Doctor Who Re-Watch: The Keeper of Traken brings back an old foe

Good intentions lead to the collapse of a peaceful society, and the Doctor is reunited with an old enemy in Tom Baker’s penultimate Doctor Who story, The Keeper of Traken.

“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” That’s a key theme that makes The Keeper of Traken such an interesting Doctor Who story. The story of how a family – and even a peaceful and harmonious society – is corrupted and almost completely destroyed by good intentions is an ancient but classic tale, and The Keeper of Traken does a good job in telling it.

The story begins with Kassia, a young woman who has a happy life, but is afraid of that coming undone. Her husband, Tremas, has been selected to be the next Keeper of Traken – a position that would not only make him ruler of a powerful but peaceful empire, but would also take him away from Kassia forever. She sees no way to prevent this…until a creature of pure evil offers her a solution.

You can probably guess how well this turns out for Kassia and her family, can’t you?

The Fourth Doctor begins his penultimate adventure as he works for The Keeper of Traken.

(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)

A great cast of characters

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The Keeper of Traken features a great group of characters. Sheila Ruskin is fantastic as the doomed Kassia, and she’s one of those rare antagonists in Doctor Who that is considerably sympathetic. Of course, considering she’s being completely used by the evil Melkur, voiced by Geoffrey Beevers, who’s deliciously evil as the real monster of the piece.

Nyssa is introduced in this story as Tremas’s daughter, and Sarah Sutton does a great job playing the character. Interestingly, she’s not a companion by the end of the story, but The Keeper of Traken sets up her character nicely.

Anthony Ainley is also very likable as Tremas. Now, if you’ve never watched this particular story before, but are aware of who Ainley is most famous for playing in Doctor Who, you might be convinced of who he’s really playing in this story. Especially if you can work out what “Tremas” is an anagram of. However, the funny thing is that his character really isn’t the villain of the piece. At least, not for this story. The next story, however…

The Keeper of Traken is a decent standalone Doctor Who serial, one that explores the nature of evil while still telling a thrilling story. But even more importantly, it’s absolutely crucial in setting up the Fourth Doctor’s final adventure…

Are you a fan of The Keeper of Traken? Did you watch it on its initial broadcast? Were you shocked by that ending? Let us know in the comments below.