Day 685: Battlefield Part 4

I think that the reason why I got so much out of this story is that it's unabashedly just a fun story. Looking ahead to the next few stories, the series will be going to some dark places, so Battlefield ends up giving off the impression that they got all of their frivolous and funny moments out of the way in one little package.

And there are plenty of fun moments, like Mordred's penchant for laughing, as seen in the video above. This gives the feeling that the people involved were having fun with the adventure, and allowing things to be a bit lighter than usual, whether it be through writing, directing or acting their roles. This can also be seen in such things as the relationship between Ancelyn and Brigadier Bambera, who gently flirt with one another whilst fighting and generally being awesome, which not only helps to endear the characters to the audience, but also lightens the mood of the whole adventure.

But it wouldn't be worth anything were it not for the fact that the story will allow itself to be serious every once in a while. There's a scene, for instance, where the Doctor talks Morgaine Le Fay from setting off a nuclear missile is played well, and we feel Morgaine's sadness when she discovers that her long time foe: Arthur, King of the Britons, is dead, and she didn't get to have one final battle with him. These moments of contrast not only allow for the lighter scenes to appear just that bit more joyful, but also lend the story an air of respectability that keeps it from falling into the trap of just being a generic action-adventure story. And if there's anything that I've learnt over the past 685 days, Doctor Who is generally at its best when it's not a generic action adventure story.

Day 684: Battlefield Part 3

There's a series of interesting decisions leading up to the revelation of the monster, The Destroyer, at the end of this episode. We first see it in silhouette, inside a crystal ball. That silhouette is then transfered to the real world, but it remains in silhouetted form, keeping a degree of mystery about the character, but also allowing for a sense of anticipation to build as the monster becomes more of a threat. This threat becomes palpable at the end of the episode, as it reveals itself in all of its glory, a majestic horned blue beast that looks vaguely demonic. It lives up to the anticipation that has been built around the character, mostly because through the shadow that we see of it, we're able to discern a lot of its features. However, there's a degree of disappointment, because the shadow form of it is slightly more unnerving and mystical, and one kind of wishes that they had stayed wi that form for the entire story. But, it's still a good monster, and another positive thing about this story.

Day 683: Battlefield Part 2

So this story is all about the Doctor engaging with the legend of King Arthur, as he fights Morgaine Le Fay, the evil villain who fought Arthur in days of old. What's interesting about this setting, however, is who they have in the role of Merlin. It's the Doctor, which is fairly obvious as far as analogues go, although what's not obvious is which Doctor. Merlin is a future version of the Doctor, and has set up a lot of this adventure such that his past self can come along and finish it for him.

It's a fun idea, not only because it plays with the idea of time travel (something which is rarely mentioned in Doctor Who in the Classic era) but also because it plays with the idea of the Seventh Doctor. The Seventh Doctor has become known for being a bit of a manipulator, developing complex and ornate plans in order to defeat villainy across the Universe. Here, he's been put in a position where he's a pawn in a future version of himself's game, and he's willing to play his role, treating it as some sort of puzzle where he has to figure out exactly how everything falls into place.

It all adds to the sense of fun behind this story, and makes each episode one to look forward to, as we see what happens as the Doctor figures out the Doctor's plan.

Day 682: Battlefield Part 1

And so it begins. Season 26. The last season of Classic Doctor Who. It begins with Battlefield, which appears to be an action story merging Arthurian legend with UNIT, who are making their first full appearance since Season 13 (there have been name-checks here and there, but this is the first story in a very long time to feature them in such a major role). It's clear from the offset that things have changed in the intervening years with regards to UNIT, in part due to the fact that fresh eyes are now able to look at the concept and re-work it to fit their idea of what UNIT should be.

For a start, there's a new Brigadier: Brigadier Winifred Bambera. She's similar to the old Brigadier, in that she's clearly a military type of person, someone who commands respect and is able to lead their team, but is slightly closed-minded with regards to new ideas (in her case, specifically the nature of the Doctor). However, what she lacks with comparison to the old Brigadier is the sense of warmth and familiarity that we associate with the character, or indeed, that character is allowed to associate with the Doctor and co.. But this is not necessarily a bad thing, as it allows for room for the character to move and grow, and one can expect that if the series continued we would see Brigadier Bambera more frequently throughout the years.

But as we know, things didn't pan out that way. So instead of focussing on the possibilities of the future, let's get back to the present and continue watching Battlefield. For, as the Seventh Doctor is becoming increasingly fond of saying, "We've got work to do!".

Day 671: Remembrance of the Daleks Part 4

The scene above comes from Part 2 of this story. It's a simple little scene, where the Doctor reflects on the consequences of actions, and in many ways acts as one of the major starting points for the era of the Seventh Doctor. He's a Doctor who's a little bit more contemplative, a more thoughtful man, which comes in direct contrast to most of his previous incarnations. Here, his reflection reveals his inner turmoil, grappling with what he is about to do and thinking about the powers that he truly has. He contemplates if he could remove the market for sugar on Earth, and how that would have affected history, a simple act of manipulation that would have dire consequences for the rest of the Universe. And that sums up much of what the Seventh Doctor does: a simple bit of manipulation, and watching the consequences play out according to his plan.

