The Daleks Master Plan (1965/66)

The Daleks Master Plan is an epic story. We have the first death of a companion and the introduction of another one before she bites the dust (literally). This is an ambitious project and to try and sustain a story for three months is a difficult task. There are technically thirteen episodes because viewers in 1965 will have seen Mission to the Unknown which aired before The Myth Makers. There is a nice link to that story in Episode three so the viewer is reminded the relevance of that story. But lets start from Episode 1. Sadly only three episodes exist on video and the most recent of them was Day of Armageddon which was found in 2003 to quite a lot of excitement. The story is in twelve parts which makes it the second longest serial behind the 1986 Trial of a Timelord story but this is infinitely better. The Daleks are working on a bomb called the Time Destroyer and the final piece is the Taranium which is very difficult to get hold off as it has taken 50 years to collect the amount they had. The story spends a lot of time with the Daleks chasing the Doctor to try and get it back.

The first thing that strikes me when I started to listen to the audio was how there was a pre-title sequence where the Doctor, Steven and Katarina are in the TARDIS. It’s never done in 1960’s Doctor Who. There are a lot of things going on in the first episode, we are introduced to Bret Vyon, Mavic Chen and the Daleks as well as the immediate trouble with Steven. By the time we move to the second episode that is where it starts to get going. The fragile relationship between Chen and the Daleks is evident from the beginning and it only gets worse. It’s the now familiar character trait of someone like Chen who thinks he has the upper hand over the Daleks but in reality it’s the other way round.

We first encounter The Brigadier, sorry Bret Vyon as played by Nicholas Courtney. It’s definitely a world away from the Brigadier. The character is instantly unlikeable and it’s a great performance. It’s just a surprise that that his time was cut so quickly but it was quite a shocking exit having come at the hands of his sister. We also get to meet Mavic Chen played by superb Kevin Stoney. Chen is the Guardian of the Solar System and his first speech shows he is powerful and also the idea there is something about him. The third major character was Sara Kingdom who believes without question everything that she is told by Mavic Chen because she sees him as an authourative figure that could do no wrong.

There is one episode in particular which doesn’t really fit into the entire story and that is Episode Seven – The Feast of Steven which aired on Christmas Day. It’s the Doctor Who equivalent of movies that have an interlude. To be honest it’s an interlude that I could have done without. This is more of a comedic episode and isn’t really meant to be taken seriously quite like the new series stories that air on Christmas Day. The highlight of the episode is at the very end when the Doctor, Steven and Sara turn to the camera and wish everybody at home a very Merry Christmas. I would love to have seen that episode go out as it would have been totally great to witness.

This story sees the return of Peter Butterworth as the Meddling Monk which is always a good thing. After his great performance in ‘The Time Meddler’ his involvement in this is the necersary pick up that the story needed after weeks of just the Doctor, Steven, Sara, Mavic Chen and the Daleks. A funny moment was when Steven and Sara come across a mummy which turns out to be the Monk. The only slight disappointment is that his exit is too similar to his exit in The Time Meddler.

The first death of a companion is not the dramatic piece that it should have been. The character of Katarina is not a very good character and that’s why she only last five episodes. To be fair to Adrianne Hill, the character didn’t really have much of a shelf life and her exit whilst must have come as a shock to viewers in 1965, it would have had more impact had it happened to Steven. The death of Sara Kingdom is definitely more emotional. Having started out as a hard nosed Space Agent and becomes over the course of the twelve episodes to a member of the TARDIS, her death which now only exists as a couple of telesnaps is quite dark and its amazing that they did this considering it was still considered a kids show in 1965. At the end of the story it was clear that it had taken a lot of out of everyone involved.

The last couple of episodes of the darkest with the death of Sara and off all the Daleks. It’s Steven’s reaction to the death of Sara that is what makes it seem even more sad. If there is a problem with the story is that there is a lot of ‘The Chase’ in this story. The Doctor having the Taranium and the Daleks trying to get it off him. I think that was someone on the show not being totally confident that the story would stretch out over twelve episodes so having a chase theme would pad it out a bit. The fact that The Daleks Master Plan doesn’t exist in its entirety is one of the biggest annoyances about Doctor Who. It’s a story that has pretty much everything with drama, sadness and comedy. The three episodes that exist can be found on the Lost in Time DVD and the entirety can be bought of iTunes. It’s well worth a listen because it’s a great story and the narration by Peter Purves is great. The Daleks Master Plan is a story that every Doctor Who fan especially new ones should be told about and attempt to listen to.

