Day 463: Image of the Fendahl Part 2/Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

The resolution to last episode's heavily analysed cliffhanger is quite disappointing, revealing that much of the effectiveness has been achieved through clever editing and that the Doctor and Leela weren't in too much danger after all. It's a bit of a cop-out, yes, but it doesn't detract from what was originally an excellently put together piece of television.

Meanwhile, you have no doubt noticed, the title of today's entry states that we will not be discussing just Image of the Fendahl today. Indeed this entry is in the style of Day 236, where an attempt was made to talk about The Seeds of Death, however I ended up talking about The Avengers, Hank Pym, and Ultron instead. This time, the subject that is on my mind is that of Star Trek, for obvious reasons.

Leonard Nimoy sadly passed away today. He left behind him a fantastic career, with his best known role being that of Mr Spock in the television series Star Trek, a series that was a television phenomenon, in no small part due to Nimoy's performance as the emotionless Vulcan. His character became a pop culture icon, representing so many things to so many people. To some, he represented difficulties with emotions, to others he represented a minority view, being the only alien on a human spaceship. He was the voice of logic and reason on the Enterprise, and represented a trusted figure to all who watched the series, a guiding voice as we explored the universe.

To commemorate his life, I made the decision to watch The Wrath of Khan for the first time last night. It's a fantastic film, being a film about aging. We look at Kirk, now an older man and struggling with this fact. He wants to be running about the universe, but he is constantly faced with the fact that he isn't a young man any more. The film then becomes about him trying desperately to prove to himself that he is still a capable man, however he is still let down and faced with failure at various points, culminating in the loss of Spock.

Nimoy plays the scene perfectly, being stoic and logical to the last, pointing out that it was the only solution to the problem that had been placed in front of them. It affects Kirk strongly, because it's a personal loss, one which takes away a firm part of his life. But it's not just Kirk that it affects. It strongly affects the audience because we all lose Spock together. We all loved him as a character and are saddened to see him go. But we know that he lives on. Not just in the mind of Dr McCoy as explored in Star Trek III, but also in our minds, as we know to be logical and reasonable thanks to him. We also see his compassion, that he would give his life such that others may live. We'll never forget Mr Spock, or Mr Nimoy, and they'll both live on in our memories. Indeed, you could say that they'll Live Long and Prosper.

Day 462: Image of the Fendahl Part 1

This episode has a fantastic cliffhanger, which works through a variety of factors. On paper, it consists of Leela walking into a room and a gun being fired, whilst an unknown force advances on the Doctor. This reasonably ordinary cliffhanger is able to be massively intensified on screen. For a start, the episode is shot at night, so the scenes where the Doctor is advanced upon by the unseen force have a new degree of menace through the darkness and shadows that surround the area, whilst a heavy fog plays up the unsettling nature of the countryside location. This is edited back and forth between the Leela scenes, meaning that we are in constant peril with no room for breath, and in addition the scenes never seem to stay on one shot for more than a handful of seconds, creating tension as the climax is reached. Tension is also created through the soundscape, as there is no music, only a steadily rising pitch of some unknown force creating more tension as you get a sensation that it is slowly approaching some form of climax. The only break from this steadily rising noise is a simple gunshot, which is sudden, giving a brief sense of shock to the audience and leaving them more unnerved for the true cliffhanger as the camera approaches the Doctor and we realise that there may be no escape from the horrifying and unknowable force.

Day 461: The Invisible Enemy Part 4

There's no getting around the uncomfortable fact about The Invisible Enemy. The titular enemy looks like a prawn. It's one of those cases where you desperately wish that the title were more accurate, such that we never saw what was cooked up for us on screen and we can live in blissful ignorance of the shrimp-like creature that attempts to take over the universe. It's one of several things that don't quite hit the mark with this story, mainly based around special effects although the direction, design and writing could have certainly been improved.

And yet, there's still a part of me that kind of likes this story. As I mentioned yesterday, there's the fantastic idea of the Doctor going inside his own mind. And there are a vast array of fantastic ideas here, from robot dogs to viruses that want to take over the universe, this story feels like it really wants to push the boundaries of what can be achieved on screen. It's commendable that the production team at least gave it a shot then. And even if it may not have worked as well on screen, at least we got something that was memorable and had some elements that were enjoyable within it.

