As we work I way to the 13th Doctor’s upcoming regeneration story next we have the 5th Doctor’s regeneration story in “The Caves of Androzani.” This is a serial that succeeds in the dark tone and action but fails in giving compelling characters who are any deeper than what they appear to be. Peter Davison carries this serial and makes it okay but I failed to enjoy it. The characters needed nuance for this story to fully work and there wasn’t any nuance or character depth present.
The serial was directed by Graeme Harper and written by Robert Holmes.
The Doctor and Peri find themselves trapped in the middle of a war for the life-prolonging substance of “spectrox” on the planet Androzani Minor.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Tone – The dark tone works well in this serial. The war is established early and we see how ruthless the Adrozani Major leaders are in Morgus and his general Chellak are as well as Sharaz Jek and his androids are as well as a group of mercenaries are who are being used by Morgus are too. The dark and bleak tone of this story works for the story being told.
The Action – The action is good in this and never lags. We have the mercenaries fighting the Adrozani Major military and same goes with the mercs. This is an action heavy serial given the war story and it is one of the strongest elements.
The Doctor – The Doctor and Peri begin dying pretty early on and the Doctor’s motives are to save and cure Peri through the serial. He is the only good person in this entire story and it really demonstrates why he is a hero. It is a shame the 6th Doctor introduction has this new regeneration as terrible. Still Peter Davison is giving his all and gives us an amazing performance in his last serial.
The Themes of Revenge and Betrayal – Morgus betrayed Sharaz Jek leading to him being scarred by the mud, leading to Morgus getting killed by him. Morgus’s secretary also takes over after Morgus had killed the President and went to get the “spectrox.” Revenge and betrayal is a constant theme and the secretary is one of the few characters to survive. Everyone on Androzani Minor dies with the Doctor and Peri just escaping.
Okay:
Peri – Peri’s action isn’t consistent and she is captured most of the time. I didn’t think she was entirely a con and was okay as she at least wasn’t just a passive person following the Doctor. I got their friendship in this.
The Cons:
The Factions and Leaders – All the leaders are awful cruel. Morgus is paranoid, Sharaz Jek is a creep and Chellak and the Merc leader are just cruel and blindly following orders. There is no depth and beyond base character motivations and it keeps the story from being enjoyable.
The Regeneration and 6th Doctor Introduction – We get the 5th Doctor’s companions telling him to live and the Master telling him to die. It is a mess of a presentation and the 6th Doctor appears and insults Peri showing he’s cruel like everyone in this story. The 5th Doctor’s empathy is gone now and with us is just another cruel character. Why should we care about this new Doctor?
This story is okay but needed more nuance and depth to be enjoyable or good. The fact the regeneration is bad doesn’t help. Still as a darker Doctor serial this story is worth checking out as Davison is giving his all and does a great job. It is a shame he wasn’t given a better final serial, though this isn’t the worst of the “Doctor Who” regeneration stories.
We continue the Doctor regeneration stories in the lead up to the 13th Doctor’s regeneration with the 4th Doctor’s final serial in “Logopolis.” This is a story that suffers from a bit of a cluttered cast and a bit too much tell over show but is still an enjoyable sendup to Tom Baker’s 4th Doctor. This one is worth checking out, especially once the story takes off.
The serial was directed by Peter Grimwade and written by Christoper H. Bidmead.
The Doctor and Master must form a temporary truce when the Master’s plot on Logopolis leads to the universe unraveling and must be stopped.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
Saving the Universe – When we finally get to the Master’s plot and him showing up the story takes off as we have the Doctor, Master and Tegan as one team and Nyssa and Adric on the other team as they must work to save the universe’s destruction. It keeps the tension going and gives actions for all the characters.
The Master – Anthony Ainley does a great job as the Master as he seeks to save the universe after he nearly caused the end of the universe but also seeks to blackmail the universe and control it. He never stops being a villain so it creates another problem the Doctor must face through the serial.
The Doctor – Tom Baker’s 4th Doctor is one of my favorite Doctors and in this we see him seeking to protect his companions and save the universe while still keeping distance between his companions as he knows his death and regeneration is coming. Tom Baker gives such amazing pathos and his remembering all his companions before regenerating is a powerful scene as his last act saves the universe and stops the Master’s takeover plot.
The Doctor’s Good-bye – Adric, Nyssa and Tegan all call out the Doctor’s name as he recalls Romana, Sarah Jane Smith, K-9 and all past companions over his run. There is sadness in it but it is touching soon as he remembers those closest to him before he regenerates into the 5th Doctor.
Okay:
Logopolis – You have a civilization of white haired humanoids who compute through language and keep the universe going. They don’t get much depth than this though and mostly exist as an interesting idea. With more development the planet and people could have been a pro.