The Time Meddler (1965)

The Time Meddler is the first story for Peter Purves as Steven Taylor who played two roles in the previous story ‘The Chase. We are introduced to The Meddling Monk who is another Timelord (though not called that) and he likes Meddling with the events of history. The opening scenes are in the TARDIS and are quite sad because it acknowledges the departure of Ian and Barbara which was the last eminence of the first line up of the show back in 1963.

The story spends a large part of the first episode with Steven not believing that the TARDIS is a space and time machine. In fact this refusal to believe what’s in front of him starts to get a bit annoying. Despite waking up in a completely different environment to that of which he left, he still finds it hard to believe that he is in 1066. Thankfully, all that nonsense disappears and we are left with the main plot which is trying to make sure that history happens as it should instead of what the Monk wants to see happen. I actually found it quite funny when Steven and Vicki get into the Monk’s TARDIS and discover all of the Monk’s stuff and how he’s got to different times and made himself wealthier. The thing about the Monk is that he isn’t evil, just greedy. I think that’s more to do with Peter Butterworth who is truly marvellous and is even better when returns in ‘The Daleks Master Plan’. The on-screen chemistry between Hartnell and Butterworth is one of the best things about this story. His absence from Episode 2 allows Peter Purves and Maureen O’Brien to take centre stage and this is where I think the story does rather well because it turns Steven from being a disbeliever to a believer.

There are two things about the end of this story that I like. The first being how the Monk thinks that he has got away but the cheeky note that the Doctor has left for him dispels that. The camera pulling away from the Monk and he sits down on the step and puts his head in his hands is just a perfect way to leave the character. The second thing is how just seconds before it ends there are the faces of the three regulars. It’s the series’ attempt to say that this is a new era in the show and that it’s going to be better than ever.

I really like The Time Meddler and think that its quite a fun story. It’s a story that doesn’t take itself too seriously and has a bloody good time doing it.

The Reign of Terror (1964)

EPISODE 1 – A LAND OF FEAR

The Reign of Terror is the final story of the first series and its another pure historical adventure. It’s the most recent historical story that the TARDIS has visited so far. It’s also the one where there is a greater sense that the regulars are in peril. In the previous episode, the Doctor was throwing a hissy fit after Ian cracked a joke. The opening scene sees Susan get over emotional about the impending departure and whilst its obviously sad that they would be apart it seems that Susan forgot that Ian and Barbara didn’t plan on being a part of the TARDIS crew and all the adventures that they have been on was never going to change that.

I like how confident the Doctor is about getting the TARDIS back to earth considering that its taken 37 episodes to get even this close to 1963. Even Ian isn’t getting his hopes up. It’s nice that once Ian realises that they aren’t where the Doctor thought they were, he isn’t disappointed. Though thatt’s short lived when he realises that they are in the middle of the French Revolution or The Reign of Terror as Barbara calls it. The Reign of Terorr is the Doctor’s favourite period in Earth’s history. Not quite sure why but everyone has their quirks.

To me the best performances came from William Russell and Jacqueline Hill. Individually they are strong but when they are working together then they are even better. I like how they work together to manipulate the Doctor to come out with them instead of just leaving them and going off into time and space. Then they are simply great throughout the episode. Carole Ann Ford has a ropey start but once they are at the house then she improves greatly whilst William Hartnell doesn’t really do much in this episode and his best contribution comes when he gets knocked out.

The boy that Ian grabs sees some unusual reactions from Barbara and Susan. Barbara reckons Ian is hurting the boy by just grabbing him by his shirt and Susan has a go at the Doctor for scaring him. I don’t think that Ian was particularly hard with him and the Doctor was just been himself yet that didn’t seem to make any difference to the ladies.

The sets are a mixed lot. The woodland scenes at the beginning are somewhat disappointing yet the abandoned house they come across is very impressive. Obviously they decided to spend the money where it would be of most use. The house looks exactly as it is meant to and yet it still looks quite spacious in what was probably a tiny studio. Credit to Roderick Laing for what he has done here.