Finally, today we learnt of the passing of Barry Newbery, designer for Doctor Who and coincidentally this story. His work has generally been fantastic, bringing forth wonderful worlds such as Renaissance Italy, Aztec temples and my personal favourite, the mysterious planet Karn. He will be sorely missed as a man who brought brilliant worlds to our screens, captivating our imaginations to truly allow us to be wanderers in the fourth dimension.

Day 460: The Invisible Enemy Part 3

"Where are we going Doctor?"

"Into the land of dreams and fantasy, Leela"

Through a convoluted procedure, the Doctor and Leela are currently inside the Doctor's brain trying to find the Nucleus of the Swarm, the viral creature that is causing all of the problems that are currently afflicting everyone. What this means is that the script gets to go a bit more surreal, as we walk through a truly alien landscape, full of strange backgrounds and dark areas, making the brain feel like an unexplored planet, full of mysteries to be uncovered. It's a plot line that verges on the surreal, but is also grounded in scientific reality. They are attacked by strange beasts, but these are antibodies aiming to remove the inteuders. Similarly, when we see strange signals and flashes in the background, we know that these are electrical impulses sending signals from the brain to the rest of the body. This all comes together to represent a merging of both the scientific side of the series and the fantastical, creating something that, as written, is truly awe inspiring.

Day 459: The Invisible Enemy Part 2

The Invisible Enemy features one incredibly major thing that occurs within the story. It is something that changes the landscape of Doctor Who forever and will go on to define Graham Williams' era as producer. It is in this story that K9 first appears in. He instantly stands out in the story as a really cool idea, being a robot dog that can give information whenever required. The way in which he is written and portrayed is fun as well, with K9 having some sense of humour, which lends a sense of fun to the proceedings as we get to laugh with a robot dog, and not be as terrified by the monsters in this story. The character certainly worked well for the audience, where the reaction to him was so good that they decided to make him a companion at the end of the story, instead of leaving him to be a one-off like was originally planned. On top of that, he is still a character that is fondly remembered to this day, and able to be enjoyed by a modern audience thanks to the fact that we can all sit back and have fun with a robot dog.

Day 458: The Invisible Enemy Part 1

This story takes an interesting tack in that the Doctor is possessed relatively early on, about halfway into Part 1. This makes the Doctor have more of an edge, as he tries to kill Leela and other people who do not give into the Swarm, the force that is currently trying to possess much of humanity. However, it doesn't quite work. For a start, Bob Baker and Dave Martin, the story's writers, have made the decision to let Leela have extra senses to know that something is going wrong, thus meaning that she clearly knows that the Doctor is possessed, removing much of the tension that could surround the story. There's also the fact that everyone who is possessed goes into the typical 'possessed' acting, speaking slowly and making no effort to hide their true nature and you get an episode that doesn't entirely work. Hopefully the rest of the story shall improve as The Invisible Enemy continues.

Day 457: Horror of Fang Rock Part 4

The conclusion of this story features a couple of things. One of them is the revelation of the villains behind the piece: The Rutans. The Rutans are the enemies of the Sontarans, and yet they couldn't be more dissimilar. While the Sontarans are short, stocky, and look like typical alien soldiers, the Rutans are more blob like in nature. This gives some insight into their conflict: a dislike for the unlike, as it is fairly obvious that there is no point of similarity between the two species. Even their mides of attack are different, with the Sontarans preferring all out attacks and strong weaponry while the Rutans take a stealthier approach, knocking out their enemies one by one. However, their love of war is the one thing that they do have in common, with dire consequences for bystanders.

This is evident when you look at the amount of death that surrounds this story. Every single character save for the Doctor and Leela gets killed over the course of this story, it's fairly depressing stuff although it's worth noting the way in which the Doctor and Leela take this in, as they accept it and move on to their nect adventure with barely a look back. They won and there's no time to dwell on the loss. It's interesting to note this because back in the Hartnell era this sort of destruction would be recognised by the TARDIS crew, and we shall certainly see much more mourning in the future, but for now we move on to face new foes, off on another adventure.