The Companions – Nyssa’s father was killed and body possessed by the Master and the Master killed Tegan’s Aunt. We get moments of sadness but not time to mourn as like Adric they are largely plot devices driving the plot. This is the problem with 3 companions as no one gets development. Still all the performances are good they just deserved time to be better explored as characters, especially Tegan as this was her introduction story.
The Cons:
The Setup and Pacing – The first 2 of 4 episodes lack focus and because of it have really slow pacing. All of it is meant to be setup of the Master causing the accidental unraveling of the universe but not enough is done to focus on that coming up or to explore Tegan and Adric as characters.
Tell Over Show – We are told what Logopolis. We are told Tegan is an airline stewardess and that is it. So much of the first 2 episodes are tell over show and it keeps the story from ever reaching the levels of good.
This was an enjoyable serial that with a bit more development could have been good or great. With less companions the story could have been more focused and with it Logopolis as a planet and people could have been better explored too. Still this was an enjoyable regeneration episode that I do recommend.
Final Score: 7.5 / 10 Boosted by the Doctor’s good-bye and seeing his past companions before regenerating.
In the lead up to the 13th Doctor’s regeneration episode we continue the exploration of past Doctor regeneration stories to get there. Jon Pertwee is one of my favorite Doctors so it is a shame he get such a terrible sendoff in “Planet of the Spiders.” This serial has great lead performances but that is the only positive I can give this story. It isn’t the worst but almost nothing about this story works so I can’t recommend it. Jon Pertwee deserved so much better.
The serial was directed by Barry Letts who wrote the serial with Robert Sloman.
The Eight-Legs of Metebelis Three attempt to conquer Earth after the Doctor receives a power crystal from his past.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Brigadier – Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier continues to be one of the Doctor’s best companions. Honestly he needed to be in this serial more. He always has great rapport with any of the Doctors and that continues here where he once again is witness to the Doctor becoming a new version. His dry wit is always appreciated especially in the bad scrip of this serial.
Sarah Jane Smith – Elisabeth Sladen’s Sarah Jane Smith is iconic and here she is actively trying to shape the story. She is the one Mike Yates seeks out to investigate Lupton’s plans and she is with the Doctor through it. The Doctor’s constant ally and her performance helped elevate this bad script.
The Doctor – Jon Pertwee is amazing, even with terrible material. In this his mortality and regeneration is explored as we see him call himself out for his constant desire for knowledge. It is a great moment of self-awareness before he accepts his death and regeneration after defeating the Eight-Legs and their plan for conquest. God, he deserved such a better story. he is one of the best Doctors and this is his last serial.
The Cons:
Representation – You have white British actors in “yellow face” playing Tibetans and it is awful. There was no reason for studio racism to inform casting just cast Tibetan actors to play Tibetans, not clearly white British actors.
Pacing and Beginning – We have the Doctor investigating ESP and the ESP dying and it takes 2 episodes to get to the plot. 2 episodes of a 6 episode story. This story is pointless action in the beginning to pad a bad script.
Most Human Characters – Lupton is greedy and not smart and the humans of Metebelis Three are barely characters. I could see why the Eight-Legs managed to control them given how badly they are written. They are only reactive and have no depth or nuance.
Metebelis Three – Metebelis Three sucks as a location. The humans are underdeveloped and boring and the Eight-Legs are too. It is also a very bad green screen for when we are there when we aren’t on the village set.
The Eight-Legs, The Great One and Lupton – The Great One is destroyed by the thing she wants “Indiana Jones” style, the Eight-Legs have no depth beyond their cult like devotion to the giant Eight-Leg Great One and Lupton is greed and that is it. These are terrible villains and it is only due to how badly their opposition is that they get any wins. These were some of the worst antagonists to come out of “Doctor Who.”
This serial was bad and I wish Pertwee had got a better sendoff. Learning he had a Buddhist mentor was interesting but not how that ended up using representation and the Eight-Legs were such a non-threat. They never felt scary and same goes for Lupton. This serial is so much empty action and bad writing and only the performances of the leads keep me from rating it lower. You can skip this one.
We continue the covering of Doctor regeneration stories in “The War Games.” “The War Games” is a flawed but good final adventure for Patrick Troughton’s 2nd Doctor. In this we are introduced to the Time Lords for the first time and have a compelling plot for the Doctor and his companions to uncover. This serial is long though and though good is extremely flawed, still worth checking out for classic “Doctor Who” though.
The serial was directed by David Maloney and written by Terrance Dicks and Malcolm Hulke.
The Doctor and his companions Jamie and Zoe find themselves trapped on an alien planet that has brainwashed humans through history taking part in war games in an alien plot to conquer the galaxy.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Doctor’s Allies – Lady Jennifer and Lt. Carstairs are from the World War 1 zone and are first to help the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe escape. At one point Lady Jennifer just disappears from the story but before that these 2 are the reason the Doctor figures out the war games are happening.