It’s not long before they are captured and they are separated with the Doctor being knocked out whilst the others are taken away. The cliffhanger is a good one as it sees the Doctor in the strange position of being burned to death. It’s made even more effective with the camera focusing in on the flames of the house before panning upwards with the highest flames appearing on screen just to remind us of the Doctor’s peril. It’s directed rather well by Henric Hirsch. There are some interesting shots and the story moves along at a snappy pace considering that the story takes place in just the one location but its still very enjoyable and it sets up the rest of the serial very well.

EPISODE 2 – GUESTS OF MADAME GUILLOTINE

We get a map and a caption to indicate we are in Paris and a brief cliff of the guillotine and another picture to show us some more. Sometimes the small budget is evident and in this brief moment it shows. This is the first of two episodes where William Russell doesn’t appear except in pre-filmed scenes as he was on holiday during this time. His scene in this episode was very good and he and Jeffrey Wickham (Webster) should be applauded for this all too short moment. This is where all the regulars are split up and this is where they have to go on their various plot strands.

There is a weird scene where someone of authority is talking directly to the camera as if Barbara and Susan are in front of him. It’s another quite good piece of directing from Henric Hirsch. It then leads to them being put into prison where Ian has been put in a cell just moments earlier. The Doctor was last seen in the house burning and somehow he was rescued by the young boy that he was a bit rude to in the previous episode. He goes on his journey to Paris and gets caught up in a little bit of drama where he is force to work mending the road. Thankfully it just takes place in this episode and doesn’t spill into the next one. The way that the Doctor bashes the Road Works overseer (as he’s credited) is quite a surprising moment and one that I wouldn’t have expected from the Doctor. It must have been someone in the production office to make sure that the guy was just sleeping as it was quite a violent moment.

This episode is sees another first as its the first time that there has been some outside location. It is of the Doctor walking through a field and along a path going to Paris. It isn’t William Hartnell of course (its Brian Proudfoot) but its still a nice moment in the shows history as it. It’s complimented by some music that sounds like its from the period.

Barbara and Susan are locked together whilst Ian gets a cell to himself. They really get the lions share of the stuff to do in this 25 minutes. They notice how they have always managed to get out and Susan rather pessimistically notes that they always had Ian and/or the Doctor with them. Susan talks about things catching up with you and it hindsight it seems like it’s another indication of Susan’s impending departure and even though I know this isn’t the case it’s still fun to think of RTD or Steven Moffat style story arc in action here. Susan is all doom and gloom in this episode though despite this they are a very good double act and Jacqueline Hill puts in another great performance.

The jailer is a comedy character as despite how rough he looks he is still quite an amusing sight in this episode. Even when he’s sending Barbara and Susan to the guillotine it doesn’t quite carry the menace that it could and maybe should have done. We get more of him and its Dennis Spooner’s comedic writing that has meant we get a slightly comedic figure in what is a very dark and grim story.

The cliffhanger is simply Ian reacting to seeing Barbara and Susan at the gallows. It’s a bit understated and I think it could be been handled better. It’s not William Russell’s fault as he did the best that he could but its wasn’t the most exciting ending to an episode that there has ever been.

EPISODE 3 – A CHANGE OF IDENTITY

I commented on the poor cliffhanger from ‘Guests of Madame Guillotine’ where Ian looks slightly shocked to see Barbara and Suasn on their way to the guillotine. The directors have a choice of either replaying the cliffhanger or do it again live but give it a slightly different emphasis to it and it would have been nice if Henric Hirsch had done this but no we don’t get that we get to see the lacklustre ending. The Doctor finally reaches Paris which is a good studio set. Whilst Ian is in a cell and Barbara and Susan are being taken from pillar to post, the Doctor spends a lot of time in this episode to walking around and getting dressed. He walks into a clothes shop and despite having no money, he arranges for a clothes swap. Hartnell really goes for 11 on the comedy front when he goes into the conciergerie as a regency officer. It’s the first time that Hartnell has had a change of costumes in 39 episodes. It’s a fantastic costume and Hartnell plays the role well

This is the second week that William Russell is on holiday and his presence - is maintained by some more pre-filmed stuff. He uses his chance to breakout by removing the key from the big set that the jailer left when it got stuck and his attention was diverted. All his scenes don’t actually have any dialogue which I think is a bit strange but Russell does well with them and manages to make them fit in what the rest of the story. There’s a nice shoot-out that takes place and despite it being brief it was rather well done and it leads to Barbara and Susan being freed/captured again.

