The Macra Terror

Dear Gary—

The Macra Terror hooks me from the start with its smiley happy people that you know underneath aren’t smiley or happy at all. The Macra Terror strikes me as an expanded version of the first Keys of Marinus storyline, and looking ahead in the Doctor’s timeline, has a bit of The Happiness Patrol about it with just a touch of The Beast Below (but don’t get me started on THAT story, not just yet at least, Gary).

After seeing a glimpse into a terrifying future on the Doctor’s newly discovered time scanner, the Doctor, Jamie, Polly and Ben arrive in a colony preaching the virtues of ‘healthy happiness’ and that dictates, “Everything in the colony is good and beautiful; you must accept it without question.”

But we know, Gary, that the Doctor is full of questions and will dig for the answers. He won’t accept the platitudes handed out by the Pilot and the Controller.

“Don’t just be obedient,” the Doctor advises; “always make up your own mind.”

When they first arrive in the colony our travelers are treated to the ‘Refreshing Department’ which exists to “revive the weary body.” It rather reminds me of the greeting Dorothy and her entourage receive in the Emerald City. As Polly goes off for her shampoo and the ‘young gentlemen’ are ushered off for the very latest treatment I expect to hear a chorus of ‘The Merry Old Land of Oz.’ After all as the Pilot states, “we regulate our day by music.”

Jamie and the Doctor, however, will have none of it. Indeed, after being unwillingly combed and ‘clothes revived’ the Doctor deliberately jumps into the ‘rough and tumble machine’ and emerges his old disheveled self.  As the Doctor says, “who wants to see their face in a pair of suede shoes?”

The Doctor’s suspicions of the colony only deepen upon acquaintance with Medok, a colonist on the run who has seen the truth: “Have fun while you can . . . before they crawl all over you.” Jamie just doesn’t trust them: “They’re a weird sort of folk; I don’t know that I understand them.”  His distrust helps him to resist the hypnotic indoctrination he, Polly and Ben are subjected to as they sleep. Polly only resists with the aid of the Doctor. Ben, on the other hand, succumbs to the “You will question nothing in the colony” propaganda he has been fed.

Getting answers in the colony is tricky business. “It’s a privilege to work for the colony,” but when pressed what it is they actually do: “We work very hard here.” When pressed further, we finally learn that they tap and refine gas—the colony depends on it. But there are no clear answers as to what this gas is and what it does.

Our smiley happy people have no answers, but they also have no questions of their own.  “The colony needs you,” is all they know.  “Return to your work and play with fresh heart and renewed energy” is their canned inspiration.

The Macra Terror is rather short of answers itself, but then most Doctor Who stories are. The Macra, we come to learn, are some sort of bug creature that have somehow taken control of the colony even though no one seems to know this. They need the mysterious gas to survive, although it is deadly to humans.  No one on the colony knows they exist, except for the few like Medok who have seen the truth and therefore are branded as insane, and except for the terrorized and apparently enslaved Controller who is himself controlled by the Macra.

How did the Macra come to take control of the colony? How did they successfully brainwash everyone? What is their intent? What are they and where did they come from? Who really cares? This is Doctor Who, after all, and questions are secondary. We only get enough answers to help the action along.

Ha, ha, ha; Ho, ho, ho; And a couple of tra la las.

Of course we know that the Doctor will sort everything out as he always does. And as always, things aren’t quite crystal clear. There is some complicated formula that the Doctor works out with chalk and some mutterings about  “plus must be made minus and minus must be made plus.” (Where have I heard that before, Gary? Young Frankenstein perhaps?) In the end it all adds up to a happy ending.

 There are several menacing Macras to contend with, but they are handily dealt with by just blowing in a little fresh air. The conditioning of the brainwashed colonists is broken with a little tough talk and confrontation with the actual Macra. And finally, the ultimate Macra threat is dealt with by an infusion of combustible gas. What is a Doctor Who story without an explosion or two?

And so our smiley happy people are left truly smiley and happy, laughing the day away in the merry old land of . . . Macraland? Not really sure, Gary, what this place was called. Let’s just call it Smiley Happy Land.

A nice little story that I thoroughly enjoyed. A story that saw Polly sporting a sleek new short hairdo (courtesy of the ‘Refreshing Department’); and I have to mention, Gary, Doctor Who has a new opening title sequence.  The original opening is iconic and innovative. With a new Doctor ushering in a new era of the show, however, a little ‘refreshing’ is refreshing.

I hope, Gary, that somewhere out there you are having a little ha, ha, ha, ho, ho, ho of your own with a couple of tra la las thrown in for good measure.

The Moonbase

Dear Gary—

“There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things; things which act against everything that we believe in. They must be fought.”

In the case of The Moonbase, these things are Cybermen.

We start our story as we ended The Underwater Menace, with the Doctor making the remarkable claim that he can indeed control where the TARDIS travels; it’s just that he never wanted to do it before. Now if we believe him, we have to believe that he therefore lied to Barbara and Ian when he told them he could not return them to their own place and time. No, I can’t believe that. I prefer to think that this is merely his pride talking as he tries to impress his young companions. And in fact his attempt to land them on Mars does go awry and we have a moon landing instead.

