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 Smugglers

Polly, put the kettle on.

The Smugglers is the first full adventure with Ben and Polly and the last full adventure of the First Doctor. It also happens to be the last full recon for me. The two remaining recon stories I haven't seen (Galaxy 4 and The Underwater Menace) both have at least one episode that exists. I have not reviewed The Evil of the Daleks but I have seen that one and Episode Two exists there. So this one is something of a milestone for me.

Plot Summary

The Doctor discovers Ben and Polly aboard the TARDIS after he has taken off. They land outside a set of caves just off the coast. Ben refuses to believe what has happened and wanders off. Polly believes they have landed in Cornwall, though the Doctor chastises them that they don't know when. The Doctor follows them as they walk away to ensure they don't get into any trouble.

They walk to a nearby church where they meet the church warden, Joseph Longfoot who invites them in for a meal. The Doctor figures they are in the 17th century. The Doctor notices Longfoot suffering with a dislocated finger and pops it back into place for him. Grateful, Longfoot gives a warning while about at the inn that the spirit of Avery is about and gives them a code.

Confused, the Doctor and his party make for the inn. The proprietor, Jacob Kewper, tries to turn them away but relents when he learns they know Longfoot. They head inside and dry themselves off by the fire, Polly getting annoyed at being mistaken for a boy.

Back at the church, Longfoot is confronted by a former crewman, Cherub, now serving under pirate Captain Pike. They are looking for Captain Avery's treasure. Cherub forces Longfoot to tell him about the three travelers gone to the inn. Longfoot tries to run away but Cherub stabs him in the back.

Kewper's son arrives back at the house, having been sent by his father to see Longfoot. He tells his father that he was found dead. Kewper sends his son out for the Squire.

Cherub arrives at the inn, posing as a guest. He confronts the Doctor and tries to get him to tell him what Longfoot told him. The sailor knocks Ben out and knocks Polly down before dragging the Doctor away. Polly pleads for help and Kewper finds her. He tells her that the squire has been sent for.

The Squire arrives and examines Ben and finds him fine. He then interrogates Polly about where they come from. Ben comes to but also refuses to tell where they are from. The Squire arrests them both for the murder of Longfoot.

The Doctor is taken aboard ship and shown to Captain Pike. Pike tells the Doctor that Longfoot was once a crewman with him and Cherub under the pirate captain Avery. They are now looking for Avery's treasure and threaten the Doctor to tell them what Longfoot told the Doctor just before they left.

Ben and Polly are placed in prison to await trial. They are overheard by Kewper's servant Tom who tells them he has the keys and is keeping them under guard. Polly gets and idea regarding 17th century superstitions and develops a plan to escape.

The Doctor flatters the captain and he invites the Doctor to sit and talk as gentlemen. The Doctor drinks wine and asks for a share of the treasure for his information. Pike considers it but before they can continue, Pike's slave Jamaica interrupts and speaks of someone sailing towards the nearby caves. Pike orders the Doctor taken below to wait while they deal with the visitor.

Ben signals Tom while Polly moans about. He claims that Polly has been taken over by the soul of their warlock master. Ben tricks Tom into believing that the Doctor's soul will take over and possess them unless they are freed. Tom gives in and lets them out. Ben also gives him a straw doll as a token against the Doctor's evil.

Ben and Polly return to the church and search about for evidence of the Doctor's abductor. They search around but find nothing. They prepare to leave when a secret door opens and a cloaked figure emerges. They knock him out and Polly heads off to tell the Squire, believing him to be the murderer while Ben ties him up.

The cloaked stranger tells Ben that he is Josiah Blake, a treasury officer of the King. He has been investigating a group of smugglers operating in the area and that the passageway he found leads into a set of caves and down to the beach. Ben gets excited and heads into the passageway to investigate.

Pike and Cherub meet with the Squire, posing as goods smugglers to the Squire and Kewper are involved. The Squire discusses the drop at the church, unaware of Pike's real identity. Their discussions are interrupted by Polly. She fingers Cherub as the man who abducted the Doctor. The Squire doesn't believe her. Pike suggests that they play along with Polly to capture the revenue officer who might thwart the smuggling ring. They tie and gag Polly.

Back on the ship, the Doctor finds Kewper has also been taken by the pirates and Kewper tells the Doctor that Pike is the most dangerous pirate around. Kewper and the Doctor plan an escape to help save the village from Pike's potential rampage in search of Avery's treasure.

Ben returns to the church, having found the passage to the TARDIS. He and Blake are then confronted by the Squire, Pike, Cherub and the bound Polly. The Squire recognizes Blake and has him released. Despite being on the king's business, Blake agrees to take Ben and Polly back to jail for murder and suspicion of smuggling.

The Doctor pretends to be able to divine a person's fortune from cards. His draws for Kewper attract the interest of the slave Jamaica. When he comes near to have the Doctor tell his fortune, Kewper knocks him out. They tie him up and leave the ship in the longboat intending to inform the Squire of what is going on.

The Squire and Pike arrange a meeting for the exchange of goods. The Squire has his goods hidden in a grave while Pike will leave his on the beach. The Squire decides that they should discuss payment over dinner and he and Pike leave together. Cherub watches from a distance.

Blake takes Ben and Polly back to the inn and releases them. He tells them that the Squire has been rumored to be the head of the smuggling ring. Blake needs armed men to spring a trap at the exchange point tomorrow but he is interested in hearing more about the Doctor. The Doctor enters at that moment and tells of his escape. Blake takes his information as conformation of Kewper's involvement with the smuggling ring. Kewper hears this as he enters and curses the Doctor for entrapping him. He then flees before Blake can arrest him.

Pike returns to the ship where Jamaica tells him of the Doctor and Kewper's escape. Jamaica tells Pike that they are heading to tell the Squire and Pike now suspects that the Squire might try to set a trap for him. Pike decides to strike during the day and plunder the goods before the trap is set while he and Cherub search for Avery's gold. He then kills Jamaica for his failure.

The Doctor tells Blake of Pike's plan and insists that Blake leave at once for reinforcements. Ben tells the Doctor of the secret passage that leads to the TARDIS. The Doctor refuses to go as he feels a moral responsibility to save the village. He decides to find Avery's treasure and use it to stall Pike until the reinforcements arrive. Cherub emerges from the shadows as they leave and demands to know of the stable boy where they went.

Kewper arrives at the Squire's and tells him of Pike's planned savagery. Kewper also tells the Squire that Pike is looking for Avery's gold. Kewper suggests finding the treasure first and then setting a trap for Pike along the church passageway. They also ride off for the church.

Ben, Polly and the Doctor arrive at the church. Ben and Polly look around in the graveyard while the Doctor tries to work out the clues Longfoot told him. He realizes that the clues Longfoot told him refer to names in the crypt. They head to the crypt where Ben shows the Doctor where the secret passage is. They then find two of the clue names.

The Squire and Kewper arrive at the church and pull a gun on the Doctor. Kewper threatens to kill Ben and Polly if the Doctor doesn't help them but the Squire objects. While they argue, Cherub enters and kills Kewper with a throwing knife. He shoots the Squire in the shoulder. He then threatens to kill the Doctor's companions if he doesn't tell the secrets.

The Doctor tries to play for time. He tells Cherub the names given, but does not disclose the locations in the crypt. Cherub recognizes the names as old crewmen but suspects the Doctor is stalling. He threatens Polly if more is not disclosed.

Meanwhile, Pike and his men land on the beach. Pike sends a man to look for Cherub while he and the rest of his men enter the churchyard. They open the crypt indicated by the Squire as the drop point. He orders his men to unload the goods on to the beach while Pike heads toward the church.