Danielle is the first female supporting character that we have encountered in this story which is strange considering we are into episode 3 of this story. She is the person who seems to be more of friend to Susan and Barbara. Susan becomes ill in this episode and it at first looks like fatigue but by the end of the episode it looks like it’s something a bit more serious. Carole Ann Ford has been allowed to settle down after her hysterics from ‘A Land of Fear’ and Ford puts in a good performance in this episode. Jacqueline Hill doesn’t really do very much in the story as she is playing mother to Susan and it’s a shame really because Hill deserves better.

Jules (played by Donald Morely) is a very likeable person and vows to Barbara to get Ian out of the Conciergerie. It shows the despite the possibility of being killed, he is willing to get people out even when he doesn’t know them and must know that they aren’t French. Jean (Roy Herrick) is also a likeable person but is outshone by Jules. It’s good to have characters in this story that are nice and are there to be supportive to the regulars as it makes the story less bleak than it could have been.

The sets are really good in this episode and again Roderick Laing has done a good job. I thought that the home of Jules and Jean was lit in a good way as it wasn’t overdone and the candles help create the right atmosphere. It’s a very small set and almost has a theatre feel to it. After the

The cliffhanger is very interesting. The shopkeeper shows the Doctors ring and says that its evidence against the traitor. It’s much better than the one we got in the Guests of Madame Guillotine. The whole episode felt better than the previous two. If you watch the documentary about this story you will know that this is the episode that there was a bit of a problem with the director Henric Hirsch who became ill during the recording and none of that shows in the story and the story continues to tick along nicely.

EPISODE 4 – THE TYRANT OF FRANCE

The fourth episode of this story is the first animated one of the release. Up until this was released on DVD, all we had was the audio version and a narrated version on VHS. So this was the first time that we would get to see what this episode was like when it was first transmitted in August 1964. The cliffhanger from the previous episode saw the shopkeeper say that he’s got evidence of the traitor and shows the Doctor’s ring. The Doctor tries a nice bit if diplomatic diplomacy with Robespierre (Keith Anderson). It’s good how Hartnell seems to be having fun in this episode and its good how despite Robespierre being quite an important part of the story, the Doctor doesn’t really have much respect for him.

William Russell has come off holiday so he is back to being in the thick of the action. His return is rather dramatic after being bought in by Jules. After being out of it pretty much for a fortnight, it’s a shame that he doesn’t really do much except talk and sit down or the course of this episode.

Susan is getting worse and its deducted that Susan caught something whilst in prison. This means that Carole Ann Ford’s involvement is somewhat limited. The partnership between Carole Ann Ford and Jacqueline Hill is again quite good in this episode. Carole Ann Ford has been given a nice run of episodes where she hasn’t been a whiney schoolkid. Ok so she’s playing been unwell but its better than acting like a four year old. When the Psychian is treating Susan its clear that he’s making a quick exit so that he can report them to the Jailer. At least Susan and Barbara saw it coming straight away and were hampered by a locked door. However they are soon caught and end up back in prison. It seems like it’s a way of extending the story a bit because the whole thing about this episode is that it’s a lot of nothing happening. There’s a nice moment when Barbara and the Doctor are reunited. It’s a lovely little moment and a rare one of happiness. I always think about the early episodes of this series when the relationship as a lot more frosty than it is now and how they have all mellowed and become friends over the course of the series.

The shopkeeper who has news about the traitor is in one cell whilst the Doctor manages to dodge him (unknowingly). It creates a bit of tension about whether the keeper will be able to point out the Doctor as the traitor. Just as it looks like he is about to leave he is stopped by the jailer. It would be rude not to mention something about the animation. It’s the second story so far that has had lost episodes animated and this one was several years after the last lot and the style of the drawing matches the mood of the story and was very good to watch.

The cliffhanger was rather good as Ian was being set up and ended up being captured by Leon and his guards. With Barbara and the Doctor being reunited and Susan bound to get better its just typical that someone is prevented from making it a proper reunion. It’s not been the most exciting episode as it was a lot of sitting down and talking and not much else happening. The only thing that makes this episode worth watching is seeing the very good animation.

