The Time Meddler - Checkmate

The final episode of this story is also the final episode of the second season. This is where the Vikings come to Britain and the Doctor has to try and stop the Monk but first we have to get over the news that clearly the Monk is of the same race as the Doctor. Though obviously its not named its nice to finally get a bit more information about the Doctor even though we know that his race all look like humans.  

The Monk says that Stonehenge wouldn’t have been built with his technology. The Monk seems to want to meddle in time because he finds it amusing. Not for any egotistical gain he genuinely believes he’s doing good. I still find the scenes between Peter Butterworth and William Hartnell to be extremely funny. The Monk’s TARDIS is similar to the Doctor’s and what we see is a massive treasure trove of goodies. Another difference between the Doctor and the monks is that the console is raised up though its implied that the Monk’s TARDIS is superior to the Doctors. The camouflage circuit is referred to as the technology to change the TARDIS to match its surrounding. I don’t recall a name being given to it before and it obviously changes to chameleon later on.

The scene between Vicki and Steven where they discuss what will happen when the Monk changes history. The exact second it happens every history book ever written will change and it’s in this context that the not changing history takes greater significance. They seem to have been given a bit less to do in this episode after they enter the Monk’s TARDIS. Even what they do get given is a bit of a let down as Vicki has to tell the Doctor that they don’t have the TARDIS because the tide washed it away but this is quickly put down by the Doctor. The way that the story is wrapped up is quite strange. The Doctor isn’t the one that stops the Monk’s plans and the Doctor strands him in that period. That’s it. It seems a bit of a let down if I’m being honest and the final moment of the episode is another strange thing where the faces of Peter Purves, Maureen O’Brien and William Hartnell are imposed over a picture of stars. 

As a four part story, it certainly has some good things going for it. There are good characters and its definelty better than Dennis Spooner’s previous offering. I just think that it lacks from a proper conclusion to the story and it doesn’t feel like the Doctor has settled things against the Monk. It was ¾ a good story and ¼ an ok story.