the overall story, you have three phases. There is the mystery in Episodes One and Two and that is the most engaging part to me. You have the testing of Jamie and his little adventures which cover Episodes Three, Four and Five. Then you have the final confrontation on Skaro which is set up in Episode Six and carried out in Seven. Jamie's test is the most padded and where the lull really kicks in. It's not boring (or at least not to me) but you can feel the padding going on. The testing of Jamie and the development of the human factor could easily have been cut down to one or one and a half episodes. In fact, I think this would have been a really tight five-part story, especially if you drop Arthur and Ruth wholesale. Still, the two extra episodes of padding are reasonably well rounded and I think they are only a serious problem if you are watching them all back-to-back with no break. Putting a day between each, eases out the padding and makes it a bit more interesting, in my opinion.

There are recon stories out there that can feel like a real slog. To me, this is not one of them. I enjoyed this story even more the second time around and I think my spacing of the padding in Episodes Three through Five had a lot to do with it. It's not perfect and being a recon does knock it down a peg in my book, but it is a good story and will appeal to most people if they can get past the recon aspect of it. If this were animated, I think it would draw a lot of folks in. It is slightly unfortunate that Victoria is introduced so quietly, but she does come around and has some good moments in Season Five. But I think it's fair to say that I rather enjoyed this one and would revisit it. That is more than doubly so if any part of it was recovered.

Overall personal score: 4 out of 5

The Seeds of Death

Your leader will be angry with you if you kill me. I can be of use to you. I'm a genius.

The Seeds of Death is one of those stories that doesn't really get talked about much. I think my only knowledge of it is that the title can sometimes be confused with the Fourth Doctor story, The Seeds of Doom, and a scene of the Second Doctor being attacked by foam is taken from this story. Other than that, I'm coming in pretty much a blank slate, which is good I think since it'll give me a fairly open viewpoint on it.

Plot Summary

In Earth's future, transport of people and equipment is done by a transport system called T-Mat. People who are working for T-Mat arrive at the beginning of their shift and set about to work. On the moonbase, as the shift begins, the base is overrun by an alien race. They kill one worker and threaten the shift commander to engage the system. The commander sabotages it instead and the aliens kill him.

On the T-Mat control station, the shift controller, Gia Kelly, observes the fault and sets the workers to determine it's nature. The overall commander, Radnor, gets after her but she is only able to tell him that the fault has occurred on the moon and they have no way to getting to the moon to help them. Radnor decides to ask the help of an old associate, Professor Eldred.

The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe land in a museum devoted to space travel and begin to explore. They are caught by the museum owner, Professor Eldred. Eldred initially believes them troublemakers but he get swept up in the Doctor's interest in his latest rocket design. The two talk excitedly about it until they are interrupted by Radnor and Kelly.

Radnor tells Eldred of the trouble they have with the moon and appeals to him to help them with his latest rocket design. Eldred refuses but the argument between the two is interrupted by a signal from the moon. One of the technicians has repaired the video link and sends a signal for help. But before he can complete the message, the transmission is cut off. The link is damaged by the alien commander, revealed to be an Ice Warrior, who then has the technician killed.

The other technician, Phipps, manages to run for it and hides out in a spare parts room. He manages to hide from the searching Ice Warrior and then begins to build a transmitter and an energy device to act as a booby trap. Meanwhile, the Ice Warrior commander, Slaar, forces the remaining officer, Fewsham, to repair the back-up T-Mat but only to receive.

Back on Earth, Radnor implores Eldred to finish his rocket and fly it to the Moon. Eldred refuses due to his age and the lack of time. The Doctor steps in and offers to help with the repairs and also offers to fly it to the Moon with Jamie and Zoe. Eldred reluctantly agrees and they begin work. Kelly appeals to Radnor to go in place of Jamie, but Radnor refuses as she is the only one qualified to get the T-Mat working again.

The rocket successfully launches with the Doctor and his two companions on board. However, their communications with Earth short out shortly after lift-off leaving Radnor and his team in the dark.

Fewsham finishes the repair and sends a signal received by Radnor. This time he agrees to Kelly's request and she is sent with two technicians to the Moon. The Ice Warriors hide and Fewsham claims that it was damaged by the base commander after suffering a bout of space madness. Kelly is suspicious but sets about repairing the T-Mat anyway.

Phipps finishes his radio and begins to broadcast for help just as the Doctor's rocket enters Moon orbit. They lock onto a radio guide beam to lead them down. However, Phipps is forced to switch over the power to his booby trap when an Ice Warrior enters the room. Phipps device kills the Ice Warrior but it also knocks out the homing beam. Zoe pulls the rocket back into orbit and as they do they pick up Phipps renewed signal. From him they learn of the Ice Warrior invasion and after returning from the dark side of the moon, follow the signal from his radio down to the surface.

The Doctor leaves to find Phipps and has Zoe prepare the rocket for a return flight to Earth. Zoe however discovers the engine was damaged in the landing and unfit for take off. The Doctor finds Phipps and radios back to Jamie that he intends to destroy the T-Mat and then use the rocket to return to Earth. He cuts off before Zoe can tell him of the damage and they leave the rocket to find him.

Kelly finishes the repairs and the Ice Warriors emerge to take them prisoner. The two technicians try to run and are gunned down. Fewsham finishes bringing all the cities back on-line and Slaar prepares a cargo for T-Mat. He orders Kelly taken away and kept under guard. She however manages to escape just as the Doctor and Philips enter the same corridor. The group breaks up and Ice Warriors pursue them. They corner the Doctor who convinces them to keep him alive and take him to their commander.

Jamie and Zoe meet up with Kelly and Phipps and the group decide to try and get into the station core and raise the overall heat to disable the Ice Warriors. Jame and Phipps begin to work a grate to allow them to go through the access ducts and avoid patrols. However, an Ice Warrior enters and they are forced to kill that one with the same booby trap device as before.

Back in the control room, the Doctor uses Fewsham to investigate the cargo that the Ice Warriors are preparing to T-Mat. Slaar sees the Doctor and forces him to examine the cargo. He picks up a pod within and it expands at his touch, bursts and then knocks him out with the vapor inside. Slaar then T-Mats pods to various stations, including where Radnor is preparing a technical crew to head to the Moon and assist Kelly. They are surprised when the pods arrive and it expands at their touch. The pod explodes, killing the technician and choking the others. They vent the smoke into the outside to clear the air.

Jamie and Phipps crawl through the access ducts and see the pods being loaded into the T-Mat. They also see the Doctor passed out. Slaar orders Fewsham to drag the Doctor into the T-Mat and transport him into space. Fewsham objects but cowers into agreement. He resets the controls to do so and as he does, Jamie and Phipps drag the Doctor into the vents. Jamie takes him back to the supply room while Phipps tries to get to the temperature controls, but can't as he is too large to fit through the access duct.

Slaar sends one of his warriors through the T-Mat to Earth to monitor the progress of the pods, which have released fungus spores that are now germinating outside. The warrior kills the guards and ignores Radnor as he tries to attack before heading outside.

Zoe convinces Phipps to take her back through the ducts as she is small enough to pass through. They are slowed by Phipps having an attack of claustrophobia and the delay causes Jamie to start worrying about their safety. Zoe pushes Phipps on and passes through the duct exit. Fewsham sees Zoe and distracts the guard while she increases the temperature. The guard however does see Phipps and shoots him before spying Zoe as well. Fewsham jumps on the warrior and distracts him before he passes out from the heat.

Another Ice Warrior enters the supply room. Jamie and Kelly try to kill it with the booby trap but find the power has failed. It hears the Doctor waking up and tries to grab him but both Jamie and Kelly attack him. The Ice Warrior is stronger than both of them but he too passes out from the heat as the Doctor come fully to.

Zoe returns to the supply room and the group heads to the control room where Fewsham has brought T-Mat back on-line. He offers to transport the group back and then follow using a time delay. Kelly is skeptical as she was under the impression that the time delay was broken. Fewsham claims to have repaired it. He ends up sending back the four of them but does not bother to try himself and Kelly confirms back on Earth that the time delay is still broken.

