This was definitely one of the stranger plotlines. It was original, though because it involved an alternate timeline. Everyone is evil in this alternate universe, of course. This plot has always been used in numerous science fiction stories, but we haven't seen it done before in Doctor Who.
You'd think these people would have learned their lesson by now. It's just stupid thinking that drilling into the center of the Earth is going to go well. There's always some sort of trouble brewing and just after disrupting the surly Silurians living there, you'd think someone would say, "Hey, that's not a good idea."
I want to complain about the length of these episodes in this season. They are all irritatingly long. Even though the plots are more interesting than they used to be, they are still very long.
Everyone in this story has authority and grumpy issues. In every other line they snap at each other, and generally act as though they're drinking acid. The Doctor is using the power from the nuclear reactor from the drill to power his own TARDIS, which you wonder if the plan will actually work. So far any attempts to fix the police box have failed miserably. You have to give the Doctor an A for effort, thought.
There's a toxic green slime seeping out of the center. Oh goody goody, toxic green slime. Of course this green slime is bad for you, because otherwise we wouldn't have a good plot. If the green slime touches you, you become a roaring, slobbering, hairy creature. Why do we always need monsters in plots?
Because the Doctor is stealing nuclear reactor power, when the unjolly green giants turn the nuclear power on to maximum, the Doctor is thrown into an alternate evil universe. Terrific! All the same people are there, including the Brigadier sporting an eye patch and a scar. All really good baddies have eye patches and scars, you know. I like the Brigadier as a baddie. But then I would like him even if he were Satan. Everyone tries to kill the Doctor, including the evil Liz, because no one recognizes him. The Doctor is quite dumbfounded by this idea.
Anyway, the bad humans are also drilling to the center of the earth, and their technology is better. In the evil world, the monarchy has been defeated and a fascist regime has taken over. The Brigadier and his infamous sidekick Benton, are supervising. None of the baddies believe that the Doctor is really from an alternate time line. Realistically he is a spy, right? I mean, how are you supposed to believe that numbskull parallel universe story? "Oh okay. Pass the eggs, please."
The ending to this episode was interesting because the Doctor is unable to save the evil Earth and its few survivors from the inferno once the Earth's core is penetrated. This actually really upsets the Doctor. I don't remember a time when the Doctor didn't fix everything in the end. In the good universe, nuclear power is restored and the Doctor comes back to the good world. Good thing, or he would have died, too! The Doctor has nine lives!
Fake raging inferno of DEATH!
Next Up: Terror of the Autons Thus ends Season Seven!
"Stand to attention when you're talking to me, and call me sir!"
Crikey, but I didn't really like this one. I always fly off the handle when they have science-y ones, with the astronauts, orbits, probes, radiation and other space stuff. But Doctor Who is science fiction so I should just learn to deal. I had a hard time holding onto the plot because of that.
I'm really not sure how the Doctor could remove the entire console from the TARDIS and put it somewhere else. That must have taken some time and energy. The Doctor never ceases to amaze me.
I'm fairly certain that we've established by now that humankind cannot wander about space, without getting eaten, kidnapped, attacked, or maimed by some alien species.
The Doctor's car has an anti-thief device. That's hilarious. Yes, our Doctor is a very smart guy, but he doesn't need to be a snob about it! Hah!
I'm not sure which is stranger, Heyhoe Launderers or Silcock Bakeries. I think I'll just get my bread at Aunt Millies' house.
The three astronauts have been replaced by three alien forms, but it takes everyone practically years before they figure this out. Of course the Doctor has his suspicions, but he thinks that about everyone.
There was a long scene in which Liz is running from the bad guys. I'm not really sure the purpose of this scene, except to draw out this plotline even longer than it needed to be. No I don't much like her outfits, but those boots are killer.
Someone really needs to show Reegan how to build a solid bomb. I think the Doctor was also supposed to die from the bomb, but it looks like he'd have to be breathing down Taltalian's neck for it to work. One of these days, though, the Doctor is going to run out of luck.
Once the Doctor runs into space to rescue the real astronauts, he is brought to the Ambassadors' space ship. These aliens are holding the three astronauts hostage until the Ambassadors are returned to them. There will be war, unless they are returned. General Carrington is sort of a bad and good guy, and when he had signed the treaty with the aliens several years back, it was with the intention to humiliate the aliens for killing his co-pilot?
