6.11: Terror of the Vervoids

In which Doctor Who solves a murder mystery and commits genocide – in space!

Broadcast: November 1986

Watched: January 2021

The Trial of a Time Lord, Part Nine

“Every time you appear on the scene, people begin to die.”

The look of genuine disgust the Doctor gives the Inquisitor when she uses the phrase “sufficient time to overcome the distress” is one of Colin’s best moments.

Anyway, the plot. Disappointing model work. But I like the way – Romeo & Juliet again – this starts with the Doctor telling us the plot, announcing that a lot of people are going to die en route. I also like the fact we’re in a mystery, it’s a nice change of pace.

Mel’s introduction (“Neddy”) is hateful. I wonder if this colours fans’ later view of her. I like that the Commodore has met the Doctor before, and also that he f*cking hates his security officer.

You can tell we’re in the future because the Doctor has a new cat badge and waistcoat.

The fabrication of the evidence is just a distraction, too. What’s it meant to achieve? Also – the Valeyard presumably knows this ends in genocide. He’s got the Doctor on that – why fuck around?

The cabin 6/9 confusion is hilariously low tech.

The Trial of a Time Lord, Part Ten

“How you became a scientist baffles me – you have the temperment of an over cautious rabbit.” Because shy, awkward people never become scientists.

The thought occurs that being a casual viewer tuning in it must have been incredibly weird being in a Doctor Who story, and then suddenly being in this weird boring court sequence. They didn’t think this through at all, did they.

I’m enjoying how unbelievably rude Honor Blackman is in this. I LOVE the shot of two aliens playing Space Invaders, even if it isn’t a two person game and they stop before the game ends which doesn’t make any sense.

There aren’t many passengers on this ship, are there. Also the fact the phrase “perative” turns out to be part of “imperative” is played like the writers think it might count as a revelation, and hmm. [With some distance I now think this is probably a “clever to 10 year olds” thing.]

There’s also something hilarious about the way the vervoids are clever enough to understand that turning the shower on will convince the stewardess that everything is fine and they haven’t just murdered someone. Cool cliffhanger, though.

The Inquisitor says “That would be a serious offence” as if editing the Matrix is worse than interfering in time and getting people killed.

The Trial of a Time Lord, Part Eleven

“It’s designed to be hijack proof.” So why, dear Commodore, do you just hand over control the moment someone shows up with a gun? That scene is quite badly edited too, it makes it look like they’re just waiting for the director to say action.

That said, the cliffhanger as a whole is brilliant – things starting to smash, Bruchner standing up as he stares into the black hole, the secondary cliffhanger of Mel in danger. Pip and Jane weren’t all that hot on dialogue, but they could structure a script.

The episode as a whole is a lot of fun, too – the sequence in which Mel nearly goes in the incinerator is a brilliant bit of peril, even if the Doctor does make a joke about shitting halfway through – but there is a structural problem. The story is still treated as a murder mystery when we’ve already seen the killer plants. Now, as it happens, there *is* a murderer too, but I’m not sure there’s any reason for the audience to believe that at this stage. So it doesn’t really work as a mystery because they seem to keep showing us the answer?

Can’t decide what I think of Mel. She’s quite game, which is what you want in a companion, and feels refreshing after the last few seasons, but Bonnie does play her like she’s about to wink to the audience in a panto.

Other things: the Mogarian frustrations with imperialism are a lovely throwback to the concerns of the Pertwee era. The black hole looks a bit small. The fact one of the Vervoids is audibly northern is strangely distracting. I like the “V” theme in the design of the Hyperion 3.

The Trial of a Time Lord, Part Twelve

“Without me you wouldn’t exist! I’m your friend!” *handshake, gets a poison thorn in the palm* is a nice touch.

I like the way this one has twist after twist after twist. The way the hijack is defeated by people including a murderer, then defeating the Vervoids becomes the big thing. But it does seem to jump from no one being aware of the genocidal mutant plants to everyone being aware of them – Dolland starts chatting about them entirely unprompted.

It’s also nice of the matrix to only use camera angles that disguise the identity of whoever it is who attacks the Mogarians, so as to maintain the suspense. What the hell does Dolland throw at them that immediately melts their masks?

The thought occurs that, if there’s a way of driving the Vervoids into one place, it might have been clever to use it earlier. The effects in the scene where they disintegrate are good.

The Doctor is an idiot for thinking genocide is no big deal.