On Earth, the Ice Warrior who had been sent down enters a weather control station. He kills the technician on duty and then locks and destroys the controls to ensure that rain cannot be artificially produced.

The Doctor brings Radnor, Eldred and Radnor's superior, Sir James Gregson, up to speed. He collects a sample of the fungus to examine it. It absorbs oxygen, leading the Doctor to figure that the fungus will reduce the oxygen content on Earth, killing all humans and leaving it more like Mars, perfect for Ice Warrior colonization. During his experiments, he also discovers that the fungus is vulnerable to water.

The Doctor relays this information to Zoe and to have her tell Radnor. However Radnor is in a meeting so she and Jamie head over to the weather control center to tell them about needing rain as they are not answering their communicators. They discover the dead technician and the damaged controls and are forced to hide from the patrolling Ice Warrior.

Slaar manages to get to the control room and reduce the temperature of the base before he passes out. Fewsham pretends to have been knocked out and offers to continue to help the Ice Warriors. Slaar has Fewsham connect a homing signal to T-Mat while he communicates with the fleet commander. After doing so, Fewsham turns on the video link, allowing the Doctor, Radnor and Kelly to overhear the Ice Warrior plans. Slaar discovers this too late and kills Fewsham.

The Doctor has Radnor stop a satellite launch they had planned to redirect control of T-Mat to reconfigure it so they can misdirect the Ice Warrior fleet and have them crash into the sun. The Doctor also discovers that Zoe never gave Radnor the information about the rain and assumes that she and Jamie went to the weather station themselves. He heads over but cannot get in as Zoe had locked the door. He is nearly overcome by the encroaching fungus and bangs on the door. This attracts the attention of the Ice Warrior, Zoe and Jamie. Jamie runs in front of the Ice Warrior, distracting him and allowing Zoe to open the door before the Doctor is overcome.

They reunite with Jamie and barricade themselves in a power room. Inside, the Doctor builds a portable version of the solar trap used on the Moon base. The Ice Warrior is distracted by a group of guards sent by Radnor, but they are beaten back. Instead the Doctor emerges and kills the Ice Warrior with his weapon. He then hot wires the weather controls to allow the formation of rain clouds.

The trio heads back to the T-Mat station just as the rocket carrying the satellite with the mimicking homing signal is launched. Once in orbit, the Doctor is sent to the Moon base to kill the signal on the Moon. Upon arriving at the Moon, the Doctor kills one guard and cuts the power to the signaler so that it only broadcasts to the base. With the signal gone, the satellite signal is activated.

Slaar enters and captures the Doctor. He is tricked by the fact that he can see the machine still sending the signal and orders the Doctor to operate the T-Mat for invasion once the fleet has arrived. However, the Grand Marshall soon signals that they are off course and are being destroyed by the sun's heat.

On Earth, Jamie, concerned that the Doctor hasn't returned, has Zoe T-Mat him to the Moon. He arrives just as Slaar, in a fit of rage, orders the Doctor killed. Jamie's arrival distracts the guard just enough for the Doctor to grab his arm and aim the gun at Slaar who is killed. Jamie then attacks the guard allowing the Doctor to grab his portable solar device and kill that guard as well.

The two return to Earth and with Zoe sneak back to the TARDIS just as Radnor and Eldred begin to argue over whether a backup fleet of rockets should be built.

Analysis

I think overall this story gets a middling rating. At it's core, it has an interesting idea. It is reasonably well acted, the settings are interesting and most of the characters, especially the villain are at least somewhat engaging. But it also is very heavily padded and the drawing out of the story slows the action down badly. Worse, the padding points are almost painfully obvious with Phipps' random attack of claustrophobia being the most painfully obvious. They don't kill the story, but there are moments where you can find yourself distracted by something else, look up and realize that while several minutes have passed, the story has gone nowhere and you've missed nothing.

I'm not sure I've ever seen a Second Doctor story where I didn't like him so I again will say that I liked the Doctor, even though he is clearly on hiatus in Episode Four. One of the more enjoyable things about the Second Doctor is how much joy he takes in little things, such as getting into the rockets with Professor Eldred (who must live). It makes his disappointed reaction to the lack of flash with the T-Mat process rather comical. I also appreciate how he doesn't apologize for the necessity of using violence. Fans get up in arms about the idea of the Doctor using a gun or killing randomly, but here, the Doctor kills Ice Warriors with very little compunction. He doesn't even both with the idea of negotiating with Slaar and instead simply sets about destroying the fleet and killing the base invaders. Granted, Slaar had made all the aggressive moves by this point, but it's still nice to see a Doctor recognize that both negotiation and remorse are pointless and simply get on with it. In fact, the Doctor is arguably at his coldest when he delivers a point by point summation as to how Slaar has been defeated at the end, almost taking pleasure in dashing his hope as Slaar grasps at each individual straw.

Jamie and Zoe were okay in the story but they weren't used particularly well. I thought they were nearly pointless and given rather poor dialogue at the end. Zoe especially got better as she was actually utilized in the later episodes, although she had a really bad moment with the Episode Four cliffhanger. The Ice Warrior is distracted by Fewsham and still she just stands there and holds position as though frozen in place. She should have been directed to run a little further and least look like she was trying to hide from him. I also think she would have been well within her right to slap Phipps across the face to get him to snap out of his fear after having already been in the ducts once with Jamie. But it was an obvious time-killing moment so I tried to let it go as best I could.

Jamie was close to useless in this story. He had a couple of moments of lunging bravery where he would attack an Ice Warrior long enough for someone else to finish it off, but his overall performance was very limited other than expressing concern for the Doctor and Zoe. Probably his deepest moments were his scenes of exposition with Zoe where he brought her up to speed on the Ice Warriors, but even there he had to share explanation time with the Doctor. With as many characters as there were, it's not surprising that someone was going to get the short end of the stick and Jamie clearly drew that one here.

The supporting human cast was alright but not much to write home about. Both Radnor and Eldred started as though they might be a bit more developed in the later action, but their involvement died off to not much more than commentary after Episode Two so they didn't really register much. Kelly was a bit better, at least being used through the whole of the story, but she could have done with a bit more personality. She was strangely robotic through most of the story, even when people were dying around her, she had this detached quality that just made her seem out of place. Her closest moment of real emotion seemed to come when she was modifying the satellite to recreate the homing signal for the Ice Warrior fleet. That was when she actually seemed to show concern and strain at trying to beat the Ice Warriors.

The one human who did stand out was Fewsham but even his arc was a bit oddly done. In the first two episodes, he is shown to be someone not quite qualified for his job and then someone who values his life more than anything else. That's not a bad thing since many a quisling have done so out of fear of death or torture so to see that is more realistic. I wish he didn't whine quite so much and I'm a little surprised the Ice Warriors didn't kill him out of annoyance at one point. But by the middle episodes, Fewsham changes so that while he is still afraid, he seems to become more accepting of the possibility of death. To the point that he opts to sacrifice himself by not leaving the Moonbase when the others do because he knows the Ice Warriors have something else prepared that Earth needs to be warned about. That's a very sharp contrast from the Fewsham that starts the story and I think this change should have been a bit more developed. As it was, I didn't really buy his sacrifice. I bought his fear of death and going along to stay alive. I didn't see enough in the course of the story that made me think that he wouldn't be the first one to jump into the T-Mat when they prepare to evacuate the base, even if it meant spending decades in prison.

I did like the Ice Warriors in this story. Slaar especially made for a good villain. He was ruthless and actually seemed to have a fairly well developed plan for getting his objectives accomplished. I also liked that he actually had legitimate reasons for keeping certain humans alive, rather than just the standard "I'll kill you later" motivation that comes so often with entertainment villains. There were shortcomings though as I didn't really understand why Slaar didn't stay in the control room the whole time. I'm assuming he went back to the Ice Warrior ship when he wasn't in the control room, but you would think that he would want to stay at the nerve center most of the time to ensure things got done. I also don't understand why he didn't seen more warriors down to Earth to guard the weather controls. If a single warrior was strong enough to hold off the human forces, why not invade conventionally since they are so outmatched? But if they knew that the fungus must avoid rain, then why not send three or four warriors down? Multiple warriors would make the bunker unassailable and ensure plenty of time for the fungus to expand to the point of human suffocation.