Day 456: Horror of Fang Rock Part 3

The above .gif file represents probably the greatest moment ever to occur for the character of Leela. Another character, Adelaide, is getting hysterical at the amount of death that is surrounding her. The revelation that her employer, Lord Palmerdale, may be dead, is too much for her and she begins to scream. Leela clearly decides that this is annoying, and so she slaps her. This moment sums up the character of Leela particularly well. For a start, she refuses to be part of the 'screaming girl' tradition of the series, preferring to take a more active role in proceedings. She's also not afraid to avoid social taboos, hitting someone because they are being remarkably annoying. But this also hints at her upbringing in the tribe of the Sevateem, as she comments later in the episode that she is surprised that Adelaide has not seen death before, showing that her own background is different than those of most characters in the series and reinforcing her own character as one that is interesting and deserves to be paid attention to.

Day 455: Horror of Fang Rock Part 2

In order to spice things up with regards to the plot of the story, a group of new characters has been introduced. They're some quite posh people who crashed their sailing ship onto the rocks near the lighthouse. They bring with them a storyline of their own as well, with one of them trying desperately to get back to London in order to make a fortune on the stock market, causing the ship to crash in the pricess and probably killing most of its crew. What's interesting about this plotline is how pointless it all is. We recognise as viewers that the outcomes of this story will have no bearing on what the Doctor and Leela have engaged themselves with. This reflects on how much importance we give the matter. We care about the safety of the lighthouse, and protecting its occupants from danger. We don't care about the squabbles about money that take place within it, partially because the Doctor and Leela aren't involved with it. This comes across as Terrance Dicks holding a sort of mirror up to society, showing that whilst there may be fighting over money and shares and the like, all of this should be ignored when it comes to the important things such as alien invasions and life or death scenarios, because there are always things that are bigger and better than money.

Day 454: Horror of Fang Rock Part 1

Well, this is awkward. After spending the previous episode bidding farewell to the Hinchcliffe/Holmes partnership, we find ourselves with a new producer: Graham Williams, whose first story could very easily be mistaken for a Hinchcliffe story. This is to be expected, of course. The writer is Terrance Dicks (Robot, The Brain of Morbius), the director is Paddy Russell (Pyramids of Mars), the script editor is still Robert Holmes and even the regulars haven't changed with the Fourth Doctor/Leela partnership still the main focus. The Williams era will make its mark, but its fair to say that it doesn't start its era the same way that the Hinchcliffe era did, with a story unlike anything else in The Ark in Space.

But that's not to say that this is bad. The story moves along at a good pace, the darkness and horror elements are good and exacerbated by the claustrophobic nature of the setting: a lighthouse. The direction is good, with some nice POV shots from the perspective of the unknown alien attacker as we see the fear in its victim's eyes. This is all not forgetting the excellent writing from Holmes and Dicks of course, where the characters are allowed to feel realistic with arguments about the lighthouse lamp. So despite the fact that there's not been much change yet, this may not necessarily be a bad thing, and as the old saying goes: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".

Day 453: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 6

Mr Henry Gordon Jago and Professor Litefoot have both been discussed in previous entries of the blog. They both come across as strong characters that work particularly well when placed opposite someone else. So it stands to reason that the two characters should meet, to see how their chemistry works against each other. The result is pure beauty. Jago gets to act as a motivating influence for Litefoot, encouraging him to go forth and fight the evils that have been brought to their time period. Litefoot, in turn, acts as a calming influence for Jago, allowing him to reveal his inner self and how he isn't really the showman that he purports himself to be. The two work wonderfully together, and it's no surprise that they eventually got a spin-off series of their own through the audio company Big Finish, which I have listened to a few episodes of and can heartily recommend.

Speaking of double acts, however, there is another double act in this story that has not been mentioned. Philip Hinchcliffe and Robert Holmes are the producer and script editor of Doctor Who. They have breathed new life into this series, starting with the fantastic The Ark in Space and moving on creating more classics in their wake such as Terror of the Zygons and The Robots of Death before finally finishing their reign with this story. Production-wise, they have been splendid, bringing more engaging stories that can be quite dark and scary but never lose the inner joy of seeing a man in a box travel the cosmos and fight monsters. It's a shame to see them move on, as Hinchcliffe moves on to other programmes and Holmes begins to wrap up his script editing tenure, but the legacy that they leave for future generations is one of consistent quality and excellent storytelling.