The Resistance – I like that people from different war zones broke their conditioning. It showed that the War Lords plot was flawed thinking he could control people as each zone had a resistance movement. This helped the story flow and they were key to stopping the plan of the War Lords.
The War Chief – The War Chief is a Time Lord who is working with the War Lords to use them and the plan to rule the galaxy. He reminded me a lot of the Master given his conquering ambition and voice inflection but in the end is killed when he tells the Doctor his plan to overthrow the War Lord and the leader War Lord figures it out and kills him for it. He cared for the Doctor which was interesting too as he saw solidarity in their exile from the Time Lords. Edward Brayshaw was compelling in the role.
The War Lord – The War Lord is leader of the aliens called the War Lords and ends up being quite a threat as he nearly escapes Time Lord justice and even kills the War Chief before the War Chief can kill him. He is erased from time for his cruelty though and his planet is placed in stasis so it cannot conquer. He was a good threat and his plans mostly worked it was just the Security Chief and War Chief not working together that foiled his scheme of conquest. Philip Madoc gave him a very cold threatening demeanor that made him stand out as a foe to the Doctor.
The Time Lords – The Time Lords are shown to be so powerful that the Doctor has no where to run, the people pulled from time are returned to their times and the War Lord is erased from time and erasing Zoe and Jamie’s memories of the Doctor so they’d only remember the first adventures they had with the Doctor. They also have a sense of fairness too as they chose Earth to exile the Doctor given his connection to the place and they agreed that he should be around to stop evil. It really is a great first introduction. The Judges are 3 Time Lords.
Jamie – Frazer Hines’s Jamie is a wonderful companion as we see him always seeking allies and to help the Doctor. It makes his good-bye all the sadder given how long he’s traveled with the Doctor. He even stands up to the Time Lords, which is probably why they let him team up again with the 2nd Doctor in a Multi-Doctors Story.
Zoe – Wendy Padbury’s Zoe is the brains of the group as we see her organize the resistance and figure out the War Lords technology and stand up to folks on multiple occasions. She is never passive and is always seeking to solve problems. She was a great companion and like Jamie’s good-bye her’s was sad.
The Doctor – Troughton’s trickster Doctor is fully on display in this as we see him trick people in the war zones to learn what is going on and even pretend to join the War Lord at one point to save the resistance leaders and his companions. It also hurts for him to call in the Time Lords but he does it since he knows it is the only way to return everyone to their time periods. He stands up to the Time Lords though and they listen to his need for action to stop evil and not non-interference. All of this illustrates so many reasons why he is one of my favorite Doctors and his good-bye to his companions is sad and powerful before the Time Lords force him to regenerate and exile him to earth with no memory of how to work the TARDIS until they deem time.
The Cons:
The Beginning – We spent way too long in the World War 1 zone and figuring out what is going on. It doesn’t do much in the ways of character development so it just feels like padding in a very long story.
The War Zone Presentation – You got English actors portraying Mexican men and Eastern Europeans and it is pretty awful. I get they wanted to show all the different wars on Earth but they could have gone about it without the racism.
The Pacing – This serial is 10 episodes and it drags at times. Part of the issue is the War Lord and War Chief aren’t introduced soon enough so we waste a lot of time in World War 1 that doesn’t really payoff. This story could have easily been 6 or 7 episodes given things don’t start really happening until episode 3.
Troughton’s good-bye to Jamie and Zoe is powerful as all they get is memory of their first adventure with him. We also see how powerful the Time Lords are too in how easily they stop the War Lord when he attempts to escape. Because of this the story carries weight and given Troughton is one of my favorite Doctors I appreciated his good-bye and how with it came his exile to Earth as he regenerates into the 3rd Doctor.
Final Score: 8.7 / 10 Boosted by strong character moments and the Time Lords first appearance but still a very flawed final adventure for the 2nd Doctor.
For the first review for Vampire Weekends (Some reviews will be posted before the weekend initially since started event later into October then I wanted) I was curious to see what other ways “Doctor Who” had done vampires as there is always the sci. fi. twist in the supernatural in the show. I had already reviewed “The Vampires of Venice” during the 11th Doctor’s run so it was fun to go to Classic Who and find “State of Decay.” This is a more classic vampire tale in some ways but also stays true to the sci. fi. nature of “Doctor Who” and is part of what makes the show so fun. Without getting into spoilers I do recommend this serial as it is a good story even if I wish it didn’t have Adric and that they’d expanded on some story elements further.
The serial was directed by Peter Moffat and written by Terrance Dicks.
Trapped in E-Space the Doctor (Tom Baker) and Romana (Lalla Ward) investigate a mysterious medieval planet ruled by three ancient mysterious beings who have repressed all knowledge on the planet as they discover their origins and who they serve.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Vampire Planet and the Mysteries of E-Space – The TARDIS is trapped in E-Space and the Doctor and Romana having to find a way out back to their universe is a good base challenge. Add onto that a mysterious medieval planet run by vampires that has advanced but old technology as a part of it and you have a compelling premise.
