Collector's Dream 2 - Action Comic

I can't recall a time when I haven't read comics.

Some of my fondest early memories are of trips to my grandparents in Suffolk, where I would beg to visit the newsagents, so I could root around in the cardboard box of old comics he kept - five for ten pence. Copies of Buster, Cor!, Whizzer and Chips, The Beezer, Shiver and Shake. Monster Fun...

Actually I need to do a separate post on Monster Fun, as I remember liking that one a lot.

Anyway, I bought as many as my pocket money would allow and devoured them avidly while laying on a rug in the garden during those endless school holiday summers we just don't seem to get any more.

There were occasional copies of TV Century 21, Countdown and the like. Maybe they were more expensive and I preferred to get more comics for my ten pence. Or maybe they were not that well distributed in my area. I can't really recall. I do remember seeing some of those early Doctor Who strips though.

I bought more comics at home through "jumble" sales (the precursor to today's boot sales). Comics sold in rolls of ten tied up with elastic bands. There was always a pile in the corner of my bedroom. In between all the books there were always comics.

But ultimately these were disposable entertainment. One or two page comedy strips with cartoon characters and no ongoing plot. There were a few adventure stories - General Jumbo, The Steel Claw and Adam Eterno perhaps (my memory may be getting timelines mixed up) but these tended to be all over in one issue. Who cared if they got ripped, or lost or coloured in with felt tip pens?

Then in February 1976, when I was almost nine years old, something came along that changed all that. "Action" comic had arrived.

Nowadays most UK comics fans know the genesis of Action, but I'll recap briefly.

The UK comics industry of the 1970's was pretty much dominated by two major companies - DC Thomson and Fleetway / IPC. Thomson were publishers of the Beano, Dandy and Beezer. IPC produced Buster, Whizzer and Chips, etc. I'm pretty sure that read more IPC comics than any others.

Although at this point we were 30 years on from the end of World War II, the conflict was still a big presence in people's minds. In 1974, DC Thompson released "Warlord" - an adventure strip comic for boys focussing on stories set during the war. It was a huge success.

In response, IPC tasked comics legends Pat Mills and John Wagner to create a rival comic - "Battle Picture Weekly". This was also enormously popular, and contained some strips now regarded as outright classics (although I didn't read the strips until much, much later, having no interest in an all-war comic at the time).

Wanting to capitalise on the success of "Battle", IPC decided they wanted something similar but with a more contemporary feel. Springing from Mills' mind against a   backdrop of social unrest in the UK and huge changes in fashion and music, it was revolutionary. This was a comic freely ripping off Hollywood with a unique British slant, pushing the boundaries and setting out to shock.

Of course at age eight I wasn't aware of any of this. All I knew was that "Action" was like a lightning bolt directly into my brain. Even now those early issue are indelibly stamped into my memory.

The movie and social influences are obvious in those first strips. "Dredger" was a British Dirty Harry. "Look Out For Lefty" included elements of football hooliganism which was a very hot topic at the time. "BlackJack" - the story of a black boxer who is in danger of losing his sight - actually prefigured "Rocky" by a good few months. "Hellman of Hammer Force" was a WWII story but with the Nazi major as the anti-hero. Then there was "Hook Jaw"...

Blatantly ripped off from "Jaws", Hook Jaw turned the gigantic man-eating Great White shark into the hero of the story, pitting him against corrupt or criminal humans looking to exploit the oceans. Illustrated in gory detail (often in glorious blood-soaked colour in the centre pages) Hook Jaw was the breakout star of Action, treating us mere mortals as nothing more than a food supply to be ripped apart.

A controversial inclusion right from the start, Mills had no problem with killing off as many humans as possible in as many grisly ways as possible, while maintaining an environmental undercurrent. What kid wouldn't love it? It was the talk of my playground.

In fact Mills kept pushing the boundaries, when in issue 31, Hook Jaw actually manages to kill the human 'hero' who has been pursuing him since issue one, leaving just his severed head...

I remember that panel so clearly. A real shocking cliffhanger.

As enjoyable as Hook Jaw was, it took until issue 13 for my own personal favourite story to turn up - the "Rollerball" inspired "Death Game 1999".

Set in a dystopian future (1999 seemed *such* as long way off to a young boy sat in 1976) the premise was that teams of criminals on death row or with life sentences competed in the ultra violent sport Spinball to try and win their freedom.

Spinball was a mash-up of ice hockey, motorcycle derby and insanely, pinball - with gigantic flippers and bumpers flinging steel balls at the poorly protected players at high speed. There was more than a hint of the ancient gladiatorial arena, with the bloodthirsty crowds hungry to watch the next poor soul be smashed in the face by a ball, or mangled under the spiked wheels of a roaring motorcycle.

They get their wish in the very first instalment, when 'Karson City Killers' Captain Al Rico attempts a 'Death Run' against the whole of the opposing team to get his coveted million points and a full pardon. Sadly his quest to gain the black pin results in him being crushed to a bloody pulp by one of the flippers against the wall of the Spinball-drome.

(some early Ian Gibson work there)

Meanwhile, washed up football star Joe Taggart is mistakenly accused of beating someone to death. Using his influence, corrupt Karson City governor Henry Smailes arranges for Taggart to be incarcerated at his prison, and coerces him into becoming the new leader of the Spinball team. Thus the stage is set for an epic battle of wills against a backdrop of a gory sport where death is an almost certainty.

Veteran writer Tom Tully cleverly layers the plot across several weeks as Taggart gradually builds a new squad and starts to win the respect of his fellow inmates - despite losing a few along the way in a number of savage games - all to further his goal of completing a Death Run and getting out of prison. Eventually Smailes realises that his star player is getting a little too popular with the fans and decides to bump him off.

Secretly, the governor has kept the hideously injured Al Rico on ice, and with the aid of the aptly named Doctor Jekyll, turned him into a rampaging hate-filled cyborg with only one mission - kill Joe Taggart!

Now you know how certain images will stick in your mind? Well that drawing above of the cyborg Rico smashing his way out of his cell positively haunted me for weeks. I felt uncomfortable looking at it, yet couldn't help but keep going back to the issue and taking another peek. It was probably one of my first experiences of the influential power of comics. Death Game 1999 was futuristic, violent, brutal and I loved every panel.

In the end, Action became a victim of it's own success at stretching the limits of what was possible in a British boys comic of the 1970's. The grim and gritty storylines and graphic violence (particularly in a strip called "Kids Rule OK") drew the attention of the media over the hot summer months. They went to town with lurid headlines like "Comic Strip Hooligans!", dubbing the comic "the seven penny nightmare". Doctor Who's deadliest enemy, the moral activist Mary Whitehouse, got involved and started a campaign to get Action banned.

