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With another impressively long-lived Docback now receding into memory - its life cut tragically short by the cyber-equivalent of Dr. Eldon Tyrell’s ‘expiration date’ - it’s time to…you know…KEEP ON GOING!
This Docback will stay afloat for as long as reader participation allows it to remain viable - or for 45 days - whichever comes first. The 45 days, of course, being the Disqus limitation here on AICN.
If any DOCTOR WHO newsbits of significance surface in that timeframe, which is a strong likelihood, they may receive a separate posting here on AICN (accompanied by an unmoderated forum), but I may or may not also mirror them here by way of ‘Update’ and to promote further discussion herein.
HORNORSILK REVIEWS THE EXXILONS BIG FINISH AUDIO
Big Finish The Fourth Doctor Adventures 4.1 The Exxilons
Written By: Nicholas Briggs
Directed By: Nicholas Briggs
Cast
Tom Baker (The Doctor), Louise Jameson (Leela), John Leeson (K9), Daisy Dunlop (Trexa), Jacqueline King (Calura), Hugh Ross (Gethal), Tim Treloar (Ergu)
The Doctor and Leela land on a planet, E9874, which has a backwater civilization with a race called the Tari, a race which is somewhat tribalistic and militant, being met by and affected by the “advanced” civilization of the “Locoyuns.” The “Locoyuns” is the name given to the visitors to the planet by the Tari because of the name of the ship. As we quickly find out, the leaders of the Locoyuns do not seem to have the needs and desires of the Tari in mind.
But thankfully, some of the Locoyuns question the principles of their people, and actually feel for and make connections with the Tari. The Doctor, upon landing on the planet, saves one such Locoyun, and with Leela and K-9, work to find out what is happening upon E9874, and the connection the planet has to the Exxilons.
As a short, one cd story, introducing the new season, one which brings K-9 into the mix, the story is more or less average. There are some good points, such as the relationship which develops between the Doctor and the leader of the Tari, Ergu, and some rather routine points, such as what happens to Leela and her conflict with the leader of the Locoyuns. She is, as always, hard-headed in a good way, always threatening those she believes deserves it, and so is entirely in character. K-9 is given a fair, although not central, role to the story; but with this story, it is hard to say who is “central” to it beyond the Doctor. For he has to deal with a civilization he has dealt with before, and he has to do so in a way that works for the benefit of all.
And he does it by being seen as a man of wisdom, of being “everywhere man.”
Instead of being everyman, the Doctor is everywhere man: it’s an interesting twist to a major literary tradition. While it is not as effectively used as I would have wished, there are elements of the idea which are brought out well, especially at the end, when the TARDIS dematerializes – here, we see everywhere man at his full power. There is a sense that this is what gives the Doctor his wisdom: he is not everyman, but rather, he is the one who works for everyman, and so is everywhere to help everyman. To be sure, the story doesn’t go this far with it: the Doctor gets the title and uses it, but, if we consider its application, it is just and really is an interesting contrast to a major literary tradition, and one which makes sense and yet it requires something like Doctor Who for it to work.
With as good as the “Everywhere man” idea is, the other part of the story, the problem of a primitive civilization being invaded by a more powerful, more advanced one, felt more or less done by the numbers. It does it well enough, but this is because it has enough of a pattern to use, to do so without difficulty. The fact that the primitives think they can win a fight against their superiors is, of course, not too surprising: they think in relation to numbers alone. But the Doctor is there. Leela is there. K-9 is there. And there is certainly something more than fighting which can be done. And the Doctor, albeit with limited success, is able to achieve that end – as expected.
Now the question is how do the Exxilons get into the mix? Obviously, that is one of the mysteries of the story, one of the few ones, and so not one I will reveal the answer to here, so that what little there is to enjoy, it can be enjoyed in its proper form.
I would not consider this a great story, but it is not a bad one: outside of the Doctor’s encounter with Egu, I found it “meh.” Easily listened to, easily forgotten. Everyone does their part well, just there is not much to it.
6.5/10 in relation to other Doctor Who stories, making it a 7/10.
-- HornOrSilk
HORNORSILK REVIEWS THE RANI ELITE BIG FINISH AUDIO
Big Finish 194: The Rani Elite
Written By: Justin Richards
Directed By: Ken Bentley
Cast
Colin Baker (The Doctor), Nicola Bryant (Peri), Siobhan Redmond (The Rani), Andrew Bone (Vice Chancellor), Becky Wright (Lizzo), Mike Noble (Miklev), Charlie Morton (Reev)
The Doctor and Peri visit CAGE – the College of Advanced Galactic Education – because the Doctor has been given notice that he is to receive an honorary degree in Moral Philosophy.
Of course, the Doctor realized this was more than unexpected, but very, very odd. Instead of arriving when expected to receive the degree, he arrived early to discover what reason was given for his receiving the degree, and to see if there was something going on at the campus.
Quickly, he found out there was. He finds something is amiss on campus as students he encounters seem to change their personality overnight.
