The Time Lords are at it again – sending the Doctor off to do their bidding on Karn, where strange happenings are afoot.
While Mehendri Solon awaits the arrival of a humanoid skull to top off the body he’s constructing for the still-living brain of the executed Time Lord criminal Morbius, the Sisterhood of Karn is desperate to protect the Elixir of Life from the Time Lords. Just another day for the TARDIS crew!
Harry -
Gosh Sarah, you've summarized the entire story in one sentence. "The Brain of Morbius" was written by Robin Bland - a pseudonym for Terrance Dicks, who was unhappy with the editing job done by Bob Holmes and so he requested that his name not go out on the broadcasts. I love the charming pseudonyms that popped up from time to time in the classic era.
This is such a fast-moving story, but so well done, I wonder what Holmes may have deleted or added. It's great pacey stuff, and Terrance Dicks should be proud to have his name attached to this classic.
Sarah -
Based on the DVD featurette, it seems Dicks was miffed to have his story changed at the time, but has come to appreciate how utterly good it is.
Harry -
I just watched the featurette (narrated by one Paul McGann!). So Morbius was a rogue Time Lord who led an armed rebellion against his own people, was thwarted and escaped, only for his ship to crash land on Karn, where a dutiful service robot went into action and pieced together a new body for him. This was the original Dicks storyline. Now I can see where Holmes and Hinchcliffe made changes. I'm glad Uncle Terry came around to appreciate the story, because the changes were damn good.
Sarah -
We've finally reached the pinnacle of the horror genre -- the Frankenstein monster! "The Brain of Morbius" is a classic among classics and I've been looking forward to rewatching it since we started this little marathon of ours. It's one of those stories where everything just works.
Harry -
It's Doctor Who as a Hammer Horror film. Shout out to Dudley Simpson's genre-appropriate score of brooding cellos, ambient atmospherics and horror flick stingers.
Sarah -
I have to begin with an appreciation of the guest actors -- Philip Madoc and Cynthia Grenville are absolutely perfect.
Harry -
Fantastic casting by director Christopher Barry.
Sarah -
When I think of this story, Solon and Maren are the characters that immediately come to mind.
Harry -
Let us not forget Gilly Brown as Ohica, who delivered some of the best eye-acting in all of Doctor Who.
Sarah -
The most active peepers in the Universe!
While the rest of the Sisterhood is a bit over the top, Grenville manages to underplay Maren just enough to win our sympathy. Given what we know about the Time Lords, her suspicion of the Doctor seems entirely reasonable to me. It's a pity the Sisterhood wasn't handled better in the story. It's exciting to learn that the Time Lords are dependent on the Sisterhood and that the two societies are equal in their power. I'm still waiting for a better story for the Sisterhood -- and, no, the 50th Anniversary didn't do it for me.
Harry -
I'm interested in finding any other stories that delve into Morbius' past. The fact we want more and more is the hallmark of a quality story.
Sarah -
Ask and you shall receive! I think I've found the next entry for the Sofa Book Club:
Warmonger.
Harry -
Kazaa! I wonder if Uncle Terry snuck that robot into the story. Did you find anything else with the Sisterhood? Maybe an audio? If not, our friends at Big Finish have been asleep at the switch.
Sarah -
Bam!
Sisters of the Flame.
And Bam!
The Vengeance of Morbius.
Harry -
You are owning this banter, Old Girl!
Sarah -
Philip Madoc -- last seen by us as the War Lord in "The War Games" -- gives what I consider to be one of the best performances in the history of Doctor Who in this story. He is masterful as Solon and, despite the fact that he's an utter nut case, it's hard not to be drawn to him. The scenes where he turns on the charm to welcome the Doctor and Sarah are a brilliant contrast with his mad-scientist moments. The chemistry between his mania and the Baker's light touch is so compelling. I'm always sad to see him die -- and by the Doctor's hand!
Harry -
Cyanide poisoning: kolossal!
Sarah -
Really, it's quite shocking.
