#6 (19.19 - 19.22): Earthshock.

The Cybermen observe the Doctor.

4 episodes. Approx. 97 minutes. Written by: Eric Saward. Directed by: Peter Grimwade. Produced by: John Nathan Turner.


THE PLOT

The TARDIS materializes in a cave in the distant future. In the midst of an argument with Adric, the Doctor decides to use this as a chance to walk around and collect his temper. But the isolation is an illusion... as he discovers when he walks right into a group of soldiers, who have just lost several men to an unknown alien presence. Making him the obvious target for blame.

He establishes himself as an ally by helping the soldiers defeat two killer androids.  He then defuses a bomb the androids had been guarding, one which would have left Earth completely devastated. He traces the bomb's signal to a freigher in deep space, and takes the TARDIS to investigate. There, he finds himself and his companions in even greater danger. Both androids and bomb were the work of the Doctor's old enemies, the Cybermen. And they were just the beginning of the cybermen's plan to establish their dominance by wiping out all life on Earth!


CHARACTERS

The Doctor: Though most of Eric Saward's later serials would place the Doctor in a peripheral role, he is actually characterized quite strongly here. The Cyberleader describes him as "formidable," a term he lives up to consistently. He is almost entirely responsible for thwarting the Cybermen's first plan, in the cave. On the freighter, he constantly watches the proceedings, sizing up the situation and calmly putting the pieces together. Davison continues to play a barely-restrained weariness with other people's stupidity. Watch him in the final episode when he's calmly baiting the Cyberleader. When Captain Briggs (Beryl Reid) interrupts, he gets this lovely look of annoyance on his face. The Fifth Doctor may not be as blatant about it as his two immediate predecessors. But he still doesn't suffer fools gladly - just a bit more quietly.

Adric: Adric is paired with the Doctor throughout the story, allowing the script to emphasize the teacher/student relationship between the two. This gives him a decent role - a necessity, for the ending to work as well as it does. But the story doesn't tip its hand. Adric is his usual self throughout. He spends the first two episodes in a snit, essentially throwing an extended temper tantrum to get the Doctor to pay more attention to him. This works, as the Doctor happily brings him along to explore the freighter in the second half... which doesn't turn out so well for the young Alzarian, though his fate is largely of his own making.

Nyssa: She is reduced to a peripheral role, particularly in the second half of the story. The obligatory TARDIS cutaways may as well come with on-screen captions reading, "Nyssa's part for the week."  These cutaways feature what is probably Sutton's all-time worst performance in the role. Matthew Waterhouse's acting limitations are certainly on display - but Sutton is much worse than he is this time.

Tegan: Janet Fielding, however, is on particularly good form. Tegan's role isn't really much better than normal. She is as headstrong and stubborn as ever. But Fielding tempers Tegan's stridency with a compassionate side. I like the instinctive hug she gives to Nyssa at the end, even before she turns to the Doctor. Tegan also seems to have taken it on herself to be the one to reason with the Doctor when it comes to dealing with his companions as a group. While Nyssa soothes Adric, Tegan goes out into the cave to "talk some sense" into the Doctor.

Cybermen: The Cybermen's first appearance since 1974's Revenge of the Cybermen. This proved to be a much more successful comeback for them - so much so that they rejoined the ranks of the series' regular villains. This is almost certainly their best post-1960's use. They are genuinely formidable, with some clever camera trickery allowing them to be seen in force at the end of Part Three. David Banks' Cyberleader does seem a bit prone to gloating for a supposedly unemotional being, but this is a fairly minor fault in an otherwise strong outing.


THOUGHTS

Earthshock is, in its way, as ambitious a story as Warrior's Gate or Kinda. Not in the same way as those stories, with their multilayered narratives and thematic depth. None of that here.  This is a straight-ahead action piece with no real layers beneath its surface. The ambition here is in how far it tries to push Doctor Who's limited schedule and budget. Eric Saward is effectively trying to mount a Hollywood-style sci-fi/action blockbuster within the constraints of a Doctor Who 4-parter. It's fast, violent, full of gunfire and explosions.

On a classic Who budget, it by all rights should fall flat on its face. But a strong production comes together with a streamlined script and a mostly outstanding incidental score. The result may not be flawless.  But taken on the level of an action movie, this story works very well indeed.

