Day 555: Castrovalva Part 2

I mentioned before about how the other main characters are dealt with in this story, however I neglected to mention Adric and the Master. This is because they are on the other side of the story, with the Master generally spending much of his time trying to kill the Doctor, whilst having Adric trapped in a bizzare web, forcing him to be his unwilling henchman. It's nice to have these two characters together, as it increases our investment in the Master's scheme, now that we know that Adric is trapped and is being forced to work for him, so we're somewhat hoping that Adric will survive this dilemma. We're also intrigued by this, as the script has the Master as a main part of the story, and yet we know little of his full plan to destroy the Doctor. There's a new tension that develops, then, as we wonder as to what the Master's final plan is, and whether this new Doctor will be able to escape this trap before it's too late, which makes us, as the audience, more invested within this story, and whether we, too, can solve the puzzle before it's too late.

Day 554: Castrovalva Part 1

And so we begin. We've got a new Doctor, new companions, a new Master and a new era for the series. It's interesting to see how this serial reacts to these changes then, and how they introduce them to the audience.

Castrovalva's approach to this change is to start somewhere near the deep end. Most of the episode is spent with Nyssa and Tegan, the two newest companions, as they try to make sense of the TARDIS and help the Doctor, who is going through some sort of post-regeneration crisis. Oddly enough, this actually works. Part of this is due to Bidmead's strong writing as he helps us feel more comfortable with the characters as they try to make sense of everything. There's also credit to be given to the acting between Janet Fielding (Tegan) and Sarah Sutton (Nyssa) who obviously have a strong enough chemistry with each other that they can help the audience feel more comfortable with them as a result.

But it's not just with the companions that we get thrown into the deep end. The Doctor, as mentioned previously, is undergoing a post-regeneration crisis. We see a more erratic and worried Doctor than we're used to which creates a feeling of unease within the audience. But this is contrasted with moments of clarity as he calms down, which helps us to get to trust and like the character a lot more. It's another interesting way to introduce us to the new Doctor, but it works, and certainly means that we can begin to look forward to Peter Davison's time as the Doctor.

Day 553: Logopolis Part 4

Everything comes to an end, and everything dies.

That's the essence of the implications of the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics, as looked at yesterday. It's also the essence of this story, as we see things die and decay all around us, whether it be the planet of Logopolis, or the very nature of the series itself. On the physical side, we have the fact that entropy is now eating up vast chunks of the Universe. This comes to a head as Nyssa looks on a screen and quietly remarks that her planet has just been destroyed. She remarks on the fact that the Master has killed everything that she has ever loved and cared about, creating an emotional attachment to the mass destruction that is being done in this serial, and making things seem more serious. The serious nature continues as the Doctor is forced into an alliance with the Master, in order to save the Universe from this seemingly unstoppable threat.

But it's a different sort of Doctor that makes the deal with the Master. Tom Baker, as the Doctor, has been somewhat less jovial over the past series. There are less jokes, less moments to have fun, even his hair is less curly than it was when the series started. It's a more serious Doctor that makes the deal then, one who has had some weight hanging over him since the beginning of the series, in particular since the beginning of Logopolis, where a ghostly figure known as The Watcher has been haunting the Doctor across these four episodes, having quiet conversations with him that seem to make him slightly more resigned as a result. It's an interesting change to notice in the Doctor, an end to the laugh giving man who we first saw burst onto our screens in Robot, now a man approaching some unknown fate.

But this is one of several changes that have been occurring within this series. We've lost Romana and K9, replaced with Adric, Nyssa and Tegan, characters with whom we don't have the same emotional connection. They're a different breed of companion, with a woman who doesn't necessarily want to be on an adventure, a young boy eager to learn about the Universe, and a quiet young girl with a keen scientific intellect. But it's not just their basic character that differentiates them from everyone else, it's their relationship with the Doctor. Because the Doctor is more serious, we don't have the sparkling wit and strong chemistry with the Doctor that went into every companion before them, from Sarah Jane to Romana, instead we just have a selection of supporting characters that happen to travel on the TARDIS with the Doctor.

But the Doctor's found himself in trouble. Attempting to stop the Master from carrying out one last scheme, he finds himself hanging by a thread on a radio telescope. Haunted by his past foes, he loses grip and falls. We next see him lying on the ground, surrounded by his companions. But it's not just his new companions, all of them are there, as we see clips of his old friends, helping him hang onto life for one last moment. It suddenly hits home how important this one character has been to the series, and just how much fun and excitement we've had together, and how much more we hope to have. But it's not enough.

It's the end...