Ronald Allen was also in The Dominators. Smooch!
They return the ambassadors, get the human astronauts back and all is well with the world. This sort of thing would have gone awry if the Doctor had been somewhere else in space, like on the Web Planet.
I love that the Brigadier and the Doctor insult each other at every available chance. They really are great together!
I am confused as to why this was occasionally in black and white, and sometimes in color.
This title is a bit odd. It's like a Peter Cushing title.
We are introduced to the Silurians [the lizard people] in this episode, but they crop up in Matt Smith's era. The Silurian era did exist, so presumably they were named after this Earth age, as a creature that existed back then. I guess technically the Silurians aren't aliens, because they are descended from dinosaurs.
The Silurians had put themselves in hibernation, but things had gone awry and their machine malfunctioned. The nuclear power reactor was just what they needed to wake up again. What made this interesting is that some of the Silurians were nice, and some weren't. The old Silurians wanted to live in accord with the humans, but the young surly Silurians wanted to take back Earth, and destroy mankind in the process. What a little blood thirsty generation.
The Doctor tries to convince U.N.I.T. that they can make peace with the Silurians, but the humans don't trust them. It also didn't help that the young Silurians plan to take over the universe involved spreading a virus through all mankind. The Doctor creates an antidote thankfully, but this virus only convinces the humans that the Silurians want to kill them all.
They need the planet's surface to be hot to survive. This makes more sense than the reptilian Ice Warriors who need it cold to survive. They couldn't really live in peace with each other, could they?
The Doctor gets to be imprisoned and tortured by the Silurians. This Doctor pulled it off, though. He tried to reason with the Silurians which is probably more than what Troughton would have done. He doesn't have a flute to break him out of jail.
I didn't realize how buff this 3rd Doctor really is. Hubba hubba. If you're into middle aged hotness, that is. Apparently lots of women considered this Doctor particularly handsome and sexy. Well yeah he is hands down compared to the other two. I'd probably give Troughton a 2 out of 10, and Hartnell would get a -45 out of 10.
In the end, the Brigadier, with orders from the government, blows the Silurians to smithereens. The Doctor is very angry about this. I lost a little respect for the Brigadier in this. I don't like him as much now. I didn't see the need for mass genocide, either.
Actually in a fit of absolute nerdiness, Steven Moffat brought the Silurians back exactly 50 years later, as promised by the hibernating Silurians who will then get their revenge and destroy Earth. Make that date on your calendar, Doctor.
I saw this one a while ago, for no particular reason, so I remember the plot. However, now watching it in context made a little more sense to me. I love the story of this new Doctor. He is stuck on Earth, exiled by the Time Lords for his crimes. It's quite a change from what we've watched before. He can't go wherever he wishes, and he's rather angry about that. It's not like he could steer the TARDIS before, but at least he could come and go when he pleased. As long as there wasn't some sort of Mercury issue, that is.
What's Jon Pertwee like? First impression is that he's a bit of a dandy, with his cape and fancy shirts. He's also kind of a snob, and has a tendency to treat authority figures with disdain. In short, he's got a big head. Troughton and Hartnell had their pride, but they were more personable, I think. Troughton didn't usually want to be an authority figure. Hartnell just wanted to get the heck out of wherever they were at the time. Pertwee gives me a sense that he's more intelligent and capable than everyone else. He's rather unhappy that he has a 'job', working for U.N.I.T., and that he is responsible to the Brigadier.
I also like that those around him don't really like or trust him. Even the Brigadier often questions his methods and his inability to be diplomatic. The 3rd Doctor does not like to be questioned. I will say that so far, this Doctor is very concerned about the welfare of the aliens that he comes across. I've said before that Troughton was sort of the one to blow everything and everyone to bits no matter the situation.
The Brigadier gets very excited to discover the blue police box, but is confused at the sight of Pertwee instead of his old friend Troughton. At first he is very suspicious of Pertwee as the Doctor. Could he be an imposter? It takes some time before the Brigadier and Pertwee are trusting of each other and by the end they only have a cautious friendship.
We discover more about the Doctor's physiology. His heart beat can be very low, he has two hearts, and he can put himself into a coma at will. That's a rather strange skill.
The Doctor calls himself Doctor John Smith, which is an alias that Troughton has used.
I remember the autons reappearing in the Eccleston and Tennant series. They made more sense in their first appearance.