Without surprise, due to the nature and title of the story, the Doctor finds himself in a trap set by the Rani. And, as it is the Rani, it’s because she wants to use the Doctor for her own scientific experimentation.
Due to the death of the legendary Kate O’Mara, Big Finish was able to create a new incarnation for the Rani. The story was originally written with Kate in mind, and she planned to be in it, but, because of what happened, and because Big Finish was told that Kate would rather the Rani continued with a new incarnation than never to be used again, the story was changed to incorporate a regenerated Rani.
And it is good to have the Rani back. She always brings in a different kind of crisis, a different kind of conflict than we usually get in Doctor Who. She’s amoral, and therefore evil, but her evil is always for a purpose, for her own personal scientific enlightenment (at least, that is what she always says; of course, we also know, she wants the knowledge for a specific purpose, an evil purpose, and ever since Time and the Rani, it’s clear, the whole universe is at risk).
Siobhan Redmond was the one chosen to be the next incarnation of the Rani. Her relationship with the Doctor is, more than once, discussed throughout the story: she knows what she will eventually do to the Sixth Doctor, and she sometimes revels in that knowledge, especially whenever the Doctor annoys her. Indeed, she did not expect the Sixth Doctor to be the one who would come to collect the degree: she was expecting, perhaps hoping, it would be the Seventh. I’m not sure if that was a wise desire on her part: what would she be like when facing the wrath of the darkest pre Time-War Doctor, not immediately after his regeneration, but when he had achieved his full potential? Nonetheless, this out-of-time interplay between the Doctor and the Rani is one of the better aspects of the story. It works. And it does add enjoyment to the tale.
But what doesn’t work, at least for me with this story, is Siobhan Redmond as the Rani. I don’t think this is necessarily any indication of Siobhan and her potential – I just think it is the problem of adapting a story written for Kate with a new incarnation of the Rani whose qualities are not yet known (even to Big Finish). It’s the problem which often happens for a new Doctor when he has to work with adventures written for his predecessor. There was just something lacking in her personality which detracted from her presentation of the Rani – that, I think, was the real problem: having no basis for her new personality, they didn’t entirely write one for her, but took elements away from Kate’s Rani to make for a more blank slate which has yet to be properly added to.
Another problem with this story is the Rani’s plan. In some ways, following Time and the Rani it makes sense: it is a similar kind of plan, but because it is similar, very similar, it almost feels like a retread when something new would have been welcomed. She is collecting geniuses to use their collective knowledge to deal with the tests she put to them. Her means of doing so is new, and slightly creative, in a Frankenstein like manner: she is taking their minds away from their body, and allowing others, old people close to death, to make use of their bodies, that is to get a new lease on life. At least that is what she tells them. This difference I feel is not enough for her first new story after so many years. I have long wished for the Rani’s return, to see the amoral scientific genius at work, but this is not yet the story she needs to show the strengths of her character.
While Peri is often felt as if she were sidelined for most of the story, her growing relationship with the Doctor is able to be used effectively in the end, so that her views and understanding of the Doctor is able to used as a means to resolve one of the conflicts in the story. This is, to be sure, a good thing, She knows that, with all the problem she has had with the Doctor and his personality, he still is a hero, indeed, her hero, so that she is willing to follow him and make something of herself and her life in the process.
Of course, on the Doctor’s side, there is a hint that he knows something about Peri which he has not told her. It appears to be something which will lead to a major crisis for her. The Rani has discovered it, but neither the Rani nor the Doctor talk to Peri about it. Hopefully this thread will be picked up, and explained, and done in a proper fashion (neither under nor over-dramatic).
Because of the way this story often feels like retreat of Time and the Rani, albeit with the worst elements excised so that it is better than Time, there is still a lot missing, a lot which I wished for and feel is possible for the Rani to give her the proper story to fit her character. Hopefully we will get it soon. The story is average; though not exceptional, it is not bad either. I would give it a proper 7/10.
-- HornOrSilk
THE TERROR OF THE ZYGONS (T. Baker, Story #80 - ORIGINAL TRANSMIT AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 1974)
“Well, I’d better get our machine guns set up…”
- Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, Terror of the Zygons Part 2
The Doctor (Tom Baker) and companions Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) work with UNIT to thwart a Zygon takeover of Earth.
If measuring Terror of the Zygons against the very best stories either ‘classic’ or ‘Nu’ WHO have to offer, it would likely come up short. There’s little-to-no drama here, and the wit which often characterized the T. Baker era is comparatively scant in this installment. Terror is never particularly exciting, never particularly suspenseful, and never particularly funny. Sounds like the very definition of fail, right?
Not exactly.
While Terror of the Zygons is not as strong as mid-70s DOCTOR WHO could sometimes be, in many regards it is a charmingly daffy celebration of the numerous tropes driving that era’s DW adventures. And when considered in this vein, it’s hard not to sit back and smile as the lunacy unfolds.