I find it rather amusing, Gary, that as our quartet readies themselves to go out onto the moon surface the Doctor hands out space suits that turn out to be remarkably similar to those used by the inhabitants of this 2070 moonbase.

I also find it amusing that this 2070 moonbase is set up in order to control the Earth’s weather through the use of a Gravitron machine. This seems a rather foolish thing to do. Granted, a little weather control sounds like a good idea as we are in the midst of a prolonged drought and an unusual hot spell, but when you consider that “five units off center we’d lift half London into space; five more and the Atlantic water level goes up three feet,” well a couple of weeks of hot dry weather doesn’t seem so bad.

Add to this the threat of the Cybermen gaining control of the Gravitron and you have a worldwide disaster served up on a silver platter.

Good thing the Doctor is there to save the day.

The Doctor and his companions. But now I have to say something about his companions in this story, Gary. Jamie is somehow knocked unconscious and spends the first half of The Moonbase passed out in the infirmary. Polly meantime swings back and forth between her two personas, one minute screaming helplessly and the next coming up with valuable ideas like the ‘Polly Cocktail’ which decommissions the Cybermen. Ben seems to be the only steady companion, always around when needed.

To be fair to Polly, half of her trouble is the way in which she is treated. When she expresses a wish to help she is told “Why not make some coffee to keep them all happy,” or “Not you, Polly; this is men’s work.” No wonder she stands around uselessly so much of the time.

The Doctor, on the other hand, never stands around. He always seems to be on the go, even in the limited space of The Moonbase. Patrick Troughton is definitely a more energetic Doctor than William Hartnell.

And now we have yet another contradiction. Back in An Unearthly Child the Doctor states that he is not a medical doctor. Later, in The Rescue, he says, “Pity I didn’t get that degree.” In The Moonbase, however, when Polly asks if he is really a doctor, the Doctor replies, “I think I was once, Polly; I think I took a degree once in Glasgow . . . 1888 . . . I think . . . Lister.” Interesting. Which, I wonder is the truth? Or are they both true? Hartnell’s Doctor made definite statements whereas Troughton’s is unsure. But are these memories that are being recovered after the trauma of regeneration? Or perhaps with the mysteries of time travel, could these memories be from a life not yet lived?

That is the beauty of Doctor Who and of the brilliant concept of ‘renewal’ (later to be termed regeneration) that can bring in a new actor with a new persona to play the same part. Even while staying true to the history and nature of the character, fresh perspectives and novel interpretations can be explored.

This brings us back to the statement I started with: “There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things; things which act against everything that we believe in. They must be fought.” The journey from An Unearthly Child to The Moonbase has brought us to this statement. It evolved slowly, but now emerges as a core principle of Doctor Who and of the Doctor. This central idea binds each Doctor through the years, from William Hartnell to Matt Smith. And each will have his own monsters; his own beliefs; his own way of fighting.

“You are known to us.” The Cybermen, like the Daleks, recognize Patrick Troughton as the Doctor, and perhaps it is this basic conviction that they recognize more than the chameleon face of the Doctor.

Of course the Doctor will win his fight with the Cybermen, even if we’re left scratching our heads when it’s over. Somehow he uses the Graviton to blast the advancing army and their ships off of the surface of the moon and congratulations are handed all around. But will that really stop the Cybermen? Can’t they regroup and come again? OK, at least the base is now warned and on guard, but really, if the Cybermen are determined I’m sure they will be back.

But that is left for future stories. For now we have our celebrations and our departures.  And speaking of future—we get a new element of the TARDIS introduced: the time scanner which gives a glimpse of the future, or as Jamie says, “second sight—very dangerous.” Apparently it isn’t very reliable (shocker there) and that is why the Doctor doesn’t use it very much. However it does give us a peak at our next story; a peak into the future.

And so I take my leave, Gary, leaving the future to the future.

The Underwater Menace

Dear Gary—

The Underwater Menace is bizarre, preposterous, and a hoot. It pulls multiple elements from bad B horror/sci fi movies of the era, complete with a mad scientist channeling Bela Lugosi circa The Devil Bat. I can almost see Joely and the bots in silhouette at the bottom of the screen.

“Do you know what you’re doing?”

“Oh, what a question, of course I don’t. There’s no rule against trying, is there?”

No, no rule against trying; and that is exactly what they did with this story—tried. Enthusiastically and earnestly tried. And in some weird way they succeeded. I liken this back to The Web Planet, but whereas The Web Planet didn’t seem to click, The Underwater Menace does. I think the difference is in the camp. The Web Planet didn’t know it was bad; The Underwater Menace does, and it runs with it (or I should say swims).

“We never know what we’re going to find, do we?” “Ah, that’s the fun.” “What have I come upon?” All said at the start of our story, and all apropos. What we have come upon is Atlantis—and what fun it is.

Atlantis—a prehistoric lost kingdom (as most of this story is lost) that somehow survived for thousands of years without the aid of Professor Zaroff, but now somehow can’t do without it. Professor Zaroff (and his pet octopus) has discovered an endless food supply that relies on fish people to gather (the fish people being shipwrecked persons converted through a surgical procedure that implants plastic gills into them) and that can only last for a few hours before going bad.