The Rebels – Among the rebels you have Tarak who drives the fight and helps the Doctor and Romana and is killed for it, the old leader Kalmar who is convinced by seeing the King Vampire in the technology the Doctor helped fix and Ivo the village leader who joins the rebels after his son is eaten by the Three Who Rule. These are the most compelling of the rebels and work as support characters.
The Three Who Rule – The Three Who Rule were originally human astronauts called into E-Space by the King Vampire so they could help him return and conquer the galaxy. They are fascinating though we never see their path to corruption only them as having ruled for 1000 years over the humans already on the Vampire Planet. Camilla and Zargo were the face of the rulers as King and Queen but Aukon was the true ruler as he was in contact with the Ancient King Vampire who had given them their psychic powers, super strength and had mutated them. He was able to shut them both down even when they were in a bloodlust and ready to kill Romana and Adric. They are all such fun villains and I wish we could have learned more about who they were before before they were mutated as Zargo and Camilla love one another so I was curious if it predated their mutation and if it existed when they were still humans.
The Idea of the Ancient Vampires – The idea of ancient alien vampires who ruled the universe is cool the Time Lords being the ones to stop them works too as well as their reach being so vast all alien cultures had vampire myths. It is a shame the vampire leader’s portrayal wasn’t better.
K-9 – K-9 is funny and great as leads the storming of the castle and we get emotion from him too as he hates failing the Doctor. Easily the most underrated hero of the episode and even saves the rebels in the end.
Romana – Lalla Ward is wonderful as the Romana. She has just as much sass as the Doctor and only got captured because Adric was hypnotized. She also is on par with problem solving as the Doctor. I can’t wait to see more stories with her. She’s one of the best companions.
The Doctor – Tom Baker is amazing as the Doctor. He is funny and had some great sarcastic jokes to the Vampire Lords and also has moments of empathy too as we see him compliment Romana for helping him find the answer to stop the King Vampire and we see his leadership when he rouses the rebels to fight and attack the tower. This story really showed why he is one of my favorite Doctors.
The Cons:
Adric – Adric is a stowaway on the TARDIS and his doing so just causes problems. Romana only got captured because Adric was captured and she was trying to save him and he is just arrogant and mean in every interaction with her and the Doctor. What an awful companion.
The Missing Corruption Story Behind the Three Who Rule – Why did the Three Who Rule give into the power offer of the King Vampire? I get the immortality draw but beyond that why did they give up their humanity to enslave their fellow human beings? There was a missing step that we never see and was never explained in their path to corruption from scientists and explorers to monsters.
The King Vampire Presentation – We get what looks like a giant bat on the scanner in the rebel camp and giant hand in the summoning area of the planet. There isn’t any scare factor and the prop for the King Vampire looked like a toy. It was a shame as I could see they wanted to go for a monster that Time Lords feared the execution was just awful though.
If we had learned more about the corruption of the astronauts and seen how they lost their humanity the story would have been stronger. They were once scientists so why did they give that up for power? If that had been answered the serial would have been great, even with how annoying and unnecessary Adric is to the story. The serial is still good though and the 4th Doctor and Romana are fantastic together.
Final Score: 8 / 10 A solidly good Classic Doctor Who story.
“Silver Nemesis” is a story that has far more ambition than it is able to fully illustrate within the story itself. The story does a good job of showing the 7th Doctor’s intelligence and manipulation but the scale of the story feels so small and some of the acting and execution is bad which keeps the story enjoyable but never good or great. This episode is fun though and it does continue the Mondas Cybermen story.
The serial was directed by Chris Clough and written by Kevin Clarke.
The story involves the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) an Ace (Sophie Aldred) as they work to keep the Nazis, Cybermen and the magician Lady Peinforte (Fiona Walker) who seek Nemesis, a powerful weapon of destruction.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Nemesis – The Nemesis is a living sentient statue of destruction that is controlled by whomever gives it the bow and arrow. We never fully know of it’s origin but that it is made from the substance that Omega and Rassilon created. It wants freedom too, giving sadness to the fact that it is only used to destroy and even the Doctor gives no hint at when it will be freed.
The Fight for the Nemesis – The idea of 3 factions fighting for the Nemesis is really cool. Each faction is fascistic and evil in one way or another and wants to control the world with Nemesis. This whole premise and the early introduction of the fight for Nemesis is compelling. Sadly the scale of this fight feels small and some of the characters are pretty flat which hurts the overall story.
The Cybermen – The Cybermen are the best villains in the story and David Banks continues to voice the Cyber-Leader and making him threatening. This is the one where the Cybermen lose the most (Lady Peinforte and her servant Richard kill them with poison and gold-tipped arrows) and Ace destroys their ship but we see their fleet out in space. I wish we could have seen them more in action as we only see the forward force and in the end they are nearly evenly matched with the other factions because of it which hurts their threat in the story.
