Perhaps I've been a bit harsh on this story in the past - the 'evil Doctor' plot, taken to this extent, is rare in DW. The false climax at the end of part four is quite clever too: if you didn't know it was a six-parter you'd be all ready for the Doctor and Leela to wave goodbye and get into the TARDIS, until he spots the Sontarans.
There's some quality Leela-ing in this too: she's picked up some more sophisticated mannerisms, saying 'How dare you' to the Doctor, and the very Doctorish phrase 'Oh, one does, one does' to Rodan. (But she still doesn't know what 'proficient' means, or how to use contractions).
People say that her staying with Andred is unconvincing, but the story tries to make it as convincing as possible. He's not just the 'security guard' of the casual putdown after all, he's chief of the guard and brave enough to start a rebellion against the Vardans on his own account. He's also quite humorous, he's not just a tin soldier type. And he can work the TARDIS controls with confidence.
I'd been watching Borusa for some time before I realised I was totally convinced by the performance. I'd be intrigued to see what the actor from Deadly Assassin would have made of the role here, though.
The bloke playing Kelner really makes the most out of a simple slimy villain role - the scene where he has to try and find the Doctor an orange jelly-baby is enjoyable. Also notice how he sweeps his cloak around once the Vardans put him in charge.
The villain voices have problems: the chief Vardan sounds like an arrogant 15-year-old public school boy. As a counterweight, Stor has the dark l's of my own accent ('force-fiewld') - proud as I am of our distinctive sound, I can't believe in a clone alien who shares it.
No comments:
Post a Comment