Who Review #155 - Silver Nemesis

The Cybermen return in what is a pointless mess of a story.
******

ps. The chess game is important for a later story.....

Who Review #139 - Attack of the Cybermen

This story opens season 22 and brings back the silver giants. Like the proceeding season's Dalek story, this one is full of references to past stories (the Invasion - the sewers; the Tomb of the Cybermen - Telos and the Cyber Controller, played by the same actor, only 30kg later; and of course the Tenth Planet - Mondas; Totter's Lane appears again - An Unearthly Child). Once more, just about everybody is killed. Maurice Colbourne's Lytton returns and we see a grusome scene where the Cybermen crush his hands.

Classic Peri
Running about in shorts and a leotard, leaving little to the imagination.

The thing about the story is Tomb of the Cybermen, with its 60s "high-tech", is far superior than this twaddle, which was always an inevitable comparison. As is the fact Troughton was a better Doctor.
******

Who Review #131 - the Five Doctors

20 years of the show were celebrated on 23rd November 1983 and as part of the Children in Need evening too.

Sadly Tom turned down his part so we had to make do with previously unseen clips from Shada, which had been cancelled due to industrial action at the BBC. Not the same, of course, but it did make up for it a bit at the time.

The feature length episode opened with a clip from the Daleks Invasion of Earth (where the Doctor says farewell to Susan), so the late Bill was also represented. It was always going to be risky having another actor portray the first Doctor, however I think Richard Hurndell (who had played a cowboy in the Hartnell story The Gunfighters) pulled it off well enough. There are a few lines he delivered as though he was in a bad mood, not just tetchy.

Pertwee and Davison were OK; but it was Troughton, with Nick Courtney as the Brigadier, who carried the story.

The story isn't fantastic but with a Dalek, a Yeti, Cybermen, the Master,Rassilon, Gallifrey, old companions, mention of past events and some of the classic lines (Reverse the Polarity; No! Not the mind probe!), the Five Doctors had sufficient nostalgia for its aim as a celebration/ a party.

I prefer the Three Doctors though.
******

Who Review #123 - Earthshock

Some episodes stand out in Doctor Who history and episode 1 of Earthshock is one of them.

The cave sets; the menacing androids - an excellent design with their blank heads - that flit about in the shadows and who reduce victims to boiling puddles of flesh; the incidental music, courtesy of Malcolm Clarke, is one of the most atmospheric pieces ever; and all that building up to the mother of cliffhangers, when we see the Cybermen return after a seven year hiatus.

The Cybermen themselves have undergone another design change and are better looking in many respects - their suit is apparantly a fighter pilot suit , painted silver. Their moonboots are a bit silly and I don't like the transparent jaw. The latter shows a silver chin moving, giving them a more obvious indication that they are slightly biological, but I think it is better when their faces are expressionless masks and their mouths are black slits. Their voices are a bit naff too as they have expression and not the monotone, electronic sound from the Troughton years.

There is more reference to the show's history in this story (the trend was really beginning to pick up) with the Cybermen looking at past stories with the Doctor. It was OK back then as I hadn't seen "the Tenth Planet" or "the Wheel in Space" (clips shown along with "Revenge of the Cybermen"). The waking Cyber army is an attempt to recreate the reactivation scenes of Cybermen in "the Invasion". And we get the trivial Doctor/Cyberleader debate about emotions.

Classic Cyberleader
"EXCELLENT!"

Classic Tegan
"I'm just a mouth on legs."

The body count in the story is quite high, something very noticeable in this era of Who. (The story was written by Eric Saward.) Troopers, freighter crew and Adric are all killed. Adric is the third companion to die - Katarina and Sara were killed back in the Daleks' Masterplan.

The story starts off well but begins to fizzle out as it moves along. The conclusion is dramatic, with Adric trying to solve a logic problem and stop the freighter crashing into Earth, only to see his work destroyed by a Cyberman.

Matthew Waterhouse actually makes a good swansong here but in the end I wasn't miffed to see him go. The scene before Adric is vapourised is touching; he clasps the rope belt passed on to him by his brother Varsh in Full Circle as he watches the Earth loom on the ship's monitor.

A mixed bag but enjoyable.
******

Who Review #80 - Revenge of the Cybermen

episode by episode, scene by scene, runthrough.

The 12th Season ended with the return of a favourite monster. The Cybermen didn't appear in the Pertwee years, although there was one in the miniscope in Carnival of Monsters, so they had been away from the show for about seven years. There would go a number of years again before they appeared, in the Davison era story "Earthshock". I have never heard a reason for that hiatus, although a fan has made the reasonable remark that the silver giants were probably done to death in the Troughton era. I am beginning to get that feeling with New Who and its continued use of the parallel dimension Cybermen.

The action takes place on the Nerva station again, so I have no complaints about the sets. (There is a scene with Tom walking along one of the bending corridors which I remembered from childhood; it was only when I saw that in this story years later that I was able to put a probable date on when I started watching the show.) There is also some great location filming at Wookey Hole. I have grand memories of the caves because I used to live in Bath as a child; I went on a visit to the caves with my infant school.

You could tell flares were in fashion as even Cyber suits had them!The Vogans are interesting though, with their half masks and long white hair. The costumes are also nicely made. The winner in the costumes department though is Liz Sladen, in the Thal uniform she picked up in Genesis: combat trousers and boots - very sassy and what your average G20 protestor wears these days.

The incidental music is a bit of fun. I am one of those fans who adores the Sea Devils, Death to the Daleks and this story's music - there sure are others who have been annoyed by the scores though.

There are a number of problems with the story. The obvious one is it has a number of the same old Cyberman plot features: a beacon or station of humans is attacked by a cyber virus and cybermats and then invaded by the Cybermen. Nothing new to see here, except with the introduction of Voga and yet another way to kill the Cybermen (this time gold). Then there is the plan to destroy Voga because it is the planet of gold; astrophysics and planetary geology will readily tell you there is a lot more gold in the universe than on one small planetoid. Why should Cybermen be effected by gold anyway - that doesn't make sense because they don't breathe?

Revenge has been panned by some fans but I think it's OK.
******

Who Review #76 - Robot

The Doctor wakes up and starts blurbing about Linx, the Brontosaurus and if a mouse spins. Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) takes him to the sick bay. An intruder walks towards a top secret base; it kills a guard and steals plans for a disintegrator gun. sarah gets a pass to visit "Think Tank", a science collective and research establishment. The Doctor, in his nightshirt, heads for the TARDIS. He is interrupted by Harry; the Doctor quickly proves he is OK by chopping a brick in half and skipping. The Brig and Sarah rush back as the TARDIS dematerialisation sound is heard. Sarah stops him rushing off by mentioning the robbery. The intruder gets into another place; it kills another guard and yakes electrical equipment. The Doctor shows the Brig a range of clothes; he is finally persuaded to settle on a floppy broad brimmed hat, a red velvet jacket, tweed trousers and a very long multicoloured scarf. (OK, an admission! I have a Tom Baker replica scarf, which I won in a dr.Who Club quiz at my school many years ago!) The Doctor, Harry and the Brig go to the crime scene. The Doctor finds a pulvarised dandelion, squashed by something weighing hundreds of kilos he reckons. Sarah goes to Think Tank and meets Jellicoe and Winters. The Doctor explains to the Brig that they are dealing with a non-human intelligence which is building a disintegrator gun; therefore they need to guard the third thing it needs. Sarah goes on a tour and, in one room, slips on a patch of oil whilst Winters tells her a Professor Kettlewell left some machinery. UNIT are in place at the factory but the intruder burrows in, kills a soldier and escapes with what it wanted. Sarah visits Kettlewell, who is studying alternative energy; he assures her no-one is carrying on with his research in robotics since he left Think Tank. Sarah sneaks back into Thinktank; she goes to the empty room, where she sees a robot, which asks her what she is doing there.

Jellicoe and Winters say they arranged a demonstration of the robot. The Doctor deduces that the enemy they are facing is homegrown. The robot comes into the room and sarah asks what it does; the robot was created to do jobs that are too dangerous for humans. Sarah wonders if it could be dangerous; Winters orders the robot to kill Sarah but it cannot because it conflicts with its prime directive. (Classic sci-fi: Isaac Asimov's law of robots.) Sarah leaves, with a warning from Winters to be quiet about what she has seen. Jellicoe complains to Winters that the robot has only been reset and could have killed Sarah. Sarah returns to UNIT and mentions the robot, which the Doctor was speculating about as the possible intruder. Winters shows the robot a man's face; she orders it to kill him. Harry suggests UNIT need an inside man at Thinktank; he is proposed as a mole by everyone. The Doctor and co. visit Kettlewell; the latter says it isn't possible that his robot still exists and if it did, Winters couldn't tamper with the robot's mind without driving it mad. The robot kills the man, a minister, and steals nuclear launch codes. Thinktank consist of lots of scientists who belong to an organisation called the Scientific Reform Society (SRS), intent on changing the world on scientific and rational grounds. The Robot, distressed, visits Kettlewell because it has broken its primary directive. Sarah visits the SRS group and learns about their ideology. They are an elitist group. The Doctor and Brig visit Thinktank; Winters tells them that the robot has been dismantled and melted. Winters meets a govt. minister, a Dr. Sullivan. Neither Winters or the Doctor believe each other's stories. Kettlewell calls the Doctor and arranges a meeting; he has the robot, and the Doctor leaves a note which sarah and Benton find. The Doctor is attacked by the robot at Kettlewell's house.

Sarah runs in and asks the robot not to kill the Doctor. The robot likes Sarah and is confused. Benton fires and the robot heads off. Sarah and Benton find Kettlewell locked in a closet. He explains the robot has been forced to commit crimes by Jellicoe and Winters and that this is unbalancing it. Sarah and Kettlewell sneak into an SRS meeting to find out more. The Doctor, Brig and Benton deduce that Thinktank have stolen nuclear codes to launch a war, using the robot, and that Kettlewell is part of the SRS plan. Winters addresses an SRS meeting of the SRS and introduces Kettlewell; Sarah is taken captive. The Doctor breaks into the meeting; he asks why Kettlewell is helping. He answers that the SRS are going to create a world without pollution and injustice. UNIT arrive but Jellicoe, Winters and the robot leave with Sarah. Harry reaches the Brig and mentions a bunker before he is knocked out and is taken captive. UNIT and the Doctor go to Thinktank's nuclear bunker; they break down the defensive measures around it. The Doctor cuts open the door with the sonic screwdriver. The robot moves to head them off. Winters sets Kettlewell to work on the nuclear codes.