Ace – Ace is such a fun companion. I really wish the Doctor trusted her more as we see her blow up the Cybermen scout ship with explosives she made and she is constantly at the forefront of the fight facing the Nazis, Peinforte and the Cybermen. She truly is a great companion and in this we see the hurt in how the Doctor distracts from revealing his past to her. At one point Lady Peinforte threatens to reveal his past but it means nothing to the Cybermen but is also one of the few times Ace learns about her Professor.
The Doctor – This is a good serial that illustrates the Doctor’s brilliance but also his detachment. At one point he says life appearing on Earth was a mistake. We also see how driven he is to protect Earth and others too as he plays the factions against one another and uses Nemesis to destroy the Cyber Fleet surrounding Earth. Peinforte reveals some of his past as well and we never learned how she knows he is a Time Lord from Gallifrey. McCoy’s Doctor is one with so much mystery and he keeps that through this episode.
The Cons:
The Human Factions – The Nazis and Lady Peinforte are not well executed at all. On nearly every occasion they are their own worst enemies in their quest for the items to control Nemesis and none of the acting performances stand out. Everyone feels generic and it makes their defeats inevitable. Also Peinforte becomes one with Nemesis and it comes out of nowhere. We know she is evil, like the Nazis but not much more than that. What world does she want to make? The only ones whose motivations are known in the end are the Cybermen who want to make Earth, New Mondas.
Lack of Scale and Scope – We have a Cyber Fleet out in space but never enter a ship. We get some empty countrysides and castles but that is about it. For a story that is beyond Earth it feels confined to a small part of Earth, even with the TARDIS jumping around everywhere. This story needed scale to work better.
The Doctor’s Lack of Answers – The Doctor should have given Ace an answer. She helped the Doctor defeat Earth’s enemies and is clearly is partner but she receives no trust from it. It’s a shame and after everyone defeated here she deserved answers for what Lady Peinforte revealed.
With better fleshed out villains, a larger scope and the Doctor trusting Ace more we could have had a good or even great story. Instead this is just enjoyable. I was never bored and I it is always a pleasure to see the Mondas Cybermen in action. They continue to be intriguing in every single one of their appearance and much better than the Cybus Industries Cybermen from Pete’s world in the Davies Era. You can take or leave this one as it never rises beyond an enjoyable outing.
“Attack of the Cybermen” is a really enjoyable episode that nearly works. The main cast is solid in their roles and the Cybermen manage to be a consistent threat for the most part. Sadly there are some plots that feel unfinished and the story needed a bit more focus to be fully good. This is still worth checking out though, before I get into spoilers.
The story was directed by Matthew Robinson and written by Paula Moore.
The story involves the Doctor (Colin Baker) and Peri (Nicole Bryant) investigating a signal for help that soon puts them in conflict with the Cybermen who are plotting on Telos and in London.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
Peri – Peri is one of the weaker aspects of the story but still good as she keeps the Doctor in touch with his humanity and it is her empathy for others that in turn show us how others have that same empathy too. She is also active in the story and attempts to help the Doctor on multiple occasions. Nicole Bryant did a good job and in the end she was the one counseling the Doctor at the end.
The Cryons – The Cryons are indigenous to the planet Telos (Where “The Tomb of the Cybermen” took place) and they are indigenous lifeforms who can only life in areas where the temperature is 0 degrees or less. It is because of the refrigeration on their planet that the Cybermen colonized their world and attempted to exterminate them so they could recharge for later conquest. Luckily the Cryons survive and resist them and in the end free their planet from the Cyber-Controller and his forces. They have a level of psychic power and seem to be able to read minds. I really appreciated how unique they are in the Whoniverse and that they gained their freedom from the Cybermen as well as saving their world from destruction by the Cybermen.
Lytton – Lytton is a mercenary who once served the Daleks but we learn now has become good and is helping the Cryons fight the Cybermen. In the end the Cybermen try to turn him into one of them but he resists and mortally wounds the Cyber-Controller before he is killed. He ended up being a complex character and Maurice Colbourne does a great job in the role.
The Cybermen – The Cybermen in this story are attempting to stop the events of their destruction in “The Tenth Planet” as the year is 1985, a year before it happens in 1986. Their goal is to destroy Telos and escape on the TARDIS as the destruction will cause Halley’s Comet to destroy the Earth. It is a complex plan and I wish we’d learned more about that. It is good to see the Cyber-Controller from “The Tomb of the Cybermen” again even if I do hate this bulky design for the Cybermen. They continue to be an ongoing threat in this and like in prior incarnations take control of the TARDIS again. Also David Banks continues to own it as the voice of the Cyber-Leader.
