Category: Complete Review
Doctor Who episode 59: The Zarbi (20/2/1965)
With the Doctor finally taking the situation seriously, the serial seems to be moving from “exploring a weird environment” to actually telling a story where the planet’s features (acid pools, thin atmosphere, strange creatures) that were mildly threatening last week start to be actively menacing.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 58: The Web Planet (13/2/1965)
The episode opens with a recap of Hartnell’s very fluffed lines at the end of Inferno. ‘Dragged down to what,’ asks Ian. We then cut to a sci-fi planetscape with moons and constellations in the sky, which looks like it’s come straight from the cover of a Doctor Who Annual. The TARDIS materialises, and the roaming camera rather neatly switches to a view on the scanner screen. The interior of the Ship is much bigger this week as well (with a new science station bit in one corner, and a little medical bay), and everyone has changed costumes and hairstyles.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 57: Inferno (6/2/1965)
The episode starts with a rather dramatic assassination attempt on the Emperor, who brilliantly uses Barbara as a human shield while seeming to quite enjoy the resulting carnage. As Nero, Derek Francis has been amazing value for money through these episodes: capricious, with a murderous insanity demonstrated in the opening scene when he stabs a soldier to death for not fighting hard enough. His playful but brutal personality feels like it captures this story in microcosm.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 56: Conspiracy (30/1/1965)
Ian continues to be menaced by stock footage – this week, of very docile-looking lions. Meanwhile, the Doctor bluffs his way through Tavius’s conspiracy. This leads to a hilarious moment where the Doctor declares he must get to the bottom of it and Vicki says, ‘see you later’ and wanders off to do her own thing – which involves an encounter with the poisoner Locusta. It emphasises how different from Susan she is – it’s hard to imagine Susan showing such independence from her grandfather.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 55: All Roads Lead to Rome (23/1/1965)
At the top of the episode, a slightly fluffy Hartnell is delighted by the chance to get involved in some of the action traditionally reserved for Ian – ‘I tend to forget the delight and satisfaction of the gentle art of fisticuffs!’ He and O’Brien continue to be a brilliant pairing. While the Doctor has it all worked out and just wants a good night’s sleep, Vicki is full of questions (that helpfully explain the plot) – it’s exposition, but very cleverly and humorously done.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 54: The Slave Traders (16/1/1965)
Dennis Spooner makes a smart decision to begin this story about a month after the previous episode’s cliffhanger. It means when we re-join them, Vicki has had weeks to get to know the Doctor, Ian and Barbara.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 53: Desperate Measures (9/1/1965)
The episode has two jobs to do. First, it needs to resolve the mysteries raised last week, and second, and more importantly, it needs to set up Vicki as the new companion. So as to avoid interfering with the real story – the introduction of the new regular – the mysteries are handled efficiently and effectively, and without any undue fuss. Once again the Doctor plays investigator – a role he’s played with the Tribe of Gum, in the city of Millennius, and on the Sense-Sphere. Having discovered Bennett’s secret escape hatch, and already aware that ‘Koquillion’ is just a ceremonial costume, it’s not much of a stretch to deduce what’s happened.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 52: The Powerful Enemy (2/1/1965)
New year, new team. The Powerful Enemy opens slightly differently than we’ve become used to: the TARDIS lands in some caves (‘”materialised” is a better word,’ says the Doctor) but rather than then following the crew as they explore the new environment, it cuts directly to a crashed spaceship populated by a teenager, Vicki, and an injured man, Bennett. In an efficient bit of dialogue they fill in the backstory – this is the planet Dido, they’re waiting for a rescue ship that’s three days away, and someone called Koquillion is menacing them – so that we know more after the first three minutes than we did after 25 minutes on Skaro.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 51: Flashpoint (26/12/1964)
If you haven’t got the Nazi parallels by now, this episode makes them blatant: the extermination of all humans is ‘the final solution’. But despite the build up, the defeat of the Daleks is accomplished remarkably easily. Jacqueline Hill gets the funniest moments, firstly when she riffs on her history lessons to spin a yarn about an imminent rebellion, and then when she tries to imitate a Dalek voice over the radio, until the Doctor steps in with a more convincing impersonation. Following his orders, the Robomen turn on the Daleks and presumably kill every one they can find (shades of that in the future elimination of the Silents), while Ian sabotages their bomb causing the base to explode. Which means in both their appearances the Daleks are most disappointing in the final battle.
Continue readingDoctor Who episode 50: The Waking Ally (19/12/1964)
‘I never take life. Only when my own is immediately threatened.’ The Doctor is back, with a statement of intent. Ever since he vowed to defeat the Daleks a month ago – which he reiterates here (‘We have got to dare to stop them!’), he’s been a man on a mission, which couldn’t contrast more with Susan’s cosy domestics with David. She’s more worried about some stew going cold than fighting the Daleks. It’s obvious that the Doctor’s outgrown her more than she has him. Fortunately, we’ve had five weeks to get used to the idea of her and David being together – a relationship that’s grown over as many episodes as we might expect even from modern TV.
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