Doctor Who season eight: A Moriarty for the Doctor

So, you have the Doctor stuck on Earth. What do you do for fresh villains for him to fight? Give him a brother (though not an actual brother) Time Lord to duel with throughout the season. The Master would go on to define much of the Jon Pertwee era of the show and would continue to be a foil throughout the classic series, through to the TV movie and into new show. (as Derek Jacobi and John Simm; double classy!)

Terror of the Autons

And welcome to the Master. Roger Delgado arrives in a circus caravan, hypnotizes a blustery gent and proceeds to terrorize children everywhere with a plot to use the Autons from the previous season to well… it’s all in the title. Delgado is terrific in the role and even though there is some dodgy special effects (color separation overlay really begins its own terrorization of the show here) the whole series is creepy and effective, especially as everyday household objects – dolls, plastic flowers, a telephone cord (ask your parents, kids) – come to life to KILL everyone in their path.

Mind of Evil

As the season deepened, the fact that the Master was behind all of the plots became a bit of a joke, but his appearance midway through episode two here is actually pretty effective. The show has a bit of a Patrick Troughton vibe to it, mainly because the only copy that existed for many years was in black and white. In fact, the blurry black and white copy I have is a bit more effective than some of the color episodes from the era, as it hides some of the weaknesses in special effects. That means you spend more time focused on the story, which is what this is supposed to be about.

The Claws of Axos

When talking about this episode in the bonus DVD material, the word that came up the most was “psychedelic.” Perhaps “mad” would have been more appropriate. A race of golden-skinned beauties come to earth with an offer of unlimited free energy for humankind? Sounds good, except what they really wanted to do was eat – everything bit of life, and they weren’t really golden-skinned beauties, but quintessential rubber monsters with tentacles everywhere. Oh, and they could replicate us to wreck havoc. And the Master shows up… Just barking mad from beginning to end, but a really entertaining romp that stands as a definitive Third Doctor adventure.

Colony in Space

Script editor Terrance Dicks has repeatedly said that he and producer Barry Letts chaffed against the “stranded on Earth” edict from the previous production team. Doctor Who should be, in part, an adventure about traveling in space. That’s all fine and good in concept, except that – with the exception of stories with the name “Peladon” in the title – the Third Doctor space adventures are pretty terrible. Case in point is the first adventure beyond the bounds of the planet, which manages to be overstuffed with concepts and absolutely boring in execution. There’s a colony, and an evil mining corporation, and three distinct races of aliens… and I really don’t want to think any more about this one. Bring on the Daemons.

The Daemons

These five episodes are rightfully considered stone-cold classics. You get the Unit family in full flower, right down to the Brigadier in a kilt, Mike Yates and Sgt. Benton out of uniform and kicking ass, and an ancient science experiment that appears to be magic. There’s even Roger Delgado giving the Goat during a black mass. Much of the sharpness is down to the script, which was co-written by producer Barry Letts. Not only was Letts an experienced writer, but he knew the main characters inside and out – which meant none of the fun was forced in any way. The plot does share more than a passing resemblance with Quatermass and the Pit, but there was (and still is, current Doctor Who writers) plenty of territory in the idea of the ancient alien on Earth, affecting our folklore, legends and myths.

So, that’s the Master season done and dusted – bring on the Daleks!