"It feels different this time..." - The new Doctor Who Thread

[Kazin]

Look at these fuckin guys:

This is the most visually insane serial of the 1970s, in my opinion, including several sequences that are just Pertwee and Manning being subjected to the highest quality visual special effects available at the time, and honestly I think they are largely successful, if bonkers and weird. More than I think any other Pertwee serial, I can't imagine watching this one in black and white like many did at the time due to colour TV being new technology. This is the BBC as drunk on colour as it has ever been, and I love it for that.

From here on, I won't have much positive to say outside small moments in each serial until The Curse of Peladon and to a lesser extent, Day of the Daleks, but those are the only two serials in season 9 that I care for. Things pick up in season 10 before falling off a cliff again in season 11. I look forward to reading what you think about all this stuff, though - there are those that think season 9 is fantastic, so maybe it's just me.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Colony in Space

"Are you some kind of scientist?"
"I'm every kind of scientist."

In this serial, The Doctor and Jo find their TARDIS whisked off (with them in it) to a small colony on the planet Uxarieus. The colonists are suffering, dealing with attacks by the native peoples of the planet, signs of a lizard monster, and poor soil for growing food. The planet is now also targeted by the Intergalactic Mining Corporation who have been allowed to claim it, conflicting with the colonists being allowed to claim the planet. Soon, the Doctor uncovers that the IMC has been faking monster attacks to try to convince the people to leave. Soon, the IMC's plans become more lethal, much to the concern (though inaction) of the lead engineer Caldwell. IMC captures Joe and a colonial firebrand named Winton to force the Doctor not to reveal anything but they both escape. The colonial leader Ashe tries to talk to the head of the project and they both agree to an adjudicator to settle it.

The Doctor learns that there is something strange about the planet's "primatives"; that they were actually once a highly developed race. When the Doctor returns he is shocked to find the adjudicator is actually the Master, who sides with the IMC. However, his plan is actually to force Ashe, in the name of laying claim to the planet, to use the primatives to help lay claim to the planet. When the Master learns the Doctor has already met the primatives, he uses the Doctor to get into their layer and expose his real goal; a powerful doomsday weapon. Meanwhile, after several back and forth battles for power, IMC winds up on top and forces the colonists to leave, despite the fact that the spaceship is in far too much disrepair to make the journey. The colonists trick the IMC but to do so, Ashe dies with the ship and they defeat them. At the same time, the Master tries to convince the Doctor to join him and the primatives leader allows the Doctor to destroy the weapon for the greater good. The Master flees and Caldwell switches sides, promising to help the colonists.

Colony in Space is Pertwee's first time really getting out into the universe again but unfortunately it also feels like the also-ran space episodes of the classic series. It doesn't have to be. In fact, the first half is promising; a somewhat starker story about capitalism leaning on the little guy. Granted it works more in theme than in practice (the colonist characters are dreadful bores, with non-entities and Winton and Ashe filling the generic Doctor Who roles of space faction where one wants to do things peacefully and one things shit needs to be stirred up. I don't care for either. The IMC side is more interesting. specifically Caldwell. Caldwell works because he understandably knows the cost if he stands up to IMC but in doing so allows evil to succeed. And that intrigue is where the series is interesting. I like that Caldwell keeps seeing new lows but only makes moves if he can't lose much for it (though the story can't seem to decide on these lines very well).

It's a very anti-capitalist story not only because it's about an evil company but the veil of civility and lawfulness. If anything, I feel like the Doctor and Ashe are meant to be voices to reason but it sure feels like they are playing IMCs game, which they can't win. It doesn't mean I like Winton or want a violent solution but I wish the solution was a more clever rebellion, something to turn IMC's tactics on itself. The villains are truly cold and appalling (I think the actor playing the project head does a good job playing cold "civility"), great villains to hate but frustratingly no clever or surprising comeuppance. I wanted to see him really absorb his loss. Similarly, I wish Caldwell's turn happened at a more interesting time or we dug into him more to look at how the average person who doesn't want to get involved is still complicit. It's where the story excels and it there's not enough of it.

But still, I actually think it's fine... until the Master shows up. In this season, the Master is rarely the lead villain, more a story spice who can keep changing roles to villain to unlikely ally to x-factor. But he transforms the intrigue into some dull super-villain bullshit. There's stuff here I think that informs the character and the series; the entire crab nebula created by a weapon seems like the cosmic scale of events and threats that the show does more frequently going forward. And while the "join me" seen is generic superhero pablum, the actors play it well with the implication being "I think I would really like you if you weren't against everything I stand for" and them just not getting each other. But yeah, its dull. The left-leaning story also fails the, *ugh*, primatives, who are not only pretty one-dimensional but also inconsistent. Are they just monsters? Or do they have a sense of justice? If so, why not destroy the doomsday weapon soon? Why chose to die. It's clear they are supposed to be "Indians" and they function not as characters but as whims of narrative convenience and distraction from the most interesting, grounded story. And it's wild to call the land permit legal dispute more interesting but here we are.