Pike enters the crypt and finds Cherub holding Polly. Pike accuses Cherub of deserting and trying to find the treasure himself. Cherub protests but draws on Pike when his back is turned. They cross swords with Pike slowly gaining the upper hand. The Doctor orders Ben to take Polly back to the TARDIS down the secret passage. Pike stabs Cherub, killing him.

Pike turns on the Doctor, demanding the secret from him. The Doctor agrees but demands to change the terms of their agreement. He agrees to tell the secret and will take no gold if he keeps his men out of the village. Pike agrees, though neither side trusts the other.

Two of the pirates return to the beach, carrying the smuggled goods. On the beach, they discover the TARDIS outside the cave. In the caves, Polly stops to rest while she sends Ben back to help the Doctor. Also, Blake arrives on the edge of the village with a squad of militia.

The Doctor tells Pike the riddle of the four names and points out the locations of the four names in the crypt. He also points out they intersect at a flagstone in the middle of the crypt, which is loose. Pike lifts the stone and discovers a small treasure. But they hear ruckus going on upstairs. Blake's militia pours in, killing and arresting the pirates.

Polly comes on the TARDIS and is grabbed by the two pirates. Ben however, hears her scream up the passageway and runs back. He knocks out one and fights with the second. Their struggle is heard by Blake and the two men are taken by the militia. Ben sends Polly back to the TARDIS while he and Blake head back up the passage.

Blake emerges from the passageway and attacks Pike from the rear before he can go back up with his men. Ben and the Doctor drag the Squire up out of the crypt but Pike breaks off his fight with Blake to pursue him. Blake grabs his gun and shoots Pike in the back. The Squire and Blake help each other to their feet and find the Doctor and Ben have fled down the passageway.

The Doctor and Ben return to the TARDIS and find Polly waiting for them. They enter and tell Polly what happened as they take off. Ben hopes to land back in 1966 but instead find that they have landed in the coldest place in the world.

Analysis

The Smugglers is an excellent story and I would definitely put it fairly high on the list of stories to be returned if possible. I could see some people not caring for it too much, but I really enjoyed it. The story struck me as a variation of Treasure Island, only set in Cornwall rather than on an island. But I also got a dash of The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh, although I might be the only one who thinks like that.

The Doctor was quite good in this one and while he did have to rely on the arms of others, notably Blake, there was a good deal in this story where he had to outthink his enemy. I would also note that while the Squire was a bit of a dim, Pike was not and that made him a more formidable villain and the Doctor's triumph over him that much better. I also enjoyed the Doctor's quiet patience and rationalism in contrast to Ben's hot headedness.

Ben and Polly were decent, though not without their flaws. Ben get a bit loud and he does complain a lot about just going back to the TARDIS. I've also noticed that this is an unfortunate recurring feature with him, though his ability in a fight is quite good. Still, it seems a bit of a downgrade from the somewhat more introspective Steven.

Polly wasn't bad, although a bit useless in this story. She served more as the damsel in distress with her only real moment of interest being her posing as possessed in her and Ben's escape in Episode Two. It also strains credibility that Polly is mistaken for a boy the entire run of the story. Right in the beginning I could see perhaps, but someone should have clued in to her femininity towards the end. Granted, when dealing with a story about pirates, it's best not to include a woman since that leads itself to obvious conclusions. Pike is something of a gentleman pirate, but I doubt he would be that restrained.

Pike, as noted above, was quite a good villain. I think in attitude he was modeled after Long John Silver, but there was also an air of Captain Hook about him with the hook hand and the Charles II dress coat. He also had a pirate dichotomy of being gentlemanly and almost elegant with the Doctor and the Squire and also savage and ruthless with his dispatch of his own men for their failures. He made an excellent foe for the Doctor.

Lesser villains in the form of the Squire and Cherub were decent although more stereotypical. That the Squire was corrupt and in on the smuggling business was not surprising. He did come somewhat good in the end, refusing to go along with Kewper in his threatening of the Doctor. Cherub was also good as the true pirate savage. He was played full to the hilt of savagery and yet not without intelligence. He would never have been the gentleman pirate that Pike was, but you could understand why he was mate and how he could have made a strong and savage captain in his own right had the opportunity arisen.

Because of the savagery of the story, the Australian censors took a bit more out, especially Kewper and Cherub's deaths so that was a nice glimpse into the story. It helped because there were other parts of the recon I was watching that were very poorly done so I had almost no idea what was going on. But in the quality parts of the recon (both the slightly moving bits and the better pictures) it was clear that this looked like a well done story. Trust the BBC for period drama to look well and this did not disappoint from what I could tell.

I enjoyed the pacing of this story. About the only parts I didn't care for were the bits with Ben and Polly toiling away either in their makeshift jail or fussing about in the crypt. The scenes with the Doctor and Kewper on the ship or Pike and the Squire were far more interesting and I was openly hoping to go back to those scenes whenever Ben and Polly popped back up. But aside from that, the story moved well and you never felt like characters were loitering in one place too long to kill time (again, except for the jail scene).

I would also say this was a pretty good cap for the First Doctor, since he was so absent and nearly irrelevant in The Tenth Planet. This story is also a good yardstick for his growth as a character as it is the Doctor who stays and fights and changes things rather than his companions who drag him back and get involved in the action in spite of him. In fact, lining up The Smugglers next to An Unearthly Child, you'd be hard pressed to recognize the Doctor as the same character. I'd still probably take Ian and Barbara to Ben and Polly as companions, but the Doctor is so much stronger a character here.

Overall, I'd say this was a good one. I would like to see a better recon than the one I watched or even better, some of the episodes discovered, but the story still stands well on it's own. You have to be in a special mood to watch recons but if you knew someone who liked pirates, this would be a good one to delve in to.

Overall personal score: 4 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 Tenth Planet

This old body is wearing a bit thin, I suppose.

The final First Doctor story and the introduction of the Cybermen. You would think that this story would be more memorable given all that it has going for it. But, it is almost completely unknown outside of those two points and that probably tells you all that you really need to know about the plot of this story.

Plot Summary

The TARDIS lands just outside an international underground base in Antarctica in December 1986 used to track and communicate with various space missions. The TARDIS crew is arrested by base personnel and brought inside. However, they are shunted to the side when the base begins having issues with one of their recent rocket launches. The space craft is off course and suffering a power drain.

Observing quietly, the Doctor formulates a theory and offers it to the CO, General Cutler, on a slip of paper. Cutler ignores him but his senior scientific advisor, Barclay, takes the note and stuffs it in his pocket. As they try and aid the spacecraft, it drifts further off course and loses more power. The spacecraft also reports seeing a new planet approaching Earth and send back images of the planet.

The Doctor points out on the images that the land masses are very similar to Earth except that they are inverted. He then directs Barclay to read his note and Barclay is astonished to read that same statement. General Cutler, suspicious of their origins, orders a team topside to break into the TARDIS. As they head out, a spacecraft lands nearby and a group of Cybermen approach in the snow. They catch the team by surprise and kill them. They put on the team's cloaks and slip into the base.

The team in the base continues to work to try and get the spacecraft down. However the Cybermen appear in the base and seize control. They knock out General Cutler and lock Ben in the A/V room when he tries to resist. They force the base to send a signal back to control in Geneva that everything is fine.

The Cybermen do not impede the team in attempting to get the spacecraft down. However, they warn that the attempt is futile. The spacecraft attempts to slow down to reenter but it's fuel reserves are exhausted and it enters the atmosphere at too high a velocity. It burns up as it enters.