Day 452: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 5

The end of this episode reveals the face of the mysterious force guiding the events, that of Weng-Chiang the apparent Chinese god. It comes to us as a surprise, because we haven't received too much information about his face. The Doctor offhandedly mentions that it would be deformed in the previous episode, but beyond that all we see is the mask that covers it and we are content to leave it at that. Seeing this grotesque visage, therefore, is a great shock, and probably makes quite a few children scurry to the other side of the room or yelp out in terror.

It's also worth mentioning the way in which the cliffhanger is set up. We are led to believe that it is the type of cliffhanger whereby a regular is put in mortal peril. Greel (at this point masked) goes to attack Leela but she fights back. This subverts the expected nature of the cliffhanger, therefore making the reveal of the face more of a surprise. Also, thanks to David Maloney's direction the face is only on screen for a fraction of a second, thus preventing the audience from being able to get used to the face, only leaving it as a quick image that instantly burns itself into the mind. Also, the audience is able to imagine any parts of the face that don't stand out, which creates something more horrible than was achievable on screen in their minds, and a truly memorable cliffhanger.

Day 451: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 4

The main crux of this episode takes place in a music hall. It's a variety night of sorts, with singing and magic all held together by the impresario Henry Gordon Jago. Jago is another wonderful character, being incredibly theatrical and willing to engage in anything, however under all of this is a man who is a bit of a fool. Jago also works well against other characters, as he is able to slip into various roles like the performer that he is when the situation requires it. When with Casey, his stagehand, for instance, he is the boss, a man of wisdom who is perfectly in control. Compare this to when he is with the Doctor, for instance, and you see a very different character. He acknowledges the Doctor as his superior and fawns over him, revealing his inner fool in the process as he tries to help the Doctor but inevitably messes up in the process, such as the scene in this episode where he attempts to stealthily contact the Doctor by unconvincingly crouching down behind his seat, with the Doctor taking this very nonchalantly, himself preferring the method of hiding in plain sight. It's yet another example of the fantastic character work in this serial and shows why this story is so well regarded by some fans.

Day 450: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 3

It's interesting to note that it's only in this part that we get an indication of the science fiction elements of the story. Whilst previously we have seen giant rats and walking ventriloquist dummies these have been things that could fairly easily be given a rational explanation that fits the Victorian time period that the story is set in. However, here we get to see Li H'Sen Chang capture young women to put into a machine that presumably takes their life force to feed his mysterious benefactor. This is the story finally admitting what it is: a science fiction story, and yet it still remains trapped within the bounds of what it originally purported itself to be: A Victorian adventure. The design of the machine is rusty, feeling like something that a Victorian inventor would have made in his shed and not a futuristic piece of technology. Likewise, the fact that it is young women taken brings to mind the Jack the Ripper murders, keen in the minds of the public at the time. Even the Doctor, as shown below, forgoes the normal scarf for a more Sherlock Holmes look. This all shows the versatility of the series, giving us a Victorian adventure as a change from the expected run of science fiction stories.

Day 449: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 2

There's much humour to be had from the interplay between two of the characters in this story, being Professor Litefoot and Leela. Litefoot is a Victorian gentleman, being exceedingly polite and clearly showing his nature as a member of the upper class, which acts as a strong contrast to Leela, the Doctor's savage companion. She cares not for manners and the like, instead doing as she pleases. Litefoot, being a gentleman, is far too polite to comment on this and so he is forced to go along with her behaviour, resulting in some great scenes such as Leela picking up a large piece of meat and eating it directly off the bone, meaning that Litefoot has to do the same out of politeness for his guest. By seeing Litefoot out of his comfort zone we can both laugh at the character's actions but also gain a respect for him as he is willing to do uncomfortable things in order to make people feel more comfortable. Credit for this clearly goes to Trevor Baxter, the actor who plays Litefoot, but also to Robert Holmes who once again shows his fantastic ability as a writer.