UNIT prepare a desperate attack whilst the Doctor deals with the bunker lock. Kettlewell doesn't want to carry through with the SRS plan. Sarah, Harry and Kettlewell move to the surface. The robot kills Kettlewell and goes insane. The Doctor and co. enter the bunker and he sets to work deprogramming the launch codes. Jellicoe and Winters are arrested. The robot takes Sarah captive. The Doctor and Brig contemplate what to do. (Classic Brig: "Just once I'd like to meet an alien menace that wasn't immune to bullets.") Benton mentions something Kettlewell said about living metal and a virus that destroys metal. Harry and Doctor head for Kettlewell's lab. The robot restarts the countdown; the major powers have activated a fail safe. It plans on destroying humanity which it views as corrupt and evil. The robot emerges from the bunker; the Brig shoots it with the disintegrator gun, which makes the robot grow to King Kong size. It lifts Sarah up in a claw and puts her in safety. UNIT can't do anything against it (when COULD they?); the Doctor returns with a batch of the metal virus and pours it on the robot, destroying it. Back at UNIT HQ, UNIT is sad. The Doctor offers her a jelly baby. The Doctor says the robot was a marvellous thing, capable of great good and evil. Harry pops in; he doesn't believe the TARDIS is what it is said to be. He enters. The three take off to the Brigadier's consternation, who must think up an excuse for why the Doctor won't be dining at the Palace.

Tom Baker bristles with energy from the moment go! Another succesful story where a new actor fills the big shoes. And what a change too. Pertwee was without a doubt the most serious of the Doctors (surprising really, given Hartnell's tetchy grandpa portrayal); T.B. is just zany and anarchic compared to Jon. And I have a complete lack of objectivity here: I love Tom as he is the Doctor I grew up watching as a small child. The first story I remember is the Sontaran Experiment (nr.3 in this, the 12th season). The Who reviews will have a few childhood reflections from now on as this was the stuff I saw and was terrified by! My older sister pokes fun at me because we watched the show on weekends at my grandparents and I invariably hid my frightened face in a cushion in their front room.

The actual story is a rather weak re-working of the dino story: evil scientists want to make a better world by destroying most of humanity. Obviously, there are differences. The SRS aren't explicitly "green". The SRS dress up in uniforms with their logo on their arms - a group of fascists then. Plotwise (and otherwise, anyway!), it's a bit daft to have a bunch of scientists wishing nuclear holocaust and suffer its winter; they would, more than most, know the deadly result for themselves.

Not a classic, the supporting cast were boring for starters, but Tom's were to come. This story was the end of another era. The Barry Letts/Terrance Dicks producer and script editor duo ended here. Once again, objectivity vanishes as the new duo of Phillip Hinchcliffe (producer) and Robert Holmes (script editor) were ones I grew up with and love; I owe them some of my most unforgettable childhood, Saturday evening frights! Letts and Dicks, like so many before them, are great though - they have certainly entertained an older me.

I liked the music for the Robot. And the Robot itself is just fantastic! Kilgarrif (who played the Cyber Leader in Tomb of the Cybermen, for example) looms over all in this wonderous costume. Apropos music/effects:

The Bernard Lodge time tunnel was altered here and it is simply THE best title sequence in all of Who.

Robot.
******

Who Review #66 - the Three Doctors

Picture: Jon Pertwee (left) and Patrick Troughton (from the bbc.co.uk website).

This story aired from the 30th December 1972 - 20th January 1973 and was a celebration of ten years of the show. (November 1973 would have been more fitting, of course, but the show had a run/TV schedule from - roughly - January to April during the Pertwee era.)

And what a way to celebrate - have all the Doctors in an episode: tetchy, elderly statesman Hartnell; clown and quicksilver Troughton; tall, dandy Pertwee. Sadly, William Hartnell was seriously ill by this time and, even sadder, he died a couple of years later. His small, pre-recorded, scenes were nonetheless true to his characterisation of the Doctor.

A piece of equipment, studying cosmic rays, has landed on farmland; Dr.Tyler drives down to retrieve it. A game warden, Ollis, touches the machine and vanishes. Tyler contacts UNIT about the warden's mysterious disappearance and because he has been getting strange readings and images. Tyler develops an image, which shows the face of Ollis; he is touched by some crackling substance and vanishes too. The Doctor investigates the place where Ollis vanished; the area crackles with radiation. The blob thing crawls out of a pipe back at UNIT and the Doctor and Jo see Bessie vanish. The Doctor sees the image developed by Tyler and checks the cosmic ray machine, which crackles with radiation. The Doctor is convinced that something alien is searching for him and that the beam on Tyler's images is the means it has used to reach Earth. UNIT HQ is then attacked by blob like creatures, which suddenly appear. UNIT engage in their usual pointless fire fight (bullets never work against aliens!) with heavy casualties. Benton, Jo and the Doctor are forced into the TARDIS as the original blob enters the Doctor's lab. ("Well Sergeant; aren't you going to say it's bigger on the inside than it is on the outside? Everyone else does," "Pretty obvious, isn't it!") The Doctor sends an SOS/report to the Time Lords. The Time Lords are being drained of energy; the source of the lightbeam is a black hole. The cosmos is in danger, so the Time Lords send the Doctor help - they send the Doctor! (Patrick Troughton. From now on, I'll say Pat, Jon and Bill for clarity.) A recorder materialises in the TARDIS and then Pat. Jo is confused; Benton recognises Pat and asks where he came from; Jon is infuriated by the scruff. Jo tries to get an explanation. Pat says they are the same time lord, whilst Jon says

Jon: I am he and he is me
Jo: and we are all together, goo-goo keechoo
Jon: what?
Jo: it's a song by the Beatles
Pat: oh? How does it go? [puts recorder to lips]
Jon: please do be quiet!

Pat explains the situation - he has been sent so the Doctor's effectiveness will be doubled. ("Halved!" says Jon.) Pat and Jon have a telepathic conference, where they exchange information on the situation. The Time Lords look on in dismay as Pat and Jon argue because Pat started playing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little star on his recorder", much to the annoyance of Jon. They decide to get Bill too, as a means of holding the other Doctors in order. Bill appears on the TARDIS monitor.

Bill: You're my replacements? A dandy and a clown! Have you done anything?
Pat: We've assessed the situation.
Bill: Just as I thought - nothing!

Bill tells Pat and Jon that the blobs are a time bridge and that they should cross that bridge. Pat tosses a coin and puts it away before the result can be seen, saying hard luck to Jon. Jon leaves the TARDIS, Jo runs out after him and both vanish.

Benton and Pat examine the blob; the Brig goes to the lab and stares in disbelief at the figure he met in the London Underground, during the Yeti business, and again with the Cybermen. the Brig thinks the TARDIS has changed the Doctor's appearance again. Jo and Jon have travelled into the black hole, where they find themselves on a desolated landscape. (Otherwise known as a trusty quarry, used by the BBC for alien worlds.) They see part of the lab and find Bessie. Pat sets up a mechanism in order to hold the blob subdued; however, it reacts to the machine and forces the Big, Benton and Pat into the TARDIS. (The Brig looks at the TARDIS interior and doesn't believe it; Pat offers him a jelly baby. Tom wasn't the first!) Jon and Jo meet Tyler. A figure watches them and is pleased he has a time lord in his power. Pat wants to find his recorder; he has lost it. Jo, Jon and Tyler are taken to the figure's citadel. Bill (trapped in a time eddy) instructs Pat to turn the TARDIS force field off. The TARDIS and "Liberty Hall" (aka UNIT HQ) vanish.

Jo, Jon and Tyler are led into a hall, where they meet a Time Lord, Omega. Jo and Tyler are put in a cell whilst jon talks with Omega. Omega made time travel possible for the Time Lords; he was a solar engineer who created the energy which made the Time Lords who they are. Jon says he respects Omega; Omega says he was abandoned and should be worshipped as a god. The world of Omega is a world of anti-matter. He has brought Jon because he needs his help. The Brig is in for a shock; he thinks UNIT HQ and they have been brought to Cromer in Norfolk. The Brig has a look round and finds Ollis; they watch as blobs take Pat and Benton away. They follow. Omega wants revenge. Omega understands that Pat and Jon are the Doctor; thunder peels and they are led away to the cell as Omega is angry. Jo reckons Omega cannot be as all powerful as that, otherwise why bring the Doctor(s) to the black hole? She also says the Doctors can summon up a door to the cell; they use their telepathic abilities to make a door to the cell. They head back to Omega and the Doctors will use their will against him. (Jo, Benton and Tyler escape and meet up with Ollis and the Brig.) Omega sets Jon up in a fight against a projection of the dark side of his mind.

Jon is released when Pat says Omega will lose his one chance of freedom if he destroys Jon. Pat wants Omega to summon up a recorder. Omega is angry; Jon is too, until Pat says he is testing Omega, because he has noticed this anti-matter world has quakes when Omega is angry. Omega explains that this anti-matter domain of his exists because of his will; he cannot escape it because it would collapse the moment he relinquished his will. That is why he has the Doctors; they will take over his place, letting him escape. Pat and Jon remove Omega's mask - they see there is nothing corporeal left of him; only his will exists now. Omega, upon seeing this, wants to destroy everything. Pat and Jon run during Omega's anger. Jon, Pat, Jo, the Brig and co. run into the TARDIS. Pat and Jon remove the force field generator and discover Pat's recorder - it has fallen into it and is still matter, not anti-matter. They land the TARDIS at Omega's citadel. Jo and co. return to Earth via the singularity,and the Doctors escape in the TARDIS, just as Omerga reaches for the recorder. There is a massive explosion and the Time Lords have a new source of power. Bill and Pat return to their time streams. Jon looks gloomy; Jo asks what's up a, and he tells her he feels sorry for Omega. The Time Lords finally lift their exile on the Doctor and he is free to move through time and space again.

The Three Doctors is a lovely story. Troughton and Pertwee played off each other well; it was a fun idea to have them bickering half the time. Pat looked like he hadn't left the show at all - he fell right back into his loveable clown role. I liked Omega, as he is such a tragic villain and the BBC's costume dept. came up trumps with his mask. The blobs aren't all that fantastic to look at but they are fun though, making a sort of upset stomach noise! I suppose some of the weakness of this story is that the supporting cast get very little to do but any and all weaknesses pale because of the Doctors, together!
******

Who Review #56 - Terror of the Autons

Picture: How Radio Times showcased the new season and a new enemy back in 1971.

