Delta and the Bannermen

"Welcome to Shangri La, where your dreams come true."

Writer: Malcolm Kohll
Format: TV
Broadcast: 2nd-16th November 1987
Season: 24.03

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Mel

Synopsis

Boarding a Nostalgia Tours bus, the Doctor and Mel go for a holiday. They will soon learn that their fellow passenger Delta is a Chimeron Queen, fleeing from the Bannermen who wish to make her species extinct. Thus, the time travellers' trip to Shangri La turns into a battle against genocide...

Verdict

Delta and the Bannermen was a really good little story that has to go down as one of Doctor Who's most underrated adventures in my opinion. As I embark on a random BritBox watchathon, I was a little sceptical about this serial as it isn't exactly widely regarded. However, I was thrilled with what I watched and it definitely lived up to my personal expectations based upon reading the novelisation a couple of years ago. This was the first time in eight years watching the adventure and it was only my second viewing, but I really enjoyed it. I might be a tad biased with the setting of South Wales as that is where I reside, but I was absolutely appalled by the line where Wales was referred to as being in England! That is unforgivable and I really wasn't pleased with that. I thought Sylvester McCoy had a decent outing as the Seventh Doctor and Gemma said he was a bit like Mr Bean which is a pretty apt description of Sylvester McCoy's wacky incarnation. I liked the scale of this adventure as we had scenes at the tollbooth, then through space on the Nostalgia Tours bus, before everything culminated in South Wales. Mel taking the bus trip to 1959 Shangri La, the actual destination after hitting the satellite that deterred them from arriving at Disneyland, was rather amusing with the Doctor taking the TARDIS to reach the destination. I was quite impressed with some of the special effects for the scenes in Space, particularly with the TARDIS guiding the Nostalgia Tours bus to a relatively safe landing. Exploring the drive technology of the motor was good, but I do feel the way the initial crystal was destroyed just didn't need to be there. It wasn't necessary that the Doctor would have one. Alas, things still worked out well. I was quite surprised by how little Delta actually did in the story. She really doesn't say an awful lot which was fine, but it just took me by surprise. Ray was the standout character of the guest cast and it's no surprise that she was initially considered to be the new companion after Mel. I'd have loved for there to be a Welsh companion! Sadly that wasn't to be, but all of the traits that made Ace a success were clearly evident. I was definitely a fan of the Bannermen and Gavrok made a good villain as their leader. The moment they just wiped out the entire Nostalgia Tours party was quite something and coupling that with the resolution to the part one cliffhanger where they simply ionised the man who'd called in the bounty on Delta was outstanding. It showed you just how much they meant business which I was rather impressed by. The ending of part two could have been stronger and I didn't fully comprehend how the Doctor was able to just drive off with Mel and Burton, but the swagger in his statement was excellent. Weismuller and Hawk were pretty humorous characters and their reaction at seeing the satellite at the end was great. Their chemistry worked really well which was a big positive. Goronwy and his bees were also rather funny, even if the way the Doctor had led the Bannermen to getting covered in honey and thus attacked by the bees was a bit of a stretch. Billy turning himself into a Chimeron to go with Delta and raise the new Princess and extend the race was intriguing, even if that relationship developed a bit quick. I was very impressed with how the story captured the feeling of the era with the music and the dancing being rather jovial. One thing I can definitely say about this serial is that it had a feel-good atmosphere which made it a breeze to watch the three parts back to back in one sitting. Gemma enjoyed it as well which made my viewing all the better. The conclusion with the Chimeron princess amplifying her sound to defeat the Bannermen was excellent and I liked that the Bannermen were so close to wiping out their bitter enemies. Overall, a fantastic story!

Rating: 8/10