Who Review #91 - the Robots of Death

scene by scene, episode by episode

A real whodunnit! The story has a lovely pace and the tension remains high as the body count mounts.

The crew's make-up looks a bit naff, as do their costumes; the robots, on the other hand, are beautiful designed. I was particularly frightened by this story as a child; the robots are all around the ship and one doesn't know when they are going to turn homicidal, which is indicated rather neatly by their eyes glowing red. There are also some effective shots where we see through a robot's eyes.

Leela has come a long way since we saw her stumble upon the Doctor - she has stopped believing in magic and is becoming more accustomed to the technology and science around her, even though she doesn't really understand it.

Classic Leela
"Do that again and I'll cripple you!"
"My tribe has a saying - if you are bleeding, look for a man with scars."
A truly classic scene on YouTube.

Hinchcliffe and Holmes decided that they wanted a sort of Eliza Doolittle character as a companion. Louise Jameson, to her credit, didn't want Leela to be a screamer like other companions and had a say in her being a brave warrior, more likely to go after someone with her knife at the ready.

A great story.
******