Doctor Who: Series 20, Episodes 13-16 – “Terminus” (1983)

*End-of-serial spoilers.*

It’s funny—even though I think the Black Guardian is really corny, I enjoy all three serials in the Black Guardian Trilogy quite a bit. The second, “Terminus,” is probably my least favorite, but it still gives us an interesting premise and mixes in all kinds of nuggets of sci-fi goodness.

When the TARDIS collides with a space liner in flight, pieces of the two ships begin to bleed into one another, and Nyssa winds up on the liner, where she’s frightened to discover that she’s on a plague ship carrying people infected with Lazar’s Disease. The Fifth Doctor, Tegan, and Turlough maintain the link with the other ship, anxious to get Nyssa back. Well, the Doctor and Tegan are anxious; Turlough is self-serving.

This serial has basically all the things. Trippy unstable space collisions! Space pirates who get more than they bargained for! A leper colony and a creepy “treatment” ritual! A dog-faced alien slave! Guards for hire placed in desperate circumstances by their greedy corporate masters! There are a bunch of different elements here, and even though they might not seem to all fit together, I feel like it mostly hangs together well. There’s a good mix of characters with different issues and agendas, and the many pieces of the story comingle in creative ways to keep things moving.

When it comes to Team TARDIS, the Doctor has his hands full. He discovers some compelling secrets about Terminus, the space station rumored to hold the cure for Lazar’s Disease. What he learns has grave implications of serious danger for everyone, even beyond the danger of the disease, and it’s up to him to try and stop it. Tegan and Turlough are mostly outside the main action, trying to ensure that they’ll be able to get back to the TARDIS when this is all over. During this period, Turlough is working at the behest of the Black Guardian, which puts him at cross purposes from our heroes, but even though Tegan knows he’s kind of a snake, she doesn’t yet realize the full extent of his treachery.

But really, this is Nyssa’s story. She’s placed in a terrifying situation and put through the wringer, but even in extremis, she never stops fighting or asking questions. Her drive to know and understand things propels her throughout her time on the show, and here, she puts her knowledge and curiosity to work helping others at the expense of her own comfort. She’s the one who investigates what the Lazar “cure” really entails, and she learns how the guards charged with transporting the infected are held to heel by the limited supply of vaccines their corporation has given them. When she chooses to remain on Terminus at the end of the serial, sharing sad farewells with the Doctor and Tegan, it’s because she wants to make the lives of everyone there better, and really, that’s what all the best companions strive to do.