Over all, this should have been Caldwell's story. It should have been about the walls closing in around him; that he's going to have to take a damn side and be damned either way. Give him a better dilemma; maybe he has a family at home. Something that makes it even harder to not turn his back to injustice. We could all be there some day; it's easy to say we'd stand up for the right thing but it's not easy when it really costs you in life. I want the weight of that cost. I want him to do the right thing and suffer for it but have a cleaner soul. As it is, it's an OKish, generic space adventure that falls apart as it goes on.

Best Cliffhanger: Not intentionally the best but I love the robot with big dumb monster hands.

Next Time:

 

[Kazin]

I agree that once the Master turns up in Colony in Space, the story turns stupid. On top of being somewhat dull to begin with, it pretty much damns the serial in my mind.

The Daemons has its moments but I always struggle to get through it. It's pretty much the entire production teams favorite story of their run, though, oddly enough. I don't agree, but you can tell everyone's having a good time making it, at least.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Dæmons
"Bessie, how dare you go gallivanting around like that. Are you sorry? Very well, I forgive you. Now go back to your parking place before I change my mind."

In this serial, a small town is near an archaeological dig thought to have Satanic connections. Though the Doctor has no belief in the supernatural, he knows something is amiss and goes to stop it but is too late. Meanwhile, the Master has infiltrated the town disguised as a church official and leading a secret coven. Their plan is to raise not a demon but a Dæmon, an amoral creature who had from ancient time had experimented on man. The Master is hoping it will gift him his power. When the creature starts to stir, it puts up a heat field around the town to stop others from getting in so the Doctor gives instructions to build a machine to deal with it. The Master tries to turn the townspeople against the Doctor but the Doctor manages to convince them he is a sorcerer with the help of Yates and a local. The Doctor eventually confronts the Master who has finally freed the alien Azal. The Doctor tries to convince Azal to spare humanity while initially convinced, Azal is offended that the Doctor won't take on the mantle of his power. The Doctor is to be killed but is saved by Jo at the last minute in an act of self-sacrifice. Jo survives as Azal is too confused to continue his attack and disperses in a cloud of unreason. The Master is finally captured and the Doctor decides to take part in a Mayday celebration.

So... what is this. There are cosmetically weirder Doctor Who episodes but this one is more odd in the smaller touches. Bessie is now a full Herbie the Love Bug character. I don't HATE it, I guess but it seems so kiddie for an arc about Satanism. In all honesty, I found it an entertaining enough diversion but in the same way I might rewatch a Saturday morning cartoon from the 80s. Things are happening and it's not dull but it's fairly dumb. But more than anything, for a five episode story, it's deeply underwritten.

In principal, I know Azal's deal: he experimented on humanity and will destroy it or let it be depending on his findings. OK, cool. But... what was he going for? What was his endgame? I don't know what he WANTS. When the Doctor makes a deal, he doesn't really appeal to what the villain wants and it makes for a poor negotiation scene. And why does he need to give someone his power? I really don't get this monster. Even more than usual, the Master is dumb and things he can boss around a 10-15 foot devil who is very clear about not being commanded. More than that, it seems the monster immediatelly dies VERY easily the second someone acts without selfishness. I can't imagine living so long and dealing with humans not being prepared for that, at least as an abstract idea.

The whole thing is watchable but hokey as all get out. And it's frustrating because it starts interesting ideas that it doesn't follow through with. As clumsy as it is, I do like the set up of the Doctor not winning with his wits and only a purehearted decision can stop the space devil. I can work with that. This version of the Doctor is kind deep down but he tends to talk down to people and it's a good way to give Jo a valuable asset The Doctor and UNIT lack. But it's very last minute and not woven into the story except the Doctor keeps explaining "no magic, only science". OK, so then that should be a focus but I feel like the Doctor never really struggles with that until the mayday celebration attack. But more than anything, the idea of the Master coming to town to sow evil and discord and convince them they can get what they want if they are evil is very interesting but it only comes in at episode 4 and is resolved in half an episode's time. I think it would have been more interesting if the story started with the Doctor coming to town and almost everyone already is in the Master's cult and it becomes about the Doctor convincing them they aren't tools of devils but have agency.

Some of the silliest stuff is still fun, in it's way. I like the setting. And I bet a lot of kids were scared by it. This is a family show in the 70s dealing with the devil. We weren't at the Satanic Panic of the 80s but in media there was certainly more devil stuff. I don't know what about that time fostered that but in the following years after this episode The Exorcist and the Omen would be big hits. And there's also a folk horror vibe and this has elements of the folk horror classic The Wicker Man. So I imagine a lot of young viewers found the idea of the devil, someone who could own you forever, was pretty freaky, even if he was from space. And kids don't have the filter to recognize a silly size-changing effect.