Instead of Great Intelligence, we get the Nestene Consciousness. The Nestene doesn't like Yetis, thank goodness. They are into building mannequins. At least the writers are trying not to bring back old aliens, though I'm not really sure if using the same idea is very original.
The Nestene's plot to take over Earth involving replacing key government officials with robot controlled mannequins that look like them. Eventually all the people would be replaced, and the Nestene can control Earth for however long they wish. It's so great being a baddie.
The Time Lords have really mucked up the TARDIS, and the Doctor thinks he can fix it. So far, he cannot, but it's worth a try. Pertwee has a watch, which shows him the location of the TARDIS at all times. That would have been handy in the Marco Polo episode, when it gets stolen five thousand times. Next, the Doctor should invent a device that will bring the TARDIS to him no matter where he is.
There is probably a lot of discussion whether or not Liz is considered a companion. She never leaves Earth with him, so technically she doesn't travel with him. But she is still his assistant. She also works for U.N.I.T. though, so they're more like colleagues. It's all very confusing.
Now that I have witnessed the departure of Patrick Troughton, I thought I would steal a moment to reflect on William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, and everything that has happened since the series began.
William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton were two very different Doctors. They each had his own 'thing'. Hartnell still wins in terms of the way in which the Doctor's character is developed. He went from being a very selfish and cowardly Doctor, to a very caring and altruistic kind of gentlemen. However, Troughton completely changed the way in which the Doctor went about things. He was very hot headed, reckless, and a tad childish. He was very clever, and was quite adroit at fooling others. But it seemed almost gleeful at the meeting and defeating whatever alien species came his way.
I really liked the combination of the Doctor and Jamie. I felt that they have been the best mix that I have seen so far. It was quite sad that Jamie had to be returned to his own time, with no memory of his adventures with the Doctor. I think the 2nd Doctor was the most sad about this. He really had a great fondness for Jamie.
The Time Lords are a bunch of stuffy old goody two shoes.
Favorite episode overall: The Dominators Least favorite episode overall: The Space Pirates
Favorite companion: Jamie Least favorite companion: Victoria
Favorite episode in Season 1: The Daleks Favorite episode in Season 2: The Time Meddler Favorite episode in Season 3: The War Machines Favorite episode in Season 4: The Faceless Ones Favorite episode in Season 5: The Enemy of the World Favorite episode in Season 6: The Dominators
Troughton started quite a few things that other Doctors have repeated. The Sonic Screwdriver The umbrella The Time Lords "When I say run, RUN!" The bowtie
On with Jon Pertwee, color T.V. and NO reconstructions! Awesome!
This was a spectacular ending to Season Six, and a great ending to Patrick Troughton as the 2nd Doctor. I am going to miss him. I will also miss Jamie too. They were perfect together. I suppose all good things must eventually come to an end, and they needed to switch things up a bit, but we saw some good times and some bad ones, with Troughton. I have dubbed him the 'hobo' Doctor, with his raggedy clothes and mussed hair. His portrayal of the Doctor compared to Hartnell's was on opposite scales, and that was appreciated. I'm glad that Jamie and Zoe left at the same time. It would have been strange if one had stayed behind. I felt bad for them though, as their memories were wiped so that they didn't remember all their adventures with the Doctor. That was a bit cruel don't you think?
The plot itself was interesting. Humans have been kidnapped from Earth, and forced to fight for their lives on a strange planet. The humans have all been taken from different time periods, so they think that they are still fighting the same battles in history. The aliens who have created this world wish to produce a powerful army of humans, presumably they will use to conquer real planets. The War Chief, who is working with the aliens, is actually a Time Lord from Gallifrey, like the Doctor.
It is here that we learn a bit more about the Doctor's background. The Doctor stole the TARDIS and ran away from Gallifrey basically because he was bored. He doesn't want to go back, because he knows that one of the Time Lord rules is that he cannot interfere in history.
For once, the Doctor cannot fix the problems on his own, so he has to summon the help of the Time Lords to return all the soldiers back to their own time and places. He tries to get away before the Time Lords arrive, but he doesn't make it. The Time Lords are too powerful. Troughton was almost like an unhappy child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It was most entertaining. As punishment, the Time Lords destroy a portion of the TARDIS, and then exile him on Earth until he proves that he has learned his lesson. They also force him to regenerate.
