Sylvester McCoy Returns as the Seventh Doctor!
After another lengthy wait (I’m used to it at this stage) we finally got word of the next Collection release in the form of Season 25, meaning that whilst the 60s era has just 1/6 out, the 80s now has just one set left to go with 21.
Season 24 turned out to be a troubled production for the new script editor Andrew Cartmel and producer John Nathan-Turner. Still, it had flashes of brilliance with stronger stories like Paradise Towers. The new lead actor, Sylvester McCoy, had steadily found his footing as the writing moved away from clownish characteristics to allow for serious moments, but it was Season 25 wherein the pieces truly came together.
The decision to rewire the Seventh Doctor as a master manipulator masquerading behind a more physical and jester-like persona was a genius move, and though this concept wouldn’t fully reach its heights until the following season, 25 certainly showcases not only how interesting this concept is for the character, but that McCoy was more than capable of pulling this off.
Season 25 presents two of my top ten all-time favourite DW stories, a colourful yet cynical and satirical take on Thatcher’s Britain, and a rather muddled Cyberman story across its four serials. It’s a more consistently strong season than 24 and despite a silver and gold-coloured misfire stands as a great one to revisit. It also acted as the Jubilee year marking 25 years of Doctor Who with one of the stories being an anniversary story, and another being a much better alternative for such an occasion.
Remembrance of the Daleks:
Both the preceding 80s Dalek stories were filled to the brim with violence and some of the darkest concepts and visuals of all of Doctor Who, but this time around the story takes darker turns for different reasons, but ultimately almost feels like a soft reboot, and is one of the Who stories from 1963-1989 that’s perfect as a jumping on point – it certainly was for me.
The story sees the Doctor and new companion Ace (Sophie Aldred) land on Shoreditch, Earth, in 1963, as the Doctor aims to retrieve an important possession he left behind after leaving during An Unearthly Child. To make matters more complex a Dalek civil war is brewing on Earth – the reason? Both factions, the Renegade Daleks led by the Dalek supreme last mentioned at the end of Revelation (and who have rejected Davros as their leader), and the Imperial Daleks, more sophisticated servants of the Dalek Emperor, are duking it out to claim The Doctor’s hidden relic: The Hand of Omega.
The Hand of Omega is revealed to be an all-powerful device created by the Time Lords that is designed to be the ultimate weapon and capable of immeasurable devastation. Caught up in this conflict are a military group led by Group Captain Gilmore (Simon Williams) and Sgt. Mike Smith (Dursley McLinden) who stumble upon a lone Dalek knocking about in a mysteriously familiar junkyard, Totters Lane. Also involved in the conflict are his scientific advisor Professor Rachel Jensen (Pamela Salem) and her assistant Allison Williams (Karen Glendhill) who are monitoring the invasion.
This action-packed early sequence sees the Doctor blow the Dalek to kingdom come with some Nitro-9 that Ace definitely wasn’t carrying in her backpack. This sets up the story in style but we also get insight that the renegade Dalek faction is working with a fascist group known as “The Association” led by Mr. Ratcliffe (George Sewell) and even have a battle computer at their disposal. The Imperial Daleks, meanwhile, have set up a teleportation device in the nearby basement of Coal Hill School, commandeering the headmaster to keep the situation quiet.
This setup of course leads to one of the most iconic Who cliffhangers as The Doctor tries escaping a Dalek up the basement stairs, only to find that these Daleks can now fly. In amongst all the chaos this serial does take its time to develop the supporting cast, with Smith turning out to be a double agent for The Association, much to a smitten Ace’s dismay – Ace also gets a few effective scenes, one wherein she expresses a quiet disgust at the “no coloureds” sign on their accommodations window, and the other wherein she blows up an Imperial Dalek with a rocket launcher following one of the cliffhangers.
Perhaps my favourite character moment though comes from the Doctor visiting the local cafe and musing about the ripple effect with the server John (Joseph Marcel of Fresh Prince fame) as he deliberates how his decision to store the Hand of Omega has escalated.
The most iconic sequence for the Doctor here is his manipulation of the egotistical Dalek Emperor, revealed to be Davros (Terry Molloy), into using the Hand of Omega, only to reveal it was booby-trapped. This leads to the obliteration of Skaro by Davros’ own hands, a victory for the Doctor though with no unlimited rice pudding to be seen.