EPISODE 5 – A BARGAIN OF NECESSITY

This is the second episode to be animated. I’m still impressed with how good the animation looks and how it feels part of the episode. It’s great to see how this episode would have looked up. Obviously there are some things that they have probably had to make up but its still animation wise a good episode.

Ian spends the first few minutes of the story tied up after being fooled by Leon there is quite an exciting moment when Ian is saved and it’s a problem with this episode is that its not a particularly memorable episode. After the initial couple of episodes, it’s a shame that this latter part of the story has essentially been about standing in rooms and trying to win this battle. It’s the problem that comes with historical stories because there is only so much that can be done and when it’s a historical story with aliens then its different but with a pure historical there is a pretty strict course of events and you cant really do much.

Another problem with this story is that there is a lot of nothing happening. The best that we get is Leon’s death leading to a moral debate between Ian and Barbara and their difference of opinion about how to feel about Leon. It’s different from what they were like in the early part of this story. Carole Ann Ford may as well have not bothered turning up because she wasn’t given very much to do as all we do see of her is her face through the bars of the cell door and then she tries to escape the jail and gets stopped. In fact this episode sees the lion share of the action given to the supporting cast which isn’t something that has happened before but the performances were all quite good.

The title refers to the deal that the Doctor does with Lemaitre. He has to as he says otherwise Susan wont be released and that would be the only reason that the Doctor would help him. Hartnell seems to be still having fun in his current role. It’s a shame that he will have to go back to his old garb because it’s a brilliant site and seems more eccentric than his old one and more in line with the other outfits.

The cliffhanger was another good one and was probably the most exciting part of the episode. The Doctor arrives back at Jules Renan’s house accompanied with Lemaitre and Renan claims that the Doctor has betrayed them. It’s a fair assumption based on what they see and it will be interesting to see how the Doctor gets himself out of this. Hopefully the final episode will redeem this because the last couple of episodes have felt a bit stagnant and what this story deserves is a cracking finale because its not just the final episode of the story but it’s the final episode of the season.

EPISODE 6 – PRISONERS OF CONCIERGERIE
The final episode of Doctor Who’s first season. It wasn’t the final story to be filmed in this production block but it’s the first season finale in Doctor Who. There’s an awkward moment when they stand around waiting for the captions appear on screen. It could only happen in 1960’s TV. When they do eventually get started its not quite the getting out of the blocks that I would expect from the final part of the story. The first six minutes are made up of just standing around and talking about things that cropped up in the first episode. Once the story gets going the action moves to a pub where Barbara is dressed like a maid and Ian looks like….well I don’t know what like but it’s a funny look.

Napoleon Bonaparte is possibly the biggest historical figure that the show has encountered. It seems like a late addition to include him in as when he does get introduced then the shift of the story seems to change. It’s almost like Dennis Spooner has thrown this in at the last minute because they were worried that the story needed something to keep the story going for 20 minutes.

It’s 20 minutes before Susan appears and its another episode where Susan seems to be given a redundant role. She cant really do much in five minutes and it would have been nice if they had done something else or re-written the script to have Susan at least appear instead of just stagger into the story. Barbara and Ian get the most amount of the action and the Doctor seems to be getting more and more impatient as he waits for Susan to be freed. It’s another episode where the regulars seem to be passengers in the story and allowing the historical figures to do what they need to do.

There is a rather crude map of what I think is France but could have been designed by a five year old. It’s then mixed in with stock footage of a horse and carriage. It seems to be a theme of this story where the production values aren’t quite as good as they normally would be. Even when you consider that the budget wouldn’t have been there even at this stage of the production process, you think that professional integrity was sacrificed

The Destiny is in the stars speech was a lovely way to end the episode. It would be seven weeks before the show returns and I suppose there is no point in doing a cliffhanger because people would have forgotten after nearly two months. As an episode it was slightly better than the previous one because there seemed to be bit more of people moving around. It seems to have halted the decline that there was over the last couple of episodes. As a story it was quite a good one. The first half of the story is stronger because it seemed more active whereas the latter half was just people standing around talking about French politics which with the best will in the world isn’t something that really excities me.

