Dragonfire is the final story of Sylvester McCoy’s first season and whilst it hasn’t been a total success. It’s fair to say that Ian Briggs’ first script for Doctor Who ends the series on a positive note. This story is notable for being the final story for Bonnie Langford’s Mel. Who has been screaming her way since ‘Terror of the Vervoids’ (1986). It’s fair to say that the character hasn’t been the best realised and that’s more to do with John Nathan Turner than Bonnie. This story is also the first to feature Sophie Aldred as Ace. The story is quite basic really and nothing special. The Doctor and Mel arrive on a very cold planet where a guy called Kane is looking for the Dragonfire (hence the title). That’s it. The only thing that was quite interesting was the quite grim scene where Kane is melted by the sunlight. It’s quite a gruesome scene and seems quite unlike the new less violent Doctor Who that was required by the BBC.
There are many things that are a bit mad. Firstly the cliffhanger to episode one is silly because it just doesn’t make sense. Why would he suddenly decide to climb over the ledge? Another is the departure of Mel. It seems like with most companion exits that the actual written scene was done at the last minute and with very little care as to how it fits in with the rest of the story. Mel’s decision to stay with Glitz is rather a bizarre one considering they don’t seem to get on during this story. It’s not on par with Leela’s exit in ‘The Invasion of Time’ (1978) but its still not very good.
Watching these stories in order, I am able to appreciate the character of Ace a lot more. She is a breathe of fresh air in a series that has been lacking some form of fiestyness since Tegan left in 1984. The character of Ace talks and acts like a person of the time. It’s clear why Rose was based on her and we get a nice bit of back story about her character. For the first time we have a companion that has a bit of mystery to her. A lot of unanswered questions which will become answered as the show progresses. McCoy gives us his strongest performance as the Doctor. It’s clear that he’s getting a handle on the character and this shows. Apart from the odd decision to climb over the edge. We get a sense of the rage that would become his trademark and it shows how far the character has come since ‘Time and the Rani’. The story sees the return of Tony Selby as Sabalom Glitz who had been seen the year before. I wonder why they chose to bring the character back but I’m glad they did as the character adds the comedy relief that the story should have.
‘Dragonfire’ is a story that is quite important for the Seventh Doctor. It’s a story that plods along quite well and manages to do the job of writing out and a character and introducing a new one which it does quite well. Thankfully the 24th season of Doctor Who is over and one of the weakest seasons in the shows history is over, not with a wimper but more of a sigh.
There are many things that are a bit mad. Firstly the cliffhanger to episode one is silly because it just doesn’t make sense. Why would he suddenly decide to climb over the ledge? Another is the departure of Mel. It seems like with most companion exits that the actual written scene was done at the last minute and with very little care as to how it fits in with the rest of the story. Mel’s decision to stay with Glitz is rather a bizarre one considering they don’t seem to get on during this story. It’s not on par with Leela’s exit in ‘The Invasion of Time’ (1978) but its still not very good.
Watching these stories in order, I am able to appreciate the character of Ace a lot more. She is a breathe of fresh air in a series that has been lacking some form of fiestyness since Tegan left in 1984. The character of Ace talks and acts like a person of the time. It’s clear why Rose was based on her and we get a nice bit of back story about her character. For the first time we have a companion that has a bit of mystery to her. A lot of unanswered questions which will become answered as the show progresses. McCoy gives us his strongest performance as the Doctor. It’s clear that he’s getting a handle on the character and this shows. Apart from the odd decision to climb over the edge. We get a sense of the rage that would become his trademark and it shows how far the character has come since ‘Time and the Rani’. The story sees the return of Tony Selby as Sabalom Glitz who had been seen the year before. I wonder why they chose to bring the character back but I’m glad they did as the character adds the comedy relief that the story should have.
‘Dragonfire’ is a story that is quite important for the Seventh Doctor. It’s a story that plods along quite well and manages to do the job of writing out and a character and introducing a new one which it does quite well. Thankfully the 24th season of Doctor Who is over and one of the weakest seasons in the shows history is over, not with a wimper but more of a sigh.
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