The Time Monster
Masquerading as Professor Thasceles, the Master is using a university research programme to devise a time machine known as TOMTIT (transmission of matter through intersistial time) as a means to control a mythical creature called Kronos. The Doctor recognizes the creature by name and reveals that it is one of a race of Chronovores, creatures that live outside of the space-time continuum and feed on temporal energy. With the help of Jo and UNIT, the Doctor frustrates the Master's plans enough to drive him to journey back to Atlantis to capture a crystal that will give him power over Kronos. The Doctor and Jo follow and must face many threats, amongst them the mythical Minotaur, and the wrath of Kronos itself.
Whoa, I say. There is far too much going on in this story. My precis doesn't really reflect that, but here we have another 6 episode story where episodes 1 through 4 all take place in the university grounds and then inside two TARDISes, and in episodes 5 and 6 we get the whole Atlantean thing crammed in. Don't get me wrong: this is a fun story complete with all our favourite UNIT people, the Master, and some fantastic dialogue, but I personally would have enjoyed less of the lead-up in modern times and more time spent in Atlantis, an approach I suppose I have become used to with the new novel and CD audio ranges. This is, incidentally, the third time Doctor Who has destroyed Atlantis: the first was back in 1967 with The Underwater Menace, and then it was alluded to in The Daemons as one of Azal's failed experiments that was destroyed. So okay we have a slight continuity issue to deal with. But who cares about that; I'm sure Atlantis was a big place, it's possible that Azal's experiment was done before the events in The Time Monster. And as for Professor Zaroff and his fish people, who is to say what might have evolved out of the Atlantean ruins after Kronos smashed it to pieces. And then comes a very significant moment in Doctor Who history: the Doctor tells Jo about his past, alluding to living in a house halfway up a mountain and seeking the advice of a wizened hermit under a tree. The last time the Doctor spoke of his past directly was in Tomb of the Cybermen, telling Victoria about his family, who we assume would be dead the way he spoke. Tidbits like these are few and far in the televised series; the next significant mention will not come again until 1989.
The Time Monster gets a bit ambitious with the design and effects departments, creating a whole new TARDIS console room in some funky retro white plastic roundel scheme (that is, by the way, never seen again) and an impressive set for the Atlantean temple in episode 5. Episode 5 itself suffers from some bad editing when the TARDIS materializes, and the effect of the Doctor's TARDIS separating from the Master's.. well.. I can see strings.
There are some acting alumni worth mentioning here: Ingrid Pitt as Galleia, Queen of Atlantis (and a bit of a power mad one as well, willingly chucking her ageing king for a fling with the Master), and Dave Prowse as the Minotaur. For the uninitaited, or those who live under rocks in the sci fi community, Dave was the body of Darth Vader in episodes IV to VI of the Star Wars movies. And, let me say, Dave has FANTASTIC pectoral muscles. Or, at least, he did. One of the best chest moments in Doctor Who, although I can hear others shouting that there is a better one in 1984's Planet of Fire.
And here endeth the season. The Doctor has limited control of the TARDIS again, but he's still not free of his exile. So he's stuck on Earth for a while yet. So before we carry on to the 10th season of the show, let's stop and read a book.
NEXT EPISODE : DEADLY REUNION
Whoa, I say. There is far too much going on in this story. My precis doesn't really reflect that, but here we have another 6 episode story where episodes 1 through 4 all take place in the university grounds and then inside two TARDISes, and in episodes 5 and 6 we get the whole Atlantean thing crammed in. Don't get me wrong: this is a fun story complete with all our favourite UNIT people, the Master, and some fantastic dialogue, but I personally would have enjoyed less of the lead-up in modern times and more time spent in Atlantis, an approach I suppose I have become used to with the new novel and CD audio ranges. This is, incidentally, the third time Doctor Who has destroyed Atlantis: the first was back in 1967 with The Underwater Menace, and then it was alluded to in The Daemons as one of Azal's failed experiments that was destroyed. So okay we have a slight continuity issue to deal with. But who cares about that; I'm sure Atlantis was a big place, it's possible that Azal's experiment was done before the events in The Time Monster. And as for Professor Zaroff and his fish people, who is to say what might have evolved out of the Atlantean ruins after Kronos smashed it to pieces. And then comes a very significant moment in Doctor Who history: the Doctor tells Jo about his past, alluding to living in a house halfway up a mountain and seeking the advice of a wizened hermit under a tree. The last time the Doctor spoke of his past directly was in Tomb of the Cybermen, telling Victoria about his family, who we assume would be dead the way he spoke. Tidbits like these are few and far in the televised series; the next significant mention will not come again until 1989.
The Time Monster gets a bit ambitious with the design and effects departments, creating a whole new TARDIS console room in some funky retro white plastic roundel scheme (that is, by the way, never seen again) and an impressive set for the Atlantean temple in episode 5. Episode 5 itself suffers from some bad editing when the TARDIS materializes, and the effect of the Doctor's TARDIS separating from the Master's.. well.. I can see strings.
There are some acting alumni worth mentioning here: Ingrid Pitt as Galleia, Queen of Atlantis (and a bit of a power mad one as well, willingly chucking her ageing king for a fling with the Master), and Dave Prowse as the Minotaur. For the uninitaited, or those who live under rocks in the sci fi community, Dave was the body of Darth Vader in episodes IV to VI of the Star Wars movies. And, let me say, Dave has FANTASTIC pectoral muscles. Or, at least, he did. One of the best chest moments in Doctor Who, although I can hear others shouting that there is a better one in 1984's Planet of Fire.
And here endeth the season. The Doctor has limited control of the TARDIS again, but he's still not free of his exile. So he's stuck on Earth for a while yet. So before we carry on to the 10th season of the show, let's stop and read a book.
NEXT EPISODE : DEADLY REUNION
Labels: Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart, Jo Grant, The 3rd Doctor, The Master, UNIT
posted by Sean Hoover @ 8:50 PM
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