Professor Zaroff has also promised the Atlantians that he can raise Atlantis once again from the bottom of the sea. Now, the Atlantians have survived for thousands of years under the sea; presumably have adapted; they even have access to the surface. Why, in all that time, did they not simply go up to dry land and start a new civilization? Why do they need to raise their underwater city? OK, maybe they didn’t have flood insurance, but they certainly have the resources to maintain their city under the sea; and the city doesn’t seem all that spectacular or special; what was keeping them there and what was compelling them to raise this unspectacular bit of real estate?

What the Atlantians don’t know, but what the Doctor realizes, is that in raising Atlantis Professor Zaroff will ultimately destroy it along with the entire Earth: “The destruction of the world; the scientist’s dream of supreme power.” Yes, definitely a B flick mad scientist speaking.

Along the way in this B fantasy we have enforced labor in mines (not sure what or where they are mining), tunnels with treacherous fall offs, temples, false gods, cheesy costumes, menacing doctors wielding scary hypodermic needles, tanks full of sharks awaiting human sacrifices, striking fish people (why they never thought of it themselves, but needed someone to come along and say, ‘hey, why don’t you go on strike—the food only lasts a few hours so they don’t have a reserve; they’ll break before you know it’ is anyone’s guess), laboratories with whirling gizmos and huge power cables, and oh yes, did I mention the pet octopus?

Through all of this unintentional madcap comedy Patrick Troughton seems to be settling nicely into the role of the Doctor.  The Doctor’s mastery, or lack thereof, of the TARDIS has been a longstanding theme since the show’s inception and an integral plot point. Now the Doctor claims that he can in fact control where the TARDIS materializes . . . “if I wanted to; it’s just I’ve never wanted to.” I can’t help but relate this back to a statement he makes in The Power of the Daleks: “I never talk nonsense; well hardly never.” Taken together, they seem to sum up the incongruous enigma that Patrick Troughton’s Doctor is turning out to be.

“Blimey, look at him; he ain’t normal, is he?” No, the Doctor definitely is not normal, and that’s what makes him the Doctor. William Hartnell; Patrick Troughton; he ain’t normal; he’s the Doctor.

A Doctor with a hat fetish apparently. Polly of the Doctor setting upon the food placed before them: “I’ve never seen him go for food like this before; it’s usually hats.” And a Doctor with compassion, endangering himself by attempting to go back to rescue the utterly mad and evil Professor Zaroff (fortunately Ben is there to drag the Doctor away from this suicidal futility).

“We will have enough left to build a new Atlantis,” the flooded out Atlantians claim as they gather at the surface (why they don’t just build this new Atlantis on dry land I don’t know, but that’s another story), and they go on . . . “without gods, and without fish people.” A fitting memorial to the Doctor, believed trapped below along with the doomed Professor. Yes, first ‘not a Doc and not a god’ and now, ‘without gods and without fish people.’ That’s my Doctor. Never nonsensical; well, hardly never.

All in all, The Underwater Menace is a winner despite itself.

The one thing I don’t like about this story (apart from the fact that the Doctor signs a note Doctor W—but I suppose that doesn’t necessarily stand for ‘Doctor Who’ or even any real initial at all but was simply a whim) is that Polly has returned to her pathetic form; she can’t even hold up a candle properly. “I can’t; I can’t; I can’t . . .” she says at one point in defeat. No, she can’t. But I have to say, the hilarious getup she is wearing somehow makes up for it.

One last word, Gary, about companions. Jamie started our story fresh from The Highlands, 1746, without a clue as to what he was stepping into.  “What’s this?” he asks as he enters the TARDIS. “You’ll find out.” “I don’t think I want to.” However, by the end of The Underwater Menace Jamie returns with the rest and states, “It’s great . . . all this. I’ll never know what makes it go, mind you, but well at least I feel safe in here; it’s only the wee things outside that are, well, alarming.”

I’m not sure what makes it go, either, Gary. What is it about Doctor Who that clicks? That keeps it flying year after year, Doctor after Doctor? Why, Gary, do we feel ‘safe’ with the Doctor? Whoever he may be.

I hope, Gary, that somewhere out there you can ponder on these things, and perhaps have even found the answer. I only await that echo . . .

The Highlanders

Dear Gary—

I always wanted to see The Highlanders, one of the many lost stories of Doctor Who. Now I have watched two reconstructed versions and I have to say I’m rather disappointed.  Maybe I built it up too much in my mind, not that I ever really knew anything about it other than it was an early Patrick Troughton story in which Jamie appears for the first time.

It is for Jamie’s sake that I wanted to like The Highlanders. In the few stories I have seen with him I have enjoyed the rapport he has with the Doctor.  And, too, I wanted to see more of Patrick Troughton.  The Highlanders doesn’t disappoint with Patrick Troughton, but there just isn’t a lot for Jamie in this story so I can’t really get a feel for his character as yet.

I did like it better upon second viewing, so perhaps in time I will come to appreciate it more as I did with The Power of the Daleks. But that is the trouble with lost episodes. If this were on a disc that I could pop in, sit back, relax, and enjoy, I probably would like it much better. While the reconstructed episodes are excellent, they just can’t touch the real thing. Combine this with the fact that The Highlanders is another historical and you have two strikes to start off the inning.

