Attack of the Cybermen

"Of all the enemies he had faced, he knew that he despised them most. Even more than the hated Daleks."

Writer: Eric Saward
Format: Novel
Released: April 1989
Series: Target 138

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

A diamond raid in modern-dsy London... a secret base hidden deep in the heart of the city's sewer system... a cold and desolate planet light years from Earth... and a daring plan to alter the entire course of interplanetary history...

On twentieth-century Earth it appears that the Doctor's old enemy, Lytton, has allied himself with the ruthless Cybermen. The Cybermen have devised a scheme which, if successful, could completely destroy the web of time and bring the human race to its knees.

When the Cyber-planet of Mondas was destroyed in 1986 the Cybermen were forced to retreat to the planet Telos. Now they have journeyed back in time to prevent the destruction of their home world. And for Mondas to survive, the Earth must die...

Verdict

Attack of the Cybermen was a terrific novelisation of what is an excellent serial. It probably ranks as my favourite Sixth Doctor story on television and it also happens to have been my first experience of Colin Baker as the Doctor. It's safe to say that I loved it so I was very excited for it to be my first Target novelisation featuring the Doctor in his sixth incarnation. It's surely a first that the same story acts as my first experience of a Doctor on both TV and in novelisation. I have of course read a novel with the Sixth Doctor but there's something different about the novelisations and I was very impressed with how well the likeness of the televised Sixth Doctor was captured on the page. Peri was written well too and their relationship was great throughout the book. She was somewhat struggling to come to terms with his latest regeneration but I loved how by the novel's conclusion, she saw him as an improvement. That was very well done. I thought the opening chapter was fantastic with Charlie, Joe and Lytton joining up and meeting with Russell in the sewers as they planned to get rich by robbing the diamond exchange. Well, that's what Lytton had told them anyway. He was as sinister in prose as he was on TV and I liked the references to Resurrection of the Daleks, especially with the Doctor realising that leaving him on Earth didn't bode well. He was only two years late. Charlie was a real highlight of the novel and I liked how a lot of it was written through his perspective. The prospect of dying on Telos with £2 million worth of diamonds was all because of a rainy day in his mind. You could certainly appreciate him more in the book than was the case on television. I thought the Cybermen were excellent and I love the prospect of them looking to change the events of The Tenth Planet and prevent Mondas from being destroyed. It's a wonderful idea and the explanation of the effects it would have on the Web of Time here were brilliant. The Cryons were good but the only qualm I have about this novel, and the reason it doesn't get full marks, is because I felt the last few chapters were a tad rushed. I definitely think the story could have been fleshed out further and that would have made for an even more exciting conclusion. Even so, it was still fantastic and I liked the reaction of the Doctor in discovering that the Cyber Controller had not been destroyed during the events of The Tomb of the Cybermen. The violence in this adventure was written well and it made the Cybermen look really strong with the description of their chop attack fracturing spinal chords. The moments where the TARDIS' chameleon circuit was somewhat working were funny and I liked how the Doctor's disappointment was evident. The death of `Lytton was quite a shocking moment and I loved how Peri stormed out of the TARDIS to bring the Doctor back and tell him that there was nothing he could. She reminded him he wasn't at fault but this Doctor showed compassion despite his erratic personality and she admired that. Overall, an excellent novelisation!

Rating: 9/10