But I think the tone is not quite there. There's a few ways to go; campy is one and this story does that a lot but almost not enough, as there are some fallow spots in there. It could decide to be genuinely freaky, which would make for a good season ender. But it feels neither here nor there enough. If anything, it feels like a victory lap. This is the episode where everyone plays outside and gets to be a little stilly. I just it were also more fun and clever but as it is, it's a very half baked story. Would be more fun at 3 episodes, probably.

Best Cliffhanger: None are super great but I like the simplicity of "hey, a gargoyle just showed up in the middle of our conversation!"

Next time:

 

[Kazin]

Best part about it is the Brigadier's line, "Chap with the wings, there. Five rounds rapid." Not all that interested in much else for the reasons you outline. The Pertwee era is kinda rough!

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Best part about it is the Brigadier's line, "Chap with the wings, there. Five rounds rapid." Not all that interested in much else for the reasons you outline. The Pertwee era is kinda rough!

To me, it's watchable in the moment, with some slow bits, but it falls apart in the rearview.

 

[Kazin]

Especially in the rearview, the whole era feels... wrong. Like, as much as we all love the Brigadier, the Doctor teaming up with the military week after week just feels off for the character.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Especially in the rearview, the whole era feels... wrong. Like, as much as we all love the Brigadier, the Doctor teaming up with the military week after week just feels off for the character.

I get it, because he grumbles about it but it, so far, never really DEALS with it. I put the idea in the same spot as the whole premise of the Sixth Doctor; a solid start but with no follow through on the potential. In this case, I don't mind him doing the week after week team up but it should be more about the conflicting values. The Third Doctor does not want to be there and disapproves of military approaches but it always feel like it's a sidelined conflict and they are still helping. That said, I also feel like they are also sort of window dressing? Like, they "help" but it feels more like narrative convenience but also "we need to put something exciting this week, let's have the army shoot some monsters for a bit". I barely which is Yates and which is Benton week after week and I don't care.

I think it plants important seeds because later on, UNIT is actually narratively convenient in a good way to shortcut the Doctor in earthbound invasion arcs, especially in the new Who era where they can literally call him up and the have an Avengers tower and can quickly update him and the trust is established so they don't need to keep going "who is this guy" before the Doctor helps.

Also, it's a good shortcut for classic castmembers to come back but it's starting to get ridiculous. I feel like next it's going to be "welcome special agents 15 year old time displaced Barbara and also Turlough is here."

 

[Kazin]

I think the most annoying thing about returning classic castmembers is that they don't often do anything with them, short Sarah Jane Smith and (delightfully enough) Jo Grant in the Sarah Jane Adventures, who gets some nominal closure for her era. As much as I enjoyed seeing Mel come back recently, they haven't done anything with her, really (it was mostly an excuse to see Bonnie Langford play a baddie, which was a delight, but not what I wanted to see Mel for haha).

 

[Johnny Unusual]

I think the most annoying thing about returning classic castmembers is that they don't often do anything with them, short Sarah Jane Smith and (delightfully enough) Jo Grant in the Sarah Jane Adventures, who gets some nominal closure for her era. As much as I enjoyed seeing Mel come back recently, they haven't done anything with her, really (it was mostly an excuse to see Bonnie Langford play a baddie, which was a delight, but not what I wanted to see Mel for haha).

I definitely agree. It's a hard needle to thread, I think. I think there's a desire to see these characters one last major time where do we put them to show that their time with the Doctor meant something to them and vice versa. Mel isn't exactly one of the BIG companions (I feel like her era is overshadowed by Ace) but I feel like there should be some more emotion. When they don't die, the companion often has to go on with their life in a new way (often though not always leaving to help with a specific cause). The Doctor fans keep looking back but the Doctor rarely does unless they're feeling wistful or having an "life flash before their eyes" moment but I feel like one of the reasons fans really want to see Susan isn't just because she's key in Doctor lore (being the only known relative apart from his mother. We don't even know if she's a blood relative or if the Doctor has even met her parents yet in the convoluted Gallifrey timeline) but because it means the Doctor REALLY contending with his past and a promise that has yet to be fulfilled ("I will return someday").

Well, also because Carol Anne Ford is in her 80s.

 

[Kazin]

Susan is so tough. I'd imagine no one wants to go near her, because any explanation/origin story for her and the Doctor are never going to be as good and/or epic as what fandom has imagined for over 60 years now. It's either do something like that with her, or pointlessly bring her back like in The Five Doctors so the current Doctor can just say hi, she can hurt her ankle, then sod off (I love The Five Doctors, but that was so unforgivably bad lmao).

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Oh, Alan Cumming is in this as an evil cartoon character. Sounds about right.

 

[Kazin]

This spring, eh? Next month or two, hopefully?

EDIT: Oh, nevermind, it's April 12th, apparently. Hooray!