Day 448: The Talons of Weng-Chiang Part 1

There's a minor disappointment to be had with this story. It looks and feels impressive, and we shall certainly go on to see where this story succeeds. However there are one or two things that fail to make everything work. One such thing is the decision to have a giant rat as a monster. On paper, it sounds like a good idea. Rats are creepy looking animals, and could easily frighten youngsters. However, in creating the special effects for the rat, we end up with an unconvincing prop and a shot that is blatantly a normal sized rat climbing over a model. It's disappointing because the serial promises us so much from the outset, with a fantastic design and intriguing story. Still, nothing is perfect and I've got a feeling that this serial will improve...

Day 447: The Robots of Death Part 4

After spending two of the past three entries discussing how terrifying this story is it is nice to get some recognition from the story itself as to its nature. Poul, an undercover investigator on the Sand Miner, has had a mental breakdown. The Doctor attributes this to Robophobia, or Grimwade's Syndrome, and there is some discussion of how this occurred. Grimwade theorised, that it occurs due to a lack of body language from the robots, the 'uncanny valley' effect that we looked at previously. This accounts for the feelings for the audience, but not for Poul himself.

Poul, you see, saw blood on a robot's hand. This directly implicated the robots in the murders, which went against their first principle being that they cannot harm humans. This development suddenly creates a vast amount of horror in Poul, as the robots are stronger, faster, and all around better than humans, and we would die if they were allowed to harm them. It's enough to send a man insane, which indeed it does as Poul cries in front of the silhouette of a robot to not kill him in a very good performance from David Collings.

It's another reminder of why this story is so frightening, and it's certainly one that I'll remember as one of the absolute best stories of all of Doctor Who.

Day 446: The Robots of Death Part 3

I can easily say that The Robots of Death Part 3 is easily one of the most frigthening Doctor Who episodes that I have ever watched. From Briant's direction which, as the terrorist Taren Capel gives orders to the robots to kill all humans, cuts back and forth between images at an alarming rate, creating a sense of discomfort for the viewer. You can add to this the fact that the robots gain frightening red eyes, which made me squirm in my seat a little as well as scenes which place you on edge by guessing that a robot will jump out of nowhere and kill people and scenes where the red eyed robots advance slowly to kill their screaming prey shot from the point of view of the prey, creating a sense of terror in the audience. All of this creates a terrifying atmosphere, and left me with a feeling of actual fear and has made me look forward even more to seeing the conclusion to this story. But maybe I'll watch it in the daytime instead of the pitch black darkness of midnight...

Day 445: The Robots of Death Part 2

The basic plot of the story is quite simple. People are dying on a mining ship and the Doctor, along with Leela, begin to investigate. What makes this different from other plots, however, is the way in which it is constructed. The antagonist who is performing the murders is on the ship, but their identity is concealed, meaning that it is one of the crew members, thus making it into an Agatha Christie style murder mystery. This decision to 'steal from the classics' from the writer, Chris Boucher, is a sane one, as the genre has been shown time and time again to work. The sense of mystery in turn creates suspense, as each crew member suspects the others of doing the murders. The constant stream of killings also creates suspense, particularly when there have been strong indications of the next character to die. This can be seen in the death of Zilda where we see her 'execution order', for want of a better term, and then watch the rest of her scenes with a greater deal of attention as we know that she is living on borrowed time. Overall then, The Robots of Death uses the genre to great advantage creating a nice mystery story for the audience to get their teeth into.

Day 444: The Robots of Death Part 1

The immediate thing that strikes you about The Robots of Death is the design of the robots themselves from Elizabeth Waller, the costume designer for this story. They are designed to look like humans, having recognisably human features in the face that help to make the audience and in turn the characters respond to them as if they were not automatons. However, this does not entirely work. The mask resembles that of a human, yes, but it is too chiselled to truly be human. The 'mouth' and 'hair' do not move either, creating a sense of discomfort in the audience and characters. This sense of the 'uncanny valley' makes for a memorable and unsettling design, sticking in the minds of the viewer and making for an engaging piece of television, encouraging the viewer to watch more of The Robots of Death.

