The Caves of Androzani

"In times of war, the innocent die too."

Writer: Robert Holmes 

Format: TV

Broascast: 8th-16th March 1984

Season: 20.05

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis 

Arriving on the barren world of Androzani Minor, the Doctor and Peri find themselves embroiled in a long-running underground war.

Military troops mount an armed blockade whilst gunrunners bring in weapons for the sinister, masked renegade, Sharaz Jek. Meanwhile, lethal androids guard the caves, and a deadly creature lurks in the shadows, killing all in its path. At the heart of the conflict is a substance called Spectrox - the most valuable item in the universe... and the deadliest! 

The very presence of the Doctor and Peri on Androzani sets in motion a chain of events that will have dramatic consequences for everyone involved. As the situation gets even more desperate, the Doctor realises time is running out - both for Peri and himself. 

Will the Doctor make the ultimate sacrifice to save his young friend's life...?

Verdict 

The Caves of Androzani is just spectacular and ranks as one of my all time favourite stories. It really is just superb and serves as one of the strongest scripts to come out of the Classic era. It's a worthy sendoff for Peter Davison's Fifth Doctor as on television, he was for a long time my favourite incarnation of the Doctor. That was when I would go out and purchase random Classic DVDs and not watch in any order but I think the fact he was my favourite shouldn't be taken lightly. Matt Smith has since taken over that role of favourite but for now, I'm just going to enjoy giving my verdict on this spectacular story. Going in, everybody knows that this is the last story for the Fifth Doctor but the fact we have such a strong script for him to deal with first is great. People often forget the stories involved in a regeneration story but that isn't the case here. It starts off very well with the Doctor and Peri's arrival on Androzani Minor and just like in The Daleks, the Doctor's curiosity gets the better of him. This time, it cost him his own life as well as countless others with every male in the story failing to survive. That's quite a feat in itself and just goes to show how deadly things were. The setting of Androzani and the caves, well blowholes, was magnificent and I must congratulate Graeme Harper for an astounding effort in direction. It's very rare that I talk about direction in a televised story but this was just like nothing before it and was actually quite revolutionary where Doctor Who is concerned. It was superb and just added so much to the story. The direction contributed massively to why this story is so successful and always ranks amongst the elite when it comes to story polls. Sharaz Jek is an excellent character and his obsession with Peri's beauty can be quite disturbing but that's what makes him so good in parts. The masked appearance is brilliant and I like how we actually end up feeling sorry for him by the end, once his hideous face is finally revealed. I probably would have preferred it if we didn't get to see behind the mask but it didn't hurt things either way. Peri was wonderful following on from her debut in Planet of Fire, a story that got nearly referenced and one I watched not all that long ago. That was part of my reasoning for watching this today actually. The local war for the Spectrox served as a great backdrop for a story and the two factions constantly trying to negotiate with one another was marvellous. The atmosphere was rich with tension which again just added so much to the story. I think Peter Davison gave one of his best performances as the Doctor in his farewell and why wouldn't he? He'd want to go out with a bang! Speaking of bangs, the cliffhanger to part one ranks as one of my all time favourites because it just seems impossible to escape death. The start of part two even sees Peri drop dead to the floor just to sell the previous episode's ending further. It really is outstanding. The revelation that they were actually androids was unexpected but one I very much liked. I also loved the part three cliffhanger with the Doctor attempting to manually land the ship but expected in all reality for it to be more of a crash landing. Davison was doing a stellar job by this point. The subplot of the Doctor and Peri being infected with Spectrox toxaemia was fantastic and subtly throughout we got the hints that this was the end for the Fifth Doctor. Nicola Bryant was stunning in her performance which mightily impressed me as it was so early in her run as companion. The Doctor's sacrificial efforts to attain the cure of milk from the Queen Bat was testament to why the Time Lord is a hero and I think it's very good for the Doctor to go out saving his companion's life. The Doctor only having enough of the cure for Peri was brilliant and then we had the regeneration scene which is one of my favourites. We see once more all of the companions that travelled with the Fifth Doctor willing him to remain alive but then appears the face of this incarnation's greatest enemy, the Master, telling the Doctor to die. He would of course regenerate and immediately Colin Baker made an impression as the brand new Sixth Doctor. Despite unpopular opinion, I love Baker as the Sixth Doctor and I think this was just the perfect arrival for him. Overall, nothing to complain about. An instant classic. One of the very best. 

Rating: 10/10