I wish the War Chief had survived. I thought it was unnecessary to kill him off.
The Doctor is most unhappy with this order, and he doesn't want to go. I love that Doctor Who has dramatically changed. The Doctor is stuck on Earth for an indefinite period! I love where they are going with this idea! I'm so looking forward to Jon Pertwee.
I did think this ran too long. I think they could have compressed it to six or eight episodes and not ten. It contained a decent amount of action, and for the longest time we did not know what was going on as they ran from time period to another time period. I got a good laugh as they were accused of being spies every time they got caught. I think the Doctor survived three firing squads, which is a first in Doctor Who history.
This was one of those that sounds better than it really was. Not only was this mostly reconstructions, it was long, and painfully boring.
I will keep this review to four comments, before I start ranting and saying things I will later regret.
1. Milo Clancy is the worse representation of an American prospector set in the future. At least that's what they seemed to be going for. His character was so stereotypical of a frontiersmen, it was embarrassing.
2. If I have to see the same brief video of the space ship flying into space one more time....
3. The Doctor and his companions are separated from the TARDIS, and it seems as though they are stuck without the police box forever. Will they get it back? Of course they will.
4. I can't even come up with four nice comments about this one.
OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! The Ice Warriors are back!!! This time they are back with the bubble machine, which they must have stolen from the Seaweed god.
I've developed a mild dislike for all the episodes set in the future. I enjoy the ones that happen in 'current' times more, for a reason unknown to me. I do not have a fondness for space rockets, teleportation, etc. I know, how did I ever survive Star Trek? I'm not sure. I also dislike that the Ice Warriors are called Martians, even though my expert viewer gently pointed out that they are indeed from Mars. Martians always remind me of X Files, silly aliens in stupid flying saucers, and Marvin the Martian. I like Marvin the Martian, but I don't want him to be in Doctor Who. We need better names than that.
There were lots of cool things in this museum, which were considered antiques because they were so far into the future.
One thing that has confused us about the Ice Warriors, is that they very much like and need cold weather. I thought they were reptilian, and reptiles need heat to survive. Maybe they aren't reptiles, but they seem like they are.
Cowardly weasily guy lived a remarkably long time.
The Ice Warriors are creating a fungus that will destroy all of Earth's oxygen, making it more inhabitable for the Ice Warriors, but killing all the humans and plants in the process. They are probably really into acid pools, too. The fungus looks suspiciously like that bubble bath stuff from Fury From the Deep. Let's all attempt to destroy Earth, because that has really worked before.
Someone needs to tell Earth that moon bases are not a good idea. First the Cybermen, and now the Ice Warriors. What's next? The Daleks?
Wait, wasn't this machine in the museum in The Web Planet? AHHHH! BAD MEMORIES.
Once again we have the stupid race and the smart race. The smart race is evil, and the stupid race is...well, stupid.
The thing that irritated me was that the Gonds had been sacrificing their intelligent people to the Krotons for hundreds of years. Hundreds. So, it took the Doctor to come along and slap everyone awake. Over the years, someone should have spied a person come staggering through the back doors, and see them die by smoke. Or not. The Doctor and his companions witnessed this about five minutes after they had landed.
We made all sorts of jokes about "The Croutons" and "The Gongs". Who wouldn't?
There is no way that I am not going to mock the Krotons' appearance.
The Krotons can turn mental power into pure energy. How is that even possible. This is another of those "Let's harness someone's mental power and use it for bad purposes" plots.
There's an awful lot of acid that Jamie and his friends have made. Did you notice the one guy who had the kerchief just over his mouth and not over his nose as well? Apparently he gets a kick out of breathing acid.
For the first time, the TARDIS moves itself when it's threatened. That is strange. It only moves a bit of distance, too. Wouldn't that be crummy if it moved itself to another planet? What's weird is that the TARDIS moves into the craggy hill, but at the end of the episode, it is back where it was. Presumably it moved back once the threat had disappeared, or maybe the writers have just stopped caring.
The Doctor has a twirling umbrella!
Zoe is back in a mini-skirt. Or should I say she is back in a 'no skirt'? I think it's just a shirt.
Zoe is fairly well pleased with herself, when she initially does better than the Doctor during the tests. The Doctor is a little petulant about it the whole thing. He doesn't do well with tests. Eventually he redeems himself and scores higher than Zoe.
