The War Machines

"No man becomes the servant of his own creation."

Writer: Ian Stuart Black 

Format: Novel

Released: February 1989

Series: Target 136

Featuring: First Doctor, Dodo, Polly, Ben

Synopsis

London, 1966 – when the TARDIS materialises outside the Post Office Tower the Doctor becomes aware of a powerful and evil force nearby, so he and the ever-curious Dodo set off to investigate.

Inside the tower they track down the source of power to Professor Brett and WOTAN, his revolutionary new computer. 

Designed as a universal problem solver, WOTAN has suddenly begun to think for itself and has formulated a deadly plan. Using its phenomenal power it will programme humans to build mobile fighting computers, and with these indestructible war machines WOTAN will take over the world...

Verdict

The War Machines was an excellent novelisation of the televised serial of the same name! Even though I have never given this story a perfect score across a number of times having watched it, it has always remained one that I fondly remember and ranks right up there as the best of the non-perfects for me. It's such a brilliant story and I love that we see the First Doctor in a contemporary setting. Right from the off there's a sense of mystery with the Doctor getting that tingly feeling when taking sight of the Post Office Tower and that was exactly the same here in the book which set the tone well. It's intriguing for the first quarter or so of the book where we just have the pairing of the Doctor and Dodo because this is the only instance where that occurs. The memory of Steven is still felt which I like following his recent departure in The Savages and it isn't long before we have two brand new funky companions. The introductions of Polly and Ben are wonderful and the former is just magnificent. Polly really is an outstanding companion and that's evident right from her very beginnings. It's no surprise that I managed to ensure our cat was named after her! The Inferno club setting is excellent and her working her charm on Ben who was very gloomy was great stuff. It's lovely to read over the course of the book how much he comes to care for her and in a quick way. Dodo is used really well until her sudden departure and I was intrigued to see if that would be handled any differently in prose compared with how it played out on screen but that wasn't to be. She is quickly taken over by WOTAN and subjected to the super computer's will, and her constant checking to see if the Doctor has realised her changing is very good. I really liked how she tried manoeuvring against Polly when it came to carrying out WOTAN's order of obtaining the Doctor. Sneakiness wasn't exactly her strong point! The fact that she is simply put into a deep sleep and then never returns is both amusing and ridiculous. I love the concept behind WOTAN and the speed in which things develop really did feel rapid in prose which was good for the pace and excitement of the story. The Doctor forging documents in the name of Ian Chesterton's recommendation was a lovely addition and I always enjoy the moment where WOTAN knows what TARDIS stands for. The Doctor isn't too pleased with that! Brett as the puppet of WOTAN works really well and I like how much more of a villain he seems in the novelisation. Naming another of the War Machines in the form of Valk was another interesting deviation and I liked how with the essence of the War Machines being that they could think that this gave them some personality. The Doctor eventually pitting Valk against WOTAN to see off the threat of the super computer works well, and it's nice that Polly is returned to normality after being under its spell for so long. I really was taken aback by how much of the story she wasn't quite herself. The scale of the story is fantastic and the threat encompassing all of London works well. The building of War Machines is great and I actually really enjoy the logic behind WOTAN's destruction meaning the others are put out of action with no instructions to come. Other than Dodo's departure, everything works well in this adventure and it made for a brilliant read!

Rating: 9/10