Something also must be said for the peripheral vision of the Ice Warriors. Obviously this is a kids show filmed in tight sets so a certain amount of disbelief has to be suspended when it comes to hiding spots. But you help that out with good direction to make it look like the hiding spot is a bit more obscure. This story did not do that and there was more than one occasion where the Ice Warrior was practically looking at someone and yet had to pretend they didn't see them. Of all the little problems that cropped up here and there, I think it was those moments that took me out of the story the most. I will say that other than that, I thought the direction seemed pretty good for the most part. There were a couple of other scenes that did look bad (the Doctor running to the weather station was particularly janky) and there were also a couple of points where he should have reigned in the performances as they started going over-the-top, but these were more exceptions and by-products of someone trying to get more than the story was able to deliver on the surface.

But the thing that must be noted is just how slow this story can be. I learned after watching it that although Brian Hayles is credited with the story, Terrance Dicks had to do major rewrites from Episode Three onward. Given that Terrance was also desperately trying to finish The War Games with Malcolm Hulke and looking for anything to fill the episode shortfall they were experiencing, it's not surprising that this story was a drawn out as it was. It didn't help that Patrick Troughton had a vacation in Episode Four. Any time the Doctor goes on holiday, the action always stops and the wheels spin and that didn't help matters either. I think in an ideal world, this story could have been cut to four episodes with a lot tighter action. It possibly could have been stretched to five, but I think each episode would have needed to be trimmed down to closer to twenty minutes to keep the same decent pacing. But that obviously wasn't going to happen.

In the end, I think this is a decent story but it's flaws do drag it down a bit. Those flaws aren't killers but this story can easily slip away from you if not fully invested. When I was watching it, I had to take a couple of days off in the middle due to other obligations and I recall not being overly bothered. The story was entertaining but not grabbing me in a way that made me want to pop the next episode in right away to see how it progressed. Not every story can be like that, but you always wish it could be. This one is a decent exposure to the Second Doctor and a story to have in the background, but it's nowhere near the best offerings of the Second Doctor era, though it is a step up for the Ice Warriors in general.

Overall personal score: 3 out of 5

The Mind Robber

Oh no, I got it all wrong!

The Mind Robber was the first Second Doctor story I ever saw and I'm not sure I could have picked an odder story to expose myself to Second Doctor. It's completely unlike any of the standard "base under siege" or monster-type stories that litter the era. In fact, the story is more reminiscent of something from either The Twilight Zone or a significant drug trip. I actually would not discount the idea that Peter Ling might have been tripping when he wrote this one, although the most out there stuff (Episode One) was actually written by script editor Derrick Sherwin. Of course, he could have been spaced out then as well.

Plot Summary

With the Dominator's bomb having just set off the volcano, the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe rush back to the TARDIS to escape the lava flow. They attempt to take off but the fluid link malfunctions and the Doctor is forced to shut down to ensure the TARDIS isn't flooded with mercury vapor. Worried about the lava destroying the TARDIS, Jamie and Zoe urge the Doctor to activate the emergency relay which will displace the TARDIS out of all time and space. Reluctantly, the Doctor agrees.

The TARDIS dematerializes and then reemerges in a void of nothingness. The Doctor sets about repairing the TARDIS but Jamie and Zoe are mesmerized by images of their respective homes on the scanner. Curiosity gets the better of Zoe and she opens the doors, despite the Doctor's warnings not to and wanders into the mist. Concerned for her, Jamie runs out after her. The Doctor calls out for them to stop but is forced to focus himself on resisting a powerful mind coming against him.

In the mist, Jamie and Zoe are reunited. They wander about looking for the TARDIS but are again distracted by images of their homes. They each manage to snap the other one out of their trances and continue their search. As they do so, they are surrounded by robots who use hypnotic beams against them, forcing them to see themselves disappearing into the mist.

The Doctor manages to fight off the force and leaves the TARDIS just enough to summon Jamie and Zoe through the mist. Though they are partially under the alien force's control, the Doctor wills them along and back into the TARDIS where they snap back to their normal selves.

The Doctor tries to take off again but the alien force attacks again, forcing the Doctor to focus his mind once again. Power is drained from the TARDIS and it appears to burst apart. Jamie and Zoe cling to the console while the Doctor remains in his chair and both drift away into the misty void.
Jamie stumbles out of the mist where he runs into a redcoat. He attacks the soldier who fires at him,turning him into a paper figure. Zoe also wanders through the mist, getting hemmed in by thorn bushes. She walks through a door and falls forward into a pit.

The Doctor wakes to the sound of Jamie and Zoe's cries for help. He walks through a forest and finds Lemuel Gulliver. Gulliver briefly threatens the Doctor but walks away upon finding him of a sharp mind. The Doctor is then met with a group of children who pepper him with riddles. When he successfully solves them, they run off, leaving him with a dictionary.

The Doctor turns a corner to find the paper Jamie and several objects. The Doctor solves the message and finds Jamie's face missing. He replaces Jamie's face but gets the details wrong. Jamie returns but with a different face. He is still Jamie though and together they find Zoe trapped in a jar disguised as a door in a wall. The quickly free her and set off into the forest to find their way out.

Getting tired, they stop to rest. Jamie climbs to the top of the tree to find a way out of the forest and discovers that the tress are in fact letters. They make up common proverbs. He does spot what he thinks is the way out and climbs down. They continue their walk but run into Gulliver again. He is confused by their description of robots attacking them and cannot see a squad of tin soldiers who come and herd the trio into a cave. In the cave they see a unicorn about to charge them, much like in a dream Jamie had while they were back in the TARDIS. The Doctor urges Jamie and Zoe to declare that it doesn't exist and when they do, the unicorn freezes into a paper cutout.

They exit the cave and come across a cottage with the redcoat Jamie had met earlier. Jamie again charges him and again is turned into a paper cutout. This time, with Zoe's help, the Doctor reconstructs his face properly and Jamie is returned to normal.

They pass through the door and find themselves in another cave with a ball of twine nearby. The Doctor recognizes it as a maze and order Jamie to tie one end to the door so they can find their way out again. They continue along until the string runs out. Leaving Jamie with the string, the Doctor and Zoe walk forward into the center of the maze. In the center, the Doctor and Zoe find the Minotaur where they again stop it by denying its existence.

A tin soldier tries to capture the waiting Jamie but he escapes. He exits the maze, chased by the soldiers. He climbs partway up and reaches a ledge where a coil of hair extends down. He climbs up to meet Rapunzel on the other end. Although he is not a prince, she reluctantly agrees to let him into the palace where she promptly disappears. Jamie discovers the palace is instead a futuristic building. He discovers a ticker-tape machine printing out words describing the Doctor and Zoe's adventure.

Finding Jamie gone, the Doctor and Zoe turn back into the main part of the cave where a stone statue of Medusa appears. The statue begins to come to life and advances on them. The Doctor again tries to get Zoe to deny it's existence but she cannot. A sword appears at the Doctor's feet but rather than fighting Medusa, he pulls out a mirror. Zoe looks at Medusa in the mirror and Medusa reverts to her statue form.

They walk out and into the same valley Jamie was in earlier. There, they are confronted by the Karkus, a character from comic strips of Zoe's youth. He engages them but Zoe is able to fight him off. Beaten, the Karkus submits to their will and Zoe orders him to take them to the citadel on the hill. There, they dismiss the Karkus and the Doctor disguises his voice as the Karkus to gain entry into the castle.

Inside, they find Jamie, who had been forced to hide due to accidentally setting off an internal alarm. The Doctor notes that they will have to see the ruler of this land of fiction, whom Gulliver had referred to as the Master, in order to reclaim the TARDIS. Zoe sets off the alarm and the Doctor surrenders to the robots who take the group to see the Master.

In the control room, they find a man who had been a writer of boy's adventure stories hooked up to a central computer. The human side of the writer is friendly and jovial, inviting the Doctor to take his place as he is getting old, having been taken by the alien power in 1926. Every once in a while, the computer interposes its will and the writer becomes dark and threatening. The Doctor distracts him, though constantly refusing his offer while Jamie and Zoe try to find an escape. The writer however is aware of their escape attempt and sends several robots who encase Jamie and Zoe in a book, rendering them into works of fiction.

