Production jumps the gun a bit and commences the celebration before November 23rd. But that's actually fine. Because the anniversary special gets the show to pivot in a much-needed new direction:
At long last, the exile is over.
I suppose, by Time Lord standards, three years was not a long time. But, because of the production team's over-reliance on certain tropes and formulas, it was a bit too long for me!
But everything should be great from hereon in, right? Clearly, the Doctor hated his exile so he's going to stay away from Earth, now. In so doing, the central premise of the show will be maintaining a distance from all those recurring traits that were annoying me so much. With the new direction the show is taking, all will be well in the Pertwee Era from this point onward..
...If only that were so!
THE FIRST MULTI-DOCTOR STORY
The Three Doctors is, pretty much, an utter delight. Admittedly, the plot is horrendously thin. To the point where an inexorably long amount of time is taken in Part Four to get actors to walk through some dry ice fog just to pad things out (God! That sequence took forever!) But even with this fundamental flaw, the story just has so much charm and nostalgia that you don't care.
Creating a plot contrivance that enabled previous actors to come back and reprise their roles was the most brilliant idea this particular production team ever came up with. A multi-doctor adventure is still one of the greatest things the show features from time-to-time. Usually reserved for anniversary specials, of course - but it can also happen for little or no reason (ie: The Two Doctors, Fugitive of the Judoon).
What was an even greater idea was having the different incarnations of the Doctor not get along well with each other. For some reason, this makes the whole reunion immensely entertaining. How much do we love it when Eleven and War pick on Ten for his sand shoes during Day of the Doctor? Well, that would not have happened if they hadn't decided to get Two and Three to bicker in Three Doctors, first. Everyone saw how much audiences were amused by it and continued the tradition in other multi-doctor adventures.
Each actor playing the Doctor does a great job. Hartnell, of course, is especially impressive when you consider his health, at the time. His poor condition forced him to be involved in the story in a very limited manner. And yet, he still brings One to life in an almost magical way. The twinkle is still in his eye...
Pertwee also steps up to the plate quite nicely. I have remarked in previous reviews how much it feels like he's phoning his performance in, sometimes. Because he suddenly has to share the lead, there does seem to be a lot more effort and concentration going on for this story. He's determined not to let his predecessors outshine him.
Regardless of the other two stars, though, Patrick Troughton really does steal the show. He's just that little bit more engaging to watch any time he's onscreen. Particularly in Part One where his charm almost dances circles around Pertwee's presence. Admittedly, the writers do seem to favor him. They recognize that this is the incarnation that wasn't afraid to be funny and they give him lots of great scenes where he can show off his comedic chops.
As The Three Doctors wraps up, I find myself wishing Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks had done as RTD is currently doing and had Troughton return as the lead. Seeing him back in action reminded me of just how brilliant he was the first time round.
Most importantly, though, is The Three Doctors' final scene . A dematerialisation circuit appears on the time rotor and the Doctor's knowledge of time travel theory is restored. At long last, the exile is rescinded. Doctor Who can go back to its original format. And, hopefully, the decision is never made again to restrict the character for so long. Or, if it is, it's done in a more creative manner that doesn't rely so heavily on a formula.
FIRST ADVENTURE WITH HIS FREEDOM RESTORED
Carnival of Monsters is a fairly promising first jaunt with the Doctor free, again. You can, pretty much, always expect a solid script from Robert Holmes. Inter-Minor is a fascinating enough alien world. Kalik is a fun villain whose main weapon is his deftness at political manipulation. The concept of the mini-scope is even a great idea. So much so, of course, that it would get revisited several seasons later in Nightmare of Eden!
But I do find that the story does end up falling a bit flat in its later episodes. There just isn't quite enough there to sustain the four parts. So we get a lot of extra running around in the Scope's circuitry and way too much repetition on the SS Bernice (I'm also not entirely sure why anyone would think setting off dynamite in the hold of a ship is a particularly bright idea!). As the story winds towards its conclusion, I'm losing a lot of interest.
I think if one more environment within the mini-scope had been explored then this problem would have been eliminated. Particularly when you consider the fact that the Cybermen are in there somewhere and we still haven't seen Three clash with them, yet. A great little sideplot where the Mondasian Meanies (or Telosian Terrors) realise where they are and are trying to break out and wreak havoc on Inter Minor would have been just the thing to keep the whole tale interesting.
