The Mind Robber DVD Review starring Patrick Troughton (Season 6)
Patrick Troughton is often referred to as the “Doctor’s Doctor”. Colin Baker, Peter Davison and most recently Matt Smith have all cited him as their favourite incarnation of the time traveller and the influence of his character is plain to see in Sylvester McCoy’s portrayal. The importance of the Second Doctor should not be lost on anyone.
For me, The Mind Robber exemplifies why Troughton is just so good in what happens to be my favourite story of his era. He is funny, cowardly, heroic and fiendishly clever all in one story and his efforts in this tale are an acting master class to enjoy from start to finish.
But what of the story itself? Part 1 was never meant to exist but previous story The Dominators barely stretched to five episodes never mind the allotted six so a spare was given over to The Mind Robber. And what a wonderful and lucky occurrence that turns out to be.
The episode is essentially a three-hander with the Doctor, Jamie (Frazer Hines) and Zoe (Wendy Padbury) under mental attack from some sort alien force. The imagery is strong from false images on the Tardis scanner to the white void the Tardis crew are coaxed into outside the safety of the Tardis. It is almost a shame that the DVD cleans up the scenes so well as the furriness on the VHS version added to the suspense whereas on the DVD you can make out the lines of the studio which detracts ever so slightly from the atmosphere.
At the culmination of the first episode we have the infamous scene where the Tardis breaks up and Wendy Padbury’s backside is visible in all its’ lycra glory while clinging to a floating console. Wonderful imagery on all counts!
From there on the Tardis crew find themselves in the bizarre world of the Land of Fiction controlled by the Master (no not arch nemesis The Master...a different one!). The Doctor and friends have to pass challenges to stay alive and encounter Gulliver, Medusa, a Minotaur and Rapunzel among many other famous characters from children’s fiction along the way.
There are some wonderful moments of interplay amongst one of the greatest Tardis crews ever. Of particular note is the game where the Doctor has to re-create Jamies face and gets it wrong resulting in young Mcrimmon have a different fizzog for the duration of Episode 2, Frazer Hines place taken by with admirable aplomb by Hamish Wilson. This hastily written change was due to Hines contracting chicken pox during filming. The clockwork soldiers and white robots are visions that stick in the mind too as are the scenes of Jamie and Zoe being trapped in a giant book and the Tardis crew being menaced by a unicorn!!
The pacing is wonderful, the direction emphasizes the more surreal moments and every member of the cast appears to be having a whale of a time in such a spooky yet fun romp.
The story oozes class and is simply my favourite story of the superb Troughton era. Magical.Overall Story Score 9/10
DVD Extra’s
The commentary is an enjoyable one with old friends Wendy Padbury and Frazer Hines holding the piece together along with Hamish Wilson and the now departed David Maloney, one of the greatest directors Doctor Who ever had.
The Fact of Fiction is an excellent “The Making of....” featurette featuring contributions from all the major players including Derrick Sherwin (Script Editor) and Peter Ling (Writer). Of particular note is the trouble the production team had creating the mythical unicorn that features so memorably in the story. Unicorns are hard to come by you know!
And complimenting this excellent documentary is a wonderful pieced called “Highlander” which tells the story of Jamie McCrimmon, one of the most important and endearing characters in the history of Doctor Who. Frazer Hines clearly adored his time on Doctor Who and dearly loved Patrick Troughton and the camaraderie they shared. This is a wonderful tribute to a great advocate of the show and a real fan favourite.
There are also the usual Photo Gallery and Production Subtitle features to enjoy as well as a bizarre sketch from the Basil Brush show featuring a Yeti! Not sure why that is included on this disc but there you go!DVD Extra’s Score 8/10
Overall Story Score 9/10
A trip into fantasy with some of the best time travelling friends you could ever wish for. A true classic that has stood the test of time.
