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This sub-par season opener ends with, at least, another impressive gun battle, this time between UNIT flunkies and Autons dressed as daffodil salesmen. As stated before, HAVOC lasted for much shorter a time than their legacy leads one to believe, but they did an excellent job in convincing the viewer that this new Doctor Who was going to be rife with believable action sequences.
However, the cracks are still evident. The Master is convinced by The Doctor that the Autons will turn on him in roughly seven seconds, and so joins with The Doctor to help repel the invaders before escaping when The Doctor and the Brigadier have their backs turned. But don't worry. I'm sure we'll see him again - every single week...
Most troubling is the last line of the episode, spoken by The Doctor. The original line was, referring to The Master, that he would stay on Earth "until I destroy him. Or he destroys me.". It was changed to, in regards to a possible future meeting between the two, to "As a matter of fact, I'm rather looking forward to it." All the edge of the original line (as written by Robert Holmes) replaced by the bland, family-friendly line provided by the new creative team of Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks. It's interesting to note that the same story that contained one of the more controversial scenes in Doctor Who history (Autons disguised as policemen) is also the story that wiped out all the strides that the immensely superior Season 7 made the previous year.
Things will hopefully improve, but The Ambassadors of Death seems like another world to me right now. Welcome to the Barry Letts era.
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3 comments:
Wow--harsh.
I know. I was surprised how little I enjoyed this one. It's probably better viewed on its own as opposed to directly after Season Seven.
I wonder if I'll feel the same way about The Twin Dilemma...
I didn't think it was all that bad, but by the same token, that's probably because I watched The Happiness Patrol and Delta and the Bannermen on a dare immediately before.
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