By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors ad Zombie Blues
Photo copyright bbc
So who didn’t ask the question during the 60th anniversary, where the hell is Martha Jones?
Now when she left the Doctor in The Last of the Time Lords, we met up with her in The Sontaran Strategem where the Doctor had arranged for her to join UNIT. When we met her again for the last time in the End of Time, she was out alien hunting with one Mickey Smith, her now husband. Many hoped she would make an appearance as Kate Stewart began a new programme of recruiting the Doctor’s old companions to work for UNIT and help defend the Earth.
And now we finally get to see her again in the brand new spin off The War Between the Land and the Sea (a working title apparently). We can only speculate as to whether Kate Stewart, Mel, Ace, Tegan or Donna join her for this limited series. The story will be set in a small English town when the Sea Devils raise their aquatic heads again to claim back their world. I cannot be the only one excited by this.
While Martha has already met Donna but not the others. Having Martha fight alongside Ace, Tegan and maybe bring Graham back too given he fancies Ace, would be heaven. Tegan has already met the Samurai version of the Sea Devils in the far future along with the Silurians so surely we need her expertise. Not forgetting Jo Grant of course who battled the monsters alongside the third Doctor, Jon Pertwee. The opportunity to do these types of things should not be squandered so let’s hope it delivers as well as Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures did.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright Paramount
Mental health is such a huge issue and for men, especially these days, a subject that to a degree remains taboo. Many do not feel “Manly” by admitting their feelings and issues. Revealing to someone that you, the man, are breaking down mentally and feeling like life is no longer worth living is difficult to admit. But it is vital. Everyone has been there. I have been there. Some days I still am and to a degree I am a hypocrite because I will put on the mask and bury this pain until it goes to sleep; at least until it wakes up again.
Suicide leaves scars that never heal especially when it is so unexpected that we spend the rest of our lives wondering were there signs we missed? We feel responsible for not seeing the pain in someone we may see every day and love so much. But mental health is very good a hiding behind the clown.
Chat shows, podcasts, social media and adverts tell us all to take off the mask and open up to someone, anyone. Television shows, especially the soaps, run storylines highlighting the issue and put up adverts at the end credits telling you that if you are affected to contact certain organisations. Sci-fi is equally a vital platform for this and to be honest I can’t recall many. Two stand out though; Doctor Who’s The Doctor and Vincent brutally explored Van Gogh’s mental health illness. Tony Curran is superb as the troubled painter and the Doctor is visibly thrown by the switching moods. One minute he is screaming at the Doctor in tears, the following morning Vincent is all smiles.
But the one that stands out for me is the Star Trek Deep Space 9 episode Hard Time. Dublin born Colm Meaney gives the most heart wrenching masterclass in portraying someone on the very edge of suicide. It is ridiculous that sci-fi shows do not get the recognition they deserve because this is a prime example of a performance that makes you cry and at the same time delivers the message without ramming it down your throat. When a performance on screen makes you feel uncomfortable because you see something of yourself or someone you know/love in it, it is time to listen.
So let’s go back to the beginning. Chief Miles Edward O’Brien is the everyman of science fiction. He is a grafter, loves a beer, goes to work everyday, loves his family and is the man you can depend on in a crisis. He is loyal, honest and the best friend you can ever have. Ask Julian Bashir. O’Brien is the one most likely to swear in front of the captain; the one that will cheer Bashir up by taking him to Quark’s holosuite for a visit to the Alamo or the Battle of Britain. He befriends the underdog like Rom the Ferengi.
He is the Chief. And that word alone conveys to everyone on Deep Space 9 and on the Enterprise that he is the rock they can depend on.
In Hard Time the Chief wakes up believing he has been in prison for 20 years. Accused of spying, he undergoes an alien mind therapy that lets him serve out his sentence in his head. In reality a few hours have passed but for O’Brien life in Starfleet is a long lost dream.
When Kira brings him back to the station, it is clear that O’Brien is disorientated. His memories of the prison and the reality of being back in the real world throw his perception. While Kira tries to reassure him that the prison was fake, he tells her it was real to him. His best friend Doctor Julian Bashir keeps everyone away when O’Brien returns to the station. When Julian asks did he interact with anyone in the prison, O’Brien says he was totally alone. In reality via flashback we see he had a cellmate, Ee’char played by Craig Wasson. Ee’char is funny, amiable, delighted to have someone to talk to after 6 years of isolation and teaches O’Brien how to draw patterns in the dirt floor to pass the time and let his mind free itself from the cell.
Bashir tells Keiko, O’Brien’s wife that what her husband experienced was intense and are memories as real as the ones he had before the therapy. Here we get to see the assumption that O’Brien will be fine because he has been through a lot previously. Bashir lists the Cardassian war, when he was taken by the Paradans and his kangaroo court trial at the hands of the Cardassians. Bashir says O’Brien has always survived. He will be fine with time.
How often have you heard that in your lives? We see that the person has survived that or gotten through that. They are made of strong stuff and could have been worse but at the end of the day, just because someone survives something doesn’t mean it hasn’t scarred them. It can fester in the background coming to the fore in those quiet moments. It can be triggered by the slightest of things.
When O’Brien asks the replicator for Cheelesh fruit, the machine does not recognise it. It was something he ate in prison. O’Brien is shaken and when he meets Keiko again, he has forgotten she is pregnant with their second child. He cannot even return her embrace at first. The pain on his face as they hug is obvious. He is sullen and quiet.
O’Brien is sent to counselling but it is clear he is lying to everyone even Keiko. When she remarks that it must be strange to have a family again he answers that he was alone for so long again perpetuating the lie to the outside world when inside is a very different story.
But his actions again betray that his head is not quite there. At the dinner table he begins hoarding food in a napkin because he was literally starved in prison. He doesn’t even realise he is doing it until Keiko mentions it. He even sleeps on the floor without realising it.
Does that ring any bells with any of you? Does someone you know suddenly act out of character? I don’t mean by exploding and shouting but subtle small gestures that they are not aware of. Again this is a sign that something else is going on inwardly.
Worf spends time with him playing darts and offering to go kayaking but the fun isn’t there for O’Brien anymore. He begins to see Ee’char on the station. Bashir is watching him closely as both his friend and doctor. When he pulls O’Brien for not attending his counselling sessions, O’Brien yells at him. He turns on him angrily telling him he hasn’t missed his smug, superior attitude. He warns him that if he knows what’s good for him, Bashir will stay the hell away from him. These two are best buddies, like brothers so to see O’Brien threaten Bashir is disturbing. Meaney looks like he could actually hit him as all the frustration and anger boils up inside him. he just wants to be left alone.
There’s an old saying, you take it out on the ones you love. When you are hurting it is inevitably and always the people you love most you lash out at. We as the audience know O’Brien has a secret that is killing him mentally and is not coping even though he is back to work.
In flashback we see O’Brien beginning to crumble under life in the prison. He shouts at Ee’char just as he did Bashir, threatening him and destroying his sand drawings. We get to see that his mental health began to deteriorate while in the fake scenario.
O’Brien’s mental health continues to spiral as he attacks Quark, threatening to break his arm for not serving him quick enough and almost hits his daughter, Molly. He has conversations with Ee’char. He pushes him away just like everyone else but Ee’char insists he needs him more than ever, Ee’char tells O’Brien he is worried about him but the Chief insists he is fine. When Ee’char pushes as to why he is here, O’Brien tells him he doesn’t know nor care. Distancing himself from life and people is getting the Chief attention he does not want. He is running away from everything including what’s in his head.
