The Doctor Who Real Time Marathon: The Dæmons
The Dæmons: Episode One (22/05/11)
Very peculiar, this week! As is obvious from the title, this episode is heavily influenced by Hammer Horror. Great used of a TV reporter and his news team throughout - he was annoying and a little camp, interviewing an archaeologist who was preparing to open the Devil's Hump, a barrow near Devil's End (Wiltshire?) a man not willing to take any shit from poncy reporters! Some great interplay between the archaeologist, the reporter and the AFM. Also, the local White Witch, Miss Hawthorne, is warning against the dig as it's legend that the Devil will appear when it's opened! She's very good; plummy, nutty, in her 50s and dressed in Tweed and an Ankh.
The episode started with a mysterious death in the Churchyard at Devil's End, then saw the Doctor teasing Jo about believing in magic. Then the UNIT crew sat down to watch the preparations for the dig on TV (BBC3!) and saw Miss Hawthorne trying to dissuade the Professor from going ahead with it, and the Doctor decided she was right and the dig should be stopped so he and Jo headed off in Bessie (who the Doctor's fitted with a remote control, just to tease Jo with, it would seem).
More weird stuff happened at Devil's End (to add to that discussed in the pub by the landlord and some locals) when the local Bobby tried to cosh Miss Hawthorne with a rock during a supernatural squall! She calmed the gale with an incantation, though (!), and broke the spell, then headed off to get the local vicar to stop the dig. However, he's been done away with and replaced by the Master (!) - "a rationalist, existentialist vicar!" - who refused to help and sent one of his lackies off after her while he set about preparing for a Black Magic ceremony in the church crypt!
The Doctor and Jo were delayed by more weird magic winds, etc. and arrived just as the tomb was being opened at midnight (getting directions at the pub where the Doctor was accused of wearing a wig!). The Doctor got there first (Jo fell over) but failed to stop the Professor and when Jo got there, in a gale that blew the TV outdoor broadcast stuff everywhere, the Doctor and the Professor were unconscious and being buried by a rockfall!!!
Really good so far, if a little weird with the magic vs science mix!
The Dæmons: Episode Two (29/05/11)
This story's turning out to be very atmospheric! Quite different from anything they've ever done before, in fact, with a sinister, horror movie feel - and not as camp as Hammer Horror.
Anyway; Yates and Benton in Civies! The Brigadier in bed! "Better phone the BBC"! The Doctor spent most of the episode unconscious after being frozen (the Professor was killed). Jo and the TV crew took him to the pub where a doctor found a slight pulse and put him to bed. Benton and Yates witnessed the tail end of the broadcast (after watching the Rugby) and tried to find out what had happened, then took the Brigadier's helicopter to Devil's End at dawn after Jo phoned them. From the air they saw giant hoof-prints in the fields made by whatever was in the barrow that left and killed the local bobby who was guarding it.
Once at the village, Benton went off for a reccy and found Miss (Olive) Hawthorne, but the had to hide in the crypt (she'd been tied up in a trunk in the vestry) when Garvin the Verger turned up. Garvin found them, and Benton was beaten up by invisible forces when he stood on an ornate tile the Master had designated the meeting point for 'Azal' but, it seems, Azal (a giant devil, according to Miss Hawthorne) turned up as they were leaving. Garvin shot at it and was destroyed by fire, and Miss Hawthorne carried Benton to the pub.
The subsequent heatwave (caused by Azal, it seems) brought the Doctor round and he realised the Master was behind it all when Miss Hawthorne mentioned Rev. Magister (Magister being Latin for Master... and only two letters different).
Learning Yates and Benton had taken his chopper to Devil's End, the Brig took his car to the village but was stopped a mile out by a heat barrier (that spectacularly blew up a delivery van!) which has encircled the village.
The Doctor and Jo, meanwhile, went back to the barrow and found a miniature spaceship there which used to be big, but the pub landlord is in league with the Master and told him what the Doctor and Jo were up to and he sent a living Gargoyle from the crypt to attack them!
Really good, though there's a lot of nostalgia involved as the scenery reminds me a bit of travelling round Lincolnshire with my Great Aunt when I was a kid. Great effects, interesting plot so far, nice Direction!
The Dæmons: Episode Three (05/06/11)
Good episode with an interesting cliffhanger: the Master cowering before the giant alien Dæmon, Azal! Who we haven't seen yet as it was a POV shot.
