Story: Terror of the Autons
Written By: Robert Holmes
Length: 4 Episodes
Year: 1971
This is a classic. Not only is it a better Auton/Nestene story than the previous year's "Spearhead From Space", it also is a slight refresh of the Pertwee Era.
Liz Shaw has left the Doctor, gone back to do research at Cambridge. This makes sense for her character in a way, as she was a scientist before the Doctor came...and once he joined UNIT as the Scientific Advisor...she sort of just became his gofer. If I was a scientist, I'd want to go research rather than hand someone else tools. So she leaves, which is good as her character never really gelled. The Brigadier assigns a new assistant to the Doctor. My favorite companion of all time - Jo Grant. She is cute as hell, and is that perfect mix of bravery and scaredy-ness the companion needs to not be needlessly scared all the time (Victoria or Susan) yet able to have a decent scream and scare that the audience should feel as well. She is also not as smart as Liz, so she is able to ask every question the audience has.
Also introduced is Capt. Mike Yates, who is now a member of UNIT, and would be a recurring character with Sgt. Benton until the end of the Pertwee days. Benton is also a little more prominent from here on out. UNIT itself gets a makeover, and they all get much better uniforms. More professional looking green military uniforms, as opposed to the tan jumpsuits they were wlaking around in previously.
The Doctor also has a new lab in UNIT HQ, which will be his main base of operations for the rest of his tenure, with TARDIS in the background.
Then he shows up. Roger Delgado. The Master. The Master is finally introduced into Doctor Who, as the Doctor's main advesary for the majority of the Pertwee days, and again in the 80s (played by a different actor then). Delgado is fantastic, and he appears in every story of Season 8. He was never really topped by any other subsequent actor to play the Master.
All in all this sotry is far less padded than anything in Season 7, and is really the beginning of Robert Holmes reign as one of the best and most consistent writers of Doctor Who.
NEST TIME: The Keller Machine
Written By: Robert Holmes
Length: 4 Episodes
Year: 1971
This is a classic. Not only is it a better Auton/Nestene story than the previous year's "Spearhead From Space", it also is a slight refresh of the Pertwee Era.
Also introduced is Capt. Mike Yates, who is now a member of UNIT, and would be a recurring character with Sgt. Benton until the end of the Pertwee days. Benton is also a little more prominent from here on out. UNIT itself gets a makeover, and they all get much better uniforms. More professional looking green military uniforms, as opposed to the tan jumpsuits they were wlaking around in previously.
The Doctor also has a new lab in UNIT HQ, which will be his main base of operations for the rest of his tenure, with TARDIS in the background.
Then he shows up. Roger Delgado. The Master. The Master is finally introduced into Doctor Who, as the Doctor's main advesary for the majority of the Pertwee days, and again in the 80s (played by a different actor then). Delgado is fantastic, and he appears in every story of Season 8. He was never really topped by any other subsequent actor to play the Master.
All in all this sotry is far less padded than anything in Season 7, and is really the beginning of Robert Holmes reign as one of the best and most consistent writers of Doctor Who.
NEST TIME: The Keller Machine
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