Oh, Harry! Moving images! A whole story simply full of moving images! I hardly knew what to make of it.
Season Five has felt like a trudge through recon after recon. There were so many good stories, but the lack of video does wear one down after a while. I know we've not seen the last of the recons, but I feel as though a new day has dawned and the Sofa is soaking up the sunshine.
Harry -
A Doctor Who story we could actually watch on our tellys, with DVD extras! It was simply smashing, wasn't it old girl?
Sarah -
DON’T CALL ME OLD GIRL!
Harry -
Righto, sorry.
I was even willing to overlook the fact that the story is a bit of a clunker in the early going. We start off with the Dominators, two utterly miserable characters. One of them has a permanent scowl carved into his face, and the other wants to destroy everything in sight. Then again, if I had to skulk around wearing what appears to be a giant scallop shell I'd probably be pissed off too.
Sarah -
Rago and Toba were a delightful pair, weren’t they? One imagines the other Dominators sending them on this mission just to be rid of them.
Harry -
They did turn out to be a rather inept team.
As for the Dulcians, they are just as sartorially suspect - the males in particular wrapped in what look like very absorbent towels.
Sarah -
I couldn’t help but think that the Dulcians’ costumes made the Thals look modest. Cully barely seemed to register Zoe’s comment about the impracticality of their garments.
In the end, the Dulcians aren’t much more interesting than the Dominators.
Harry -
But the first ones we meet are a fun bunch, out for some adventure... on the Island of Death, that is. Uh oh!
Sarah -
The good times never stop – or quite start – for this gang. The scene where they become marooned on the island and attempt to seek assistance from the Dominators, only to be killed, was startling. Even the Daleks can’t match Toba’s psychopathic behavior.
The TARDIS crew, as they are wont to do, wander into this situation while attempting to find a beach for a bit of R&R. The Doctor’s memories of Dulkis are fond, which makes it unlikely that he encountered the Dominators on his last visit.
There was much about this story that reminded me of the Hartnell era. The debates about pacifism versus action could have been lifted directly from a First Doctor script.
Harry -
There was definitely a Hartnell vibe to this one.
Sarah -
Faced with the choice to fight, submit, or flee, the Dulcians just decide to wait.
Harry -
Oh gosh the Dulcian elders were a tedious lot. Their glacial approach to decision making was best summed up with lines like: "Better to do nothing than the wrong thing," and "Remaining passive is in itself a course of action." The Doctor's reaction was remarkably restrained.
That really is the whole story: pacifists vs. aggressors, with the Doctor and friends getting involved with a happy result. The simple storyline and wacky costumes leave much to be desired here.
Some credit is due to the actors. Rago and Toba are played like silly panto villains, one of them wanting to destroy everything, the other halting him at every turn. I did like Ronald Allen as Rago, especially the way he stared off into space while speaking, as if drowning in his own misery, stuck on this dustheap with a psychotic partner and a bunch of silly robots.
Sarah -
I found myself wondering why he did that, but I suspect you’ve nailed it on the head, Dear Harry.
Harry -
The Quarks! According to the DVD featurette (squee!) the Quarks were actually envisioned as the new Daleks, marketing possibilities and all. Thankfully, this did not come to pass. It was hilarious watching them get blown up though.
Sarah -
It’s hard to imagine them taking off as replacements. They don’t have the free will and sociopathic nature of the Daleks.
Harry -
So many great comic moments here. Rago's ongoing misery, the Doctor re-wiring the shuttle craft, "Action Jamie" romping about wreaking havoc. It's the small moments that keep this story from being a total dud. Zoe got a bit lost in the shuffle, but hopefully that won't be a regular occurrence.
Sarah -
The Doctor falling headfirst into the shuttle craft was a great image. Speaking of images, have you noticed how often Jamie finds himself atop a ladder while other characters stare up at him from below? Just sayin’…
Harry -
There were also several low-perspective shots of Jamie in action, believe me I was watching closely!
Sarah -
The scenes in episode two when the Doctor and Jamie pretend to be stupid while the Dominators administer their tests, is comic gold. "An unintelligent enemy is far less dangerous than an intelligent one, Jamie. Just act stupid. Do you think you can manage that?"
I was amused by the boulder-moving scene. There are so many bounder-moving scenes in the history of Doctor Who, but this is the first one where the perpetrator admits that there's really no point to shifting the boulders -- it's just an excuse to wear down the prisoners.
Harry -
The boulder scene was well-acted. Actually, most of the actors did an admirable job here, considering the material they had to work with. Johnson Bayly, for example, played the role of Balan with gravitas. His death scene was right out of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Sarah -
Everyone was making the most of what they had, that’s for sure. It was amusing when the actors interviewed for the DVD all admitted that "The Dominators" really wasn’t the best of Doctor Who. Still, they all seemed to be pleased with their work in the end.
Harry -
Everyone was exceedingly, knowingly polite in the finest British tradition.
As our friends Rob and Toby point out, Patrick Troughton is often reduced to monkeying for the cameras here and I agree. It felt like he just wasn't taking things seriously at all, as if the whole story was a kind of farce.
Sarah -
Pity no one thought to let the Dominators in on the farce!
Harry -
Aye. Ultimately, the story is too thin and sets and costumes too flimsy to hold this one up. I found amusement in the acting, rather than the adventure.
Sarah -
That sums it up nicely. There was plenty to amuse, but not much to hang on to.
Harry -
I didn't realise that the sonic screwdriver was being used as a magic wand so early in the show's history (instant blow-torch-disintegrator? Really??). This also tells me I've probably run out of nice things to say. Let us scamper like the Doctor and move on, Dear Sarah!
Sarah -
When I say run, Harry, RUN!
Harry -
Best line: "Jamie, it's a brilliant idea! It's so simple only you could have thought of it." OOF!
Favourite moment: Quarks getting blown up.
Lasting image: The Dominators' goofy costumes.
6/10
Sarah -
Best Line: “An unintelligent enemy is far less dangerous than an intelligent one, Jamie. Just act stupid. Do you think you can manage that?” Poor Jamie takes a lot in this story, doesn’t he?
Favorite moment: Jamie taunting the Quarks and pelting them with rocks. I suspect those Jamie action scenes tend to catch both of our attention.
Lasting Image: The Doctor and Jamie tangled up in wires on the shuttle.
5/10
Now, RUN!
Our marathon continues with Story #45 - The Mind Robber...
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