The War Games

"I had every right to leave..."

Writers: Terrance Dicks & Malcolm Hulke

Format: TV

Broadcast: 19th April - 21st June 1969

Season: 6.07

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Zoe

Synopsis 

The TARDIS has materialised in a world of trench warfare, barbed wire and poison gas: the Western Front, 1917. In the chaos and paranoia of the First World War, the Doctor and his companions are separated from their ship, captured and court-martialled. The death sentence is swiftly pronounced. 

But all is not as it seems. As the Doctor finds himself increasingly out of his depth and facing impossible odds, the only solution is the truly unthinkable. He must seek help from those he most fears - his own people, the Time Lords...

Verdict

The War Games is just an utterly sensational serial to conclude the sixth season of Doctor Who, and in turn the runs of the Second Doctor, Jamie and Zoe in the TARDIS. It's arguably the most important serial in Doctor Who's history as the origins of our hero are revealed for the first time, some six years into its existence. Although this is my favourite story of all time, I would argue that The Tenth Planet holds the right of being the most important serial in the show's history as that introduced the concept of regeneration. Of course, regeneration occurred here even if it isn't named as that until Planet of the Spiders. But before we got to Time Lords and regeneration, we had an incredible story on our hands! The idea of the War Games was just incredible. Evil and horrific beyond belief, it was an ultimate scheme of villainy. To take humans from their own time and planet, process them so they believed nothing had changed and that they were still fighting the war they had come from. It's just brilliant. The different time zones were superb with too many wars to mention! I liked the focus on the 1917 zone very much and that's natural with the TARDIS having landed there. I liked the way the Doctor described the First World War and later comments in the story did make me wonder just why he has a fancy for Earth. All we seem to do is kill each other and ironically these games highlighted that. What they were being used for though was cruel. The War Lords were excellent enemies and I really loved General Smythe and von Weich. The latter's American accent was particularly impressive! The use of the glasses and monocle as a means of mind control was wonderful. Lieutenant Carstairs and Lady Jennifer were terrific characters and I loved how they helped the Doctor after he'd helped them remember what they had been processed to forget. I loved how things beyond their comprehension were hidden from them but the Doctor helping them see it was superb. I really liked Zoe and Jamie in this story and I'm glad that with it being their incredibly emotional farewell, they had a great performance. I just loved the reaction of Jamie when Russell said he should stay and be in charge. That was wonderful. I also loved the reaction to him having a Redcoat chucked into his cell with him! They ended up working together very well. I love how well Zoe can memorise things and I'm glad the sonic screwdriver is becoming an increasingly used tool. The demonstration with the gun screw was tremendous. The revelation that the War Chief was of the same race as the Doctor was outstanding. After six seasons of mystery, the enigma that was the Doctor was explained. He wasn't human as one might have thought during the William Hartnell era. It was touched upon more during Troughton's tenure that he wasn't human but I'm not 100% sure that it was categorically stated. I loved the reference to the Doctor's change of appearance but the moment the Doctor and the War Chief locked eyes was one of my favourites. The War Lord was callous in nature and I loved how relaxed and calm he seemed. That just made him more fearful. The Chief Scientist was again another excellent character and I loved how he was convinced the Doctor had been sent for by the War Chief. The cliffhangers were very good throughout with episode one and episode eight standing out the most in my opinion. The appearance of the guards was most intriguing. I really liked their guns and glasses - a very distinct appearance. They met their match with the resistance groups though it seemed! Russell and Arturo Villar were tremendous leaders of the resistance groups, an idea which I thought was superb. The processing effects wouldn't last forever and no matter how primitive these people were, they worked out that they weren't really on their own planet fighting their own wars. They'd been tricked. I loved the reactions of those two leaders in particular when it seemed like the Doctor had lured them into a trap. It was wonderful to see how Jamie and Zoe remained loyal to the Doctor when he'd done this. They knew he'd have a plan and would stick by him no matter what happened. I love the irony of episode eight, the part in which the Doctor undoubtedly confirms he is a Time Lord, was the least watched individual episode ever until Battlefield. The Doctor revealing that he had run away from his home planet and own people to see the universe and its wonders was poignant. He wished his people would use their incredible powers for more than mere observation. It was brilliant how the Doctor called his own people boring. Once he'd called for the Time Lords, he knew he had to get away if he wanted to continue being on the run from his people. But Jamie and Zoe were defiant in coming with him which was marvellous. The Time Lords were tidying things up after the wretched War Games had been put to a stop. Once in the TARDIS, escape wasn't possible. The Doctor was back home and he'd put on trial for breaking the law on interference. Continuously. His defence of fighting the evil in the galaxy was sublime though. He mentioned the main adversaries he had put a stop to and once more, before his farewell, we saw the top monsters the Second Doctor had defeated. Quarks, Yeti, Ice Warriors, Cybermen and Daleks. All put to a stop. The Time Lords accepted this plea but exiled the Doctor to Earth in the 20th century. His appearance would be changed once more as part of the sentence and it seemed like that would be chosen for him! Jamie and Zoe were returned to their own times in an emotional farewell. They would only remember their first meeting with the Doctor and nothing more. That's rather sad but just adds to the emotion of their departure. Not only does the Doctor regenerate but two brilliant companions leave. Add that to an almighty mammoth serial filled of excellence and you've got the greatest story of all time. I'm not sure if it's my love of history, the debut of the Time Lords or the mass cast change that makes this best for me - it's more a combination of them all! Overall, it's an incredible way to end the sixth season, the 1960s, the black and white era and the Patrick Troughton's run as the Doctor.

Rating: 10/10