That is not to say, Gary, that I dislike the historical stories. After all, my favorite Hartnell serial The Romans is just that. No, it is only that history can be dry if not done right, and even if it is done right, when you only have the echo of its original form remaining it suffers. Combine this further with the fact that Patrick Troughton is so new to the role and therefore somewhat unfamiliar to me as the Doctor, I have to go on record as putting The Highlanders down as a disappointment.

But there is something there to latch onto. Just as with The Power of the Daleks I could latch onto the assembly line Daleks, with The Highlanders I have the Doctor and Polly to thank for helping The Highlanders stand out in my mind.

First Polly. Polly has been rather inconsistent as a companion to this point. She is strong and intelligent in one story only to be relegated to coffee making and screaming in the next. In The Highlanders she scores. She is the one element of the story that stuck with me after my first viewing.

“Didn’t the women of your age do anything but cry?” That is the Polly I like to see. The one who becomes exasperated with the helpless female; the one who plans and schemes; the one who calls to action. Polly of The Highlanders won’t sit idly by; she won’t burst into hysterics; she won’t be sidelined. Polly of The Highlanders acts.

Polly sees the Doctor, Ben, and the highland clan being readied for hanging; does she stand hopelessly by to watch the execution? No, she grabs the useless Kirsty and runs, creating a diversion. Polly falls into a pit; does she crumple in a useless heap? No, she lures the Redcoat ‘Algie’ (Lt Algernon Ffinch) into the pit, steals his money and ID tag and hoists herself out.  The Doctor and Ben plan to overthrow the slave trading ring that has a ship load of prisoners aboard the Annabelle; will Polly stay behind in safety? No, she insists on accompanying them.  The group needs safe passage back to the TARDIS through enemy territory; does Polly let the others think of a way out? No, she uses her wiles on ‘Algie’ and wins him over as an ally to escort them through to safety.

Too bad Polly of The Highlanders doesn’t stick around for subsequent stories.

Next, Gary, I turn to Patrick Troughton as the Doctor. As the story begins, the Doctor seems timid, even afraid. Ben and Polly want to explore this land they have materialized in but the Doctor is hesitant. It doesn’t take him long, however, to get into the spirit of the adventure. He’s glad they have gotten mixed up in the mess, he says . . . ”I’m just beginning to enjoy myself.”

And enjoy himself he does. This new incarnation of the Doctor, it seems, is something of a master of disguise. First he takes on the role of a German doctor, then he disguises himself as an old woman (“You made a good granny”), and finally he masquerades as a Redcoat.

He has his share of action as well, brandishing weapons about; although . . . “It’s not loaded; they’re dangerous things.” In fact there are quite a few guns displayed in The Highlanders, and at one point the Doctor, Polly, and Kirsty round up an arsenal of weapons to supply to the prisoners aboard the Annabelle. Curiously, though, when the prisoners rise up against their captors not a single shot is heard.

There is also a hilarious little bit when the Doctor, pretending to be a German doctor, queries, “You suffer from headaches?” as he bangs poor Perkins’ head against a desk, then convinces Perkins he must lie still with a bandage covering his eyes while the Doctor makes his escape.

Two last traits of this new Doctor. He seems to have a fascination with hats: “I would like a hat like this.” And he is definitely musical, playing the recorder at every opportunity and consenting to bring Jamie on board “if he teaches me to play the bagpipes.”

Yes, Gary, Polly and the Doctor are the highlights of The Highlanders.

Perhaps someday I will watch this again and gain a deeper appreciation. But for now, I press on with the reconstructed Troughton era as I dispatch this out into the Doctor’s time swirl and await any echo . . . .

The Power of the Daleks

Dear Gary—

“It’s not only his face that’s changed—he doesn’t even act like him.”

A new Doctor.

“It tis the Doctor; I know it tis . . . I think.”

A new Doctor. Patrick Troughton. I have to say, Gary, that I am both looking forward to and dreading the upcoming seasons of this the second Doctor.

I look forward to the Patrick Troughton years because I have enjoyed the few Doctor Who stories of his that I have seen up to this point and welcome filling in the gaps of my knowledge by watching the reconstructed episodes for the first time.

I am dreading it because there are so many reconstructed episodes.

A word here, Gary, about reconstructions. I don’t know how computer savvy you were or if you ever had a chance to view any of the reconstructions available. It does get tedious watching so many of them, but they are invaluable for bringing to life those stories that have been lost to us for so long. I find most of these on YouTube. Hopefully someday the full episodes will be discovered in some dark attic or locked trunk, but until then I am eternally grateful for the painstaking work that goes into making these lost stories available.

Sorry for the digression, but I am hesitating writing about our next episode The Power of the Daleks, not because it is the first without William Hartnell and not because it is a reconstruction, but because frankly the first time viewing The Power of the Daleks  I found the story rather mundane, even for a Dalek episode.

The action takes place on the planet Vulcan where the Doctor stumbles into a colony full of murder, intrigue, rebellion, and Daleks. My impression as I first viewed the recon was rather ho-hum. Another colony seething with rebellion. More sci-fi stock characters like the scientist who believes the scientific discovery outweighs the danger, the authority figure who won’t listen to reason, and the traitor who believes he can control the Daleks and use them to his own end for ultimate power only to be inevitably betrayed and destroyed by them.