In the A/V room, Ben turns on the projector and then calls the guard. As the Cybermen enters, it is blinded by the projector and Ben seizes his weapon. He guns him down and sneaks out. Ben slips the weapon to General Cutler as he regains consciousness. Cutler then guns down the Cybermen. Cutler signals Geneva about what happened and warns them of further attacks. Cutler is informed that a second spacecraft was launched to attempt to aid the first one before it was destroyed and it is being piloted by Cutler's son.

Before being killed, the Cybermen informed the base that they intended to drain the energy of the Earth and transport the inhabitants back to Mondas to be converted to Cybermen. They begin to read power drains across the globe. They also spy a fleet of spacecraft approaching Earth. Cutler orders his men topside to set up a defense using the captured Cybermen weapons.

The Doctor suddenly collapses and is taken away to the barracks to recuperate. Cutler, becoming increasingly unhinged in fear for his son's life decides to launch a Z-bomb rocket at Mondas to destroy it. Barclay is horrified and warns against the potential fallout. Cutler ignores him. Cutler phones Geneva to get permission but is denied the outright use of the bomb. He is however granted rights to use methods he deems necessary to fight the Cybermen. Cutler uses this as a fig leaf to prepare the bomb.

Ben protests, stating that the Doctor assured them that Mondas would be unable to control the energy draw and would burn up if given the time, meaning they only had to hold out against the Cybermen. Cutler, refusing to be inactive, orders him taken to the barracks with the Doctor. Polly is allowed to stay behind and she works on Barclay to help them stop the missile launch while Cutler and others make the missile operational.

Barclay goes with Polly to the room with Ben and the Doctor, who is still unconscious. Barclay gives Ben instructions on how to sabotage the rocket so that it will not launch but be undetectable for several weeks. Ben sneaks through the air ducts and lowers himself into the launch bay as the workers leave. Barclay heads outside the room, distracting the scientists with mathematical checks.

One Cyberman spacecraft lands but the squad of Cybermen that emerge are cut down by their own weapons hidden in the snow. Military men seize the weapons of the fallen to add to their arsenal.

Cutler prepares to launch the rocket so that it's blast will occur while his son's spacecraft is on the far side of Earth. He notices that Barclay is missing and goes looking for him. Alarmed at the lack of people inside the silo, Cutler storms in and finds Ben in a compartment. He pulls him out and throws him off the gantry. Suffering a concussion, Ben is taken back to the control room to be looked at by Polly while Cutler orders the launch of the missile.

The missile fails to launch due to Ben's sabotage and Cutler reacts angrily. The Doctor reenters the room and Cutler turns on him as the source of the failure. He is momentarily distracted by a call from his son who has the power of his ship flickering on and off. He ignores warnings from the communications officer about an approaching Cyberman ship. When communication is lost, Cutler flies into a blind rage and prepares to shoot the Doctor as the source of the problem.

Cybermen enter the base at that moment and General Cutler is killed when he shoots at them. The Cybermen order the retraction of the missile and the removal of the nuclear device. Ben, Barclay, Dyson and a couple of other base personnel are sent in to do the job while Polly is taken to the Cyberman ship as a hostage. The Doctor is initially left in the control room to communicate with Geneva but he is also eventually taken to the Cyberman ship.

In the missile silo, Ben and the others work but eventually realize that the Cybermen have become aware of the potential of Mondas absorbing too much energy and are planning to use the Z-bomb warhead to destroy Earth as a means of stopping the flow. Ben also realizes that the Cybermen are vulnerable to radiation as they refuse to enter the room. Ben has the crew all lie down while he pounds on the door as though they are all dying of radiation poisoning. The Cyberguard enters and immediately buckles from radiation exposure. Ben seizes his weapon. They also then cut the communications out of the room.

Ben and Barclay pull the radioactive rods out of the nuclear reactor. They give them to the crew who hide down the hallway. As the Cybermen approach due to the time limit of warhead removal being up, Ben lures them towards the door, felling one with the captured weapon. The crewmen approach with the radioactive rods, weakening the Cybermen to allow Ben to cut them down with the weapon.

The group returns to the control room where they use a Cyberman communications device to lure the rest out of the ship and attack them. As the Cybermen enter, they notice Mondas beginning to burn up due to energy absorption. As the planet begins to crack and disintegrate, the Cybermen collapse and wither. Barclay signals Geneva and finds similar instances around the globe. They also reacquire communication with the orbiting spacecraft flown by Cutler's son to find him ok and his fuel levels stabilized.

Ben leaves the base and pulls Polly and the Doctor from their bonds in the Cyberman spaceship. Polly is fine but the Doctor is exhausted and barely conscious. The three manage to get back to the TARDIS where the Doctor briefly locks them out. He thinks better of it and takes off after letting them in. As they enter, he collapses and regenerates into the Second Doctor.

Analysis

Despite having the introduction of the Cybermen and the First Doctor regenerating, The Tenth Planet is ultimately not a particularly good story. I think a good portion of this is due to how much William Hartnell was sidelined due to poor health but there are several faults that lead to it's overall problem.

The story starts off fairly well with the space capsule, the arrival and detention of the Doctor and his companions and the appearance of Mondas. It even ends well with the Cybermen arriving and killing the team trying to get into the TARDIS. It does fairly well as a start up. But Episode Two is where things start to go downhill. The Cybermen seize the base and then we are treated to a heavy dose of exposition where the Cybermen talk at length about their plans. While I'm sure things are interesting from a technical point of view, it doesn't make for very compelling drama.

The story picks up again when the initial Cyberman invasion is driven back but this also starts the two central mistakes of the story. First is the removal of the Doctor. This obviously couldn't be helped as William Hartnell fell ill. It works to reinforce the idea that the First Doctor is dying and needs to regenerate, but much of the Doctor's lines are split between Ben and Barclay and it just doesn't ring quite as true to see the companions going about with some other guy when it should be the Doctor.

The second mistake is the shift in villain focus. Through the first two episodes, General Cutler is a by-the-book military man who is a bit of a jerk but ultimately trying to do the right thing. The potential loss of his son unhinges him and the Cybermen take a backseat as the villain to Cutler. This is a problem as Cutler has done nothing to deserve villain status and his shift to crazy should cause an uprising among his own men. It's also an unnecessary stalling detour as the Cybermen should always be the main focus enemy. Episode Two ends with a fleet of Cyberwarships approaching and they just seem to go on stall mode for an episode while the General goes Dr. Strangelove. It takes what should be a ramp up of the excitement and turns it into a moment of treading water.

A third problem I have with this story is that ultimately nothing happens. One of my biggest pet peeves is where the hero fights but eventually the villain seems to achieve his goal only to find out that achieving this goal results in their own destruction (Planet of the Spiders is a good example of this). In this story, the Doctor and the people of Earth need to do almost nothing. Mondas has already made the critical mistake of trying to absorb too much energy and will destroy itself. The only thing the Doctor and the others need to do is stall the Cybermen to not allow them to stop the process by destroying Earth. It seems overly shortsighted of the Cybermen not to be prepared for that and it also seems to happen far too quickly. There is no epic struggle where a hard choice has to be made nor is there a grand adventure to make the destruction happen. Instead it just happens while nearly everyone waits around.

This is a good story for Ben, I will admit. With the Doctor sidelined for nearly two full episodes, he gets a lot to do and is the real man of action the way Ian and Steven were in earlier days. Polly gets a bit sidelined with her conversion of Barclay in Episode Three being her only real action the entire story.

It's an unfortunate end for the Doctor. He more or less stands around for the first two episodes and the third where he was supposed to start getting involved is where William Harntell got sick. He has a momentary bit of shine at the beginning of Episode Four, especially with his acknowledgement that he is wearing a bit thin, but the second half has him absent or unconscious. It's not a noble end as you would expect for the First Doctor, but it does reveal a bit of sad truth about what truly growing old would be like. The First and Eleventh Doctors remain the only ones to regenerate due to old age but unlike the Eleventh Doctor who regenerated in triumph, the First Doctor simply wears out and wears out as you would expect an old man to. It is authentic, but it is also quite sad.

