Day 20: Assassin At Peking

And so today, Marco Polo is completed. How lovely. In this episode, a variety of plot points are dried up, as the story moves towards it's conclusion. Saying that a story has 7 episodes, clocking in at a final running time of around 180 minutes, may make people think that it's far too long and is probably filled with passing to stretch it out this long. However, the increased episode length time allows for plot-lines to be able to breathe, and for characters to come across as far more believable. Take, for instance, the mighty Kublai Khan. In less time, he would come across as just some doddering old fool, and the game of backgammon required to win back the TARDIS would be entirely unnecessary, as he would give it back to them anyway once he realises that these travellers that he has encountered are, on the whole, nice people, and he should be kind to them. But the game of backgammon is integral to his character, as it shows that he is not the cruel warlord that he has been painted as, whilst giving him a friend in the form of the Doctor. Thus, we can see his decision making process continue as his character develops, finally coming to the conclusion that the travellers deserve their flying caravan back. It's nice to see this character development, and it's something that can only be achieved in longer stories.