Doctor Who: Series 1, Episodes 37-42 – “The Reign of Terror” (1964)

Who has been putting aliens and other sci-fi hijinks into its historical episodes for so long that I think it’d probably feel weird if new Who suddenly threw in an alien-less pure historical, but back at the beginning, it was a staple of the series. The very first serial of the show sent our heroes back to meet a prehistoric tribe, and after spending its first season flitting through the past, the future, and far-flung intergalactic locales, the season ended with this six-parter set during the French Revolution.

For the First Doctor, Susan, Ian, and Barbara, seeing Earth’s history come alive can be exciting and fascinating, but there are times when the past isn’t so inviting When the TARDIS lands in France, deep in the revolution, the Doctor and co. are quickly thrust into a web of intrigue involving a network of conspirators. It’s all they can do to stay alive amid the brutality on the streets.

This serial is nearly intact, with four of the six episodes preserved and the other two given the animated reconstruction treatment on the DVD. It’s a real treat to watch this story—in the early days of the show when the budget was infinitesimal, 18^th- and 19^th-century period pieces often got the best bang for their buck, given that I’m sure the BBC’s frequent costume dramas provided a steady supply of cast-off costumes and sets to reuse. As such, the production is able to match the ambition of story. Whether it’s Ian and Barbara casing a pub as part of a political conspiracy or the Doctor acquiring a particularly resplendent public official getup, everything looks pretty darn good.

And the story on offer is a strong, suspenseful one. Who often plays with the fun of historicals—dressing up in the period clothing, meeting famous figures from the past—but it can be dangerous too, and “The Reign of Terror” obviously leans into that. Team TARDIS spends much of this serial separated into assorted subgroups as they’re arrested, recruited into undercover work, or trying to help their friends out of perilous situations, and it really makes you think about how scary the prospect of being trapped in the past would be. While it can be cool and exciting to visit, it would be really freaky to be separated from your friends, not sure where to find them or how to get back to the TARDIS. Even without the prospect of possibly getting your head cut off in the revolution, it’s an unsettling thought. I think “The Reign of Terror” is fairly unique in the series when it comes to capitalizing on that notion (the closest new Who counterpart would probably be “Rosa”—if it weren’t for the timeline-tampering they have to prevent, that would’ve been a story where they probably would’ve gotten out of there as quickly as they possibly could. Poor Ryan.)

The Doctor himself has the best showing here. It’s in series 2 where we see more of One’s trickster qualities coming out—he and Vicki are so much fun together!—but this story gives us a little of that mischievous glint, and I love how he schemes to ensure his companions’ safety. Susan spends a bit too much time being damseled, but Ian and Barbara both have some good stuff to contribute. And speaking of Ian and Barbara, it’s interesting to contrast this story with “The Aztecs.” Whereas previously, Barbara argued with the Doctor over the notion of changing history, they have a more Zen idea of it here, realizing that what’s going to happen will happen regardless of what they do (even if they’d prefer not to get caught up in it themselves!)

Doctor Who: Series 3, Episodes 42-45 – “The War Machines” (1966)

*A few spoilers for this serial and “The Savages.”*

As a story, it’s only so-so, but I enjoy “The War Machines” for its introduction to Ben and Polly, a companion duo (and later trio, when Jamie came along) that I really enjoy.  My first time through classic Who, it was the only Ben and Polly story on DVD—I jumped from this serial all the way to “The Tomb of the Cybermen.”  Thanks to recovered episodes, animated reconstructions, and audio recordings/Telesnaps of missing serials, I’ve since seen their entire tenure, but even though they have other stories I like better, this one is still special to me for being my at-first only look at them.

The First Doctor brings Dodo back to 1960s London with the intention of sightseeing and letting Dodo catch up with friends, but of course, things are never that simple.  You always plan to just have a fun vacation, but the next thing you know, there’s a supercomputer brainwashing the guy who invented it and making plans to take over London.  The Doctor rolls up his sleeves to shut it down, with the help of a couple of new friends:  secretary Polly and sailor Ben.

Strange as it seems now, this is actually the very first story featuring an attack in present-day Earth.  Nowadays, 21^st-century London seems to be the international Zagat’s Guide’s top conquest spot of choice, but back then, the Doctor and his companions didn’t spend much time in the present.  Naturally, that changed a lot with UNIT, who dealt with a new Earth-based invasion every four-to-six weeks, and there were a fair amount of similarly-set stories afterward, but even though “The War Machines” involves an intelligent computer instead of an alien, that trend can trace its source back to this story.  Who has such a long and winding history that firsts are always special when you come across them.