Season eight starts with the introduction of three marvellous, new characters: Richard Franklin as UNIT Captain Mike Yates; Katy Manning as companion Jo Grant; and that classic of Doctor Who villains, Roger Delgado as the Master.

A TARDIS materialises at Rossini's Circus. The man who steps out is clad in black, with a dark goatie (with shades of grey at the sides) and hypnotic eyes. The figure tells Rossini that he is known as the Master and then hypnotises him. The Doctor is working on a piece of equipment when Jo Grant comes in. It goes up in smoke and Jo uses an extinguisher on it; he gets a little irritated and says he doesn't want to be interupted. She is his new assistant. Jo tells the Doctor that the Nestene Energy unit has been stolen. The Master goes to a radio telescope and shoots its operator; he then takes out the Nestene Energy Unit and connects it up to the radio telescope. It starts to pulsate. The Doctor complains to the Brigadier about Jo. The Brig relates that Liz always said what the Doctor only needs is someone to pass him test tubes and tell him how brilliant he is, something Jo can do; also, she got the job because of a family connection. The Doctor reluctantly accepts Jo. They head off for the radio telescope. (Thousands of Whovians shout: beware of the Master and Radio telescopes, Doctor!) A Time Lord warns the Doctor that the Master has arrived on Earth. The Master has set a trap - a volatiser rigged to the door. The Doctor manages to catch it before it falls and defuses it. He meets the Director and Capt. Yates. They find the body of the technician, shrunken and put in his lunchbox. The Doctor explains the Nestene threat to Jo. She investigates a plastics factory, where the Master has hypnotic control of Farrell; she is captured and hypnotised by the Master - Jo is ordered to return to UNIT with a negative report; he is also busy making Autons. A UNIT box is recovered and Jo goes to open it; the Doctor realises it is a bomb.

The Doctor manages to throw it out a window before it explodes. He realises she has been hypnotised and sets to work helping her recover. The Master has a plan of making things to destroy mankind. Farrell Sr. talks to his son and wants to stop him changing production. Sr. is not susceptible to the Master's hypnosis, he gives Sr. a troll doll, saying it is a new product. A missing radio astronmer's car is found in a field; the field is where Rossini's circus had been. The Doctor sets off to investigate the circus. In Farrell Sr.'s car, the heat makes the troll doll come alive; he opens a window and the troll collapses inert again. The Master has set a trap, using Phillips, the missing scientist. Jo follows the Doctor to Rossini's. The Doctor is tied up by Rossini and Tony, the Strong Man (Roy Stewart - the Tomb of the Cybermen) when he is seen examining the Master's TARDIS, which is disguised as a horsebox. Jo reports the situation to the Brigadier; she sees Phillips. The troll doll is put above a heater, back at Farrell Sr.'s house; it comes alive and strangles him. Jo knocks out Tony and unties the Doctor. Phillips runs in with a grenade, under the hypnotic control of the Master; the Doctor breaks the control but Phillips is killed when he tries to get rid of the grenade. The Doctor goes into the Master's TARDIS and takes the dematerialisation circuit. An angry group of circus artists starts to threaten them. A police car arrives and the policemen take Jo and the Doctor. He looks at a policeman, then grabs hold of the policeman's mask - they are left looking at the blank face of an Auton.

The Doctor and Jo rush out of the car. Yates and the Brig followed them and pick them up. The Brig, tries to hold a discussion meeting on the Master and the Autons, but the Doctor is terribly rude. After an irritated Brig walks off, the Doctor tries to use the Master's dematerialisation circuit in the TARDIS, but to no avail as the circuit is a newer model. He exits the ship in a cloud of smoke; but he smiles because the Master's TARDIS is now useless. The Master has made plastic daffodils which Auton clowns hand out. The Doctor hears of the death of Farrell Sr. and visits his widow. There he learns that a Col. Masters is a new partner at the plastics factory. Mrs. Farrell gives the Doctor the troll doll. A telephone man (the Master in disguise) wires in a new telephone at the UNIT lab; Yates boils some water and the nearby troll starts to move. The Doctor and Brig go to Farrell's factory, but find it deserted. The Doctor picks up a plastic daffodil for further examination. Jo is saved by Yates who shoots the troll. In the factory, the Doctor and the Brig narrowly escape being shot by an Auton, hidden in a safe. Back at the lab, the Doctor receives a call. It is from the Master, who sends a signal that activates the plastic chord, which tries to strangle the Doctor.

The Brigadier rips the chord out of the wall. The Doctor receives word that plastic daffodils are being handed out on a promotional tour. The coachload of Autons is in a quarry; the Brig. orders a RAF strike on the coach. Jo tries to hail the Brig via radio. The signal activates the daffodil which fires a film of plastic over her face. The Doctor manages to get it off her. The Master enters the lab and confronts the Doctor; the Doctor holds the dematerialsation circuit to stop the Master shooting. Jo enters and the Master threatens to kill Jo. She mentions the RAF strike and the Master decides to keep them alive a little while longer. They drive to the quarry, forcing the Brig to abort the strike. The Doctor is able to send a message via Bessie's breaklights. the Brig gets the message stating the daffodils are dangerous and the radio telescope must be guarded. Jo knows escapology and undoes her ropes. The coach heads for the telescope and Jo and the Doctor jump. The Autons and UNIT have a fire fight (with the usual high casualty rate for UNIT). The Master operates the dish but is persuaded by the Doctor to expell the Nestene becuse they would kill all of them. The Autons fall lifeless. They think they have killed the Master when he approaches, makes for a gun and is shot by Yates. It is Farrell though, in a plastic mask. The Master escapes in the coach. The Doctor smiles when he says the Master is trapped - he gave him his dematerialisation circuit. The Master's circuit is in the Doctor's possession.

Terror...by Robert Holmes is a great story. Jo Grant is simply a sweetheart from the second she enters the Doctor's lab, whilst the Master is a different league of villain altogether- cunning, ruthless and suave. (His sudden change of mind at the end of episode 4 is the major failing, storywise.)

The problem of making Terror different to Spearhead from Space was solved beautifully - rather than masses of Autons roaming about, the weapons would be everyday objects. The idea of killer dolls and daffodils or chairs that suffocate (Farrell Sr.'s partner is killed by one) is terrifying. In fact, Barry Letts recounted the complaints over the troll and the Auton policeman: one of his friend's children wouldn't take a teddy to bed in case it came alive and strangled him; and Scotland Yard were furious that police were made to look scary.

There were numerous, marvellous lines in the dialogue:

Classic Jo
Jo: [big smile and twinkling eyes] I'm your new assistant.
Doctor: [looking aghast] Oh no!....I really don't think your suitable.
Jo: I'm a fully qualified agent....
Doctor: What I need is a scientist
Jo: I took general science at A-Level

a little later,

Doctor: I thought you took an A-Level in science?
Jo: I didn't say I passed.

One of the other negative features of the story is one the characteristics of the Doctor himself. He is terribly brash and rude to Jo, the Brig and almost everyone; plus he seems remarkably chummy with "the Institution". (He mentions being at a club with a Lordship. There are other instances of this which I will mention later on.)

The introduction of Delgado's Master is a highlight of this great story - he has his own little incidental music tune, and of course his catchphrase: "You will obey me!"
******

Who Review #51 - the War Games

This story is the second longest in the show's history, coming in at ten episodes. And it is a sad story, yet again! As mentioned, Troughton, Wendy Padbury and Frazer Hines all left at the same time and it was in this story. It is an important story because the format changed after this and we finally got to learn about the Doctor's own people - the Time Lords. Up until then, the Meddling Monk and Susan were the only people we knew from his home.

Like with Hartnell's era, I watched all of the Troughton era (existing episodes and recons) in order in 2007 on YouTube, seeing much I hadn't before. I adored Bill and also adored Troughton. I don't compare the two or ask who was better; that is like trying to compare a fine wine and a pint of real ale: both are delightful in their own way and cannot be compared. Troughton's humour, soft voice and ability to act the complete clown were a delight, as was his scruffy appearance. It is such a shame that his very best stories (the Tomb of the Cybermen and the Invasion aside) are all but lost. And the Debbie Watling/Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury/Frazer Hines duos were a treat. Hines as Jamie wins my best male companion award. Of course, there haven't been many male companions so it is a bit easy to choose! William Russell (Ian) and Peter Purves (Steven) share 2nd-3rd places.

The Troughton era
"Oh my giddy aunt!"
"When I say run, run!"
"No! no! no! no! no!"
"You've just got to!"
playing a recorder

Classic Zoe
Naughty Zoe - another silly but funny clip and paste of audio, akin to Naughty Victoria.
Wendy in a trench coat with boots combo; later, an army coat and cap which are miles too big for her.

To the review.....

The TARDIS materialises on what looks like the Western front during World War I. There is a barrage but the Doctor and co. and meet Lady Buckingham. All four are captured by German soldiers. They drive the ambulance but are stopped by British troops and the companions and Doctor taken to the British lines. The Doctor takes a peek and machine gun fire makes him take cover. They are questioned and sent to General Smythe. He opens a painting to reveal a TV monitor and says he is in the British sector 1917 and wants more specimens. The Doctor and co. begin to be suspected of being spies. Carstairs and Buckingham talk about their experiences; they don't seem to remember anything. Capt. Ransome (played by a Who regular, Hubert Rees) reports to Smythe; Smythe mesmerises him, saying he didn't see him. Then he mesmerises Carstairs. The Doctor and co. are presented before a court martial, presided over by Smythe. Jamie is accused of desertion from a Highland regiment, whilst Zoe and the Doctor are charged with espionage - the punishment is death. Ransome and Barrington are mesmerised by Smythe - they pass a guilty judgement. The Doctor is to be shot at dawn. Zoe, being looked after by Buckingham, finds the monitor in Smythe's quarters. She tries to rescue the Doctor, but to no avail. He is taken out by a military detail for execution.

The firing squad is attacked by a German sniper, allowing Zoe to untie the Doctor and escape. Smythe is forced to mesmerise Ransome again because a machine materialises to collect Smythe. A Redcoat is put in the cell with Jamie; the Redcoat believes the year is 1745. The Doctor and Zoe bluff a ride to the prison holding Jamie. He and the Redcoat feign a fight and knock out the guards who come in to stop it. Buckingham is beginning to remember things. The redcoat is shot and Jamie recaptured. The Doctor is masquerading as an inspector, but the escape plan fails - they are recaptured. Buckingham grows more suspicious because Ransome doesn't remember the court martial. Zoe and co. go to Smythe's room with Carstairs to look at the monitor. He and Buckingham finally see the monitor, but Smythe has registered the Doctor and co. They make off in Buckingham's ambulance. Smythe returns in his machine. The ambulance passes through some fog; suddenly the group find themselves under attack from Roman soldiers.