Anyway, the Doctor fended off the demon statue thing by reciting a Venusian lullaby and holding up some lead. How did this work if it isn't magic? The Doctor may not believe in its power, but the demon did! Cool explanation. Then the Doctor returned to the pub with Jo and gave a slideshow with Miss Hawthorne's personal library on the occult to explain the Dæmons' backstory - apparently they've been helping push along the development of Humanity since they helped Homo Sapiens kick out the Neanderthals (wow, that really dates this story!).
Meanwhile, the Master blackmailed the village squire, then held a meeting at the vicarage and blackmailed the villagers. His hypnotising was interrupted when the landlord turned up to inform him that the Doctor was off to meet the Brigadier with an idea to break through the barrier (which is ten miles in diameter with the church at its centre, which doesn't quite tally with the signpost beside the exploded van from last week...). The squire rebelled, so the Master had Bok, the demon statue, vaporise him. Then he sent someone out to nick the Brigadier's helicopter.
Mike had a fight and lost, but chased after on a motorbike. The Doctor evaded the helicopter and got it to crash into the forcefield and blow up, but Jo was hurt and taken back to the pub by Mike (no doubt so that Jon Pertwee got to play with the Motorbike). The Doctor plans to harness the electricity from some nearby pylons, but the Master's already called Azal the Dæmon and when he's called, apparently, it'll be the end of the world, like a failed science experiment.
Really cool idea, some nice acting and effects, and a few great one-liners! A very talky episode, enlivened by a chase, but really good because of it!
The Dæmons: Episode Four (12/06/11)
Ooh! Things appear to be coming to a head at Devil's End. Azal's appearance before the Master caused another heat wave which woke Jo and she headed off to the crypt (for some reason) via the bedroom window and a conveniently placed ladder so that Mike and Benton wouldn't stop her.
Meanwhile, the Master chatted to Azal about wanting to rule the Earth as he isn't Human, but Azal, last of the Dæmons, who destroys his failed experiments (like Atlantis, apparently) knows the Doctor's about and refused to give the Earth to the rule of another alien until he'd interviewed both Time Lord candidates (okay, so he didn't phrase it quite like that, but that's what it amounts to). So the Master, after Azal had shrunk from being a giant, sent Bert the Landlord off to shoot the Doctor on his return from instructing Sergeant Osgood (this week's comedy character) on how to build a heat-barrier neutraliser. Cue shots of Mr Pertwee having a lot of fun speeding down country lanes on a motorbike. Obviously, he had to fall off and, rather than get back on, he legged it to the village on foot.
Meanwhile, Mike found out that Jo had gone and correctly guessed she'd gone to the crypt and went after her, getting there first as she'd been attacked by some ivy and fainted during another heatwave (surely one of those heatwaves should have been an 'icewave'?!?). When she got there, she watched Mike destroy a book with Azal's forcefield and they hid 'til the cliffhanger.
Meanwhile, Benton and Miss Hawthorne apparently necked some gin, drank some tea, argued about what to do (search or wait), saw the Master's lackies arrive to do some May Day thing, saw the Doctor attacked by Morris Men, formulated a plan to stop the Doctor being burnt as a witch (Benton's a crack shot with excellent hearing) and, in turn, beat up a Morris Dancer with a crystal ball and Bert the Landlord with the aid of Bessie!
Then, in the crypt, the Master threatened to kill a chicken, bringing Jo out of hiding and Azal revealed himself (for the 3rd and final time) to be an amalgamation of Pan and the Christian/Medieval idea of the Devil (quelle surprise). Still lots of fun, especially seeing all the locals in their normal early 70s fashions (as opposed to Jo's groovy gear), and Morris Men beating up the Doctor!
The Dæmons: Episode Five (19/06/11)
What a wonderful end to the season! The Master finally caught, the Doctor, Jo, Benton and Miss Hawthorne dancing round the Maypole, and the Brigadier and Yates in the pub! But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The Master decided to sacrifice Jo and made her put a white dress on for the occasion; Yates got attacked by Bok the Gargoyle, and knocked out and trussed up. The Master's minions, however, can't have thought he'd wake up, though, because they only tied his hands behind his back and put him in the vestry. When he came to, he legged it out to the Doctor and Co. on the village green.
The Doctor's machine worked, making a tunnel in the heat barrier so the Brigadier et al. made it through to the village. Bok went out to keep the army away, killed Bert the Landlord, got blown up by Benton with a bazooka and reformed, and the Doctor legged it into the crypt. Cue long debate on who Azal gives his powers to. Eventually he chose the Doctor, but the Doctor didn't want it so Azal chose the Master. The Master told Azal to kill the Doctor so he blasted the Doctor with some form of electric ray. Jo, however, stumped him by saying "NO! Kill me!!!" and Azal 'blew a fuse'.
