Here I was expecting a plot about a giant killer hamster, and all I got were the Cybermen. Crud.
Did I like this one? Well, not exactly. I thought it was a little boring. I wanted to get plenty of Cybermen action, but they didn't appear until chapter four, and they weren't in it much even after that. I did get my wish about the recons though, because the third and final episode were not missing. It's rather important to me that the last episode exist, because that's when everything is concluded and I can see it happening.
The robot in the beginning didn't seem to serve much purpose and when Jamie destroyed it, it was even less helpful. It is unclear to me if the Cybermen built the robot on the Silver Carrier after taking it over, or if the humans had built it and the Cybermen used it for their evil plan.
The TARDIS has crashed because its mercury is depleted. The TARDIS seems to have all sorts of mercury issues. The Doctors also like carrying it around in their pockets. I was half expecting the Cybermen to steal it from Troughton, as it was stolen from Hartnell by the Daleks. And the mercury looked suspiciously like water. Doesn't it usually look silvery and thick?
When Jamie and the Doctor land on the space vessel, they proceed to sit down and have a good meal. WHAT? Do you normally walk into somebody's abode and start eating their food? They didn't seem particularly concerned with their surroundings. It is important to eat first, and work later I suppose. Troughton is very much the hobo sometimes. It's the Doctor's turn to get knocked out, so Jamie has to do all the work.
When the Doctor undergoes a physical, there is no mention of a second heart. Wouldn't you mention that? "Oh that's weird. You've got two hearts."
We are introduced to a new girl companion in this one. I knew she was a companion because: First, we can't go without a girl companion longer than one episode. Secondly, she is short. All the girl companions seem short. Thirdly, she is young. Fourthly, she's a perky child genius. All those put together have the makings of a good girl companion, don't you think? Do I like her? It's hard to say. But I rather hope that she doesn't rapidly decline into a little-miss-know-it-all; child geniuses in movies can become beyond annoying if not portrayed correctly. I don't know if she is supposed to be Vulcan-like, or what. She even has that little monologue in which she doesn't want to be robotic, but has a heart and feelings like everyone else. That does not bode well.
So we'll see how she gets along. It's also important to me that she holds her own with Troughton and Jamie, both very strong personalities and characters. She stows away on the TARDIS, and expects the Doctor to take her along for the ride. This time the Doctor hasn't kidnapped her. Unfortunately she's one of those who just decides on a whim to follow the Doctor about, with little thought to her job or family. Or maybe she mentions her family, but I wasn't paying attention. Dodo did the same thing, and look where it got her.
Once again the Cybermen want the resources that Earth offers, and are intent upon taking it over. This plot was complicated for me, but it was a rather elaborate plan on the part of the Cybermen to take over the Wheel, and steal the x-ray laser. The Cybermats seemed kind of useless. They were all destroyed before the fun really began.
The ending was non original, as the Doctor uses the deflector shield to throw the Cybermen back into space, floating in the air. Isn't that what he did in The Moonbase? Drop dead you evil Cybermen. Or rather, drop up you evil Cybermen.
Anyway, I didn't find this one very exciting. They are using these aliens because they are popular. At the end of the episode the Doctor shows Zoe a flashback to The Evil of the Daleks, which BBC intended on re-airing the following weeks.
Season Five is complete!
Next Up: The Dominators
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