They drive back into 1917. The Doctor realises that there are different time zones. they go to Smythe's office to find maps of the area and its time zones. The map has all sorts of zones from Earth's history of military battles; in the middle is a blank space, which they head for. The ambulance is taken by German soldiers, again. The Doctor and co. are questioned by a German officer; the Doctor explains they are time travellers and demonstartes the sonic screwdriver. The officer's CO enters and mesmerises him, saying they are spies. The German CO has a monitor in his quarters; he reports the threesome and that they are time travellers. They escape from the German HO. Smythe, in an advanced, alien building talks with the War Chief; the latter looks concerned when Smythe tells him they are time travellers. The ambulance enters the American Civil War zone, where they are ambushed. Carstairs is captured. Smythe and the German discuss battle plans to test their humans. the ambulance breaks down, the Doctor and co. take refuge in a barn, a machine materialises and dozens of Yankee soldiers exit. The Doctor and Zoe enter the ship and it dematerialises without warning.

Jamie and Buckingham are taken prisoner by Yankees. The machine materialises in the alien base. Zoe mentions it is similar to the TARDIS and wonders who else has machines like that; the Doctor is suddenly concerned. They come across a large number of German soldiers and Romans in a trancelike state. The yankees run when they are attacked by confederates. Leroy (Leslie Schofield - later in EastEnders) reports to his general, who is the same person as the CO in the German 1917 zone. The machine arrives at the alien central command. Jamie and Buckingham are rescued by Harper (Rudolph Walker - Patrick in EastEnders), from a resistance group who have seen through the deceptions and time zones. Zoe and the Doctor enter a room where a lecture is given on the resistance to the mind control; Carstairs is brought in and reconditioned. Carstairs suddenly points out the Doctor and Zoe as German spies, but isn't believed. The Doctor talks to the scientist, learning about the processing machine. Jamie and Buckingham meet the resistance group. The War Chief enters; the Doctor and Zoe run for it. Carstairs grabs Zoe an dsys it is his duty to shoot German spies. He points a gun at her.

The scientist stops Carstairs and then Zoe is questioned by someone. The Doctor returns to the deprocessing room, where he rescues Carstairs, who remembers again. Jamie and rebels defeat a group of people who come through in one of the machines. The War Chief has begun cooperating with a race of people; he has special knowledge and also recognises the Doctor. Jamie and some of the resistance soldiers get into one of the machines and take off. The scientist talks with his fellow security chief. The inquisitor mentions that Zoe knows of time and space travel. The scientist says only the War Chief and his people know of such travel. Jamie and the soldiers step out of the machine and are fired upon by guards.

The security chief talks further with the scientist about the Doctor, the War Chief and their people - the Time Lords. (Episode 6 is the first time we hear the name.) The scientist examines the stunned soldiers carefully and finds Jamie isn't processed. The soldiers are rescued and then Jamie. The Doctor, Jamie and Carstairs remain in the alien base in order to get the processing machine. They are given an ultimatum by the security officer. The War Chief operates the dimensional control of the machine and says they have 30 seconds to surrender or else be crushed.

The Doctor exits, uses a smoke bomb and resets the machine's control. They escape. The War Lord arrives at the alien base. The Doctor and co. nearly meet up again with the rebels and Zoe in the 1917 sector. The Doc and co. are taken before Smythe again, but the rebels storm the buildings and kill Smythe. The Doctor fiddles with one of the machines and sets up a time zone barrier, where they are safe from the fighting. The security controller launches a quick raid though and grabs the Doctor and the processing machine.

The Doctor is interrogated by the security leader, who tries to get him to admit he is in league with the War Chief and the Time Lords. The Doctor can prevent a mind scan; so the War Chief, who is a Time Lord, will interrogate the Doctor. The War Chief recognises the Doctor and we learn the Doctor stole the TARDIS and left his people. The War Chief is explains the plan: to create an army, using humans, to conquer the galaxy. Zoe and co. are taken by surprise by Arturo Villa; they talk and try to get his help. The War Chief wants to use the War Lord to take over and wants the Doctor's aid. The rebels begin to lay a plan of action: destruction of communicator machines in the war zones in order to lure one of the War Lord space machines. The Doctor talks to Zoe and Jamie on a monitor; he promises to send a machine. When they land, the Doctor turns out to have lured them and the rebels. They are surrounded by guards.

The War Chief's machines have a limited life, so he wants the TARDIS and the Doctor. He is keeping the Doctor alive for that reason. They go to the War Lord. The Doctor continues to play as if he wants to help him. The Doctor says he will reprocess the rebels and is left alone with them. He explains that he played along because the Security leader was going to use a neutron bomb to destroy them. The Security leader listens to a tape where he hears the War Chief's plan and has him arrested. The Doctor and rebels re-capture the War Chief and take over the war room. The Security leader is shiot by the War Chief. The latter stops the fighting. The Doctor is forced to call for help from the Time Lords to help the soldiers back. The War Chief implores that he not call them as he and the Doctor will face their wrath. The War Chief runs and is killed by the War Lord. The rebels overpower the War Lord. The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe make a run for it as the Time Lords arrive.

The Doctor explains he ran from the Time Lords because he was bored of the Time Lord life because they rarely use their powers. The Doctor wanted to see all of time and its civilisations. They materialise different places but are caught up with by the Time Lords. The Doctor is forced to go back to his home planet and face trial for breaking the law. Jamie, Zoe and the Doctor are taken to a courtroom. They see the War Lord tried, convicted and dematerialised with his men (who tried a last ditch rescue effort) as punishment. The Doctor stands trial for breaking the Time Lord law of non-intervention in the affairs of others. The Doctor defends himself by showing the Daleks, Cybermen, etc he has fought against. Jamie and Zoe are sent home to their own times, at a time when they will remember only their first adventure with the Doctor. The Time Lords accept that their is evil to fight and the Doctor has a part to play. His appearance is changed, his knowledge of the TARDIS taken and he is exiled to 20th Century Earth.

The War Games is a marvellous story. The way the plot is layered is excellent, starting with the mysteries of the Western Front. There are a few spots towards the middle where I felt the story lost a bit of pace, but on the whole it moves nicely towards the climatic finish of meeting the Time Lords and the trial. The way the War Chief and the Doctor speak of the Time Lords intrigues the viewer straight away as to what their fellow race are like.

Peter Brayshaw's puts in a great performance and his War Chief is a great villain. There are some other good performances too.

The end of another era and done in fine style.
******

Who Review #47 - the Invasion

Picture: Sally Faulkner (left) and Wendy Padbury

Episodes 1 and 4 of this eight part story are lost. They have been brought back to life, though, with some excellent flash animation by Cosgrove Hall. If only all the missing episodes could be brought to life like that!

This is pretty much a test run of a new format for the show. Troughton was going to leave by this time, and Padbury and Hines decided to bow out along with him. The story is on Earth, with an alien menace and the Doctor assisted by Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, Benton and UNIT. All that is missing from the story is the Master; with him, it would be a Jon Pertwee story! This story also marks the beginning of Terrance Dicks's association with the show, as a script editor.

The TARDIS reassembled, has materialised close to the Moon. A missile is fired at the ship. They land in a field and laugh at the sight of a cow on the scanner. Leaving, they notice the TARDIS is invisible because of the emergency. They get a lift as they intend to visit Professor Travers in London. They stop and hide with their driver; they are on the grounds of a company, International Electromatics (IE), compound. The driver smuggles the travellers out; he is stopped by some guards and he is shot. The Doctor and co. get another lift. In London, they are surprised to see the Travis house occupied by photographer Isobel Watkins Sally Faulkner). There they learn her uncle works for International Electromatics and that he has disappeared. The Doctor and Jamie investigate, whilst Zoe models for Isobel. Benton and another man are keeping an eye on the IE building. The Doctor and Jamie are taken to see the chief of IE, Tobias Vaughn, by his security officer Packer. The Doctor hands Vaughn the circuits he wanted fixing. Jamie is presented with a transitor as a gift. The Doctor is suspicious of Vaughn, who - back in his office - has opened a panel to reveal an alien device.

Jamie and the Doctor are picked up by Benton and his men. Vaughn wants the TARDIS circuits studied and orders pictures developed of the Doctor and Jamie. Zoe and Isobel go to IE to find the travellers. The Doctor and Jamie meet up with Lethbridge-Stewart. He explains that they have created a new organisation called UNIT following the Yeti business and that IE is under their investigation. Vaughn communicates with the machine; an electronic voice says the images are recognised and Jamie and the Doctor are dangerous and must be destroyed. Zoe destroys the IE computer by feeding it an Algol command. Packer takes them to Vaughn. The Brigadier explains that a number of people have gone into the IE and they have changed upon coming out. IE controls the electronics industry worldwide. Back at the house, Jamie and the Doctor tuck into sandwiches (another Pertwee element!) as the Doctor examines the electronics in the transistor radio; they look at the wall to find a message from Zoe. They rush off to IE after Zoe and Isobel, who are taken captive at IE. Vaughn communicates again with his unknown allies; they say once more that the Doctor must be destroyed. Inside IE, they see a man carry a massive box with ease, but they have been alerted. Vaughn orders the Doctor caught. The travellers hear Zoe and Isobel's screams and running to help are caught by Packer and his guards.

Vaughn sends off capsules, one containing Zoe and Isobel. He moves off with the doctor and Jamie, followed by UNIT, to his countryside base. Packer threatens harm to Isobel in order to blackmail Watkins to continue working on a machine. The Doctor and Jamie are led to Watkins who remembers being told of them by Anne Travers; meanwhile Vaughn is observing their discussion via surveillance. Realising this, the Doctor jams the signal but not before Vaughn hears about the TARDIS and is intrigued. Vaughn wants to know about the ship and threatens to harm Zoe. They escape from Packer and climb up a lift shaft; he starts the lift whilst Jamie and the Doctor are still in the shaft. They make it to the roof and escape down the fire escape. They hide in a train wagon which contains more capsules. Climbing into one capsule, Jamie sees a covered figure begin to move.