For the most part, I like the original Cybermen. They were a bit too bulky with their accoutrements but with more skin exposed and a cloth covering rather than metal, they seemed to reflect their humanoid roots more. The metal style which replaced them in The Moonbase is more iconic but it also led them further down the path of robots rather than cybernized humanoids. But I can also get around that with some head cannon. Since the true Mondasian Cybermen died when Mondas failed to provide them energy, the Cybermen left in other parts of the galaxy had to be of a more robust (metal) design and thus became more robotized. I also like imagining that the fleet that arrives in The Moonbase went looking for them after Mondas failed to reappear and assumed that Earth had destroyed Mondas in an attack rather than an energy mishap, leading to their planned destruction of life on Earth.

There is not much to say about the side characters except Barclay. He did a decent job stepping in for the Doctor in Episode Three but it would have worked better if he had had more than a couple lines in the first two episodes. I did like the astronauts in the first capsule and they did a good job of making you like them and feel sympathetic for them when they were killed in Episode Two. It is also a nice bit of history that the pilot was of African decent and it was not an issue. It was just a job filled by a guy and it's nice to see that in any show set in the 1960s.

Overall, I can't get to excited about this one. There is just not enough to engage you full time. The Doctor does nothing notable for his send off and the Cybermen become so radically different that you might as well consider The Moonbase as their introduction. General Cutler annoyed me and his becoming the villain was an unnecessary distraction from the Cybermen. It's good to watch for the regeneration and for some context behind later Cyberman stories, but it is generally a bore to just watch on it's own.

Overall personal score: 1.5 out of 5

The Moonbase

Then we'll hit 'em with some of this Polly cocktail

The Moonbase marked the return of the Cybermen, their makeover into the more familiar metallic casing and the point where the Second Doctor seemed to come into his own. The Moonbase also laid out what would become the familiar format of Second Doctor stories in the form of a base under siege with the Doctor figuring out the critical weakness of the enemy to exploit. It also is half missing, but fortunately has some very nice animation to fill in with Episodes One and Three.

Plot Summary
After a bumpy ride, the Doctor manages to land the TARDIS, not on Mars as intended, but on the surface of the moon in 2070. Ben and Polly convince him to explore outside. They go out wearing spacesuits and the companions have fun bouncing around in the low gravity. Jamie over-jumps and crashes outside the moonbase, concussing himself. He is taken inside by two men working at the base and the Doctor, Ben and Polly follow.

In the base's command center, a technician falls ill, black lines developing on his skin. The base commander, Dr. Hobson, orders him taken to the infirmary although little can be done as the base doctor was the first one taken ill. The Doctor, Ben and Polly are taken to him where the Doctor is mistaken for a replacement doctor sent by Earth. Polly heads to the infirmary to check on Jamie while the Doctor and Ben learn about the Gravitron, a gravity beam used to control tides and other weather phenomena on Earth.

A fourth crew member is taken ill and the Doctor and Ben head back with him to the infirmary to study this virus. Jamie moans in a delirious state about a phantom piper who stalks the McCrimmon clan. The Doctor studies the base doctor's symptoms and then sends Ben back to the command room to help and observe.

Hobson radios Earth to request help and a new full staff doctor. Earth responds that they will accommodate him on the next supply run in a month. Hobson is unhappy about this but can do nothing. One of the technicians note that he picked up feedback during the transmission suggesting they are being monitored.

Hobson's second in command, Benoit, forces him to take a break and sends Ben down to the store room to help Ralph with preparing a resupply list. Ralph sends Ben to catalogue one end of the store room food supply while he works the other. A Cyberman appears from the shadows and kills Ralph, dragging his body away. Ben heads back to the command center to report on Ralph's disappearance, leaving both Benoit and Hobson confused and concerned.

The Doctor enters and tells Hobson that the doctor has died. They head back to the infirmary where Polly tells them she thought she saw something enter the room and then duck back out. The group pulls the sheet back to examine the dead doctor but find the doctor's body has gone. Hobson heads back to command while the Doctor and Ben follow to investigate some more, leaving Polly alone with Jamie. Jamie calls out for water and Polly leaves to get him some. As she does so, a Cyberman reenters the room with Jamie taking him for the phantom piper.

The Cyberman ignores Jamie and grabs a second patient, taking him from the room. Polly sees the back of him and screams, summoning the Doctor and Ben. Ben runs up to the command center to fetch Hobson who comes down. Polly relates her story but Hobson dismisses it saying the Cybermen disappeared after the destruction of Mondas nearly 100 years ago. Hobson is growing increasingly wary of the Doctor and his companions, desiring them to leave. The Doctor strikes a deal with him that they will leave if the Doctor hasn't figured out the cause of the illness within 24 hours. Hobson agrees.

In the command center, Hobson orders a series of tests as the Gravitron is not aligning properly and that is beginning to have serious consequences on Earth. As they are running test, the Doctor enters and collects hair, skin and soil samples from each of them. While he is away, a Cyberman enters the infirmary and takes another infected patient. It knocks out both Polly and Jamie with a bolt of energy, but the Doctor is able to revive them after it leaves.

The command crew eventually discover that one of the control arrays has parts either damaged or missing and that they began happening shortly after the Doctor and his companions arrived. Benoit also notes another in a series of momentary atmospheric pressure drops that had been happening since shortly before the virus emerged. Hobson dispatches two men to check the array while he and Benoit head down to the infirmary to confront the Doctor.

In the infirmary, the Doctor has failed to make any discoveries. When Hobson comes down to get them to leave, he fakes having made a discovery and ushers them out into the waiting room. He tells Polly to bring them some coffee as an added distraction.

Outside, the two men sent to check on the array are attacked by Cybermen. Inside, one of the crew who Polly has served falls ill with the virus. As he is carried to a bed, the Doctor realizes that the virus is in the sugar. He takes a sample and discovers a neurological virus. He informs Hobson that the Cybermen must be behind this but Hobson scoffs saying that they had searched the whole base and found nothing.

The Doctor pulls Hobson aside as whispers as to whether his men searched the infirmary. Hobson realizes that they never did as it was always occupied. As he does, a Cybermen rises from under a bed sheet and advances on them. The Cyberman orders them to surrender. One technician tries to get behind him to attack but is gunned down by a second Cyberman entering. The rest of the crew surrender.

The Cybermen take Hobson, the Doctor and the other crew back to the control room, leaving Ben and Polly in the infirmary with Jamie, having determined that the three of them are of no value but also no threat. In the control room, Hobson and the others are placed in one corner while the men infected with the neurovirus are brought in and made to work the Gravitron. The Cybermen intend to use the Gravitron to manipulate the Earth's weather to destroy all human life from the planet and eliminate any potential threat.

While the Cybermen are focused on working the Gravitron, the Doctor sneaks around, determining how to disrupt the signals to the controlled men and finding a weakness in the Cybermen. He hits on the idea that they are vulnerable to the extreme gravitational effects produced by the Gravitron.

Back in the infirmary, Jamie comes back around feeling better. Polly hits on an idea of using solvents to dissolve the plastic components of the life support systems in their chest. She and Ben blend several different solvents together from the chemical stores and pour them in spray bottles. Each companion gets one bottle and they sneak towards the control room.

The three companions burst in and spray the Cybermen with the solvent mixture. It causes the plastic components to melt and the Cybermen collapse, choking on melted plastic. Hobson immediately pulls the controlled men out of the Gravitron control area, having collapsed due to the sonic strain. They are taken to the infirmary to recover.