Unable to help Jamie and Zoe at the moment, the Doctor dashes up bookcase and up on to the roof as the robots return for him. On the roof, he spots a typewriter through a skylight, controlling the master tape. He summons the Karkus who, with the help of Rapunzel, lowers him down into the room. The Doctor starts to write a different ending but stops, realizing that it's a trap as writing anything about himself will turn him into a work of fiction. He returns to the roof where he is met by Gulliver and the children from earlier.

The writer gives Jamie and Zoe new feelings toward the Doctor and they set a trap for him. He makes what appears to be the TARDIS reappear and Jamie and Zoe step out. Happy at it's return, the Doctor steps inside, only to discover himself trapped in a glass box. The box disappears and the Doctor finds himself back in the control room, this time fully integrated with the computer.

Due to his full integration, the Doctor realizes he can now make fiction reality as well and he summons forth Jamie and Zoe, urging them to escape their book. Jamie and Zoe then manage to extricate themselves from the book and cease to be works of fiction. The writer attempts to stop the Doctor by summoning the toy soldiers to seize Jamie and Zoe as they cross the roof. The Doctor counters by summoning the Karkus to shoot them down the soldiers. The writer attempts to step in and have the Karkus shoot them but the Doctor depletes his gun, rendering him useless. The writer calls forth Cyrano de Bergerac to attack them with a sword but the Doctor counters with D'Artagnan and the two characters fight on the roof, allowing Jamie and Zoe to run past. The writer changes Cyrano to Blackbeard and the Doctor changes D'Artagnan to Lancelot, each countering the other.

Fearing that the central brain will be overloaded, the writer ceases his attacks and instead summons the robots. The Doctor realizes he can't counter about himself as it would again turn him into a work of fiction. The robots pull the Doctor out of the machine and prepare to kill him. Jamie and Zoe rush in and activate every switch on the control board. The surge of power and information begins to overwhelm the computer and the robots are momentarily distracted. The Doctor rushes to the writer and pulls his harness off, freeing him of the control of the computer. With no new input, the robots obey their final instruction and begin to destroy everything in the control room, including the central brain of the computer.

The group flees just outside the castle where the TARDIS then reforms around the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe. The writer also disappears back into his own time.
Analysis

I really like this story, but I can also easily see how others would not. If The Macra Terror was a toe dip and lifting of ideas from The Prisoner, this story is a full on plunge into the world of surrealism. Of course, for all its surrealism, it still maintains a grounding in the form of a recognizable plotline and well written dialogue.

Granted you don't have a lot of choices with the Second Doctor, but I think this story could be one of the best ones to demonstrate what the Second Doctor is like. He is his usual blustery, slightly over-the-top self who is a bit back on his heels most of the time. But he is also the thinking and conniving Doctor. He understands a bit more that he ever lets on, especially after he really starts to guess the rules of the game in Episode Two. At no point when you are with the Doctor do you feel like nothing interesting is going on. He's just fun to be with on multiple levels in this story.

Jamie and Zoe are also good in this story, although I feel like Jamie stands out a bit more. This story is rather famous for having a replacement Jamie for Episode Two due to Frazer Hines contracting chicken pox from his nephews. But Hamish Wilson does a fine job as a stand-in Jamie and what's more, the mechanics of how the replacement Jamie came about is very creative and adds to the surrealistic atmosphere of the story. Jamie goes one further by getting a portion of the story to himself, climbing up Rapunzel's hair and having a few moments with Gulliver in avoiding the robots. It develops Jamie nicely in the story.

Zoe does well but does not get a stand out moment in this story like she does in say The Krotons. This sort of makes sense as Zoe is highly conditioned with logic and logic is probably the absolute last thing that is going to help in a story like this. So she ends up being more of either a comic foil or the Doctor's sounding board to explain the particulars of the plot. She also gets to scream a lot at the various traps she falls in to. She does at least get to defeat the Karkus with some nice judo moves which played nicely on screen, despite Wendy Padbury being unhappy with that take.

Of course, she also gets the take away point of the whole story as the other thing besides the replacement Jamie that people remember from this story is Zoe laying on the TARDIS console in a sparkling cat-suit with her derriere framed nicely for viewing. Apparently the zipper had busted on the front of her suit as well so she's leaning forward to make sure she didn't expose herself in the front and ruin the take.

All the various secondary characters did well but I think special attention to be played to the writer (or Master as he is credited). I personally try to avoid using "the Master" as it has a very different connotation now. Anyway, this part was played and written very well. You could see the glee and enthusiasm for writing that the writer had and how he was fundamentally a good person. But you could also see the dark, sinister side when the computer mind took over and the contrast portrayed between the two was quite impressive. I also loved the fact that the villain never got up but acted through surrogates to the point that it became a literal battle of the minds. It was a villain that emphasized that the Doctor had to think his way out of the problem rather than rely on some aspect of force to solve the problem.

Before going into the set and direction of the rest of the story, I think special attention must be paid to Episode One. This came about because the powers that be decided to cut down The Dominators from six to five episodes (with good reason). However, The Mind Robber as written did not lend itself to the kind of padding normally used (which is partially why the flow of the narrative is so good in my opinion). So they lifted the barest bit of the introduction and set about to expand that, while having no additional budget for sets. That forced the action to be confined to the TARDIS and a white soundstage with robots they had intended to use later in the story. It is very weird but it works in its offputting way. In many ways, it reminds me a bit of Episode One of The Edge of Destruction where you have stuff happening that makes no sense whatsoever but has a bit of an edge that is both creepy and enjoyable. It does stick out a bit because there is such a contrast of style between Episode One and the rest but at the same time, it also works within the context. It really is an excellent bit of improvisation.

If there is a complaint to be made about this story other than the "out there"-ness of the storyline, it is the limitations to the set and costumes. If you're used to that sixties, trying but still looks fake effect, this story won't bother you. But it would be remiss not to mention it. The forest of letters does look like a sound stage, Medusa is clearly a stop-motion effect and the Karkus is clearing wearing a rubber muscle suit. The robots and tin soldiers are also of the large, clunky costumed men-in-suits that are hallmarks of the Second Doctor era. Still, for me, I don't see anything that I'm not used to and some of the effects are actually pretty good with what was available at the time. I also find that for whatever reason, I have a higher tolerance and more forgiveness for these type of practical effects attempts than I do for things in the Eighties. I think that has to do with the quality of the cameras which make things too obvious in their fakery whereas the Sixties cameras hid the limitations better.

I am not an overwhelming literary personality, but I do love the intricacy of puzzles and "what is reality" stories. This storyline, whether fueled by "additional substances" or not, hits all the right spots for my enjoyment. It is weird but not so weird as to be unintelligible. It is well acted and fairly well directed. The sets and costumes, while limited, do their job well enough not to detract from the overall story. I can understand that some people wouldn't like this story and it might go over the head of younger viewers, but this is just a grand bit of entertainment for me and I'd happily pull this off the shelf to watch a third or fourth time if given the chance.

Overall personal score: 5 out of 5

The Underwater Menace

A slave, like a worm, might be turned.

I know next to nothing about The Underwater Menace except that it's generally thought of as very weird. This is also the first story with Jamie as a companion so I'm expecting either him or Ben to be flapping in the breeze with little to no lines for portions of this story as I'm sure it was written prior to the decision to keep Jamie on as a companion. I also believe this is the first of what would end up being three invokings of Atlantis. So I'm going into this story with a note of caution, despite my enjoyment of the Second Doctor.

Plot Summary

The Doctor, Ben, Polly and Jamie leave Culloden Moor in the TARDIS. Jamie is a bit unsettled but adapts to the surroundings as they arrive on the shore of the sea. They discover that the land is that of a volcano and the companions begin to climb the mountain while the Doctor takes readings near the TARDIS. Polly becomes winded by the climb and stops on a plateau to rest while Jamie and Ben continue to climb.