Sisko knows that O’Brien is worse than he appears to be and insists he get to counselling and is fooling no-one except himself putting him on medical leave. Sisko is frustrated but that echoes real life. The people that are around us notice and denial and pushing them away are not a solution. It leaves them in a limbo when they know the person they care about is sinking but cannot do anything about it. All they want is for them to say ‘help me’. Here O’Brien angrily confronts Bashir again and tells him he never asked for his help. When Bashir snaps that he didn’t need to ask because he is his doctor and friend, he doesn’t realise that Ee’char is standing behind him urging O’Brien to ask for help. O’Brien explodes that he is not his friend anymore because the O’Brien he knew died in the cell. Bashir thinks he is talking to him but O’Brien is using the same anger to push Ee’char away as he is using on his best friend.
None of them can see what O’Brien sees. His world doesn’t match the one they are in so he is floundering, drowning in his own confusion. Isn’t that how we all feel sometimes? That people don’t see what we see; that they don’t understand and that the best thing to do is go away. In our heads we no longer fit to be in anyone’s company because the person they knew is not there anymore. So what is the point if we are the only voice in the world? Guilt is destroying O’Brien’s world and when he and Ee’char clash we discover that O’Brien is pushing Bashir away because friendship now means pain. In his head, O’Brien is protecting his brother from another mother because O’Brien no longer knows himself or trusts himself so how can he expect Bashir or anyone else to know and love him? In his damaged perception O’Brien is a danger to them all and he needs to go. He is trapped by his own thoughts and no avenue to vent them except on those around him. Even Dax gets it in the neck and she adores the Chief.
Lost especially after roaring at and nearly hitting Molly, O’Brien smashes up a cargo bay. He snaps and sets a phaser to maximum to blow his head off. Bashir finds him with the phaser under his chin ready to die. He is going to kill himself to keep everyone safe from this new dangerous version of O’Brien. Meaney actually looks like he’s crying here as he finally admits to the existence of Ee’char and how O’Brien murdered him. They were starving; O’Brien was going crazy with hunger. They go to sleep for the night but he sees Ee’char taking food from a secret hiding place. He attacks him calling him out for not being a friend and kills him accidentally. He doesn’t realise Ee’char only did it at sleep because the guards would not be about to take it from them.
Ee’char was O’Brien’s best friend as is Bashir. He hates himself for being an animal. He took a life for a scrap of bread. Bashir talks him down. If the old O’Brien was truly gone then he wouldn’t be feeling as he does. That is why Ee’char is appearing to him because O’Brien’s mind is trying to save him. And isn’t that part of the dangers of mental health; what they see is not what is in front of them. Their perceptions see a false reality they cannot cope with causing them to meltdown. Meaney here would bring tears to a stone. Ee’char finally says goodbye as O’Brien comes to terms with what he did.
Bashir stops his friend from taking his own life because O’Brien finally admits what he is going through. If he had died then his family and colleagues would have forever wondered why. They would have been haunted by a million ‘what-ifs’ and ‘could have beens’. It echoes life as the person suffering keeps it all in and has no self worth. That lack of self worth projects on to their nearest and dearest with bouts of anger and rage directed at whomever is in the way because it is not what the person with the issue has. Taking that first step to talk is so important but sadly not everyone has a Bashir to check up on them and prevent a tragedy from happening. Someone once said never underestimate the size of the hole you will leave in the lives of those those you leave behind. I know one time I was ready to go, someone said to me that if I did anything stupid, a lot of people would miss me. I couldn’t see it and still can’t really but I appreciate those around me. I love those around me. Sometimes a few words is all it takes to break a dark spell. We have people all around us desperate to help. Kirk once said that the most important three words in the English language are not “I love you” but “let me help.” If the friendship is strong enough then all it takes is a nod of the head; there won’t always be hugs because a lot of people still don’t hug especially men but that bond is strengthened by the smallest of acknowledgements.
The shocker is that ordinary Joe Bloggs Miles O’Brien is not beyond mental collapse. He has so much to live for; strip away the sci-fi trappings and you have a working man who has a young daughter and a pregnant wife. He has a good job and friends that love him. There is nothing there he can complain about. No one is immune from this; it can affect anyone at any time even those you think have a perfect life. But that is part of the false perceptions; living fake lives to make the mundane reality feel good.
And yet when he has a breakdown, none of that matters. He believes that they would all be better off without him in their worlds. His secret is such a dagger into who he is as a person that he can’t cope with it. His self worth is destroyed because he did something he never thought he would do; murdered his best friend over a piece of bread. O’Brien prides himself on being a loyal friend and yet he commits this act.
How many times have we said that in real life? How many suicides have there been where you just cannot understand why because there were no signs. O’Brien is lucky because his friends know him better than he does right now. There are warning signs. Look at the people you care about, maybe not love but work with and laugh with because you never know.
Now there is no perfect solution here. There is no reset button. O’Brien is prescribed drugs for his condition and they use the word depression. In the 24th century they can cure cancer and fly through the stars but depression is still very much an issue and still very much the reason we should take a moment to take stock. When I went to kill myself there was no plan, no list; I just snapped and went to do it there and then and nothing was going to stop me. What did stop me was the fact that there were no tablets to take for an overdose that night.
Now this is just one aspect of mental illness; it is not the whole spectrum and circumstance but it contains the elements that we need to look at and discuss. There are people that display on outward signs. So it is important check on your circle regularly.
Show this to someone, anyone and see if anything triggers with you about it. At the story’s end O’Brien has a long way to go and you are left in no doubt that it is going to be a long road. But now he recognises that he has a network round him that will love and support every time he falls. Look around you and for the first time see, really see those that will take your hand and save you from drowning.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright Paramount Pictures
I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.
Time itself was changed in season two of Star Trek Enterprise. Earth is attacked by an alien weapon that cuts through Florida killing seven million people including chief engineer Trip Tucker’s (Connor Trinneer) sister Elizabeth. Originating from an area of space called the Expanse, the Enterprise led by Captain Archer (Quantum Leap’s Sam, Scott Bakula) must track down and prevent a second weapon being launched by this new mysterious enemy called the Xindi.
The third season would be a continuing story as the crew race to save Earth. It had massive balls with Archer going against everything he believed in to ensure the mission succeeds, Trip’s breakdown over the murder of his sister and T’Pol becoming addicted to Trellium D.
It also took the enemy in a new unexpected direction. The Xindi were not a singular species but a conglomerate of several species; the aquatics, the extinct avians, the humanoids/primates, the arboreals, the Insectoids and the reptiles. They have been lied to by interdimensional aliens called the sphere builders aka the Guardians. These aliens have built massive spheres all through the Expanse which generate matter and mind altering random anomalies. They can destroy a ship and at one point cause Archer to lose his long term memory in Twilight where the Xindi have reduced humanity to several thousand hiding refugees.
The sphere builders have convinced the Xindi council that Earth will wipe them out in the future and they must strike first. Degra, the humanoid that built the weapon has doubts as he wonders how many of the dead were children as his own third child died of a disease. However before Archer manages to convince them that the spheres will actually destroy the Expans leaving the Xindi dead and their space terraformed to allow the the sphere builders to live there, they are united in their decision to destroy Earth. They do not believe that their home will be turned into a transdimensional wasteland. As Archer points out later, the sphere builders, the Guardians, have not shown them where the new Xindi homeworld will be.
