So this is it. The end for another Doctor! It seems to have come round awfully fast this time. When the fourth Doctor died it felt like he had been around forever but for number 5 it feels like I'm still just getting to know him. However three years is about the average time for a Doctor so it was time to say goodbye once again.
In a poll done by Doctor Who Magazine back in 2009 The Caves Of Androzani was ranked as being the very best Doctor Who story of all time. I've never really understood this. It's a good one but I wouldn't have said that it was the best. However just like I was able to reappraise Planet Of Fire then I also saw this story afresh and I have to admit that it is pretty bloody spectacular!
The Doctor and Peri arrive on Androzani Minor and immediately get caught up in the fighting that is going on in the mining caves. The sinister Sharaz Jek has taken over the mine and as this mine is the only source of the life giving Spectrox then people are pretty desperate to get him out of there. Sharaz Jek is such a brilliant character. He is classed as the villain of the story but as with the best of villains his motives are pretty understandable and therefore I actually found myself feeling sorry for him. He was tricked into the mine by Morgus in order to extract the Spectrox but Morgus purposefully didn't tell him about a dangerous mud burst that was about to take place in order that Sharaz Jek would be killed and Morgus could take all the profits. Unfortunately for Morgus, Sharez Jek is still very much alive, albeit severely scarred after he had the skin melted off his face! I mean that would piss you off quite a bit, especially as Sharez Jek was apparently once an extremely handsome guy! Therefore Sharez Jek has gone a bit crazy (understandably) and is seeking his revenge against Morgus.
It's this conflict that the Doctor and Peri find themselves in the middle of. Things take a further turn for the worse when right near the start of episode one, the Doctor and Peri contract Spectrox Toxemia which slowly starts to kill them off as the story progresses. The only known cure for which is the milk of a certain bat which is only to be found in the deepest part of the mines.
Sharez Jek captures the Doctor and Peri and this is where things get a little creepy. Sharez Jek's attitude towards Per is a little...rapey. He is enraptured by her beauty and is determined to keep her down in the mines with her. However near the end of the story Sharez Jek becomes more of a sympathetic character as we learn why he is the way he is and the Doctor leaves Peri in his care whilst he searches the lower part of the mines for the bats milk that will save them both. As Sharez Jek mops Peri's brow and generally cares for her I began to feel a great liking for the character. Therefore it was all the more heartbreaking when Peri sees him without his mask and screams in horror causing Jek to recoil and hide under a table whimpering like a wounded animal. The poor guy.
The Doctor returns for Peri and they make their way back to the TARDIS surrounded by explosions from the most recent mud burst. As The Doctor fumbles for his key he drops the vial containing the milk spilling half of it. As they stumble into the TARDIS, the Doctor pours what remains of the milk into Peri's mouth (that sounds vile!) but there is none left for him and he realises he is dying.
The regeneration scene is brilliant, only slightly hampered by the fact that no matter how well Peter Davison is acting he is slightly overshadowed by the fact that Peri has her tits out right over his face! As he slips away, he sees images of his old companions begging him to survive, including Kamelion bizarrely! Does he count as a companion?? Finally the Master appears telling him to ignore his companions and just to get a move on with it and die already! The Doctor's last words are "Adric" showing how much he dearly regrets the death of his young companion at the hands of the Cybermen. Again he doesn't give a shit about the death of Kamilion!
As the picture clears from all the cool regeneration effects a new man sits up sharply. It's the sixth Doctor! Colin Baker! Peri scrambles to him asking what has just happens:
"Change my dear. And it seems not a moment to soon"
Five Doctors down! With just six left to go!
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