Harry -
I'm quite speechless at such an obvious act of murder by the Doctor. It was totally shocking and Hinchcliffe probably crossed a line here. Surely the Doctor could have concocted some sort of sleeping gas instead.
Sarah -
It's really out of character -- and more disturbing the more I think about it.
Harry -
Back to Philip Madoc. He's got one of those deep and mellifluous voices I'd love to listen to all day, even if he was reading the proverbial phone book. I laughed out loud at his brazenness when he offered the Doctor more wine a second time. So obsessed with that head!
Sarah -
He's a man on a mission!
Harry -
Cynthia Grenville was brilliant too, playing a woman who projected both strength and tiredness easily. One of my favourite moments was when she mocked the Doctor's arrogance, warning him: "I've only to raise my finger," to which the Doctor responded with a quick gasp and flinch, urging her to lower her finger. That's power.
While the outdoor sets looked like something recycled from "The Web Planet", I very much admired the inside of Solon's castle. It was the classic horror house set, complete with crazy angles, dark corners, cobwebs and a bubbling laboratory. Deep within that laboratory lurks Solon's "work", an abomination of assembled body parts and one very pissed off brain in a tank.
Sarah -
And what a brain it is! The moment when the brain spills onto the floor is shocking after so much buildup.
Still, the brain has to go somewhere, and into Solon's cribbed-together monster, it is!
Harry -
The brain plopping on the floor was a wonderfully icky moment.
As Gilly Brown performed with her eyes, so Michael Spice performed with his voice. His portrayal of Morbius' brain was all anger and paranoia, exactly what the character called for.
Sarah -
It's the perfect performance to remind the viewer how imperious and annoying the Time Lords can be!
Harry -
Once packed inside the brain case atop the monstrous body, Morbius goes on the rampage. He attacks Solon, then the Doctor, then Sarah, before poor brave Condo stops him. Poor brave Condo.
Sarah -
Poor dear Condo. His crush on Sarah is so sweet, when you get past the ick factor.
Harry -
After Solon is done away with, Morbius and the Doctor engage in the mind-bending contest. I honestly don't know what to think of this moment. It wasn't really explained what the object or consequences of the contest are, nor whether the Doctor "won" it, or just found a way to blow Morbius' mind and incapacitate him. Maybe I'll go along with what Dicks said - essentially it was something they threw together under tight timelines and monetary restraints, and they didn't put as much thought into the thing or its ramifications as the viewers do. So, it is what it is. What's your take on the contest?
Sarah -
It's comforting as the images of the Doctors past regenerations go by, and then disturbing when we see more faces after Hartnell. Are these the Doctor's previous regenerations or those of Morbius? Can you imagine if something like this happened in the current series? The Internet might just explode.
Unfortunately, on the screen, it just feels like a desperate measure to get out of the story.
Harry -
Of course, after that the Sisterhood storms the castle -- complete with burning torches! - and drive the monster to its death. The homage is complete.
Sarah -
Frankenstein wouldn't be the same without the torches -- pity they couldn't work in a pitchfork!
Harry -
All that is left is for Maren -- aware that there comes a time for everything to end -- to sacrifice herself so that the Doctor might be healed by the last of the elixir. Normally I hate when characters sacrifice themselves, but here it worked and it was tastefully done without hysterics or melodrama. Farewell Maren!
Sarah -
Maren knows what's what.
Harry -
And farewell to Karn... for now...
Best line:
Solon: "Condo."
Condo: "Doctor gone."
Solon: "I can see that, you chicken-brained biological disaster, but how?"
That's such a Bob Holmes line, I wonder if he snuck that one in.
Favourite moment: Solon's delighted reaction to the Doctor's head.
Lasting image: blinded Sarah approaches the brain in the tank.
9/10
Sarah -
Best Line:
Solon: "You’ll get a new head, Morbius. The crowning irony."
Morbius: "Fool!"
Solon: "Sorry, the pun was irresistible."
Favorite Moment: Sarah dumping the wine at Solon's table. Clever Sarah!
Lasting Image: The Doctor tied up while the Sisterhood dances around him.
9/10
Our marathon continues with Story #85: The Seeds of Doom...
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