Commander Dolim leader of the reptilians is the most stoic in protecting their heritage against the humans. He picks one of his own men to pilot the first weapon that kills seven million, something he is proud of; a suicide mission. The reptilians are more powerful physically than humans and their hatred for them knows no bounds. In Carpenter Street Archer and T’Pol are sent back to present day Detroit by time agent and former crew member in the Temporal Cold War Daniels.
The reptilians have sent back a squad with the help of the sphere builders to take samples of all human blood types in order to release a virus that will destroy a percentage of the human race so they cannot destroy the Xindi in the future. It is certain Dolim has known about this operation and fully endorsed it. While Dolim believes his resilience is a testament to reptilian loyalty to the Xindi legacy, it actually shows how easily the sphere-builders can manipulate him. All they need to do is feed his fear about losing everything they hold dear and they will do anything to ensure their own interests are maintained even if that means the genocide of an entire species. Nor does he have any qualms about murdering any Xindi that waver in the face of killing all humans. They are not held back by doubts like Degra is. Dolim is ensuring that no children of the reptilians or any of the other Xindi are killed under the heel of human brutality.
In Twilight we see what happens when the Xindi weapon succeeds in destroying Earth. All human colonies are wiped out by the Xindi forces leaving just a few thousand in hiding. The Xindi have been relentless in eradicating the humans while keeping peace with the likes of the Vulcans and Andorains.
There is no doubt Dolim led these forces keeping his promise to kill all humans no matter where they were. In Azati Prime Archer goes to face the Xindi and plead his case. Daniels showed him the future where the Xindi are part of the Federation and fighting the treacherous sphere builders. He gives Archer a Xindi badge from the future that will sway them to his cause that the sphere builders have lied all along. Tortured and beaten, Archer manages to persuade the other council members that he is telling the truth and finally the pieces begin to fall into place to the Xindi about the sphere builders. All that is but Dolim who has ordered an all out attack on the Enterprise. In a stunning sequence and cliffhanger, the Enterprise is reduced to a damaged hulk with critical losses. Dolim’s brutal treatment and questioning of Archer brings the other Xindi to stand against Dolim’s methods and override his orders. His assurances are dismissed as his previous behaviour has shown otherwise. This defiance only fires Dolim’s determination to destroy Earth. He sees his fellow species falling under the influence of Archer especially Degra but Dolim refuses to believe the evidence shown to him which even carbon dating proves is genuine. The false future shown to him by the sphere builders is one step closer to happening. It is not surprising Dolim fears it and will do whatever he takes to save his society.
He murders Degra for treason and takes control of the launch of the weapon. Dolim defies the other council members and launches the weapon. He steals Hoshi (Linda Park) from the Enterprise to use her linguistic abilities to complete the weapon’s codes. Again her treatment shows Dolim’s brutality as she is nearly mentally fried. He orders her operated on seeing her strong will as something of a challenge to be conquered. She is injected with parasites that will reconfigure her brain and Dolim actually thanks her for her assistance before she spits in his face. Dolim is a master strategist and with the insectoids on his side, his plan is close to succeeding. The reptilians are as ruthless in battle as he Jem’Hadar were in Deep Space 9. They will stop at nothing to succeed. He has risked civil war between the Xindi without a care for the consequences. It is something he throws in the sphere builder’s face when he challenges her just how convenient her ability to see timelines are whenever it suits her. Despite his suspicions given Archer’s evidence, Dolim is still intent on his mission. It seems by his very nature he covers all bases regardless of other Xindi’s voices.
With such seething hatred for humans and especially Archer, Dolim is on board the weapon as it finally comes in range of Earth while the captain sabotages the weapon before it can fire. Facing an enemy like Dolim brings to the surface in Archer his own base urges. He can no longer maintain a Starfleet standard while fighting Dolim. They go hand to hand but Dolim is bigger and more powerful than his human foe. The fight is bloody and brutal but Dolim’s arrogance quickly dissolves as he realises he has underestimated Archer. The captain cannot defeat the reptilian with force so slips a magnetic bomb on his armour. Dolim is blown apart moments before his moment of glory realising that his glory is now like him; in pieces.
Scott McDonald played Dolim and has appeared in Deep Space 9’s first season as Tosk (Captive Pursuit), a Romulan, a Jem’Hadar and was able to appear with no makeup in Voyager’s pilot, Caretaker. While Tosk is his most sympathetic role in Star Trek and a great partner for Miles O’Brien, Dolim is the most ruthless of all. But every villain is more than just a one dimensional character. Dolim is just someone that is protecting everything he holds dear and being a being of duplicity and doubt, he sees it everywhere. Even when the evidence indicates otherwise, there is still a chance things could go wrong. He sees anything that can derail his plans as interference and if necessary blow it out of existence before it impairs him. As we learn throughout the season, there was a great war in which the reptilians lost their homeworld and saw the airborne avians as their brothers. Dolim has always believed the reptilians should have been the dominant species in Xindi culture so he is pleased the sphere builders have chosen them to carry out the destruction of Earth. With that world destroyed the reptilians will head a brand new Xindi empire led by Dolim. Plus any species that eats mice live is never ever to be trusted; yes I’m talking to you Diana and co over at V the mini series.
Dlim was a great villain especially in one of the most pivotal and successful seasons of Star Trek. It’s a fitting he died as any return would have eventually diminished the power of his status as one of the best villains in Star Trek history.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright BBC
If you think that fandom is divided these days over Doctor Who, then you should have been there in the 80s. Compared to then what is happening now is a tea party.
Back then fans did not like where the show was heading, they hated Colin Baker’s outfit and there were fanzine campaigns, some quite personal against people involved in making the show both behind and in front of the camera. Even the BBC controller Michael Grade hated the show and wanted it gone. The claims that the show was becoming kid unfriendly and too violent was as we know now bullshit so the first cancellation was quickly changed to a hiatus to revamp the show. But as we now know the producer John Nathan Turner was forced to stay at the helm of Doctor Who. He was the one forced to sack Colin Baker from the role of the Doctor making him the scapegoat for failing ratings. The Trial of a Timelord was going to fail no matter what. This sea of hate was ridiculous and confined to one section of fandom.
When Bonnie Langford was brought in as new companion Melanie Bush, the fans went mental. Her introduction had never been done before and her reputation as a former child star was all certain people could see.
She was unfairly dissed by fandom at the time as another example of John Nathan Turner’s predilection for star names in the show. Rumours say JNT wanted a red-haired companion and Bonnie fitted the role. However a lot of JNT’s ideas are used today. Bottom line was the BBC didn’t want the show any more. Ironic given it is one of their biggest money makers. It just shows if the wrong man is at the top of an organisation that doesn’t like you then you’re screwed.
Bonnie was not given a chance at all by certain very vocal fans, which at the time I thought was pathetic and I still do. Indeed she and Sylvester McCoy went on Open Air to be told by some spotty teenage Doctor Who fans the show sucked.
Actions like this only harm the show and helped executives to end it once and for all (almost). When fandom and certain individuals think their opinion matters in the making of the show it’s time to tell them where to go and that unfortunately was what Bonnie wandered into. I remember the late Barbara Windsor being hurt at the late Leslie Grantham’s comments at her casting as Peggy Mitchell which was not good as it knocked the reality of the show. As Babs said, she’s an actress that needs to earn a crust and Bonnie was the same. By the way, a webcam ended Leslie’s time on EastEnders and Babs went on to leave a successful reign in EastEnders in a blaze of glory and sensational storyline. Not bad for someone that affected the “reality” of the show.
