(692) The Curse of Fenric - Part 4

As I have been watching the previous three episodes, I have done so knowing that this is the episode where everything happens. The cliffhanger from the previous episode is one of the best of the McCoy era (probably just behind the Dalek going up the stairs in Remembrance).  It doesn’t take long for this episode to show why it’s so good. The performances are superb and Dinsdale Landen is immediately impressive as the Fenric version of Judson. Despite the strong performances I have to address an issue that is quite visible in the opening minutes of the episode. That is the issue of rain where its coming down like it’s a thunderstorm yet there the skies are either blue or near enough.

The Great Serpent is a great looking monster and could easily have worked as the lead monster. It’s first appearance is quite good because it comes out of the sea and its quite an imposing figure. If I was nit-picking then I would say that Judson doesn’t quite seem as imposing himself as he did in the previous episode.

Nurse Craine’s death was a shame really and made even more horrific with the massive toothy grin on Judson’s face. I think that Anne Reid has done well with a role that could have been totally annoying. Not many people would have made me miss a character like this. Jean and Phyllis suffer a rather grim death but its in keeping with the deaths in this era of the show. I am surprised with how much these two characters have developed in just four episodes. Fair play to both Joann Kenny and Joanne Bell.

The big battle comes between Fenric and the Doctor playing a game of chess. Fenric is quite easily defeated (almost) as at one point he begs Ace to help him. Ace stupidly tells him how to win although he has now jumped bodies by this point as he is now in Sorin’s body. I like how its revealed that Fenric has been laying traps for the Doctor since Dragonfire. The obvious part was the chessboard in Silver Nemesis and its nice to see that this something that has been in the works for two years.

There is a lovely moment with Sophie and Kathleen where Ace tells her to go to London, effectively creating her own future because the baby is her mother. Ace has another great moment when she shows Sorin that she has faith and the Doctor tries to destroy that faith by saying that she’s a social misfit and an emotional cripple. It’s hard to imagine any earlier companions pulling this off. Sophie Aldred has really impressed me in this episode and has made me think that she is underrated as a companion

The Serpent is the one that kills Sorin by releasing the gas which does seem a bit of a rush job but I suppose that with everything else that has been going on, I don’t really mind because the rest of the episode and story in fact have been worth it.

The final scene sees Ace almost symbolically wash away all her troubles. It’s a lovely scene and it seems that Ace has come to terms with her past. This has been a very enjoyable story that has really worked in the final episode. The final four parter in the shows history (to date) has been another example of why McCoy has been such a good Doctor. It’s weird to think that there is just one more story in the classic era and just one more story before Sylvester McCoy goes to America.

(691) The Curse of Fenric - Part 3

Today is Bank Holiday Monday and whilst most people are gorging on Chocolate or watching all the Carry On Movies on ITV3, I am spending 25 minutes of day off from work watching the latest episode of this story which isn’t having the same The start to this episode isn’t particularly strong which is surprising to me. There are some shots that really are affective. The first being on Phyllis and Jean walking towards the camera with Haemovores behind them and then some appearing from behind a tombstone. I think that they have got even better in this episode even though they don’t have that many lines. They are more effective when they have long nails and look a bit possessed.

The scene where the Haemovores are attacking the church room with Wainwright, Ace and the Doctor is perhaps the first big scene in the episode. It leads to Ace scaling down the side of the church on a ladder from her backpack. It’s quite an action packed scene which is in keeping with her character. Ace goes on quite a little journey in this episode. She is saddened when she learns that Kathleen’s husband has died, has a barney at the Doctor and then goes a bit…..odd with a soldier where it seems like she is coming onto him but it’s all a ruse to let the Doctor help the Russian captain escape.

The Doctor defeats the Haemovores in this scene with faith and he recalls the names of his earliest companions although it would have been nice to hear them a bit more audibly. Faith is something that features quite heavily in this episode. Faith is what ultimately leads to Wainwright’s death because he tries to stop the advancement of Jean and Phyllis but he has no faith and they are able to kill him.

