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FishyFish

By FishyFish
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NEG

NEG

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We could all end up surprised with it being a actually pretty good (and deserving of a 50 year special) episode of course...

...but yeah, not expecting much. At best it's fanwank for the 2005 generation*, and using an RTD concept (Time War), and not feeling like a 'on it's own' special as mentioned above.

Doesn't sound like a special to celebrate the 'whole' of Who.

*Don't get me wrong, I'm part of the audience that got into it from 2005, but I'm not stupid enough to ignore everything that's come before it, especially on as special an episode like this. The Hartnell idea sounds fantastic honestly, wish they'd gone with that.

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Sprite Machine

Sprite Machine

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The Trial of a Time Lord (Mindwarp)

(Blog has pictures)

GORDON'S ALIVE, IT'S BRIAN BLESSED! Playing a warrior king on Thoros Beta (home planet of the slug-like alien Sil, from 'Vengeance on Varos'), Brian Blessed is the beacon of fun and enthusiasm in this otherwise shoddy story. I can barely remember what else happens, something about a scientist experimenting on the humanoid locals, looking for a suitable body donor for Sil's boss, Lord Kiv, before he dies, and the Time Lords ultimately having to step in and stop it. What happened to non-interference, eh?

[Picture: Part 1 uses funky video colouring to make this scene look like an alien planet... or an Andy Warhol painting.]

Amongst all the lunacy is Peri being recruited as a serving wench for all of five minutes, a strange mutated wolfman, and the Doctor losing his marbles... but actually it's all a ruse! OR IS IT? It's a pretty poor ruse, as Peri's mind gets wiped and the Time Lords kill her. OR DO THEY? Etcetera, etcetera. What the hell is going on?!

[Picture: Sil's head prosthetic has improved since his last appearance, but the character is superfluous this time. His gurgling laugh is as distinctive as ever, though.]

Where the previous story worked perfectly well without the courtroom framing device, the four parts of Mindwarp seem intertwined with what's happening there. The Doctor's amnesia prevents him from setting the record straight, so we have to take the story at face value. Either that, or the amnesia is just an excuse for poor characterisation. The Doctor is a thoroughly detestable character in this story, reverting back to his cowardly ways from 'The Twin Dilemma'.

[Picture: Brian Blessed basically dominates every scene with his presence, for better or worse.]

Ultimately, though, Mindwarp is just boring. Really boring, aimless, witless, silly and without merit. The only excuse I can give it is that perhaps it's unfair to judge until the full story is revealed and it's building up to something special in the trial, but I'm not hopeful of that. And if this really is the end of poor Perpugilliam, it's the worst exit a main character could ever hope for.

[Picture: Kiv's mind is transferred to Peri's brain, shortly before she's killed in an attack. Is this really the end of her?]

Although he's certainly the best thing in it, not even Brian Blessed can save this one, and that's thoroughly damning!

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Sprite Machine

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The Trial of a Time Lord (Terror of the Vervoids)

(Blog has pictures)

The prosecution rests. It's now time for the Doctor to present his defence, and he's given control of the matrix viewer to show a more favourable adventure. Weirdly, the one he chooses is from the future, something he hasn't yet done. Now, this is an intriguing concept because, surely, if the Doctor actually has further adventures in the future, it must mean that the trial ends in his favour... otherwise he'd be dead, no? No doubt a society so entrenched in the mechanics of time travel has many legal precedents for this sort of situation, and yet nobody actually brings it up. The adventure is accepted as fact, and is therefore valid evidence.

[Picture: The starliner Hyperion III nearly flies into a black hole.]

Terror of the Vervoids is a murder mystery story set in space. In that respect, it's similar to 'Robots of Death', but it doesn't really have the same quality of memorable characters nor interesting themes, nor creepy atmosphere, nor quality of production. It's not bad, per se, but it has a certain silliness to it. The Vervoid creatures are actually pretty creepy, or as creepy as plant men with flower heads can be, I suppose. There's also a hijacking subplot that comes out of nowhere and leads to pretty much nothing. That said, I quite like the design of the Mogarians - just a shame we had to see their actual faces by the end of it. The resolution was a bit bleak - no coexistence between plant and animal can ever work? It's thought-provoking, but surely it could be approached from a more optimistic angle.

[Picture: Bill and Ben.]

What becomes apparent during this story is that somebody is definitely tampering with the evidence. At this point, I'm inclined to suspect foul play from the Valeyard, who is probably trying to frame the Doctor for something. Whether this ties up with the mysteries from the previous stories remains to be seen, but the Doctor nevertheless has to continue with the evidence as presented, only objecting where the facts deviate.

