Ten Statements About....DOCTOR WHO STORY SEVENTY-SEVEN: THE SONTARAN EXPERIMENT (1975)

Stop checking her teeth, Styre...even in a shapeless mac, Sarah
Jane is a keeper!

"Clock expert?"
"Horologist, actually, and chronometrist. I just love clocks: atomic clocks, quartz clocks, grandfather clocks... Cuckoo clocks..."

1) This is the first exposure I ever had to The Sontarans...and it's the serial that made me a Sontaran fan for life. Even though this is a story that was apparently thrown together half-assed because Season Twelve came up short two episodes, this serial really drives home the nightmarishness and character that makes them unique.

2) ....and I'll tell you something else. Even though this is obviously a one-piece latex mask, I prefer the Sontaran look from this serial to the harder, smoother version of The Time Warrior and the bushy eyebrowed 'groucho' versions from The Invasion of Time. This one ends up looking actually more organic, and that makes for Styre being a lot more sinister than Linx.

3) I like how this serial takes place entirely out of doors (a necessity, given its last minute creation), and is shot entirely on video. Unlike later episodes, which shoots outdoor scenes on film, this serial gives it a much more consistent look.

4) We're still at the point in the season where the writers think Harry is going to be useful--he actually plays an active part in defeating Styre--but the bulk of his onscreen time is spent literally standing on a rock watching things. It's obvious that the producers have realized what a ball of energy they have in Tom Baker, and Harry's days are numbered.

"Look, Tom, you've got to talk to the producers...they say
they're going to turn me into a goofball before getting rid of
me entirely."

5) That whole angle with Donald Douglas' Vural making a deal with Styre seems a touch...gratuitious, innit? It really adds nothing to the serial except for that one line during the pressure experiment. The idea of this one alien stalking, capturing and murdering these people not out of bloodlust or sport, but out of military curiousity, is strong enough as it is.

6) I know that the automaton was constructed the way it was due to budgetary constraints--we'll see this throughout the series from here on in--but for what it is, it's pretty cool. It does manage to be non-human, and that weird humming and beeping that accompanies it is unnerving.

Granted, I can do without those two things that makes it look like there are chopsticks up its nose, but still...

7) While it is the nightmarishness of the experiments that shook young Tom's mind like a paint mixer when he first saw this serial, I do have to wonder if we would have been better served by seeing the after-effects. The experiment with Sarah seems a touch silly, especially with that goofy headband, and the most effective is that one man near dead from hydration.

Ladies and Gentlemen--this robot is not only a deadly hunter,
but it can imitate a walrus effortlessly!

8) I know that Tom Baker broke his collarbone during shooting, resulting in some judicious editing and stand-in work...but I never noticed it until I was informed of this. So clever is the filmmaking that the injury is extremely well concealed throughout..

9) Thoughout the Hinchcliffe era, there'll be little touches that are so subtle as to almost not be noticed, and here's one....the majority of the astronauts in this serial are played by South African actors to emphasize how language has changed in the intervening years since the solar flare disaster. And I love how these astronauts' attitudes are not of joy, but of resentment--it's the sort of 'pioneer spirit' I'd almost expect from people who were born of colonists.

10) For a two part episode, there's a lot going on--primarily due to the companions splitting up so quickly. Writers Bob Barker and Dave Martin is able to cover so much ground in setting up the situation by following The Doctor and Sarah's separate threads that the meat of the story can be gotten to quickly.

Overall...given that this serial was a last minute commission to make up for a shortfall of episodes, this serial is surprisingly effective and continues to build up the mission statement of the Hinchcliffe era--horror tinged story lines inspired by classic horror tales (this one, let's be honest, is a twisted up version of The Most Dangerous Game). The fact that it is part of a set of link serials that make up one giant story is even more impressive. Some people may disagree with me, but I think it's recommended.

Ten Statements About....DOCTOR WHO STORY SEVENTY-SIX: THE ARK IN SPACE (1975)

"Maybe if we pointedly don't look at it, Sarah, it'll transform
into a much better looking special effect."

"Homo Sapien. What an inventive, invincible species. It's only a few million years since they crawled up out of the mud and learned to walk. Puny, defenseless bipeds. They've survived flood, famine and plague. They've survived cosmic wars and holocausts...and now here they are amongst the stars, waiting to begin a new life, ready to outsit eternity. Indominable. Indominable."