Editor John Sanders faced an antagonistic interview abut the comic on an early evening news show on BBC1. Publishers IPC then began to get pressure from the main high street retailers ,who threatened to not only withdraw Action, but all IPC magazines from their shelves. Finally, after issue 36 had been published in October 1976, they caved in and pulled the comic from sale, pulping the next issue completely.

Now while I do recollect seeing the TV interview ("they're talking about my comic" I said to my parents), I knew nothing else about the drama going on behind the scenes. All I noticed was that when I rode my bike to the newsagents on that Saturday morning in October to get a newspaper for my dad, Action was suddenly no longer there to buy. I was slightly annoyed to say the least!

Eventually, five weeks later, Action did return to the shelves, but it was a shadow of it's former self. Scripts had been amended, violence reduced and gory deaths were non existent.To be honest I can't recall how much I noticed the difference, because my memories of that time are mixed up with what my adult self knows now about the changes. In any case, the neutered comic limped on for another 12 months before merging with "Battle".

One thing that I do remember though is that Death Game 1999 wrapped it's storyline up incredibly quickly in four short pages, changing it's name in the process to the less objectionable "Spinball" (followed by "Spinball Slaves" and "Spinball Wars"). Although markedly less violent, the successor strips are at least notable for featuring early work by Massimo Bellardinelli and later some simply superb illustrations by Ron Turner:

Action may have been castrated, but it's legacy was huge - both in the industry and with me personally. I would never be satisfied with simple old humour strips again. I wanted adventure comics - the more SF flavoured the better. Luckily, in a few short months I would get my wish - Pat Mills had taken the lessons he learned from the Action controversy and applied them to his next comic launch - a title that looked to the future for it's inspiration.

2000 AD was coming...

Shock Treatment: The Stage Musical

If you have any interest in "cult" theatre, film and television, then I'm sure you are already aware of the phenomenon of "The Rocky Horror Show". It's one of the most popular musicals of all time - an outrageously camp classic. Even more people are probably familiar with the film version thanks to the career-defining performance from Tim Curry as Frank-N-Furter. The most famous song, "The Time Warp" has seeped into the public consciousness to such a degree that it's played at parties and weddings all over the world. Personally I've seen the stage show about a dozen times and the film over a hundred.

What a lot of people won't know is that creator Richard O'Brien (for those of a certain age forever the host of "The Crystal Maze" game show) wrote a musical "sequel" to "Rocky Horror" - and it's really rather good.

"Shock Treatment" was released into cinemas in 1981. All-American couple Brad and Janet Majors re-appear, while O'Brien and other well-known actors from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" portray new characters.

The plot? Well, although it's supposedly set several years after the climactic events of "Rocky Horror", it's not exactly a sequel -  more of an "equal". I'll try to give you a brief (ish) summary:

"Shock Treatment" sees Brad (Cliff De Young) & Janet's (Jessica Harper) entire home town of Denton (USA)  turned into a 24-house reality TV station under the control of the mysterious Farley Flavors. With their marriage suffering, the hapless couple are chosen to try and resolve their difficulties on live TV as contestants on "Marriage Maze", hosted by (supposedly) blind Austrian Bert Schnick (Barry Humphries).

Janet is tricked into believing that Brad has physiological problems and that committing him to the "Dentonvale" insane asylum  - under the dubious care of Doctors Cosmo and Nation McKinley (Richard O'Brien and Patricia Quinn) - will be the only way to save him. Cosmo has Brad drugged, bound and gagged, and placed in a padded cell.

The enigmatic Farley Flavors plans to use the power of Denton television to create a new type of entertainment - "Faith Factory" - with Janet as the perfect "girl next door" face of his psychological reality show. Janet is persuaded that this new exciting life will make her desirable to Brad again. Cosmo also designs a sexy new outfit for her, transforming her into "Miss Mental Health".

Manufactured into an overnight sensation, the fame goes to Janet's head, causing her to forget about repairing her marriage with Brad. With her ego out of control, the McKinley's drug her to keep her manageable.

Meanwhile, Judge Wright (Charles Gray) and Betty Hapschatt (Ruby Wax), look into the histories of Farley and the McKinleys, suspecting that there is a sinister motive behind "Faith Factory." Hacking into DTV's computer system, Betty learns that the Doctors are in fact just character actors and that Brad isn't in a real hospital at all. It's all a sham.

"Faith Factory" goes on the air with Janet front and centre in her drugged state. In disguise, Judge Wright and Betty break Brad out of "Dentonvale". It transpires that Farley is really Brad's long lost twin brother, who wants to destroy Brad's life and seduce Janet out of jealousy. Brad finally confronts Farley face-to-face about his plans and at the last moment Janet snaps out of her ego-trip and comes to her senses.

Angrily, Farley has them all arrested, and convinces the entire population of Denton (the studio audience) to join him in Dentonvale asylum, to which they readily agree!

Brad, Janet, Betty and the Judge escape out of the deserted studio and the town itself, leaving Denton far behind, but with their hopes and ideals intact...

The film is full of outlandish quirky performances (including one from a very young Rik Mayall) and O'Brien's trademark catchy songs  - such as "Bitchin' In The Kitchen", "Little Black Dress", "Looking For Trade" and "Duel Duet".  It's also a biting satire on the public obsession with television and eerily predicts the rise of reality shows.You can listen to the whole sensational soundtrack here -

The film should have been a resounding success. It deserved to be. Instead it flopped badly - even more than Rocky Horror did. It never got a proper commercial release and was consigned to the trashcan of history, only fondly remembered by fans (including the BBC's own film critic, Mark Kermode). Apart from the DVD release and the occasional midnight screenings, that was it for Brad and Janet. Until now...

You see, this post isn't really about the movie version of Shock Treatment, as fabulous as that is. All of the above is just a preamble (and necessary backstory) to my trip to see the brand new first-time-ever stage show.

That no one has attempted to do a stage version of Shock Treatment before now is baffling. Perhaps Richard O'Brien was just waiting for the right moment? I have read that he gave Tom Crowley the rights to adapt it with the proviso that it only be performed at a small independent theatre - much like Rocky Horror's humble beginnings at Upstairs at the Royal Court.

The chance to see this possibly once in a lifetime event was too good to miss. So, at midnight on a Friday at the beginning of May 2015, myself and friend Betsy Chevron (of 'Binro Was Right' podcast fame) found ourselves at the King's Head Theatre in the London borough of Islington.

