Halfway through the Key to Time season and I'm ready to declare this one of the best seasons ever! What say you, Old Girl?
Sarah -
Absolutely! It's even better than my memory of it!
Harry -
In "The Stones of Blood" we are treated to a classic folk horror story right out of the late 60s/early 70s, complete with stone circles, hooded cultists, glaring ravens and bloody sacrifices.
Well, that's the first half anyway. Things go all science fictioney after that. What an abrupt course change!
Sarah -
One of my favorite things about the Tom Baker era -- my favorite era of Doctor Who -- is all of the stories that start out as gothic horror and then end up being science fiction. They're absolutely brilliant and "The Stones of Blood" is a particular favorite.
Beatrix Lehmann as Professor Rumford is responsible for no small part of my love for this story. She joins an esteemed list of character actors who have graced Doctor Who while portraying lovable eccentrics. She reminds me a bit of one of my college English professors and I'd love to share a cup of tea with her.
Harry -
Professor Rumford is more than just a long-winded academic, she's charmingly feisty, and she loves a good sandwich.
Sarah -
Who doesn't?
Harry -
Susan Engel as Vivian Fay is a total counterpoint. As warm as Professor Rumford -- may we call her Amelia? -- is, Vivian is icy cold. Maybe I've seen this story too many times, but it's so obvious that there's something shady about her right from the start.
Sarah -
I had that same repeat-viewer feeling that she was evil, but I'm pretty sure I had that feeling the first time I watched it, too! The power of Engel's performance is all down to her voice -- so mellifluous that she can only be up to something!
Harry -
Back to the beginning. The Doctor announces he has a surprise for Romana: their next stop on the Key to Time search is 20th century Earth. To her mind, that means Burberrys and open-toed heels. I liked the hat, but the shoes proved terribly impractical for the English countryside.
Sarah -
Impractical for any situation, really, but quite stylish.
Harry -
K-9 is initially left behind to "guard" the TARDIS. I liked the moment when he offered to explain tennis to Romana, she told him to forget it, and he took it literally.
Sarah -
That was an excellent K-9 moment.
Harry -
Is there any setting that's more English than an ancient stone circle?
Sarah -
If there is, I can't think of it! We've certainly encountered neo-pagan/druid types in the past, but I'm fairly certain this is our first stone circle!
Harry -
As for the neo-pagan/druid type in this go-around, we meet Nicholas McArdle who plays De Vries, and in fact often overplays him during the ritual scenes. Another crazy shouter! But he and poor Martha quickly fall victim to the mysterious moving stones that can propel themselves at will.
Sarah -
I'm not really clear on why the stones turn on them. Was it their failure to sacrifice the Doctor? The stones are so unforgiving!
Harry -
Maybe they got thirsty. As we learn in the second half of the story, the stones are blood-drinking alien creatures brought to heel by Vivian, who is actually a criminal from outer space. She has been trapped on Earth for almost four thousand years, and the hyperspace prison ship she was in is moored in another dimension, just above the stone circle. I didn't catch what type of alien Vivian is, but she hasn't seemed to have aged a day during her time here. She zaps Romana aboard the ship, and it's left to the Doctor, Amelia and K-9 to rig up a device with which to follow.
Sarah -
And the resulting scenes give Our Amelia so many opportunities to be plucky, resourceful, and fabulous!
Harry -
During most of the Tom Baker era, Dudley Simpson's music scores have been reliable accompaniments to the action on the screen. I thought he really stepped it up here, throwing in some moody strings during the scenes in De Vries' manor home, and hitting us with futuristic synth drones when the Doctor arrives on the hyperspace ship. It really stood out.
Sarah -
It's been a while since we've acknowledged the steady reliability of Dudley Simpson. Season after season, he brought his best to Doctor Who.
Harry -
Speaking of standing out, did you think the Megara stole the show, or were they too silly? Or did they steal the show by being so silly? These anal, humourless justice machines had Douglas Adams all over them, as the Doctor danced them around in circles.
Sarah -
I always find them so annoying. Still, they may make a good backup costume if Mr. Smith decides not to cosplay the Vardans this year.
Harry -
Hah! I was going to suggest that very thing. He could kit up a string of flashing lights and place them on his head. Instant justice machine!
Sarah -
The simplest cosplay is often the most effective!
Harry -
For all their silliness, the threat posed by the Megara was frightening, because there was no reasoning with them. The Doctor did his best to delay his execution long enough to fling them to another part of the universe. We'll see if they catch up to him in 2,000 years time.
Sarah -
Dashing a note to Steven Moffat right now.
Harry -
I wasn't sure how everyone suddenly reappeared on Earth, but Vivian received her due punishment and Amelia was given a whole new opportunity to survey the remarkably fluid ancient stone circle. Hurrah!
Sarah -
Another quick wrap up to an excellent story!
Harry -
That's three great stories in a row. The third segment of the Key to Time is in hand. Let's keep this party going, shall we?
Sarah -
Onward, Old Boy!
Harry -
Best Line: "Well you know how it is, Professor. I often get tied up in my job."
Favourite Moment: Amelia rescues the Doctor from being sacrificed at the stone circle.
Lasting Image: the Doctor admiring the empty places on the wall as De Vries describes the paintings that once hung there.
8/10
Sarah -
Best Line:
Professor Rumford : "But I still don't understand about hyperspace."
The Doctor : "Well, who does?"
K-9 : "I do."
The Doctor : "Shut up, K-9!"
Favorite Moment: It's not quite a favorite moment, but the scene when the stones attack the campers is so chilling that I won't soon forget it.
Lasting Image: The Doctor's trial on the spaceship and the Doctor's wig!
8/10
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Our marathon continues with Story #101 - The Androids of Tara...
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