 

In one final moment, the Doctor who stopped the Jagaroth while remarking on the historical nature of chairs, the Doctor who had the power of the Key to Time, the Doctor who saved Gallifrey from an invasion of tin foil, the Doctor who fought in the land of nightmares, the Doctor who prevented an invasion of obscene vegetable matter, the Doctor who wondered whether he could kill a child to save the Universe, the Doctor who did all of those things and so much more, dies.

But the moment has been prepared for.

The Watcher moves to the Doctor, and merges with him, changing the Doctor's features. We see a regeneration, not an end, but a renewal, revealing a new Doctor for us, in the form of Peter Davison. And although we may not know who this Doctor is, and whether we'll like him or not, we know that it's still the Doctor, and so we wait with expectation, to see how everything will pan out, as he's got work to do.

Day 552: Logopolis Part 3

There's actually an awful lot to talk about that occurs in this episode. There are key character developments for Nyssa and Tegan, as well as a strong moment at the end of the episode for the Doctor and the Master. But one thing keeps cropping up: Entropy.

Doctor Who has become more scientific as a result of the new script editor, Christopher H Bidmead, and as such he has been introducing more scientific concepts into the series. Entropy is a concept in thermodynamics, referring to the nature of decay within systems. It is related to the second law of thermodynamics, being that energy will always increase in a closed system until thermal equilibrium is achieved. In other words, everything decays. The way in which this is used in this story is that the Logopolitans who live on Logopolis have quietly been working away to prevent the decay of the Universe, by opening up portals to other universes such that the Universe as we know it is no longer a closed system and entropy will no longer be as much of a problem. This fails when the Master meddles with it, meaning that the Doctor now has to prevent the heat death of the Universe. Which would be bad.

So why do I mention all of this? Well, as has perhaps been mentioned previously on this blog, I study Physics. And today, I had a test on Statistical Mechanics, a particular branch of thermodynamics that's possibly a bit too complicated for me to go in right now. But it does mean that I get an extra level of enjoyment from this story, as I can now look at various explanations of the thermodynamical concepts and smile as I see stuff that I study in class in Doctor Who, making both the story and my studies just a little bit more exciting.

Day 551: Logopolis Part 2

We need to talk about the next new companion. Her name is Tegan Jovanka, an Australian air stewardess, and my family has an interesting relationship with her. It's difficult to quantify what our relationship is with the character, but it generally consists of us walking around, putting on strong Australian accents, and proclaiming the words "Tegan Jeblanka!". Tegan Jeblanka is quite forthright in her opinions, expressing such proclamations as "Pharos is Greek for Lighthouse!", as well as various ruminations on Brisbane High and their knowledge of handcuffs. It doesn't bear too much relationship to the character though, which makes things awkward for me when I watch her stories, as I struggle to reconcile the two Tegans in my head. But it makes for a lot of fun with engaging with the character, and I strongly recommend that you find it in your hearts to let Tegan Jeblanka in.

Day 550: Logopolis Part 1

There's a short lived relationship, for reasons that soon become apparent, between the Fourth Doctor and Adric that's quite interesting to watch. The Doctor takes Adric on as a student, almost, teaching him about how various concepts work and operate. An example is when he talks about entropy, quickly and elegantly describing the concept such that Adric can understand it. It works because Adric is naturally curious, seeking to discover more about the world of maths and science, at least when the current script editor, Christopher H Bidmead, is writing for him, and this extends to a certain proportion of the audience, allowing us to become the Doctor's students as well. But, as entropy states, everything decays, and things are going to change awfully soon.

Day 549: The Keeper of Traken Part 4

The Melkur's true identity is revealed, showing him to be the Master. It's recognisably the Master, not so much from the look where he's a variation on the husk that we saw in The Deadly Assassin, but in the manner, as we see the more charming side of the character. He seeks power, and uses it for terrible things, yes, but he goes about it in such a way that you can't help but admire the man behind the actions. There's also a deperation at the heart of this Master, as he seeks a new body to replace his now cripplled one. It's an interesting motive for him to have, not to take over the Universe, but instead to just live. He fails in this venture though, as Adric somehow manages to save the day with the help of Nyssa and science. Left to die as his TARDIS burns around him, we are left wondering if the Master escapes.

But not for long. We get a small scene at the end where the Master kidnaps Tremas, one of the major characters in this story and a man who has shown himself to be generally kind and wise, and then takes over his body. Tremas is no more, killed by the Master such that he might live. It's uncomfortable to see, particularly as we have grown rather fond of Tremas over the past few episodes. But it's also uncomfortable as we see what he leaves behind. As the Master's TARDIS dematerialises, Nyssa wanders into shot, wondering where her father is. It's a moment that reminds the audience of how cruel the Master is, because he has now not only killed Tremas, he has deprived his daughter of ever seeing him as he truly is again, only his face with a new mind behind it.