Benoit heads outside to see if he can find the two men who were sent out earlier. He finds their suits but not the men. He is attacked by one Cyberman but the gun fails to discharge. Benoit runs back towards the base with the Cyberman chasing him. Ben meets him at the door and tosses a small glass bottle of the "Polly cocktail" into the pursing Cyberman's chest, killing him.

Hobson orders a lockdown of the base while the Cybermen land two more ships and begin marching out to take the base by force. With the doors sealed, the Cybermen are unable to break in, their previous hole having also been sealed off. The Cybermen temporarily stop their advance when a ship from Earth is observed approaching. The Cybermen increase their control signal and reanimate Dr. Evans. Evans knocks out the orderly and sneaks into the Gravitron control room. He then uses the Gravitron to knock the Earth ship out of orbit and into the sun. Evans then uses the Gravitron to continue the Cybermen's plans to attack Earth.

With the outside threat gone, the Cybermen renew their attack on the base. They fire small lasers at the base and manage to breach the dome, causing atmosphere to leak out. Hobson and Benoit manage to seal it off using a heavy plastic tray Polly had brought in to serve coffee. The loss of atmosphere knocks Evans out and he is pulled out and taken back to the infirmary.

The Doctor orders Jamie and Ben to seal off the infirmary as he expects the other controlled men to attack which they do just as Jamie and Ben arrive there. The two men barricade the door with metal benches and chairs. They then retreat and do the same for the entrance to the control room.

With additional Cybermen filing across the moon's surface, they prepare to launch heavy weapons at the base. The Doctor notes that the Gravitron is still at full power and stands his ground, offering an easy target. The Cybermen blast their heavy gun at him but the gravity output from the Gravitron deflects the beam. His theory validated, the Doctor orders the Gravitron lowered as close to the surface as possible. Benoit lowers the angle of attack and Hobson disengages the safety system to allow it to go even lower.

The gravity wave pushes the Cybermen up off the moon and into space. Their ships also are thrown backwards and off into space. The crew celebrates the defeat of the Cybermen while the Doctor and his companions slip away quietly. They make their way back to the TARDIS and take off with the Doctor activating his time scanner to give them a glimpse of what is in store next. They recoil as they see a large crab claw on the screen.

Analysis
Overall I liked The Moonbase but it is a good example that has such good build up and then peters out to an almost disappointing conclusion. So much of the story depends on atmosphere and the use of a "phantom in the shadows" motif. Once that's gone, it turns into a hold off an attack story and one that is resolved very quickly and where the Doctor is not the central focus and that is a bit disappointing.

I do like the Doctor in this one. This is the first real and true appearance of the dark and plotting Second Doctor that became more the staple. Up until now he had been a bit theatrical and this is the one where he finally settles in to a serious mode, but not losing that sense of whimsy. His extraction of samples from the crew is one of those light-hearted moments of oddity that make the Second Doctor so enjoyable.

The companions, apart from Jamie, were quite good in this story. It is fairly well known that this story was written before Innes Lloyd came down and announced that Jamie would be coming on as a companion so a hasty rewrite was given to it. Jamie was essentially put on the shelf for two and a half episodes and then given a couple of Ben's lines and substituted in where a generic member of the base team would have been in. Ben does the standard action man but it does give him a lot of interface with various people. He actually interacts with them more than the Doctor does.

Polly comes off probably best of all, even if she does slip in and out of women's stereotypes. Polly stays in the infirmary to watch Jamie but she also is the Doctor's main assistant when trying to figure out the virus. She comes up with the solvent cocktail but doesn't know what the primary ingredients of solvents are. She forces Ben and Jamie to let her fight the Cybermen along side them but she twice is relegated to coffee detail, even if one of them is a distracting maneuver for the Doctor. I think even with these up and downs, Polly proves herself quite worthy in this story and both her and Ben are given fairly meaty roles that do their characters justice.

Two of the most enjoyable characters were actually part of the guest cast. The Doctor suffered a bit from the lack of attention but that was because Hobson and Benoit were so good at taking that attention. Hobson especially was a commanding presence and had a real take charge attitude. What's more, unlike base commanders in other "base under siege" stories, he is competent and never gives in to madness or despair. Because of this, the Doctor stays in a supporting role as more of an idea man rather than rearing himself into a major leadership role as you might see in The Ice Warriors for example.

Benoit was also a place that the Doctor could have slipped in to but again, you have such a good actor and a well defined role. Benoit is a solid second-in-command who respects his superior and is always looking out for what is best for the mission and the men under them. You see genuine respect that the characters have towards each other and it both plays well and is quite engaging, even if it means that the Doctor doesn't get to step in. Benoit also does a good job of not falling into easy French stereotypes. He has a heavy accent and descends to swearing in French but the actor is French so has an easy flow. He never goes over the top, giving in to expected cheap reference as to how French he is and it is nice to see that (in contrast to the Italian stereotype in The Tenth Planet).

The Cybermen did well in their redesign. It is interesting to note that most of the design changes were made simply because the original suits were just so hard to maintain and were so hard on the actors. From an aesthetic standpoint, I think the changes worked quite well. There were traces of the humans that became the Cybermen in The Tenth Planet which seemed to make them a bit more relatable and less scary to me. Robotizing them more drained that relatability and the coldness is what makes them so frightening. I personally think the Cybermen seen in The Moonbase and The Tomb of the Cybermen were the most frightening versions. The voice helped with that, although I'm glad I've been able to have the subtitles on when watching both these stories as while it makes the Cybermen scary, it's also a devil of a time to fully understand what they are saying.

So with so many good elements, why does the story end so poorly? I think it is the way the story shifted. The first three parts were almost like a haunted house story. The enemy was within the house, moving stealthily and picking off people one at a time. In Episode Three, you have the Cybermen strike and with only three take over the whole base. That ends the secrecy but you have a prisoner tale now and our heroes triumph over their captors. That then leaves Episode Four.

Episode Four's primary problems are actually due to padding I think. The Doctor effectively figures out that the Gravitron must be used against the Cybermen in Episode Three but spends nearly 2/3's of Episode four waiting around before saying anything. There is also the inconsistency of the Cybermen attacks. One squad of Cybermen was able to dig through and into the base but three ships full are held back by secured doors? That seems odd.

I can understand falling back to deal with the ship from Earth, but once that is done the attacks should be consistent and constant. They successfully breach the dome but then stop once Hobson and Benoit plug the hole. Why not make a new hole? Why not keep firing until all atmosphere in the base is boiled away? Instead they make one hole and then call off the attack to bring in a heavy cannon, which might actually damage the Gravitron, which they seem keen on avoiding. Also, why does the heavy cannon blast get deflected by the Gravity beam when the small firing did not? The Cybermen attacks just seem almost haphazard and indifferent.

It is also a bit underwhelming to have the Gravitron simply fling the Cybermen away. It is done so easily and so quickly that it feels like flinging away a bug that has landed on your arm and undercuts the power of the Cybermen even more than the intermittent attacks did. I think a far better solution would have been to use the Gravitron to push away the Cybermen ships and most of the men at the beginning of Episode Four but then the rest of the story being to fend off the remaining ten or fifteen who managed to breach the base. Have Ben and Polly use the last of the cocktail so that the Doctor has to step forward and think of a way to defeat the last group as they try to take final control. That would have made the threat far more personal and given the Doctor more of a central focus in trying to outthink the enemy.

Although it ended somewhat poorly, this is still a good story. The animation of Episodes One and Three is done very well and actually adds to the atmosphere. I actually thought the tension was higher and better done in the animated episodes than in Episode Two, although that was still done pretty well. The characters are good and there is a fairly nice balance in how everyone works together, apart from the limitation of how the Doctor is used. I'd easily watch it again, although I still wish there could have been an ending that suited the build up better.

