Doctor Who and the Android Invasion

"What I can create, I can also destroy."

Writer: Terrance Dicks

Format: Novel

Released: November 1978

Series: Target 02

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis

The Doctor and Sarah arrive safely back on Earth – or do they?

Why does the mysterious soldier march straight over a cliff – and then reappear unharmed?

Why are they attacked by the sinister mechanics with built-in guns for hands?

Why is a picturesque country village at first deserted – then filled with mindless zombies?

And why are their best friends suddenly trying to kill them?

The Doctor has stumbled on a cunning alien plan to take over the Earth. Will he be in time to defeat the deadly Kraals and their terrifying android invasion?

Verdict

Doctor Who and the Android Invasion was an average novelisation of the Fourth Doctor serial. There wasn’t anything inherently bad about the book as my rating reflects, but it is a bit of a mess. In saying that though, it is a fun mess. I like how the story doesn’t waste any time in getting into the swing of things and just jumps right into the action. The pace of the story is frantic and it being a relatively shorter novel is why I chose it for my National Express journey following Wales away, but even so it was just boom in your face and almost felt like there was no time to breathe! Sarah having some local knowledge was nice after doing a story in Devesham about a missing astronaut a couple of years earlier. That put her in a strong position and despite the Doctor having the air of bravado about him in not just accepting that they had arrived on Earth in the past, he was reliant on her experiences in some instances even if he had been there before with the Brigadier. I thought that was good and with this being the subsequent incarnation it’s often easy to forget how much the Doctor will have done as part of UNIT in England in particular. The emergence of Styggron and the Kraals in particular feels a little rushed which is a shame because I do think there’s a basis for a strong enemy there. The idea behind him later having a brain drain machine to extract all knowledge and memory was quite something, especially where the Doctor was concerned! Talk about adding to your data banks. I think the concept behind the duplicate village was really interesting and I liked the deviation from the televised serial in having the Androids actually be mirrored. That felt like a positive but I’m not sure enough was made of it! Sure it gave the basis for recognising the Androids a little easier, but I’m not convinced everything that could have been done was. What reason did the Doctor have for having the device that identified Androids if he could just look for the mirror differentiators? I thought the moment Sarah hurt her ankle abruptly and then the Doctor had to leave her hiding up a tree was utterly ridiculous. How does something like that happen? It was ludicrous and considering in my research after reading that Terrance Dicks was trying to tidy up a lot of the plot points from the on screen version, I’m not entirely sure he did so. The Androids didn’t feel as threatening without their circuitry and whilst a blank face can work, I’m not sure prose is the best place for that. One thing that feels blaring in the novelisation is just what a waste the story is for both Harry and Benton. It still remains baffling that they return for this story and it’s even more unfortunate that this is actually both of their last chronological appearance. Their past relationship and connection with the Doctor and Sarah Jane was barely touched upon and it just felt like a disconnect really. Guy Crawford was a strong character and him being prepared to sacrifice half of the planet and the population said all that was needed about him. The Doctor being one step ahead of his true circumstances and not actually being rebuilt and having both eyes despite the eye patch was powerful stuff. I thought the ending was incredibly rushed and even the final page alluded to everything that would need to be sorted out! I feel like that could have been extended in prose and felt like a missed opportunity. Overall, some good stuff and not exactly a bad story but this definitely could have been better.

Rating: 6/10