Polly becomes distracted by a set of caves nearby and goes to examine them. She discovers a stone figure and when she goes to examine it, she is attacked from behind. Jamie and Ben hear her scream and descend to go help her, discovering the cave where she disappeared.

Down near the base of the volcano, the Doctor finishes up but discovers a few shards of pottery, recently made. He pockets it and decides to find the companions and begins to climb the mountain.

Ben and Jamie continue in the caves but are grabbed from behind and thrust into a metal cage suspended over a pit. They discover Polly in the same cage. A few moments later, the Doctor is also thrust into the cage, having been captured while climbing. The cage begins to descend down into the pit and all the people begin to feel sick. The nitrogen becomes concentrated as they pass below sea level and they pass out.

At the bottom, the guards pull them out of the cage and lay them out in a compression chamber to adapt to the atmosphere. They wake up and Polly produces a bracelet she discovered earlier that was given at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic games. From this they figure that wherever they are, they are on Earth and probably around 1970.

A guard enters and motions them outward. They are taken to a room where food is laid out before them. They eat for a bit until a priest named Ramo enters and welcomes them. The priest states that their coming was predicted by the sea goddess Amdo in time for the festival. The companions are taken away but the Doctor is able to speak privately with Ramo and mentions a Professor Zaroff. This catches Ramo off guard but the Doctor states that he recognized Zaroff's work through the food. The Doctor writes a message and though Ramo refuses to take it, he slips it to a serving girl named Ara.

The companions are brought into the worship center and bound and placed on the dais platform. The platform has an opening where sharks circle in a well below. The Doctor is brought in by Ramo and placed in the fourth spot. The high priest Lolem begins the ceremony which steadily removes weight, tilting the people slowly towards the well.

Ara, unable to get in to see Zaroff, goes to see Damon, the chief surgeon. He takes the message from her and reads it. Damon takes the note to Zaroff who reads it. Zaroff heads to the temple and demands the release of the Doctor. The Doctor is loosed but he demands his companions be released as well. Zaroff agrees and has the three taken to a labor detail.

The Doctor confesses that he has no vital news for Zaroff which annoys Zaroff but he is amused by the Doctor and he brings him to his office. Meanwhile, the companions are taken to Damon who sends Ben and Jamie to the mines. Polly is shown a group of people who have been surgically modified to breath underwater to work the undersea farms. Damon reveals to Polly that he plans on modifying her as well into the same state.

Talking with Zaroff, the Doctor discovers that they are in the ancient city of Atlantis. Zaroff has promised the Atlantians to use his science to raise the island to the surface again while he continues his food research. He is distracted by a message from a guard. While distracted, Ara comes to the Doctor and informs him about Polly's impending operation. He instructs Ara to try and pull Polly away if at all possible.

The Doctor manages to cut power to the operating room, causing Damon to go and complain to Zaroff. The other surgical staff leave to go and see if they can fix the problem, leaving Polly alone. Ara sneaks in and takes Polly away, telling her to hide in the now empty temple.

After Damon is dismissed, the Doctor picks Zaroff's brain about lifting Atlantis. Zaroff admits that he can't but instead will lower the level of the ocean to put Atlantis on the land. The Doctor points out that that volume of water interacting with the molten interior of the planet will create superheated steam and potentially crack the surface of the Earth, destroying Atlantis. Zaroff agrees but says he will do it anyway to prove that it can be done.

The Doctor manages to slip away while Zaroff is distracted. He manages to find a costume and while in it, he finds Ara, bringing food and clothing to Polly. He goes with her but stops when he sees Ramo talking with Damon. He notes Ramo's dislike for Zaroff and confronts him about Zaroff. He takes him to the temple, where Polly has hidden herself, and shows what Zaroff's plan may do to a clay pot. Ramo agrees to take the Doctor to see King Thous to tell him of Zaroff's plan.

In the mines, Ben and Jamie help out two other prisoners, Sean and Jacko. In gratitude, they agree to take them along in an escape attempt through a stray tunnel they discovered while mining. When the foreman is distracted by routing workers to another project, the four of them bolt down the tunnel. They follow the passages until they find an exit that opens into the temple, just behind the idol. Polly greets them and Ara shows up a few minutes later with food. After eating, they duck back into the passage to avoid people entering, including the Doctor for his demonstration to Ramo.

Ramo takes the Doctor to Thous where the Doctor presents his case. Thous thinks for a bit, but decides that he trusts Zaroff and summons him where he collects the Doctor and Ramo. Zaroff gives them over to the priests for execution.

The Doctor and Ramo are taken to the temple and prepared for execution. Suddenly the idol begins to speak and orders the priests to bow. As they do, the door opens and Ben summons the Doctor and Ramo in. Lolem believes a miracle has taken place and reports back to Thous and Zaroff. Thous is satisfied by Zaroff suspects a trick and orders his guards to search Atlantis.

In the passageways, the Doctor devises a plan to capture Zaroff and force the king to see reason. He sends Sean and Jacko to convince the fish people to stop harvesting food for Atlantis. As the food spoils within a few hours of harvest, it will force the Atlantians to deal. The others obtain disguises from Ara and head to the marketplace.

In the market, Ben and Jamie pose as Zaroff guards while the Doctor and Polly pose as locals. Zaroff enters and gathers Ben and Jamie to him. The Doctor exposes himself to Zaroff and runs, Zaroff, Jamie, Ben and Polly all following. The Doctor runs to the temple where Ramo is waiting. Zaroff orders Ben and Jamie to arrest Ramo while he confronts the Doctor. The Doctor temporarily blinds Zaroff with powder and Ben, Jamie and Ramo grab him and take him into the temple passageways.

Zaroff tries to bluff his way out by saying the process is already started. The Doctor doesn't believe him but decides he should check to be sure. Zaroff then feigns sickness so he asks Polly and Ramo to keep an eye on him. The Doctor, Jamie and Ben exit to the temple but are forced to hide as a ceremony is about to take place.

In the passageway, Zaroff attacks Ramo when he tries to help him. He knocks Polly away as she tries to help and stabs Ramo with a spear. He then drags Polly down the passageway. As the ceremony ends, the Doctor, Jamie and Ben begin to leave but Ramo emerges from the passageway and dies. Realizing what has happened, the Doctor sends Jamie after Zaroff and Polly while he and Ben try to beat Zaroff to his lab.

Jamie catches up to Polly and tries to untie her. Zaroff attacks Jamie but they are joined by Sean and Jacko, having successfully convinced the fish people to go on strike. Outnumbered, Zaroff flees. Knowing they would get lost in the tunnels, the group heads back to the temple to find Ara and have her show them the way.

Zaroff enters Thous' throne room as he has been informed by Damon of the work stoppage by the fish people. Thous is prepared to meet with them to discuss their demands. Zaroff however says that he will threaten them with his guards. Thous realizes that Zaroff is as mad as the Doctor suggested and prepares to move against him. Seeing this, Zaroff shoots Thous and orders his guards to shoot Thous' guards.

Ben and the Doctor discover Thous still alive. They drag him back under the temple and meet Ara, Sean and Jacko. Jamie and Polly had gone on to find Zaroff's lab after Ara had described the way to them. The Doctor decides that the only way to stop Zaroff is to flood the lower levels of the city, including the lab. He tasks Ara, Jacko and Sean with warning the residents to get to the upper levels while he and Ben head to the generator room.

Zaroff continues to push things forward but is frustrated as workers are deserting their posts, most to find food as the fish people strike is taking effect. Meanwhile, Ben and the Doctor pose as a guard and prisoner to get past other guards. In the generating room, they knock out the technician and sabotage the main power source. The Doctor decides to head to Zaroff's lab next.

In the tunnels, Jamie and Polly have gotten lost. They discover they are near the lab. They also discover that the Doctor's sabotage has caused a radiation leak. The leak and the mechanical vibration has caused a crack in the walls and sea water is leaking in. They decide to abandon the quest for Zaroff's lab and get to higher ground.

Ara, Jacko, and Sean carry Thous out on a stretcher as the temple and other lower levels flood. They are met by Damon who has also fled the flooding. The group continue up the tunnels to escape. They take a brief rest on an upper level and Damon briefs Thous on the rescue efforts of the rest of the inhabitants, including the likely death of Lolem as he was last seen heading to the temple.