Overall personal score: 3 out of 5

The Highlanders

Doctor: I am Doktor Von Wer.
Soldier: Doctor who?
Doctor: That's what I said.

The Highlanders is a lesson in pursing quality in a reconstruction. I actually tried to watch this story two times before. Both times, I watched a very poor quality recon with cheap animation. I barely made it the end of Episode One the first time. The second time through I rewatched Episode One and then got through Episode Two before putting it aside again. But third time was the charm and I noticed how much better I both understood the story and enjoyed it this time around. Obviously it would have been better if the story existed, but at least I felt I could enjoy the story rather than just watch it out of some completionist obligation.

Plot Summary

The Doctor, Ben and Polly appear just outside the Battle of Culloden where the English have routed the Scots. Ben runs off the explore, not realizing what is going on and the group is captured by two Scots: Jamie and Alexander. They take them to a cabin where their Laird is lying wounded.

The Scots are prepared to kill the Doctor and his companions, thinking them English army followers, but Ben gets the drop on them with a pistol. Polly offers the Doctor's services to help the Laird and leaves with the Laird's daughter, Kirsty, to find water. To show their good intentions, Ben drops the pistol but it goes off, alerting a patrol of English soldiers.

The soldiers surround the house and Alexander runs out to fight them. He is cut down and the soldiers enter to arrest everyone inside. The Doctor pretends to be from Hannover and a German subject but the English round them up to hang them. Polly and Kirsty observe this from a distance and throw rocks at the soldiers to try and pull the soldiers away. Seeing them, and hearing that Bonny Prince Charlie may be disguised as a woman, the lieutenant and two soldiers go after them, leaving the sargent to carry out the hanging.

Just before the hanging is to occur, Solicitor Grey arrives with his manservant Perkins. Grey is the Royal overseer of prisons but is also doing a side business in slavery. He takes Jamie and Ben but tells the soldiers they can hang the Doctor and the Laird. The Doctor argues that as a lawyer, Grey should know that his breaking the law by executing him without informing the German ambassador. Recognizing the value of having a Doctor, Grey agrees to take all of them, although he doubts the Laird will survive, and has them shipped to the prison at Inverness.

Polly and Kirsty hide in a cave from the soldiers. Polly wants to go and rescue the others but gets angry when Kirsty refuses to turn over her father's ring for them to get money. Polly storms out in the dark but falls into an animal trap pit. Kirsty finds her but also falls in trying to pull Polly out. Whilst trying to get out the patrol arrives. The lieutenant sends the two regulars back for his horse while he rests and has a bite. The ladies make a noise which lures him over and they pull him into the pit. They tie him up and take his money and food. They also take some of his hair to blackmail him if they need help from someone in the army and they climb out.

At the prison in Inverness, the Doctor sees to the Laird's wounds and discovers Bonny Prince Charlie's standard hidden on the Laird. The Doctor rouses the prisoners by playing a the prince's fanfare which alerts the guards. When the guards approach, the Doctor tells them he's discovered an assassination plot and must see Solicitor Grey. The guard takes him out. Jamie is angry but Ben calms him down telling him it was a ruse by the Doctor to get out so he could help them.

Solicitor Grey discusses the transfer of prisoners to the Caribbean by Captain Trask. Dismissing Trask and Perkins, he agrees to see the Doctor. The Doctor, pulling out the Prince's banner, hints that he knows the location of the Prince and will split the reward with him. When Grey leans in to learn more, the Doctor throws the banner over him and grabs his pistol. He ties Grey up and pushes him into a closet. Perkins comes in and he tricks him into lying down and ignoring the sounds of Grey banging on the door.

Back at the pit, the Sargent finds Lieutenant Ffinch in the pit. Ffinch orders him to pull him out but the Sargent waffles until Ffinch agrees to purchase a round of drinks for the men. With his money stolen, he agrees to pay him when they return to Inverness.

Captain Trask returns to Grey's office and releases him from the closet. Grey berates Perkins and they go looking for the Doctor. Trask then loads the remaining prisoners, including Ben, Jamie and the Laird onto the longboat to carry them to his ship. The Doctor, disguised as an old woman, gives the guard resealing the prison some food and drink. The guard leaves to eat, leaving the exit to the prison unlocked and the Doctor slips outside.

Trask throws the remaining prisoners in the hold. There they meet the original captain, Willie Mackay who initially is prepared to kill Ben as an Englishman. The Laird reassures Mackay that Ben is loyal to them as a former English sailor. Ben also enlightens Mackay that Trask, originally the mate, is not working for the king but has gone pirate and is going to sell them as slaves.

Polly and Kirsty disguise themselves as orange sellers (an allusion to prostitutes) and investigate the prison. They find the prisoners gone but are detained by the Sargent. He takes them to Lieutenant Ffinch who dismisses the sergeant. They leave him after he tells them that Solicitor Grey is in charge of prisoners after they are brought to Inverness. The two ladies meet Perkins and arrange a meeting with Grey. The Doctor, still disguised as an old woman, tries to get the ladies attention but must continue to hide from Perkins.

On the Annabelle, Solicitor Grey comes aboard and tells the Highlanders that they will either sign a contract to work for seven years in Barbados or be hanged. Mackay speaks against it but all but him, Ben, Jamie and the Laird agree to sign. Ben asks to read the contract before he decides and tears it up when Grey offers it to him. Trask knocks him out and Grey heads back to get more contracts.

In the pub, Perkins offers to keep the ladies entertained with a game of cards when the Doctor comes up behind him with a pistol. Grey returns and orders Perkins to come to his office to draw up new contracts. After he leaves, the Doctor, the pistol still hidden, orders Perkins to wait ten minutes before going. He and the ladies then leave and head to a barn where they had been hiding. Informing the ladies of the whereabouts of the prisoners, he forms a plan to use the remaining money to buy weapons scoured off the battlefield from the English soldiers.

Polly and Kirsty have little luck getting weapons but the Doctor returns with a large haul. They prepare them but the Doctor notices that Kirsty is wearing a ring with the Stuart seal. The prince had given it to the Laird for saving his life and the Laird had given it to Kirsty for safekeeping. The Doctor asks for it to help save the Laird's life. Reluctantly, she gives it to the Doctor.

Grey returns to the Annabelle with new contracts. The highlanders are prepped to sign the documents, although Grey warns Trask to use a gentle hand as he is fearful of them refusing if pushed too hard. Ben is brought on deck to be used as both an example and to punish him for his earlier deeds. He is tied and dangled from the yard arm and dunked into the sea. But Ben had loosed his ropes and swims free to shore.

Upon reaching shore, Ben meets the Doctor in disguise. He takes Ben back to the barn to dry and have a bowl of soup. The group then plans their strategy and heads back to the Annabelle.

Back on ship, Grey has finished having the highlanders sign the contracts when the Doctor arrives. He offers the signet ring as proof that the prince was captured in disguise and that if he identifies him, he will split the reward money. Cautious, but tempted, Grey agrees and escorts the Doctor into the hold. While he was up there, Kirsty and Polly rowed around and passed arms through the portholes to the prisoners.

In the hold, the Doctor indicates that Jamie is actually the prince but when Grey approaches him, the prisoners leap up and attack. Grey and Perkins surrender immediately and the two guards are quickly overpowered. Trask however holds his own against Mackay, wounding him slightly. Trask, flees to the deck where he sees the remaining men killed or surrendering to the Scots. Knocked off balance by Jamie, Trask faces Mackay pursing him and is knocked overboard.

