Doctor Who retro review: The Time Warrior (Third Doctor story)

After our earlier review of The Sontaran Stratagem, we look back even further at the Sontarans and review their first ever appearance in Doctor Who, The Time Warrior!

The Time Warrior is a pretty major Doctor Who story, for several key reasons. Perhaps the first thing that leaps out is how it introduced a new companion for the Doctor. Not just any companion, either. Because in The Time Warrior, the Doctor met Sarah Jane Smith for the first time.

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From the very beginning, Elisabeth Sladen was fantastic in the role. She comes across as very strong, particularly during the era she’s in. For example, while she occasionally has to deal with the Third Doctor’s authoritative attitude, she never accepts it, and makes it very clear that she’s not taking it. She’s also clever, and while it takes her a while to accept that she’s traveled in time, she quickly adjusts and adapts to the situation when she needs to.

Robert Holmes wrote the character wonderfully, and Elisabeth Sladen played it incredibly well from the very beginning. She also had great chemistry with Jon Pertwee, so it’s almost a shame that this was his final season in the role. (“Almost” being the key word, considering who came afterwards.)

Introducing the Sontarans

The second reason The Time Warrior is so important, and the reason it’s being reviewed this week, is that it introduced major Doctor Who monster the Sontarans. Or at least, one Sontaran, in particular: Linx.

Again, Robert Holmes wrote an incredibly fleshed out character with Linx. More than that: he gave us an incredibly fleshed out species. So much of the major Sontaran history and philosophy are established in this very episode. And it’s all done through just one member of their race seen here.

Massive kudos also has to be given to Kevin Lindsay, who played the role. Subsequent Sontaran performances have followed closely to Kevin Lindsay’s delivery and speech patterns. When you watch this story, and then watch or listen to anything with Dan Starkey, such as The Sontaran Stratagem, you can clearly see how much he was inspired by Lindsay.

With the combination of strong writing and a great performance, Linx comes across as a brilliant villain. Single minded, ruthless and incredibly intelligent, it’s easy to see why the Sontarans have become so fondly remembered to Whovians.

The Third Doctor meets Sarah Jane Smith and encounters Sontarans in The Time Warrior!

(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC

Image obtained from: bbc.co.uk/doctorwho)

A mixture of genres

Robert Holmes also manages to mix several different genres into The Time Warrior. With the story focusing on contemporary scientists being kidnapped and taken back in time to the Middle Ages, the most obvious of course are both science-fiction and historical. How Holmes and the production team handle the latter is especially fantastic. With great sets and costumes combined with really fleshed out characters, the entire story sells the historical period very well.

However, Holmes has also mixed in a couple of other genres, too. With a heavy focus on sword fights and battle scenes, The Time Warrior feels like a great, thrilling adventure story. But more than that, Holmes also introduces another key element into the story: humor.

There are a number of scenes that are hysterical to watch with many of the characters. Even Linx gets some funny moments. One comment he makes about the human reproductive system being “inefficient” is especially hilarious. While it’s easy to see why the Sontarans were treated as comedic characters later, particularly with Strax, the humor still doesn’t take anything away from Linx’s effectiveness as a villain.

The Time Monster is a really interesting and exciting story to watch. It might be light on plot, but it’s a lot of fun, and it’s great for how it introduces such huge mythology and characters into the show. (Not to mention finally naming the Doctor’s home planet as “Gallifrey”. In a surprisingly casual way, too.) A nice and fun Third Doctor story to enjoy.

Next: Torchwood: Why it may not come back on television

Have you watched The Time Warrior? Did you enjoy it? What did you think of the introductions of both Sarah Jane Smith and the Sontarans? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.