And the King's Head *is* small. Tucked away in the back room behind the bar of the pub, it's apparently the first and longest operating pub theatre in the UK. Fighting our way through the hordes of late night drinkers, we entered this compact space to find just a few rows of seats and a tiny stage. It must only hold around 60 people at best and the performance area is level with the audience. In fact we were in the front row and felt that we were *on* the stage. If I had stretched out my legs I would have tripped the performers up!

Two orange boiler suited TV minions in dark glasses welcomed us, making sardonic quips and getting everyone seated. The four piece band squeezed into the corner started up the Overture and the lights went down...

Now the very nature of creating a theatrical performance instead of a film has meant that  there have had to be some changes made to the story. Gone is the reveal of Farley Flavors as Brad's twin brother (which would have been impossible to pull off unless you had real twins available). Also absent are ancillary characters such as Bert Schnick, the Judge, Janet's parents and Macy Struthers. It's a pared back story, a smaller cast and a simple layout - just one white set doubling as TV studio and asylum  - with clever use of a minimal plastic screen, some curtains and a "hospital stretcher". Despite these seeming limitations the core story is not lost at all and the cast fling themselves around with gusto.

The small setting also means that the show really interacts with the viewing public. Doctors Cosmo and Nation McKinley first appear from within the audience and at several points actors climb over the seats, dance up and down the short aisle, sing directly to individual people  and even sit on the laps of the lucky few at the front (not me sadly).

As for the cast? Well there are some fantastic performances throughout. I was already familiar with Julie Atherton from her time in Avenue Q (another tremendous subversive musical), so there were no concerns about her singing ability in the part of Janet Majors. She is charming as the dowdy wife and then really vamps it up in that oh so tight little black dress and the even tighter PVC nurses uniform - neither of which leave anything to the imagination.

Ben Kerr plays Brad well as the quiet, rather dull and dutiful husband. He has a good voice but I felt he was let down during "Bitchin' In The Kitchen' by some poor sound issues. It's a shame that he has very little to do during most of the show apart from pretend to be drugged in a wheelchair. Saying that, he does belt out a reprise of "In My Own Way" near the end while dressed in only white underpants and socks. Brave man.

With the dubious Doctors McKinley, they have wisely stayed away making them look like Richard O'Brien and Patricia Quinn, although there is a hint of Riff-Raff and Magenta in some of the delivery. Adam Rhys-Davies  and Nic Lamont are as wacky as you would expect, with a nice line in sarcastic put downs and innuendo laden commentary. I was fascinated by the way Cosmo twisted his lips when speaking and it was only later I realised that it reminded me of a cross between Timmy Mallett and Dame Edna.

Rhys-Davies also seemed to have a lot of fun in trying to make the other cast members laugh. There was a great scene where he is measuring Janet for her Little Black Dress and his hand is *way* up her skirt. Julie Atherton let out a small squeak. "Hand a little too high there?" Adam quipped,  and they both tried to stifle a giggle. He then continues to "see-saw" the tape measure back and forth between her legs, while Julie tried to control herself. "You'd better wash that afterwards..." she spluttered - at which point Adam proceeded to lick the length of the tape, before turning to the audience and declaring "Tell me you wouldn't !"

As Betty Hapschatt, Rosanna Hyland was principally there to move the plot along, although she was also charming and funny and gorgeous in equal measure. She does acquit her self admirably in the ensemble song and dance routines and I was treated to a little kiss at one point...

The stand out star of the show though is Mateo Oxley as Ralph Hapschatt. Yes, his performance is an outrageously camp caricature, but it's never anything less than hilarious. With his rubber face and superb comic timing, he gets many of the nights best laughs. Ralph also has a much larger musical presence now, with a couple of big numbers - "Thank God I’m A Man" and "Breaking Out" - to himself, plus excellent support against Janet in "Little Black Dress" and "Me Of Me".

The switch around in songs is another effect of this being a stage show not a film, but it does work. All the favourites are present, just occasionally with different singers and maybe an extra or missing verse. The most obvious amendment is where "Looking For Trade" becomes "Looking For Fame", but it does make narrative sense and in our "famous for doing nothing" obsessed times it perhaps has even more resonance. There are also a few "Easter eggs " for fans peppered throughout the script - a quick "Dammit, Janet" got a big laugh.

Perhaps the one fly in the ointment was Mark Little (once Joe Mangle of Aussie opera Neighbours) as the megalomaniacal media mogul Farley Flavors. Although he had some charisma and presence in his gleaming white plastic suit and devilish looking beard - wildly extolling the virtues of "Faith Factory" and seductively whispering "Time is tight, Janet. Do It right, Janet. Until tonight, Janet..." - he ultimately was not very convincing and seemed at odds with the rest of the quality cast. He also has *no* singing ability. A terrible attempt at musicality in his first song is then mercifully replaced by William Shatner-esque talking for the rest of the show. He almost gets away with it, but for me it spoiled one of my favourite songs, the powerful "Duel Duet". Ben Kerr as Brad is singing his heart out and Little is just completely unable to keep up with the melody or the complicated lyrics. It's a real shame and the only point at which the casting fails slightly.

In the finale, after the exuberant rendition of "Anyhow, Anyhow" and well-deserved applause for the band, we were treated to the sight of the entire cast returning to the front in little black dresses for one last reprise. Their enthusiastic can-canning caused Betsy to remark "Well, I never expected to see Joe Mangel's junk tonight...". Oh, and suddenly I was pulled up on stage to dance with another member of the audience! The perils of sitting in the front row I guess!

The most important thing to realise about Shock Treatment is that it's just a huge amount of fun. It's camp, it's sexy and just a little bit naughty. The cast are clearly having a ball and the audience are made to feel a real part of the overall experience. Many people were obvious fans and were happily singing along. But even if you have no knowledge of the show's history, I dare you not to leave with a huge grin on your face and those endlessly catchy songs reverberating round in your head.

One final note - the images I could find to post here are mainly promo shots, so don't really show off the excellent costumes and makeup work.

The show is running until 6th June 2015. I'd really recommend it for a fantastic night out.

Tickets and details for the King's Head Theatre can be found here


"So look out Mister, don't you blow your last resistor for a sister that'll certify ya..."

Things To Come...

Originally I had planned that I would update this blog on a weekly basis. Yeah, right...

There are draft's of various things on the go, which are all moving incrementally forward, but nothing that's really ready to share.

Rather than publishing nothing at all, I thought I'd give a sneak peek of things to come over the next few weeks / months.

Now I was going to post just a list of titles under each of my "section headings" (and I even typed it all up) but then I thought maybe that's too easy. Part of the fun is picking things at random depending on my mood.