Er. Not sure I'm convinced about that bit. Seems a bit daft.
Anyhow, everyone legs it out the church before it's rather spectacularly blown to bits, the Master's arrested and booed off by the villagers, and everyone lives happily ever after!
Hmm. Not sure about that, either. What about the Master's minions? Can't imagine they'll be best liked by the rest of the village!
Oh, and Azal's ship self destructed.
On the whole, despite the questionable demise of Azal, this has been a great story and a pretty good series, too! Okay, only The Mind Of Evil and this were great, but the other three stories, whilst sometimes a bit dull, were no less fun for it. Actually 'dull' is the wrong word. And after him being in every story, it was cool that UNIT finally caught the Master. I wonder how long they'll keep him locked up for, though!
Great season overall, with a nice variety of locations rather than the gritty, industry of last year. Circuses, villages, prisons, playgrounds, snow and an alien planet! Hope next year is as much fun!
Very peculiar, this week! As is obvious from the title, this episode is heavily influenced by Hammer Horror. Great used of a TV reporter and his news team throughout - he was annoying and a little camp, interviewing an archaeologist who was preparing to open the Devil's Hump, a barrow near Devil's End (Wiltshire?) a man not willing to take any shit from poncy reporters! Some great interplay between the archaeologist, the reporter and the AFM. Also, the local White Witch, Miss Hawthorne, is warning against the dig as it's legend that the Devil will appear when it's opened! She's very good; plummy, nutty, in her 50s and dressed in Tweed and an Ankh.
The episode started with a mysterious death in the Churchyard at Devil's End, then saw the Doctor teasing Jo about believing in magic. Then the UNIT crew sat down to watch the preparations for the dig on TV (BBC3!) and saw Miss Hawthorne trying to dissuade the Professor from going ahead with it, and the Doctor decided she was right and the dig should be stopped so he and Jo headed off in Bessie (who the Doctor's fitted with a remote control, just to tease Jo with, it would seem).
More weird stuff happened at Devil's End (to add to that discussed in the pub by the landlord and some locals) when the local Bobby tried to cosh Miss Hawthorne with a rock during a supernatural squall! She calmed the gale with an incantation, though (!), and broke the spell, then headed off to get the local vicar to stop the dig. However, he's been done away with and replaced by the Master (!) - "a rationalist, existentialist vicar!" - who refused to help and sent one of his lackies off after her while he set about preparing for a Black Magic ceremony in the church crypt!
The Doctor and Jo were delayed by more weird magic winds, etc. and arrived just as the tomb was being opened at midnight (getting directions at the pub where the Doctor was accused of wearing a wig!). The Doctor got there first (Jo fell over) but failed to stop the Professor and when Jo got there, in a gale that blew the TV outdoor broadcast stuff everywhere, the Doctor and the Professor were unconscious and being buried by a rockfall!!!
Really good so far, if a little weird with the magic vs science mix!
The Dæmons: Episode Two (29/05/11)
This story's turning out to be very atmospheric! Quite different from anything they've ever done before, in fact, with a sinister, horror movie feel - and not as camp as Hammer Horror.
Anyway; Yates and Benton in Civies! The Brigadier in bed! "Better phone the BBC"! The Doctor spent most of the episode unconscious after being frozen (the Professor was killed). Jo and the TV crew took him to the pub where a doctor found a slight pulse and put him to bed. Benton and Yates witnessed the tail end of the broadcast (after watching the Rugby) and tried to find out what had happened, then took the Brigadier's helicopter to Devil's End at dawn after Jo phoned them. From the air they saw giant hoof-prints in the fields made by whatever was in the barrow that left and killed the local bobby who was guarding it.
Once at the village, Benton went off for a reccy and found Miss (Olive) Hawthorne, but the had to hide in the crypt (she'd been tied up in a trunk in the vestry) when Garvin the Verger turned up. Garvin found them, and Benton was beaten up by invisible forces when he stood on an ornate tile the Master had designated the meeting point for 'Azal' but, it seems, Azal (a giant devil, according to Miss Hawthorne) turned up as they were leaving. Garvin shot at it and was destroyed by fire, and Miss Hawthorne carried Benton to the pub.
The subsequent heatwave (caused by Azal, it seems) brought the Doctor round and he realised the Master was behind it all when Miss Hawthorne mentioned Rev. Magister (Magister being Latin for Master... and only two letters different).
Learning Yates and Benton had taken his chopper to Devil's End, the Brig took his car to the village but was stopped a mile out by a heat barrier (that spectacularly blew up a delivery van!) which has encircled the village.