The episode ends with Dr Judson seemingly rise up from the dead. He stands up in a lovely shot behind the Doctor and then with the weirdest eyes I’ve ever seen in Doctor Who says “We play the contest again timelord”. There are plenty of positives that are in this episode and I think that its not the usual penultimate episode that we get. It’s light on action but more on character development and that is something that should be praised. I am still waiting for something to hit me and make me go wow.

(690) The Curse of Fenric - Part 2

I don’t think I pointed enough good things in yesterday’s episode. This story is made entirely on location and that lends something fresh to the show which we don’t see very often. Another thing that works well are the underwater shots from this episode and the previous episode are very impressive and I should have commented more on that in the previous episode.

There is more of the Reverend’s failing faith. His first appearance sees him deliver a lovely speech which is delivered in a superb manner by Nicholas Parsons. I think that he delivers the best performance in the entire episode. I don’t think you could use the stunt casting term with Parsons because he acts like it’s a brand new drama as opposed to a long running drama that’s been on TV for over a quarter of a century.

The scene where Millington smashes a gas bomb on some birds which kills them is a rather grim scene because it reveals that they are planning to betray the Russians. Any doubts that there were about Millington have really be dealt with in this episode because he does come across more of a baddie than a goodie and there is less vagueness in this department.

I have found the two girls living with Miss Hardaker to be annoying and they start this just as annoying in this episode but when they get ‘attacked’ in the sea it sees a dramatic change. They lure a soldier to their death after he is lured into the sea and is attacked. They then kill Miss Hardaker which seems somewhat expected. They then turn their sights onto Wainwright which leads to a great scene where Wainwright does his best to try and fend them off. Joann Kenny (Jean) and Joanne Bell (Phyllis) have really stepped up since they had to play possessed versions of their characters.

The shot of the Haemovore’s coming out of the sea is very similar to the Marshmen coming out of the water in Full Circle (1980) and it’s just as effective. I think that the Haemovore’s design is one of the key things about this story and it’s another example of fine design that appears on screen in this season. I still have the Destroyer’s design in my mind and whatever may be said about the quality of stories during the McCoy era, one thing can be said about this period and that money was spent where it mattered.

I think that the cliffhanger wasn’t as great as it could have been but I thought that the rest of episode did enough to make me like it. I don’t know why I like this story but I do. Halfway through this story and I know that the story is building up to something and I get the feeling that the really good stuff is going to come in the final two episodes.

(689) The Curse of Fenric - Part 1

The Curse of Fenric is a story that I never really liked the first time that I watched it but in recent years I have started to appreciate it a bit more. It’s the final four part adventure in Doctor Who and the penultimate story of the McCoy era. It is also the 94^th four parter in Doctor Who. The opening few seconds of this episode are very gloomy and this is another story that doesn’t have much laughter in it.

The big name of this story was Nicholas Parsons who has been presenting Just a Minute on BBC Radio 4 since 1967. It’s the first time that there has been something approaching stunt casting for quite a while. Parsons’ plays Reverend Wainright who is suffering from a lack of confidence which is something that will be more relevant in future episodes. I thought that it was a nice performance and even knowing who Parsons is I still buy who he is suppose to be playing. Anne Reid is another familiar face in this. Reid would return to Doctor Who to suck blood out of David Tennant’s neck in 2007 but I know her as one of the members of sitcom Dinnerladies. It’s a rather thankless character because she is playing the nurse for Dr Judson.

Miss Hardaker is a rather clichéd character but there is something that Janet Henfrey does to make it seem slightly better than it could have ended up. She is a rather annoying busybody who manages to belittle Wainright in her first appearance. Dinsdale Landen plays Dr Judson who is one of the key characters. Despite being in a wheelchair, he is one of the smartest people in the story. His involvement is greater in future episodes but its still a great character and I think that Landen does a good job of distracting us with a doddering old man in a wheelchair character that loves his job. Alfred Lynch is impressive as Commander Millington. From the very first moment that he appears he comes across as a rather intense character who is there to think like the Nazi’s would think. There is something that comes across rather sinister about him and I don’t think that its because its difficult to know when he is being himself and when the Nazi stuff is starting to take him over.

