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Storyline
While the Doctor endeavors to amend putting Romana in great peril, she experiences a foretaste of Skonnos's fate on the ravaged planet Crinoth, and a shocked but undeterred Soldeed gets a glimmer of how he's been used by the Nimon.
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Trivia
This serial was supposed to have been followed by one more, Shada, but due to a strike, production of Shada was abandoned, making this a premature season finale. As such it marked the end of several eras:
-This is the final story in which David Brierley voices K9. -It featured the final use of the original 1963 arrangement of the "Doctor Who Theme", from the 1967 remix by
Delia Derbyshire, as well as the last use of the diamond-shaped series logo and "tunnel" opening sequence by Bernard Lodge, which had been in place (with some modifications) since
Doctor Who: The Time Warrior: Part One (1973). The opening credits image of
Tom Baker, now close to six years old, is also retired. -This is also the last story to be scored by composer
Dudley Simpson. -Further, this story marked the final appearance of the Fourth Doctor wearing his "original" trademark scarf and coat before they were replaced in the next story by their burgundy counterparts.
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Quotes
Nimon:
Kill him, but not yet. We need to know who he is and what he is doing here.
Doctor Who:
Well, really, I was just standing here admiring the view...
Nimon:
Silence. Later you will be questioned, tortured, and killed.
Doctor Who:
Well, I hope you get it in the right order.
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If you read my comments for the previous episodes, you can gather I wasn't a fan, but this forth part did pretty much win me over. The silliness of previous episodes is still present, but at least the story is cohesive, Graham Crowden's Soldeed is a scene stealer, and seems to have gone completely insane. The Nimon have become much more interesting, I like the idea of them being an invading race, using power as a bargaining chip.
Romana plays a very strong role, she is essentially The Doctor, with Tom playing the role of the hapless companion. Lalla was great, Graham Crowden was terrific, in particular when he discovers how he's been used, and the episode benefited hugely from the appearance of John Bailey, Sezom, he was excellent.
It's far from perfect, but compared to previous episodes, it's a rather good watch. 7/10