Robot

"He raised his rifle, about to call out a challenge, when it stepped out of the darkness, and fear dried the words in his throat."

Writer: Terrance Dicks

Format: Novel

Released: March 1975

Series: Target 28

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis 

Still weakened by his third regeneration, the Doctor, along with Sarah, the Brigadier and Harry Sullivan, faces the threats made by a group of dissident scientists, including the icy Miss Winters, to enslave the world - or perhaps to destroy the planet entirely.

Verdict 

Robot was a wonderful novelisation of the very first adventure to feature Tom Baker's fantastic Fourth Doctor. After recently reading Doctor Who and the Planet of the Spiders, which saw the regeneration of the Third Doctor, I thought this would be a good time to read the following story. I liked how it started off with the Brigadier still struggling to accept the regeneration sequence of the Doctor that happened right before his very eyes. The references to the aforementioned story were nicely placed and well pretty much inevitable. A short summary of events was certainly required and of course given to us. But despite the Doctor suffering from post-regeneration trauma, it was a mysterious figure that kicked off the pages of this little gem of a book. There's no doubt that it was well worth in excess of the mere £2 I paid at the local second hand book store in the town hall. The reprint cover is one I really like and despite my tendency to prefer original prints, I quite like having a unique copy. Prior to the Robot being revealed in full, I liked how well the anticipation was paced. Dicks described the movements and actions brilliantly and I just loved the simple use of the phrase "thump, thump, thump" because that's exactly what it would have sounded like! I loved the moments soon after the Doctor had woken up from his coma-like state. Cho-Je had said that he'd be a little shaken up and every time a mention of the Doctor grinning or simple was given it was impossible not to picture the gleaming face of Tom Baker. Somehow, he managed to light up the pages of the novel with that smile. His attempts to immediately depart the UNIT HQ were intriguing but his memory was only extremely selective. Just as he was about to dematerialise, he heard the nurturing voice of Sarah telling him to wait. The Doctor's reaction to the appeal of Sarah's innocent voice was wonderful and was a superb prelude to the incredible relationship this TARDIS pairing would share in the coming seasons. The introduction of Harry as companion started off rather comically! From being chucked in a cupboard by the Doctor at the start of the book to departing on board the TARDIS by the end! He certainly improved as the novel went on and justified the spot as companion. He got along very well with the Doctor and Sarah throughout and their humour at his expense at the climax was terrific. The Brigadier quickly accepted that once again the Doctor had changed his appearance. With references to The Web of Fear, The Invasion and Spearhead from Space, he knew that the Doctor would have to help him tackle a problem much the same. A robbery had taken place so the Doctor accompanied the Brigadier and co to the complex at the scene of the crime. His studying of the crushed, flattened daisy was incredible. I thought that was absolutely genius. We now had a scale of the mysterious Robot figure that had been teased to us thus far. Professor Kettlewell was a brilliant character and I was mightily surprised by the twist in the SRS meeting. After claiming to have severed all ties with Miss Winters and Jellicoe, it was all a plan to hide the attempts at ridding the world of pollution. Their use of the Robot to gain the plans to the disintegrator gun, then the components to build it was excellent. The way it bypassed UNIT's "impregnable" guarding of the factory in Essex by simply going underneath was wonderful. I loved Sarah once again in this story and even in print she proved why she's massively in contention when I think of my favourite Classic companion. I still think Romana II just about gets that award. This was where we arguably saw her at her bravest. She was more than prepared to shoot Miss Winters at the climax but before that she toddled down to see Miss Winters and her half kept in secret factory. I liked how she challenged the director of the place and I loved how she had the audacity to return back later! When it was thought that Kettlewell was still one of the good guys, his relationship and immediate respect of the Doctor was lovely to see. He immediately accepted the Doctor's changing of calculations. How the Doctor knew that the professor was actually the one behind everything though was just his incredible ingenuity I guess. I've only seen the TV story of this adventure once before and that was some time back so the shock remark of the Doctor claiming that certainly took me aback! The anguish the Robot felt throughout was most intriguing and I loved how it just went insane after killing its creator, Kettlewell. After Sarah showed it compassion, it had great feeling for her. With the threat of the countdown of the destructor codes activating every European missile, I liked how Kettlewell couldn't bring himself to see the murder of millions upon millions of people. Even for his own vision. The Doctor ever so calmly stopping the countdown was marvellous. The reason this story doesn't get full marks from me is probably because of the last two chapters. I thought Sarah's kidnap was a little of an anti-climax. I did think the Doctor's reaction to the Brigadier using the disintegrator gun was outstanding though. The metal virus reducing the Robot to nothingness was a great shame but it had to be stopped permanently. Harry joining the TARDIS was a nice touch and I liked how the Brigadier was just too late to stop the new TARDIS trio from departing into space and time. Overall, a superb start to the Fourth Doctor era in novelised format! 

Rating: 9/10