Doctor Who-Robot

                                            Upon the regeneration of the doctors third incarnation into the fourth,he is thrown into a regeneration crisis where he goes on the lamb from UNIT doctor Harry Sullivan having experienced sudden outbursts of physical strength and erratic memory. Meanwhile a type of advanced ray gun has reported stolen by a scientific research concern calling itself Think Tank. With the doctor in general limbo,his assistant Sarah-Jane Smith goes to visit Think Tank herself to investigate. There are journalistic integrity leads her to follow the project head Miss Winters and her own assistant Jerricho to find a device they called the K-1 robot,which was designed to replace humans in hazardous matters such as in high radioactive environments. During a test of the the device where Sarah's life is threatened,she observes it seems to experience emotions as well. Further investigations by the freshly regenerated doctor and the Brigadier manage to reveal,along with Sarah's own questioning of  Professor Kettlesworth,creator of the K-1 robot, that the organization is a massive front for a larger organization called the Scientific Reform Society (SRS),who are convinced that only the intellectually elite should run the Earth.

                           While UNIT attempt to ambush the event,the robot itself murders an official who holds an important secret: that the SRS are planning to sabotage an international disarmament  conference. Hoping a nuclear war will occur that will allow the protected SRS and their robot to lead human survivors in a new society of their rule,it's learned Kettlesworth personally assisted in this himself. However the robot soon kills him,it's own creator,and emerges humanity will have to be destroyed save for Sarah Jane who displayed great kindness towards the robot. This after the doctor and eventually the fail safe device are both able to stop the countdown to the launch of nuclear weapons threatening the planet. In the end the doctor develops a serum that reduces the robot,construction of a biogenic metal,into it's core fragments and the threat is averted.  In the end,the doctor invites Sarah-Jane with him as he finally continues his journey in the TARDIS. And the two are joined by a curious Dr. Harry Sullivan.

                        This is an excellent story to introduce Tom Baker,who'd soon become one of the most famous actors to portray the time lord. Written by Terrence Dicks and edited by Barry Letts,this is essentially still a Jon Pertwee third doctor/UNIT era story. It gives you an excellent chance to see the new fourth regeneration of the doctor very casually dismissing some of the Brigadier's reactionary habits in favor of his own unique (and often more effective) methods. When faced with both the intellectually fascist SRS and the unhinged K-1 robot,Sarah-Jane emerges as her own heroine in the story-having a relationship with the robot reminiscent of a King Kong  for the computer age . The story itself,however,deals with the breakdown of all morality in the place of a machine receiving mixed programming by intelligent but completely uncaring individuals. It's Sarah's sense of moral conviction,even when Think Tank leader Miss Winters accuses her of being a reverse chauvinist,that leads to be every bit the triumphant character in this story next to the new doctor.

Doctor Who-Shada

                           The doctor and Romana visit St.Cedd's university in contemporary Cambridge intercepting a message from Professor Chronotis,an elderly time lord whose failing memory not only prevents him from remembering the message but that an advanced physics student Chris Parsons was accidentally allowed to borrow an ancient Gallifreyian tome from the Professors library. In the meantime a mysterious alien man named Skagra is coming the planet with mind absorbing spheres searching for the dome. And soon the doctor and the professor,at the cost of Professor Chronotis's final regeneration,become targets of these spheres.. Chris and his assistant Clair have been unable to decipher the illegible tome,only learning it absorbs radioactivity. Upon all of these players meeting up,they realize they have been pawns in in Skagra's search for Saliyavan,a criminal time lord incarcerated at the prison Shada. 

                 When Clair went searching for the professor,she'd met him outside of time in his TARDIS (disguised as his library) while the doctor,Chris and K-9 were imprisoned by Skagra on his invisible spaceship and torment by his living stone henchmen called Krags. Skagra's plan was to his Saliyavan's ability to absorb minds into his own consciousness with his ability to remove minds into his own-allowing Skagra to merge himself with all the brilliant minds he's stolen with his spheres to create one enormous mind. Upon the revelation the man Claire thinks is the professor is a disguised Saliyavan,the Doctors mind copied within Skagra's giant mind able to unravel the time vortex as both TARDIS's are on course to Shada. He returns Saliyavan to Shada. And leaves everyone at Cambridge precisely as it was in the beginning,the Professor included,before he and Romana depart.

                    Originally meant to be the closing episode of Doctor Who's 17'th season,a writers strike resulted in the story never being completed and therefore never broadcast-or using BBC terminology transmitted. Tom Baker had to fill in the gaps himself with his own narration for the 1994 VHS release here,included remastered footage left available and that is what you see here. As it stands this is a superb Doctor Who story-full of intelligence,wit and adventure and therefore in the same league as City Of Death from earlier in the season. We actually are never 100% sure of Professor Chronotis's true identity. And the doctor and Romana's encounter with him also reveals a few more tidbits about time lord society that is scattered throughout Doctor Who. As for the humor,one scene stands out in my mind: one where the Skagra's mind sphere pursuing the doctor flies past a men's vocalese street choir singing "Chattanooga Choo- Choo". Despite huge gaps filled in by Baker's clever narrations,one of the finest stories for Doctor Who and Tom Baker's era on the show.

