The Three Doctors

Premise: As gel creatures materialise around UNIT HQ and begin a full scale attack, the Doctor realises the situation is beyond even him control and sends out a desperate SOS...

Notes: To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the show, it was decided that the three Doctors would unite for the first time. Originally, they were all supposed to play an equal role in the story but Hartnell's health prevented this so his role was reduced to reading off of cards in a pre-recorded segment. The episode was also originally planned to feature the return of Jamie too but Frazer Hines' was unable to due to other commitments so his role was filled by Sergent Benton instead. This episode also saw the end of the Doctor's exile on Earth as the Time Lords give him his freedom as a reward for helping them vanquish Omega.

Verdict: Not the most amazing Doctor Who story ever told but nevertheless it is very entertaining to see the return of the previous Doctors. Omega is a unique villain who adds a lot to the serial but the best part would have to be the interaction between Troughton and Pertwee 8/10

The Sea Devils

Premise: The Doctor and Jo visit the Master at maximum security prison on an island just off the coast of England where they are attacked by creatures related to the hibernating Silurians.

Notes: With the reasonable success of the Silurians two years earlier it was decided that they'd be brought back along with the Master in a story called The Sea Silurians. This was later changed to The Sea Devils as it was scene as more dramatic. Incidental music for this story was composed by Malcolm Clarke for this story and is notably more experiment than the usual scores done by Dudley Simpson. It was entirely electronic, made on the Radiophonic Workshop's synthesiser. Purely by chance, the model for the submarine (made from a slightly altered Woolworth's model kit) closely resembled that of a prototype submarine being developed by the Ministry of Defence, who were concerned that the footage was of the real prototype.

Verdict: With less focus on the moral dilemma than it's predecessor, The Sea Devils is less of a serious tale and more of an action packed romp. UNIT are conspicuous by their absence but all in all it's a great deal of fun with Delgado on top form 8/10

Day of the Daleks

Premise: The world is on the brink of war and Sir Reginald Styles is attempting to negotiate a settlement by arranging a peace conference to be held in his home, Auderly House.

Notes: Gone for five years, the Daleks made a return in this serial and are in colour for the first time. Creator, Terry Nation, had tried to launch the Daleks in their own series in America but with no success. There were only three Daleks made for this episode, one gold and two grey. Their rather odd voices were provided by Oliver Gilbert and Peter Messaline who only did them for this episode. A scene was written a recorded which explained how the Daleks escaped their apparent final end at the hands of the second Doctor in Evil of the Daleks but it was cut due to timing reasons.

Verdict: An amazing script is let down by bad production values and an oddly static set of Daleks. On the upside, the cast are on top form and the future world is suitably grim 7/10

The Dæmons

Premise: The Doctor is extremely concerned as he watches a televised archaeological dig near the village of Devil's End in which a Professor Horner prepares to break into an ancient barrow.

Notes: Producer Barry Letts co-wrote this story with Robert Sloman under the pseudonym Guy Leopold. Unusually, two weeks location filming was undertaken for this story compared to the usual one week spent on many other stories. The BBC received a complaint from a naive viewer who believed that a they blew up a real Church in the climax of episode five, although it was really only a model shot.

Verdict: The quintessential Jon Pertwee story written clearly with the regulars in mind. Roger Delgado is at his most assured with his Master earning himself the first villain to be put in danger for a cliffhanger. It's just a shame that the resolution is blatantly absurd 8/10

The Claws of Axos

Premise: An alien spaceship lands on Earth and in exchange for fuel, the crew offer a miraculous gift that could end global food shortages forever. But the Doctor has his suspicions.

Notes: This was the first story to be written by writing duo Bob Baker and Dave Martin who would go on to write many more together. Up to and during the production of the first two episodes it was titled The Vampire from Space but at the last minute was changed to The Claws of Axos before transmission. While the Axons would not appear again their tentacled costumes designed by Jules Baker would be used again for the Krynoid in the Tom Baker story The Seeds of Doom, albeit spray painted green. 

Verdict: A rather tedious first episode leads into an immensely enjoyable final three. There are rich ideas on show throughout and the action has dated surprisingly well 8/10

Terror of the Autons

Premise: The Master, a renegade Time Lord, comes to Earth and breaks into a museum where he steals a Nestene energy globe that was salvaged from their previous invasion attempt.

Notes: This was the first story to feature the classic villain of the Master, a renegade Time Lord who would appear in every subsequent serial this season until finally being captured in the final story, the Dæmons. He would occasionally return in the following seasons until actor Roger Delgado died in a car crash in Turkey. It was also the first to feature companion Jo Grant and UNIT Captain Mike Yates. During the scene where Mike Yates drives into an Auton and it falls down the hill, the stuntman was only supposed to fall halfway down the hill and get up again. However, he fell all the way down the hill and was injured during this accident. Nevertheless, he got back up again for the shot.

Verdict: No Better nor worse than it's predecessor. Some poor effect which could have been easily avoided and the Autons themselves seem rather strange. Some inventive death scenes though, most notably the plastic chair. It must be said that the main star of this is Roger Delgado, who works really well alongside Jon Pertwee 7/10

Inferno

Premise: UNIT have been assigned to provide security for an experimental operation, nicknamed the Inferno. The Doctor is also present as a UNIT observer but is secretly siphoning off power.

Notes: The original draft did not feature the parallel universe aspect of the story, this was instead written in later as it was felt that the original idea would not be enough to sustain seven episodes. While Douglas Camfield is the only director credited, Barry Letts took over from episodes three to seven after Camfield suffered a minor heart attack. To stop his illness become widely known because of the damage it might do to his career, Camfield was the only one credited. This is the last story to feature Liz Shaw as it was felt that she did not fulfill the role of a companion, which is to ask questions to that the audience can understand what's happening. This worked at well for Caroline John as she was pregnant at the time however she did not find out why she was dropped until years later.

Verdict: One of the most gripping Doctor Who stories there is with the tension never dropping and the ever present sound of the drill makes for a great atmosphere. The parallel universe aspect is very well realised and Nicholas Courtney is very enjoyable as a villain. With all actors on top form and an almost flawless script with decent special effects, it is undeniably one of the best serials out there 10/10