So, with that in mind, here are some somewhat ambiguous images to wet the appetite (maybe / hopefully / who knows - you may all care less).

As always contents are subject to adjustment due to work / life pressures, changing my mind, yadda yadda yadda:

Collector's Dream:

 

 

 

View From The Fifth Row:

 

 

The Book Tower:

The Idiot's Lantern (TV):

Tape Loading Error (video games):

Flight Fantastic (music):

If anyone can work out what the different subjects will be from those pictures, you win a Mighty Marvel No-Prize for being a clever-clogs and for having far too much time on your hands.

 I'm going to continue with plundering the dark recesses of my DVD library, my comic collection and what's left of my childhood memories until I run out of time / space / interest.

Normal service should be resumed soon...

View From The Fifth Row 3 - Casshern

This week I am turning the spotlight on a live action adaptation of a Japanese anime television series.

It's the 2004 'tokusatsu' *  film "Casshern".

* a Japanese term that applies to any live action film that features considerable use of special effects. Literally translated it means "special filming" (thanks Wikipedia).

I have never been one to shy away from watching a movie just because it is in a foreign language. If I had I would have missed classics like "The Seventh Seal", "The Bicycle Thief" and "Cinema Paradiso" - and more recently "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Oldboy" and "The Raid". In fact one of my most vivid early school memories is the number of times we watched "The Red Balloon" (not much dialogue in that I grant you but still...).

I have also always been partial to the occasional Japanese movie. I think it started with seeing the Godzilla series when I was a kid, followed by the cult animation Akira in the 1980's (which I first came across via the Epic Comics reprints of the Katsuhiro Otomo manga). There is a whole separate blog post to be had from the effect of the English version of the "Gatchaman" series (better known as "Battle Of The Planets") on kids growing up in the UK in the early '80's...

But when it came to "Casshern", I knew nothing about it. I'm not even sure that the original anime had made it to these shores during the explosion of video releases after the success of "Akira". I just came across the DVD while browsing in my local HMV. That cover leapt out at me and when I read the synopsis on the back, it was an instant impulse purchase.

The basic plot is this:

In an alternate future, the end of an apocalyptic war between Eurasia and the victorious Eastern Federation results in the Earth being devastated and polluted by the effect of the weapons unleashed. Many of the population are diseased and dying.

Leading geneticist Dr. Azuma has developed a "neo-cell" technique that he claims can repair bodies and regenerate mankind. Turned down by the government, Azuma accepts an offer from a secret branch of the military, but his efforts are only minimally successful. Meanwhile his son Tetsuya is killed while hunting down resistance fighters.

After an incident occurs in Dr. Azuma's lab, the organs produced by the research somehow rapidly reconstitute into a number of mutants. Calling themselves "Neo-Sapiens" they escape into the wastelands of Zone 7 and there discover a derelict robot army, which they plan to use to destroy the ruling human race.

Using the same technique that created the Neo-Sapiens, Azuma resurrects his son and places him in a suit of prototype battle armour to stabilise his condition. Battling the military and the Neo-Sapiens, Tetsuya takes on the name of a mythical local deity - Casshern.

And that only begins to scratch the surface. The full story is far more detailed that that brief summary. Furthermore, despite the seemingly clichéd ideas - robot armies, a hero raised Frankenstein-like from the grave, an evil empire enslaving the population - it's not what this ambitious film is really about. Why do we fight wars? What would you do for love? For family? For your nation? What is good and evil ? What does it mean to be alive? Even if you win the battle, do you lose - because the war turns you into something you hate? At it's heart, Casshern really has an strong anti-war message.

It's also visually stunning and is particularly notable as one of the first live action films to be shot entirely on green screen, with just about everything else added digitally afterwards (like, for example, Sin City). The production design is hyper stylised with a Metropolis meets steampunk meets fascist Orwellian nightmare vibe that works beautifully to create an otherworldly experience. Anything is possible in this nightmare world.

Every scene is composed like a painting with imaginative use of colour and grading. During some of the longer slower stretches it's a real stunning feast for the eyes. If writer, cinematographer, editor and director Kazuaki Kiria wanted to conjure the feeling of bringing an anime / manga to life, he certainly succeeded. He has moulded the film into his own unique vision.

Backing this up is a fantastic score from Shirou Sagisu. At times it evokes the electronic ambient work of Vangelis or Brian Eno, while elsewhere it use more sweeping orchestrations including elements of Beethoven. It's definitely one of those soundtracks you can listen to separate from the film itself.

For some reason Casshern was marketed in the West as an action movie - and while there are some brilliantly eye popping fight scenes, they only make up a small percentage of the running time. In point of fact most of the film is given over to monologues and stillness and evocative imagery -  servicing mood and character rather than high octane thrills. It's a thoughtful movie not an action-packed one and far from 'traditional'.

Of course this does mean that it's not going to be for everyone. The multi-stranded plot may not be the easiest to follow without concentration and some things are meant to by symbolic rather than literal. Not everything will be explained, because life's like that - there are not always answers, or at least not the one's you want. At times it's deliberately slow. There are also subliminal effects used such as flashing symbols and phrases repeated by unseen voices that might be off-putting.

However if you a fan of anime or eastern movies, or are open minded when it comes to film styles and want to submerge yourself in the escapism, then it will be very rewarding to you. My wife was very sceptical about the film before we watched it  - and she absolutely loved it.

Casshern is a beautiful, strange, complex and intricate movie wrapped in an SF setting that should be experienced as a refreshing change from the norm. It may be challenging to watch but it's definitely worthy of your time.

The 800 Day Project - Day 454 to 461 - Contrasts

Horror of Fang Rock through to The Invisible Enemy

Just a quick post here to cover these two stories. I want to keep the next batch separate for a specific theme. That doesn't mean that these episodes are not worthwhile. Well some of them anyway...

Horror of Fang Rock
It's the start of the Graham Williams era of the program as he steps into the producer role, but due to the continued presence of Robert Holmes, this feels very much as if it is part of the previous season. This serial keeps up the quality level laid down by 'Robots' and 'Talons'. Indeed it's one of the very best tales in the 26 year run of Classic Who.

We all know the tale. Isolated lighthouse. Thick fog. Unexplained deaths. Bickering shipwreck survivors. A green jelly fish monster from outer space.
Oh, and Everybody Dies.

It's also comparable to the Troughton base-under-siege stories, but with oodles more atmosphere. By confining the action to just a few moodily lit rooms in the lighthouse - plus the treacherous rocks outside -  it heightens the sense of claustrophobia. Nowhere is safe. Those sets are also dressed really well, adding enormously to the authenticity of the location.

