Written by Terrance Dicks, Malcolm Hulke, and Sydney Newman
Directed by David Maloney

Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series that 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 story-arc, the Doctor is portrayed by Patrick Troughton. Traveling with him is Zoe (portrayed by Wendy Padbury) and Jamie (portrayed by Frazier Hines). The War Games is the only 10-part Doctor Who story-arc.  It aired in the spring of 1969 and marked two lasts for the series. It was the last story-arc filmed in black and white, as well as being the last story-arc for Patrick Troughton (he did guest star in several “specials” involving multiple incarnations of the Doctor). There is a version of this story arc that you can find in color as well.

The three travelers exit the TARDIS onto what initially seems to be a battlefield during World War I. In actuality, there is an alien invasion attempt being masked by the wartime conflicts.  This starts to come to light when it turns out the opponents the World War I era soldiers are fighting are actually Roman centurions.  Seeing the threat the Doctor poses, one of the aliens under the auspices of a general has him sentenced to death and sends Zoe to jail and Frazier to the regiment it’s believed he deserted.  This is typical of how the series sets up a story-arc, separating the Doctor from his companions.

Soldiers are being kidnapped from various points in Earth’s history, being brainwashed, then returned to the fight. Aiding them is a renegade Time Lord, known as The War Chief.  There are rebels among the fighters who have broken their conditioning.  Soon, the Doctor, Zoe, and Jamie join forces with them to try to stop the changes in history as well as the invasion.

In addition to this main story, it sets up the scenario for the Doctor’s time on Earth with UNIT.  In the last two episodes of the story-arc, viewers are introduced to the Time Lords for the first time as the Doctor is put on trial.

With a 10-part story-arc, there are times that the story will drag more than others. The War Games suffers particularly in that regard.  However, that is about the worst thing that can be said of this story-arc, which is otherwise the strongest serial of the Patrick Troughton era.  The acting here is some of the best I have seen. Whether it was because the three main characters knew the end was near or whether they just happened to come together finally, the performances far eclipse anything earlier in the series.  The supporting cast is also fantastic.  Philip Madoc, who will appear several times in the series as different characters, is particularly good as the villain known as the War Lord.  Edward Brayshaw is also excellent as the War Chief, a character who seems to be a precursor to the Master.

The sets and effects are notable for their cheap appearance, as up until recently the series never was allotted the budget it needed.  Still, the crew does the best job it can with what it has. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.  In The War Games, it works for the most part.  Despite the fact that we aren’t actually outside on a battlefield, the cast manages to do a good job making it feel like we are.

The BBC has done its usual fantastic job packaging this story-arc for DVD release.  There are two discs just for the series and the commentary. The rest of the Bonus Material is on a third disc.  There’s plenty here to see. The commentary is excellent and brings in certain actors when they are relevant rather than have them hanging in the background with little to do during all ten parts.  The different featurettes are also terrific for people who are looking at this series for the first time, since they help to get a feel for what the series was like in its day.

The War Games is a great story-arc if you have the tenacity to sit through the ten episodes.  It’s well worth it.  It can easily be broken up into two or more viewings as well.  Especially for fans who are new to the series, it’s really a great story-arc to watch.


BONUS MATERIAL

• Commentary with co-writer Terrance Dicks, Producer Derrick Sherwin, Wendy Padbury, Jane Sherwin, Frazier Hines, Philip Madoc
• War Zone
• Shades of Grey
• Now and Then
• The Doctor’s Composer
• Sylvia James  – In Conversation
• Talking About Regeneration
• Time Zones
• Stripped for Action – The Second Doctor
• On Target – Malcolm Hulke
• Devious
• Photo Gallery