The Doctor – Colin Baker’s Doctor starts out mean as he clearly doesn’t have full control of himself and memories but becomes whole over the course of the story. He begins by calling Peri the names of past companions but by the end seems to be in control of his senses and even mourns the death of Lytton. It is in this story we see his friendship with the oppressed in the Cryons and how they aid one another and in his attempt to rescue Lytton. The Doctor is handled well here and Colin Baker carries it. It is also interesting how he is there to be sure the Laws of Time are adhered to and that the Doctor is the Time Lord’s agent against the Cybermen’s plot. The Doctor of course hates being used but it also shows the big picture of this universe too.
Cons:
The Soundtrack – The soundtrack is really distracting and annoying, especially when it is attempting to be intense. It has an almost techno cartoony feel to it and it hurts the presentation. It is mostly played in the first quarter of the story but still comes up on other occasions and hurts the presentation.
The Opening Setup – The opening where workers are being killed in the sewers and Lytton is planning to rob diamonds is such a bad setup that it hurts the story a lot. Once we get to the Cybermen and Telos the story is good but the opening setup is bad and that is a combination of both the writing and soundtrack.
The Humans on Telos – There are human slaves on Telos who are attempting to escape and their story is really rough and unneeded. It doesn’t really go anywhere and the two escape I think…it is unclear and is completely forgotten after Lytton is captured by the Cybermen.
This was a story that was nearly good. There was so much that worked in regards to the main plot it was really just the early pacing and opening that needed to be reworked for the story to fully work. This is still one I’d recommend though. It was really enjoyable and I enjoyed returning to Telos and seeing more of the Mondas Cybermen and their plots.
Final Score: 7.8 / 10 This was a really enjoyable story that almost worked.
We continue exploring the Doctor and his facing of the Cybermen with the 5th Doctor in “Earthshock.” I had already reviewed “Revenge of the Cybermen” when the 4th Doctor faced the Cybermen and the only time the 3rd Doctor faced the Cybermen was in “The Five Doctors.” I’ll post both of those reviews at the end of this one. “Earthshock” is a story that had so much potential but ended up cluttering it up. It is already bad that the Doctor has more than 2 companions as that almost always means one will be underwritten and this 4 part story introduces a ton of side characters some of whom are great but others who are just as underwritten. This is an important story in the lore though and I’ll explore more of that in the review. For my non-spoiler thoughts I enjoyed this story though it could have been more. It is still worth checking out for any fan of the Classic Doctor Who and the Cybermen.
The story was directed by Peter Grimwade and written by Eric Saward.
The story involves uncovering a Cybermen plots to stop the militaries uniting on Earth against the Cyber Fleet.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Scope – One thing this story does well is scope. It takes in a cave with missing scientists, outside the cave and on freighter. All of this gives us an idea of just how big the threat and event is. The Cybermen do not appear until the end of Part 1 but the military conference hints at why there is such a large military force investigating missing scientists in the cave. We also hear bout the Earth being on lockdown after the Cybermen attempt to set off a destructive bomb on Earth is stopped by the Doctor. This scale lends so much to the stakes and tension of the story.
Lieutenant Scott – Lt. Scott is a fun character. He starts out with extreme distrust of the Doctor, believing he was the one to kill his men but quickly comes to his aid when he learns he is a friend. He also is the one factor the Cyber-Leader is unable to predict as he and his men are a constant thorn in the Cybermen plots from stopping the Cybermen’s Androids and stopping the invasion force on the ship by buying time. I was glad he survived. He reminded me a bit of Brigadier. James Warwick was great in the role.
The Freighter Captain Briggs – Captain Briggs is played by Beryl Reid and though we first meet someone who seems more concerned with getting her paycheck rather than taking the Cybermen threat seriously, that changes. She like Scott does all she can to work with the Doctor and Adric when she learns she was played by her crewman Ringway and her stubbornness and quick action leads to them neutralizing Ringway when he turns against them. She was such a fun character, also glad she survived.
Tegan – Tegan is the only captain besides Adric who is active in the story. Janet Fielding is good at playing her as the reluctant hero, though it is good she takes action as she is one of the main people fighting against the Cybermen versus those who stay on the TARDIS. She is just as good at fighting them as the Lt. Scott and she is the one to first use the Cybermen’s weapons against them. She also helps the Doctor and Adric sort out their differences in the first part of the story.
The Cyber-Leader and the Cybermen – David Banks has a great voice and presence as the Cyber-Leader. It reminds me of Christopher Lee and I would see why they would have him voice other Cyber-Leaders in “The Five Doctors,” “Attack of the Cybermen,” and “Silver Nemesis” which are the later appearances of the Cybermen in the classic series. In this the Cybermen are all about plans and blowing up the Earth to stop the military alliance against them from being formed and to conquer the Earth in turn. It isn’t a bad plan they just underestimated the Doctor on more than one occasion. I attribute a lot of this to the ego of the Cyber-Leader as whenever he had the chance he would tell the Doctor to watch the plan unfold. I’m not a fan of this bulky design of the Cybermen but I appreciate that in this story they never stop feeling like a threat and they take a lot to defeat.