I'm less convinced that the supporting characters are so well served - at least initially. I know I might be in the minority here, but despite some nice opening dialogue and attempts at creating personalities for our bunch of lighthouse keepers, Reuben seems a combination of every salty sea dog cliché - Vince is a bit of a young, naïve drip - and Ben isn't around long enough to make an impression, although his facial topiary is quite something.

Things do pick up once the toffs from the yacht arrive though. Palmerdale, Skinsale and Miss Adelaide are a trio of thoroughly unlikeable bankers. The Doctor is instantly hostile towards them and rightly so - Palmerdale in particular is an odious little over-privileged halfwit more concerned about his portfolio than the lives of his companions. No wonder the Doctor treats him with barely concealed contempt. Adelaide is not much better, looking down her nose at everything and expecting to be waited on hand and foot. It's immensely gratifying when Leela threatens Palmerdale with a knife and then slaps the incredibly annoying 'secretary' in the face. To be honest, the only minor let-down is that the Palmerdale-Skinsale subplot is totally superfluous and goes nowhere, but I guess it does give the characters some interesting motivations.

The Doctor and Leela shine here as a great contrasts to each other. An allegedly very grumpy Tom (was it really all about being dragged up to Birmingham?)  gives us a Time Lord who's every bit the alien. His performance is hard to pin down, veering from bright playfulness to aloof indifference to brooding despondency and scowling anger. He's also slightly manic, stating that "this lighthouse is under attack and by morning we might all be dead" with a big grin on face. It's Baker at perhaps his most mercurial, and all the better for it.

Leela gets the best outing of her whole time on the show. Louise Jameson gives us multiple facets of the character who has developed a lot through her association with the Doctor. She is intensely passionate and curious and open to new ideas. However the savage is still there under the surface when she insists "Slay me Doctor, it is the fate of the old and crippled" after she is blinded and she also she gloats over the death of the Rutan.

Personally I don't mind the Rutan as a green blob. It's hardly the worst monster we've seen in the series. It's very effective as a hidden presence and when it's imitating Rueben (that smile is incredibly sinister). In it's true form it's perhaps a little lacklustre and the Doctor isn't scared of it in the slightest - in fact, he basically takes the mickey out of it.

The resolution to the threat of the Rutan and it's mothership is just over a bit too quickly to my mind and although it was nice to use the lighthouse itself as the high-energy laser, it feels ever so slightly contrived. The Doctor desperately needs a diamond to defeat his enemy and look - there just happens to be a shipwrecked banker with a gemstone about his person. It's forgivable though because it's all done so well.

Director Paddy Russell should get a lot of the credit for this. She makes the most of a limited budget and resources and by ramping up the tension and atmosphere and getting the best from her difficult star, she turns 'Fang Rock' into something very special indeed. It's definitely in my list of top stories.

But then, in complete contrast, we come to:

The Invisible Enemy
Hmmm. It must have seemed like a good idea at the time. Doctor Who rips off Fantastic Voyage with a dash of biological body possession - all standard Hinchcliffe  / Holmes tropes. A script from the reliable Bristol Boys featuring two versions of the main leads, a guest villain appearance from Who stalwart Michael Sheard and a robot dog to attract the Star Wars fans. It should have been tremendous.

But I recall this one as being well below par. Surely it can't be as terrible as I remember? Can it ? Sadly, in this case, the memory doesn't cheat. It's a great idea for a drama badly executed in almost every way. Most of the production values are just horrendous, the direction is workmanlike at best and the titular monster - well we'll come to that.The fact that it follows two well regarded stories just highlights its shortcomings even more.

Before you think that I'm going to just be negative, it's not all bad. A lot of part one is pretty reasonable. The opening model shots of the spacecraft in flight, the takeover over by the Swarm and the arrival at Titan base are all very impressive. The BBC VFX department has always been excellent  at this sort of thing.

Once inside the base it's possession-a-go-go as everyone gets a turn at delivering the "Contact Has Been Made" catchphrase. Of course they also develop the crazy tin-foil eye make-up, like they’ve grown the weirdest uni-brow in the universe. If you want to infiltrate and take over the universe, be a bit more subtle about it. Even the Doctor’s has a go at the tagline, although of course Tom Baker’s very good at acting the bad guy - all blank stares and disturbing intonation.

It's when we move to the Bi-Al Foundation that things all fall apart. Firstly it's the emptiest medical research facility in the galaxy, seemingly staffed by just one crazy doctor with an iffy accent and a couple of his orderlies wandering around in squeaky green outfits with bored looks in their faces. There's no sense of scale, and therefore no sense of threat to anyone when things heat up.

By now Michael Sheard's got in on the eyebrow act but even he can't make a silk purse out of the risible dialogue he is given to work with. All Lowe gets to do is to strut around barking angry threats at everyone he comes into contact with at ever increasing levels of anger, to the point where you expect him to burst a blood vessel any minute. He'll destroy the base will he? Go ahead - I doubt there is anyone around to notice.

By the time we get to the cloning / miniaturisation / injected into the Doctor's brain scenes the budget has well and truly been used up. It's time for bad science, shoddy effects and dreadfully poor realisation to dump the intriguing concepts by the wayside, as the story drags itself further into the mire. Let's face it - classic Doctor Who was never going to compete with Star Wars and the like -  but there are times here when things are truly cringe-worthy, as CSO and unconvincing sets try to pose as the Doctor's innards. Leela and Lowe being attacked by giant balls of cotton wool isn't exactly a resounding success either. Only the bridge between the two halves of the Doctor's mind looks anywhere near acceptable.

The biggest crime is of course the Nucleus itself. Not content with being first depicted as a black sack with silver googly eyes and a wobbly claw (about as terrifying as a sock puppet), it then escapes the Doctor's body and grows to become the Giant Space Prawn of Doom. A wobbly disco dancing space prawn at that. It's hilarious - and not in a good way. To make matters worse the creature can't even move by itself, needing the aid of two burly converts to drag it down the brightly lit corridors. My wife happened to walk in at that point, and her face just said it all. Far from Who's finest moment.

After some gobbledygook about Leela's immunity factor, the Doctor and Marius are cured and the cast rush back to Titan base to halt the birth of the macro-sized Swarm by their laughable leader. It all ends in a jolly big methane explosion to finish them all off and resolve the plot. I think. It's so badly edited I can't be sure exactly what happened. To be fair by this point I had kind of switched off. I have tried to pay attention all the way through the project no matter the quality of the adventure, but finally I had to admit defeat. I'm struggling to recall the details about the final episode even now. Maybe I should force myself to watch it again? Nonetheless there is that wonderful moment where the Doctor takes off leaving Leela behind, realises his mistake, lands again and she jumps in. That I liked.