[Picture: The Mogarians play some sort of Galaga variant. This would have looked cutting edge in 1986. I thought it looked quaintly retro. Funny how things change.]

Since this story is set in the future, the Doctor already has a new companion, the permed and perky Mel (played by Bonnie Langford). Their relationship is pre-established - that is, it's implied they've been travelling together for a while at this point. This seems like a cheap way to drop a new actress into the show without having to introduce her first. The sixth Doctor is not exactly a character you would volunteer to travel with, but will we ever see them meet? Is that still to come? This is... weird.

[Picture: Between them, the Doctor and Mel have more hair than even the Tardis can contain.]

I'm getting a little bored of this trial now. Thankfully, it's about to be wrapped up in the next story, and then I'll have a verdict of my own.

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davidcotton

davidcotton

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Mel vies with Adric for the title of "Worst Companion Ever" for me. Just appalling.

As has been frequently said however, Big Finish has redeemed both her and Colin Baker in the audios. Give "The One Doctor" at least a listen.

New trailer to air after Strictly and before Atlantis tonight. A minute long, but no new 50th anniversary stuff.

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The Trial of a Time Lord (The Ultimate Foe)

(Blog has pictures)

The Ultimate Foe brings this trial of a Time Lord to an end, and not in quite the way I had expected. Yes, the Valeyard is trying to frame the Doctor, but I didn't imagine there would be a conspiracy to cover up evidence that ran all the way to the top of the high council, nor that the Valeyard would be a manifestation of the Doctor's dark thoughts, from a post-twelfth regeneration future. That fits quite nicely with the upcoming 50th anniversary special - perhaps they'll mention it?

[Picture: In a part of the matrix that looks like a sand dune, an image of the Valeyard confronts the Doctor.]

The mysteries from the previous stories actually are explained, which is surprising! The valuable data Glitz was after was leaked from the Time Lords' information matrix, and the planet Earth was pushed away and disguised as Ravolox to cover it up. To help his defence, Glitz and Mel are brought back to corroborate the Doctor's story, by none other than the Master. It's quite a reunion they've got going on, fitting for a season finale.

[Picture: Peek-a-boo! The Master reveals he's been watching the entire time from within the matrix. The supposedly impenetrable, impossible to corrupt, matrix.]

Most of the story takes place inside the matrix, where the EvilDoc/Valeyard is hiding, plotting to assassinate the judge and jury with a wibbly-wobbly matrix energy something-or-other. It does get a bit silly, with them waiting around in Popplewick's office, being exposed to illusions and the Doctor being hypnotised by the Master. It's not exactly a tidy conclusion, and the appearance of both the Master and the Valeyard as 'villains' (and both Glitz and Mel as companions) only clutters things further. Alas, it is a fairly forgettable mini-adventure, and it would seem the Valeyard isn't defeated anyway, laughing maniacally prior to the credits rolling.

[Picture: Despite ostensibly teaming up for the greater good, the Master still uses the Doctor as bait.]

As this is the final story to feature Colin Baker, I was expecting him to be injured at the end and forced to regenerate, but it never happened. In fact, the whole way through this trial, I had expected a forced regeneration as his sentence (much like at the end of 'The War Games') - instead, the judge drops all charges because he saves their lives and the Doctor and Mel just leave. Meh, fair enough.

[Picture: The Valeyard's deadly plan is foiled when the judge and jury duck.]

Regarding Mel, then. Her pantomime performance is a poor replacement even for Peri, but the weirdest thing is how she's introduced. She's from this Doctor's future, so from her perspective they met in the past. But this is the first time the Doctor has met her. Presumably, then, he will have to take her back to her own time, then travel back to an earlier version of Mel who will then meet the Doctor for the first time? Goodness me, that's messed up. Oh, and the explanation of what "really" happened to Peri is pathetic. Married to King Yrcanos, who she found creepy? C'mon, I'd rather she died! What a lame cop-out.

[Picture: Another creepy mask reveal. The Valeyard takes some lessons from the Master by disguising himself as Mr. Popplewick.]

Well, the trial wasn't a total waste of time. Thematically, the "ultimate foe" being the Doctor himself is quite cool. I also enjoyed the Doctor's epic rant in the courtroom about the corruption of long-lived societies, proclaiming the Time Lords to be more evil than Daleks, Sontarans, etcetera. Colin Baker may be a bit one-note in his performance, but when that note is ranting hysterically, he does it with flair. However, I will have more to say on the sixth Doctor shortly.

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Darren

Darren

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We've just watched that trailer and the other one that popped up on YouTube a couple of times each. I'd like to think that the other trailer, with all its references to the crack and the silence, means that Moffat's been planning this story from the start. I'm trying not to get my hopes up because it'll only end in disappointment!

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