The story itself is so-so.  WOTAN is pretty hokey, and the serial gives Dodo the most unceremonious companion send-off of all time; she disappears halfway through, and at the end, Polly just gives the Doctor a “BTW, Dodo says she’s staying in London” message.  I’ve never been much of a fan of her as a character, but that’s ridiculous.  The ending has a whiff of, “Oh, hey, remember her?  Me neither.”  I wonder if there was some behind-the-scenes change that brought about her abrupt departure.  After giving Steven a nice farewell in the serial immediately preceding this one, it’s weird to dispatch her so dismissively.

That said, Ben and Polly are immediately great fun.  It’s a different duo dynamic than Ian and Barbara, since these are very little acquainted with each other before the start of the story.  They meet properly at a club when Polly and Dodo are hanging out together, and they just wind up thrown into the same sci-fi adventure.  Polly doesn’t get a chance to contribute as much here, although it’s clear that she’s winning and personable, but Ben has the opportunity to get in on the action pretty quickly, and I like how, through all the craziness happening with WOTAN, his chief concern is making sure Polly is all right.  Theirs is a quickly made connection, but it’s a strong one.  Both bring a new energy to interactions with One, who of course is in his element fighting a supercomputer (it’s interesting how anti-computer the old Doctors, especially One through Three, are, although it’s definitely warranted in this case.)

Doctor Who: Series 2, Episodes 4-9 – “The Dalek Invasion of Earth” (1964)

*End-of-serial spoilers.*

A classic, for all kinds of reasons. Nowadays, when the Daleks have been done every which way into the ground, it can be hard to remember, but there was a time when they were still relatively new. After their instantly iconic debut in series 1, this was only their second appearance on the show, in an eerie serial that I’m sure had many a young British child hiding behind the sofa in 1964.

When the TARDIS lands in London, Ian and Barbara think for a moment that they’ve made it home. But they quickly realize that this isn’t their London. It’s a future version of their city, one in which the Daleks have taken over and humanity is scrambling like rats to get away. They, the First Doctor, and Susan join up with a group of human rebels who haven’t lost their fighting spirit.

Post-apocalyptic/dystopian type stuff has been popular for many years, but for me, there’s always something a little extra-creepy about stories from that genre that come out of this era. Even though the serial is set in a London of the future, it was made in 1964, a year that wasn’t so far removed from WWII, the Blitz, and fears of a Nazi invasion into England. 1964 was also when the Cold War was in full swing, and there was a particular air of fear and paranoia crackling in the air. I can only imagine what it felt like to watch this story live, seeing ranks of Daleks crossing the Thames against the backdrop of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.

In addition to all sorts of creepy imagery, we get plenty of what makes for a great story like this. There’s a hard-scrabble human resistance movement with dedicated fighters who don’t always agree on the best way to advance the cause, enslaved “Robo Men” whose minds have been taken over by the Daleks, and unscrupulous survivors who do what they need to do to stay alive. It’s a pretty dark story, in a way that feels well-earned.

Amid all that, our heroes definitely stick out a bit from the outset. As in any Who story of this, they’re just dropping into a conflict that’s been raging for some time, and they’re not as war-weary or beaten-down as some of the humans they encounter. That can make them come across at times as naïve or overly sanguine, but they’re also people who have experience with the Daleks and know a thing or two about going up against them. As such, while they’re initially seen by the rebels as tagalongs or liabilities, it doesn’t take long for them to prove themselves useful.

To that end, there’s some pretty good stuff here for team TARDIS. It’s an especially great serial for Barbara, who gets to display toughness/bravery and smarts in equal measure. Meanwhile, we get some determination and derring-do from Ian and a good helping of wisdom and technical knowhow from the Doctor. Susan doesn’t get to physically contribute as much (the show paints her so much as “the kid” that she rarely gets to really show off her abilities,) but it’s still a significant story for her.

Yep, this is the first major character exit of the entire series, and it’s a doozy. The ending scene between Susan and the Doctor is a classic, with the Doctor realizing that Susan will give up something she greatly desires for the sake of staying with him. He forces her hand, getting her to see (in a pretty tough-love way) that it’s okay to let him go. Top-notch work here from William Hartnell and Carole Ann Ford, and their goodbye is wonderfully shot.