Day 692: The Curse of Fenric Part 4

Jumping back to previously in the story of The Curse of Fenric, we have the character of the Rev. Wainwright. He's a kind hearted clergyman, who is suffering with severe doubts in his faith. It's not explicitly said, however, that it's his doubts in God that is causing problems, instead it is the far more interesting dilemma of his faith in Good.

Wainwright is confronted every day with the War, and it frightens him, because it destroys his personal belief in the idea that there is good in everyone in the world. It's the bombing that affects him in particular, in particular the idea that good British men are bombing German cities, killing innocent German children. It destroys his hope that there is inherent good in humanity, when acts of such callous evil can be performed without question, and this proves to be his ultimate downfall as he dies, killed by the Haemovores. And so we're left with a dwindling cast, as more and more characters die due to their inherent lack of belief in good.

But Ace still believes in good, in particular in the power of the Doctor. But this isn't entirely correct. The Doctor, it turns out, is just as manipulative and as dark as his opponent, Fenric. He's been secretly organising and moving events throughout the entire story, in opposition to Fenric who has also been trying to manipulate events. This all culminates in a scene where the Doctor is forced to break Ace's faith in him, openly dismissing her and stating that she is nothing special, she only existed as a tool in his master plan, just so that he can defeat Fenric once and for all.

It's a shocking moment, and one that is somewhat disappointingly not given much afterthought. The Doctor is, for a fleeting moment, allowed to be evil and to be dark, and we see him take a companion, one of his friends, to breaking point. And yet it's glossed over in the conclusion to make way for a more sentimental ending to another character arc that Ace has gone through in the episode. But it's certainly something that we'll look at later in the series, and I'm certainly looking forward to re-watching those episodes again. And, at the end of the day, The Curse of Fenric is still a monumentally brilliant episode, and one of the all-time underrated classics in Doctor Who.

Day 691: The Curse of Fenric Part 3

The major action scene for the Curse of Fenric is the Battle of St. Judes, where the Haemovores attack the church at the centre of the town. It's the scene that stuck with me throughout every viewing that I've had of it, and I even recall writing an assignment examining the music cues in the scene in Year 8. So what does the scene mean in the context of the fuller story?

For a start, it introduces the Haemovores as a threat. We see them as unstoppable monsters, immune to bullets and clearly very strong. This helps to cement them as memorable creatures, and a tangible threat within the story. But what's also interesting about them is their lack of voice. We only see their simple actions, and not the intent present behind them. Even those who can speak, being the vampiric Jean and Phyllis, focus more on attacking the innocents than actually developing some sort of concrete plan. This hints at a stronger force behind them, which we shall look at tomorrow.

There's also the weakness for the Haemovores revealed. They are particularly susceptible to faith, or as I would rather put it, a belief in good, for reasons that will become obvious later. After a long struggle, they finally burst into the room where the Doctor and the Vicar are defending in the church. In a moment of concentrated panic, the Doctor quietly starts reciting some words, which creates a beautiful aural effect forcing the Haemovores away in horror. The words are not meaningless, and are transcribed thusly: "Susan, Ian, Barbara, Vicki, Steven...". These words are the names of his companions, the people that the Doctor has faith in. They are the people who the Doctor knows will always do the best thing, that he trusts, that remind him that there is always good in the Universe. It's an incredibly subtle moment, but it reveals a massive amount about the Doctor and his trust in his companions. Tomorrow, then, we'll see how far that trust can be pushed...

Day 690: The Curse of Fenric Part 2

As Fenric continues, more themes emerge that are dealt with with a certain intelligence and adult viewpoint that wouldn't really have been possible previously in Doctor Who.

Take, for instance, the two young evacuee teenagers, Jean and Phyllis. They're young, rebellious, and similar to Ace, and in any other story, one might expect that they would end up as Ace's close allies throughout the entire piece. But instead, they are consumed with a desire for lust. They spend their days breaking rules and going down to Maiden's Point, the nearby beach, which is clearly meant to be a metaphor for having sex. As they cavort in these waters, they are dragged down and turned into vampires, representing creatures of evil, a natural progression from the darkness and lust already present within their hearts. And their first act as vampires is to lure a Soviet soldier to his death, coaxing him into the water with promises that it will be nice and lovely, only for it to backfire horribly on him, with deadly results.