The Doctor – This is a good performance by Peter Davison! He and Colin Baker are my least favorite Doctors but in this story I see a lot of the inspiration that Tennat pulled for the 10th Doctor. At one point he speaks of the joy of smelling the flowers to the Cyber-Leader and how important it is to feel and care. We also see how much this Doctor holds in and how he goes quiet and alone when angry or annoyed but also his courage too as when his companions at times just want to leave he is the only one wanting to fight on and stop the Cybermen. There are hints at the beginning he might have known Adric’s death was coming too, which adds another element of sorrow to it all.
Okay:
Nyssa – Nyssa is the smart companion like Adric and though she gets to problem solve once ends up spending the majority of the time on the TARDIS. I liked her interactions with others. She was really underwritten though and it is largely Sarah Sutton’s performance that keeps her interesting and not a con in the story.
Adric – This is the story where Adric dies…and it was entirely preventable. The only reason he dies is because he gets obsessed with solving a logic puzzle but then a Cybermen destroys the way to defuse the bomb leading to Adric’s death. Adric is one of my least favorite companions as he is a lot like early seasons of Wesley Crusher on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” where he is an arrogant know-it-all with plot armor. This story at least gave him a bit of development though as he wanted to return to his own universe for a good portion of the story and him being torn between his desire for home and for adventure made the story tragic. In the end he died because he couldn’t stop his desire to solve a final puzzle.
The Cons:
Professor Kyle – Professor Kyle is the professor whose party originally died in the mind from the Cybermen’s androids. She is eventually killed herself by the Cybermen and her being a Professor is never a useful point in the story in the fight against them. In the end she comes with the Doctor to the Briggs’ Freighter where the Cybermen are waking up and stays on the TARDIS until she is killed. This character is a waste and could have been anyone.
Cluttered Cast – Lt. Scott has a ton of soldiers and there are a lot of people on the freighter crew. A few named characters die but we spend so little time with them that the story is unable to give it the weight it deserves. In the end the scenes like the Doctor and his 3 companions is cluttered and crowded and in that character development of people is left behind.
Ringway – Ringway is the villain and we never really understand why he is serving the Cybermen. I get he is unhappy in his job but did he really think an alien force intent on wiping out humanity would help him or intend to keep him alive? In the end his motivations are never explored and he is killed by the Cybermen. Another wasted character in this story.
This was an enjoyable yet flawed story. Having more than 2 companions really hurts character development of the core cast as a whole and having huge casts like this may help with giving scale to a threat but ends up cheapening character in the process. Given Adric dies, a lot more focus should have been on exploring what being a companion of the Doctor meant to him and we didn’t get that. Still, this does a good job with the Cybermen as a futuristic threat and Peter Davison does give one of his best performances as the Doctor in this story.
Final Score: 7.2 / 10
Here is my “The Five Doctors” review. Which is the only time the 3rd Doctor faced the Cybermen in the show.:
As you probably already know, if you’ve checked out my Classic Doctor Who reviews, I am a fan of the 2nd Doctor / Patrick Troughton. At this point he’s probably tied for 5th place in my Top 5 Doctors in Doctor Who and I look forward to when I can return to his era once again. It’s a shame so much of it was lost. “Tomb of the Cybermen” is my first review where I’ll be looking at the Cybermen from different eras. I can’t review their first appearance as the episode is lost, but if someone knows where to see (I’m watching classic Doctor Who on BritBox) or buy their first introduction please let me know as in my exploration of the Cybermen I will go back and review that story if given the chance. “The Tomb of the Cybermen” is a great episode that captures the mystique, terror and strength of the Cybermen as a threat. It also carries a theme of resistance against their control which will be a running theme through a lot of these episodes as well as introducing the first Cyber-Controller and Cybermats. So without going into SPOILERS this is an episode that is worth checking out.
The episodes were directed by Morris Barry and written by Kit Pedler and Barry Davis.
The story follows the Doctor (Patrick Troughton) and his companions Jamie (Frazer Hines) and Victoria (Deborah Watling) when they arrive on the planet of Telos where an archeological expedition is searching for the Tomb of the Cybermen, though some on the expedition have their own plans.
SPOILERS ahead
The Pros:
The Mystery – The mystery of the Tombs is handled really well as their are puzzles the Doctor and expedition must unlock to reach the Cybermen. This ends up being purposeful as the Cybermen are seeking worthy people to assimilate into Cybermen adding much to the stakes as the dangers and traps of the tombs kill members of the expedition.