The Doctor and Jo, meanwhile, went back to the barrow and found a miniature spaceship there which used to be big, but the pub landlord is in league with the Master and told him what the Doctor and Jo were up to and he sent a living Gargoyle from the crypt to attack them!
Really good, though there's a lot of nostalgia involved as the scenery reminds me a bit of travelling round Lincolnshire with my Great Aunt when I was a kid. Great effects, interesting plot so far, nice Direction!
The Dæmons: Episode Three (05/06/11)
Good episode with an interesting cliffhanger: the Master cowering before the giant alien Dæmon, Azal! Who we haven't seen yet as it was a POV shot.
Anyway, the Doctor fended off the demon statue thing by reciting a Venusian lullaby and holding up some lead. How did this work if it isn't magic? The Doctor may not believe in its power, but the demon did! Cool explanation. Then the Doctor returned to the pub with Jo and gave a slideshow with Miss Hawthorne's personal library on the occult to explain the Dæmons' backstory - apparently they've been helping push along the development of Humanity since they helped Homo Sapiens kick out the Neanderthals (wow, that really dates this story!).
Meanwhile, the Master blackmailed the village squire, then held a meeting at the vicarage and blackmailed the villagers. His hypnotising was interrupted when the landlord turned up to inform him that the Doctor was off to meet the Brigadier with an idea to break through the barrier (which is ten miles in diameter with the church at its centre, which doesn't quite tally with the signpost beside the exploded van from last week...). The squire rebelled, so the Master had Bok, the demon statue, vaporise him. Then he sent someone out to nick the Brigadier's helicopter.
Mike had a fight and lost, but chased after on a motorbike. The Doctor evaded the helicopter and got it to crash into the forcefield and blow up, but Jo was hurt and taken back to the pub by Mike (no doubt so that Jon Pertwee got to play with the Motorbike). The Doctor plans to harness the electricity from some nearby pylons, but the Master's already called Azal the Dæmon and when he's called, apparently, it'll be the end of the world, like a failed science experiment.
Really cool idea, some nice acting and effects, and a few great one-liners! A very talky episode, enlivened by a chase, but really good because of it!
The Dæmons: Episode Four (12/06/11)
Ooh! Things appear to be coming to a head at Devil's End. Azal's appearance before the Master caused another heat wave which woke Jo and she headed off to the crypt (for some reason) via the bedroom window and a conveniently placed ladder so that Mike and Benton wouldn't stop her.
Meanwhile, the Master chatted to Azal about wanting to rule the Earth as he isn't Human, but Azal, last of the Dæmons, who destroys his failed experiments (like Atlantis, apparently) knows the Doctor's about and refused to give the Earth to the rule of another alien until he'd interviewed both Time Lord candidates (okay, so he didn't phrase it quite like that, but that's what it amounts to). So the Master, after Azal had shrunk from being a giant, sent Bert the Landlord off to shoot the Doctor on his return from instructing Sergeant Osgood (this week's comedy character) on how to build a heat-barrier neutraliser. Cue shots of Mr Pertwee having a lot of fun speeding down country lanes on a motorbike. Obviously, he had to fall off and, rather than get back on, he legged it to the village on foot.
Meanwhile, Mike found out that Jo had gone and correctly guessed she'd gone to the crypt and went after her, getting there first as she'd been attacked by some ivy and fainted during another heatwave (surely one of those heatwaves should have been an 'icewave'?!?). When she got there, she watched Mike destroy a book with Azal's forcefield and they hid 'til the cliffhanger.
Meanwhile, Benton and Miss Hawthorne apparently necked some gin, drank some tea, argued about what to do (search or wait), saw the Master's lackies arrive to do some May Day thing, saw the Doctor attacked by Morris Men, formulated a plan to stop the Doctor being burnt as a witch (Benton's a crack shot with excellent hearing) and, in turn, beat up a Morris Dancer with a crystal ball and Bert the Landlord with the aid of Bessie!
Then, in the crypt, the Master threatened to kill a chicken, bringing Jo out of hiding and Azal revealed himself (for the 3rd and final time) to be an amalgamation of Pan and the Christian/Medieval idea of the Devil (quelle surprise). Still lots of fun, especially seeing all the locals in their normal early 70s fashions (as opposed to Jo's groovy gear), and Morris Men beating up the Doctor!
The Dæmons: Episode Five (19/06/11)
What a wonderful end to the season! The Master finally caught, the Doctor, Jo, Benton and Miss Hawthorne dancing round the Maypole, and the Brigadier and Yates in the pub! But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The Master decided to sacrifice Jo and made her put a white dress on for the occasion; Yates got attacked by Bok the Gargoyle, and knocked out and trussed up. The Master's minions, however, can't have thought he'd wake up, though, because they only tied his hands behind his back and put him in the vestry. When he came to, he legged it out to the Doctor and Co. on the village green.