So one could read this as just simply being that lust and sex are bad things. But that's not the full story here. There's a scene with Miss Hardaker, the woman who looks after Jean and Phyllis, where she has her house broken into by the two young women, now vampires. Her primary character motivation so far in the serial has been to be a Mary Whitehouse figure, shouting that they shouldn't go down to Maiden's Point, and that they'll be damned forever. She sees herself as some kind of moral guardian, saying to the local vicar that the war is clearly being fought for all the right reasons and they must win it as God is on their side, to the protests of the vicar who says that God is not on anyone's side during a war. This forthright attitude all ends up getting her killed as Jean and Phyllis seek revenge in their vampire form. But my theory is that she wasn't just killed because of that, but because there was a belief in evil in her heart. She saw only the worst in people, and never felt that there was good in humanity, which, as shall be discussed tomorrow, is one of the vampire's weaknesses, where hopefully this argument will make a lot more sense.

Day 689: The Curse of Fenric Part 1

The Curse of Fenric is an interesting story from my perspective. We got a copy of it on DVD as I was getting interested in Doctor Who, so I used to watch it on fairly high rotation. And at that age of around 10 years old, I only really saw it as a fun Doctor Who story set in World War 2 England with Vikings. But, as I grew older, I began to see that it was more than just a fun story, and that there were hidden depths to the characters and the plot, creating one of the best Doctor Who stories of all time.

So, to begin, first there's the fact that, as this episode is set-up for the story ahead, there's an awful lot that works a lot better on repeated viewings, once the events that are being set-up are seen. An example is the use of the Russian soldiers. We see them be young men, afraid of what they are doing, such as the scene where one of the soldiers is holding guard and sees some teenage girls begin to walk towards him. He desperately hopes that they turn away, not because he doesn't want to be discovered, but because he doesn't want to be forced to shoot them. This plays into the future of the story, as the Russians become more and more sympathetic characters, a major point in the climax.

There's also Ace, who meets a woman with a baby. She plays with the baby, and asks for its name. Upon learning it, she's disgusted, and gives the baby back, claiming that it was her mother's name. And as we shall see as the story progresses, this hatred of her mother forms one of the major character arcs for the character. But, we'll see all of that play out as the story progresses and we learn more about The Curse of Fenric.

Day 661: Paradise Towers Part 4

Any plans for a longer entry for the brilliant ending to this story have been scuppered by the fact that, here in Australia, we have literally just changed our Prime Minister over the course of 6 or so hours. For that reason, much of my attention has been placed on the media coverage of this event, and less so on the urge to watch Paradise Towers.

But it's still been the highlight of my day. We see young street rebels join with the elderly in order to form a resistance to take down evil robots. And if that weren't enough, we get a strong emotional hook through the character of Pex. Pex, it turns out, is a deserter, who fled the war because he was too afraid to fight, hence he is made fun of by everyone within Paradise Towers for being a cowardly cutlet. But in one final and explosive movement, he sacrifices himself and shows his true bravery as he single handedly saves Paradise Towers from the evil Kroagnon. What's remarkable about this though, is the fact that we're allowed the time to mourn the character. We watch his funeral and, at least in my case, have a little bit of a cry over the fact that he is dead. But that's just testament to how strong a character he is, and acts as further evidence, in my opinion, that this is one of the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time, and should clearly be regarded as such.

Day 660: Paradise Towers Part 3

The other supporting characters in this story, by which I mean the Caretakers and the Kangs, are some of the most wonderful social groups within Doctor Who, both in the way in which they have been written and the way in which they come across on screen.

Looking at the Caretakers, to start off with, these men roam the corridors of Paradise Towers and try to stop people from breaking the rules. However, they are quite clearly massive jokes, as can be seen by their ridiculous salute in Part 1 (which comes across as an imitation of John Cleese's Hitler impression from Fawlty Towers) or the fact that the Doctor is able to escape from them by telling them to stand up and put their hands on their head, on the grounds that it's apparently in the rule book. But beneath that jokey exterior, there is still a feeling of palpable menace behind them. The Chief Caretaker seems to have the power to make people 'disappear', leaving a trail that leads to somewhere in the basement. There's also the Deputy Chief Caretaker who, although he's an imbecile, is played with a degree of ferocity in his hunt to find the Doctor, as can be seen by him breaking down the door which the Doctor is hiding behind, it would seem purely for the pleasure of this visceral action. It all makes for characters that are interesting to watch as the story continues.