A lot of the credit has to go to director Peter Grimwade. He maintains tight control of the narrative and atmosphere, using an effective mix of quick cuts and occasional, lingering shots. Many camera shots are framed very precisely, with characters in both foreground and background. The Cyberleader announces his army while standing in front of a monitor showing the army marching through the corridors. The Doctor defuses a bomb while Adric looks over his shoulder in the background.

Grimwade's occasional weakness at working with actors does show itself. Sutton is unusually poor. James Warwick, a reliable actor, isn't quite on form. Other guest actors are largely wooden, with one exception: Beryl Reid. Fandom insists that Reid was badly miscast, an early example of producer John Nathan-Turner's "stunt casting" going wrong. I strongly disagree. Beryl Reid was a terrific actress with range and a dynamic screen energy. In a role that is rather generic on paper, she lights up the screen and turns someone who should be just a plot device into a strong presence. There's no question in my mind that this story would be far the poorer without her.

It's all very entertaining. It probably should have been left as the only story of its type, rather than being closely replicated at least two (arguably three) times over the next three seasons. But as a change of pace (what it was, at this point), it's effective. Even startling.

And within the larger story of the Fifth Doctor, it marks the point at which he is first confronted by a universe that's become just a bit meaner and harsher than he's necessarily prepared for.


Rating: 8/10.

Previous Story: Black Orchid

Next Story: Time-Flight

Search Amazon.com for Doctor Who

Review Index

#4 (19.13 - 19.16): The Visitation.

"I feel as though you've
just killed an old friend..."

4 episodes.  Approx. 96 minutes. Written by: Eric Saward. Directed by: Peter Moffat. Produced by: John Nathan Turner.

THE PLOT

The Doctor's attempt to return Tegan to her own time fails miserably. He reaches the right place, but the wrong time - missing his destination by about 300 years and materializing the TARDIS in a wooded area near a quiet English village, circa 1666.

Before they get a chance to simply leave and try again, they find themselves the target of a mob of paranoid villagers who believe they are "plague carriers." They are rescued by actor-turned-highwayman Richard Mace (Michael Robbins), who tells them of strange lights in the sky.

That's when the Doctor discovers alien technology. The lights were a ship, crash landing. Now the survivors of the ship, members of a species known as the Terrileptils, plan to wipe out all life on Earth. And far from proving an impediment, the Doctor's arrival actually helps their plans - because it gives them access to his TARDIS!


CHARACTERS

The Doctor: Though I'm no fan of writer/script editor Eric Saward, I will give credit where it's due. In his first serial for Doctor Who, he gets the Doctor right. We see a Doctor who is temperamental. When Tegan has a minor meltdown at his failure to return her to Heathrow Airport, he is not inclined to forgive her - at least, not until Nyssa and Adric press him to. He does play favorites with his young charges, clearly preferring Nyssa's company to the other two. When the alien technology is found in Episode One, he becomes instantly transfixed on the thought of alien survivors in this village. But he only explains why to Nyssa, not pausing to explain himself to the others. Davison remains terrific, and seems energized by the character beats in the script.

Nyssa: After largely sitting out the previous story, The Visitation gives Nyssa a much larger role. She acts as the Doctor's most reliable support, with the first two episodes seeing him treating her almost as an apprentice. He keeps her with him when he enters the deserted house, insisting that his other companions wait for them outside. Upon discovering some Terileptil technology, he snaps at Tegan and Adric to touch nothing; then he and Nyssa take a closer look and exchange observations. Though Nyssa is less than pleased at the Doctor's plan to "improvise with an armed android," she ends up being the one to carry out his plan - which ends up working very well when she finds herself in close quarters with the android.

Adric: Senses Tegan's dislike of him, and there's an amusing early beat when the Doctor tries to evade the issue by very awkwardly reaching out to touch his shoulder. He behaves impulsively at several turns, ignoring Nyssa's very reasonable arguments to stay in the TARDIS and promptly getting himself captured by villagers. His headstrong nature does help the Doctor near the end, however, when his need to act by moving the TARDIS overcomes the Terrileptils' attempts to seal the Doctor and Tegan inside the house.

Tegan: Though her opening meltdown seems a particularly unwarranted "stroppy Tegan" moment, the script does at least provide some context. We first see her recalling what happened to her with the Mara, grappling with the idea of her body being taken over by this creature. In this way, we are shown that she is already in an emotional state when confronted with the disappointment of the TARDIS' missed landing. The rest of the serial sees her being barely tolerated by the Doctor, who clearly prefers Nyssa's company. However, her emotional nature does make a good contrast to her companions' more clinical responses, and she's the only one who seems genuinely appalled at the aliens' plans.