The Doctor's machine worked, making a tunnel in the heat barrier so the Brigadier et al. made it through to the village. Bok went out to keep the army away, killed Bert the Landlord, got blown up by Benton with a bazooka and reformed, and the Doctor legged it into the crypt. Cue long debate on who Azal gives his powers to. Eventually he chose the Doctor, but the Doctor didn't want it so Azal chose the Master. The Master told Azal to kill the Doctor so he blasted the Doctor with some form of electric ray. Jo, however, stumped him by saying "NO! Kill me!!!" and Azal 'blew a fuse'.
Er. Not sure I'm convinced about that bit. Seems a bit daft.
Anyhow, everyone legs it out the church before it's rather spectacularly blown to bits, the Master's arrested and booed off by the villagers, and everyone lives happily ever after!
Hmm. Not sure about that, either. What about the Master's minions? Can't imagine they'll be best liked by the rest of the village!
Oh, and Azal's ship self destructed.
On the whole, despite the questionable demise of Azal, this has been a great story and a pretty good series, too! Okay, only The Mind Of Evil and this were great, but the other three stories, whilst sometimes a bit dull, were no less fun for it. Actually 'dull' is the wrong word. And after him being in every story, it was cool that UNIT finally caught the Master. I wonder how long they'll keep him locked up for, though!
Great season overall, with a nice variety of locations rather than the gritty, industry of last year. Circuses, villages, prisons, playgrounds, snow and an alien planet! Hope next year is as much fun!
It's actually amazing, even now, just how stark the contrast is between Season 7 and Season 8. The Mind of Evil is a hangover from the [approach to the] previous year, and could easily have featured Liz rather than Jo in the same role. But the rest of the season has a distinctly different feel which is by all accounts Barry Letts starting to put his stamp on the series. And here he gets it so right basically straight away, with a unique story that's still a showcase for the best of UNIT and the apotheosis of the relationship between their characters and the Doctor, Jo and the Master. As you say, throw in some terrific effects and direction and lots of atmosphere and voila, recipe for success. (Mind you, certain elements of the plot - most obviously how long the Master's been there - really, REALLY don't bear thinking about.)
ReplyDeleteI looks very much to me like the Master has only recently turned up and hypnotised his lackies into following him, given Olive's surprise that the previous vicar has been replaced. My only major issues with this story are those I mention in the final episode and I guess the conceit of Jo saving the day with her selflessness is making a point about Azal's inhumanity rather than attempting to make any real sense.
DeleteBut The Dæmons justly deserves its reputation as a highlight of the Classic era, and really does encapsulate the 'UNIT Family' at their best whilst tapping into the emerging Folk Horror genre which would become evermore prevalent in the coming years in films like 'The Wicker Man' and on TV with the likes of 'Penda's Fen' and 'The Children Of The Stones', not to mention its increasing use in Doctor Who throughout the decade! And it really does reflect rural British communities incredibly well.
After the grimness of Season 7, Letts really does make his mark this series and finds the perfect balance of action, adventure, horror and fun to make the show great family viewing. It's absolutely no surprise that Doctor Who really took off again with Letts at the wheel - as I say, even the stories which have the worst reputation during this period ('Colony In Space', 'The Mutants', 'The Time Monster', etc.) are immense fun to watch, mixing Hippie sensibilities with Top Of The Pops grooviness and a bit of action and horror c/o Hammer and Bond. As wonderful as Season 7 is, Season 8 was a step in the right direction to make the series a continuing success which may not have happened had the show remained that gritty and cold.
How long the Master has been up to his tricks here is far less problematic (timeline-wise) than it is in The Mind of Evil, where he seems to have been impersonating Prof. Keller for the better part of 18 months or something. I wonder what he made of Switzerland.
DeleteAs seems to have been the case with just about every incoming new producer of DW, Barry Letts wasn't overly keen on what his forerunner dumped in his lap. And yet in this case, as important as his own contribution is, he has to thank Derrick Sherwin for taking the bold step of making DW a much more adult show in Season 7, as it then allows Letts to strike a balance between what worked in that and what worked in the [notably more kiddie-oriented] Patrick Troughton era before it. And he gets it, arguably, spot on, as your description above highlights.
I think you're absolutely right; without the hard, adult flavour of Season 7 that balance (which I don't think many other Producers managed to pull off) might not have been reached. We're very lucky that it all turned out the way it did!
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