Similarly, the Kangs are interesting, although for different reasons. They are gangs of young women who have divided themselves into three main sections: The Red Kangs, The Blue Kangs, and The Yellow Kangs (the last of whom is summarily dispatched of at the start of the story). What makes the Kangs interesting is their social structure, which has quite clearly evolved out of the few years that they have lived within Paradise Towers. They have their own lingo (such as through sayings like "Ice Hot!"), their own way of greeting people (through a series of movements similar to an adapted version of Pat-a-Cake) and even their own mourning rituals. It shows a clear attempt to make a society, but also one that feels as if it could have naturally evolved from what a group of young teenage rebels would want within their world. It all adds to the excellent nature of this story, and continues to make me excited to watch it as the story continues.

Day 659: Paradise Towers Part 2

I mentioned yesterday about the Rezzies, the old women who live in Paradise Towers and are generally a little bit creepy. This episode begins to elaborate on their true nature, and it makes for one of the most entertaining cliffhangers in Doctor Who history.

It begins when Tabby and Tilda get a visit from one of the other Rezzies, Maddy, who informs them that one of the Caretakers has disappeared. Tabby and Tilda take this news with the same amount of curiosity that Maddy is exhibiting, although at the same time they cover up their dinner, a healthy serving of meat for the two of them. We realise what the significance of this is later, when Mel comes back to see them, whereupon she is captured, and they threaten her with a poker. It is now quite clear that these nice old ladies are cannibals, and that they wish to eat Mel.

Nice old women who turn out to be cannibals. It's a ludicrous notion, but it works in the context of the story, being in a world where society has completely broken down and yet it still maintains the facade of being in order. There's also the fact that this is quite clearly written as a very funny joke, something that can be further shown by the design of the net with which they capture Mel with, which is obviously hand-knitted and looks more like a rug or a shawl than a deadly implement. All in all, it's easily one of my favourite cliffhangers, not because it's scary or because it changes the story completely, but because it's wonderfully odd, and yet another reason to adore this story.

Day 658: Paradise Towers Part 1

I'm always surprised that this story doesn't particularly bode well in fan polls, for example it was recently voted the 230th best story out of 241 in a recent Doctor Who Magazine poll, right in between Meglos and The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe. This last fact irks me quite a great deal, because it places Arc of Infinity above Paradise Towers in terms of quality. More people like a story that has no redeeming features whatsoever than they like Paradise Towers. Why else does this irk me so? It's because I actually think that Paradise Towers is one of the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time, because it manages to create compelling characters, give us a weird and interesting setting, and above all else, be incredibly funny.

I'll give an example of what I'm talking about. The story is set in a futuristic apartment building that has become a dystopia, with the building's caretakers acting as a fairly useless police force, while groups of street gangs known as Kangs roam the corridors, and the elderly, who are known as the Rezzies, live safely within their apartments. We meet two of these Rezzies, Tabby and Tilda, who appear to be fairly nonchalant about their situation, if a little bit creepy towards Mel. Then, partway into their conversation, they are interrupted by Pex, an action hero type, who breaks the door down and attempts to save Mel from her tormentors. This is despite the fact that Mel isn't feeling particularly tormented at that particular moment.

The other major problem that Pex has to face is that he is resolutely not an action hero type of person. People occasionally complain, and say that the role should have gone to someone like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallone, but they're missing the entire point of the joke that is Pex. He is desperately trying to be an action hero, but he fails completely, not least because his entire body type is wrong for the role. This is backed up in the story, as Mel repeatedly turns down his attempts to help her, and Tabby and Tilda are quite miffed that he has broken down their door again. It's a very funnily created character, and is one that we shall get back to as we continue our look at this very underrated Doctor Who story.

Day 643: The Trial of a Time Lord Part 4 - The Mysterious Planet Part 4

The dichotomy at the heart of the climax of The Mysterious Planet is one which reflects the nature of Doctor Who at the moment. Around five minutes in, Queen Katryca gets horrifically killed, with the end result being that her entire body gets covered in blood in a rather nasty experience. This is contrasted later on in the story when Balazar, another ally of the Doctor's gets covered in a green gunge, as if he's just won the Kids' Choice Award on Nickelodeon. The dichotomy present is that between the two ways in which Doctor Who is produced at the moment: a world of blood and a world of gunge.