Of course the big thing I haven't mentioned is the debut of everyone's favourite (or not) Tin Dog, Introducing a robot character is a refreshing idea, clearly aimed at the kiddies - but a worthwhile one, as demonstrated by the fact that K9 is still fondly remembered to this day. It also helps that John Leeson gives him just the right kind of prissy, smug, know-it all voice. K-9's definitely a useful thing to have around in a gunfight (he can seemingly shoot round corners too) - but boy oh boy, isn't he noisy ? There's no way in the world you wouldn't hear him coming. If my car made that kind of racket I'd be straight down to the mechanic.

I can see why the production team wanted to keep K-9 around. There's a certain charm about the metal mutt -  yet I'm not entirely persuaded that the Doctor is that enamoured of him at the start. Actually, I'm not that sure the Doctor likes *anyone* at this point. At times he's been quite rude and almost abrasive to Leela. The way he dispatches Lowe to the hatching Swarm is quite brutal too.

So in conclusion - full marks for being brave and thinking outside the box. Minus several hundred for over-reaching, thinking "that'll do" and delivering something that's slightly embarrassing.

Onwards...

View From The Fifth Row 2 - 7 Faces Of Doctor Lao

For this second instalment looking at lesser known genre films, I'm turning my attention to a 1964 'fantasy western', which may have been heard of but rarely seen in the UK.

'7 Faces Of Doctor Lao' stars Tony Randall, an American actor who is perhaps best known for appearing alongside Quincy MD himself - Jack Klugman - in 'The Odd Couple' TV show. In this film he plays not one but seven roles (eight if you count an out of make-up cameo as a townsperson), each unrecognisable from the last.

It was directed by George Pal (of 'The Time Machine' fame) and features Oscar winning make-up, plus stop-motion animation from Ray Harryhausen stablemate, Jim Danforth.

The basic plot may seem traditional or even corny - in a nineteenth century frontier town, wealthy businessman Clinton Stark has inside knowledge of the arrival of the rail-road, and wants to con the landowners into selling up cheap. The newspaper proprietor has suspicions but it seems that greed and self interest will win. That is until the arrival of the enigmatic Chinaman Doctor Lao (and his goldfish)...

Lao is in the town to present his travelling circus of wonders (which is billed as the greatest show on this or another other planet, materialises from nowhere overnight and is bigger on the inside). The Doctor himself is (he says) thousands of years old and comes from a place that no longer exists, - and appears to be very interested in the small lives of the townsfolk and their dilemma's. Certainly he manages to keep everyone off balance and gives the impression that he is far more than he first appears. Hmmm, that sounds familiar...

Incidentally, there is an scene in the town hall meeting to discuss Stark's proposal to buy everyone out where Lao interrupts by scraping his chair loudly across the floor. It's very reminiscent of the scene in 'Jaws' where Quint scrapes his fingernails down the blackboard. I wonder if a young Spielberg saw this film?

When the mysterious circus opens, the locals flock to see what they think will be a bit of a freak show. Instead, Doctor Lao uses each of his seven faces (himself plus the prophet Appollonius, Merlin the magician, the god Pan, the Abominable Snowman, the snake headed Medusa and the 'Great Serpent') to teach them some valuable lessons about their own vanities and small-mindedness. Lao also uses his 'magic' to disrupt damage to the town caused by Stark's bully boy enforcers.

For his grand finale on the second night Lao shows the people of the town an apocalyptic vision that causes them to think about what they are doing. Will the residents ever be the same again? In retaliation. Stark's henchmen decide to trash the circus, but knocking over the goldfish bowl they accidentally release...? Well that would be telling.

Apologies for being a bit vague there but I want to keep some of the mystery of what happens intact.

When I first saw this film nearly forty years ago, I was utterly captivated. I had never seen anything like it and the strength of its images and its magic has stayed with me. It's been one of my all time favourite films ever since. A heart-warming, funny mythological fantasy western adventure /  fable for all the family with great creatures? What's not to love? I don't care if the effects now look dated or that some of the supporting characters are a bit clichéd. Tony Randall is just superb in all his various guises - some have said that it's the role of his long career. Certainly he gives Robin Williams a run for his money in the multiple accent stakes. Is Doctor Lao really Chinese at all?

I also love the fact that no-one seems sure about how to pronounce the good Doctor's name - not even the man himself!

At it's heart, '7 Faces Of Doctor Lao' is a film about morals, looking inside yourself and doing the right thing. The wonder of life itself. The plot may be simple but the film is filled with a sense of enchantment and awe and fascination .It's a minor masterpiece.

The travesty is that this delightful, magical film has only been shown on British TV a handful of times (and possibly not at all in my recent memory). Other George Pal classics such as 'The Time Machine' and 'War of the Worlds' have been repeated many times, yet this gem seems to get overlooked. What makes things worse is that it's only available on DVD via the 'burn on demand' Warner Archive scheme in the USA. There seems to have never been a full commercial release in the UK and certainly not a Blu-Ray restored version. It's a real shame because if you are not already aware of the film, there is no way to come across it.

I really hope that somehow it gets a proper release at some point. In the meantime, take a chance - watch it on your local streaming service (if available), catch it on one of it's increasingly rare TV appearances or buy a DVD-R copy from the Archive collection. You won't regret it.

"The whole world is a circus if you look at it in the right way. Every time you pick up a handful of dust and see not the dust but a mystery -  a marvel there in your hand. Every time you stop and think 'I'm alive and being alive is fantastic'. Every time such a thing happens, you are part of the circus of Doctor Lao".

The 800 Day Project - Day 414 - ??? - The Favourite (Classic Edition)

The Android Invasion through to...

Everyone has one. A favourite Doctor Who story that is. If you asked 100 fans what theirs was, you would probably get (almost) 100 different answers. Do a Google search for "favourite Doctor Who story" and you will get 35 million hits and almost as many opinions, stating that "this one is the *definitive* list" - not to mention the fact that there is a big difference between 'Best' and 'Favourite'.

There are tons of stories I love that really are not very good. Conversely there are those I dislike that I can still see as having merit and have been made with love and care and quality. . Is older better because it's stood the test of time and has that universal appeal? Maybe, but it still doesn't mean I like them (all).

The whole question is subjective and intensely personal. No one ever set out to make a bad Doctor Who story after all. I wouldn't dream of telling another fan that they are wrong for loving "The Dominators", just as I would expect them to respect the fact that I don't find "The Sensorites" quite as mind numbingly dull as they do.