The Doctor and Jamie set off to rescue the girls. Vaughn and Packer discuss the Invasion; the former believes the emotional pulses from Watkins's machine can threaten his allies, and that when they invade he can then dispose of them. If all else fails, the TARDIS can help as an escape to prevent being converted into an invader. The Doctor is told to turn himself over in ten minutes or Zoe will be harmed. The girls spot him and signal for help. The Doctor radios the Brigadier, asking for assistance fromCapt. Turner and the UNIT helicopter. They escape using a rope ladder and get into the helicopter. Vaughn is forced to bring the invasion forward - it will begin in a day. The Doctor, back at UNIT, speculates about the object they saw on the Moon and the missile attack, the deep space raion transmitter at IE and reported sightings of UFOs. Vaughn, Watkins and co. go back to London with the machine. The Doctor wants to go to the IE premises because he must find out what is in the capsules that have been transported by IE train to London. They sneak onto the premises, where they observe a machine that lets out a pulsating noise. The machine awakens a cacooned figure - a Cyberman!

The Doctor returns to UNIT and tells them of the Cybermen. Lethbridge-Stewart tries to get his superior, Rutlidge, at the MOD to investigate, but the Major is under Vaughn's control and thus orders no action be taken. The Brigadier says he will get authority from UNIT in Geneva. Rutlidge reports that UNIT are moving against IE to Vaughn. More Cybermen are brought to life where they are to guard the London sewers, where the Cyberman invasion force is being hidden. The Doctor suspects that there might be something in electronic gadgets that will help the invasion. Vaughn uses an emotional impulse(fear) on another revived Cyberman; it walks off down the sewers screaming in torment. Isobel, Zoe and Jamie head off to get pictures of Cybermen in order to get the proof UNIT need to take action. Vaughn confers with the Cybermen: he gets them to accept that he will not be converted into a Cyberman and that he will remain leader of the Earth, in return he will supply minerals to the Cybermen. Down in the sewers, Zoe and co. are advanced upon and trapped by Cybermen.

The insane Cyberman walks past the girls and Jamie. Capt. Turner and UNIT men have followed them into the sewers; they kill two Cybermen with grenades and all but one soldier escape. The Brigadier doesn't think Isobel's photos will be sufficient proof. Watkins has completed his machine. He says he will kill Vaughn, who takes Packer's gone and gives it to Watkins. He shoots Vaughn but the bullets have no effect. Benton and his UNIT fellows rescue Watkins who are taking Watkins. The Doctor talks to Watkins and realises what the machine is for and why the circuits in electronic gadgets has been placed there. They will replicate the Cyber mind control. The Doctor sets to work on making patches that protect the use from Cyber control, much like those in the Wheel in Space. A signal is sent and people suddenly collapse all over London. Cybermen begin bursting out of the sewers and walking the streets of London. (One of my favourite "Who moments".)

Picture: the Cybermen invade! St.Paul's Cathedral is in the background.

UNIT men have collapsed but some, thanks to the Doctor, are OK. Packer is ordered to capture Watkins; however, he is forced to report UNIT are not under full Cyber control. UNIT plan to use a rocket to blow up the Cyber control signal from the Moon. The Doctor goes to Vaughn in order to buy time as well as leave his radio on so UNIT can hear his discussion. The Cybermen begin to send in their invasion fleet but part of it is destroyed by the missile. The Cybermen no longer need Vaughn and plan to use a Cyber bomb to kill all life on Earth.

Vaughn realises the Cybermen are to be destroyed and goes against them. Packer is killed by a Cyberman who in turn is destroyed by Watkin's machine. UNIT prepare their forces to attack whilst the Russians launch another missile. Vaughn and the Doctor and the UNIT forces converge on an old IE building, which contains the control signal for the bomb. UNIT and Cybermen engage in a firefight. Vaughn is killed by a Cyberman. The Cybership moves towards Earth and everyone must wait a painful 12 minutes before the Russian missile can change course. The Cyberbomb is released and missiles are fired to destroy it. The Cyber ship is destroyed by the Russian missile. Isobel and Capt. Turnerdrop off the Doctor and companions back at the field where the TARDIS landed. They stare in disbelief as the now visible ship dematerialises

The Invasion is quite simpply fantastic stuff! Kevin Stoney (Mavic Chen in the Daleks' Masterplan) is great as Vaughn as is Nicholas Courtney as the Brig. Sally Faulkner is spirited and babealicious as Isobel - her argument with the Brig is the first time a definite school of political thought (feminism) was mentioned in the show. The Cybermen hardly show in this story but when they do they are far better than their outing in the Wheel in Space; also, they have another design overhaul which looks impressive and is also more like the Cybermen in future stories than the previous designs. (The scenes in the sewers were really creepy, and the cybersuits worked well as they reflected the lighting.)

There is a lovely running bit of incidental music that wouldn't have been out of place in an episode of the Avengers. Indeed, the eight episodes are crammed full of action; the story hardly goes flat at all, like in some of the other long stories from this era of the show.

Success for Women's Lib
Brigadier: This is hardly a job for you...You're a young woman. This is a job for my men.
Isobel: Well, of all the bigoted, anti-feminist, cretinous remarks!
Brigadier: This is no job for a girl like you and that's final.
Isobel: Oh you...you man!

Classic Zoe
Solving an absurdly complex maths problem in 30 seconds.

Running about with Isobel in mini-skirts (with numerous shots of both ladies' knickers).

A true classic in the show. The shots of the Cybermen walking around in London are as excellent as when the Daleks were filmed, back in the Dalek In vasion of Earth.
******

Who Review #44 - the Wheel in Space

Episode 3 and 6 exist of this six parter.

the TARDIS materialises but suddenly shows a warning message and develops a fault. Mercury vapour is released from the fluid link and the walls shimmer when the Doctor removes the time vector generator, forcing the Doctor and Jamie to exit quickly. The TARDIS now has the inside appearance of an ordinary telephone box. They find themselves in metal rooms; they investigate. In a control room, a robot operates some buttons. The travellers are aboard a rocket. The Doctor finds a food dispenser which issues some cubes. (Jamie: I've heard of a square meal but this is ridiculous!) The rocket crew appear to have vanished. The robot seals off the door leading to the TARDIS. Jamie sleeps, whilst the Doctor investigates the rocket. It changes course and throws Jamie and the Doctor to the floor, where the latter hits his head. The robot opens the ship and releases white spheres that float away. The rocket moves towards a wheel shaped space station. The Doctor uses the time vector generator (TVG) on the sealed door; the two run when the robot appears. They lock the door, the robot begins to cut through it but is destroyed when Jamie uses the TVG. The humans on the Wheel monitor the progress of the rocket. The spheres move towards the Wheel, then are absorbed. The Wheel's commander, Bennett, is going to destroy the rocket with a laser.

The Wheel's crew prepare to fire. Tanya Lernov and Ryan talk about the possibility of someone being aboard. Dr.Corwyn and Bennett talk too, the former saying the rocket should be checked. Jamie points the TVG at the Wheel; there is a burst of noise in the personnel's headphones. Lernov notices that the pulses are repeating and therefore there is someone aboard. Two men come across to the rocket and meet Jamie. Lernov discusses the strangers and falls in air pressure aboard the Wheel with Ryan. More spheres move towards the Wheel. Corwyn examines Jamie; she asks for their names and Jamie says - after noticing the name of some equipment - that the Doctor is called John Smith. (This is an alias the Doctor was to use from now on.) Corwyn sends Jamie to a library, where he is met by Zoe (Wendy Padbury). She is instructed to observe Jamie. They walk around the base; they enter Duggan's lab. Corwyn has run test and questioned Jamie and is certain he is lying; she reports her findings to Bennett. The Wheel personnel prepare to blow up the rocket again (which still has the TARDIS in it). Jamie goes to the laser. Aboard the rocket two spheres begin to be pumped with energy; two figures within begin to move and then a silver hand punches through the top of one.

Jamie sprays a plastic gel into the laser controls and is held by Bennett and Duggan, suspected of being a saboteur. Aboard the rocket, two Cybermen confer with their leader. Duggan finds a cybermat and hides it. The Doctor has recovered and Jamie and him talk. A nova has triggered a meteor storm which threatens the Wheel because they don't have the laser. Duggan discovers the cybermat has destroyed the bernalium rods used in the laser; it vanishes. The Doctor meets Zoe; she is convinced the rocket has been directed towards the Wheel and hasn't drifted off course. The Cybermen are completing the phases of their plan, which has included ionising a star to create the meteor shower. Duggan tells Corwyn about the cybermat. One of the crew is killed by cybermats. Corwyn suspects the Wheel's troubles are connected to the rocket. The Doctor discovers the cybermats are aboard. Some men cross to the rocket, where they are put under mind control by the Cybermen.

The Doctor shows the X-ray of a cybermat. The Doctor tells Bennett about the Cybermen, but he isn't believed. The two men take a crate back to the Wheel; it contains two Cybermen. Duggan confirms the cybermat is what he saw. Ryan is working on the laser; Duggan and Chang take over repairs. The Doctor talks with Corwyn - he is concerned the leader might not be able to handle a crisis situation. Chang goes to collect Banalium - he is killed by a Cyberman. The two controlled men move boxes of bernalium to the laser; a Cyberman puts Duggan under control. Bennett is acting more erratically. Zoe has computed the meteors are heading towards the Wheel faster than realised. She tells the Doctor that some men have been over to the rocket; the Doctor realises that the Cybermen are now aboard the Wheel. Lernov starts a test to see if anyone is under mind control; it gives a positive result; they realise it is Duggan. Too late, Duggan smashes the communications unit and is electrocuted. The Doctor and Jamie go down to the loading bay and examine the crate; a Cyberman walks down the steps.

They hide whilst the Cyberman takes a rod of bernalium and goes. The Doctor advises Lernov to seal airlocks in case the Cybermen tamper with the air supply. The Doctor and Jamie are threatened by cybermats but are destroyed when a signal interferes with their circuits. The Doctor holds up a cybermat to the screen for the crew to see. The Cyberman reports that the cybermats have been destroyed. Bennett is ill and Corwyn takes charge. A cyberman kills a crewman, whilst the controlled crewmen fight Flannigan. He is controlled by the Cybermen, replacing one of the killed men. The laser has been repaired. The Wheel prepares to fire on the meteors. The TGV is missing, so Jamie must go to the rocket and find it, aided by Zoe. Corwyn closes the hatch behind them. A Cyberman and a controlled human prepare to turn the Wheel's oxygen into ozone. She tries to warn the Doctor and is killed by a Cyberman. Outside the Wheel, Jamie and Zoe are in danger because of the meteor storm.