You see, the world of blood is often violent, serious and gritty, while the world of gunge is far lighter, with more fun and happiness thrown into the mix. Both of these methods can produce good stories, but it's apparent that these two methods cannot co-exist, in particular because a portion of the audience wants more stories like The Caves of Androzani, while others want more stories like City of Death, and there isn't that much crossover between those two adventures. So the production team has to decide on the style of programme that they wish to make, one that's serious and gritty or one that's light-hearted and fun. On the basis of The Mysterious Planet, I'd say that they're leaning towards the gunge option, although the next adventure, if memory serves me right, is really very bloody indeed.

Day 642: The Trial of a Time Lord Part 3 - The Mysterious Planet Part 3

One of the major criticisms levelled at The Trial of a Time Lord is its trial. The general conceit of the story is that the Doctor has been placed on trial by his own people for breaking various laws. As part of this trial, evidence is being shown from some of the Doctor's adventures, as claims are made as to his conduct. Criticism is levelled at this idea for generally intruding on the adventures, as every five minutes a scene where the Doctor is forced to explain himself is added into the story, which doesn't improve the 'flow' of the story.

And yet, I actually really like it. I like it because the writers have the sense to use this concept and play with some aspect of it. Holmes, for instance, chooses to have certain parts of this story removed, as they are not deemed safe enough to be put on the public record and thus are censored for the purposes of the trial. This introduces a small mystery to the events, and makes for a slightly more intriguing adventure. It's a nice introduction of a story arc and gives a sense of continuity across the whole story, which improves the story immensely, in my opinion.

Day 641: The Trial of a Time Lord Part 2 - The Mysterious Planet Part 2

One of the things that I really love about The Mysterious Planet is the above screen grab. This story was made in 1986, and thus things like computer graphics weren't that great. But, they were better than nothing, and people would jump at the chance to use them, even in situations where a practical effect would work just as well and give a better result. In this instance, computer effects have been used in order to add a wooden stick into the frame, giving the impression that you are looking out from the window of a hut. But this effect doesn't entirely work as intended, unfortunately.

It looks like someone has taken a picture, imported it into MS Paint, and then gotten their 5 year old child to draw a stick on top of it. It looks unrealistic, cheap, and completely fails to achieve this relatively simple effect (indeed, on first viewing, I was perplexed as to what it was meant to be representing). And yet, I love it for all of those reasons. These are people who aren't afraid to try new things, and who don't shy away from their failures. Sure, it's not the best effect in the world, but it has a fair amount of charm behind it, and at the very least, it gives me a lot of nostalgia for when I was 5 years old and mucking about on MS Paint, creating alien vistas, majestic buildings, and unrealistic sticks.

Day 640: The Trial of a Time Lord Part 1 - The Mysterious Planet Part 1

I love The Trial of a Time Lord. It's actually one of the stories that I was most looking forward to covering in this blog, as I really enjoyed the experience of watching it the last time I saw it, which was just after finishing my final exams in high school. I needed something to get my mind away from all of the doom and gloom that's associated with waiting for results. Thankfully, 'Trial' delivered that in spades, providing stories that were about having fun, as well as more complex stories that grab the audience's attention with some interesting character moments.

Of these two story types, The Mysterious Planet is chiefly in the 'fun' section, in my opinion. It's written by Robert Holmes, but it's not the serious Holmes that wrote The Caves of Androzani, instead it's a lighter tale, akin to The Ribos Operation. The distinction can be best shown in the way in which the characters are drawn. For Caves, all of the characters were written with a slightly evil streak to them, and whilst this made them more complex, it also meant that you could never find yourself to really like any of them, which, given the tone of Caves, works to the story's advantage. For The Mysterious Planet, on the other hand, all of the characters are given a wit and warmth that, even if they appear to be antagonists, you can still clearly enjoy their company. Two examples of this are Glitz and Dibber, where they are rogueish characters who may have tried to kill the Doctor, but we're also allowed to make jokes with them about prison psychologists or the phrase "Take me to your leader".

It all creates a nice atmosphere, that I actually really appreciate. And whilst it may not be the best thing for the series at the moment, I still utterly love it.