Jamie and Polly reach a dead end but Jamie discovers a draft and climbs up the wall to see if he can find another passage. Jamie finds a small passage and he pulls Polly up. They continue to climb up and away from the water.

The Doctor and Ben enter Zaroff's lab. The Doctor informs Zaroff's technicians of Zaroff's plans. He also tells them that the sea has broken through and will flood the lab. Panicked, the technicians flee the lab. Zaroff steps back and drops a gate down, isolating him and the lab controls from the Doctor. Ben runs off, pretending to panic. The Doctor destroys the electrical power relay, plunging the lab into darkness. Zaroff smirks and activates the back up power. He raises the grill to tie up the Doctor but as he steps forward, Ben leaps out and pulls the grill back down again, cutting off Zaroff from the lab controls. Ben and the Doctor run out as Zaroff fires his gun blindly at them.

The Doctor tries to go back, not wanting Zaroff to drown but Ben pulls him forward. They discover the water is rising faster than anticipated and continue onward. At the same time, Jamie and Polly push their way forward and emerge in a cave at the shoreline of the volcano.

Zaroff continues to struggle, refusing to give up on the switch. The water level continues to go up and he drowns in his lab.

The Atlantians check themselves in the caves, counting anyone missing. They are sure the Doctor has not survived and vow to rebuild their city in the upper levels without giving in to superstition as a legacy to him.

Ben and the Doctor emerge in the caves on the volcano, safe from the water. They see Jamie and Polly sitting dejectedly, sure they had drowned. Happy, the group of four returns to the TARDIS. Sean and Jacko also emerge from the caves, just in time to see the group enter the police box and disappear.

The Doctor decides to take them to Mars but as he sets the controls, the TARDIS lurches out of control.

Analysis

It caught me a bit by surprise when it dawned on me while watching this story that this is the last recon for me. I've not done a write up for The Evil of the Daleks yet but I have actually seen that one, meaning that I've now seen all recon stories and that feels like an odd milestone to have passed.

As for this particular story, I'm of a mixed mind on it. I think it can safely be said that this is the first story where the Second Doctor acts like himself. He was a bit off in The Power of the Daleks and The Highlanders but here he acts with the conniving false bravado that you expect. Nice as that is, the rest of the story is generic and somewhat forgettable or just downright weird at points and not in a particularly good way.

Taking an honest approach, I think it would be safe to say that the Doctor is not only the best thing about this story, he may be the only good thing about it. For the first time, we get that manic energy that has been lacking in the first two stories. He is plotting, blustery and also acting on his heels quite a bit which feeds that energy. He is planning and desperate at the same time. You also see a level of compassion that does mark the Second Doctor. He knows that Zaroff is mad, yet he wants to go back and prevent him from drowning. He is only prevented from that by the threat of his and Ben's drowning. All around, there is much to enjoy with the Doctor finally coming in to his own.

The companions didn't fare quite as well in this story. Ben and Jamie did alright as they were kept as part of the action, but Polly was about as close to useless in this story as you could imagine. Also hurting were the fact that three pseudo-companions were introduced, all with similar tropes to the regular companions. Jacko was the hot-headed man of action (Ben), Sean was a get along with an accent (Jamie) and Ara was the female resource person. Polly would have had trouble fully filling this role but Polly could have taken some of the back and forth work from Ara, which would have made her a bit less conspicuous. It also would have solved the dual problems of giving Polly something to do and explaining why Ara is helping so much. The Doctor is nice to her in one moment and now she is actively working against the leaders of her society? That makes no sense whatsoever.

An example of Polly being useless is when she and Rama stay behind to watch over Zaroff feigning illness. Zaroff springs up and attacks Rama. While they fight hand-to-hand, Polly literally stands behind them with her hands clasped as though she is terrified to move. She tries to grab the spear from Zaroff only when he is about to stab Rama. There is no reason she should not have been either scouring around to find a rock to brain Zaroff with or even to just leap on Zaroff's back and let Rama get a few stomach blows to bring Zaroff down. Instead, she stands there and lets Rama get killed and herself taken prisoner, from which Jamie rescues her a few moments later. It is just a complete waste of a companion.

Zaroff himself is also rather weak. He is portrayed in the stereotypical mad scientist fashion, yet he is supposed to have hoodwinked the king and the priests that he should be given absolute power? He runs around like a dictator, half crazed, yet neither his guards nor his fellow scientists have figured out that what he will do will destroy all of them. It feels like a lazy portrayal and without any nuance in it whatsoever. This ultimately makes it boring. Watching a man drown because he is so obsessed with destroying the world should be horrific, yet it feels so nonchalant because we simply don't care about him. Zaroff is not something worth investing any emotion in.

It is nice to have Episodes Two and Three existing, especially as Episode Two was a recent find, but it would be nice to see Episode Four especially. The direction in Episodes Two and Three is fairly non-descript as it is functional but not jumping out at you. It would be nice to see if the directing of the water rising action added anything to the grand fleeing of the sea which takes up the entire second half of the episode.

I also didn't care for the very ham-fisted "dedication" that Damon made for the Doctor at the end of the story. Not only was declaring the Doctor dead rather premature of their part, but you can't have some random doctor declare to the king that they are abandoning all of their religion and ritual and become totally devoted to science. Even a hard-core science person like Christopher Bidmede would laugh at the idea that a society can change it's views on a dime. It is exceptionally lame in concept and it is delivered in a poorly acted way as well.

One of the things that often comes under scrutiny is the "fish ballet" in Episode Three. Frankly, the fish people are incredibly weird to begin with as I openly wonder how Atlantis was feeding itself before creating human-fish hybrids to gather food but they are visually interesting. But the ballet is one of those things that is put in clearly to kill time. There is no need to show anything beyond Jacko and Sean making appeals to the fish people. Yes, the ballet gives you a visual of the people passing the word along to go on strike, but it is filler. It looks about as pretty good an underwater sequence as you could expect in 1967 so I won't knock it for that, but it does make for an odd inclusion.

Overall, I can't think of much else good to say about this one. It's greatest crime is that it's boring. There is a lot that doesn't make sense but that can often be glossed over at least in an initial watching if it's entertaining. This is not that. The peril doesn't feel real and the people in it feel clichéd at best and poorly portrayed at worst. Again, that is a great shame as this is the first time that the Second Doctor holds forth as himself. If they end up finding Episodes One and Four, or even animating it, I might go back and watch it again but other than that, leave it be and don't worry about it.

Overall personal score: 1.5 out of 5

The Power of the Daleks (Animated)

I reviewed this story last year but that was for the recon. With the release of the first fully animated story (given that there are no existing episodes) I thought I would revisit this one.

As I covered the plot back then, I won't focus on that or any major aspects of the story unless they have bearing on how things are presented with the new animation. At the very least, the animation does give a better focus on what is going on. In the recon, like most recons, you would get a jump cut between freeze frames to signify who was speaking and you would just have to remember. In the animation, you can actually see three or four different characters standing around and they can all just talk and you still get an easy bead on who is talking. That is a major plus, especially since you can also get extra direction, such as when the Doctor is talking with the governor but staring at Bragen.

The most important thing to note about the animation is that if you go in expecting the animation seen in Episode Four of The Tenth Planet or Episodes One and Three of The Moonbase, you will be disappointed. Those episodes used a very realistic animation style much more akin to anime. But those stories were only animating one or two episodes where this one is doing all six. They also had real video to watch and study movement and facial expressions. Power of the Daleks has none of those and I think that lack of reference is why the animation is more simple and a bit timid.

The animation is not South Park simple but it is not particularly fluid either. The movement of the individuals is akin to the paper puppets you can get with a brad at each joint to give it rotational movement. There is also some facial expression but most of it is focused on the eyes with their movement and dilation being the primary means of expression. That works very well with a character like Lesterson who did demonstrate a lot of emotion with his eyes, even visible in the telesnaps. It works a bit less with the Doctor who would be much more subtle with his whole face giving clues rather than just his eyes.