One of the spotty teenagers on Open Air was future showrunner Chris Chibnall. Jump forward to today and how things have changed. Chibnall is universally hated for his piss poor era and Bonnie is back gaining a new generation of fans as the 21st century Mel.
Bonnie was a veteran of stage and screen with an exemplary CV at a young age and a victim of one of her roles – which I’m not going to mention as everyone knows it – and it’s not fair to be labelled just for that one role. Fandom can be so blinkered and narrow-minded when it comes to actors because that’s what they are – actors! Thank God that sort of fandom has been pushed to the background by a new generation of open-minded fans. They are still there, licking their wounds, but since Stephen Moffat has stated he would cast anyone if they suited the role, virtually vindicating JNT’s policy of putting well known people in his era. Remember Nicholas Parsons as the vicar in the classic story Curse of Fenric? He was known as a game show host but had a substantial movie resume and he absolutely shone in the Fenric arc. Watch it for yourself. Nuff said!
Bonnie had an unusual entrance for a companion. She was first seen in a future adventure where it was established she had been travelling with the sixth Doctor for a while. Her background was that she was a computer genius from Pease Pottage who first met the Doctor when the Master tried to commit some scheme and she saved the day with her skills earning her the chance aboard the Tardis. Mel was a health nut trying to help the Doctor get fit which echoed real life as Colin was losing weight to raise money for a cot death charity.
She was pulled out of time by the Master along with Sabalom Glitz to help with the Doctor’s defence to stop the Valeyard. She ended up back on the Tardis but sloppy writing did not make it clear if she continued from that point in time or had returned to her proper place in time so she could meet the Doctor again and let time flow as it should. Thankfully the BBC novels and Missing Adventures series sorted that plot point out for the sake of continuity. She was also one of the few that oversaw a regeneration when the sixth became the seventh.
Mel was a screamer, the first to have her pitch added to the cliffhanger to tie in with the theme music but she had, pardon the expression, balls. She and the Doctor had a great time together; her fitness element dropped quickly as they battled the Rani, Kroagnon in Paradise Towers – where she was almost eaten by cannibal pensioners – and killed by robot crabs and battled the Bannermen in a 1950s Butlins camp before deciding to leave in Dragonfire to travel with Sabalom Glitz. This strange last-minute departure made no sense character-wise but was necessary to make way for Ace. It had to do with behind the scenes negotiations and Bonnie decided to go.
This was resolved in the novel Head Games where it was revealed that the Doctor, having realised that Ace was part of Fenric’s trap, telepathically made Mel leave to protect her which she wasn’t happy about especially as she later died, shot to death in a future book.
However, like everyone else, she has been redeemed in both books and especially in the Big Finish audio stories where she is portrayed as the companion she should have been, even being tricked into working for Davros and together Mel and the sixth Doctor shine. Now fans love her.
Then in the Jodie Whittaker finale story Power of the Doctor Mel turned up with a host of other companions. It was the eve of the sixtieth anniversary and we knew that Mel would be returning to battle alongside Ncuti Gatwa’s 15th Doctor. Mel is now working for UNIT, recruited by Kate Stewart. When she meets the 14th Doctor it is beautifully underplayed. She hands him a file before he notices it is her. We get to hear that once Sabolom Glitz died after slipping on a whiskey bottle she decided to return to Earth. With her family dead, Kate brought her into the UNIT family alongside Ace and Tegan. She faces the Toymaker and becomes the one that brings the 15th Doctor into the world.
Mel is now an active agent working undercover to discover the secret of Susan Triad. It is Mel that makes the 15th Doctor run from Sutekh and saves them both from the dust of death. Along with Ruby and the Doctor, Mel enters the memory Tardis where she hugs the sixth Doctor’s coat. It is a nice moment reminding us where she started. But as Sutekh begins to possess her, it is a shock moment to see the lovable Mel an acolyte of Sutekh with her skull face. Mel is such a three dimensional character now but it shows that with the right writing Mel shines. She was always plucky nd brave and as part of UNIT, even more so now.
She is a fully fledged member of the Noble family, mad Aunty Mel. How lovely that it is Mel is the companion that bridges the generations and is able to be part of the 14th Doctor’s life even travelling with him again in the Tardis. You cannot underestimate just how vital that is given she is part of the group that is there to help the Doctor heal from all his trauma by being his family. She used to look after his physical health and now she is helping his mental health. That is lost for many fans who never really saw her tenure the first time round with the 6th Doctor.
Overall, Mel was a victim of politics, bad writing and full-of-themselves fandom but real fans gave her a chance and have come to adore her as her character was expanded and deepened in the plays. But now she is back, better than ever and proving that Mel is one of the most pivotal companions in all Doctor Who history. It’s wonderful to see her back nd kicking ass again.
Welcome back, Bonnie, this house always loved you and now everyone does. It’s about time.
Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Copyright
To honour the first anniversary of the death of actor Julian Sands we look back at the 1989 time travelling magic feature Warlock starring Richard E Grant as Redferne and Julian Sands as the titular Warlock along with Fame star Lori Singer as Kassandra. The Warlock has murdered Redferne’s wife and has been captured and sentenced to death. However Satan intervenes sending the Warlock forward to the 20th century to find the Grimoire, a book of great power which contains the name of God. If God’s true name is spoken backwards then all of creation will be unravelled allowing Satan to rise upon the Earth. Redferne and Kassandra race against time and across country to stop Hell from being unleashed on Earth.
Warlock is a great little movie that still stands the test of time. Sands and Grant as adversaries are pure magic. Sands’ voice is just smooth as silk as he murders his way across the country to find the book. Grant on the other hand with his thick Scottish accent is, switching from manic to the most human soul of all in a split second. His language is so charming and of his time that this fish out of water story makes for endless entertainment.
He is a passionate and emotional man driven by the grief of being a widower who has the chance to avenge his wife. More so when he learns of the Grimoire, the stakes are even higher. The initially skeptical Kassandra slowly realises that Redferne is their only hope and not a madman especially when she finds herself aging to death thanks to a Warlock spell. Now she must join forces with an ancient Scottish warrior in order to save not only herself but the entire world. While Kassandra starts off as a stereotypical character, all mouth and attitude, the further the movie progresses the more she moves beyond the stereotype and into a woman of action who can fight for herself. It is she who breaks the aging spell as she fights the Warlock. She now sees that the world is bigger than she thought and that it is something she just can’t ignore. In essence she ends up being the one that protects a very confused Redferne against 20th century idiosyncrasies. She has to get him over his fear of flying so they can locate the last piece of the Grimoire and keep him focused on the mission.
In return Redferne educates her in the ways of magic and how the Warlock operates. When they end up at a Mennonite farm, she learns that the farmers there know all about the ways of magic and have been waiting for the day the Warlock came to darken their door. Kassandra realises that this battle between good and evil has been going on all around her and through the centuries while the world trundled on with its McDonalds, MTV and staged chat shows that kept the human populace distracted. This is best shown when they find Redferne’s grave and it throws him. She does have a soft spot for Redferne but ultimately knows it will go nowhere as he must go back to his own time having avenged his late wife. Kassandra evolves from an eighties chick to a young woman that strides into the world with new eyes.