Day 443: The Face of Evil Part 4

It's worth mentioning something, or rather someone, that we haven't touched upon yet in The Face of Evil. Leela is a tribe member of the Sevateem, and by the end of the episode she has become the Doctor's new companion. In her first story she easily sets herself apart from all companions who have come before her. For instance, she is more violent than her predecessors, actively fighting and occasionally killing various people that she comes up against. This is an interesting tack to go along for the new companion, particularly as it introduces an area of conflict between her philosophy and that of the Doctor, something which future episodes can play with to some extent.

However it wouldn't do to just have a violent savage aboard the TARDIS, so Leela must have some other side to her character that will help her fit into some mould of companion for the series. In this case, it is her curiosity and willingness to learn. The Doctor has begun to teach her about technology and the ways of the future, as can be witnessed when she knowingly refers to the place where they met with Xoanon as a computer complex. Her curiosity can also be seen at the very conclusion of the story where she sets the TARDIS into flight, pressing buttons without a care in the world.

And so it's for these reasons, amongst others, that I can be sure that Leela will be a companion to enjoy over the next little while, as the ongoing adventure that is Doctor Who continues...

Day 442: The Face of Evil Part 3

One of the working titles for this story was 'The Day God Went Mad'. It refers to the computer Xoanon, one which at some point received help from the Doctor who reprogrammed it but got something slightly wrong. He hadn't realised that the computer was actually alive, the first of a new species, and thus when he connected his brain to it (for reasons) the computer took the Doctor's personality along with it. Xoanon then developed its own personality, thus sending it mad. This is all exposed in the lead up to the Part 3 cliffhanger, as seen above. It's a fascinating idea because it explores the capabilities of computers, relatively new pieces of hardware for 1977, hypothesising on their intelligence and personality, whether they have minds and could be considered to be alive. It also allows us to build up to another fantastic cliffhanger, this time more on the psychedelic as voices from all around deny the existence of the Doctor, building up to a child's voice shouting "Who am I?" repeatedly. It's strange, and begins to convey the full amount of insanity that is going on inside of Xoanon, which we shall continue to explore as The Face of Evil reaches its conclusion.

Day 441: The Face of Evil Part 2

The next great idea to come out of The Face of Evil is one of the setting. We arrive on a planet that is a weird hybrid of both the future and the savage. The thrones where the chieftain of the Sevateem sits is adorned with wires and tubing, in one instance a gong is quite obviously a refined metal sheet, and the helmet that the shaman Neeva uses to communicate with Xoanon is clearly from a different age than the surrounding area of crossbows, hunting, and animal skins used as rudimentary clothing. What this represents is the way in which a society can easily devolve, when cut off from its surrounds. It also shows, by using the futuristic equipment, that this is a problem that transcends time, and that even the future will be affected by this issue. And aside from everything else, it is clear that the juxtaposition of technology with the wild ways of the Sevateem makes for an interesting image visually, and engages the viewer in the ongoing story. So as The Face of Evil continues, so too do the continuing mysteries of the serial.

Day 440: The Face of Evil Part 1

This story is one that introduces itself with some fascinating ideas, one such idea being the Face of Evil. The Doctor arrives on this unknown planet and is almost immediately taken away and sentenced to death. The odd thing about this is that they seem to recognise the Doctor as the 'Evil One', showing that they have possibly met the Doctor before, or someone who looks like him. This brings forth several questions for the audience, which continue as one of the natives of the planet suddenly hears Tom Baker's disembodied voice in the form of their God, Xoanon. This scene works because it draws up more questions as to the nature of this 'Evil One', representing to the audience yet more questions about the Doctor's true involvement with the story. This all comes to a head when we reach the cliffhanger, showing the face of the Doctor carved into the side of the mountain. This shows once and for all that the Doctor's prior involvement in this story will be paramount to how things will unfold, and giving a strong hook to get the audience to continue with this story. As has been shown the first part has thrown up enough questions for us to want to watch the next episode, balancing it with just enough evidence to make us feel like we have an idea of what might be going on with no real idea of the answer to the underlying questions in the story keeping the audience well and truly engaged.

