Days 510 to 513 - City Of Death

...in which the Doctor and Romana take a trip to Paris and I get interviewed by the BBC.

Its been a crazy few days for the quest. On Day 511 I received a message that BBC Radio Stoke were trying to contact me! And yesterday (Day 512, the numbers are important, I am a geek after all) I gave an interview to Lee Thomas on his show. Lee was really nice about the whole thing and was really great to talk to. Luckily it was pre-recorded so I didn't have to worry about letting loose a swear word! Fortunately Lee didn't ask me about such stories as The Web Planet so swear words were not necessary. Overall I think it went quite well and hopefully I didn't come across like a total sad case. In the event that I have new people reading this blog who heard about me via the radio interview let me assure you that I do have other hobbies and (as unbelievable as it may seem) I have friends too! However it is true that my love for Doctor Who has reached OCD proportions.

So to this week's story. And it could quite possibly be my most favourite story ever! It's certainly in the top ten!

The story starts on a primeval Earth where a Jagoroth space ship is preparing to lift off. Unfortunately, the pilot, Scaroth makes a fatal error and the ship explodes causing Scaroth to be fragmented in 12 separate entities that are scattered through the history of Earth. One version of Scaroth is living in present day Paris where he is conducting time travel experiments in order to travel back in time 400 million years in order to prevent the explosion that destroyed the last of the Jagoroth and scattered him through time in the first place. What an amazing idea for a story!

Fortunately the Doctor and Romana are currently holidaying in Paris so are on hand to sort out the problem when they both start feeling the time distortions that are the side effects of Scaroth's time travel experiments. It's so nice to see Doctor Who filmed on location and the scenes here as the Doctor and Romana run around Paris sight seeing, accompanied by some of the best music in the show ever, are delightful. It's nice to see them having fun.

Scaroth himself is an interesting looking monster. A green head with lots of dangly bits and one giant eye in the middle of his forehead. Yuk! When my brother saw the cliffhanger to the end of episode one when Scaroth's face is revealed for the first time he recognised him as one of the monsters that he remembered scaring the crap out of him when he was younger! Luckily Scaroth can handily disguise himself as a human using a mask and turns himself into the very rich and charming Count Scarlioni played to perfection by Julian Glover.

The Count and his wife (who is blissfully unaware that she is married to a one eyed monster from out space) are planning on stealing the Mona Lisa from the Louvre. And this is when the Doctor and Romana get on to their scent as the Doctor recognises the Countess using alien technology to scan the Louvre for it's security. They are not the only one on the Countess's tail as they find themselves teaming up with an undercover investigator, Duggan. Duggan is another great character in what is already a fantastic story. Duggan is one of those people whose solution to any problem is to punch it! Much to the Doctor's dismay.

Soon they are captured and taken to the Count's house where the Doctor find himself being flung to the ground by one of Scarlioni's henchmen leading to one of the best lines in Doctor Who history.

THE DOCTOR:- " I say, what a wonderful butler! He's so violent!"

This line is delivered with such glee by Tom Baker that it makes me laugh every time. The script for this story is fantastic and is full of very witty dialogue. Another personal favourite is the Doctor's line to the Countess:

THE DOCTOR:-" You're a beautiful woman...probably"

Locked up in Scarlioni's cellar they soon discover a hidden room where there is hidden another six copies of the Mona Lisa. These are not fakes, they are actual Mona Lisas painted by Leonardo DaVinci.

After travelling back in time to Leonardo's workshop, the Doctor discovers another version of Scaroth waiting for him in a brilliant cliffhanger to episode two. Scaroth is manipulating the human race in such a way as to allow his self in the future to have both the technology and the funding required in order for him to complete his time machine. This involves getting DaVinci to paint six additional copies of the Mona Lisa, then bricking them up in the cellar of the house that he knows his future self lives in. Then his future self can sell these paintings, after stealing the copy hiding in the Louvre so that each buyer believes they are buying the original and only copy of the Mona Lisa therefore giving him the fortune he needs to fund his experiments. Is that clear? As plans go, that's pretty bloody clever!

As the story reaches it's conclusion, the Doctor realises that Scaroth cannot be allowed to travel back in time to prevent his ship exploding as it was in fact the explosion of his ship and the resulting radiation that was the spark required to kick off life on Earth. I.e if Scaroth's ship never exploded then we would not exist.

After a brilliant scene when the Countess finally comes to her senses and confronts her alien husband (only to be brutally murdered), Scaroth's machine is completed and his journey back 400 million years into the past is made.

The Doctor, Romana and Duggan race to the art gallery where the Doctor has parked his TARDIS in order that they can intercept Scaroth and here we are given yet another treat! John Cleese cameos as an art expert who has mistaken the police box as a work of art "it has no call to be here and therefore the art lies in the fact that it is here!" As the two art lovers witness the TARDIS materialise they don't seem to bat an eyelid merely commenting "exquisite...absolutely exquisite"

As the TARDIS arrives back in primeval Earth, Duggan saves the day by completely laying out Scaroth in what the Doctor claims to be "the single most important punch in human history". It's a nice pay off for a character that at some point has knocked out about 75% of the characters in this story. In fact I've just remembered, I think he knocks out Scaroth in episode two too!

Finally, the Doctor and Romana bid goodbye to Duggan at the Eiffel Tower in a scene that I believe is being repeated by Doctor Who fans to this day. Unfortunately I have not been to Paris yet but when I do I must ensure to visit the Eiffel Tower, stand below it, look up to the top and scream at the top of my lungs "BYE BYE DUGGAN!!!!"

I could watch this story again right now! I mean what more do you want, it's got: Great plot, witty dialogue, great villain in the form of Julian Glover, some clever timy wimy stuff, Paris, fantastic music and a cameo from John Cleese!

This story, plus the radio interview and additional donations from the charity is just the motivation I need to spur me on further as the days of the fourth Doctor are coming to an end...