Retaking command, Mackay sets sail for France where the Scots can wait until the English pacification is over. The Doctor, Ben and Polly take Grey back to the shore as prisoner with Perkins volunteering to stay and serve as clerk to the Laird as he speaks French. Jamie also returns to shore, although on a second boat, meeting the Doctor back on shore.

On shore Grey yells out, attracting the attention of two soldiers. Ben and Jamie overpower them, but Grey escapes in the fracas. Polly then sees Lieutenant Ffinch and prepares to have him escort them back to the moor to find the TARDIS. However, Ffinch's commanding officer appears and to cover themselves, the Doctor gives him the signet ring as proof that he knows the prince's whereabouts. The colonel sends Ffinch with the Doctor and his friends to capture the prince immediately.

Upon reaching the cabin where the Doctor first met Jamie, they are set up by Grey with a small group of soldiers nominally under Ffinch's command. Grey tries to arrest them but the Doctor and Polly expose Grey's scheme of selling slaves. Grey tries to produce the contracts which would have given him an alibi but finds them missing. The Doctor denies all knowledge of them and Ffinch arrests Grey instead. He then leaves with his men, revealing a soft spot for Polly, despite her blackmail of him. She in turn gives him back the token, freeing him of her blackmail.

The group returns to the TARDIS and they invite Jamie with them rather than having him survive in the highlands by himself. Jamie is hesitant at first, but Polly assures him it's ok and he boards. The TARDIS disappears shortly afterward.

Analysis

The Highlanders feels a bit like a missed opportunity. If you go into this story cold, with a title like this, you would think it would focus more on Scotland, especially when opening with the Battle of Culloden. Instead, the battle only serves as a pretext to get us into a swashbuckler story. I have no problem with swashbuckler stories but it still feels a bit like being cheated when you are initially led into a different concept.

Casting that aside and looking at this story with an objective eye, it's not bad. It's a bit slow to start and when I started with an unclear recon, that just made it feel like a chore to get in to. I'd also say that the Second Doctor is still not quite the loveable character from the later stories. He is still quiet and a bit more scheming which also takes a little bit longer to get drawn in.

Neither Ben or Polly start well in this story either. Both are very ignorant of history and completely oblivious to how the Scots perceived the English at this time, or how English soldiers would have behaved to anyone in the company of Scots at this time. So that was a bit frustrating to start.

However, things really picked up in Episode Three. Culloden is discarded and the Doctor moves to reunite with Polly. Now the story is well established against Grey and the pirates and it moves along with a steady clip. In fact, it actually jumps over a few points that could easily have been expanded upon. If the dictate had come down to expand this from four episodes to six, I could easily have seen Polly and Kirsty's exploration of the prison or the Doctor's raid for weapons being expanded. I could even have seen the journey back to the moor with Grey in pursuit being expanded. I wouldn't have minded that actually as some of the duller stuff in Episode One could have been dispensed with.

Jamie doesn't have a lot to do in this story, but then again, neither does Ben. Polly is the companion who stands out but the Doctor also steps up as well. Contrasting with the First Doctor, the Second is still planning but he is also executing many of the same plans rather than letting the companions take the lead. Obviously this is done at Ben's determent but Ben does get a few moments here and there, especially in Episode Three where he stands out.

I have seen a little bit of complaint that this story is a bit corny with the Doctor doing an over-the-top German accent and a very Long John Silver pirate in the form of Trask, but neither of those really bothered me. If anything, Trask's heavy pirate nature helped a bit in the absence of a visual. Nor was I bothered by the German accent of the Doctor's except for the fact that it wasn't that good. The stretch there is that the English actually believed he was German.

So overall, I'd say this story is a tale of two halves. It starts poorly, wandering off what could have been a really good story in pursuit of a middling one. It picks up again with a fun little pirate adventure with the Doctor taking a lead role, excelling in what will become his signature trait of stalling. It dips a little bit at the end but only in that the whole journey back to the TARDIS could have been expanded to give a bit more punch to Grey's exit or Ffinch's interest in Polly towards the end. Balancing it all out, I'd say a middle of the road score is fair for this one. I'd think I'd go so far as to say that I'd give it a better than half rating if it had been an existing story rather than a recon.

Overall personal score: 2.5 out of 5

The War Machines

WOTAN must be obeyed.

The War Machines was the last story of Season Three and the unceremonious dumping of the last of the earliest companions. It also marked true beginning of the end for the First Doctor. He would survive for two more stories, but the process that had begun in earnest in The Celestial Toymaker finally came to fruition and word came down on high that the Doctor would be replaced. It is rather ironic then that The War Machines actually produced probably the most iconic shot of the First Doctor: him staring down the war machine while everyone around him flees at the end of Episode Three.

Plot Summary

The Doctor and Dodo land in London in July, 1966. Looking around, they see the newly finished Post Office tower and the Doctor gets a strange alien feeling from it. They enter, posing as a scientist and secretary.

The head scientist, Professor Brett, shows them the computer WOTAN, which is scheduled to be connected to other major computers around the world in a few days. The Doctor is impressed but also unsettled. Dodo examines it but zones out for a moment. She dismisses it as being tired and Professor Brett suggests that his secretary, Polly Wright, take her out. Polly suggests a club she knows called The Inferno.

In the club, Polly meets a friend who encourages her to cheer up a repeat customer. A sailor named Ben Jackson is moping about due to being assigned to shore duty for six months. Polly chats with him and is accosted by another patron. Ben, warning the patron, knocks him down and settles in to keep Polly and Dodo company.

The Doctor heads to the scientific meeting where WOTAN is being made known to the press. Professor Brett is late but the head, Sir Charles Summer, discusses the project without him. At the lab, Professor Brett is preparing to leave when WOTAN hypnotizes him to bring him under control. It does the same with Major Green, head of the building security. Professor Brett heads to the scientific meeting where he grabs Professor Krimpton and brings him back to WOTAN where he is also hypnotized.

While they are gone, Major Green calls The Inferno and has Dodo put on the phone. Over the phone, WOTAN reengages the hypnotism it started earlier. Dodo then leaves the club, although Ben and Polly notice she is missing after a while. When all four are assembled, WOTAN issues an order for the Doctor to be brought to it. Dodo and Professor Krimpton leave to do this while Professor Brett and Major Green begin to construct a set of war machines. Major Green also works on telephoning scientists from all over the country to be hypnotized by WOTAN.

Dodo reenters the club and tries to lure the Doctor back to the tower. Polly jumps in and gets a taxi for them. The three drive off with Ben agreeing to meet Polly for lunch tomorrow. He passes a tramp who is preparing to enter an old warehouse to spend the night.

In the warehouse, Professor Brett is leading a group of workers who also have been hypnotized in building the war machines. Professor Krimpton comes in to let him know that Dodo has not been able to bring the Doctor. The tramp overhears this but he is detected by WOTAN. Professor Brett orders the workers and they surround and kill him.

The next morning, the Doctor reads of the death of a noted scientist. Sir Charles has also become aware of the disappearance of several other prominent scientists. Polly enters the room, having been telephoned by Professor Brett that Sir Charles' secretary was ill and that she should work for him today. Dodo enters a minute later and suggests that they go to see Professor Brett to have his questions answered. The Doctor agrees but decides to telephone the lab to let Professor Brett know that they are coming.

When the Doctor calls, Major Green connects the phone to WOTAN. The Doctor reacts with pain and hangs up the phone. Dodo comes to him to ask what his instructions are, but the Doctor broke contact before WOTAN could control him. Realizing that Dodo has been hypnotized, the Doctor counters the hypnosis with a little of his own. Sir Charles offers to take her to his country house to be taken care of by his wife. Polly, seeing what happened to Dodo, heads over to the lab to check on Professor Brett.