Chances are, however, that the budget just wouldn't allow for that. So, instead, Holmes has to create filler aboard the SS Bernice and within the circuitry of the Scope, itself. Which is a shame, really. The Doctor's first excursion beyond the confines of his exile should have been more exciting than it was.
THE DALEK SAGA - PART ONE: THE GOOD STUFF
And then we come to Frontier in Space. Let's get into what I like about the story, first:
1) Malcolm Hulke creates another interesting species of aliens that are as three-dimensional as the humans they are playing against. They also have great costumes. The partial masks are very effective in giving the artistes a bit more range of expression. The Draconians. themselves, are very cool (and seem to get used again in the film Enemy Mine!) and it would be nice to see them make some kind of return appearance in the series.
2) The Master appearing with the Daleks at his side during Part Six is very iconic. It was the first time we'd seen an alliance of this nature between two such colossal villains and it was a great moment. A very well-executed scene.
Other than that, there's very little good that I have to say about this story!
THE DALEK SAGA - PART ONE: THE NOT-SO-GOOD STUFF
If we're being totally honest, there's enough genuine plot in Frontier in Space for about two episodes. Part One should have been the attack on the bulk flour freighter with a reveal at the end that the Master is behind it. Part Two is pursuing the Master to the planet of the Ogrons and discovering he's in league with the Daleks. That really is all we needed to tell the story.
Instead, of course, there's six episodes. In order to fill up the other four parts, we get an endless series of captures-and-escapes and other such inane nonsense. I have already claimed that this story actually holds a record for most times the Doctor and his companion(s) are incarcerated and then liberated and then re-captured (I actually count it out here: https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2019/11/complete-and-utter-silliness-capture.html). But I also think it holds another record.
I have mentioned in a previous Review how six-parters in the Pertwee Era often have a later episode that is largely superfluous. There is no episode that is more redundant than Part Four of Frontier in Space. You could almost take it right out of the whole story and you'd never know the difference. I'm not even sure why the Doctor feels he needs to do some elaborate space walk outside the Master's ship only to come in from a ceiling panel rather than just walk down the corridor leading from his prison to the bridge. He's not going to really be able to have any more of a surprise attack from either direction. It doesn't really make sense.
Hang on a minute! I've figured it out! I know why he's doing the space walk! It makes sense, after all. He does the space walk because it will eat up the better part of an episode!
The Doctor's plan, of course, comes to no real avail. And it wasn't meant to. This was just one of the many capture-and-escapes built into the plot to kill time. Part Four of Frontier in Space, in my opinion, holds the record for most useless episode ever made in Doctor Who. I feel sorry for anyone following the series as it was coming out. I can only imagine them sitting there at the end of the episode and thinking: "I should have just watched the cricket match!"
But wait! I think Frontier in Space might just have one more record!
There is a scene near the end of Part Six where the Doctor flicks on the fear-inducing device (nice reference to Mind of Evil) while he's surrounded by Ogrons and the Master. I think the Doctor is grazed by a laser blast. I also think the Master gets dragged off by fearful Ogrons.
I can only suppose that this is what happens during this scene because it is - without a doubt - the worst-shot sequence in the history of the show! I'm assuming there were meant to be some close-ups that would have better delineated what was going on in that moment but they never got a chance to film them. So, instead, it's a jumbled mess of shouting and milling about and then suddenly the Doctor is just lying semi-conscious on the floor with Jo dragging him to the TARDIS. Some other stuff appears to have happened during that sequence - but we can only guess!
This creates some very confusing final minutes of the story where we're not entirely sure what's going on. The bridge, however, gets built to the second part of the saga as the Doctor contacts the Time Lords for help.
We can only hope that things will improve in the latter half!
THE DALEK SAGA - PART TWO: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE THALS!
Planet of the Daleks is a definite improvement in our little saga. I find Dalek stories with the Third Doctor very interesting. They're all quite solidly-told, but they're not particularly spectacular. Basically, they're decent, mid-range tales.
Of the three Dalek stories in the Pertwee Era, I would say Planet is my least favorite. It's still not what I would call a bad story. I just enjoy the other two better.