Sylvester McCoy has now appeared in more episodes than Colin Baker. It’s a rather good performance from McCoy and I like how the relationship between McCoy and Aldred has become really close. There are several exchanges where their friendship has really become solid. Sophie Aldred has some more character development for Ace. She comes across a baby that is called Audrey which is her mother’s name.

The episode ends with the Doctor and Ace being surrounded by the Russian soldiers. I don’t think that it’s a bad ending although I thought that the episode was alright in parts because it didn’t really seem to find its feet because it was too busy setting things. I have been watching this story in recent years in the feature length special edition that accompanies this DVD so it’s a new(ish) experience watching this in a four episode format and I think that problems with this story will soon surface. Only time will tell if things will change.

(661) Paradise Towers - Part 4

The final episode of this story again starts off with that stupid shot of the tower. I do wonder why they went to the trouble of setting this on another planet because it could easily have been set on earth in the future. To be honest that is just a minor problem with a story that starts off slightly frustrating before becoming more frustrating and that frustration receding a bit in this episode.

I had forgotten that Richard Briers isn’t killed by because he becomes the body for the monster. I didn’t think I would like the new Chief Caretaker would be any fun but after a while I sort of got use to it. I think that it was a mistake for this to happen but writer Stephen Wyatt has admitted that this is one of the things wrong with it. The performance that Richard Briers gives is something that I have enjoyed but in this episode he sort of goes into zombie mode and that is disappointing. It’s not often that someone of Briers’ calibre comes into Doctor Who but he did very well and was the best thing about this serial.

Mel seems to have forgotten about the troubles because she starts the episode by taking a swim and within seconds is attacked by a yellow thing and also has the double misfortune of being stuck with Pex. Despite this being the episode where Pex shows us he is a hero and even when he has given his life pushing the Chief Caretaker to the explosives. To be honest I just wasn’t fussed about the loss of the character.

A good portion of the episode takes place in the pool. The Rezzies (Maddy), The Red and Blue Kangs, Pex, Mel and The Doctor have a good scene where they all seem to join forces to fight the Chief Caretaker. This is the first time that people have worked together to try and defeat someone. It feels like a plan is forming and its actually building up to something. There have been several groups yet there has been no real connection between them. Also I found the introduction of the Rezzies in the pool scene to be rather ill thought out because there must be more than three rezzies in Paradise Towers.

I am really glad that I this serial is over. Admittedly this episode is by far the serial so far but to be honest its too little too late. There was pace, there was some drama and more importantly there was something to like. Watching one of the documentaries on the DVD, writer Stephen Wyatt revealed that he wrote the final three episodes in two weeks which shows in episodes two and three but the necessity to tie things up means that we don’t have people meandering around. Paradise Towers will be remembered for wasted opportunities and just want to move on.

(660) Paradise Towers - Part 3

Today is the 660^th episode of Doctor Who. 60 episodes ago I was watching The first episode of the Kings Demons, it’s surprising just how much a decline there has been in quality of stories. There is a distinct lack of energy in this episode than in the Kings Demons. I regularly visit the Den of Geek website which looks at a report from 1988 which gave Bonnie Langford an appreciation index score of just 34 (out of 100). Whilst I think that the character has taken a step backwards in the last few episodes but I think that she deserves a better score than 34. The willingness in which she decides to stay with Tilda and Tabby is probably part of the reason why 56% of people surveyed in the 1988 survey say that they wished that Mel had been eaten in this story.