Although never catching fire narratively or dramatically, TotZ emerges as an unapologetic pastiche of kitschy DW conceits which is damn hard to resist. An Innkeeper with second sight. Underwater space aliens. Cyborgs. Loch Ness. Stuffy jerk-wad British aristocracy. An ever-petulant Doctor. Creatures in the mist. A slightly beleaguered Brig. A visual reference (of sorts) to Bigfoot. And more. All woven together with gleeful abandon by scripter Robert Banks Stewart, who also would also bring us The Seeds of Doom later in this same Season/Series (T. Baker, Story #85).
Some of the subjects mentioned above don’t completely fit into the storyline (quite some time is spent setting-up that Innkeeper with Second Sight, for example, but the matter doesn’t factor hugely into this tale when all is said and done). Some come together in clever, not-necessarily-expected, SCOOBY-DOOish ways. Terror of the Zygons never skews as unabashedly ‘meta’ as THE SIMPSONS, for example, but there are moments where it must’ve been very difficult for the folks making the show to resist turning to the camera and winking right at us.
TotZ marks DW’s only appearance of the Zygons before Season/Series 7 of the NuWHO - a factoid which surprises me given how thoroughly they've seemed to infuse themselves into WHOniverse iconography.
Now that I’ve seen their appearance here, I’m not at all surprised their memory endured the ages and that they were called back by Team Moffat. I am, however, surprised it took so long for someone to circle around to these slimy bastards. They are striking, vaguely disquieting, and their organic technology feels more contemporary in concept now than ever.
This said, the Zygons, as drawn here, aren’t a terribly bright lot - perhaps this dimness was one factor contributing to their long absence from the show? As antagonists, they don’t seem particularly deft at determining whether their intended targets are actually dead. They make several loosey-goosey assumptions during this storyline which come back to bite them in the barnacles every time. In terms of dispatching their opponents, the Zygons here feel like the space-faring equivalent of lazy or irresponsible teens. “I thought I’d checked it!”
Further compounding their dysfunction and sullying their own Machiavellian efforts? Despite their sometimes monotonous and difficult to understand hissing voices, these Zygons seem more than willing to offer substantial exposition regarding the mechanics of their schemes, thus affording the audience (and any hapless humans in their way) ample context for their oozy shenanigans. And more than enough information to figure out how to respond.
Retrospectively, I’m not sure whether this Zygon transparency provides needed insight for this story, or drags its pacing down. But one thing’s certain: the peculiar abstraction sometimes characterizing this era’s DOCTOR WHO episodes is almost entirely missing from this tale. Even though it grapples with a substantial case of ADD, Terror of the Zygons is pretty damn clear-cut.
Terror is greatly aided by Ian McKendrick’s expeditious editing and Peter Hall’s sometimes surprisingly cinematic camerawork (there’s rather nice location work here…)
…although both feel a tad flabby by TotZ’s fourth and final part. As does the story itself, for that matter. As mentioned above, this probably could’ve been handled easily and more effectively in two installments rather than four.
The notion of Zygons essentially Terraforming (would that be Zygoforming?) Earth for their own use inches TotZ towards a level of Science Fiction its author could’ve/should’ve embraced more fully; there’s a sense of a bigger tale waiting in the wings than the one which was actually told. On a few occasions, I found myself wanting Banks Stewart to “go there” rather than devoting his heroes’ immediate efforts to stopping that bigger tale from ever happening.
A recurring gag involving Zygon tech which maps the physical appearance of kidnapped humans onto slippery and imposing Zygon frames is equally as compelling - this is an element the NuWHO could easily revisit and expand upon at some point. It’s a great Science Fiction device in a tale which never quite brings its SF into sharp enough focus.
There’s not a great deal of character work in this go-round, although the interaction between the Doctor’s companions left me wondering if Harry, by inference, was porking Sarah Jane. Bear in mind, I am watching ‘vintage’ WHO out of chronology, so perhaps I’m inferring far too much into their chemistry here.
In many regards this episode is ludicrous and a mess. It’s also quite a bit of fun and often (but not consistently) well paced, and all involved seem to be enjoying themselves despite a pervasive unevenness of concept and tenor. This is a solid, middle-of-the-road enterprise which clearly embraces DW’s fun, and occasionally goofy, personality traits with great knowledge and affection. And for that reason alone, it’s difficult not to appreciate it, and even like it, a bit...
Terror of the Zygons is availabe HERE on DVD.
————
Glen Oliver
“Merrick”
DOCBACK CODE OF CONDUCT
1) a Docback should be about completely open and free discourse regarding all things WHO with, obviously, some variation on subject matter from time to time - the real world intervenes, discussions of other shows are inevitable, etc....
2) converse, agree, disagree, and question as much as you want - but the freedom to do so is NOT a license to be rude, crass, disrespectful, or uncivilized in any way. Not remaining courteous and civil, as well as TROLLING or undertaking sensational efforts to ignite controversy, will result in banning. Lack of courtesy may receive one (1) warning before a ban is instigated. Obvious Trolling or Spamming will result in summary banning with no warning.