 

[Vaeran]

Looks pretty good! I haven't been watching much Classic Who lately (just not in the mood) but I'll definitely be there for this.

 

[Kirin]

Yes please, put it in my veins and all that.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Day of the Daleks

"This won't do at all. We can't have two of us running about."

In this serial, the Doctor is called to help Sir Reginald Styles who is holding an important world peace conference in his mansion. It seems he's had distressing visions of ghosts and though he denies it, the Doctor suspects something amiss. The Doctor discovers the "ghosts" are actually soldiers from the future come to assassinate Sir Reginald. The Doctor is held hostage and learns they are convinced killing him will save them from a terrible future. Eventually, Jo is shot into the future and treated well... unaware that new friend is actually a servant of the Daleks. The Doctor arrives in the future and discovers humans treated as slaves and the Daleks themselves. The Doctor learns that Sir Reginald's conference was bombed and many came to the conclusion was Reginald set the bomb in a power grab that literally blew up in his face. The Doctor realizes the problem is a paradox and the future guerillas who set the bomb to kill Reginald created the nightmare. The Doctor goes back in time to warn everyone while the Daleks race to stop him. The Doctor has everyone sent out of the mansion and lures the Daleks in, where they are destroyed and the terrible future he foresaw is prevented.

I read right after that this wasn't written as a Dalek story and it shows. They feel like complete window dressing. It's not like the dystopian future is out of step with what we know of them but at the same time it really could be any invader, pretty much. I was actually surprised this one is pretty well-recieved. The first act isn't bad but the Doctor and the guerillas and the space men running around bored me a bit. But I think it really does come into it's own. Sadly, it does it in the final episode. I think it's when it's bigger ideas lock into place but I wish they were more present for the totality of the story.

I think overall it would have been a better story that the focus is on man being the architect of his own doom through lack of empathy for others and desire to solve problems with violence. I think it's funny that it starts with a paradox that is never resolved and though I know for a fact it was an authorial oversight, it weirdly does fit thematically that the loop was broken, I guess. But it's also when the stock character types suddenly become much more interesting. It's an old story but the main Dalek collaborator/slave makes an interesting case. Obviously , he's wrong but living in a world without hope, it's clear all he can do is try to save himself and some people while sacrificing many more because he's convinced winning is impossible. Like with Colony in Space, I wish he was a character who we got to know more and was the main focus outside of the Doctor and Jo, to make his redemptive and sacrificial actions more powerful. His depth comes pretty late in the game and the actor does a great job with it, I might have liked more hints of it leading up.

The final episode is also where it gets more timey wimey though not nearly as ambitious or convoluted as the new series. But this is the era where the time travel gets a little trickier and more clever than "look we're in cowboy times!" This again feels a little like this era of Doctor Who, in a VERY broad sense, wants to tackle anxieties and in this case it's the idea that we might be on the brink of war. This story is about what does that mean; we are the very persons bringing our own ruin though violence. I won't say it's deeply complex but it really enriches the stew and makes what I initially was thinking as an also ran arc as actually having something there. But again, mostly just for that last episode.

Best Cliffhanger: None are really good. They all hinge on LOOK DALEKS but they don't actually come as a surprise. Nothing is strong enough or surprising enough really.

Next Time:

 

[Kazin]

I like the two Doctor drinking wine scenes, as self indulgent as the first one is - Pertwee is fantastic in the second one, arguing morality with the human villain. Otherwise, yeah, I find this one largely dull as well.

I'm gonna say it: Day of the Daleks would be better written by Steven Moffat. As much as I like his writing, it usually wouldn't fit or be better than what we got in the original series - this is the rare exception. Day of the Daleks seems like proto-Moffat in many ways, even down to the aforementioned wine scenes.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

There's something inherently hilarious about time loops that are never resolved, the premise of narrative trickery intended that never gets fulfilled.

In Jojos Bizarre Adventure there's a flashback which explains the main character's unique haircut that strongly implies a bootstrap paradox and the creator has claimed "no. Just some coincidence."

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Curse of Peladon

"You know, I haven't seen a coronation since Elizabeth the first's. Or was it Queen Victoria?"
"Name dropper."

In this serial, the Doctor and Jo land on the planet Peladon after the Doctor seems to get the TARDIS working again. On the planet, a medieval kingdom about to enter the Galactic Federation, are hosting ambassadors who wish to oversee the young king officially announcing the plan to join. Hepesh, the High Priest of Peladon, warns against them, warning of a curse of an ancient spirit should they go against the old ways. The Doctor and Jo appear and to avoid a severe punishment for trespassing pretend to be noble dignitaries from Earth. The Doctor suspects something foul, not helped by the presence of two Ice Warriors, whom he distrusts based on past experience.

