Doctor Who Twitch Watch: recommendations of the day 06/25

The Fourth Doctor and Sarah face android doubles in The Android Invasion!

(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: BBC.)

Season Thirteen of Classic Doctor Who continues today on Twitch, featuring not one but two absolutely brilliant stories. But which one do we recommend more?

Tom Baker’s exciting second season as the Fourth Doctor continues today! Along with android doubles, he also faces some very dangerous and aggressive plant life, and even a major figure from Time Lord history! But which story is worth recommending the most out of today’s three choices?

The Android Invasion

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Perhaps the weakest story this season, and even one of the weaker stories of the Philip Hinchcliffe era in general, The Android Invasion isn’t exactly a story that impresses.

There are some interesting ideas, at least, particularly in the first episode. The Doctor and Sarah Jane arriving in an apparently abandoned English village leads to some great scenes.

But story-wise, it really doesn’t stand out. Especially when you have another “evil doppelganger” story in the same season with the considerably stronger Terror of the Zygons.

By comparison, the Kraals just don’t stand out quite as much. Especially with their makeup. In some ways, it’s a great design, but it’s also far too rubbery.

When you’ve got something as great and well made as the Zygon’s makeup in the same season, it’s definitely disappointing.

The Android Invasion isn’t terrible, but it’s far from great. A weak story in an otherwise very strong era.

The Doctor faces a dangerous Time Lord criminal in The Brain of Morbius. (Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC. Image obtained from: BBC.)

The Brain of Morbius

Ah, now here’s a story that stands out a lot more. Yes, The Brain of Morbius is more than a little inspired by Frankenstein, particularly the version of the story made by Universal. But it definitely works.

The planet Karn is so rich in atmosphere. It’s dark and creepy and feels like a real place. So you know from the beginning that you’re getting a serial with deep roots in horror.

You also get some very strong performances. Particularly Philip Madoc as the insane Solon. He really breathes life into this villain, and helps make the character so compelling to watch.

On top of all that, we also learn quite a bit more about Time Lord history, too. Particularly with the criminal Morbius, one of the most dangerous threats of Gallifrey’s ancient past.

Atmospheric and with both great performances and excellent sets, The Brain of Morbius is another classic in Season Thirteen. You can read more on the story in our review from last year.

The Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane are on the run from a Krynoid!

(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: BBC.)

The Seeds of Doom

And we come to another incredibly strong story with this one. Horror fans are sure to love this, as The Seeds of Doom revels in how gloriously grisly and horrifying it is.

The Seeds of Doom introduces perhaps one of Doctor Who‘s more horrifying monsters, the Krynoids. Not only are they a vegetative race that want to consume all life on all worlds.

But the way they do it is by landing two seeds on a world, before slowly converting anyone or anything unlucky enough to be in the seed’s reach when it opens.

As such, this story has a lot of focus on body horror. It’s great seeing the long transformation scenes as the story goes on. Fans of classic horror movie The Thing from Another World or even the remake The Thing will surely appreciate this one. Particularly as there are echoes of both films, especially in the portion of the story set at an arctic base.

Two stories in one

The story is also nicely divided up. Not just simply in its number of episodes this time, but also in terms of its overall story. The initial plot is focused on an arctic base for the first two episodes. For the rest of the story, however, it’s set at the mansion of the insane villain Harrison Chase.

Once again, we get a very strong villain in this one. Tony Beckley gives an absolutely brilliant performance in the role, and really has fun playing such a ruthless character.

He’s a great match for Tom Baker’s Doctor, who’s unusually violent in this story. The Doctor seems to get involved in a couple of punch-ups, and even makes a dramatic entrance when crashing through a glass ceiling!

The Seeds of Doom will always be a Doctor Who classic. Horrifying, violent, and very well made, it represents a lot of what makes the Philip Hinchcliffe era of Doctor Who so fantastic.

Overall recommendation of the day: The Brain of Morbius

This was a really tricky one. Both The Brain of Morbius and The Seeds of Doom are absolutely brilliant stories. They’re very representative of the extremely high quality of Season Thirteen, and of the Philip Hinchcliffe era as a whole. If I’m honest, as a huge fan of horror, I prefer The Seeds of Doom just a little bit more.

However, The Brain of Morbius, along with being a very strong story in its own right, is also key to a significant portion of mythology for the New Series.

Specifically, it introduces both Karn and its Sisterhood. Both of which are a huge part of the Eighth Doctor’s regeneration in The Night of the Doctor. So fans get to watch some major background in this story.

But it’s also just a fantastic and brilliant story on its own terms. With a great villainous performance by Philip Madoc, a rich atmosphere and some strong horror, The Brain of Morbius is easily a classic story for the Fourth Doctor. One of many, in fact.

Next: Review: Dark Eyes (Eighth Doctor audio box set)

Which story are you looking forward to watching more today? Do you agree with my choice on recommending The Brain of Morbius? Or do you prefer The Seeds of Doom? Let us know in the comments below.

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