THOUGHTS

The Visitation is noteworthy, in that it was the first contribution of Eric Saward. Saward clinched the post as script editor on the strength of this story, apparently largely because it was a rare script that did not require any significant rewrites.

I've already given Saward credit for his characterization of the regulars, particularly the Doctor. And I will admit that showing understanding of the characters is a significant quality. Add to that, The Visitation is well-structured, with each episode building on the information established in the one before.

Unfortunately, it is also the very definition of a bog-standard average Who story.

This is my third viewing of it, and my reaction remains unchanged. As I sit in front of the screen, it isn't long before I find myself getting just a bit sleepy. There's an awful lot of tromping back and forth between the house and the TARDIS, the TARDIS and the village, the village and the house.  All the back and forth makes the pace feel very leisurely, even downright sluggish. The final episode manages to eke out some momentum - but even then, there's no real urgency. It feels very much as if Saward had enough plot for a 2-parter, and then just stretched it out until he reached 4 parts.

Decent direction would have overcome a lot of the problems here. This story cries out for a bit of atmosphere: some clouds, some fog, some darkness. Instead, the Doctor and his friends tromp around a very pleasant-looking bit of woods on a very clear and pleasant day (and usually do so in long shot). Peter Moffatt's stagy direction is just ill-suited to this kind of piece. Fiona Cumming, Peter Grimwade, or even John Black would have gotten much more out of this. Moffatt appears to be afraid of the close-up, and keeping distance from the characters puts the audience at a distance from the action as well.

I emphasize that this story isn't at all bad. It all hangs together and is perfectly watchable, and it does get better as it goes. It also has a terrific performance by Peter Davison, who is firmly the Doctor by this point, and an engagingly campy one by Michael Robbins as a theatrical actor-turned-highwayman. But with no spark of inspiration, a sluggish pace, and outright lifeless direction, it's hard to see how this ever gained such a high reputation. I enjoyed all three of Davison's previous stories considerably more than this one (yes, even Four to Doomsday).

As for Saward? Well, on the strength of this story's characterization and structure, I would certainly have re-commissioned him for another story. But with the lack of inspiration on display here, it wouldn't even have crossed my mind to make him the series' script editor...


Rating: 5/10.

Previous Story: Kinda
Next Story: Black Orchid


Search Amazon.com for Doctor Who



Review Index

#3 (19.9 - 19.12): Kinda

4 episodes. Written by: Christopher Bailey, Eric Saward (uncredited). Directed by: Peter Grimwade.  Produced by: John Nathan Turner.


THE PLOT

The Doctor takes the TARDIS to Deva Loka, a peaceful planet where he trusts that Nyssa can recover from her fainting spell in peace. As Nyssa rests, the Doctor and his companions go exploring. They find a beautiful set of chimes created by the natives, with an alien yet harmonic musical sound. The sound sends Tegan into a trance, where she finds herself in a sinister, all-black plane, menaced by the evil Mara.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and Adric are captured by a colonization team. The team's leader, Sanders (Richard Todd), finds them harmless enough. But when Sanders goes off to investigate the disappearance of another team member, the security officer - the unstable Hindle (Simon Rouse) - takes command. Now the Doctor and Adric, along with the team's scientific officer, Todd (Nerys Hughes), find their lives at the mercy of a madman, while the ancient evil of the Mara uses Tegan as a vessel to the real world and threatens to engulf them all!


CHARACTERS

The Doctor: Though apparently originally commissioned as a Fourth Doctor story, this is one of those rare serials that is difficult to imagine with any other Doctor. It's so well-suited to Davison's thoughtful, understated performance, a story for a Doctor who takes time to evaluate the situation before acting. The Doctor does a lot of watching and listening, holding back until there is an opportunity for action to actually be beneficial. When he does finally take charge, in Episode Four, it's decisive. Davison's showdown with the Mara-possessed Kinda just before turning the mirrored panels on it could serve as a one-scene rebuttal to all the charges that he lacked authority.

