12.5 Revenge of the Cybermen

The story continues as the Doctor and his companions use the Time Ring, and return to the Space Station Nerva where the TARDIS is located.  Unfortunately, when they get there, things have gone awry.  There's a plague on board.  Actually it's not really a plague.  The Cybermen are killing everyone using their evil looking Cybermats.  These Cybermats look different.  They don't look like something you'd find in the janitor's closet.

So the Time Ring returned them to the same place, just years earlier? That ring is a piece of crap!  Or did the Time Lords deliberately send them to a different time?  The Doctor has become a real slave worker.   Actually, it's more like a bracelet.  The Time Bracelet doesn't sound as cool, though.

The Cybermen are just unlucky.  Their home planet has been destroyed, and all other attempts to take over the universe keep getting foiled by the Doctor.  Such a shame. 

I didn't like Cybermen's voices this time around.  They sounded like humans behind masks.  There was no indication in their voices that they were half robotic. At least they have discovered a use for the bulbs on the top of their heads.

It seems that Cybermen are violently allergic to gold, which is pretty strange if you ask me.  They are on a campaign to take over the universe, and want to destroy the planet Voga so no one can use it as a tool against the Cybermen.  Wow, that's rather elaborate.  Frankly I think 99% of the population would not guess that gold kills Cybermen, but there's always that 1% I suppose. 

"I heard from the Zarbi that the horrible Cybermen are allergic to gold." 
"Okay, let's go to Voga and get some."
"Wait, is that the only place in the universe where there is gold?"

Unfortunately, the guardians of Voga don't want to be blown to smithereens.  Can you blame them?

We get to see Tom Baker run through caves with a bomb strapped to his back.  Pertwee would never have allowed that to happen.

 What exactly is the Cybermen's revenge? 

Slightly unhinged guy who wants to take over the universe.  Not going to happen.

 Is it me, or did this seem particularly violent with all the carnage and dead bodies scattered far and wide? 

 Apparently the symbol used by the Vogans is later used as the Time Lord's symbol.  There's no significance there.  They just want to irritate us.

Next Up: Terror of the Zygons