It still works but it takes a little getting used to. It doesn't help that Episode One has to resolve so much from the regeneration that you don't get settled into the story until you are in to Episode Two. At that point, the story begins to kick in and you start to loose yourself. This is where the animation works over a telesnap in that it draws you in easier. I watched this on BBC America which builds in commercials and I could tell I was really getting into the story because I was so irritated when it would suddenly break for ads. It was like losing the moment and then trying to find it again.

The sound of the story was a bit hit or miss. The large scale scenes involving multiple actors had inconsistent sound as you would expect from a stage. The animation doesn't quite do the depth of the stage justice as it allows the picture to focus tightly on a character which can be jarring if you hear them in a distant, echo-y manner. But the small scenes with one or more characters does fairly well and the tight animation works well, allowing you to focus on the emotion of the scene. I had also forgotten just how good the background noise/music is for providing atmosphere. The use of a musical saw to provide dark atmosphere when the Daleks are plotting and moving in the shadows works so well and when you don't have to focus on deciphering the pictures to get the mood of the scene, it makes the story flow so much better.

One additional experience that I had that enhanced the story for me was that this was the first time I watched a Doctor Who story with someone. My seven-year old son watched this with me and he seemed to really enjoy it. He's been tentative about watching Doctor Who with me because I make no bones about how many of the monsters are designed to be scary. I particularly enjoyed freaking both him and his ten-year old sister out a bit last year when I told them about the Vashta Nerada. That was fun in a twisted way but it also has made them significantly less interested in watching the show with me, despite their enjoyment of other science fiction. But my son did decide to watch this with me, especially when I told him it was animated, making in more like Batman (the excellent early 90's version). It also added a level of unreality for him that made it more manageable, despite the genuine fear that could come about from the Daleks.

The biggest improvement for me was that it much better defined the nature of the battle in Episode Six. The recon that was available to me when I watched it before did a very poor job of conveying the battle, who and how many people were being gunned down by the Daleks. It also gave a better definition of how the Doctor tricked the Daleks into effectively destroying themselves by getting them to destroy the electrical controls and surging power through their whole system. Episode Six alone was worth the animation.

In the end, the animation provided clarity and helped express the story easier for the uninitiated so it was definitely worth it for those aspects alone. However, the animation wasn't so fluid as to make you forget that this is a live action show. The animation is a marginal improvement on recons but not up to being a true substitute for the real episodes. As much as I enjoyed it, I would still keep my original score and I think only the discovery of the whole thing could bump it up to full marks.

Overall personal score (animated): 4.5 out of 5

The Three Doctors

I can see you've been doing the TARDIS up a bit. I don't like it.

The Three Doctors was the first of the multi-Doctor anniversary specials. Of course, it lead off Season 10 rather than closing it, putting it a number of months away from the actual anniversary date of November 23, but that's a minor quibble. The big thing was that the show managed to get William Hartnell back which was rather significant given that he was in quite poor health at the time. The writers only found this out after he had accepted their offer and they were forced to do some very hasty rewriting and keep the First Doctor on a closed set while most of the story became the double act between the Second and Third Doctor. Still, given that Hartnell died only two years after the story aired, it was good to give him one last hurrah.

Plot Summary

A local gamekeeper stumbles across a cosmic ray detection device that has parachuted to Earth. The local scientific establishment is summoned to pick it up but before they arrive, the gamekeeper is teleported away. Suspicious of the disappearance, the scientist Doctor Tyler takes it to UNIT HQ and informs the Brigadier and the Doctor what happened.

Dr. Tyler shows the Doctor various readings which show a compressed light stream aimed towards Earth that is actually travelling faster than light. The Doctor and Jo head off to the sight of the landing while Dr. Tyler develops the latest plate. The Brigadier, put out at his lack of usefulness, leaves Tyler alone. Tyler develops the plate and sees the gamekeeper Ollis' face. He goes to check the collector but is teleported away as Ollis was, only this time a strange plasma emerges from the collector.

The Brigadier notices Tyler missing and sends Sergeant Benton to look for him. As the Doctor and Jo return from taking readings, the plasma emerges from the drain. They run off and the plasma covers Bessie, vanishing it before retreating back into the drain. Benton returns unable to find Tyler.

The Doctor informs the Brigadier of what happened to Bessie and order Benton to set a watch on the drains. The Doctor theorizes that the compressed light beam got the plasma creature to the collector and it is on a mission to take the Doctor. They hunker down to wait for the next attempt.

Shortly afterwards, creatures called Gelguards appear and advance on UNIT HQ. Benton leads the defense but conventional weapons have no effect on them. As the Brigadier organizes a retreat, the plasma creature emerges from the vents. The Doctor, Jo and Benton retreat into the TARDIS. The Doctor is unable to take off and sends an SOS to Gallifrey.

The Time Lords track the energy drain to a black hole and coming from a universe of anti-matter. With the drain affecting Gallifrey, the Time Lords are unable to send help to the Doctor. However, they decide to give the Doctor help from his earlier iterations.

The Second Doctor materializes in the TARDIS and explains the situation on Gallifrey. Benton recognizes the Second Doctor and welcomes him warmly. He also helps explain to Jo about the Doctor's earlier form. The Doctors observe the plasma creature attempting to get in but also fighting off the Brigadier. The two Doctors join telepathically to bring the Second up to speed. However, they being squabbling as their personalities clash.

Aware of the issue, the Time Lords pull in the First Doctor but lack sufficient energy to pull him in all the way. He instead appears from a limbo location on the monitor. He informs them that the plasma creature is a time bridge and orders them to get to work stopping it. The Third Doctor heads out to confront it and Jo runs after him. He tries to stop her but the plasma creature teleports both of them.

With the Third Doctor and Jo gone, the plasma reverts to a docile state, allowing the Second Doctor, the Brigadier and Benton to come out and examine it. The Second Doctor opts to feed it a steady stream of useless information to keep it occupied. The Second Doctor is called away by the Brigadier to talk to Geneva and he leaves Benton in charge of keeping the plasma at bay. It begins to react and overcome the Doctor's defenses. Benton calls the Doctor back with the Brigadier and the three of them retreat back into the TARDIS.

The Third Doctor and Jo wake to find themselves in a wasteland within a universe made of antimatter. They take a look around and find elements that had been teleported by the plasma earlier, including Bessie. They hop in and begin driving around. They find footprints and discover Dr. Tyler in the wasteland. They are also observed by Ollis.

The Third Doctor, Jo and Tyler are captured by the Gelguards and escorted to the palace of Omega, one of the founders of Time Lord society. While inside, Tyler runs away but is forced back to the group by the Gelguards. They are then taken towards Omega's throne room.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor manages to get the communicator working to allow the Brigadier to contact his men. He orders them to stand guard but not engage the Gelguards. As he does so, the First Doctor contacts them from his time eddy. He orders the Second Doctor to deactivate the force field around the TARDIS. The Second Doctor complies and the plasma causes the TARDIS, the Gelguards and the whole UNIT HQ building to disappear and be pulled into the antimatter universe within the black hole.

Omega meets the Third Doctor, Jo and Tyler. He has Jo and Tyler taken to a cell while he discusses taking vengeance on the Time Lords. Omega speaks of how he was abandoned when he created the black hole as a power source for the Time Lords. The Third Doctor counters speaking of how Omega is regarded as a great hero. Omega rebuffs this, believing he was sacrificed. Omega offers the Third Doctor a chance to help him and threatens Tyler and Jo if he does not.

The Second Doctor, the Brigadier and Benton arrive in the antimatter universe. The Brigadier refuses to believe that they have been transported to another universe and goes out to investigate. Benton and the Second Doctor go to follow him but are captured by the Gelguards. The Brigadier is greeted by Ollis and the two of them observe the Second Doctor and Benton being taken to Omega's palace.

The Second Doctor attempts to disguise himself as a human but Omega sees through the ruse. He is at first amused that the Time Lords have brought in an earlier iteration of the Doctor but he becomes angry with their subterfuge and has both of them and the Third Doctor locked in with Jo and Tyler.

After explaining how things work to them, Jo suggests the two Doctors work together and impose their own will on the universe. They create a door in the cell and the whole party spills out in to the palace. The two Doctors work their way to Omega's throne room, the source of the black hole's singularity while the three humans evade Gelguards in the corridors.

