The Doctor Who Real Time Marathon: The Powerful Enemy - Desperate Measures
Doctor Who: The Powerful Enemy (02/01/05)
So, Susan's gone. It was really sad at the start this week where the Doctor told her to open the doors but she wasn't there. Bill Hartnell really put across how sad the Doctor felt about it well. He was probably missing her, the first original cast member to leave. However, they've ended up on a planet with a cripple and an orphaned girl and it looks like the cripple, Bennett, may end up dead as he seems a bit of an arsehole. Vicki doesn't seem all that bad, though there were moments when she started to go all Susan and hysterical.
However, the reasons for her being so scared are good. Everyone she knew has been killed and she's being terrorised by the best alien of the series yet - all tusks and spines! The bit where she talked about her father was good - the silences were convincingly long, nowadays you wouldn't have that length of wordless pause. On the lighter side, there was a wonderful bit where the Doctor went into the TARDIS and Ian was going on about how the Doctor was getting on a bit, at which point the Doctor reappeared and said "Don't forget I can hear what you're saying (over the scanner)". I nearly pissed myself! Possibly the funniest bit of the series so far. All in all this looks like it's going to be a good one!
Doctor Who: Desperate Measures (09/01/05)
So, Bennett was Koquillion all along (and not crippled by the Didoans after all)! Interesting short story proving that Doctor Who can be intriguing and well made without 6 episodes and a huge cast! Vicki's very likeable already (I've almost forgotten about Susan, but that may be because Vicki's had an entire story based around her with lots to do and Susan hardly did anything after the Sensorite story).
Barbara killing the monster was good, especially when you found out that it was harmless - and Vicki's pet!!! After seeing the brilliant Koquillion costume, though, the Didoans were a bit of a disappointment. Okay, I can understand the Didoans basing ceremonial dress on the Sand Creature, and the idea that what was thought to be a monster was actually a man in a costume was brilliant, it's just a shame that the real Didoans were nothing more than a couple of blond guys in odd clothes (and not even that odd, really). Still, that's a minor quibble.
The Doctor's really mellowed this season, especially with his handling of the scenes with Vicki. And I know it was a bit obvious that Vicki would join them at the end, but it wasn't contrived. In fact it was quite sweet and believable. Anyway, good cliffhanger to next week's episode!
So, Susan's gone. It was really sad at the start this week where the Doctor told her to open the doors but she wasn't there. Bill Hartnell really put across how sad the Doctor felt about it well. He was probably missing her, the first original cast member to leave. However, they've ended up on a planet with a cripple and an orphaned girl and it looks like the cripple, Bennett, may end up dead as he seems a bit of an arsehole. Vicki doesn't seem all that bad, though there were moments when she started to go all Susan and hysterical.
However, the reasons for her being so scared are good. Everyone she knew has been killed and she's being terrorised by the best alien of the series yet - all tusks and spines! The bit where she talked about her father was good - the silences were convincingly long, nowadays you wouldn't have that length of wordless pause. On the lighter side, there was a wonderful bit where the Doctor went into the TARDIS and Ian was going on about how the Doctor was getting on a bit, at which point the Doctor reappeared and said "Don't forget I can hear what you're saying (over the scanner)". I nearly pissed myself! Possibly the funniest bit of the series so far. All in all this looks like it's going to be a good one!
Doctor Who: Desperate Measures (09/01/05)
So, Bennett was Koquillion all along (and not crippled by the Didoans after all)! Interesting short story proving that Doctor Who can be intriguing and well made without 6 episodes and a huge cast! Vicki's very likeable already (I've almost forgotten about Susan, but that may be because Vicki's had an entire story based around her with lots to do and Susan hardly did anything after the Sensorite story).
Barbara killing the monster was good, especially when you found out that it was harmless - and Vicki's pet!!! After seeing the brilliant Koquillion costume, though, the Didoans were a bit of a disappointment. Okay, I can understand the Didoans basing ceremonial dress on the Sand Creature, and the idea that what was thought to be a monster was actually a man in a costume was brilliant, it's just a shame that the real Didoans were nothing more than a couple of blond guys in odd clothes (and not even that odd, really). Still, that's a minor quibble.
The Doctor's really mellowed this season, especially with his handling of the scenes with Vicki. And I know it was a bit obvious that Vicki would join them at the end, but it wasn't contrived. In fact it was quite sweet and believable. Anyway, good cliffhanger to next week's episode!
The first literal cliffhanger, to boot.
ReplyDeleteThe Rescue is an odd one - as a vehicle to introduce Vicki (and let's face it, that's all it is) it succeeds pretty well. But the plot, inasmuch as there is one, is paper-thin and really rather daft. However, I'll always love it for Ian Marter's novelisation, which goes to town on expanding the story.
I watched this again the other night knowing I'd be writing up the journal today and I really enjoyed it. If I were writing the journal today I'd've included a hell of a lot more (by this point I'd moved onto diaries which limited my word count) but Maureen O'Brien really sells Vicki well and Hartnell is utterly fantastic with her - he's much warmer than he was with Susan and from this point his character becomes much mellower and less moody. As a character piece, the story is highly successful despite the plot being a little thin, but I think that's the point - it's introducing a new main cast member, so that's what's important.
DeleteAnd the first literal cliffhanger was actually in the last story, with Ian and Larry trapped on the edge of a cliff by the Slyther. Here we have two! The TARDIS at the end, but also Ian being forced back to the ledge by the huge, pointy knives (considerately put there as a booby trap by habitual pacifists the Didoans) at the end of The Powerful Enemy. 22 years before Dragonfire...