Doctor Who Twitch Watch: recommendations of the day 06/11
By James Aggas
The Twitch marathon continues with just two stories today: The Ambassadors of Death and Inferno. But out of these two classic Third Doctor serials, which is the more essential to check out?
Last week saw the beginning of the Jon Pertwee era. The first half of his season presented a more down to Earth and grittier take on Doctor Who than what we had seen before. So what can we expect from the next two stories of season seven?
Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: BBC Press.
The Ambassadors of Death
The Ambassadors of Death just might be the weakest story of the season. That’s not saying it’s terrible, far from it, in fact. Just that it is a rather strong season altogether, with three rather exceptional stories. It was inevitable that a story like this would be rather overshadowed as a result.
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What’s enjoyable about The Ambassadors of Death is that it has the feel of a gritty spy story. You’re left wondering what’s really going on for a large portion of it. What are the aliens’ intentions? Are they behind everything in the story? Or is there something else going on?
Perhaps it’s because there’s so much mystery that the aliens are less memorable as a result. Especially as they come across as very alien, with completely different motivations to us, and therefore, just a little less relatable.
Considering that the story is seven episodes long, it’s also a bit of a problem that the mystery is maintained for so long. It perhaps could have been a stronger story if it had been revealed by the end of the first half, and then the second half explored the main villain’s motivations better.
However, despite all of that, The Ambassadors of Death is still an enjoyable Third Doctor story. And check out the first ever use of “the sting” in the show’s theme tune! Particularly as they use it in a slightly unusual way in this story.
The Third Doctor meets Lethbridge-Stewart. But probably not the one he was expecting…
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: BBC Press.)
Inferno
Ah, Inferno. I absolutely love this story. Like The Silurians and The Ambassadors of Death, it’s seven episodes long. But that time passes by much quicker than you’d think.
One of the reasons it works is how much plot it really crams in. First, there’s the opening act: an experimental drill is digging all the way to the Earth’s core. The Doctor soon learns that digging that deep is unleashing dangerous primordial forces that is affecting people there, making them far more aggressive, even homicidal.
But that’s only the beginning of the story. It really kicks off when the Doctor lands in a parallel world. And that’s when he finds out how dangerous the drill really is…
Another Earth
As you can probably imagine, the writers had a lot of fun with this one. We get to see a more dystopian society, one where characters we love went down a more different path.
It’s particularly fascinating with the character of Brigade Leader Lethbridge-Stewart. The Brigadier that we know is such a lovable figure. Sometimes a little difficult, but clearly a good friend of the Doctor’s by this point.
The Brigade Leader, on the other hand, is a cold and ruthless man. From the moment the Doctor arrives there, the Brigade Leader aims to make life as difficult for him as he can. He’s brilliantly played by Nicholas Courtney, and gets some fantastic dialogue.
One gem in particular really stands out. When the Doctor tells him that he doesn’t exist in the Brigade Leader’s world, his response is:
"Then you won’t feel the bullets when we shoot you."
We also get the “monster of the week” with the Primords. However, while they add a touch of a scary element to the story (particularly the idea of ordinary people slowly changing into them, and becoming more aggressive as a result), it’s the parallel universe story that really draws you in.
Overall recommendation: Inferno
It’s a very easy choice to recommend this one. Both the writers and the cast clearly had a lot of fun with the parallel Earth aspect. We also get to see exactly what happens when the Doctor fails to save the day, at least on the other world. As a result, it increases the stakes that much more on our own Earth.
Dark, thrilling and with excellent direction, Inferno isn’t just the strongest Pertwee story today. It’s also one of the strongest of his entire era. A highly recommended classic indeed.
Next: Eighth Doctor – Time War 2: new trailer and story details revealed!
If you’re watching for the first time, which of these two stories are you looking forward to watching more? Or, if you’ve watched them before, do you agree with the assessments on each of them? Or do you have your own thoughts on each serial? Let us know in the comments below.