The Constant Doctor

"This is a pantomime."

Writer: Andrew Smith

Format: Short Story

Released: June 2015

Printed in: The Scientific Secrets of Doctor Who 15

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Adric, Nyssa, Tegan, Twelfth Doctor

Synopsis

The Fifth Doctor arrives on Lemaria, and it's not the first time he's been here. He was here ten years ago to liberate the Megrati, but he can't really remember. A pantomime detailing the events soon rejigs his memory, and there's something familiar about the actor playing the Doctor...

Verdict

The Constant Doctor was a wonderful way to conclude my reading of The Scientific Secrets of Doctor Who! It has been quite an eventful little book and I’ve powered through the last two-thirds or so which in hindsight was probably the wrong thing to do, but all attentions can now turn to bigger and better things which is something I’m very excited about. Whilst they didn’t quite save the best until last, this certainly wasn’t far off it! It was an absolutely wonderful little read and I loved the idea of the Doctor and his companions arriving on a planet during the festival of Freedom Day. That was going to be a lot of fun in its own right, but then we found out that it was the First Doctor who had helped with the liberating!  That really was tremendous and a great revelation considering that this was a Fifth Doctor adventure. In such a small story, I was a bit surprised that the author decided to take up so much space with the larger text depicting the flyer, but it worked well and we soon had a pantomime on our hands. It really was so much fun to think of the Fifth Doctor looking back on someone depicting his first incarnation saving the planet. Well, I am certainly going to have to be careful when I refer to the First Doctor as the first incarnation after the recent airing of The Timeless Children because that really has changed a lot of the show’s mythos. I won’t get into that here though! It’s difficult not to when the Doctor explicitly states that there have been five of him. I was instantly led back to thinking about the most recent episode to have aired. Anyway, the reactions of the Doctor’s companions when it was said that he had a granddaughter was absolutely wonderful and he didn’t stick around to have the questions that would inevitably follow! I liked that a lot. One little element of the story that I didn’t much enjoy was the fact that initially the Doctor couldn’t remember the events where he helped to liberate Lemaria of the Megrati. I fail to accept that the Doctor forgets things like that regardless how much he gets up to on his travels! For a situation like this, how could you forget what happened? I wasn’t buying that so I was glad that memories came flooding back for him when he returned with some burgers for the quartet. Adric being questioned by Nyssa and Tegan regarding any previous mentions of family was great and I liked how all three reflected on his regeneration in Logopolis and how much of an impact that had on their relationship with him. Had the Doctor ever considered what it must be like for his closest friends to simply watch him change appearances and personalities before their very eyes. It was a perfectly reasonable question to ask, but I am also glad that Tegan wanted to consider things from his perspective and how challenging it must be for your whole physical makeup and everything that makes you who you are to just change. I really can’t imagine becoming a totally different person! The use of the St John’s Ambulance sticker on the TARDIS was staggeringly good and the way the identity of the actor playing the First Doctor was revealed was sublime. There was a hint of a Scottish accent and the TARDIS ‘prop’ was just a bit too good to be true. That was magnificent and it of course turned out that it was the Twelfth Doctor who was playing his first self (that he remembers)! I absolutely loved that and it was just lovely to see the current incarnation (at the time of publishing) looking back on his old companions with fond memories and a smile. I loved that. The pantomime actually turning into a second phase invasion with the Doctor inviting the Great Megrati to the planet so he could put a stop to their second attempt before it started was brilliant. There was so much to enjoy about this story. The Twelfth Doctor continuing to defeat the Megrati in the form of a dramatised performance worked terrifically well and I nearly burst out laughing on the train when Adric bluntly stated that he’d forgotten his granddaughter when the time to leave had arrived. That really was great. Comedy usually works well and on this occasion it definitely didn’t let me down! The use of the sonic screwdriver to destroy the Megrati ship was very good and the rest of the fleet would follow suit unless the species left Earth. Quite the ultimatum! They of course turned and ran begrudgingly and just before leaving, the Twelfth Doctor had one final glance and smile at his past self and friends long since gone. That was a poignant moment, but I do wish the two incarnations of the Doctor got to meet! That could have been quite magnificent and something I’d definitely have approved on. Overall, a tremendous little adventure. Happy Freedom Day! The Scientific Secrets of Doctor Who is no more. 

Rating: 9/10