However, there was one powerful image that remained with me, even though the image is a flickering, non-existent, recreated one, and that is of Dalek after Dalek rolling off an assembly line until a room full of mass produced Daleks start chanting, “We are the Daleks, we are the Daleks.” How much more compelling that would be if we could witness it in its original entirety.

And so, Gary, with the refrain of chanting Daleks echoing in my mind, I watched The Power of the Daleks a second time and I now appreciate this story so much more. What I found mundane before I now find gripping; what I found ho hum I now find riveting.

But let’s start with the new Doctor. William Hartnell had stumbled into the TARDIS at the end of The Tenth Planet, but it is Patrick Troughton who begins The Power of the Daleks on the TARDIS floor. Polly and Ben, along with the viewers, are confused and skeptical. Polly represents the voice of acceptance. She reasons that the Doctor was the only one to have walked through the TARDIS doors, so this must be the Doctor. Ben is the voice of skepticism. Polly remembers that the Doctor had said his body was wearing out and Ben exclaims, “So he gets himself a new one?”

The Doctor doesn’t help. He starts talking about himself in the third person and ignores Ben and Polly as they question him. The Doctor’s ring falls off and Ben’s doubts deepen. Is this the Doctor or isn’t it? I love how the show doesn’t offer up any immediate answers or explanations.

“Life depends on change . . . and renewal.” Ben locks on the word renewal and the Doctor considers before stating, “That’s it; I’ve been renewed.” And that is the most we get. Off the Doctor goes to explore and Ben and Polly have no choice but to follow.

We follow along, too; the action as ever overtaking the questions.

The action begins with the Doctor witnessing a murder. Searching the body of the dead man, the Doctor takes the credentials and decides to impersonate this assassinated Examiner. Now Gary, my thought is that William Hartnell’s Doctor would not impulsively take on the identity of another in this way. But this is a new Doctor, Patrick Troughton’s Doctor.

“You know its little things like this that make it difficult for me to believe that you’re the Doctor . . . the other one; I mean the proper one.” Yes, it is little things, as Ben states, that distinguish the first from the second. And what fun it will be, Gary, to discover these little things along the way.

However, it is the big things that establish continuity. Like the Daleks. And like the Doctor stating that it is because of the Daleks that they must stay on Vulcan. “I know the misery they cause; the destruction.” And the Daleks know the Doctor, recognizing him even if Ben and the audience do not. Ah, the mysteries of time travel that allows the Daleks to recognize this brand new incarnation.

The tension builds brilliantly in this story. At first only two inert Daleks are revealed, and then a third. What harm can these “pepper pots” do? Diligently the scientists work to bring life to these robotic bodies, foolishly believing they can control their actions and movements.

“I am your servant.” In the voice of a Dalek these words are eerily sinister.

Slowly the Daleks gain and reveal their power, with the misguided humans helping them along the way, all for their own selfish reasons, ignoring the warnings of the Doctor.

“We will get our power.” More Daleks glide through the colony. Still the humans believe they can control these robotic servants. Still the Doctor fruitlessly tries to raise the alarm: “The thing it does the most efficiently is exterminate.”

“We understand the human mind.” Yes, the Daleks understand and manipulate. The rebels; the scientists; the rulers; all are pawns for the Daleks.

Each ominous statement of the Daleks conveys chilling warnings, but all go unheeded by the unwary colonists. It is only for the Doctor and us to interpret these spine tingling declarations.

And then, a question: “Why do human beings kill human beings?” An interesting philosophical question to ponder, Gary, perhaps at a later date. For now we have Daleks mass producing themselves.

Even in reconstruction this scene of Daleks rolling off the assembly line is engrossing; how much more effective this would have been when originally aired.

Now we have the true nature of the Daleks revealed: “Daleks conquer and destroy.” Now the colonists begin to realize their mistake. Now the extermination begins. And now the Doctor goes to work.

“I prefer to do it my way.” Yes, Patrick Troughton will do it his way. This is his show now.

“Doctor, you did know what you were doing . . . didn’t you?” Polly never would have questioned William Hartnell’s Doctor in this way. Patrick Troughton’s Doctor still leaves questions in his wake. And a bit of destruction of his own: “Did a lot of damage, did I?”

But Patrick Troughton is the Doctor. A new Doctor. A renewed Doctor. A Doctor who plays the recorder and carries around a 500 year diary. A Doctor who fashions sonic keys out of a glass and a jug of water.  A Doctor who never talks nonsense – “well, hardly never.” A Doctor who believes that “a little injustice is better than whole scale slaughter.”

Patrick Troughton is the Doctor.

And I can only wonder, Gary, what you thought of Patrick Troughton, and send this out for that echo of a reply that I can only wait for.

William Hartnell

Dear Gary—

I can't start in on the Patrick Troughton years without first saying a final word about William Hartnell.

When I first started out on this journey, I ranked Hartnell as my second favorite Doctor, just behind Tom Baker. Truthfully, I was rather surprised at myself for giving him such a lofty position. It has only been in the last few years that I have come to appreciate William Hartnell as the Doctor. Previously I always thought of him as that old guy in black and white who started the whole thing, mildly amusing but mostly boring. As I have watched, analyzed, and written about all of these first serials throughout these past few months, though, I can now definitely say that William Hartnell remains solidly in second place.