Writer Ben Aaronovitch had never written for the series before but Andrew Cartmel saw potential and rightfully so, as the then 25-year-old wrote a masterpiece and would go on to become a respected author as well as penning Battlefield for the next season. Cartmel’s aim of having the Doctor be a commanding presence rather than getting pushed from A to B within the narrative works perfectly here and ultimately solidifies and establishes Seven as someone to be taken more seriously, in contrast to the depictions in Season 24.
Remembrance long held the position of being my overall favourite Doctor Who serial though has been deposed to second place by The Invasion, and stands as a brilliant story that not only feels more like the actual 25th anniversary special than the one we got but is one of the perfect jumping-on points for anyone looking to get into the classics.
5/5
The Happiness Patrol:
“Happiness will Prevail!” THP sees the Doctor and Ace arrive on an Earth Colony located on the planet Terra Alpha, wherein its citizens are forced to follow a regime of forced happiness, enforced by the titular Happiness Patrol and their leader Helen A (Sheila Hancock) with the intent to eradicate any form of melancholy or sadness.
A story like this could only be done with a satirical bent and there’s plenty of that here, with some less than subtle Thatcherite flourishes, the presence of the Kandy Man (David John Pope) a robot with a sweet-based appearance who treats dissenters to his own “fondant surprise”, and a rebellion against the system for good measure.
I quite enjoy THP but always felt that it could have used some more time to flourish, so having the extended versions here was a nice development. This when combined with the limited studio-based approach being spruced up via the special edition makes for a better realised story overall. It’s not the strongest of the era, but has some great ideas and imagery.
3.5/5
Silver Nemesis
I’ve long considered this to be one of the weakest Cybermen stories, owing to its storyline trying to do too many things with only a few episodes. Just what do I mean by doing too many things at once? SN’ premise sees Neo-Nazis, a 17th Century sorceress and Cybermen fighting over a statue made of living metal, the titular Silver Nemesis, that crash lands nearby Windsor Castle.
It’s a bizarre premise to try and explain away, and the Cybermen don’t even appear until the episode one cliffhanger – their appearance here isn’t one of the stronger ones, as their aversion to gold is rather comical – explosions and fluids galore (Cyberleader actor David Banks is always good value though).
The sorceress Lady Peinforte (Fiona Walker), meanwhile, is a fascinating enough character, having crossed paths with the Doctor when attempting to steal the SN device back in the 1600s. The SN is essentially explained to be a defence weapon for Gallifrey designed by Omega, and can only be activated by its bow and arrow that she and her companion possess.
As for the Neo-Nazis, they’re led by the sinister De Flores (Anton Diffring), and add little to the overall story – being paired up with the Daleks would have drawn stronger parallels. The story also has a rather similar conclusion to Remembrance – one that even Ace points out at the end.
This set provides a whopping four versions of the story (broadcast, VHS special edition, Blu-Ray special edition, and a new omnibus-style edit) and while the extended versions do help with the pacing I still consider this to be one of the weaker McCoy stories despite some highlights. It is, however, better than say The Wheel in Space and Revenge of the Cybermen when considering Cybermen stories.
3/5
The Greatest Show in the Galaxy
Set on the planet Segonax, The Doctor and Ace are invited to the planet to visit an attraction known as the Psychic Circus, which holds sinister intentions as those who visit are forced to perform at the command of the Chief Clown (Ian Reddington) who is controlled by a bigger threat in the Gods of Ragnarok.
Along the way, The Doctor and Ace become acquainted with eccentric characters like an explorer named Captain Cook (T.P. McKenna), a timid woman Mags (Jessica Martin) who is revealed to be a Werewolf, a bat-themed biker called Nord (Daniel Peacock), and an unsubtle jab at the fandom with a PC fanboy named Whizz Kid (Gian Sammarco).
There’s a lot to enjoy with this story, whether it be Mark Ayres’ debut as the composer, the Seventh Doctor playing the Gods by their own tricks, the sinister robotic clowns and even a robotic bus driver whose demands become deadly. It’s a creative serial from top to bottom and though not perfect became one of my all-time favourite stories and this remains the case to this day.
4.5/5
Overall:
Best Story: Remembrance of the Daleks
Worst Story: Silver Nemesis
Must see: Remembrance of the Daleks, The Greatest Show in the Galaxy
Check out Part 2 where we unbox the set, look through the video & audio quality, discuss the special features and give an overall score.
By HW Reynolds
Images provided by the BBC
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