Naturally nosy, The Doctor investigates a curse and finds underground tunnels and a fierce alien animal. The Doctor goes to explain but is sentenced to death for stepping on holy ground. The King, torn between his sympathies for the Doctor and Jo (whom he has fallen in love with) and his desire to maintain tradition and offers the Doctor a chance to trial by combat. The Doctor reluctantly accepts. Later that night, Hepesh tells the Doctor to escape, intending to kill the Doctor. The Doctor uses the opportunity to see that the "beast" underground can be tamed. The Doctor returns to battle the King's champion and wins. After the fight, it is revealed that one of the ambassadors was in collusion to Hepesh and likely convinced him to avoid joining the Federation to take advantage of the treasure trove of minerals the planet contains. Hepesh, still convinced joining the Federation will lead to the planet's doom, stages a coup but is stopped by the Doctor who reveals the beast after taming it. Hepesh tries to regain control of it but it deals him a lethal blow. The King plans to join the Federation and forgive Hepesh's men. The Doctor realizes the Time Lords probably arranged for him to intervene and the Doctor leaves with Jo.

The Curse of Peladon is... fine. I think there are a LOT of problems but they are all smaller problems. Not even "problems" so much as wasted opportunities to make the story better. The one big actual mistake for me is the Doctor immediately pegging the Ice Warriors as the baddies of the arc. Of the three Doctors so far, he feels both like the one most likely to be a bit salty and mistrusting toward them (mostly because even more than Hartnell feels like the most crabby Doctor) but also really goes against Pertwee's first season where he doesn't jump to conclusions about non-human characters. I feel like this was more for US: there are probably viewers who didn't see or remember these aliens and for the twist that these are some stand up lizard men to work, the audience needs to be informed that they can't be trusted and the most trusted person for the audience to hear that from is the lead character. There would probably be a better way to do it and a more sensible reason for the Doctor to be suspicious.

Now on the good side, I think the episode is smart, mostly, about how it plays with our suspicions. I think it gives away the game a little early by Hepesh clearly being the villain but some of the other decisions in terms of story mechanics uses more obvious structure to it's advantage ("oh, the ice warrior called Jo to their room, I bet this is where the worm turns"). It's a juvenile version of this kind of "don't judge people" story but the last two seasons feel a little more kid friendly (Claws of Axos body horror aside), so I don't mind. Pertwee not trusting them lays it on a bit thick for me, especially since it never comes up and he never deals with his presumption and prejudice. I think you can make a good story where the Doctor sees that despite his fight against prejudice, ANYONE can be subject to it in certain circumstances. But no admission of wrong, it's avoided. That's one missed opportunity.

The other is they try to make Hepesh more sympathetic in two scenes but the dude is a drag. He is just clearly a villain and while the actor is doing his best, it's a generic Doctor Who "trying to control his tribe with superstition" villain. The fact that he does all this evil stuff because he's been duped (the secret behind the scenes baddie is also underwritten, despite being visually interesting) should make him more tragic and they try in his death scene but nope. Dude just sucked. Similarly, I think the actor who plays the King is doing good but he's written not so much as conflicted as wishy washy. And there's something that can be done with that but he never actually proves in the end he's worthy. Heck, Jo has two scenes where she pleads with him to take action and he never does. At least Jo feels like she's actually doing a bit more this time out and the Doctor isn't telling her to stay out of it. She is clearly motivating story factors in a positive way, mostly. More of this please. Also, I like that the aliens, while silly, do look alien. It's pretty rare for this show to have non-hominid aliens. Also, a non-binary alien. Neat.

Overall, it's watchable and it proves 4 episodes is the optimal length for most Doctor Who serials. But it leaves too much on the table to be a really good one. I think with one or two more passes at the script where all the characters have more interesting arcs and nuance, this would have been a top tier story. But it's a whodunnit with an obvious solution (except the traitor but it's really an unsatisfying reveal). It wants to do a lot of stuff (palace intrigue, murder mystery, monsters) but it only really succeeds in a few spaces. A fun little arc.

Best cliffhanger: A head in a jar is about to shoot the Doctor.

Next Time:

 

[Kazin]

You may recognize the King of Peladon as Patrick Troughton's son, David Troughton, who also appeared in the show much later in the David Tennant episode "Midnight":

(he also had a very small part as an unnamed soldier in an episode of The War Games, where in the Civil War barn the alien cosplaying as a Nazi general fights him to the death)

I adore The Curse of Peladon. Jo gets more to do than she usually does, and she's fun to watch. Also this is the first time in series history that a "bad" race has flipped sides and become a "good" one - that isn't done before The Curse of Peladon (outside of like, one person from a "bad" race helping the Doctor occasionally. Here, all the Ice Warriors are goodies). You'll recall, the last time we saw The Ice Warriors, Patrick Troughton was running around murdering them with heat ray guns - for all that Pertwee is suspicious of them here, he treats them far better than the 2nd Doctor ever did haha