Tegan: The first half of this serial gives Janet Fielding quite a bit of focus, and she eagerly rises to the challenge. The Mara's attempts to gain agreement to use Tegan's form are highly effective, creepy and surreal without being so esoteric as to nullify the drama. Fielding gets to play multiple levels, as Tegan is frightened yet stubborn in her refusal, then confused by trick after trick. Two dream figures tell her that she does not exist. Then a jester figure, the Mara's face for Tegan, mentally exhausts her before making good on that initial threat, fading Tegan from existence to "leave (her) alone." Finally, the terrified and exhausted Tegan is broken into granting her consent. It's magnificently nightmarish, wonderfully-directed by Peter Grimwade and acted to perfection by Janet Fielding, who obviously enjoyed getting something truly meaty to play. There's much less for her to do in the second half, but she still is effective when she sees the Mara's true form and demands to know that it's truly gone from her mind now (a demand that the Doctor ignores, thus paving the way for a follow-up).

Adric: After being borderline unbearable in Four to Doomsday, Matthew Waterhouse actually dials it back and is once again fairly watchable. I thought Adric's scenes opposite the insane Hindle were well-done, with Adric attempting to humor Hindle to gain a chance first to help the Doctor, then to escape, and finally to do something about Hindle's plan of destruction. He does dive back into being obnoxious in his scenes with Tegan in Episode Four.  Waterhouse seems to consistently be at his best when acting opposite Sarah Sutton, and at his dreadful worst when playing opposite Janet Fielding. 

THOUGHTS

Reading through the DWM: In Their Own Words special, it seems that Kinda had a particularly troubled genesis. The script was commissioned by Bidmead, to whom the concept of the Mara doubtless appealed.  It was delivered about the time that Bidmead left. Some development was done by Antony Root, who seems to have enjoyed the layered themes of the story. But written by an inexperienced television writer, it was still in no fit shape for broadcast when Eric Saward became script editor, leading to Saward giving the second half of the story a massive overhaul - one which did not please writer Christopher Bailey, who then did an 11th hour rewrite to try to restore some of the themes that he felt the Saward draft had lost.

Given such a troubled development process, it would be reasonable to expect Kinda to be a failure. Honestly, it would almost be excusable, after skipping along between three script editors, at least two of whom had radically different sensibilities, and a writer with no television experience. But somehow, it all manages to come together. The result is probably my favorite televised Davison story, and one of my all-time favorites of the entire series.

This is the first story of Saward's script editing tenure on which he had a strong influence, and it may be his crowning achievement as script editor. Both Saward and Root seem to have recognized that there was enough going on in this story to make it worth the effort to put it into shape. The result, I think, is a clear example of how creative tension can sometimes work in a show's favor. Saward's structural sensibilities keep the story moving along and keep it comprehensible, while Bailey's layered themes make it into something special within that framework. Effectively, this is to Saward what Warriors' Gate was to Bidmead: an imaginative piece that required a massive amount of work, but which paid off with 4 stunning episodes.

Like Logopolis, this story benefits from director Peter Grimwade's eye for the visual. Tegan's nightmarish encounter with the Mara on a black-on-black astral plane, the old woman's vision of the Mara, Hindle and his cardboard city - all are effective visual moments, exceedingly well-executed. Grimwade knows how and when to use close-ups for maximum effect, and when to cut away from close-ups to wider shots. The Part Two cliffhanger is particularly strong, with its cutaways to Hindle's black-and-white face on the monitor, rather than to Hindle himself, and with that sharp zoom to Nerys Hughes' scream. The resources may not have been all that could have been hoped for, and certain moments (hello, snake) fall slightly short. But he knows how to use the resources at his disposal to maximum dramatic effect.

The story features a fine guest cast. Screen veteran Richard Todd gets the "special guest star" billing, of course, and gives a strong performance. But in guest star terms, this show belongs to Simon Rouse. There's something wonderfully childlike in Hindle's insanity. He tries to model himself on his father figure (Sanders), imitating Sanders' militaristic way of running things by dressing his native hostages as soldiers and inspecting their fingernails. When Sanders returns - to take away his command, Hindle presumes - he falls apart as the old man approaches, crying out to "Mummy" to make Sanders go away, clearly flashing back on childhood beatings to which the script alludes. I loved some of the close-ups of Hindle's eyes. Staring straight ahead, not blinking, not quite focused. One of the most convincing madmen Who has offered, and one of the most unforgettable human guest roles in the series.

While the production isn't up to the level of the four serials preceding it, I would still rate it well above the series' average. Even the infamous giant snake stands out more for falling short of the superb production values of the JNT era to this point, rather than as a Myrka- or Scarasen-level disaster.  To my tastes at least, Doctor Who rarely gets better than this.


My Rating: 10/10.

Previous Story: Four to Doomsday
Next Story: The Visitation


Search Amazon.com for Doctor Who



Review Index