1) While Tom Baker had command of the role of The Doctor in Robot, here is the serial where he put down the flag and claims the series as his own. That wonderful speech I quote above, the humor, the philosophy that the universe is a big enough place for everyone, his strategic mind, his support of others...it's all in there. This is The Doctor who will define the series throughout the Hinchcliffe era (the Graham Williams era sees him become extremely silly before John Nathan-Turner reclaims him in the last season) and be the most recognizable version of the character for a long time, maybe even up until today.

2) And one of the coolest things about this serial is how it is definitely in the Hinchcliffe mode--the Wirrn are at their core The Body Snatchers--and yet there is no black and white here. There's a strong argument for the Wirrn being something of an aggrieved party here so that, while we don't condone their actions, we understand them. However...

"I am afeared of my bubble-wrap insect grub hand!"

3) Good Lord, are the Wirrn stupid looking. It's a brave attempt to try and doing something inhuman with these characters, but there's a big ol' whiff of paper-mache' to them, and the way their legs just wiggle comically with even the slighest movement evokes guffaws of laughter. A little better effect are the grubs, which are done through clever use of bubble wrap and green tint.

4) I wish all those people who claim Sarah Jane is just another useless screaming companion would watch this serial (and so many other serials during her tenure). While she doesn't take the focus of the story away from the Doctor like some companions of the 2005 series (I'm looking at you, Rose), she is the person who offers up a way for the Doctor's plan to be enacted, and she out and out volunteers to run the cable from the shuttle to the cryogenics chamber. She is a proactive member of The Doctor's crew.

5) And oddly enough, Elisabeth Sladen gives great panic. There's this thing she does with her face where it looks like every single muscle clenches as one that just unnerves me, plus she finds fifteen different ways to scream and yelp when she is startled. This talent may be the reason why she is written off as a useless wailing frail, but it's an unfair critique. On the contrary, her panic emphasizes how dire the threat is in each serial (something we'll discuss when we look at the next serial).

Harry Sullivan...AC-tion Hero!

6) While the script by Robert Holmes does give Harry a number of things to do, it's obvious that the production team has changed its mind about this companion and are repositioning him as The Team Oaf. The entire first episode, which is mainly The Doctor and Harry trying to get the power running on the titular arc, is filled with Harry messing things up, and The Doctor gently scolding and mocking him...and Harry becomes more Goofus than Gallant in the next few serials.

7) One thing Holmes' script gets right is by getting past what is at its core a 'Base Siege' serial in the season after a slew of Base Siege serials during Barry Letts' time as producer to emphasize the humanity of many of these characters. Even though there is a 'hey, you're a stranger! You must be in on it!' moment, it's quickly discarded because all of the ark denizens are focused on their mission of repopulating Earth. Thus a number of ark crew members act selflessly, even sacrificing themselves to make sure the mission succeeds.

8) Even when I first saw this serial, in that horrifically cut up form (complete with 'since you Ammuricans Are Too Dull To Grasp Serialized Drama' intros by Howard DaSilva) on WWOR here in New York, I was really struck by the uniforms the Nerva-ites wore. They're very functional with an easily understood color coded system to figure out what each person's purpose is for, and they don't look out of place on either the male or female member.

Plus Sarah looks especially good in them. Just saying.

9) Watching it this time around on DVD, the one thing that sticks out to me as inconsistent is the presence of Wendy Williams' Vira. It's not that Williams isn't a good actress, or that she doesn't give a good performance; it's that she's noticably older than the other Nervans we see. She looks to be in her late 40's--hell, she has grey hair! If this is a mission to renew and repopulate the Earth after its demise via solar flares, I would think the chosen participants in the program would be of child-bearing age. Given Vira's obvious age discrepency, it makes very little sense to bring her along, let alone 'pair bond' her with Kenton Moore's Noah.

10) One of the things everyone seems to forget about the serials of this season from here on in is that they're interlinked. At the end of this story, The Doctor and his crew go down to the recovered Earth to fix the transmat...which leads into The Sontaran Experiment. There's similar 'linkages' to Genesis of The Daleks and Revenge of The Cybermen. It's something I always liked, a sort of call back to those early Hartnell seasons, and something that wasn't done again until The Key To Time Season and, after that, some of the John Nathan Turner 'trilogies.'

Overall...if you forgive the really, really goofy monsters, this is a solid serial which manages to take the standard 'Seige' storyline that was a staple of the Letts era and tacks on elements that will dominate the Hinchcliffe era.

Ten Statements About....DOCTOR WHO STORY SEVENTY-FIVE: ROBOT (1974/75)

Oh, dear...I'm sorry...that's just...unfortunante...