Planet does have its fair share of problems. Whatever is going on with the Doctor through a good chunk of Part One seems to make little or no sense. It doesn't help that we're still not exactly sure what happened to him at the end of Frontier in Space. But his body suddenly becoming so cold that really fake-looking frost gets sprinkled on his face between takes seems to have no plausible explanation to it.
The TARDIS suddenly running out of oxygen because the exterior is getting covered in spores also doesn't seem to have any kind of proper scientific reasoning to it. I get what Terry Nation is really trying to do, here. He wants there to be a sense of constant peril throughout the entire adventure. But there needs to be some degree of internal logic going on when that danger occurs. The whole concept of the TARDIS having such a limited air supply seems largely nonsensical. In some ways, the incident resembles the notorious cliffhanger at the end of Part One of Dragonfire. We need to put a major character in jeopardy so let's just create a dangerous situation and not care whether or not it has any basis in reality!
Part One's cliffhanger is also a bit silly, of course. "Oh my God! The Daleks are in this story! What a surprise! Except, of course, that the word Dalek is right in the title of the story!"
Problems with the plot tend to decrease significantly after Part One. There are still some moments that feel quite "clunky". Jo recovering the bombs the Thals hid in the cliff face is one of the best examples of this. The string of coincidences that occur that take her in and out of danger during that sequence are ridiculously unlikely. A rock just happens to hit her on the head at the worst possible moment and then she manages to regain consciousness with just seconds to spare. It's all pretty ludicrous.
It does almost feel like, because Terry Nation hasn't written a Dalek Story in ages, he's a bit rusty at the whole thing.
Which leads us to one of the most common complaints about Planet of the Daleks: Many fans like to point out how Nation re-used a whole tonne of ideas from The Daleks. It will probably come as no surprise to many of you that I find this to be a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, we do see another Dalek ascending through a shaft and getting a heavy object dropped on it. Also, someone does climb into a Dalek casing so the heroes can pose as prisoner and escort. There are a few other minor similarities between the two tales here and there. But there are also a significant amount of differences. And, really, if we want to get mad at Planet for re-using the idea of someone hiding in a Dalek casing - then we should probably also get mad at Witch's Familiar for doing the same thing all those years later. Or, we can accept that disguising yourself as a Dalek is a good way to get through their security!
I do find Nation also did a great job of bringing a sense of menace back to the Daleks. It's especially effective that Thals are getting picked off at fairly regular intervals throughout their mission. It shows that the Daleks are genuinely deadly. That they don't just roll around all the time and yell "Exterminate!" without ever actually killing anyone. There are some genuinely tense moments that they create. It's legitimately creepy when the Doctor has to retrieve the bomb from among the Daleks that are starting to come out of hibernation,
I am fairly happy with most of what happens in Planet of the Daleks. It's off to a shaky start and does stumble a bit here and there. But, all in all, it's a fairly imaginative tale that does make the Daleks feel like a real threat.
IF YOU LOVE THE GREEN DEATH - THEN BRACE YOURSELF!
Another story that belongs in the same "club" as The Daemons and The Sea Devils - or, even, Frontier in Space, for that matter! It is unclear to me why there is so much love for this story. But there is.
I still remember a British friend of mine who now lives in Canada (I'm Canadian, just in case you didn't know) who was trying to find some way of enjoying old re-runs of Doctor Who stories he'd seen when he was a kid. I told him that I had collected the entire series and could lend him anything he wanted. He begged me for The Green Death and thanked me profusely after enjoying it. Watching it again enabled him re-live one of his fondest childhood memories.
I made sure not to share with him what I really thought of the story!
MORE ENUMERATION:
As with Frontier in Space. I will list all the things I enjoy about this story:
1) In certain shots, the giant maggots do look very creepy (in several others, it's a lot of awful CSO effects!)
2) That final scene where the Doctor climbs into Bessie and drives off into the sunset is quite touching.
That's all I got. Admittedly, it ain't much. Now, get ready for the blasting!
MY MANY PROBLEMS WITH THE GREEN DEATH
Okay, let's get the biggest Elephant in the Room out of the way: The Doctor is finally free of an exile he has absolutely detested. He struggled endlessly to liberate himself from it for the last three years. At last, he's out of it. Thank God!
