![]() This is a very unusual take on the concept of vampires, and has some interesting bits. There's not much (if anything) new in the book, but I just love the original serial so I really enjoyed this too.more It also marks the beginning of Adric's TARDIS travels as he stowed away at the end of the previous story, so he starts to form a relationship with the Doctor and Romana as well, although this is developed more in later stories as he doesn't spend much time with them in this one.Īs usual with a Terrance Dicks book, reading this novelisation feels just like rewatching the TV episodes, which in this case is a very good thing! He also wrote the script for this story. The Doctor and Romana have some lovely scenes together in this story, particularly when they are both imprisoned where there is a nod to The Time Monster (an underrated classic (fight me) from season 9). The futuristic technology elements are reminiscent of The Face of Evil from season 14 of the show, but in my opinion they are put to even better use here. The novelisation retains the beautiful atmosphere of the original televised version, with human sacrifices and vats of blood and vicious bats and everything else you'd hope for from a vampire story but be worried wouldn't fit with Doctor Who. The futuristic technology elements are reminiscent of The Face of Evil from season 14 of the show, but in my opinion they are put to even be This story blends Doctor Who's sci-fi with the gothic horror of old vampire movies, and it's such a fun combination. ![]() This story blends Doctor Who's sci-fi with the gothic horror of old vampire movies, and it's such a fun combination. (The conclusion is certainly one of the most imaginative and big-scale vampire stakings of all time neither Buffy nor Anita Blake ever dreamed this big!) It's a clever story, told simply and clearly. It's a very Gothic story of a society kept in a feudal state by a trio of overlords who rule with an iron fist and withhold technology from the citizenry. It's the middle piece of the E-space trilogy, a loose arc that doesn't really affect the story, and stars the fourth regeneration of The Doctor, the second regeneration of Time Lady Romana (or Romanadvoratrelundar if we're being formal), stowaway Adric (the U.K.'s forerunner of Wesley Crusher), and the inimitable robotic canine, K9. It's the middle piece of the E-space trilogy, a loose arc that doesn't really affect the story, and stars the fourth regeneration of The Doctor, the second regeneration of Time Lady Romana (or Romanadvoratrelundar if we're being formal), stowaway Adric (the U.K.'s forerunner of Wesley Crusher), and the inimitable robotic This is a novelization by Terrance Dicks of his own teleplay of the fourth serial from the eighteenth season of Doctor Who, which was broadcast in November and December of 1980. You definitely wouldn’t get away with the amount of knives these days, though.This is a novelization by Terrance Dicks of his own teleplay of the fourth serial from the eighteenth season of Doctor Who, which was broadcast in November and December of 1980. Emrys James is gloriously over the top as Aukon: he makes William Lindsay and Rachel Davies’ mannered performances look almost subtle. And Baker gets some good creepy mileage from the Records of Rassilon and the legends of the Great Vampires swarming through space in Gallifrey’s dark ages. This is great fun: I love the guard with a card reader (rather than a massive key), and Romana’s impatience with the old prisoner trick. The Pertwee overtones also include Stuart Fell as a guard. ![]() The Doctor’s bit of aikido on a guard is only undercut by Tarak the Traitor (played by Thane Bettany, dad of WandaVision’s Paul Bettany) opening the door into his face, which gives Baker the chance for some funny business. Fittingly, it’s the most charming moment of the season so far, as the Doctor tells Romana she’s wonderful and she practically glows. Just as the third Doctor used to do with Jo in these situations, the two of them sit on the floor while the Doctor regales Romana with stories of his old hermit mentor. Instead, the focus is on the Doctor and Romana’s ongoing investigations, which, in true Dicks style, now include a chunk of Time Lord myth.Īfter Full Circle felt like bits of the Pertwee years, this explicitly references them in the delightful scene of the Doctor and Romana imprisoned. It’s possibly a mark of Terrance Dicks’ feelings on the matter that the Doctor doesn’t even know he’s got a new companion until more than halfway through the serial, and Adric spends pretty much the whole episode in a deep sleep.
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