👍🏼(7.03) = GOOD!

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

World War II usually makes for a fantastic setting for a Doctor Who adventure (The Forsaken, Operation Werewolf, The Empty Child), and when you add in the manipulative Seventh Doctor, we get even more intriguing stories (The Curse of Fenric, Timewyrm: Exodus). Colditz, penned by Steve Lyons, is no exception.

We are transported to Colditz Castle, used by the Germans to hold prisoners of war during WWII, where Seven and Ace get entangled in war politics. Believed to be British spies, the Nazis soon learn about the TARDIS and want to use its secret to secure a victory in the war. Lyons kicks the plot into high gear right away, as the Doctor seemingly plays into the Nazis' hands while Ace spends time with other prisoners, trying to convince them to attempt an escape.

Colditz is most notable for introducing the inimitable Tracey Childs as German science doctor Elizabeth Klein, who’ll later become a companion for Seven. Even more intriguing is the Doctor Who debut of one Scottish actor named David Tennant, in a rather colourful and fierce (and, arguably, exaggerated) role as a sadistic German officer named Kurtz. He’d move up the ranks to become the Doctor themselves merely four years later.

Sophie Aldred is wonderful in this one, as she constantly rubs the Nazi characters the wrong way. Sylvester McCoy excels, particularly when confronting Childs and revealing his cunning aspects. Peter Raye is excellent in the role of sympathetic Wilkins.

Colditz is a straightforward adventure, relying on its characters and the natural tension of the era to carry the narrative. Part 2 ends with an intriguing revelation, as the Doctor realises that there is more to Klein than meets the eye; she has travelled to 1944 in the Doctor’s TARDIS.

At its most basic level, this is a Doctor Who take on a very simple paradox story. The problem is that Steve Lyons does very little with the story beyond the initial premise, so the four parts float around a bit until it's time to wrap things up. Ace, in particular, doesn’t get anything useful to do.

The story ends with an intriguing spin, as a piece of late 20th-century technology left behind in 1944 creates an alternate future where Germany has won the war, making it possible for Klein to travel back to 1944 and later become the Doctor’s companion.

The sound quality (editing and mixing) is occasionally very poor, which means that some of the dialogue has a strange echo to it. This ruins many scenes because they are difficult to listen to. The soundtrack is also pretty intrusive in some places, which makes the experience worse.