Nowhere is this more apparent than when he faces off against Davros towards the climax of the story. He manipulates Davros into firing a Weapon of Mass Destruction, only for it to backfire into his face and explode both the planet Skaro and the Dalek ship, effectively neutering the Daleks for the next little while. This act of manipulation shows the Doctor as something truly darker than his previous incarnations, something which Andrew Cartmel, the script editor, was fairly keen on introducing more darkness and mystery into the character of the Doctor, through making him into this sort of manipulative figure. It's an interesting move, and helps to breathe new life into the programme, through turning some of the attention onto the Doctor and his role in the series. Certainly, it means that I shall watch the rest of the Cartmel era with my interest piqued.

Day 670: Remembrance of the Daleks Part 3

I mentioned yesterday about the undercurrents of racism within this story. It's quite a big theme behind the adventure, and it makes sense, given that the initial concept behind the Daleks was that they were essentially Nazis. And funnily enough, actual Nazis appear within this story, in the form of Mr Ratcliffe and 'The Association', which is a secret group of British fascists. Mr Ratcliffe has seen himself to ally with the Daleks, presumably out of a wish to gain more power, as well as be on the winning side of a war after his side lost World War 2. Indeed, he states as much in the Part 2 when he has a conversation with the Dalek Battle Computer, saying "This country fought for the wrong cause in the last war. When I spoke out, they had me imprisoned".

But, most interestingly, the Daleks are going through a particular type of race hatred in this story, especially with regards to themselves. You see, there are two groups of Dalek factions: the White Daleks, who have been augmented, and the Grey Daleks, who remain pure. Aside from providing some ridiculously fun Dalek on Dalek action in Part 4, they also provide some interesting commentary on the nature of the Daleks themselves. These are bubbling lumps of hate, genetically engineered to despise all that is not like them. So what happens when the Daleks start to become different, and how do they react to the perceived impurities within each other?

This sort of fighting, and the stupidity of it, also reflects a bit on our society, where we can see that we in fact have a lot more in common with people of other races than we might think, at least from an outsider's point of view. It also acts as a mild reinvention for the Daleks, shifting their original concept as Nazis into a concept based more on racism, to work a bit better for a new audience, who may not be as familiar with the ever-present threat of the Nazis than those who watched the original Dalek serial just 18 years after the War ended. It's a shame that this through-line was never really carried on through to the rest of the Daleks' appearances, but we'll get to them in due course, and how they use the Daleks in new and interesting ways. But for now, let's just finish off Remembrance of the Daleks.

Day 669: Remembrance of the Daleks Part 2

The new companion, Ace, is consciously different from almost every companion before her. An example can be seen above, where she makes the decision, upon meeting a Dalek, to attack it with a baseball bat that has been souped up by the Doctor. Aside from being rather awesome, it also reflect well on her character. She's not a passive voice in the story, allowing for events to happen and her to react to them, instead she gets massively involved with the action and the emphasis here is clearly on action. She's fond of explosives, fighting, and all of that sort of thing, which makes for an interesting dynamic between her and the Doctor. Indeed, the cliffhanger to this story is crafted in such a way that puts her in peril, but gives her an RPG that she could fire, although this could possibly be at the cost of her own life. It's a far cry from the days when the companion would just scream for the cliffhanger.

Another example of Ace's character can be found when she wanders around the 1960's flat in which she's been staying. Upon seeing a sign that says 'No Coloureds', she views it with disgust and immediately leaves, unable to cope with the institutionalised racism present within the time period that the story is set in. It's a scene that both reflects on the notion that a lot of time has passed between the 1963 time in which this story is set (notably the year when Doctor Who first premièred) and the 1988 time in which this story was broadcast, with a more tolerant society being developed that welcomed a multicultural landscape, and shows the character of Ace as someone who is not willing to let these things pass her by. But it also acts as a mild commentary on the story itself, that I shall perhaps look at a bit more in the next couple of days.

Day 668: Remembrance of the Daleks Part 1

I've got a bit of a soft spot for Remembrance of the Daleks. When I was a kid, the Daleks were the immediate draw card to Doctor Who, and I would instantly gravitate towards their stories. Chief among these was Remembrance of the Daleks, which is a story that I only relatively recently realised actually had a deep and meaningful concept behind it, because at the age of 10, all I saw was Dalek action.

And the most prevalent piece of Dalek action within this story is the cliffhanger to Part 1, where a Dalek climbs stairs and advances on the Doctor. It's an excellent cliffhanger, because it provides a great deal to the audience on different levels. On the one hand, it has the Doctor in immediate peril, which acts as a hook to get the audience to tune in the next week. On the next hand, it shows a development within the plot. These Daleks are clearly more advanced Daleks than the ones that we've previously seen, and so we should be a little worried about them than we already are. And finally, on a hitherto undiscovered third hand, it acts as a nod to the audience, acknowledging the joke that the Daleks can't climb stairs and using it to the story's dramatic advantage. And, to be perfectly honest, I just like it because it's pretty cool.