The Romans (1965)

The Romans marks a change in style for Doctor Who. This is the first story that features more comedy than drama. This is another pure historical story. After the reprise of the TARDIS going over the cliff, the story moves on a month with the crew resting. Well Ian is resting and the Doctor is watering the plants. Vicki an Barbara are going to the market. When Barbara and Vicki are in the market, Vicki is presumptuous as she thinks that Barbara will make a dress out of some material. She’s also a little ungrateful as she is bored and wants to leave. Though she seems to perk up when the Doctor goes to Rome.

The crew aren’t looking for trouble (though they never are) yet it seems to find them very quickly. There are lots of people interested in them and its quite good how people have just assumed that they are looking after the house for the owner who is in Gaul. It’s quite a convenient plot point that answers the question as to how they have ended up in this house/villa. There is a lovely scene where they are all sitting around enjoying the food that they are eating. There is a nice bit of enquiring on the Doctor’s part about what they’ve eaten and it shows how the series has developed in a relatively short time. Despite being together for only a short time, its amazing just how well they seemed to have gelled.

There’s a lovely scene with Ian and Barbara after the Doctor and Vicki have left where they seem to behave like a married couple. They spend a lot of time lounging around and joking going on between them and it’s a nice moment that we don’t often get to witness in Doctor Who. Sadly it doesn’t last long and just when you get use to the niceness of the pacing and the humour, it all changes. They are taken as slaves and so their story is more ‘grown-up’ than the one featuring the Doctor and Vicki. The Doctor gets taken to be someone else by a Roman guard after Maximus who was first seen in the square by Vicki. He was suppose to be killed by the mute on the order of Nero. When you first seem him in the market you think how much he looks like the Doctor. To be honest it’s a bit silly as it’s the cliché of drama that someone is taken for someone else.

The thing about this story is that the comedy takes some out of the sting out of the grim idea of being taken as slaves. This means that there isn’t much in the way of drama and it just feels like two plots are running side by side and you know that they will be reunited. The cliffhanger is a bit odd if I’m honest. What we have is the mute assassin walking up to the curtain which belongs to the room containing the Doctor and Vicki and then the screen fades to black.

The whole episode is a comedy episode with a faint hint of seriousness. It wrong foots us because we had become use to serious episodes and at times quite dark that when it tries to do comedy it doesn’t seem quite right. It’s hard to believe that they decided to do this story but it exists and as an episode is perfectly fine. There are some nice moments and its better than some of the stories coming up.

Episode2 starts off with the cliffhanger of the mute assassin about to kill the Doctor. What follows is a nice little fight sequence which is similar to the one in The Rescue. I thought that the cliffhanger was a bit odd and I still think its odd but the fight was quick and immediate that I forgot about it at first. The Doctor almost won before Vicki chases him out of the window, much to the Doctors annoyance.

More odd models to show that they are in Roma, at least it’s a step up from the drawings in ‘The Reign of Terror’. Barbara is on her own and she is about to become a slave. She is looking after a woman who is very ill a bit like Ian was back in ‘The Reign of Terror’. She gets an offer from Tavious but refuses it which is in keeping with her character but I think had Vicki or Susan been with her then there might have been a different outcome. Ian is also on his own but has ended up on a ship. Neither of their settings is particualry cheery which is at odds with the light hearted tone the story has taken on the Doctor and Vicki’s side of things. Things get worse for him when the ship hits the rocks. It’s all got really bad for him really quickly.

Tavious seems like a nice person even though he is involved in what is essentially human trafficking. Which I’m not sure how I feel about it. Being such a horrific thing it feels wrong to sympathise with him even if he shows kindness to one of our favourite characters. He gets his own way and buys her at the auction but Barbara is still not going to be 100% grateful. It’s good how the Doctor and Vicki miss seeing Barbara because the Doctor is in too much of a hurry to meet Nero. It’s a frustrating thing that happens here but if they did meet then the story would be over too quickly.

We get to meet Nero in this episode and he’s not quite historical figure that he should have been. He is very much played for laughs and I must admit that the scene with the Doctor and Nero was quite fun to watch with Vicki chipping in the odd line that makes the initial scene between these two quite good.