The Doctor continues to recover and think when Ben shows up looking for Polly as they were to meet for lunch. The Doctor enlists his help to investigate the area near the club last night. Ben, seeing the activity near the warehouse, slips in and observes Major Green conducting tests with the new war machine. It kills one man in a weapons test and begins to approach his hiding spot in another test.

Ben tries to run but is spotted by the machine. Major Green alerts the people and they pursue him. Polly arrives and locks the door, having been hypnotized and sent over to work. Ben is captured and would have been killed but Polly states that WOTAN demands the work be finished and all labor must be used. Ben is put to work but with everyone working, he is able to run off and escape. Polly sees him but does not raise the alarm as she is starting to fight the hypnosis. When this is discovered, she is sent back to WOTAN for punishment.

Concerned for Ben's safety, the Doctor is about to leave Sir Charles' house when Ben arrives. He tells them what happened and the Doctor realizes that they must knock out WOTAN. Sir Charles however believes that the war machine Ben found is the only and they should deal with it directly. He calls the government and has the army brought in.

The army sends a squad in to the warehouse. Major Green dispatches the workers and the war machine to attack them. The workers are beaten back but the machine beams out a signal that jams their guns. In the face of the attack, the soldiers fall back. Others begin to retreat as well as the machine advances but the Doctor stands his ground, despite Ben urging him to retreat. As the machine approaches, it suffers a fault and shuts down.

With the machine down, the soldiers clear the warehouse and the men come out from their hypnosis. Major Green does not even remember meeting the Doctor so they are dismissed. The Doctor examines the machine and determines that the other eleven machines are scheduled to attack all of London at noon.

In another location, a second war machine is misprogramed, kills the programmer and destroys the relay device. It then breaks loose and begins to attack London, heading towards a major power station. The Doctor proposes capturing it by trapping it in a powerful magnetic field. He has the army set up electrical cables in three parts of a square. When the machine enters, Ben runs behind it and finishes the square. The cables are activated and the magnetic force renders the machine inert.

The Doctor enters the field and deactivates the machine. He then reprograms it to only attack other machines and not humans. The Doctor then sends the machine to the Post Office tower to destroy WOTAN.

Guessing that Polly had gone back to WOTAN, Ben races ahead of the machine and breaks into the office. He grabs Polly and carries her out, her fighting him the whole way. Professors Brett and Krimpton try to stop him, but the reprogramed war machine arrives. Professor Krimpton tries to stop it but the machine shoots him down. The machine then smashes WOTAN. Professor Brett slowly comes out of his trance as Sir Charles and the Doctor arrive. Seeing WOTAN destroyed, the Doctor leaves.

The next day, the Doctor waits for Dodo outside the TARDIS. Ben and Polly arrive with a message that Dodo has fully recovered, but has decided to stay. The Doctor, slightly indignant, thanks them and enters the TARDIS. As they walk away, Polly realizes she still has a TARDIS key that had been dropped earlier. She and Ben unlock the TARDIS and enter to give it back to the Doctor. As they enter, the machine dematerializes.

Analysis

Okay, first to address the big controversy: WOTAN referring to the Doctor as Doctor Who. First, it is very clear that WOTAN uses that as the Doctor's name. However, that does not mean that this is the Doctor's actual name. Throughout the series, nearly all Doctors have enjoyed a little joke in using Doctor Who. The Second Doctor goes so far as to use the German titled version: Doktor Von Wer. I have no problem with it as it obviously and alias used by the Doctor. I like to imagine that the Doctor came up with it when he entered some place and a clerk or receptionist asked his name. He said "the Doctor" and the clerk responded, "Doctor Who?" In response, the Doctor simply said "Yes." It is an easy way to get past annoying people and the use of it as a joke would explain why the Doctor is seemingly so amused by the joke so many years later (Asylum of the Daleks being an obvious example). So of all the great nerd rages, this is not one that causes me much of a second thought.

Now, on to the actual review. Overall, this wasn't a bad story but the limitations of 1960's television do show with the design of the war machines. There is also some very questionable pacing decisions that nearly undercut some good performances.

I enjoyed the Doctor in this story a great deal, despite his being sidelined a bit for screen time. In a way, that sidelining worked to his advantage and he appeared smarter and even more on top of the situation than if he had been involved in every scene. I mentioned the stare down at the end of Episode Three and as this is the first time he has seen a war machine, his facing it down without flinching seems even more impressive.

It was also nice to see the army looking somewhat competent for a change. Obviously they were hindered by the inability to use their weapons which didn't help, but the fight against the workers and the war machine in Episode Three wasn't bad, although not shot that well. Then the fact that they successfully organized a clear path and capture of the war machine made them better that what we often got out of UNIT.

I enjoyed the acting of the side characters as well. The hypnosis moment was a bit shoddy but the overall performance of everything else was pretty good. I had this nagging feeling that I have seen the actor who played Professor Brett before but the only thing I can find that I've seen is that he was also in The Macra Terror so I must be remembering him from there.

Of course, there were some let down moments as well. The production staff tried hard to make the war machine scary but it didn't really work. Probably the biggest fault is that it fired a steam cannon rather like the Daleks in the two Peter Cushing movies. It just works better when there is an actual projectile be it bullet or laser. The forward hammers were also very clunky and obviously restricted by their own weight so that didn't help the machine either. It was a competent try but it still looked a bit unconvincing.

My second complaint was Ben's acting. It makes a marked contrast with Steven who could also be over the top but had a certain level of restraint also. Ben just sounds like he's a hair away from hysterical which give an odor of "Look, I'm acting!" to his performance. His quieter moments we're okay, but his intense moments got grating at times, especially in the first half of Episode Three where he combined them with obtuse character moments that just made him an annoyance.

As an aside, I also didn't like WOTAN's voice. Why is a computer hissing like an Ice Warrior? I'm guessing they were going for a sinister sound, but I think it would have been better if it were a cold, emotionless voice. That would have been more appropriate for a computer and much scarier. To say nothing of that fact that I would have been able to understand all that it said instead of straining make out the words.

But probably the biggest problem is the pacing. Episodes One and Two weren't bad, although I thought the parts in the club were a bit dull. But with the focus being on Dodo and the direct threat to the Doctor, there was a tension that was reasonably well played out. But Episode Three got dull. Too much time was devoted to Ben's capture and rather cheesy escape. As a result, very little time was spent with the Doctor and nothing much had been accomplished except that the army and the Doctor were aware of one machine.

This lack of development had a cascade effect in pushing together so much that Episode Four felt rushed. Rather than have so much time wasted on Ben's capture and escape, I think the story would have been better served if he had escaped immediately after being detected. This would have pushed the army attack to the middle of Episode Three and it could have ended with either learning that the machines are preparing to attack at noon or with the word that a second machine had been loosed on the city. A bit more development there would have evened out the pacing.

Instead, we are left with a very rushed ending with the reprogrammed war machine rushing in to destroy WOTAN, making it look weak with very little defense. It also makes you wonder why the army couldn't have rushed in and destroyed WOTAN. Afterall, Ben was able to rush in and grab Polly. Why couldn't have a squad of troops rushed in, grabbed Brett and Krimpton, and then tossed a few grenades through the door to destroy WOTAN? I would have been simple and easily done before the rest of the war machines were launched. Either way, the villain was shown to be not up to the caliber that you would expect of a principle threat.

Overall, this is a mixed bag. Decent performances and some nice cinematography, but poor pacing exposed some annoying shortfalls in the story and left me a bit bored at points. It's ok for background watching, but I can't say that I'd rush to watch it again.

Overall personal score: 2 out of 5