I dunno, Curse just works for me on many levels. It's a very stagey production, but it still feels like Pertwee is out in space, which while not as rare as his era is made out to be, is far rarer than it should be. Generally speaking, when Pertwee is off Earth, the episode is good. Not always - you've got one coming soon that isn't, and there are several season 11 stories in space that are terrible - but some of my favorite Pertwees are while he's off Earth.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

. You'll recall, the last time we saw The Ice Warriors, Patrick Troughton was running around murdering them with heat ray guns - for all that Pertwee is suspicious of them here, he treats them far better than the 2nd Doctor ever did haha

The show is inconsistent with the Doctor being the guy who wants to avoid violence and resolve thing with reasons and also him just... killing off evil aliens. Daleks don't count. They are Nazis.

 

[Vaeran]

John Barrowman's got a completely tone-deaf new interview out where he discusses his on-set behavior on Doctor Who/Torchwood/etc. and is like "actually everything I did was Funny and Cool and the media just blew it out of proportion because they're out to get me." (I haven't had time to watch it yet because I'm at work, but I've gotten the gist of it from people's reactions.)

I also went through a phase where I used being gay as an excuse to get away with outrageous shit that I alone thought was funny. The difference is that I was 16-17 at the time and have long since grown the fuck up. It's very clear and very sad that, even all these years later, Barrowman is utterly incapable of seeing his own actions from other people's points of view, and understanding how something he considers funny and harmless could make someone else very uncomfortable, even to the point of feeling unsafe around him. The man's nearly sixty years old, and if he hasn't developed a sense of empathy by now I don't think he ever will.

Captain Jack was a fun character, but if this is who Barrowman really is then I'm more than happy for him to sit alone at home for the rest of his days and wonder why no one wants him back in front of the camera.

 

[Kazin]

I can only imagine watching that will make me furious, and the fact that they've disabled comments (lmao) means it's probably pretty bad. I appreciate the heads up that it exists, though, and if I'm feeling particularly self-abusive, maybe I'll fire it up.

How anyone can not be told "hey this shit you did 10+ years ago where you took your dick out at work made some people uncomfortable" and react with "I have no regrets" is beyond me. How can you not reflect? How can you not, at the very least, go "...yeah, I can see why some would find that unpleasant," and instead double down on it? As you say, it comes across as very childish. Grow up, idiot.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Sea Devils

"It seems to be a rather interesting extraterrestrial life form."
"Only puppets, you know? For children."
"Oh."

In this serial, the Doctor and Jo pay a visit to the Master, now finally imprisoned. But the Doctor starts to suspect something is wrong, particularly with Trenchard the warden. In fact, Trenchard has made an alliance with the Master in the hopes of reaching his ambitions. The Master is concerned with a series of ship disappearances, which the Doctor also starts investigating. It turns out the ships are being attacked by the Sea Devils, an alternate form of Silurian. Like the other Silurians, they believe they are entitled to take back the planet they once ruled. The Doctor hopes to achieve peace while as usual the Master is hoping to use them. It becomes a race and all too late Trenchard is betrayed and killed.

The Master finally makes contact with the Sea Devils and convinces them to war on the land. The Doctor nearly convinces the Sea Devils otherwise until a buffoonish and dangerous politician tries to blow them up with depth charges (also endangering the soldiers who have been taken hostage by the Sea Devils). The Sea Devils are now ready to destroy humanity with the help of the Master's invention but the Master needs the Doctor's help. At the last minute, the Doctor reverses the polarity of the neutron flow of the machine, causing it to self destruct and he and The Master both escape.

This is a real mixed bag. Real mixed. Let's start with what does work. Pertwee and Delgado continue to have tremendous chemistry. This is the episode that establishes they actually new each other in the past. It doesn't make a lot of literal sense since the Doctor and the Master very clearly new OF each other in their first meeting but the show is clear they don't actually KNOW each other. But as obvious a choice it is to retcon, it does make emotional sense, especially since despite, as the Doctor says in this episode, The Master is "evil personified", they kind of like each other as much as they hate each other, which gets expanded on in the newer series. I also think the more Delgado plays the Master, the more he seems to let the character have some fun. Him watching the Clangers and thinking they are for real aliens is something that would usually happen to the Doctor (interestingly, it in fact feels more like a beat from a Douglas Adams or new Who story.) It makes me say, once again, just give the Master a fun adventure without the Doctor; play with the Doctor Who formula by showing us what an evil Doctor story looks like.