The Wheel continues firing on the meteors. Bennett is killed by a cybermen. Jamie and Zoe make it over to the rocket. They break in on the cyber communications. The Cybermen suspect someone is on the Wheel who knows of their methods; they scan pictures of who is aboard and come across the Doctor, who they recognise. Flannigan lures the Doctor out. He goes to the pwer room and begins to rig a device. Jamie and Zoe go to the control room and Flannigan is captured. Jamie warns the Doctor. In the power room, the Cybermen say the Doctor knows their ways so he must be destroyed; the Doctor creates a field that destroys one of the cybermen. A cyber ship approaches the Wheel; it is destroyed by the laser and the spacewalking Cybermen repulsed in to space. Zoe goes back to the rocket with Jamie and the Doctor and decides to join the TARDIS crew. The Doctor projects what she will be in for by telling a story about the Daleks. (Evil of the Daleks was repeated after Wheel....)

This is a truly dull story. (There are only two Cybermen in this!) It is this story that lets down season 5 in my opinion. The only positive is that Wendy Padbury joins th crew.
******

Who Review #40 - the Ice Warriors

Picture: the cover of the Target novelisation (the first Doctor Who book I ever read, way back when I was about 10!)

Episodes 1 and 4-6 exist. Giant Bernard Bresslaw, more known for "Carry on..." films, is the Ice Warrior leader Varga in this story. Angus Lennie and Peter Sallis are also in the cast. (I kept expecting Sallis to chirp: "Don't worry Grommit, we'll soon have the ioniser under control, lad!")

The Ice Warriors, like the Yeti, are another of the iconic monsters from the show. Their reptilian design is simply fantastic as is their hissing voice. The actors dwarf everyone, much like the Cybermen. Deborah Watling looks very petite and vulnerable in the scenes with Bernard Bresslaw. Special mention should be made of Sonny Caldinez (he was Kemel in Evil of the Daleks, btw.) He and Alan Bennion "became" the Ice Warriors; they appeared in other Ice Warrior stories. There have been other actors who were their monsters, so to speak. Kevin Lindsey is the Sontarans, whilst John Scott Martin - although he did other monsters too - is the name one readily associates with the Daleks, Roy Skelton providing the voices. (Skelton provides the computer voice in this story.)

The Earth is in the grip of an Ice Age. There are problems with the British ioniser, used to prevent the forward march of the glacier. Some personel, laying sensors on the glacier, find a figure trapped in the ice. The TARDIS arrives. The crew see Storr (Lennie) and Penley (Sallis) run with stolen supplies from the station. Arden and his crew start to excavate the figure in the ice. The Doctor and co. enter the station and go to the control room. The Doctor begins to examine the controls and warns the reactor is about to explode. He averts the disaster. The Doctor follows station leader Clent. Arden is watched by Storr and Penley; Penley is a former senior scientist who has fallen out with Clent and is living on the tundra. There is an avalanche; Storr is injured, a station worker killed, and the figure is freed from the ice. The Doctor says he has come from a retreat in Tibet; he is tested by Clent - how to explain the ice age and how to return the climate back to normal. The Doctor answers that there must have been a drop in the atmospheric concentration of Carbon Dioxide. Clent says that this happened because the amount of vegetation on Earth has been reduced to an absolute minimum with the increases in technology that have solved food problems and also with the building of cities to house the growing world population. The Doctor is appointed by Clent to help due to Penley's defection. The "Ice Warrior" is brought back to the station and they start to defrost it. Jamie and Victoria discuss the subject of the station girls and their mini-skirts; Victoria is not amused; they don't see the Ice Warrior has started moving.

Jamie is knocked down by the Ice Warrior, which then takes Victoria captive. The Doctor tells Clent that the warrior is not from a lost civilisation, it is an alien. There must be a spaceship in the ice and that it must be run by atomic power. If they hit it with the ioniser, there could be a deadly explosion. Jamie raises the alarm. Varga and Victoria talk - the Ice Warrior ship crashlanded on Earth. She must help Varga release the remaining Warriors; he then says they wull decide whether to return home or to conquer Earth. Storr and Penley are hiding out in a plant museum; Storr remarks that these ancient plants remind him of what life used to be like before the scientists destroyed the spring. Penley heads off for the station; he needs drugs to treat Storr's infected wounds. Arden and Jamie head to the ice front; the sensor there is being jammed and there is no sign of Victoria or Varga. In the station, Penley sees Victoria and the Warrior; Varga is looking for the machine which revived him. The Doctor talks with Clent; he discerns that Clent is ambitious, all too reliant on computers and that Penley's knowledge of the ioniser is vital. Clent is knocked out by Varga and he sets of with Victoria for the ice front; the Doctor and Penley meet. He tells him that he saw the Warrior and Victoria. The Doctor tries, in vain, to persuade Penley to come back. Varga frees his companions and says they must be brought back to life. Miss Garrett seeks out Penley to persuade him to help; Penley refuses as he says he is a man and doesn't want to be a part of that machine world. Clent is, for him, a symbol of all that is wrong. He mentions, though, he has written some notes on something called the Omega Factor which could help. The freed Ice Warriors begin to plan their next moves, one of which is the construction of a cave to act as a trap. Garrett brings Clent and the Doctor Penley's notes; the Doctor is delighted as Penley wass on the right track. His feelings are hurt when the station personnel want to check the notes with the computer. Arden and Jamie return to the glacier; they are shot by the Warriors. The Doctor worries about the safety of Jamie and Victoria. The ioniser is back working - Clent is triumphant at the victory of man over nature, and under his watch too. Penley has taken Jamie back to the museum; Arden is dead whilst Jamie is suffering from the shot. Victoria makes contact with the Doctor; her transmission is monitored by the Warriors. They prepare to fire a weapon.

Varga disables the gun; they will use her as bait for a trap. He wants to know why the humans are so scared of the Warrior ship engine. Victoria runs from one of the Warriors. The Doctor, armed with Ammonium Sulphide, makes his way to the spaceship and let himself be taken prisoner as he intends to find out about the spaceship's engines. The warrior catches Victoria; there is a tremor and ice collapses from the tunnel roof, burying the warrior. Jamie is slowly recovering at the museum. The warriors discover that the fuel rods on their ship are run down; so they intend to get fuel from the base. Storr wants to talk with the Ice Warriors; Penley tries to talk him out of it. Victoria is trapped because the dead warrior has a hold on her. There she meets Storr who has gone to get help from the warriors, who he trusts because they are against the scientists and the ioniser. The Doctor meets Penley and goes to see Jamie. Storr takes Victoria to the Warriors; they kill him because he knows nothing about the ioniser. The Doctor is at the ship; Varga asks him who he is. The Doctor refuses to answer, upon which the Ice Warrior begins to reduce the pressure in the airlock.

The Doctor consents. In the spaceship, he says the ioniser can melt the ice and free the warriors - it isn't a weapon. He is re-united with Victoria. Penley is helping Jamie to the station because he wants to get medical aid for him. The Doctor continues to discuss the situation with the warriors, including the danger of a nuclear explosion. He has switched on his communicator so Clent can her the conversation; the ioniser is to be used regardless. The Doctor discovers the nature of the engine; the warriors prepare to use a sonic canon against the base in order to get fuel. Penley and Jamie arrive at the base and see Clent. They argue - Penley argues for action, whilst Clent says they must wait for the instructions of the computer. The warriors ready the sonic canon; the Doctor uses the Ammonium Sulphide but the Ice Warrior reaches for the fire switch.

The base shakes; Clent receives a message from Varga. He demands the base surrender or die. Clent arranges a meeting. Varga is going to remove the mercury isotopes from the bases reactor, which will mean the humans will freeze to death. Clent and Varga's meeting is monitored by the Doctor. Varga orders the ioniser shut down. The Doctor sets the sonic canon to fire at a new frequency; he intends to knock out the Ice Warriors, but isn't certain it is safe for the base personnel. Penley turns up the heat in the base and the Doctor fires the canon; everyone collapses, and the Ice Warriors return to the ship. The Doctor disables the sonic canon and he and Victoria return to the base. Penley says the computer must be overridden; Clent can't contemplate it and Garrett won't. Penley activates the ioniser and destroys the Ice Warriors. He buries his differences with Clent. They look around but the Doctor and co. have gone.

Another fantastic story!

It makes interesting watching in these days of concern over global warming and melting ice caps, given the chemistry of the atmosphere is an important part of the story's plot. Another theme of the story is the conflict between science, free will and what it is to be human. Peter Barkworth (Clent) and Peter Sallis (Penley) play off well against each other - the former is utterly dependent on the computer, whilst Penley turns his back on this. The thought of destroying plant life as though it doesn't matter is another important environmental aspect (although the atmosphere would get more CO2 in this case, not less) of the story.

The incidental music is a bit grating - there is highpitch, operatic singing at stages.

Classic Victoria
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAARG!"

Victoria: [pretending to cry as the Doctor readies his vial of Ammonim Sulphide] Boo-hoo-hoo....A stinkbomb? ... Boo-hoo-hoo
Doctor: the benefits of a classical education?

The Ice Warriors is a pure joy to watch.
******

Who Review #39 - the Abominable Snowmen

Only episode 2 of this six parter survives. The story features dad and daughter Watling - Jack as Travers and Deborah as Victoria, of course. The monsters of the story, the Yeti, have become as iconic as the Daleks and Cybermen. As has Patrick Troughton's coat in this story; it was a huge thing, making him look like a little fluff ball, or a yeti!

The scene is a camp fire in Tibet. A man lets out a scream. Another man picks up a rifle. He then runs in terror. The rifle is bent by something. The TARDIS materialises. The Doctor is overjoyed at the scanner image; he looks in a chest, trying to find the ghanta (a bell). He picks up a large, fur coat and walks out into the Tibetan countryside. He is observed by a large furry creature. The Doctor heads off for the Detsen monastery; on the way he finds the camp and the dead man. Jamie and Victoria see large footprints outside the TARDIS; Jamie grabs a sword. The Doctor enters the monastery, which seems empty. Jeaving the temple, he meets a group of monks and one of the expedition. The man, Travers, sees the Doctor is carrying his sleeping bag. The Doctor is taken away, suspected of murder and other crimes. Jamie and Victoria find a cave, where there are lots of footsteps. They rush into the cave; a rock is moved across the entrance. Travers enters the cell and starts to question the Doctor. Travers is looking for Yeti and accuses the Doctor of trying to steal his laurels. Khrisong and other lamas discuss the recent murders, wondering why the Yeti have become aggressive. Khrisong thinks the Doctor is guilty. In the cave, Jamie finds a pile of silvery spheres; the rock is moved and a Yeti enters.