Despite starting off quite comedic, the story takes a more darker tone than in the previous episode. Ian and Barbara are in quite harsh situations. It’s good that the Doctor and Vicki’s story is more light-hearted as this story should have the right balance and Dennis Spooner has done well with this script in my opinion. This is a better episode and my opinion of the episode has changed greatly since watching the opening episode.

The penultimate episode of this story sees the four regulars have their own adventures. The Doctor is on course to play in front of Nero and befriends him. Unfortunately there is a lot of nothing happening in this story. Instead of trying to install some action into this, Dennis Spooner decides to base a large chunk of the episode Nero’s palace instead of having more of Ian which is something I was yearning for. Had there been more of William Russell then I would be more warm to the whole four episodes but sadly what we have is about 20 minutes of the Nero running around after Barbara and the Doctor enjoying a sauna.

The scene where Nero is chasing after Barbara is a bit like a sketch from the Benny Hill show. It’s rather silly and whilst I know that its suppose to be a comedic episode its still a bit frustrating. Another thing that was frustrating was how the Doctor missed Barbara yet again. It’s quite a while before we finally get to the more serious side of the story and that of Ian’s situation. He’s about to be trained to be a gladiator.

 

Vicki gets to spend some time with Locusta. Locusta is a woman who poisons people. I quite like the character and thought that Anne Tirard played the role quite well and seemed to add some sanity to the plot.  Vicki ends up nearly poisoning Nero which would have been against history.

The Doctor is still due to play his musical instrument even though he can’t actually play a note. The scene where the Doctor does end up playing the instrument he decides that he is going to play it but so quietly that no one can hear it. It’s quite a bold plan of the Doctor and it fits in with the feel of the story. The moment where the Doctor stops Nero from drinking the poison is the Doctor’s attempt to prevent history from being changed and it brings the events of ‘The Aztecs’ to the viewers mind. Nero gets someone else to test his drink and it is filled with poison. The rather pithy comment that he makes when the person drops dead I think is rather out of step with the show.

The episode ends with Ian in another fight in front of Nero and Barbara. It’s quite a good fight and it leads to a nice cliffhanger where Nero does the dreaded thumbs down thing. What almost makes it seem tense is Barbara’s reaction. The episode is rather a let down because after the mix of comedy and drama in the previous episode, it was sad that it seemed to be more comedy in this one. My view of the story hasn’t really changed and it’s easy to anyone why this story isn’t as well loved as it is.

The final episode of this story which hasn’t been one of the greatest in Doctor Who. It starts with the sword fight with Ian. Sadly that’s where the excitement ends because the rest of the story continues to be a precession of scenes where we are suppose to find things funny but it doesn’t work. The next time that the story picks up a bit is when the Doctor is looking over a map of Rome and accidentally sets fire to the map which Nero is horrified by at first but soon cheers up when he realises that he could burn Rome to the ground so the senate would back his plans to rebuild Rome.

The problem with this episode is that I have lost patience with the story and just think that its neither funny nor dramatic. The performances are fine but its what they have to do that is poor. Even William Russell cant save this story and what started off as an interesting journey at the early start of the story now descends into nothingness. The moment the fire starts on the map it is when the story is getting wrapped up and the regulars start to make their way out of Rome and back to the villa. The shot of Rome up in flames might seem cheap and a bit of a let down but I think that whilst it might have been good to see something better but its rather effective and I liked it.

The last shot of Nero is of him playing his lyre whilst Rome burns which has spawned the phrase. Nero has been a massive disappointment because unlike Marco Polo, I thought that they could have done something different with the character and made him a threat in the story instead of the clown that he was portrayed.

I like it when the regulars are reunited after narrowly missing each other for the previous episodes. It might have been a far stretch to believe that they could all have missed each other whilst almost tripping over each other but that’s the least of the stories problems and it’s a massive relief that it was only four episodes long.  The final scene of the episode is in the TARDIS and the Doctor says the TARDIS is being dragged down by some force. It’s a nice way to ensure that people turned in for the next episode as it’s a nice mystery about what could be powerful enough to do this. I cant deny that I’m sad that this episode is over. It was fun a bit at the beginning but soon became tiresome and not really what I think Doctor Who should be doing. Historicals are hard enough to get right without adding comedy to it. Sadly The Romans fall well short of the mark.