I do like how Tilda and Tabby do the menacing thing quite well. Tabby is killed by whatever came up in the waste disposal chute although I do find it slightly implausible that she ca be pulled through in. Tilda is slightly more plausible. It’s amusing that Pex tries to make it seem like he saved Mel when in effect he had very little to do with it. Mel finally makes it to the top floor with Pex and it’s the nicest thing in the entire Tower.

The two standout supporting performances came from Judy Cornwell (Maddy) and Richard Briers (Chief Caretaker). They get a nice scene together where the Chief Caretaker bribes Maddy with Tilda and Tabby’s flat in exchange for remaining quiet. The performance that Cornwell gives is very similar to what she would play in Keeping up Appearances. Briers’ performance is brilliant from start to finish although his demise is somewhat disappointing. He was one of the best things in this story. I suppose that it’s a good thing that there is just one episode left.

I think that this episode was the first time since Sylvester McCoy became the Doctor that we saw the Doctor as most people remember his Doctor to be and like. There is a distaste for what is going on in Paradise Towers. It seems that McCoy is starting to get to grips with his role and what he wants to achieve with it. Even Bonnie Langford seems to be better in this episode although I do think some of this is sympathy because she is stuck with Pex.

It’s been a more watchable episode but I will still be glad when this serial is over with. It just hasn’t lived up to any of the potential. I still don’t like the shot of the tower at the beginning of the episode and think that they made a mistake getting rid of the Chief Caretaker but the worst thing apart from that about this episode is that it just isn’t connecting with me.

(659) Paradise Towers - Part 2

I think that any goodwill that I had with this serial has well and truly gone. My heart started to sink when the first thing that is shown is a picture of what Paradise Towers is suppose to look like. The inside definelty looks better than the outside. The Doctor is about to be killed by the Chief Caretaker but as luck would have it the Doctor is spared whilst the Chief goes somewhere else. There is a funny scene with the Doctor and the Deputy Caretaker. The Doctor uses his intelligence to outsmart him and the other guard. This is one of the few enjoyable moments in the entire serial.

The incidental music is rather good. This was apparently a last minute addition from Keff McCulloch as a previous contribution proved unpopular with JNT. I haven’t been a fan of McCulloch’s contribution in the past but the theme tune and the music in this episode have made me change my mind.

As well as Tabby and Tilda, we are introduced to Maddy who is played by Judy Cornwell. I know Cornwell from playing Rose in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances. They are happier to see Mel return and I thought that this was slightly annoying because Mel has spent a long time running around trying to find the Doctor and just missing him. The backwards trend that the character is taking continues to frustrate me.

The Chief Caretaker seems to be working for a monster that has neon lights for eyes. It’s very much a 1980’s idea and one that doesn’t work. I think that they would have been better to not show him at all and just have the voice. Sometimes less is more.

Pex starts off the idea that he is an annoying prat but we learn that he is a bit of a scardey cat which makes sense. No one likes Pex and so I really cant understand why we are suppose to find him interesting or feel sorry for him when the Kang’s start to pick on him. I think if she had the chance, Mel would try and get rid of him. I think sitting with Tabby and Tilda would be preferable to spending time with Pex.

The cliffhanger is rather disappointing. It’s not just because its Mel but because I don’t feel like there is any danger or tension in the cliffhanger. It’s been an episode with lots of potential but sadly it is wasted. For a moment I thought that I was further in the story than I actually was and so was disappointed when I realised that I still had two more episodes left to endure. I am sure that at some point there will be something in this season that shows me that I was wrong about my original ideas about the twenty-fourth season.

(658) Paradise Towers - Part 1

Paradise Towers is a story that like most in this season isn’t one that I rate very highly. I don’t know why and hope that watching this serial over four days might shed some light on it. The Doctor and Mel are on their way to Paradise Towers which seems to be a lovely place to go but we get to see that it’s not as nice as they think. What I find amusing about the state that they find it in is that you have Mel as a perky bubbly person and yet finds herself in such a dump.