It is no wonder that Richard E Grant has been touted as and did play Doctor Who (in the animated Scream of the Shalka and Curse of the Fatal Death). He is utterly convincing as a mad Highlander in his pursuit of the Warlock. He is manic but this suggests that he has seen the full force of the Warlock’ evils somewhere in the past. One can only imagine how he found his wife’s body after the Warlock has murdered her. Their battle has clearly been going on for a while and see each other as mortal enemies. It is inconceivable to Redferne that the 20th century is not aware of the dark ways of the Warlock even though it is all around them. It is a relief to him when he finally meets the Mennonite family who are fully versed in the ways of magic. As a fish out of water, he is terrified of airplanes and cannot fathom how much women have changed from his century. He is a man of intense curiosity as well as faith. He queries why Kassandra needs to wear makeup as his wife was beautiful enough not to need such paint. You can tell he is a very simple living man with a deep compassion for others. When he learns that a boy has been murdered by what the locals believe is a coyote, he knows better. He finds the mother and tells her he grieves with her over her loss. Such is his demeanor, the mother confirms that her son was not baptised. Redferne emotes an air of comfort and reassurance that despite his strange clothes and manner of speaking the woman confirms such a personal detail to a complete stranger.
But such a hero needs an equally worthy enemy and that is the Warlock personified. Julian Sands made this role his own returning to the role in the Grantless sequel Armageddon. He is pure evil, promised to become the AntiChrist when reality is rewritten. Warlock will sit by the Devil’s hand. He has no care or compassion for anyone, just a desire to cause chaos wherever he goes in order to satisfy his own dark needs.
Visually he is striking. That angular face with brown eyes, immaculately dressed in ornate black with his long blond hair tied back in a ponytail is not the typical villain’s image. As Clive Barker would say he speaks eloquent evil, the deceiver. Blond hair is usually associated with the good guys but through his actions from the very beginning of the movie there is nothing good at all about the Warlock,
He murders and tortures as casually as you would pick up a apple from a grocery store shelf. He murders Kassandra’s room mate Chas before going to see a fake psychic. He watches her fake display of spirit channeling with mild amusement before Satan possesses her instructing the Warlock to assemble the Grimoire. Once done with her he pulls her eyes out, using them as compasses to locate the three parts of the book. Sands is so cool and collected when commiting such acts that he steals the show lighting up the screen. He and Grant are electric together in their battle scenes yet apart they both still hold their own.
Equally, he tortures as casually by cursing Kassandra with an aging spell and a glib turn of phrase like many stars of eighties movies.
Reportedly, Sands wanted to go even further with the wickedness of the character when he murders a boy so he can drain his body of fat. This will enable him to fly as the boy was not baptised. Sands wanted the audience to see him suck the fat from the dead body but it was deemed too much. The image alone of this conjured in the audience’s mind is enough to clue the audience into how sick he is. Imagine how easy children were as prey to him in the olden times without the trimmings of the 20th century. His unique British accent delivers the lines so eloquently that the poor kid has no idea what is going to happen to him. Even when he tells the boy that not all witches are females, he does so like a kindly stranger. But when Kassandra manages to bash nails into his footprints and cripple him, we see the demonic fury beneath his milky bar kid exterior. Similarly the Mennonite farmer is struck by the Evil Eye before she can shackle the monster and even threatens to cause a priest’s wife’s miscarriage if he does not get what he wants.
He is as determined as Redferne to accomplish his goal but not even a Warlock can survive salt. He underestimates Kassandra who fills her insulin pen with salt water and injects him in the neck causing him to burst into flame.
Warlock stands the test of time with great characters, a solid story and a solid story. It put Julian Sands on the super villain playing fields and together with Richard E Grant left us a great pairing right up there with Holmes and Moriarty. Magic.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright BBC
Ok, so I’ve held back from releasing this review just to see if my reaction is the same as other peoples’. Not that I have ever based my opinions on what others think; I’ve always been my own man and never a sheep but seeing the final episode of Ncuti Gatwa’s first season has left me kind of wrinkled.
The bottom line is that after the super first episode which climaxed in the reveal of God of Death Sutekh from the classic fourth Doctor story The Pyramids of Mars as the big bad, He Who Waits, was stunning. I have watched that cliffhanger over and over again all week so it was for me the midnight showing as usual.
And what we got was a lesson in the logistics of why bringing back such a powerful enemy is a bad idea unless you have an airtight story for his defeat. It’s also a lesson in how to completely kick an audience in the balls and leave them asking, “What was the point of that?” or “Is that it?”
I have been attacked as a hater of Doctor Who over the last while which is ridiculous. I have been a fan since 1971, been there through the wilderness years and suffered the Jodie Whittaker era unleashed on us by Chris Chibnall and am still here after all these years. One of my first memories is the Pertwee theme music coming on and me running upstairs to hide in my room I was so scared. I have two novel franchises, the Time Warriors (written as an alternative to Doctor Who because John Nathan Turner wouldn’t read my younger self’s handwritten script, books 9 and 10 coming soon) and Zombie Blues. I know how to write a story, I know what is exciting and story logic is paramount. So to bash views that dare to criticize the show and label genuine fans people haters is just indicative of fans that see no wrong in what they see and will just take anything that is shown. Don’t jump on a bandwagon, be brave enough to speak your mind. I’m here to keep the show alive and not let it drown under cliche and thoughtlessness.
Let’s get the good stuff out of the way.
Ncuti Gatwa is most definitely the Doctor. That gravitas I never saw in previous episodes was there finally when he first confronts Sutekh face to face. When he starts screaming in frustration as the universe falls, some have said that he seems to roar and scream a lot but in this instance as well as the ending of Dot and Bubble, it is justified.
The fact that Sutekh has always been with the Doctor ever since Pyramids of Mars is a fascinating one and every subsequent landing marked that world for death as the God of Death restored himself and evolved into what he has become now. That is a great concept. The Doctor is always racing towards things before they fade and die and living for those that they have lost along the way. Pure evil works best when it takes what is normal for us and precious to us and twists it to their own vile ends. The revelation that your travels and everything you stand for were in fact a prelude to total annihilation would break the Doctor. He celebrates the joy of the universe so to be its unwitting executioner tears at his soul. The Doctor began this journey healed and loving life even more than before but that pain is still very much alive under the laughter.
The acolytes of Sutekh were genuinely disturbing and that moment when Mel fell to Sutekh’s control was very well done. Bonnie Langford gave the performance of a lifetime as plucky Mel that urges the Doctor to run before falling to Sutekh’s will then dying. She is a tour de force. When she enters the memory Tardis and hugs the sixth Doctor’s coat is beautiful and made better with no dialogue. Her reaction alone sells it. It is nice to see the memory Tardis from Tales of the Tardis being used and got to notice even more relics from the past. The destruction of Earth as everyone is consumed by the dust of death is well done. dust of Death however is a dumb name. If Susan/Sutekh had said the breath of Sutekh then this worked better. Yes, it would have garnered some jokes about bad breath but the dust of death sounds like a crop dusting issue.
I loved the final UNIT attempt to destroy Sutekh before they were reduced to dust. Now that was a heroic fall but I really wanted Morris to be in the rest of the episode. We have to have him back asap. Indeed we need Donna, Ace, Tegan, Mel, Martha and whoever wants to come back under the UNIT banner now. Remember K9’s only down the road too along with the Sarah Jane gang.
Speaking of story logic and flow, the Empire of Death is sadly lacking leaving a poor end to all these weeks of questions and worries. Who is the boss the Meep spoke about that will come for the Doctor? Mrs Flood looking like an East 17 Christmas number one video? Come on! And her credibility is gone already. She told Cherry Sunday as Sutekh’s dust fell, that this was how her story ended but they all came back from the dead. She says the Doctor’s story will end in absolute terror; not believing it based on her performance so far.