The point is, we have now reached the point in this marathon rewatch where we get to mine. My number one. My favourite (and yes I am aware that sounds a bit Gollum-like).

Okay, I'll admit I'm going to cheat a little here and have my cake  *and * eat it. This is my Classic Series favourite. As much as we class the last 50+ years as one huge marvellous continuous tapestry, there are two distinct era's of the show separated by a 16 year gap. So I'm going to have two favourites - one Classic and one New (no it is *not* "Nu"). The second one is a long way off, so firstly let's look the stories I have watched - since the last post - that led me to this point.

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And what a run of stories it's been ! We are firmly in the grip of Philip Hinchcliffe and Robert Holmes here - wildly taking influences from every fiction genre imaginable and infusing the SF stories with their own heady mix of gothic horror, comedy and wit. Although there is...

The Android Invasion:
This story is a bit like that part in "Sesame Street" when the Muppets sing "One of these things is not like the other..." Although screened at the very end of 1975, it feels like a leftover from the Pertwee era. The most obvious influences here are Invasion of the Bodysnatchers (the 1956 original)  and possibly The Stepford Wives (although the film version only came out earlier in 1975).

It's also boasts a script with more holes than a moth eaten jumper. Why does Styggron create a fake Earth in the first place, only to then go and blow it up?  What was the point of all the little details in the fake Devesham if there are no real humans there? If they are so powerful why don't they just invade? How can Crayford not realise that he can see under that eye patch?

Despite it's backwards looking feel though, the story does succeed in conjuring up an eerie oddball atmosphere and the big reveal at the end of Part Two is one of the best cliffhangers of the lot.

I do have a bit of a soft spot for the Kraal as well, with their funny little rhino noses, the bickering between Syggron and Chedaki and their insistence on the most convoluted plans possible. All this and they were considered important enough to be on a Doctor Who jigsaw!

The Brain of Morbius:
Number three on my favourites list. Blatantly ripping off Frankenstein (especially the James Whale movie) with lightning, a mad scientist, a hideous monster, a humped back assistant and a final chase over a cliff at the hands of torch-carrying villagers. What more could you want? A brain in a jar you say? Oh why not.

If that wasn't enough, what you also get is a tour de force performance from Philip Madoc, visually inventive sets dripping with atmosphere, some tantalising details about the history of the Doctor’s people, a fantastic creature design (shades of 1953's Robot Monster anyone?) and of course the mind bending contest.

Robert Holmes' changes to Mr Dicks' original script once again bring characters to the fore, and allow them to breathe while still keeping the plot flowing. Solon and Condo have some lovely little exchanges and Condo is a deeply sympathetic character (albeit one with a violent streak). Holmes even makes a disembodied Morbius work as a personality through the right voice casting and great dialogue.

As a youngster that mish-mash monster was just paralysing. Flailing around with that giant claw it's both extremely ugly yet strangely mesmerising. It's a triumph of design. Even now, a Morbius creature figurine takes pride of place on my bookshelf.

I really can't fault this story. Just brilliant.


The Seeds of Doom:
So, 'Thing From Another World' via 'Day Of The Triffids' in a country mansion with a green painted Axon? Well, yes - but this is so much more than that. It's a real gem in the Doctor Who crown.

It's also surprisingly adult and violent. There are deaths aplenty - where else do you have someone being fed into a fertiliser mulching machine? - and fisticuffs galore - with even the Doctor getting in on the action and punching someone in the face. The Doctor is also very angry here, practically snarling at everyone.

Plus who would have thought that John Challis would turn in a career best performance as the multi-layered Scorby?

Funnily enough as I'm writing this I've just listened to an episode of "Toby Hadoke's Whos Round" where he interviews John Challis. What a lovely man. Have a listen for yourself here.


The Masque of Mandragora:
Hmmm. I've always been in two minds about this story. Certainly it looks marvellous, with the Portmerion location (I've been there you know!) and the BBC's usual flair for period costumes. The supporting cast all do their best at chewing the scenery and Hieronymus's mask scared the willies out of me as a kid.

But beyond that it's all just a bit...dull? I know it's cribbing from 'The Masque Of Red Death' and I know that Tom is oozing charm, charisma and confidence, but I just couldn't get excited about the plots. Neither the evil uncle or the dark cult of Demnos strands really excite and the less said about the ending the better (just *how* did the Doctor defeat the Mandragora-possesed Hieronymus?).

Still we get do get the lovely little opening scenes with the Doctor and Sarah plus the fantastic new TARDIS control room, so it's not all bad!


The Hand of Fear:
As good as this story is, for me it's always suffused with an tone of sadness that it's the last story for my favourite Who companion. Influences? Well, 1940's "The Mummy's Hand" would be an obvious one but I'd pick "The Beast With Five Fingers" from six years later, or even 'Thing' from "The Addams Family". Beyond the horror trope though this starts off as a great little SF tale with some neat twists and a couple of excellent performances from Glyn Houston as Professor Watson and Judith Paris as the icy yet seemingly vulnerable female Eldrad.

It's a shame that the great set up is wasted somewhat once we get to Kastria. Eldrad turns into a one-dimensional shouty villain. The excellent sets of the nuclear plant become uninspiring and dull. Plus what were they thinking replacing the beautiful design of female Eldrad with the hideous Toblerone inspired creation for Stephen Thorne's incarnation? . All this and Eldrad is defeated by tripping over the Doctor's scarf? It's such a shame.

Still, the final scenes with Sarah Jane make up for it. Both Tom and Elisabeth are at the top of their game and it's all the more emotional for it. All in all I'd say this story is 75% wonderful.

“Till we meet again Sarah”...


The Deadly Assassin:
In which, while creating a story paying deference to "The Manchurian Candidate, "Robert Holmes rewrites the portrayal of the Timelords - simultaneously *really* annoying some fans who have been with the show since 1963, yet inspiring others so much that his vision of the Doctor's race has lasted to this day...

I have very strong memories of watching this as an nine year-old. The emaciated Master with his googly eyes did terrify me - but not as much as the drivers of the trains in the nightmarish Matrix scenes. Maybe it's those brown gauze masks and the goggles - once again confirming that for child-me the scariest monsters are the ones where you can't see their eyes. Even cackling clown faces weren't as horrible.

All this and a fantastic performance as Goth from one of my favourite guest actors, Bernard Horsfall. I love listening to his voice. So rich and deep and a perfect compliment to Tom. Pretty handy in the action scenes too.

The Face of Evil:

So instead of a talking cabbage (shades of Robert Rankin's Barry the Time-sprout), Tom gets one of the most interesting and engaging companions in the history of the show. Louise Jameson inhabits the role perfectly from the first moment, making Leela far more than a female Tarzan knock-off.