Doctor Who-The War Machines

                     Materializing in contemporary London the doctor,and his companion Dodo experiences an unusual magnetic sensation throughout his body. His investigation leads him to a newly completed tower which houses a new logical mainframe computer called WOTAN. It's creator Professor Brett intends for the device to be networked around the world for peaceful and defense purposes. However the doctor senses something amok when the computer recognizes him and the meaning of the term TARDIS. The Professors secretary Polly Wright offers to take Dodo to her favorite nightclub where they meet up with the Naval officer Ben Jackson,who has been trying to get Polly to notice him and defends her from a palaver. What they do not yet know is that during this time,the Professor and his compatriot Krimpton have been co-opted by WOTAN and are now taking instructions from it. Dodo is soon influenced in the same manner,via a phone call at the club. Sir Charles Summer,promoting the massive WOTAN project to the government body,soon finds a number of mysterious goings on as the Professor and all of his compatriots continue to exhibit secretive behavior. 

              Polly is abruptly summoned to to Sir Charles' office when the doctor recovers Dodo,who he realizes has been attempting to get him under WOTAN'S control under the influence of hypnotic suggestion. While deprogramming her Ben,whose come to pick up Polly for a date,notices the secretary has already left the building. The doctor sends him to investigate and he discovers she,as with the Professor for whom she was once employed is now working for WOTAN. The computer has deduced human beings can no longer effectively run the planet. And is deploying it's own creators to create unstoppable war machines to destroy them. While her friendship with Ben forces the hypnotized Polly into helping him escape,he goes on to inform the doctor who sends the military to destroy the war machines but they are unsuccessful. In the end it's up to the doctor,who creates a magnetic field that he uses to reprogram the machines to destroy WOTAN and liberate it's captors from it's control. Before departing in his TARDIS,Ben and Polly return to send him the message Dodo has elected to remain on Earth. When they find him walking into a police box (actually the TARDIS),Ben produces a key that slipped out of the doctors pocket that he intended to return to him,and he and Polly enter the TARDIS just as it is about to take off.

            In terms of story,setting,pacing and the characterizations this is one of the most engaging and enjoyable stories from the William Hartnell era Doctor Who. For the first time,he's portrayed as something of a man of action rather than merely a scientific detective. It's also a story very much ahead of it's time. With the advent of computerization about to occur,this story was very telling in many people's fears of the machines we ourselves programmed taking over our lives. Also this story takes along with that concept a perhaps implied anti fascist and communist message of human beings forced into serving a greater power based solely in logic and pragmatism. Even though your never sure if the characters of Ben and Polly will stay with the doctor until the very end,these  two lovable and very helpful characters really have the affect of endearing themselves to the heart of the viewer. Though the underrated Dodo Chaplet exists the TARDIS in the story,the show gain two new (if now sadly under-represented in terms of surviving Doctor Who stories" in Ben and Polly.

Doctor Who-The Web Planet

                          The TARDIS finds itself being pulled towards a planet's gravitational force rather mysteriously. Upon settling down on the planet surface,Barbara and Vicki find themselves both under the control of a mysterious power. While investigating for themselves,the Doctor and Ian discover a desolate world with acid pools and where Ian's gold watch disappears out of thin air. The doctor concludes that the planet is Vorbis,a world that he has some familiarity with. Barbara for her part finds herself among the peaceful Butterfly-like Menoptra. They are ensnared in a war with the Zarbi,large ants who have overtaken the moon,driving the Menoptra to the planets moon because of the Animus,a malevolent entity that has engulfed the planet in one life consuming web of it's own creation.

                                The intention of the Animus is to try to use the Doctors knowledge,through it's control device within what it calls the Carsenome,to influence the doctor in the same way they have the Zarbi and Barbara-through the use of their ability to control biological energy through gold alloy. The doctor,for his part however is able to learn their method of control and counteract it. He's even able to use one of the Animus's devices to take control over one of their Zarbi slaves to escape imprisonment. Once out from under the Animus's influence the doctor is able to manipulate the Animus's energy source at the very moment it's about to absorb the planet and renew Vorbis to the fertile environment it once was.

                                   One of the most important elements of this story is the visualizations. While the sets and costumes are extremely obvious even by this era of Doctor Who's standards the use of lighting,filter and the almost experimental theater style of acting used in particular by the actors portraying the Menoptra do more to tell this story then the actual plot. References to enforced evolution,in the place of the Menoptra and their flightless cousins the Optera,as well as alchemy are key elements to this story. In truth,it is a very slow story in parts. And would've been brilliant (and equally as effective) if told in three or four parts rather than six. Still,even by Doctor Who standards,this is a particularly mind bending story.

Happy Birthday,William Hartnell!

                    Hard to believe it was over 49 years ago that Mr.Hartnell first appeared on the BBC in 1963 as the doctor in An Unearthly Child. But here we are,eleven doctors later. No one however has forgotten "the original,as one might say",to quote the first doctors own words. Of course the first doctor is the only one of them to be portrayed by two different actors during the shows original run. William Hartnell died in 1975,two year after participating in the show's tenth anniversary special The Three Doctors with Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee.