Logic point 2: The Doctor still has many planets to visit so not all planets are dead. Mel points this out so how are they the last three people in the universe? The Doctor talks about the wake or web of his travels but if he hasn’t ben there then it can’t fall. If every planet has a Susan Triad on it, I’m sure she’s delighted to be on Gallifrey blowing dust for the craic with no one to kill. Pointless. Indeed when the planets come back, the Doctor mentions Spiridon which he visited in his third incarnation well before Pyramids of Mars so how was it destroyed and brought back? Similarly Peladon should be fine as again the third incarnation was pivotal to it.
Of course those clutching at straws will say he went back in an unseen adventure. Or he may have been everywhere but doesn’t know because all his past lives’ memories have been sealed inside the chameleon watch. Possibly but unlikely. If you go with that theory then it is just a lazy way to try and plug a plot hole that is as big as the moon. Even after the events of Logopolis and the Flux, the universe is still a big place with many unvisited places.
Logic 3: The Tardis has been blown up in the past and divided in The Giggle. In the fifth Doctor story Frontios the Tardis was ripped apart and put back together by the power of the Tractator Gravis. Where was Sutekh fitting into that? Did he jump to the 15th’s Tradis when it split in the Giggle? Why did he not save it and himself when it plunged into the Big bang in Castrovalva? The only thing that saved it then was jettisoning a quarter of the interior structure. I know this sounds like I am nit picking but when you present the idea that Sutekh has been part of the Tardis since his defeat then, no matter how cool an idea that is, it needs to make sense. In fact didn’t the Toymaker say that he had met the One Who Waits and didn’t tackle him? Did he see him stuck to the Tardis?
Logic 4: Sutekh is hung up on Ruby’s mother’s name? That’s why he won’t kill them? Piss off; he knows the Tardis inside out and every part of the Doctor’s life. Surely the chameleon watch hidden deep in the Tardis would be more of an allure for Sutekh? The Doctor is an infinite being thanks to the Timeless Children. His body and power gave rise to the Time Lord society. Isn’t he technically a god now? Finding that portal the child Doctor was first discovered at would be something that would prick a god’s curiosity? If Ruby’s mother was something special then we could go for that but she wasn’t. Far from it.
Logic 5: Sutekh was defeated by 740 of his fellow Osirans yet the Doctor uses a dog whistle and a leash? He was only beaten the first time by sheer luck, a two minute window that gave the Doctor time to send Sutekh forward to his death. That’s another thing; you can’t kill a God; trap them, fool them but death is not something they fear. I hear you cry the seventh Doctor blew up the Gods of Ragnarok but he didn’t. He blew up the circus they were operating from so they had no base here.
So to drag Sutekh through the vortex and bring the universe back to life was dumb. The ending of The Last of the Time Lords with everyone chanting the Doctor’s name made much more sense. Death plus death equals life? Okay.
Logic 6: The events of 73 Yards are the key to the identity of Ruby’s mother yet no one can remember it happening. How is that possible? Some will say the Tardis telepathic circuits but credulity is stretched here. Nicely tied in though to the distance of the Tardis perception filter. It is possible that Sutekh influenced those events so he could discover her identity. No, I don’t buy it either.
Logic 7: Ruby’s mother was pointing at the road sign to make sure her daughter was named Ruby? That could have been such a cool moment if done right. What if she had been pointing at Sutekh to warn the Doctor? That would have been better.
Logic 8: So the big Ruby mystery is that there is no mystery. What kind of slap to the audience is that? So Ruby making it snow is just something she can do. Wrong. In The Devil’s Chord, Maestro says that Ruby has a hidden song deep within her soul. It is a power that only the Oldest One has. Whatever is hidden in Ruby equals the Old One which also means that he was there the night she was born. it is enough to freak Maestro out. Inside Ruby is the power to fight Sutekh but apparently not. Given what we now know this makes no sense and comes across as a Poundshop Curse of Fenric reveal. That is how you do a god returning.
Logic 9: Ruby’s mother is just a human which means Ruby is a mutant that can make it snow. All she needs now is Storm and Professor Charles Xavier to turn up and recruit her. The power of belief was behind it all? Sorry but after investing eight weeks and a Christmas special all I can say is Fuck off. How lazy can you be and how quickly you will lose the few viewers you have who want good story telling.
Logic 10: Too twee an ending. Ruby gets her real mummy and daddy back and they all get on with Carla and Cherry happily ever after. Don’t get me wrong; I have seen this happen in real life and I am delighted when it does but this is too sugary to stomach. I love happy endings but ugh. All we need is Lassie.
Logic 11: Why does he keep telling people he’s the last of the Time Lords? He has number 14 living with the Nobles, daughter Jenny out there at least part Time Lord and unbeknownst to him the Master. Now if you say but he’s the Doctor so when he refers to himself as the last then he sees 14 and he as one being. Really? Then why did he refer to his fourth incarnation and Sarah Jane as just people who travelled in the Tardis. Sarah jane was never just a person to him.
Now Ruby leaves the Tardis and the Doctor is devastated. Some have said he literally throws her off the Tardis like she never mattered but look again. All through this season we have family mentioned. The Doctor believes that he has at last found his granddaughter Susan only to find it is part of Sutekh’s lie. He is devastated but just as he cannot be with Rose he cannot be part of this family reunion because it hurts too much. Once again the Doctor gets no reward for saving everyone again except loneliness. He can only watch happiness from the sidelines. He can never be truly happy. It hurts to say goodbye which is a nice throwback to when the fourth Doctor made Sarah Jane leave the Tardis when he was summoned home by the Time Lords. That was so underplayed to be magic. It’s also interesting to note that the Doctor tries to persuade Ruby not to go talk to her mother because he knows he will lose her if she does.
if only some of the rumours had been true and executed; Sean Pertwee would play the 3rd Doctor because of UNIT’s secret time window. That Ruby would have turned out to be the Doctor’s great great granddaughter because it was Susan that was the mysterious woman in the hooded cloak on Christmas Eve. Since this season was rechristened season one, it would have been poetic and a beautiful symmetry to 23rd of November 1963 to have the Doctor travel with a granddaughter once again. Given Carole Ann Ford is the last surviving member of the original cast this would have been the perfect opportunity to do this given we lost William Russell a couple of weeks back. A wasted opportunity that went down the happy family road lined with manure.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright Amazon Prime
I think I can safely say that there isn’t a man alive that left this episode without cradling his junk. It wouldn’t surprise me that afterwards many spent a long time caressing and comforting their wee man like a pet that has nearly gotten run over by a car.
We still have four episodes to go but Wisdom of Ages stands out as being the Empire Strikes Back of the entire season. No one comes out of this well . Mother’s Milk who is trying to hold everything together as things fall collectively apart. Even his and Butcher’s blackmail attempt on Firecracker fails when she reveals it herself. She manages to turn having sexual relations with a minor into a God given mistake just like the real life Evangelical preachers caught cheating on their spouses. It is a real echo of life that bad guys can so easily can make the good guys look bad to shine their own haloes. Again the fact people believe it without question is the real world.
Starlight’s biggest secret is televised by Firecracker and it isn’t about the childhood bullying. The Homelander folks have been portraying her as a child abuser so when Firecracker reveals Starlight’s abortion to the world then it is a step too far. Starlight pummels her to within an inch of her life in front of the cameras but it seals the rumours of her dark side and she loses her political allies. The Starlight movement crashes down.
