Written by Philip Martin and Sydney Newman
Directed by Ron Jones

Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series which has been around off and on since 1963. The main character is just known as “The Doctor” and is a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey. This means he travels through time to various places. One of his favorite places to visit is Earth. Typically, he has a companion traveling with him, usually female, sometimes male, sometimes one of each. He travels in a time machine known as a “Tardis” which is disguised as a British Police booth.

A Time Lord can regenerate if fatally wounded, which has accounted for all the different actors who have played The Doctor throughout the years. In this episode, the Doctor is portrayed by Colin Baker. He is traveling with Peri (portrayed by Nicola Bryant).

The story-arc opens not with a scene of the Doctor and Peri in the TARDIS as usual, but with a man strapped to a wall being tortured. One would think he was a prisoner and this was a society trying to extract information. In a situation that turns the utopian visions of the future from Star Trek: The Next Generation on its ear, he is apparently being tortured for the entertainment of the masses.

Meanwhile, back on the TARDIS, the Doctor seems to be having difficulty navigating. After they end up stranded in a temporal void, the Doctor figures out that the TARDIS is in need of a certain mineral that is the primary source of its power. They end up on the planet Varos; the planet seen previously in the cutaways. It is just prior to a televised execution taking place, which their arrival interrupts.

The Doctor and Peri attempt to take the condemned man, Jondar (portrayed by Jason Connery), and his wife, Areta (portrayed by Geraldine Alexander) back to the TARDIS until everything can be sorted out. The problem is, that it has fallen into the very hands that have condemned Jondar to death, although its safeguards are preventing them from entering it. Not only must the Doctor and Peri get the TARDIS back from those who would seek to use it for their own gain, but they must also secure enough of the mineral mined on Varos for it to operate once again.

Vengeance on Varos represents what might be some of the best of the era of Colin Baker as the Doctor. The story is quite good without hitting the viewer over the head in social commentary. Its increased relevance to today might be considered prophetic and might make that first point less believable until you remember that it was originally aired in 1985. Although there are overtones of 1984, it more closely resembles a sardonic take on the reality television show craze. Couple that with a government hell-bent on maximizing the profits of one of the natural resources of the planet to the point that the Governor and a representative of the mining company are in negotiations while the televised execution is due to take place. The government seems to be able to divert attention from itself and the planet’s issues while placating and soothing the populace to keep its power. The masses are kept subdued and artificially content through violent, voyeuristic broadcasts. With what reality television has become since this story-arc was broadcast, it’s eerily prophetic in many ways. It really seems more like it would have been made today.

This was also a time period where things were being reigned in, especially costs. If you’ve seen the splashy effects and sleek designs of the latest incarnation of the series, the classic series usually disappoints in that regard. For those of us who remember watching it, the effects might not have been up to the current technology, but the cheesiness had a certain charm all its own. Perhaps the best effect in this story-arc is watching Peri and Areta being turned into birds inside a machine called a Transmogrifier. This machine gives them a bird-like appearance, complete with feathers. The plot point seemed more like the moments of peril in the old Batman series when the heroes would be trapped, but the make-up and special effects were good.

I can’t say that I’ve been crazy about Peri as a companion. She has always struck me as being sort of whiny and depressing. At least in this story-arc she shows positively what she was hired on for – her sex appeal. Nicola Bryant looks particularly lithe and sexy in a blue body suit and shorts. Combine that with her heaving breasts on more than one occasion, and I am sure you have the stuff of some adolescent fantasies, and perhaps the fathers as well.

The guest cast is good, particularly Jason Connery (yes, he’s Sean Connery’s son) in the role of the rebel Jondar as well as Nabil Shaban as the corporate representative Sil. He’s the true villain here as he manipulates people for his own purpose. Martin Jarvis as the Governor is also notable as he’s neither a bad guy nor good. Watching him and Peri together are some terrific scenes as his character evolves the most during the story-arc. He’s probably the most rounded character in the story.

Colin Baker has found some balance here from his first scenes as the Doctor. The story-arc begins with him seeming almost to be a doomsayer, rather than the crafty, wry Doctor who can figure a way out of any situation. Later on, he manages to give off that certain self-assuredness of himself, no matter what happens. At the same time, he doesn’t seem too arrogant. It’s a balance I have loved seeing in the modern era when the actors who portray the Doctor achieve it, and Vengeance on Varos is probably where Colin Baker seems to really get that.

The extras are terrific. I love all of the DVD releases of this series, and I really wish I had the money to invest in them. There’s commentary that really gives insight into the show and the themes portrayed in it. The extended and deleted scenes are worth watching, as is the behind-the-scenes featurette. The look of the episode is very good, but then the transfer and restoration were done from a print from 1985 and not twenty years before.

The era when Colin Baker portrayed the Doctor, in general, has a reputation for being a time of lackluster stories. Vengeance on Varos is actually pretty good and in general, dispels the myth that nothing good happened during his tenure. I believe Baker suffered from being in the role when there were external factors beyond his control. I wish Peri wasn’t as whiny. Having someone like Sarah Jane or Leela with the Doctor here would have been incredible. This story-arc is fairly accessible to all and it’s easy to cut through the technobabble about the TARDIS and just enjoy what is a pretty darn good (and prophetic) story.


SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Commentary with Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, and Nabil Shaban
• BBC Trailer Episode 1
• BBC Trailer Episode 2
• Extended/Deleted Scenes
• Behind The Scenes
• Information Text
• Production Audio
• Continuity Announcements
• Photo Gallery
• Who’s Who
• Outtakes