I still have to rank Tom Baker as my Favorite Doctor out of purely sentimental reasons. Neither would I say that Hartnell is the most entertaining Doctor. Purely on entertainment value, and strictly off the top of my head with no thought put into it, I would say that David Tennant is the most entertaining Doctor. But if I were to objectively and honestly rank the Best Doctor, it would hands down be William Hartnell.

William Hartnell is the Doctor. He defined the role. He did not need the role to define him. He did not need the label of Time Lord or Last of the Time Lords. Time Lord was not even hinted at during all of his run. However, looking back with hindsight, I can believe that William Hartnell's Doctor was a Time Lord.

Future Doctor Who episodes will throw about the Time Lord title often and loudly. Some future Doctors will even regard the title as a badge of honor. Not so William Hartnell. Hartnell's Doctor is quietly heroic. To paraphrase his own words, he is a citizen of the universe, not a Doc and not a god.

From the moment he stepped into that foggy junk yard and into the TARDIS he was the Doctor. He didn't need impressive special effects; he didn't need a sonic screw driver; he didn't even always need an alien threat. He simply was the Doctor.

Barbara, Ian, and Susan were perfect companions to start out the show. Susan provided stability to the character of the Doctor, establishing a history and past without needing any elaborate explanations. Barbara and Ian gave the audience a voice, discovering this new and alien world of the TARDIS and this strange man they would come to know as the Doctor. Their initial skepticism and animosity quickly turned to trust, then respect, and eventually deepened from affection to a loving friendship. William Hartnell as the Doctor won their hearts just as he won mine.

If I had to pick a favorite story from the Hartnell years it would have to be The Romans, and my least favorite as you probably have guessed is The Gunfighters. But there are so many great stories in between. The Keys of Marinus, for example, is one that grabbed me from the start. Others had to grow on me with repeated viewings. I would say that the one that I came around on the most is The Aztecs, but An Unearthly Child and The Sensorites are close behind. If I had to pick one of the lost serials that I would most like to see in its original form, it would be Galaxy Four.

But they are all good, and it is William Hartnell that makes them so. I can even tolerate The Gunfighters for his sake. His most heartfelt moments are his parting from Susan and more especially his parting from Barbara and Ian. His most defining moment comes in The Rescue as he awaits the arrival of Bennett/Koquillion, and his most defining story is The War Machines.

“Always seek the truth; mine is amongst the stars.” “Our destiny is in the stars.” The stars, yes, but William Hartnell’s Doctor was just as effective battling nothing but human history. Some of the historicals could get rather long and tedious, but when done right they were some of the best. This is something that gets lost with future Doctors.

None of this is to take away from subsequent actors taking on the role. With new blood and as the show progressed, certain questions naturally had to be addressed. However, with William Hartnell one never required an answer to 'Doctor? Doctor who?' William Hartnell himself was the answer.

Certainly modern production values, special effects, and shorter story lines have given current Who serials more entertainment value. I have to admit to wishing for a good Tennant story in the midst of my Hartnell marathon. There is something to be said for the Doctor’s way of skipping through timelines, sampling a little Pertwee, perhaps some Eccleston, then on to a few Bakers; whatever strikes one’s fancy.

However, I will stick to my slow path for now.

I hope, Gary, that out there in the Doctor's time swirl William Hartnell's shimmering shard somehow somewhere and at some time has intersected with your own.

The Tenth Planet

Dear Gary—

“This old body of mine is wearing a bit thin.” At first I was disappointed with this rather anticlimactic end to William Hartnell. But now I realize how fitting it is. He goes out just as he lived. Subsequent Doctors can have the dramatic, heroic, larger than life, big bang finishes. This first, this original Doctor does it his way. Simple; understated; honest. “This old body of mine is wearing a bit thin.”

The Tenth Planet is significant not only for the end of the Hartnell era, but it also introduces another race destined to become an arch enemy of the Doctor—the Cybermen. And it is a fascinating little slice of history for the Cybermen. The tenth planet of our title is Mondas, the Cybermen’s home planet and apparently a twin planet to Earth that somehow and for some reason unexplained, the Cybermen moved through space, turning the planet into their own space ship it seems. They are now returning, their planet drained of energy, set on absorbing all of the Earth’s energy and turning humans into Cybermen while they’re at it.

This, Gary, is a fundamental difference between the Daleks and the Cybermen. While both are races that once had human form but have had all emotions erased and are now robotic in nature, one (the Daleks) seeks only to destroy all of life while the other (the Cybermen) seeks to remake all of life into their own image. Similarly, while the Dalek’s main objective is victory, the Cybermen’s main objective is survival: “We are equipped to survive. We are only interested in survival. Anything else is of no importance.”

An advance guard of the Cybermen has landed at the South Pole in 1986, where the Doctor, Ben, and Polly have also arrived. The base which becomes the center of the action is under the command of General Cutler, a typical Doctor Who thick headed military leader who refuses to listen to the Doctor and as a result causes more complications for the Doctor to sort out.