Frenchie reveals his secret to Colin who rejects him leavng him a broken heap on the floor. Hughie makes a deal with A Train for Compound V to save his father’s life who suddenly shows signs of life. There is something not right with Hughie’s mother but we shall see. A Train risks all as the only place he can get it is Homelander’s apartment. In another mirror dance gorgeous piece of writing, Ashley and Kimiko discover what is going on. Ashley is also cracking, The only thing she can do is shit in Homelander’s toilet and not flush it but keeps A Train’s secret while Kimoko goes spare at Hughie. She has her own issues as she is faced with a dark secret from her past. Butcher asks Mother’s Milk to raise Ryan once he dies. Every performance sings off the screen as their lives crumble around them and the world sees them as the bad guys. However the uneasy alliance that forms betwen A Train and Hughie gives us hope in all this darkness. There are all these broken pieces on both sides yet none can come together to formualte a plan to destroy Homelander.
But this episode belongs to Homelander. I’ve been a fan of Anthony Starr since Banshee. Here Homelander sinks to his lowest and we see exactly what the world has in store if he has his way. This is a performance that is so dark and deranged that I couldn’t help but see shades of Heath Ledger’s Joker. While the Boys goes dark constantly this is a level that makes the audience recoil in shock.
And I mean shock.
We have seen him laser a woman’s brains out last week for just admitting she spoke to Starlight but when he returns to the Vought secret lab where he was raised and meets the people that raised him there again, it is an abject lesson into the mind of a psychopath. He has been traumatised as a child and never dealt with it so after his breakdown at the end of last week’s episode, it is time he began getting rid of these issues that haunt him.
You know something bad is coming when Homelander arrives in the lift totally calm and pleasant bearing an ice cream cake. He demands that Barbara, the big boss of Vought’s lab, come join the reunion while he reminisces with two of the men that raised him. Frank and Marty are his main targets.
Homelander begins his revenge by challenging Frank to a game of waste paper basketball. Frank used to play this while he put young Homelander into the furnace to see what effect it had on him. Homelander tells him it hurt his skin and he screamed in agony as Frank completely ignored his suffering with a game of waste paper basketball. He puts Frank in the furnace and burns him alive in front of everyone with a smile and threat that his family will burn if he refuses.
Marty’s death is even more sadistic. he had a nickname for Homelander, Squirt. It came from Marty catching the boy masturbating hence squirt and belittling him. Homelander insists Marty jerk off in front of everyone so they can laugh at him. Starr jumps between nice and shimmering threat effortlessly. When he lasers Marty’s genitalia off piercing a hole right through him every man in the world held his wee man protectively. Starr deserves an Emmy for this. His performance is terrifying.
When Barbara arrives she forces Homelander to face some home truths. Homelander could have broken out of the lab any time he wanted. He didn’t because he craved their love and attention. It was a love that was corrupted and why he has such issues with relationships now. Thematically Hoelander is a victim f child abuse which makes him a multilayered character even in this horror. He craves love so much ot is like a drug even though he denies it. So to that end Homelander reminds Barbara of the Bad Room where he suffered through all their tests. As the episode closes the full fury of Homelander is done off screen. All we see is the aftermath with the walls smeared with the bloody remains of the staff and Barbara standing traumatised in the middle of it.
Homelander takes the lift out again covered in blood and guts.
We are left to only imagine the deaths he gave the others given how sadistic he was to Marty and Frank. This is the turning point of the series, the episode where Homelander becomes the personification of the Devil himself. This is the best piece of drama I have seen all year. I will watch again because the nuances of the storytelling and performances are beautifully subtle.
To make your audience squirm, recoil in terror, laugh and end the show with a stiff drink is the mark of great storytelling. Just bloody brilliant.
For a long time people slagged off the final years of classic Doctor Who but in reality, the final two seasons of the McCoy era brought stories that stand head and shoulders above a lot o the tripe of the new era. The Curse of Fenric is one such example because it weaved together horror, sci fi, myth and an enemy we didn’t even know existed in to an epic that had so much material it was released as a special on DVD.
The Curse of Fenric is the quintessential Doctor Who story. It incorporates so many themes like growing up, regret, parental issues, the fallout of war, vampires, faith and environmental issues. Ace met the Doctor when she was caught in a time storm that brought her to Ice World and a new life aboard the Tardis. Doctor Who is full of silly notions and a time storm is one of them and at first glance a plot device but Fenric will show that we have been duped all along.
Against the backdrop of invading Russians infiltrating a British base for the Ultima machine designed to break German codes while barnacled covered vampires rise from the deep, we discover that the Doctor has been manipulated by an ancient enemy he trapped centuries ago in a chess match. Now the Wolves of Fenric have been gathered including the base commander Millington, Dr Judson, its staff, the Russians and Ace herself in a trap to free Fenric from his chains to take revenge on the Doctor.
The wheelchair bound Judson has been trying to break the codes with the machine but instead has inadvertently released Fenric from his prison to face the Doctor again. Even though the Doctor knew Ace was part of his plan the minute he heard about the time storm, he took her on as a companion to keep her close and work out Fenric’s plan. But despite all this by the climax of the third episode, the vampires are swarming the base, people are dying and the Doctor is helpless to stop what is coming. A storm lashes the countryside and lightning strikes the out of control Ultima machine electrifying Judson where he sits. His nurse tries to help but the Doctor holds her back. Millington is quoting legend as he claims the chains of Fenric are broken. Ace thinks he is the new host body but with a look of fear, the mentally unstable Millington looks over the Doctor’s shoulder.
In a beautiful piece of direction, the Doctor faces the camera in a sickly yellow light as a possessed Judson gets to his feet. His eyes flick open burning with fire. His face is hard as rock as he simply states, “We play the contest again…Time Lord.”
The impact of this cliffhanger is as strong today. The audience is left in agony. What game? Who is Fenric and what contest is he talking about? And how the hell does he know the Doctor is a Time Lord? An awesome cliffhanger for a timeless classic.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
{hotos copyright Metro Goldwyn Mayer
I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.
I guarantee that fans of the current version of Westworld do not realise where the idea originated. Future Jurassic Park writer Michael Crichton conceived and directed this movie where man again messes up with his hubris around technology. Humanity has created these machines in his own image and programmed them to think and act as they dictate. However as God discovered you cannot control the nature of a thing even nonliving ones and nature will always find a way as Jurassic Park showed. Humityan is flawed by his own arrogance and base nature so therefore anything he creates with his image and nature will also be flawed.
WestWorld is the ultimate adult fantasy as you can live in any era and interact with perfect doubles of humans. You can travel to Rome or be part of medieval England or as we discover. the Wild West. Paying guests can kill at will and indulge in debauchery with the robots which makes the whole idea of WestWorld a little uncomfortable. Instead of a static sex doll, you now have one that reacts to your every deviant wish. If you kill one it is taken away for repair and released back into the simulations. Here two men, Blane (Josh Brolin) and Martin (Richard Benjamin) pay for the western scenario. Their foe is the Gunslinger portrayed by legendary actor Yul Brynner of the King and I and The Magnificent Sevenfame.
The character of the all in black gunslinger is based on his role as Chris in the Magnificent Seven. However something is wrong with the robots and they begin to kill everyone in sight.
The Gunslinger is a prototype Terminator. He never stops, says only the few words he has been programmed with and is hard to kill. In the original scenario, Martin kills the Gunslinger as part of the paying scenario. It is all part of the story they have paid for stroking their egos which are neglected in real life. Here they are big names in the Wild West, unstoppable and rogue mavericks. The Gunslinger simply pops up the following day ready to do it all over again. His programming makes him allow the human guests to shoot first to complete the story.