"Doctor, you--you're being childish!
"Well, of course I am! There's no point in being grown-up if you can't be childish sometimes."

1) And here we begin what I consider the true Gold Standard of The Classic Who Series--the reign of Philip Hinchcliffe as Producer of the show...which is kind of funny given that, at its core, this is a pretty ordinary story. Still, even at this early date the concept of the series as a Gothic Horror Show Set In A Science Fiction continuum is in place, as what we've got is the Whoniverse take on King Kong.

2) Whether you love him or hate him, the thing you can't deny about Tom Baker is that he owns the role of The Doctor from the very moment he appears. This is maybe my favorite of all the regenerations when it comes to seeing the new actor grow into the part (although admittedly Colin Baker's first minute or so as The Doctor in Caves of The Androzani matches it, only to be let down by the erratic, psychotic behavior of The Twin Dilemma, and Matt Smith approaches it in The Eleventh Hour), as we know exactly the kind of Doctor we're going to get for the next few years by the end of the first episode....

"So, Elisabeth...do we really have to bring that Harry
character along?  I mean, Ian Marter is a nice enough
chap, but still...."

3) ...and what we're getting is a Doctor who, breaking away from previous Doctor Jon Pertwee's vigorous and physical performance, prefers the cerebral and intellectual. In his way, Baker manages to fuse elements of all the previous incarnations (Hartnell's crankiness, Troughton's clownishness as a mask for brilliance, Pertwee's low tolerance for stupidity and deep loyalty to friends) into a more-or-less, unpredictable-bordering-on-unstable whole.

4) Okay...the actual Robot is, ummm, a bit silly looking. The way the chest and legs don't seem to join together, in particular, is especially goofy. However, Michael Kilgarriff does a heroic job in giving this very flimsy looking creature a great deal of depth and nuance solely with his voice and acting. He manages to keep the creature sympathetic while never letting us forget what a powerful monster he is.

5) You know why I hold Sarah Jane Smith in such amazingly high regard? Here we have the only companion in the classic era (in my mind, the only companion in the series history) that spans two Doctors and still has the same strong chemistry with both. And in this particular stretch that lasts this season and part of next, she's just as feisty and take change as she was with Pertwee. Hell, it's having her on the ship that makes Harry feel so inconsequential down the line of this season. And speaking of which...

6) I understand that Harry was created when Barry Letts and Philip Hinchcliffe had assumed that the Fourth Doctor was going to be an older man--but let's give Ian Marter credit; he manages to make the character into something interesting when coupled with Baker. In this story, there's a real 'Holmes and Watson' feel to the interplay between them...although after this, it seems like Harry becomes the 'bumbling screw up' that frequently gets the other two characters in trouble.

"Get used to this whole 'getting killed by a chroma-key effect,
Harry.  It happens a lot..."

7) It kind of saddens me that we're at the point where UNIT are shadows of their former selves. The whole bad-assedness of both The Brig and Sargent Benton has now been watered down to a point where they serve solely as The Doctor's chauffeurs. We'll only see UNIT a few more times between here and the classic series' end, and The Brig only a few more times...and his ability to kick ass without mussing that perfectly coiffed hair and mustache is sorely missed from here on out.

8) I admit it--I adore Patricia Maynard's Winters and Alec Linstead's Jellicoe as the bad guys. Not only are they deliciously over-the-top in their evilness, not only are their stand-in Nazi cred secure....you get a real sense of these two having a life before the story starts, and of a strange and twisted relationship going on between the two of them.

Yes...I'm thinking whips, chains, the whole nine yards.

9) I know that Edward Burnham always intended Kettlewell to be evil and unbalanced, and goes to great lengths to portray him as such...but even with this recent viewing, I never felt this character was all-out insane. I think his brusqueness and apparent contempt for unintelligent people screwing up the environment makes him strangely sympathetic...which makes his 'face turn' in episode three all the more effective.

10) Ahhhh....that final part. You know, when the Robot becomes....

Yeah.

There are some things the classic series should not have done with its limited--very limited--budget. What they attempt to make the King Kong simile work in the last episode is one of them. And sadly, we see them attempt something similar a lot better several stories down the pike with The Terror of The Zygons.

Overall...a rather average story that's elevated heads-and-shoulders above its deserved position by Tom Baker's braveau debut as The Fourth Doctor. Ignore the stupid elements and bask in one of the greatest 'statements of intent' an actor ever made to announce his presence as The Doctor.