The Kangs are really annoying. The Red Kangs are the first group that we meet and the noticeable thing is that they are all women which isn’t something that has been seen in the show before. There is a bit of dancing that wouldn’t have come straight from Adam Ant’s Prince Charming music video if I didn’t know better. Another thing that doesn’t look quite so well is the cleaner which doesn’t seem to be interested in cleaning the tower block up but more interested in killing people and disposing of their bodies. Pex is introduced quite late in this episode and seems to be a sort of Rambo style character but unfortunately Howard Cooke who plays Pex is nothing like Sylvester Stallone and so I don’t believe that he is a tough guy. Even Mel isn’t impressed with him. It’s slightly disappointing the way that the role of Mel has been devalued in the past five episodes. She was quite inquisitive with Colin Baker’s Doctor and yet seems to have taken several steps back.

There are things that I think did work well in this episode. Firstly there is the idea that there is a tower block that has become a rather unpleasant place because it seemed to mirror the feelings of tower blocks at that time and perhaps even today. Richard Briers is another good thing for this serial because at first we don’t see him but just hear him and the character sounds like rather soulless individual. Briers is perhaps best known for appearing in the BBC sitcom The Good Life (1975-78) and an appearance in Torchwood. The Chief Caretaker assumes that the Doctor is the Great Architect.

Something that has changed in my opinion is that of Tilda and Tabby who seem like two nice old ladies but have a rather sinister dark side. A first clue is some bones on a table that Tilda tells Tabby to get rid of before Mel comes in. A question is raised when its clear that they are living in a rather nice apartment whereas everything outside of that apartment is horrible. How are they able to live like this and seemingly have a normal life?

As an episode it was a slightly (just) better than I remember it. There are things that are going to bring this story down and there are things that are going to maintain my interest. After being very underwhelmed with the last story, its good to report that things have got better. To be fair they couldn’t get any worse but there is a long way to go before the show can get back to where it was even at the previous series. I mentioned in a previous review that Doctor Who was now up against Coronation Street. The ratings for the first episode of Time and the Rani was 5.1 million whereas Coronation Street got 14 million. Now for this episode it was watched by 4.5 million and the Corrie episode was being watched by 15.5 million so it was clear who was winning this ratings war.

(643) The Trial of a Timelord (Part 4): The Mysterious Planet - Part 4

This is the final part of The Mysterious Planet part of this season. The thing is that it doesn’t feel like the end of a story.

The cliffhanger worked quite well because it seemed to show Merdeen about to shoot the Doctor. This of course didn’t mean that the Doctor would die three episodes in. Merdeen shot Grell instead of the Doctor and it’s a rather touching moment when its revealed that Merdeen convinced Grell to join the army. This has been the best episode for Tom Chadbon because he gets a good amount of stuff to do. The character has been unravelled over the course of the four episodes and this is the reward for that.

It’s still rather funny that Queen Katryca is still under the assumption that the immortal is dead. Her death and the death of Broken Tooth is rather grim but compared to some deaths it could have been much worse. Joan Sims has been rather good in the role and when you consider what she is best known for, it makes her performance in this serial even more impressive.

The courtroom scenes do still continue to disrupt the flow but the first one was quite fun because it allows the Doctor to do a rather over the top. The next scene comes after a scene between Glitz and Dibber bleeps out a particular word which creates more mystery.

There is a nice debate between the Doctor and Drathro about the meaning of life. It’s surprising that such time was given to this philosophical issue. Drathro isn’t defeated by the Doctor but really by Glitz. The Doctor does actually save the day but it would have been better if he had been the one defeating the stupid robot. Colin Baker has slowly been getting better in this serial but it seems that he’s not really allowed to be like his previous self. Nicola Bryant was pretty much silent in this episode. I cant really recall what she was allowed to do in this episode. Scratch that comment, there is one moment that I can think of but it isn’t a positive moment. There is a bit where Peri, Merdeen, Glitz and Dibber are in a food chute and there is a laser used which sadly doesn’t look very good.