William Hartnell, appearing for the last time as the Doctor, stands calmly and proudly above the commotion about him. General Cutler barks orders, ignoring and dismissing the Doctor; scientists and soldiers rush about; Cybermen invade. All the while the Doctor persists in stating exactly what is happening and what should be done, refusing to be talked down by the General. The Doctor knows before anyone else that the unknown image on the screen is in fact Mondas; he knows what Mondas is; he knows that the Cybermen will be arriving; he knows that Mondas is losing energy and attempting to steal Earth’s energy.

And that, Gary, is William Hartnell. He knows. He is composed. He is steady. He is fact.

What I don’t like, aside from the fact that the final episode of The Tenth Planet is missing, is that the Doctor is missing in action for a good stretch of time during the middle of our story. It would have been nice to have William Hartnell for the full four episodes in this his final outing. Instead, half way through, after revealing all he knows and setting out what should be done, he succumbs to some ‘outside influence’ (presumably the energy drain from Mondas) and spends a good portion of the adventure passed out on a cot, leaving much of the action to Ben, the military, and the scientists.

A word here, Gary, about Ben and Polly. The show seems to have remembered that Polly is only a girl, relegating her to serving coffee, crying hysterically for some unknown reason, and getting captured. Ben, on the other hand, has begun to show some intelligence and gumption. First he escapes by turning a projector on a Cyberman to blind him, and then he figures out that the Cybermen can be overcome by radiation. He also comes out with some words of encouragement and wisdom: “While there’s life there’s still hope.” And “Your number’s up any way so why not try?”

But the show still belongs to William Hartnell. He starts the story on a firm and cautionary note: “Stop being so flippant; we don’t know what we’re in for outside there.” He sarcastically deflects the rude shouts of a brash interrogator: “Why don’t you speak up—I’m deaf.” He thoughtfully looks after his companions: “Very well, child, off you go; and don’t forget your coat. I don’t want you to get cold.”

William Hartnell has been all of these things as the Doctor. Firm. Cautionary. Sarcastic. Thoughtful. He has also been calm, steady, true, loving.  And too: wise, gentle, determined, inquisitive.  Also at times proud, arrogant, cranky, tetchy.

“He seems to have lost his sense of humor,” Ben says as the Doctor stumbles back to the TARDIS after Mondas has been destroyed and the Cybermen defeated.

“What did you say my boy? ‘It’s all over’—that’s what you said . . .” It’s all over. The Doctor knows his time has come.  But . . . “it isn’t; it’s far from being all over.”

Yes, brilliantly the show has kept the magic alive. William Hartnell is departing, but the show must go on.  Sadly these final few moments of William Hartnell and the first of Patrick Troughton are lost to us, but this historic ‘renewal’ (regeneration is not yet used to describe the process)ensures that Doctor Who will continue.

But I shall miss him; yes, I shall miss him.

As always, Gary . .

The Smugglers

Dear Gary—

“How dare you follow me into the TARDIS?” And so two new companions are greeted as The Smugglers begins. “Oh dear, all this distraction; and I really thought I was going to be alone again.”

But Polly and Ben have entered the TARDIS and are now on an adventurous ride with the Doctor. I find it amusing, Gary, that these two seem to have a role reversal going from your usual male/female companions.  Polly shows more intelligence and wherewithal, whereas Ben, as Polly exclaims, has “no imagination.” Ben just wants to report back for duty on his ship; Polly finds the adventure exciting.

As we begin this new jaunt with our new companions, we find the Doctor admitting from the start that he cannot control the TARDIS. In the past he has been quick to defend his TARDIS and his mastery of it. Now, however, he confesses, “I have no control over where I land; neither can I choose the period in which I land in.” This, he claims, is the cause of half his troubles.

Polly has worked out from their surroundings that they have landed in Cornwall. But, as the Doctor states, “You may know where you are, my dear, but not when. Oh, I can foresee oodles of trouble.” The when turns out to be the 17^th century, and the oodles of trouble comes in the form of smugglers and pirates in search of hidden gold.

“We’ll just have to like it and lump it,” Polly states when informed that they are no longer in the 20^th century. Later, when she and Ben are captured, she uses her wit and imagination (that she claims is lacking in Ben) to fashion a straw doll with which to threaten wizardry, thus bluffing their way out. She is a shrewd and practical companion. In fact, despite the Doctor deciding that he must follow his two new tagalongs because they are “quite incapable of looking after themselves,” both Polly and Ben (after he gets into the full swing of the escapade) prove that they are capable of handling themselves in a pinch.

The Doctor, meanwhile, finds his own trouble, but as usual he is more than capable of handling himself. He too uses a bit of ‘wizardry’ to manage his escape, distracting his captor by pretending to read his fortune in the cards.

I find this story (yet another lost one available only through reconstruction) difficult to follow, however. Without proper visuals, I get the ranging cast of characters mixed up. Between Pike, Cherub, Blake, the Squire, and Longfoot, I find it hard to sort out who is good and who is bad; who is a pirate and who is a smuggler and who is the revenue man.

But as with any good Doctor Who story there is enough action and humor to keep me entertained. It is amusing, for example, how one of our confusing cast of characters, I think a pirate, keeps calling the Doctor ‘Sawbones.’ Finally in his most exasperated style the Doctor responds, “I would prefer you to use the correct term, sir. I am a Doctor.”