Day 439: The Deadly Assassin Part 4

The villain of The Deadly Assassin is The Master, making his return after last being seen in Frontier In Space. He's changed since trying to pit Draconians and Humans against each other, however, both physically and mentally. Physically, he has changed from the suave looks of Roger Delgado (who sadly passed away after an unfortunate car accident in Turkey) to a sack of rotting vegetables with eyes, hiding away in the shadows. It reflects the mental change as well, as he has become a more desperate  creature, desperate to stay alive and regain his former form. This can be seen, for instance, in the climax of the story where the Doctor and the Master fight each other as Gallifrey collapses around them. The fight is more visceral than we are used to, with them punching and wrestling each other to stay alive, indeed in what is believed to be te last time that we see the Master, we see only his hands as he desperately tries to hold onto an edge and prevent his fall. It serves as a representation of his own journey as well, as he desperately clings onto life even after using up all of his regenerative powers, just so that he can survive. It's interesting to see this change in demeanour take place, and one that shows that the series is not afraid of taking old ideas and repurposing them for a new use, whether it be the Master or indeed the Time Lords themselves, showing that this series can still be interesting 438 episodes into its run.

Day 438: The Deadly Assassin Part 3

This individual episode stands out in the story that surrounds it. Previously, the Doctor had connected himself up to the Gallifreyan Matrix, which will hopefully lead him to the titular assassin. What then follows over the next half hour or so is an extended piece on location, where the Doctor fights with what is eventually revealed to be Chancellor Goth, a fellow Time Lord and a Presidential candidate. But what stands out is not the plotting, it is instead the visuals as given to us by David Maloney, the director for this story.

Maloney creates an interesting atmosphere, with two main characteristics. One is the ability to be unsettling. This brings forth the dream-like qualities of the Matrix, such as seeing eyes appear in cliffs or injuries disappear simply by thinking about them. This makes up much of the first half of the episode and emphasises the disturbing and occasionally dangerous side of the Matrix.

The second half of the episode changes tack slightly, however, moving from the surreal to a hunting expedition, with the Doctor acting as prey to Goth's predator. Here, tension runs high with strong close ups and a focus on the vegetation that surrounds the area that masks the two Time Lords and makes for a for tense experience. It's also worth mentioning that the episode is far more violent than most from Doctor Who, with an awful lot of blood being shown, reminding us of what is at risk and that they are both in a vast degree of danger (and occasionally pain).

All in all, it makes for a gripping and stand out episode, and stands testament as an excellent piece of work from one of Doctor Who's strongest directors.

Day 437: The Deadly Assassin Part 2

It's worth noting that this is the first and only story in the Classic Series of Doctor Who to not feature a companion. The Doctor is alone on Gallifrey, which makes for a remarkably interesting story. Aside from serving as an audience identification figure, the companion also serves as an ally for the Doctor. This is especially apparent in this story, where the Doctor is almost immediately accused of something and is thrown into a bid to prove his innocence. In this instance, we sort of miss the companion, to act as defendant for the Doctor and hopefully turn the tide in his favour. However, it's also apparent that the absence of a companion makes for a better story. We truly get the sense that the Doctor is fighting for his life and thus we are gripped to discover whether he will survive or not. It makes for a nice piece of storytelling from Robert Holmes, but we're only halfway through The Deadly Assassin.

Day 436: The Deadly Assassin Part 1

Gallifrey, home planet of the Time Lords. As far as we're concerned, it is a mystical and wonderful place, where Gods wander the corridors and observe the Universe. It is a place that we have only briefly visited before, with visits generally being confined to one room, or with the Time Lords kept away whilst we focus on the main action. But now, in The Deadly Assassin, we finally get to see the true power of Gallifrey.

It's not entirely what's expected, to be perfectly honest. Instead of meeting Gods, we meet bickering old men who worry about the colour of their robes and such. One could easily be disappointed, but it's also easy to accept these new facts and move on, as we can enjoy the old men bickering (thanks mainly due to Robert Holmes, the writer of this serial and several other classics), and just settle into witnessing all of this previously untold history fold out before our eyes. We can see Time Lord Presidents, Prydonian chapters, Castellans and the like and we can be excited to see all of what we could only guess about come forth and reveal itself. It's good to watch The Deadly Assassin, and discover more and more about the Time Lords.