The mystery isn’t really solved in this story but there are two questions that the Doctor (and the viewer) want to know and that is ‘Who moved Earth and what was in the box that Glitz and Dibber were after’. The final scene in the courtroom is rather good because the Doctor is basically goading the Valeyard and the last shot is a close up (again) of Colin Baker’s face which is still annoying.

This is the last full story that Robert Holmes would write (his last contribution coming later) and whilst it’s not his best offering by quite some distance. It’s hard to appreciate what Robert Holmes has done for the show and so as a result I don’t have it in me to be too critical of this adventure. There are some nice things that take place over the four episodes and some of the season long story arc start to gain some significance. Four episodes into this season and I don’t know whether I like the structure that this series is going to take. The idea of the Doctor on trial is all fine and dandy but I don’t know whether mixing it with four related stories is the best move.

(642) The Trial of a Timelord (Part 3): The Mysterious Planet - Part 3

The third episode of this season is one that doesn’t get going for about ten minutes. There is a lot talking and this doesn’t exactly come across as very exciting. One of the first court room scene is quite interesting and that is something that stands out in this episode that I found the courtroom scenes to be more interesting than what was going on on Ravolox. The scenes on the surface are moderately exciting that is only because Glitz and Dibber are quite amusing and I like seeing them on screen. The stuff underground is less interesting because it just looks rather sterile and looks like an awful lot of 1980’s Doctor Who studio sets that look too clean and I just find myself not quite so interested.

It’s quite fun that they the tribe think that they have killed the Immortal but instead have just killed its robot and start to embark on a trek to the Immortal’s Castle. It’s clear that things are going to end badly for them because they are happy and we are nowhere near the end of this story. It’s a shame that Joan Sims’ character is going to get a not nice ending.

Towards the end of the episode there is the start of the suspicion that there is something dodgy going on when evidence. This is perhaps the best thing about the episode because it is where the season arc is really going to get going. As far as the central performances, I thought that Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant were good. Baker was slightly more noticeable but it’s a warm performance from the pair of them. Michael Jayston is still the strongest of the supporting cast. It’s a shame that he doesn’t have more involvement in the story at this point.

Merdeen appears to shoot the Doctor which forms the best cliffhanger in the series so far. I think that the fact there isn’t the extreme close up. I think that this episode is an odd one because it just seemed to lack any sense of excitement. If this were a normal four part story then I think that they would be building up towards something. However with this story it doesn’t feel like its building up to anything and that this story is just a holding pattern until the business end of things appear. It’s quite disappointing so far.

(641) The Trial of a Timelord: The Mysterious Planet - Part 2

After being slightly disappointed with the opening episode, I was wondering that I was going to go back to the days of the Hartnell and Troughton era where I would be going through several days of unwatchable but I am happy to report that I don’t think this will be the case. The episode starts off with the court scene reprise which is still good and doesn’t have the zoom in. Like in the previous episode, the courtroom appears in the middle of the episode which again disrupts the flow of the Ravolox story. There is another courtroom seen scene a few moments later.

The Doctor in the Ravolox story was being stoned in the previous cliffhanger and this is stopped by Merdeen via the Immortal. The Immortal has two helpers who are blonde and quite intelligent. Sadly they are slightly annoying. Whether they are as annoying as Balazar is still up for question but I think that it’s a close call. Merdeen is played by Tom Chadbon who last time we saw him in Doctor Who was throwing punches like Amir Khan. Chadbon is different in this story. Merdeen starts off as a bit of a bossy boots but soon shows his true colours by letting Balazar escape to the surface and he has been doing this for a while.

This episode starts the joke about making fun of the Valeyard. Boatyard and Graveyard are two insults that the Doctor hurls towards the Valeyard. I like the childish behaviour between the Doctor and Valeyard. The thing that is clear is that the Valeyard is trying to use what is seen onscreen to use against the Doctor. The thing is that whilst he may have a point it is also easy to argue that without his involvement then the people of Ravolox would be still be repressed.

