Oh well, its that time again. It’s
time for another pure historical story. However after the dull previous six episodes,
I am so worn down after ‘The Web Planet’ that I actually welcome this story. The
only immediate downside to this story is that it’s another story that is
entirely filmed in a studio with no location filming. ‘The Dalek Invasion of
Earth: Flashpoint’ was the last time that there were any filming outside.
Julian Glover joins the show. He
would go on to be in the first Indiana Jones movie and would return to star
alongside Tom Baker’s Doctor. Here he plays the King or Richard the Lionheart
as he was also known. He is instantly likeable as Glover has a soft but
noticeable screen presence. However by the cliffhanger his mood has soured
somewhat and is reluctant to help the Doctor. This is basically what the story
is going to be about which might not be the most exciting but after spending
the last six episodes not understanding what was going on it was nice that we
got a clear idea of what is going on.
There’s a nice sword/fist fight
between Ian and some baddie. It’s always good when Ian gets to do something.
William Russell’s time on the show can be summed up by a recent (ish) Doctor
Who Magazine cover which proclaims that Ian Chesterton is ‘Doctor Who’s First
Action Hero’. That is very true. Something else that’s quite fun to think about
in this episode is that back in the 1950’s, William Russell appeared in ‘The
Adventures of Sir Lancelot’ so was use to appearing in this time period. It
takes less than five minutes for Barbara to be kidnapped. She pretends to be
the fake King’s sister and when the truth has been revealed then Barbara tells
of her adventures involving meeting Nero in Rome. Despite this madness, she is
allowed to have lunch.
Visually the story manages to
still look good considering it’s just a forest. The thing about the sets in
this story si that it doesn’t feel as claustrophobic as ‘The Web Planet’.
Something that can be classed as the ‘elephant in the room’ and that is white
actor being ‘blacked up’. In 2013 it seems wrong but it’s the way that
television was made back then and thankfully that’s changed.
It’s a good first episode and my
enthusiasm for the show has returned after just one episode. The cliffhanger
did come out of nowhere and I was so involved in the scene that I didn’t realise
that the episode was coming to an end. That’s a good sign that the episode is
working. The episode does a good job of giving the regulars a reason why they
cant just get back in the TARDIS, it shows us what the next four episodes are
going to be about and it does the job very well.
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