Attack of the Cybermen

"They intend to prevent Mondas from being destroyed!"

Writer: Paula Moore

Format: TV

Broadcast: 5th-12th January 1985

Series: 22.01

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis 

The TARDIS is lured to Earth, London, 1985 by an alien distress signal. Investigating, the Doctor and Peri stumble upon an attempted bank robbery staged through the London sewers by a familiar foe - ex-Dalek agent, Lytton. But who is he working for this time?

For they soon discover there is something far nastier lurking in the sewers - Cybermen. 

Why do the silver giants need a time machine? What is their devastating plan of attack? And what does it have to do with a catastrophic event that happened long ago in the Doctor's past?

Verdict 

Attack of the Cybermen is an outstanding serial and after rewatching here it definitely maintains its place as my favourite televised Sixth Doctor adventure. It kicks off the season so well and serves as a brilliant story to introduce the new format of 45 minute episodes. I'm not sure the timing on it was particularly right but I like how with a new Doctor and a new direction for the show, the producers were keen to try something new. It obviously must have had some sort of impact as the new episodes are all 45 minutes long so the potential must have been seen there and whether they were popular or not at the time, they've impacted on the future of the show which I think is great. It hasn't been long at all since I watched The Twin Dilemma so I thought it would be good to watch this story pretty soon after and things continued in much the same way. The Doctor did seem at least compassionate in this story and where he tried to strangle Peri in the last story, he assured her here that she would not get hurt at his hands. The Doctor attempting to fix the chameleon circuit is something I think should never happen and although it was interesting to see the TARDIS alter forms from the iconic police box, I'm very glad the fix was just temporary. It just wouldn't be Doctor Who if the Doctor wasn't travelling through time and space in a police box. I like though how this represents the challenging nature of the Sixth Doctor as he wanted to tamper with something so sacred. The relationship between the Doctor and Peri was actually very good I thought and they got along just as well as any other TARDIS pairing. Peri's attire was rather questionable before she exited onto Telos with it being a clear indication to attract male viewers. That's my opinion anyway. I thought she looked much better in the red outfit that she wore after arriving on the alien planet. The return of Lytton after Resurrection of the Daleks was perhaps a little surprising but I thought he was actually brilliant and his role was quite a contrast from his dealings with the Daleks. Originally, it seemed that he was now helping the Cybermen but in a most intriguing twist that was not the case! Instead he was helping the Cryons, the original inhabitants of Telos. There was a lot of Cyberman nostalgia in this story which I think is why it's my favourite Sixth Doctor serial. The main plot is just phenomenal and I think it's quite amazing that nineteen years after the broadcast of The Tenth Planet, its events are central to the plot of a story kicking off the twenty-second season. That's quite amazing. It was a genius move to have the Cybermen on Earth in 1985, a year before Mondas was due to be destroyed. I loved every bit of it. The Doctor's reaction to the Cybermen wanting to change history was one of horror which was marvellous but he seemed even more horrified when he realised that the Time Lords were behind his being involved in the encounter. He was still being used by them when it suited their needs. The Cybermen returned in splendid style and I must say their design is absolutely fantastic in this story. I really do like it. We even had the return of the Cyber Controller who seems to have undergone a bit of an upgrade after what occurred in The Tomb of the Cybermen, which was neatly referenced, and it was good to have a Controller on Telos and a Leader on Earth. It worked excellently. The question of the Doctor still being unstable after his regeneration was good and I liked how it allowed some nice name dropping of past companions such as Tegan, Zoe, Susan and Jamie. That's always a nice moment. The Cryons and Lytton sacrificing themselves to prevent the Cybermen leaving Telos was valiant and I liked the Doctor's frustration at not being able to save Lytton. Overall, a wonderful plot, a great return for the Cybermen and nothing really to complain about! 

Rating: 10/10