Finally, the Doctor passes on to his new companions a lessen he has learned from previous companions. That is, when faced with the opportunity of returning to the TARDIS to make his escape, instead he feels himself “under a moral obligation” to stay and put things right again. “I feel that I might be responsible for its destruction,” he says of the village that is under threat of pillaging. He must stay to try and avoid this; after all, “there is no need for innocent people to suffer.”

He does avoid it, after solving the riddle to the hidden gold, and with some help from the revenue man. Only then can he enter the TARDIS and leave.

But where can he leave to? Where to now, Polly wonders—forward or back in time? She is up for the excitement of time travel. Ben, however, still only wants to get back to 1966. The Doctor can’t promise them anything: “I have no idea; I have no control over such matter.” He can’t even guarantee that their journey won’t lead them into even more danger than they have just left.

Where to now? Forward or back? Into the swirling uncertainty of time and space . . .

The War Machines

Dear Gary—

The War Machines is winding down William Hartnell’s run as the Doctor; what a shame, for in this story he really takes command of the role. I have already stated that for me his moment of confrontation with Bennett/Koquillion back in The Rescue was the single most defining moment for William Hartnell as the Doctor; I consider The War Machines as his single most defining story.

I will go so far, Gary, as to say that the The War Machines is the archetypical Doctor Who story. It contains several firsts that are destined to become Doctor Who staples. For the first time the Doctor has an entire adventure in contemporary (for its original air time) London. For the first time the Doctor faces down a menace threatening this contemporary London and all of Earth. For the first time the Doctor cooperates with the military to defeat this menace. And through it all William Hartnell takes charge of this script.

From the moment the TARDIS lands in 1966 London the Doctor ‘smells’ trouble. There is something alien about the new post office tower, he says, “I can scent it.” What he finds in the tower is WOTAN, an advanced computer with visions of grandeur.

It doesn’t bother me, Gary, that WOTAN breaks the cardinal rule by referring to the Doctor as Doctor Who; as I have said, in this story William Hartnell truly is Doctor Who. Besides, presumably WOTAN has obtained information on the Doctor directly from Dodo’s mind, and I can imagine that she has often wondered to herself, as Ian did so long ago, “Doctor? Doctor Who?” and WOTAN merely adopted this as his appellation.

WOTAN has decided that mankind can no longer be trusted to run the world and so plots a takeover by controlling all of the world’s major computers that are soon to be linked up to him. WOTAN has already established mind control over some key players, including Dodo, and has a hypnotized workforce creating an army of war machines to seize control of London.

The Doctor, as usual, has other ideas. He declares that he is not a specialist when it comes to computers, “But I dabble. Yes, I dabble.” Dabble indeed. A little dabbling by the Doctor goes a long way.

It is marvelous to watch the Doctor/William Hartnell as he takes control in this story. The highlight, for me, is when he stares down a rampaging war machine while the military cowers behind boxes. Confidently the Doctor stands his ground in that classic William Hartnell hands-on-lapels pose.  Calmly and slowly he walks towards the trapped machine as the military cringes behind him. Triumphantly he dismantles the defeated adversary to discover its secrets.

His ambivalence towards the military and authority figures is also typical Doctor Who. He will help out in a crisis, but he has contempt for the “strong arm methods” they use, not to mention their seeming lack of intelligence: “The official mind can only take in so much at a time.”

The Doctor very much takes charge of the military in The War Machines; making all the plans and handing out orders.  There is no need for weapons or ‘strong arm’ tactics in the Doctor's plans. An electromagnetic forcefield and a screwdriver are about all he needs to trap a machine, reprogram it, and destroy WOTAN.

All the while the Doctor resists WOTAN’s hypnotic control. The others are easy marks—the scientists, Dodo, the workmen, Polly. But the Doctor’s mind bests WOTAN’s efforts. Not only that, but he can break the hypnotic control on others (with the use of his handy ring).

Speaking of Dodo, Gary . . . poor Dodo is unceremoniously dumped as a companion in this story. “She’s a little under the weather and she’s gone into the country for a few days.” Yes, and your dog’s up playing on the roof, too. Poor Dodo, sent off to her aunt’s after being de-hypnotized and never to be seen again.

The Doctor, ready to take off in the TARDIS and waiting for Dodo, is informed that she has decided to stay behind, but she sends him her love.  “Her love,” the Doctor harrumphs. “That’s gratitude for you. Taker her all the way around the world, through space and time . . . .” And such is the end to Dodo’s brief journey with the Doctor.

But not to worry—Polly and Ben are on hand to become the new companions. Polly and Ben seem to be updated models of Steven and Dodo; although Polly is a bit more level headed and resourceful than Dodo. Even when hypnotized Polly had the presence of mind to save Ben. Ben, on the other hand, is a bit more reckless than Steven, but he is brave and quick to jump in when a fight or a helping hand is needed.

Good thing the Doctor gave that TARDIS key to Ben so the two of them have an excuse to enter the TARDIS and accidently get whisked off by the Doctor. (It seems that Susan’s claim that the TARDIS lock has 21 different holes with only 1 being correct and the rest booby trapped might be a little off.)

Whisked off into the Doctor’s time swirl. As ever, Gary, I whisk this off to catch that time swirl.