However this glitch spreads quickly. Blane takes his turn against the Gunslinger but this time is shot dead. Martin then runs but it is a game of cat and mouse now with the Gunslinger in pursuit. Brynner is electrifying as the Gunslinger, his expression impassive as he hunts down the humans. He is only carrying out his programming as dictated to by the human creators. As Westworld allows the indulgence of human vices, the Gunslinger is only continuing these behaviours by shooting guests in cold blood. That is the nature he has been given so in a way he is not a villain but a victim of human folly and hubris. The robots are not evil but helpless victims of human stupidity.
The Gunslinger brefly pops up in the sequel Futureland and makes an even briefer cameo in the short lived, very short lived, my God, so quick you missed it Westworld television series. His weakness lies within the materials he has been built with and Martin is forced to set fire to him. While his programming keeps the charred shell going, his mechanics cannot withstand it and it collapses dead, beyond repair.
One of the iconic moments that cements the Gunslinger in audience memories, is when the Gunslinger’s face is knocked off to reveal the robotcs beneath. Yul Brynner was a seriously handsome man so to see his exotic features masking circuits and fake eyes is a shocker, Indeed this image was carried on in the Bionic Woman and Six Million Man when they battled the Fembots and Robot Maker respectively. Doctor Who did it in the Android Invasion and Austin Powers had his own Fembot enemies. But every time we saw the faces fall off, all we could think of was the Gunslinger.
So track down the original Westworld and see for yourselves and glory in the original Terminator.
By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues
Photos copyright BBC
So here it is; the penultimate episode of the season where we are promised answers to Ruby’s identity and the reveal of the Big Bad. He Who Waits is coming and judging by the trailers, the Earth is up against it this time for real. We have faced the gods Toymaker and his daughter Maestro. As far back as the Meep we knew there was someone waiting to face the Doctor, someone that scared even the Toymaker.
Now while we didn’t get to find out who Ruby’s mother was (at least not this time, maybe the finale), we did discover who the Big Bad was. Did you figure it out? Did you click on that the Devil’s Chord told us who it was? did you figure the same episode laid out a huge red herring for us to distract us? I didn’t until we were almost there and realised we had already been told. I said in my review of The Devil’s Chord that the scene where the Doctor shows a devastated Earth if they leave Maestro to her devices was a lovely throwback to the fourth Doctor story, the Pyramids of Mars. There, the Doctor faced the same question from Sarah jane as to why they didn’t just leave because they knew the world didn’t end.
Earth was a husk and now we know why it was done. But before we get to that we have to look at the rest. So the mysterious woman that keps appearing is in fact solved in the first minutes of the story. She is Susan Twist head of S Triad Technology about to launch a free software upon th world in a matter of hours. Of course, it is an anagram of Tardis and UNIT has been watching her for the last two months. New scientific adviser Morris Gibbons, a genius 13 year old who had an encounter with an asteroid, says it is almost certainly a trap. We love Lenny Rush and we want to see him back. In fact he needs a trip in the Tardis. Morris fits right in and looks like he has been there forever regardless of his Segway. Plenty of room on the Tardis for that.
Harriet, the new head of the archive helps with the Ruby mystery. Rose Noble is back and she is very welcome. But the problem is the only Susan the Doctor knows with knowledge of Tardis tech is his granddaughter that he left behind in the 22nd century after the Dalek Invasion of Earth.
It seems the big bad is the Doctor’s own family. Now to be honst I never fell for that one. It didn’t make sense. Unless Susan was possessed and transported through time then she would never turn on her grandfather. Add to that when Paul McGann returned in the Night of the Doctor he mentioned all of his companions from his Big Finish adventures. He wishes them all well before taking the regeneration potion. Technically that made them all canon. The problem with that is that he returned to battle the Daleks once again with Susan and his new great grandson, Alex. Alex along with Lucie Miller were killed. But did she die in the Time War or was she protected? Watching the Doctor being afraid of facing his lost granddaughter again and potentially having to put her down was great to watch. The Doctor and Kate share a beautiful moment where they discuss the Brigadier and family. It is compelling how the Doctor sees himself in comparison to others.
Ncuti’s Doctor fits right in with UNIT and his delight at seeing an undercover Mel working alongside Susan adds to the character compared to poor Rose who only gets to watch shoplifters in Catford.
But the Doctor has a second use for UNIT. They need to find out who Ruby’s mother is. Using an old video cassette and a time window that the Doctor forbid UNIT to create they are able to recreate the past in a simulation type environment but cannot see who Ruby’s mother is. But things keep changing as something else arrives in the simulation, a cloud of fire, dark and billowing. When a soldier is killed inside the time window it is the start of the reveal.
Whatever it is has woven itself to the Tardis itself and cannot be seen by the naked eye. The mysterious groans we have heard are in fact the baddie. But who is it? How is it connected to Mrs Flood who suddenly changes from a nice chatty neighbour to a spectral wraith with Ruby’s bedridden grandmother trapped in the flat as a storm billows over the city? I’ve been a fan of Anita Dobson since her Angie Watts days and still have her signed Angie official Eastenders photo. Is Mrs flood a part of Susan Triad or something else? Is she a servant of ….? Well let’s not say the Big Bad’s name just yet.
The Doctor and Mel are facing Susan Triad while Ruby remains at UNIT with Rose. The reveal is brilliantly done on two fronts. By the ay did you notice the Master reval music from Utopia when Ruby enters the time window again? Another thing to throw us off. Kate demands the invisible being that has been attached to the Tardis all this time show itself. The black cloud solidifies while Susan falls to her knees. The autocue screens fill with Susan’s words as Harriet in UNIT recites some kind of ancient text. The god are named as He Who Waits reveals himself.
The reveal to the 15th Doctor is as powerful as Fenric’s reveal to the seventh Doctor. The phrase “It was the wrong anagram” will go down in history. Sue is short for Susan and add that to tech the big bad shows himself. Perched aboard the Tardis is a huge anubis type creature.
Sutekh, last of the Osirans, the god of death, is back.
Harriett’s surname is Harbinger who is a servant of Sutekh and whirls round on Kate, her face part skull. Ruby is trapped inside the time window in 2004 in a snowstorm with her mother. Susan begins remembering all the places the Doctor has seen her before being turned into a terrifying skull creature that dissolves people by touch. This is pure horror especially the nice touch of the creaking bones as Susan moves. The Doctor and Mel are helpless as Sutekh manifests once again promising to bring the gift of death to all humanity. Sutekh is once again voicedd by Gabriel Woolf and his voice is still as terrifying as it was back in the original. He is now in his nineties and it really is a thrill to have him back.
That was a great cliffhanger and beautiful red herring placement . Gatwa’s terror at Sutekh’s return is brillaint. The only other thing I would have done is when he tells Mel to get back from Susan, he should have yelled it to betray his absolute terror, not just said it. Somehow Sutekh has played the long game. he latched onto the Tardis having survivd death and planned. Sutekh deliberately lured the Doctor and his allies in by playing on the family connection and he fell for it. Now the god of death is manifest, all the terror of Pyramids of Mars floods back to the Doctor. He barely beat this enemy before and just by the skin of his teeth. By throwing Sutekh into an eternity corridor he thought him long dead; not even Osirans live forever.
Things are grim. The Doctor is helpless. Sutekh reigns supreme again. There is no next time trailer but all we know is that the Doctor nd Mel speed through London on a motorbike. The city of London is consumed by a massive billowing cloud so how is this going to end? Tune in next week. For now I need to go lie down.
The Time Warriors and Beyond 