Structurally, it's a bit of a mess. At least, if you view it as one story. The first four episodes are nearly Sea Devil free. Sure, they wander in and out of it but it's the Doctor and the Master in a game of cat and mouse. The Sea Devils are heavily backburnered in their own story. And those first four episodes probably wouldn't work if it was some other villain, the Master makes it work by sheer force of will. If anything, things are a let down when the Sea Devils finally come back. There is one exception though; Trenchard is a decent hapless dupe character but then Martin Boddey as Walker makes for a great hateable villain. More than the Master who lies but to the audience, he wears villainy like a badge of honour. Walker is jovial and cheerily stuffs his face while planning to murder an entire species and he thinks he's the good guy. He immediately cowers and whines as a hostage. This dude fuckin' sucks. Boddey has a tough job because it's easy to get the character wrong in terms of portrayal and grate on the audience but he grates in just a way I buy. In the right way. He's the kind of asshole who tells you "well, if those people didn't want to be deported they shouldn't have come to this country." It's an evil that is removed from the crimes he does and as cartoonish as he is, he's also believable.

The Sea Devil stuff... is not great. Doctor Who monster designs are cheap but I kind of like these more than the Silurians. But in terms of character, there is nothing going on. They are generic monsters and the Doctor spends the entire episode begging for peace and fucking blows them up... in the name of peace. It's an absurd, deranged ending. This was the perfect opportunity to contend with the ending of the Silurians and the evil that was done and ask questions about the Doctor's complicity but now he's a straight up monster. And the Sea Devils have no real personality so what little plight we have, we don't care about. Make them tragic. Make them desperate. They don't have to be "good guys" but it feels like both brands of Silurians are supposed to be people we could make peace with but in the end, they just turn to bad guys. At least in the Silurians, there is infighting and different Silurians. Here, they are all just a generic horde.

It's a real shame to waste the potential. Despite that, it's actually a pretty watchable story. Yes, a mess, but at the same time, a mostly fun mess. The actors do a lot of the heavy lifting and the writing is stronger when it is about human weakness allowing evil to succeed, be it ambition or nationalism. Oh, and the soundtrack; very similar to the Silurians except far better. It finally fits the right balance of eerie and odd. Except the problem is, they also use it in the wrong time. When a Sea Devil shows up? Yes. When the Doctor and the Master are having an otherwise fun sword fight?

Like, this is a comedy piece with swords so it should either be playful or have a swashbuckling theme but instead it sounds like a 50s monster movie. Which is good for the monsters, not so good for the Doctor playing hero. So I like this one but I wish it was split into two unrelated stories; The Sea Devils (with actual SYMPATHETIC Sea Devils and dealing with the Silurian story) and The Doctor realizing the Master has turned his prison into his base and the two having a big game of hide and seek. These would both be good three-episode arcs.

Best Cliffhanger:
I really didn't care for any of them this time. I guess the Doctor trapped between a minefield and a Sea Devil because it's the one with the most precarious threat.

Next Time:

 

[Kazin]

I feel like The Mutants is a much more interesting total mess than The Sea Devils, which has basically the moments you highlighted with the Doctor and the Master and just a bunch of boring nonsense otherwise. There are people out there who love The Sea Devils, and I can't wrap my head around it. It's so dull.

And re: the music... I find the music in classic Who a touch overrated, especially in the 70s. Yes, the 80s synth has its issues and may not be to everyone's taste, but the kazoos of The Silurians and whatever they're doing here in The Sea Devils don't work for me at all, regardless of when it plays. The 60s was eerie at times, and also had a bunch of stock music, but I'd take either of those over what we got for most of the 70s (there are exceptions, but for me, not many).

 

[Johnny Unusual]

also had a bunch of stock music

I was always distracted by the stock music because half of it also appeared in some really bad movies from MST3k.

 

[Kazin]

Yeah, I was never a huge MST3k devotee, as much as I liked the few I did see back in the day, so I recognize precisely zero stock music from Doctor Who in that way lol

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Mutants

"Marshal, you are quite mad."
"Only if I lose."

In this serial, the Doctor and Jo find themselves on another errand by the Time Lords, this time delivering a package only capable of being opened by one person. The task seems simple but soon the Doctor realizes the recipient is a native to a planet that is being run by Earth colonists called Overlords who have taken over the planet Solos. Solos has also had an outbreak of mutations where the local people are being turned into monsters. There's tension but the current leader of the Overlords is planning to give the Solonians their independence. On the day of the announcement the leader is killed as part of the Marshall of the human colonist's plot to take the planet for himself. To tie loose ends, he tries to kill his Solonian collaborators (failing to kill one) and pin the crime on Ky, a rabble-rousing Solonian resisting colonization. As Ky escapes, the Doctor learns he is the recipient of the package.

The Doctor follows Ky to Solos (because he took Jo as a hostage) and learns that the mutations are actually not a disease by a part of the Solonian's biological response to changing seasons, which happens over incredibly long periods of time. They are supposed to mutate, though not in the way they are. The Doctor is supposed to help the metamorphosis go correctly. Meanwhile, the Marshall attempts to coerce the Doctor (who earlier proved great scientific acumen) to make the air breathable for humans while killing off the Solonians. With Jo as a hostage, the Doctor goes with him, even reluctantly assisting him trick an investigator from Earth. When Jo is set free, The Doctor tells all he knows but the sudden appearance of a mutant causes the investigator to panic and allow the Marshall to take command of the situation. The Marshall plans to kill the investigator and the Doctor but the Doctor manages to get Ky his package and Ky manages to mutate to a godlike being. Ky kills the Marshall and their people return to their home.