The Team – The team is fascinating and clashes as Professor Parry leads the scientists, the Captain of their ship is looking after his own people and not much beyond that and Klieg and Kaftan of the Brotherhood of Logicians have their own plans to raise the Cybermen to conquer the Earth.
Professor Parry – Professor Parry is driven to exploration and discovery but is smart and can see the big picture as the moment people start dying he knows they need to leave. His looking out for others even as he is conflicted by his pride made him compelling to watch. He never stopped being the leader as far as looking out for the big picture of the expedition.
Eric Klieg – Klieg is a lot of fun. This guy is a megalomaniac and reminded me so much of a classic James Bond villain. He turns on the party and his plot to use the Cybermen to conquer the world is revealed. He even turns on his servant Toberman, revealing that he is no better than the Cybermen. In the end his pride is what leads to his defeat though as the Cyber-Controller he believed defeated was not and a Cybermen kills him in the tombs before Toberman defeats it.
Toberman – Toberman is a great character as he starts out serving the Brotherhood of Logicians until he sees how their leader views him the same way the Cybermen do when they assimilate him. His individuality is strong though and he saves everyone multiple times including closing the tomb and killing the Cyber-Controller at the cost of his life. He ended up being my favorite character outside of the Doctor and his companions in this story.
The Companions – Jamie is always great to see but Victoria I was a little worried about at first as she doesn’t seem all that interested in the adventure. The reasons behind that and her love of adventure are revealed though as the story continues. They are both awesome companions.
Jamie – Jamie continues to be the Doctor’s second in all situations and present for him whenever he is in need. We also see Jamie as the problem solver too as he is the one of the key people to solving the puzzles and he helps them escape the Cyber-Controller when it is first revealed the Cybermen plan to assimilate them and make them Cybermen. He is always respectful of Victoria too, unlike the annoying Captain.
Victoria – Victoria starts out afraid and nervous but takes charge over the course of the story. It is great to see and Deborah Watling gives her nuance in the later situations. She is smart and empathetic and always looking out for Jamie, the Doctor and anyone else who might be in danger. We learn about the loss she carries too as her father was killed by Daleks in the last episode. She has a conversation with the Doctor about memory and it is here she finds more of her confidence and strength in the adventure.
The Doctor – Patrick Troughton is once again amazing as the Doctor. In this we see him play the fool to trick villains, empathize and talk about he has to think about his family to recall them as he is so old (450 at the time) and how he looks out for others. He is the first to warn about the danger of the Tombs but his own curiosity leads him to go deeper with everyone else and he wants to know what is going on just as much as everyone else. His belief in people is on full display too especially in his conversation with Toberman as he fought Cybermen control and his being there for Victoria. This was truly a great arc for the 2nd Doctor and I can see why over time this story has been chosen as “Best of the Troughton Era.”
The terror of the Cybermen – The Cybermen in this have metallic and alien voices that fit their threat so well. You can almost hear the humanity that was once there but now all there is is the desire for power and control over others. Their designs are much more streamlined than the bulky later versions and the Cyber-Controller even has a giant brain adding more to the alien threat of them. It takes everything to defeat them and they almost win a few times, including at the end. Their use of Cybermats to harass and hurt is also well handled too, showing that even if they are trapped, as long as they are awake they will find a way out. This even stands true at the end as a Cybermat successfully escapes the Tombs after the Doctor adds more traps and refreezes the Cybermen.
Individuality and Resisting the Cybermen – The Doctor and Toberman represent the individual resistance against the Cybermen as the Doctor speaks up against any collective fascist threat (against the Brotherhood of Logicians) and Toberman fights the personal battle after he is assimilated and gains control of himself and in turn rejects both the Brotherhood of Logicians and the Cyber-Controller. This theme of resistance runs through many Cybermen stories as well as the Doctor’s personal fight against them.
The Cons:
The Pacing at the Beginning – The first episode is really slow and you don’t learn that much about the expedition. This is the weakest part and really should have been used to flesh out the Brotherhood of Logicians and their ends. We never get that and it doesn’t get interesting until the problem solving in the Tombs.
Kaftan – Unlike Klieg who is simply a megalomaniac, Kaftan is never defined. We never get what she wants beyond control, which is a shame as she seems to care about Toberman. She is extremely underwritten for appearing in so many scenes and interacting with all the characters. Basically she was a missed opportunity to make an interesting character.
“The Tomb of the Cybermen” is truly an amazing story. I loved how the Cybermen are presented in this and the dynamic between the archeologists and Brotherhood of Logicians as well as Victoria’s character arc and the Doctor and Jamie facing off against the Cybermen. This story is an example of just how great Classic Doctor Who can be and why Patrick Troughton is one of my favorite Doctors. If you get the chance and are a fan of “Doctor Who,” I highly recommend checking this one out, just be ready for the slow Part 1.
Final Score: 9.6 / 10 A favorite story that I would rate higher if the pacing was better at the beginning and Kaftan was a better explored character.
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