                     When the programs twentieth anniversary arrived,the first doctor was portrayed by Richard Hurndall,who himself has since passed on. A long time English character actor used to being somewhat in the back round, Hartnell came to greatly appreciate his role as the doctor and particularly his relationship to his younger viewers. His persona as the eccentric,mildly cranky grandfather helped establish the personality of every one whose ever played the role. As he himself once said,once one has been involved with the doctor some of the magic stays with you for the rest of your life. As much as I appreciate all the others, Hartnell's portrayal has already worked it's magic on me.

Doctor Who-The Romans

                                           After the TARDIS crashes off the side of the cliff,the crew find themselves in Rome in 64 AD,living on the outskirts of town and enjoying all of the pleasures the Roman Empire had to offer. All of this ends abruptly when Ian and Barbara are kidnapped by Roman slave traders. The doctor and Vicki end up going off to investigate and are accosted by servants of the royal court believing the doctor to be Maximus Pettulian,the court lyra playing musician for Ceaser Nero. Upon arriving the at Nero's court the Doctor learns that Ian and Barbara have been taken in as slaves. Ian has been arrested along with another runaway slave Delos and sent to to fight in the circus arena while Barbara is being pursued by Nero himself,who took her into his services with the help of a man named Tavius who liberated her from the slave market.

                                    After both helping each other at the crossroads in their dilemmas,Ian and Barbra both seek help from Tavius to escape. For his part Nero finds himself humiliated by the doctor while claiming to play an ear sensitive lyra melody few can hear-while actually playing nothing. Nero contemplates having the doctor killed in the ring. Meanwhile Vicki learns Nero's queen is planning to have her husband poisoned over jealousy about his pursuit of Barbara. It's the doctor who comes to the rescue in the end. Realizing Nero was supposed to raze Rome due to his failed plans to rebuild it,the doctor sets fire to Nero's plans to facilitate this event. After Tavius helps Ian and Barbara escape,while the doctor and Vicki escape the burning city they find themselves back where they started-non aware of what the other had done until they left Rome in the TARDIS for their next adventure.

                                   This is an excellent story blending elements of historical drama into what is largely a farcical tale of the indolence and decadence of Rome under Nero's reign. Derek Francis does an excellent turn as the faded,gluttonous Roman leader who is more in pursuing his power and indulging his sexual appetite with Barbara than doing much good by him Empire. That comic element is extended by the doctor's not only forgetting Ian's name-calling him "Chesterfield" but also his trolling Nero by playing on his own inability to play the Lyra.  This story doesn't shy away from the dark side of the Roman empire though. The camera often lingers on Jacqueline Hill's expressions as Barbara,realizing even through her own experiences how Romans treat their slaves. Also of note is how her and Ian's emancipator Tavius is depicted,in a brief scene holding a cross pendent,to be a Christian. An excellent and well rounded historical Doctor Who adventure.

Doctor Who-The Rescue

                      Dejected and physically tired following the departure of his granddaughter Susan,the TARDIS finds itself on the planet Dido. Upon exiting the TARDIS,Ian and Barbara find themselves atop a large cliff and find beneath them the hulk of a crashed space ship. Meanwhile inside the ship,a young lady named Vicki is attempting to send a transmission to a rescue ship to save her and fellow crew mate Bennett. An alien wearing a ritualistic mask than greets Barbara,than throws her off the cliff where she is found and rescued by Vicki. Meanwhile an avalanche traps the doctor and Ian inside the cave next to the cliff where they find an unknown force trying to keep them locked in. Barbara is awakened by Vicki,who introduces herself by explaining her ship crashed here and the rest of the crew,including her father were killed at a conference the Dido set up for welcome them. 

                    Believing they were murdered,she has been tormented by Kolluquin,the alien who Barbara encountered whose determined to keep Vicki from leaving Dido,hence her secret transmission. The doctor and Ian soon escape,and encounter a crestfallen Vicki who just saw her "pet" Sandy unintentionally murdered by Barbara believing it to be a predator. The doctor later discovers a secret chamber where he encounters Bennett,who was masquerading as Kolluquin the entire time in order to escape rescue,as he was a prisoner and had killed his crew (save Vicki) and most of the Dido for the same purpose. After a struggle Bennett is killed while the doctor is sent back to the TARDIS by two surviving Dido,who had been a peaceful people. Realizing she had nowhere to do the doctor,Ian and Barbara decided to invite Vicki to join them and she formally accepts. 

                   While an intriguing two part murder mystery that's very surprising up to the very end,this is also a very heartwarming character set up-with the majority of the story pairing up Ian and the doctor,and Barbara with Vicki. We see the doctor and Ian taking action to release themselves from the cave their trapped in. We also see Barbara trying to assist the confused and tormented Vicki,who lost her father than her only friend on Dido in her pet Sandy. Also this story shows us a very sensitive side of the first doctor. He shows calm tenderness and kindness to Vicki,and she is able to except Ian and Barbara-educationally inept by her 25'th century standards of course,largely through the influence of the time lord. An excellent introduction for an often unheralded companion.