Jamie knocks a supporting beam. Part of the cave roof collapses on top of the Yeti. They walk away; the Yeti is still moving. The Doctor is playing "Twinkle, twinkle little star" on his recorder. Thonmi enters. They talk; the Doctor has visited the monastery before. Khrisong enters and orders the Doctor be taken to the monestary gate; Thonmi finds the ghanta and goes to the Abbot. Jamie and Victoria are chased by a Yeti. In the Abbot's chamber, Padmamsambhava realises the Doctor has returned. Jamie and Victoria meet Travers on the hillside; he leads them to the monastery. Thonmi is told to tell Khrisong to look after the Doctor and forget he has spoken with Padmamsambhava. Padmamsambhava tells Samsong that it is best that the Doctor leave soon so that he doesn't interfere with the great plan. The Doctor is released and he, the companions and Travers talk and a sphere is examined. Yeti gather on the hillside. Jamie and the warriors capture a Yeti. It falls stillas the silver sphere in it falls out, unnoticed by the group. The Doctor examines the captured Yeti - it is a robot. The two spheres start moving, emitting a high pitched beeping sound.

An untrusting Khrisong orders the Doctor and co. be held and no-one be allowed out of the monastery. The Doctor realises the sphere has gone. (It is making its way to the captured Yeti.) Travers is convinced now that the real Yeti are peaceful and may be in danger themselves. Thonmi guards the travellers but consents to let them go as he thinks the Doctor makes sense; Ralpachan guards the gate. The Doctor searches for the sphere. Travers has left the monastery; suspicion falls on him. Khrisong and Rinchen argue; the Abbot clams them; Khrisong says he will do all he can to defend the monastery. The Doctor talks with Khrisong and follows him. Thonmi and Victoria observe the Abbot, who is summoned by Padmasambhava. Khrisong is persuaded to look for the sphere that fell outside the gate. Padmasambhava moves three Yeti figurines on a board; on the hillside, three Yet move correspondingly. Victoria and Thnmi follow the Abbot towards the sanctum. Thonmi won't go as the sanctum is forbidden. The Abbot talks with Padmasambhava; the latter says their plan must be done alone. He moves figurines towards the monastery gates. Yeti head towards the gates. Khrisong nearly gets the sphere; but too late, the Yeti retrieve the sphere. Padmasambhava passes a pyramid to the Abbot and tells him to meet up with the three Yeti; the Great Intelligence will soon be able to find physical form and cease its wonderings in space. The Doctor wants to make a tracking device to find out where the Yeti are receiving their instructions. Travers follows the two Yeti towards the cave. The Abbot mesmerisesRalpachen and exits the monastery. The Abbot walks with the three Yeti towards the cave. Victoria enters the sanctum. The sphere finally reaches the inert Yeti; Victoria doesn't notice the Yeti has been brought back to life. She screams as it breaks its chains and rises from the table.

Thonmi fights the Yeti. It overcomes him easily and lumbers off. It fights its way through the monks and walks off to the hillside. The Abbot takes the sphere and enters the cave, whilst three Yet stand guard at the entrance. A Yeti is stationed by the TARDIS. Padmasambhava talks with the Great Intelligence; he wishes to be freed. The Abbot places the pyramid on the spheres in the cave; it lights up and pulsates. He departs with the Yeti. Travers enters the cave. The Doctor throws a rock; the Yeti is motionless. He walks up to the Yeti and listens to its chest. He recognises that it neither hears or feels; it only receives instructions. He removes the Yeti control sphere and then enters the TARDIS. Travers falls to the ground as a substance is emitted from the pyramid. The sphere Jamie is holding starts signalling and pulls him towards the Yeti. They realise the spheres are programmed to return to their Yetis; they rush back to the monestary. The three Yeti react to the signal. Thonmi and Victoria have been incarcerated; he explains that the ghanta was given to a traveller 300 years ago and Victoria explains that person was the Doctor. The Abbot returns and mesmerises Ralpachen again; he goes to the sanctum and is told the Great Intelligence is beginning to take on physical form, but it must expand so the monks must leave the monestary. Jamie and the Doctor are trapped by the Yeti. The Doctor roles the sphere away and the Yeti proceed towards it. Victoria drinks and falls faint; Ralpachen rushes to get help. She opens her eyes, smiles and rushes out of the open cell, but shuts the door keeping Thonmi locked up. The Abbot addresses monks. Travers returns to the monestary and collapses before fully explaining what he has witnessed in the cave. The Abbot orders the Doctor and Jamie held. Khrisong says the stangers can help but is ordered by the Abbot to search for Victoria. Padmasambhava orders that the monks be driven from the monestary; the Abbot opens the gates. Yeti are ordered to the monestary. Victoria goes into the sanctum and sees Padmasambhava. He tells her to enter, she has no alternative.

Padmasambhava talks with Victoria and tells her he must do what he is compelled to do. He puts Victoria into a trance. Yeti enter the monestary gates. The Doctor checks the tracking device, whilst the Yeti begin attacking. They cause havoc, kill Rinchen and move back to the hillside. Padmasambhava talks to the Great Intelligence; he will use Victoria to drive the Doctor away. The Doctor finds one bearing. The monks prepare to leave; Victoria walks into the courtyard, carrying the ghanta, and Padmasambhava speaks through her. He tells the monks to leave Detsen and treat the travellers with kindness. Victoria is reunited with Jamie and the Doctor. The latter goes to see his old friend Padmasambhava. He is asking to be released by the Great Intelligence, and he realises that he has brought the world to an end. The Doctor learns that Padmasambhava met the Great Intelligence whilst he was in astral projection. He seems to die; as the Doctor walks away, his eyes reopen. The Doctor breaks the trance Victoria is in. Travers and the Doctor head for the cave in order to make a final bearing. Back at the monestary, the Abbot's role is uncovered. The Great Intelligence's physical form begins to cover the hillside.

Khrisong enters the sanctum, where he is mortally wounded by the Abbot. The Doctor and co. enter the sanctum, where they overpower the Abbot. They realise the Abbot and Padmasambhava are possessed. The monks leave the monestary, whilst the Doctor, Jamie, Victoria and Thonmi remain to fight the evil. Travers heads for the cave to destroy the pyramid but realises he cannot get there because the mountain is covered by the Intelligence.. The Doctor hypnotises the Abbot and learns of the Intelligence and its plans. He learns that that there is a hidden room, containing a control device, behind Padmasambhava's throne. They go to the sanctum. The Doctor has a battle of wills with the possessed Padmasambhava. The companions rush in to the control room and smash the machinery. Yeti rush in to the sanctum, but collapse when Jamie smashes a control sphere. Padmasambhava collapses and the Intelligence dies when Jamie smashes a pyramid. The freed sage thanks the Doctor for giving him peace and dies. The monks return; Travers, the Doctor and companions walk to the TARDIS. Travis sees a real Yeti and runs after it. The Doctor pulls out his recorder and starts to play as the three enter the TARDIS.

This is such a delightful story. The Yeti are a bit cuddly but an ever present danger. The bleeping sound the spheres make is unforgettable. The monestary is actually a creepy place, what with the enemy being inside it. Wolfe Harris played Padmasambhava well - his voice goes from a peaceful, almost hypnotic, low tone to a harsh sounding whisper, depending on circumstances.

No doubt about my rating for this one
******

Who Review #38 - the Tomb of the Cybermen

The Cybermen open the famous monster season (season 5). All the episodes to this story exist; they were found a few years ago. Otherwise season 5 is mostly lost.

An expedition blows away rock, revealing a door. One of the men tries to open the door and is electrocuted. The TARDIS arrives and the travellers meet up with the archaeological expedition, financed by the mysterious Klieg and Kaftan, which is looking for the last remains of the Cybermen. They are trying to enter the city of the Cybermen on the planet Telos. Kaftan gets her servant Toberman to open the doors, which are now quite safe. They are in a control room. Kaftan tells Klieg to keep an eye of the Doctor, she will deal with Victoria and Toberman Jamie. The Doctor opens some doors and they form scouting parties. Kaftan, Victoria and Viner find a room for revitalising Cybermen. In another room, Jamie finds a strange creature. The Doctor, Parry and Klieg investigate the control room; the Doctor says they should leave this place well alone. Klieg starts up the machinery, which activates controls all over the city. Victoria is trapped inside the revitaliser, whilst the room Jamie and Haydon (Bernard Holley) are in darkens whilst a hypnotic pattern forms on a wall. The Doctor opens the machine, releasing Victoria. Klieg sets to work, trying to open the great hatch. The Doctor tells Jamie not to push a button, but is too late. Haydon is shot and a cyberman appears.

The Doctor gets Jamie to operate the controls again. The empty Cyberman suit reappears and a gun comes out of the wall and fires. Viner wants to leave Telos. Victoria picks up the creature, which the Doctor calls a cybermat after consulting his diary, and puts it in her bag. Parry calls of the expedition. The ship's Captain reports that the fuel pumps have been sabotaged. Klieg works out how the hatch opens, with a little (unseen) help from the Doctor. The men descend into the tomb. Kaftan puts a sleeping draught in Victoria's coffee. The cybermen are frozen. Klieg wants to reactivate them; the Doctor says no. Kaftan closes the hatch. Klieg operates some controls and the cybermen begin to move; Viner tries to stop the process and is shot by Klieg. Victoria comes too, whilst the cybermat begins to revive. Kaftan pulls a gun out when she goes to open the hatch. Klieg belongs to the Brotherhood of Logicians who want to get power and are seeking the help of the Cybermen. Kaftan collapses after being attacked by the cybermat; Victoria shoots it. She tries to figure out how to open the hatch. The Cybermen break out of their cells and march towards a bigger cell. A dome headed figure emerges - the Cyber Controller. Klieg states his intention; the much taller Cyber Controller looks silently on. Suddenly it grabs Klieg's arm and throws him to the ground. Then, in an electronic, monotone voice , it says they belong to the Cybermen. "You shall be like us."

The Cybermen have in fact laid a complicated trap. They knew that intelligent humans would one day seek out the tombs. The Captain returns and begins to help open the hatch. The Cyber Controller knows of the Doctor. They froze themselves to survive. They want the humans to go back to Earth and take control so that a new race of Cybermen can be created. Kaftan grabs the gun and tells the Captain, a crew member and Victoria to move away; she screams, distracting Kaftan long enough to be distracted. The Captain goes down with smoke bombs. These create sufficient confusion to allow everyone but Klieg and Toberman to get back to the surface and close the hatch. Klieg though manages to make it to the hatch and knock on the hatch and escape. The Doctor mockingly asks if he thinks he can still make an alliance. Klieg regrets not being in a stronger bargaining position. The cybermats are released. Klieg and Kaftan are placed in the weapons' room; and they get hold of a cybergun. The Doctor and Victoria discuss their families. (A real Who moment!) The cybermats gather around the sleeping group to attack. The Doctor neutralises the cybermats by creating an electrical field that shorts out their minds and gives them a "complete metal breakdown" (everyone groans at the Doctor's bad joke). Klieg enters the control room, lifts the cybergun and fires.