Add to that we get a plot contrasting faith and science and how things can get distorted across hundreds of years  - and a homicidal computer with a child's voice manipulating it all.

I clearly remember that cliffhanger from episode one with the giant head of the Doctor. It blew my little nine year old mind. What? How? When?....

The Face of Evil is a lot of fun. In what other show would your hero threatens to kill a Sevateem tribesman with a jelly baby? Baker is on top form, cheerfully spouting nonsense while in the midst of danger from poison darts, crossbows and flesh munching Horda. There is a lovely performance as well from the high priest Neeva, who desperately clings to his faith even when it's revealed it is all a sham.

Yes the Tesh are a bit one dimensional and their costumes don't keep up with the quality of those for the Sevateen. The constant bowing gets dull very quickly too. But these things are minor irritants in an otherwise great story.

***

And so we reach the whole point of this post - The Favourite. You have probably guessed what it is....

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The Robots of Death /  The Talons of Weng-Chiang:
Yes I am afraid I've cheated again. You see, when it came down to it, I just couldn't choose between these two stories. I watched 'Robots' and thought "...it's as magnificent as I remember it always being", and then watched 'Talons' and thought "bloody hell I love this story so much...".

In the whole canon of Doctor Who these are probably the two stories I have rewatched the most. Both have beautifully written plots, memorable well rounded characters, and are stunning to look at. So in the end -  they are both number one.

***

Now I was a voracious reader at this time in my young life and was beginning to encounter a number of the SF classics. The Panther SF edition of 'I, Robot' with it's cover depicting a slightly blurry silver robot head is particularly memorable - although it would be a few years later before I fully appreciated Asimov's genius.

'Robots of Death' freely takes elements from Asimov and fuses them with the murder mysteries of Agatha Christie. In fact references to these two literary giants abound in the names of the characters and the unfolding of the plot (along with a nice nod to the man who coined the term robot, Karel Capek).

There is also a valid attempt at depicting a living breathing culture in this story. The costumes, set design, sets and casting all come together to convince us that this is a real society with a logic and history behind it  - albeit a decadent one with an overreliance on robots. The excellent script also means that just about all of the characters have a clear distinctive personality and positive and negative relationships with each other. Perhaps Toos and Uvanov's headgear is a tad overblown for operating a sandminer, but they still look tremendous - and I wear a suit to work so why shouldn't they get to dress up too? I think the eye makeup might be a bit much for me though.

As for the robots, well what can be said apart from - amazing! The art-deco designs are just so perfect and beautiful and memorable that I never tire of looking at them. In fact, one of the probable reasons why I cherish this story so much is down to the Target novelisation.

I only have to glimpse that cover and I'm a child of twelve again. In 96 pages Uncle Terrance captures the essence of the story and makes it live and breathe. That cover by John Geary is so much a part of my formative years that I can still picture the deep crease in the top right corner where I bent it by accident. When I recently obtained another copy of the book (having idiotically given away all my Target novels during the fallow years of my fandom - what a fool!), the cover just looked *odd* somehow because the crease is not there.

We also have the "fizzing" red eyes of the corrupted robots (yet again reinforcing that childhood fear) and those lovely emotionless yet soothing voices. Spy robot D84 has a nice line in dry humour too. "Please do not throw hands at me". Indeed.

In home media terms this is also the only Who story I have bought four times (two on VHS, two on DVD). If they released it on Blu-Ray tomorrow I'd still buy it again.

***

As for 'The Talons of Weng-Chiang', well it's difficult to know where to start with the superlatives.

Doctor Who has always had a soft spot for the Victorians. It's an era the show has returned to again and again throughout it's history. It's also a time that has seeped into the British consciousness through the popularity of the literature of the time - Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins, the tales of Sherlock Holmes, the list goes on.

Of course another reason is that the BBC is exceptional good at producing drama set in this period. Set designers and costumers know the era like the backs of their hands and the BBC seems to have a natural affinity for material set during the late 1800's.

'Talons' is the high watermark for Doctor Who Victoriana. The Doctor acting as Sherlock Holmes, Leela as a prototype Eliza Doolittle, a hint of Jack The Ripper with mysterious murders in foggy alleys, music hall theatre, the "yellow peril" of Chinese immigrants - it's a melting pot of all the touch points the public knows so well. In Magnus Greel and his alter ego of Weng-Chiang, you have shades of the Phantom of the Opera and even Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu with his use of a fanatical cult to do his dirty work.

In my view it's Robert Holmes' masterpiece. The culmination of his and Hinchcliffe's time on the series. Not only does Holmes pile on the gothic sensibilities and dark humour, he also gives us perhaps the most well remembered supporting character double act in the whole history of the series. Jago and Litefoot are just superb. The dialogue for everyone is smart and witty but for the showman and the surgeon it just *sings*. Henry Gordon Jago in particular gets so many great lines it's difficult to keep count -

"I'd of propelled him onto the pavement with a punt up the posterior"

"I announce the acts, I count the tickets, I smile at people. You've no idea of the strain it puts on a fellow"

- are just two of my personal favourites. I'm an avid accumulator of amazingly affecting alliterations (sorry I couldn't resist).

Although they only seem to share a few scenes together in the whole story, by the end of it you can sense that Jago and Litefoot are going to become friends. At the point where they are held captive in the House of the Dragon, Litefoot shows a real warmth towards his fellow prisoner. It's lovely stuff and beautifully acted by Benjamin and Baxter. I really must check out the series of Jago & Litefoot audio stories from Big Finish now.

Again the world building is strong. Just through hints and short lines of dialogue we are given a tantalising peek into the world of the 51st century. The Icelandic Alliance. World War 6. The Butcher of Brisbane. Time Agents. The Filipino final advance on Reykjavik. It's enough to base a series of spin off novels and audio's on - oh wait....

I almost forgot - Mr Sin, the Peking Homonculus. Bloody hell he was scary. Far more than the reveal of Weng-Chiang's disfigured face. I'm sure I had a couple of nasty dreams featuring the homicidal midget.

Like with 'Robots', I can honestly say that this is a story that never drags (even at 6 parts). It's the best of an extremely high quality run for Doctor Who. I think I may watch it again now !

***

So there you have it, my joint favourite Classic Doctor Who stories. Apologies for waffling on for so long. I'd said that I wasn't going to do real reviews during the "800 Day Project", but I felt that this run deserved a little bit more. It's onwards to the Graham Williams era next and in a few short weeks I'll talk about another important milestone - the one's I missed...