For a story called the Mutants, there weren't a lot of mutants. I'm doing my best to boil it down but it is a story rich in... stuff. As often, I'm leaving a lot out. It's not an incoherent story but I felt lost from time to time. In all honesty, I tuned out in the first two episodes. I feel like I'd scene so many "rise up against the evil government" stories and while that will always be part of the series, it felt like a generic version of that. But then in the middle part it manages to get to the while idea of an alien species whose metamophic cycle happens in nearly cosmic time. It's a great idea but only a small percentage of the story really plays with it. Still, by then I was enjoying myself more. The last story is really more about a genocidal madman and frankly, perhaps it tries to do a little too much (yet, somehow, not enough, at least in terms of what it seems to think is the general conceit). I feel like in the last act, it's a battle between the Doctor and the tyrannous Marshall and the Doctor trying to get him caught but also he has his Caine Mutiny moment...

But then also the "weaponizing prejudice" moment. It feels like it happens in the wrong order. Keep in mind, it's the right order, THE PERFECT ORDER, in a more cynical story about people throwing in with the fucking worst people in the world because of fear or convenience. In fact, I think the superior story is the Doctor realizing the Investigator is no help as long as Earth gets theirs, Jack. But the Investigator is basically a good guy and while that still could land in theory (fear making you choose the clearly bad option), it doesn't really thread that needle. I guess I like that it's surprisingly easy work to convince the colonizers they are working for the bad guy but the ease, with the goodness of the Investigator, seems almost pollyannaish The mutants has a lot of good ideas and I feel like it never makes big mistakes so much as the story doesn't feel cohesive. It feels like the stuff that isn't touched on enough is epic sci-fi but primarily it's about a tinpot dictator who goes to grotesque lengths for power.

I think it helps that Paul Whitsun-Jones really understands the assignment; clever but petty, rash and slimy. He's clearly doing a Sydney Greenstreet impression, the beloved character actor who had a unique cadence and played villains in classics like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon who had a patriarchal air where he was used to convincing people to make bad choices. The Marshall isn't so charming but despite being part of a long line of also-ran evil authoritarians on the show, he does the best he can with the material. Which isn't bad per se but considering we are spending so much time with him, he does feel like a lot of the other villains we've seen on the show.

And yet, sometimes the vision cannot match it's budget. And I love that. There are a few never-made episodes described as "it would be too expensive" but I love that this serial on it's minimal budget does an explosive decompression cliffhanger. Or a rainbow God roving through the space station and evaporating a dude. And yet they already paid for the mutant costumes and we see so little of them. I can't get a handle on these decisions. Overall, The Mutants is somehow very generic and an odd one out. The more out-there ideas really feel like what I think of as the latter day classic Doctor stories. I think the reach exceeded the grasp but it's still a mostly watchable story by the end.

Best cliffhanger: Explosive decompression. They are trying so hard and after so many boring "oh no, a gun" and "oh no, a monster" cliffhangers, something that feels weirder and more immediate means a lot.

Next time:

 

[Kazin]

The Mutants is such a mess. I like it, but as you say, I find myself super bored some of the time. You rightly point out Paul Whitsun-Jones who, as you say, nails what he's asked to do. He's fun to watch lol. Otherwise... Yeah, it really is somehow both over- and undercooked at the same time. It's at least a far more interesting failure than The Sea Devils, imo

 

[Kirin]

John Barrowman's got a completely tone-deaf new interview out where he discusses his on-set behavior on Doctor Who/Torchwood/etc. and is like "actually everything I did was Funny and Cool and the media just blew it out of proportion because they're out to get me." (I haven't had time to watch it yet because I'm at work, but I've gotten the gist of it from people's reactions.)

So I actually did watch it, and it's mostly just frustrating because he's simultaneously so close and yet so far from actually getting it. He says at one point that he wishes anyone who had a problem with his behavior would tell him because he would want to personally apologize to them, which is great and all, but then he steadfastly just refuses to understand or admit to the power dynamics that might prevent some random set intern from walking up and confronting him on his bullshit, despite the interviewer repeatedly trying to baby him over to the idea. Sigh.

And like, even if he can't wrap his head around that, it's not like multiple people haven't come forward saying the whole set environment was a big sexual harassment disaster, so if you want to apologize to people who had that experience then maybe *lead with that* and not a bunch of mealy-mouthed defensive nonsense about how you thought everyone was cool with it at the time.

Anyway. I wish him and his therapist luck in actually making any progress with this shit. At least he apparently has one, it's a start.