A crewman is injured. Kaftan and Klieg are going to give the Doctor to the Cybermen and wish to speak to the Controller. The cybermen re-enter cells to conserve energy. Toberman has been altered by the Cybermen. Klieg talks with the Controller. The Controller agrees to help Klieg's plan of taking over the Earth. The Controller goes to the revitalising chamber because his power is running low. The Doctor helps in order to trap it. But the Controller breaks through the door nonetheless. The Controller sends a telepathic message to Toberman. He knocks out Klieg. Toberman opens the tomb. Kaftan fires at the Controller but to no avail; she is shot by the deadlier Cuber Controller gun. Toberman fights the Controller and apparantly damages it. The Doctor and Toberman go into the tomb to freeze the Cybermen, followed by Klieg, and then Jamie. Klieg talks of his plan for creating a perfect world under his control; a cyberman kills him and it, in turn, is killed by Toberman. The Doctor freezes the cybermen completely. The Doctor re-electrifies the door as well as the hatch and the control panel. The Controller tries to stop the Doctor. Toberman shuts the doors; the completed circuit kills him and the Controller. The expedition take off. The TARDIS crew walk away from the tomb, contemplating the end of the Cybermen. A lone cybermat crawls across the surface of Telos.

Tomb is another of those truly great stories! I think it is by far the best Cyberman story in the show. Once again, the Cyber actors loom over everybody else in the cast. It may sound silly but that does look far better than David Tennant or Tom Baker (6 footers themselves) being eye to eye with them. They have the same great look as in Moonbase and the same icy voice effect too.

The story builds up a nice momentum and there is a sense of ever lurking danger, making it atmospheric and creepy, in the first two episodes.

There are some interesting characters and good performances. The Klieg and Kaftan duo speak with what might be an Eastern European accent; that has led some to use this story and the Cybermen as sci-fi representations of "communism". (It is balderdash, of course.) The one character I didn't like was Toberman. I can't help feeling there is a hint of racial prejudice. He is played by tall muscleman Roy Stewart; he is reduced though to being a near silent black guy, who doesn't sound all that clever.

Something that bugs me with the story is why the Doctor does things to help Klieg et al and then says the Cybermen must be left alone. That part of the plot is curious because we don't really get an explanation for the Doctor's actions other than he cannot leave because the Cybermen are there. Perhaps he was making sure they are destroyed?

The incidental music is superb. There is a stock piece of music, called Space Adventures, which was used for the Cybermen scenes - it's great!

There are a number of memorable scenes, such as the Doctor talking about his family or when the Cybermen revive.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
******

who review #34 - the Moonbase

Only episodes 2 and 4 exist of this four parter.

The TARDIS lands on the Moon. A moonbase has been built their. It houses the Gravitron; a mechanism for controlling Earth's weather. Strange things are happening though. There are sudden decreases in air pressure from time to time and staff have been afflicted by a mystrious virus. Furthermore, the Gravitron is developing a malfunction. The ill men go missing. It soon turns out that the Cybermen are behind all this. The Doctor finds the cause or the infection. A cyber virus is being spread through the moonbase's sugar supply. He finds an antidote. The Cybermen have been using the infected men for their purpose, which is to take over the Gravitron. They are defeated when the Gravitron is pointed at the Moon's surface, propelling the Cybermen into space.

Classic Polly
Polly: "AAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!"

Polly: You found something?
Doctor: I only wish I had. Why not make some coffee to keep them happy while I think of something
Polly: Alright.

The Moonbase is a fun 1960s sci-fi romp but ultimately not that great a story. Their new design looks better than the Tenth Planet design (the way their mouths are just slits that open and close is effective), and the voices are also impressive with its electronic monotone. They are rarely in the action though and are fairly ineffective when they are.
******

who review #30 - the Tenth Planet

This story introduces the Cybermen, which I have blogged about before. Episodes 1-3 exist, but only a few minutes exist of episode 4 - at the end.

The TARDIS arrives at the South Pole in 1986. There is an International Space Command Station there, under the ice. A couple of astronauts discover a new planet. The Doctor passes a note to the space station's chief scientist Dr. Barclay because he has an idea of what it is. The space orbiter is being pulled off course by the new planet and its energy being drained. The new planet has land masses that look similar to Earth. It is the Earth's long lost twin, Mondas. Station commander, General Cutler doesn't listen. The Doctor warns that they will be getting visitors soon. Some of the soldiers are sent out to look at the TARDIS; meanwhile a flying saucer lands nearby. Massive silver figures approach the box and they kill the soldiers. An expressionless, bandaged face with black, sharklike eyes reaches down for a fur and looks at the camera.

They are still trying to bring the orbiter down; as they do this a group of fur clad people enter the room unnoticed. They throw off their furs, revealing themselves to be the silvery giants. Cutler says they must keep working to bring the astronauts down. The figure says - in a mechanical, emotionless, sing-song voice - that it is not important; the orbiter can never reach Earth anyway. Leading to this classic dialogue:

Polly: But don't you care?
Cyberman Krail: Care? No. Why should I care?
Polly: Because they are people and are going to die.
Cyberman Krail: I do not understand you. There are people dying all over your world but you do not care about them.

They reveal themselves to be Cybermen - humanoids who have replaced their body parts and eradicated emotions. Cutler is knocked out, whilst Barclay is forced to call off the alarm sent by the General. The station is allowed to try and save the astronauts. Ben makes a move for a gun but it is broken in half by a cyberman and he is taken away and locked in a projection room. Horrified, the station crew watch the destruction of the orbiter. The planet Mondas is nealy exhausted of energy and has come back to drain all the energy from Earth; all humans will be taken to Mondas and turned into Cybermen. Ben blinds the guard Cyberman with a film and, capturing its weapon, kills it. Ben returns to the control centre and Cutler takes the Cyber gun and kills the Cybermen. Cutler reports in to headquarters; he learns that a spaceship was launched to assist the lost astronauts, and it is manned by his son. Scanners pick up a fleet of ships heading towards Earth.

Cutler gets contact with his son. The Doctor suddenly collapses; he appears almost worn out. Cutler wants to use the Z-Bomb against Mondas in order to destroy it. HQ says no because the possible effects on Earth are unknown, but then Cutler asks if he is allowed to use any action he feels is required to stop the Cybermen. He uses the yes to go ahead with the Z-Bomb regardless. Ben argues that they should wait because Mondas will absorb too much energy; thus Mondas is in as much danger as the Earth, which explains why the Cybermen have landed. Ben is locked in with the Doctor, who is sleeping. Polly remains in the control room and utters that classic, when asked what she can do: "I could make some coffee or something." (See below.) Ben looks around the room and sees that handy of escape ploys - a ventilator shaft. Preperations continue apace on the Z-Bomb. Polly tries to persuade Barclay to stop the Z-Bomb. A team of soldiers are placed in readyness, with cyber guns, because more Cybermen are on the way. Barclay explains what Ben must do to stop the Z-Bomb; the ventilator leads to the rocket silo. The wave of Cybermen are destroyed. Butler realises Barclay has gone and prevents Ben's sabotage; the countdown begins.

The rocket fails to launch. The Doctor walks into the control room, looking refreshed. Polly asks what's happened. "It comes from an outside influence. This old body of mine is wearing a bit thin." Mondas is brightening and darkening, and Cutler Jr. cannot control his spaceship. More cybermen are approaching the base; Cutler doesn't care, as he is too concerned about his son. Cybermen enter the control room and kill Cutler. The new Cybermen look exactly the same and sound exactly like the first group. The Cybermen order the bomb disarmed and Polly is taken to the Cybership as hostage. Cybermen have landed all over the Earth. They are going to use the Z-Bomb themselves to destroy Earth. Ben realises that the Cybermen are not entering the silo; they are afraid of radioactivity. They play dead - the Cyberman dies upon entering. Ben and co. remain in the room, playing for time. The Doctor is taken to the Cybership; and an ultimatum is given to hand over the bomb or else the Doctor and Polly will be killed. Ben, Barclay and Dyson grab hold of reactor rods; the cybermen start to use gas. The radiation kills the cybermen. Ben uses a communicator to entice more Cybermen. Mondas starts to break up and the Cybermen collapse, dead. Cutler Jr. comes back online. Ben gets Polly and the Doctor. The Doctor looks frail. Ben says it's all over, to which the Doctor replies: "What did you say my boy? It's all over, that's what you said. No, it isn't. It's far from being all over. I must get back to the TARDIS, immediately."

The Doctor sets the controls and then falls to the floor. As the TARDIS dematerialises the Doctor's face begins to shine with light and his face changes in to that of a younger man with a mop of dark hair. It is the end of an era.

When William Hartnell decided to leave the show, the production team came up with that most brilliant of ideas: the Doctor could regenerate, changing appearance and characteristics. It solved the problem of explaining a new actor in one swoop and ensured the show's longevity (evil Mary Whitehouses and Michael Grades aside).

Call me a softy, but I got tears in my eyes at the regeneration; in 2007, I watched the episodes in order - on YouTube - from An Unearthly Child to the Tenth Planet. By the time I had reached "Tenth..." (and seen many stories and reconstructions I hadn't seen before) , I had grown enormously fond of Hartnell's Doctor, so it was really saddening to see him regenerate.

The story isn't the big send off it could have been because Hartnell was ill at the time. Apart from the regeneration, which must have been a shock in 1966, the story stands out because it introduces the Cybermen. The scenes where Anneka Wills talks to Krail are brilliant. She (and everyone else for that matter) is dwarfed by the Cybermen actors, who were all 6 foot plus. The Cyber voices are effective too, revealing their inhumanity.

There are shortcomings to the story. After looking strong, Polly suddenly gets reduced to making coffee; this sort of thing was to appear numerous times and herald the Dolly Bird era, where female companions looked pretty, screamed alot and wore mini-skirts, instead of being strong and intelligent like Barbara and Vicki. Cutler and the Z-Bomb were a bit OTT.

But at the end of the day, the story ends the Hartnell era in a good way.
******