Benton, Jo and Tyler make their way towards the main doors. They manage to pry them open with the help of the Brigadier and Ollis trying to get in. The five humans flee the palace and the pursuing Gelguards. Meanwhile the Time Lords use their remaining energy resources to send the First Doctor into the black hole to assist the other two.

Omega confronts the two Doctors in the singularity chamber and engages his mind against the Third Doctor. The two enter a mental wrestling match with Omega seeming to prevail against him. The Second Doctor intervenes and Omega releases him. The Second Doctor needles Omega, exposing the limits of his control when angered.

The Second Doctor apologizes, bring Omega back into control. He reveals that he needs them to take over control of his world to allow him to escape as he cannot control the world and leave it at the same time. He orders them to remove his mask to allow him to step into the light stream. However, when they do so, they find that his body has already corroded away and that his shape is only held together by the force of his own will.

The realization of his unexistence unhinges Omega and he rants away, allowing the Doctors to escape. They are pursued by Gelguards and they meet up with the Brigadier and the others at UNIT HQ, taking shelter in the TARDIS. Inside, they are contacted by the First Doctor, still trapped in a time eddy. The three of them come up with a risky plan involving the TARDIS' force field generator and the First Doctor fades back to report to the Time Lords.

The Second and Third Doctor prepare to pull out the force field generator but discover that the Second Doctor's recorder has fallen in and as such, remains unconverted to antimatter. The two Doctors create a new plan and contact Omega, allowing them to transport the TARDIS to his palace. He agrees and they land in the throne room.

Omega, having reconciled himself to his state, declares that the Two Doctors will stay to keep him company in exile. They agree but only if he allows them to send their friends back. He agrees and the five people pass through the singularity into the light stream, Jo somewhat reluctantly. The two Doctors then offer Omega the force field generator with the recorder suspended in it. He becomes angry when he thinks they are trying to force him to take it and knocks it away. As it falls, the recorder falls out and it's matter interacts with the antimatter. The two Doctors flee into the TARDIS as Omega and his world is consumed by the resulting explosion.

Everything taken by Omega reverts back to the point it was taken from. The five humans reappear in their locations (Ollis outside his home) along with UNIT HQ and Bessie. The TARDIS appears a moment later and the two Doctors emerge to reveal what happened. From within the TARDIS, the First Doctor offers his goodbye as he is sent back to his own timestream. The Second Doctor likewise is sent back as well. The various people depart leaving Jo and the Doctor alone in the TARDIS. As they prepare to leave, the Time Lords send the Doctor a new dematerialization circuit and restore his knowledge of it's work, effectively ending his exile. He then prepares to install it as well as build a new force field generator before taking Jo off on a trip through the universe.

Analysis

As far as an anniversary special involving multiple Doctors, The Three Doctors isn't bad. However, judged as an independent story, it's fairly weak. It has good points and some good performances, but many of these are undercut by larger flaws.

First and foremost, I like the Doctors and their interaction. I would imagine that anyone who had watched the Second Doctor earlier would have been quite happy to see him again. I enjoyed him, although there were a couple of points where he played up the silliness a tad much. There was the nice reveal in Episode Four about how he was using his silliness to test Omega's control but it would have been nice to get a little more of the conniving Second Doctor.

The Third Doctor was his usual quality self and it was rather funny to see the fussy and formal Third Doctor let his earlier self get under his skin. Despite that, he was still competent, the clear leader of the team and enjoyable to follow around.

The First Doctor was both enjoyable and sad. He was given some nice cutting lines and the clear deference paid to him by the Second and Third Doctors seemed as representative of their feelings towards William Hartnell as that of the First Doctor. However, it is also very obvious as to how poorly William Hartnell is doing at that point. He is clearly reading his lines, though trying to put emotion into them. The timing of his interactions with the other two Doctors is off and it is clearly a recorded image they are just trying to time their responses to based off planned dialogue breaks. Its a nice thought but it is impossible to disguise the truth of what is actually happening. Had the technology been a little more advanced or time and budget been a bit more in their favor, the director might have been able to rework the scene so that it played a bit better but it at least gets what needed to be done.

Jo was nice in this story, although again not given that much to do. Her big moment is kicking the two fighting Doctors in the butt to get them to work together. Aside from that, she doesn't do much but tag along with the Third Doctor and ask the questions that allow one of the Doctors to explain to her (and the audience) what is going on. Still, she is fun and it is always nice to see her show the compassion she has for the Third Doctor as well as his compassion for her and that did come across in their interactions.

It is also almost impossible to not like Omega. For a villain, he is well spoken and articulate. It is also very easy to sympathize with his plight if not his methods. He looms large over the story that it is easy to forget in hindsight that he doesn't make an actual appearance until Episode Three, though he does get a line and a hint at towards the end of Episode Two. When he realizes what he has become, you feel real sympathy for him in his anguished scream as well as understanding at his denial of the reality of what has happened. In many ways, you can imagine that in the depths of his mind, he knew the truth but refused to confront it. Even when forced, he still forces that truth back into a box of denial. His secondary plan is even more tragic as when forced to confront the truth that he cannot escape, he simply wants a friend to talk to for the rest of his imprisonment. He is genuinely a tragic figure and someone more to be pitied, rather than hated or feared.

There is an odd mismatch in the writing with the Brigadier and Benton. In this story, Benton comes across as the rational, trusting stoic and the Brigadier comes across as a disbelieving oaf who only understands bureaucracy and blowing stuff up. It's a nice improvement for Benton but a terrible step down for the Brigadier. He actually comes across as a fairly unlikeable character with whom the audience has little patience. There are lines that Benton has that clearly should have been the Brigadier's, although I wouldn't wish to take away from Benton's improved standing. It is a nasty knock down for the character and it is only the likeability of Nicholas Courtney coming through that keeps the Brigadier from becoming a total object of derision.

The overall story itself does not work particularly well. It is very thin, even for a four-part story. I can imagine that a more complex plot was probably initially thought of that would involve the First Doctor but was scrapped due to William Hartnell's poor health. The story maintains a certain level of charm through the first three episodes but once it becomes clear that the First Doctor will not be heavily involved, the story seems to take a lazy backdoor route. The recorder retaining it's matter form is a lucky break rather than any properly contrived plan. The whole thing comes across as this random jumble of events that don't seem to properly connect. Even after two viewings, I'm hard pressed to imagine what the original plan was as it seems that everything sort of magically resolved itself.

There are also two moments where it is painfully obvious that the run time of the story is being padded. In fact, nearly every episode has at least one moment where things are obviously extended simply because there wasn't enough story to go around. This seems very strange to me as you would think that more care would be taken with an anniversary story. Instead it feels like once the plan for the First Doctor fell through, the rest of the story was hastily written on the back of an envelope. It probably could have gone through a few more rewrites and I wonder if the fall through was much more last minute than one might expect for a story that leads off a season.

The production values of the story are not great. The filmed stuff is always nice, even if it is in a quarry, but the effects desired are far beyond the capabilities of the time. The antimatter plasma is bad even for CSO effects of the time. The Gelguards are not well designed and come across as cheap "men in suits" props. Omega is pretty good and Stephen Thorne works well to make him imposing, although there are a couple of slip ups where you can see the outline of his jaw under the mask as he talks and that's at odds with his revealed form. The singularity point as a column of smoke is also rather underwhelming. Many aspects of this story come across as cheap and not up to the grand scale that you might have expected from an anniversary story.

Overall, I'd have to chalk this one up to a potentially fun idea but one that falls short. Many aspects can be swept aside as long as the story maintains it's line and keeps the fun aspect but even that falls apart in Episode Four when you get the very slapped together ending. The interactions are fun, especially between the Doctors and Omega is a very enjoyable character but aside from that, there's not a lot going for this story. It's not bad in a painful to watch way, but it doesn't draw you very well, nor does it retain your attention if it ever manages to get a hold of it. It's mildly fun to watch but it's definitely not a story to pull off and enjoy on anything resembling a regular basis.

Overall personal score: 2.5 out of 5