The immortal is a robot that is running the base like a dictatorship and won’t allow people to go to the surface to get much needed water. This is when the story is that of an overzealous robot that is taking his job role to the letter.

The cliffhanger is much better but there is still the close up of the Doctor which didn’t work the first time and it doesn’t work the second time either. Two episodes in and I feel slightly more positive to this series. It is one of those episodes that has more good things than bad things. It’s not a classic Robert Holmes script by any means but I thought that the pacing of the episode was far better than in episode one. I still have reservations about this season but I am starting to think that the previous episode might have been a blip but I will need to see a few more episodes to judge.

(640) The Trial of a Timelord - The Mysterious Planet: Part 1

Doctor Who was saved. After being cancelled the show was saved although its clear that the show was now living on borrowed time. Instead of 13 x 45 minute episodes, the twenty-third season would be 14 x 25 minutes episodes. So it was a shorter run because instead of 585 minutes there would now be 350 minutes. The idea that the season would have one theme is something that had been done before in the form of the Key to Time and the new series would have a similar idea. However to have the Doctor on trial when the show itself was on trial is something in retrospect wasn’t the strongest idea. First that is evident about this new season is that there is a new theme tune which I hated when I first heard it but over the years via Big Finish plays its grown on me.

The open shot of the space station is one of the greatest sequences in Doctor Who history. It’s impressive to the point that for a few moments it seems like Doctor Who had stepped up a gear since it was off the air but it wouldn’t take long for that to change. The opening scene where the Doctor has landed is quite well done. The Doctor had previously been on trial in The War Games (1969) and is put on trial for pretty much the same thing.

One of the two new supporting characters for the season is the recently deceased Lynda Bellingham who plays the Inquisitor. I don’t think that it’s a very rewarding role however I think that Bellingham does a good job of acting like she is in charge. Michael Jayston plays the Valeyard and he is one of the strongest things about this season. Jayston is most recognisable to me as the father-in-law of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses and also appeared in Emmerdale recently. He just has a sense of evil that he is rather enjoying and that is what makes the court room scenes half watchable.

The Valeyard intends to use two examples of why the Doctor is guilty and his first example form the first four episodes. When Peri appears in this story, its clear that their relationship is a lot more warm than it had been. It’s the only thing that is warm in this part of the story. There is a nice mystery (hence the title) about where they are. The planet is called Ravolox but soon its revealed to be Earth.

There are occasional moments where the action is broken up by a short scene back in the courtroom. To be this slightly ruins the momentum that the story has had. Instead of the bit in the middle which doesn’t contribute anything to the story. However the ending is slightly more important because it sees the Valeyard says he wants the Doctor’s life put on trial.

As this is a Robert Holmes story there is of course a double act. In this case its Tony Selby and Glen Murphy who star as Sabalom Glitz and Dibber respectively. They are quite a good team and Robert Holmes’ magic works in this department. They are both rubbish criminals and shouldn’t be taken seriously. That is why I like them because there is something comedic about them and that is what this story needs. Joan Sims is one of the big stars in this season. In this part of the story she plays Queen Katryca and I remember when Beryl Reid appeared in Earthshock and it was clear that she didn’t understand the part and so didn’t come across as a convincing space pilot. Here I think that Sims is far more convincing and as a result I buy into the fact that she is a Queen. There is a character called Balazar who is somewhat annoying and one of things that slightly ruins this opening episode. He keeps calling the Doctor “old one” which is funny at first but becomes quickly annoying.

The cliffhanger is basically a zoom in on Colin Baker’s face which is going to be a recurring theme during this season. It’s somewhat disappointing that this is the way they have chosen to end each episode but I suppose a cliffhanger doesn’t make or break a season. What has surprised me about this episode is just how underwhelming it feels. There doesn’t feel like the opening that it should. It doesn’t have the big selling point that Attack of the Cybermen or Warriors of the Deep had. It is sort of half-hearted in certain was which does worry me a little bit.