So, with that in mind: Why the Hell is he back on Earth only a handful of episodes after escaping his imprisonment there?!
Once more, we dive into a UNIT story. And I have to endure those tropes, again!
I get it, of course. Jo Grant needs to be written out so they're bringing her back home. But did she really need to depart from the show in such a manner? The Doctor has left companions on worlds they didn't originate from on previous occasions. Why not do it again, here? Personally, I would have preferred bumping back the Dalek Saga a bit in the season so that she just left at the end of Planet of the Daleks with Latep. Yes, it would have had a bit of an "Andred and Leela vibe", but it's still better than the dreadfully forced romance that they tried to create with her and Cliff!
So many of the scenes that these two have seem horrifically unnatural. The worst is Jo mourning the loss of Burt. It's a big tender moment that allows the two of them to nearly kiss (although Cliff does kinda seem a bit slimy for taking advantage of Jo in a moment of vulnerability). The scene might almost have made sense if Jo had not, by this point, seen several hundred characters die right in front of her over the last three seasons. She'd gotten pretty used to the idea that people she encounters in her adventures might not live too long. But, suddenly, losing someone she'd recently met was a big weepy process for her. Which seemed very strange and disjointed as she sits in front of the fireplace of the Nut Hutch and cries profusely over the loss of Burt.
Yes, Burt was meant to be all spirited and full of life. This has, somehow, affected her more than the other several hundred deaths that she's witnessed over the last few years. But, really, all Burt did was get a bit handsy with her in a mine-shaft! The scene at the fireplace was created to lead to a near-kiss and doesn't really have any kind of internal logic beyond that!
The actual plot of Green Death feels very poorly structured. The two main story strands feel largely disconnected. To the point where it seems like the writer was thinking: "Crap! I thought I could fill the six episodes with just an adventure about giant maggots made by chemical waste. It's not enough, though. I guess I better throw in a mad super computer ready to take over the world just to pad things out!". Basically, the whole tale feels viciously and unnaturally truncated.
For those of you who bitch about the preachiness of Orphan 55, watch even a few minutes of Green Death. It should shut you up very quickly. The "subtle environmental message" of the story hits you on the head far harder than a quick end-of-episode speech could ever hope to. It doesn't help that another story next season would slam us, again, with the We need to save the environment message. This is one more thing that gets me to loathe this adventure as much as I do. Saving the environment is very important - don't get me wrong. But when the message seems to supersede the quality of the actual story, I take issue with that. And Green Death almost feels like a sermon more than it does a Doctor Who adventure.
Overall, I'm very disappointed with this story. Like The Sea Devils, there's a thousand more complaints that I could lodge against it. But I'll stop, here. I think I've made my point.
FINAL VERDICT
And so, the Tenth Season of Doctor Who reaches its end. The actual story that celebrates the anniversary is very enjoyable. It's great to watch old Doctors returning to bicker with each other and downright thrilling to see the Doctor free to roam all of Time and Space, again.
Unfortunately. a lot of the same formulas that we saw during the exile continue to play out even after the Doctor is able to pilot the TARDIS, once more. Six parters still tend to drag on for too long. The same old tricks to mark time in the later episodes continue to be abused.
Also, the Doctor is still spending time on Earth. And, when he is, much of the same patterns that we've been seeing in UNIT Family stories for the last three seasons continue to run abound. This bothers me to no end. Why is the Doctor back in a bog-standard UNIT adventure when he doesn't need to be?!
Admittedly, some new concepts do get brought into the show this year (or, at the very least, premises that haven't been around for quite some time return). It is great to see, once more, the Doctor leaving Earth and just getting into trouble. He's not accomplishing missions for the Time Lords, anymore. The concept of one story dovetailing into another like they did in that year's Dalek Saga was also quite an interesting idea to work with.
In the end, liberating the Doctor does improve the show ever-so-slightly. And that is very nice. I'm not sure how much more I could have taken of the paint-by-numbers storytelling that was going on while the Doctor was stranded on Earth. Unfortunately, there are still a lot of problems going on even as the show moves in a new direction. Personally, I find a lot of the writing during this period feels very lazy. We need some bigger changes to the show than just ending the Doctor's exile. It's time to usher in a new production team.
Those changes were coming, of course. But we still have to get through one more season with the current regime...
