This is part of a series of reviews of Doctor Who in chronological timeline order.

Previous Story: Urban Myths

Yes. It lives up to the hype, as long as you know what you're getting into. It has comedic elements, but it's not a comedy. This story is so unique in Doctor Who, a story so bleak that the only morally good characters in it are the Fifth Doctor and Peri and the only character that really survives is Peri. The Doctor and Peri stumble into a situation where there is no way to win, only to survive. The stakes are high and yet the story is small-scale, it's not a universe-ending threat.

A lot of people complain about bringing back beloved writers when the show isn't really working, or isn't hitting the heights that it used to. They say it's "lazy" and it shows you're "desperate". To some extent I agree but then again this is also probably Robert Holmes' best work next to The Deadly Assassin. This story is visually incredible aswell. Graeme Harper's directing makes this story so visually unique, from the wide shots at the beginning to the claustrophobic camera angles it makes this story look like no other.

This story, in my opinion, built on the idea of an epic swansong for the Doctor in Logopolis and set the tone for the epic finales of New Who. Peter Davison gives the best performance of his entire run on TV and fully cements 5 as one of my favourite Doctors. While I think the Fifth Doctor's run hasn't always been the strongest on TV one thing that has always remained a highlight is the Doctor himself and that hasn't changed now. Nicola Bryant is also exceptional here, especially her dynamic with Davison but also her reactions to Sharaz Jek and being slowly poisoned.

The rest of the cast of characters are all great, from the slimy Morgus, to the vengeful Sharaz Jek. Thanks to exceptionally witty dialogue by Robert Holmes it means this story doesn't get bogged down in over-the-top outdated performances. I'm going to leave this review here, so as not to ramble.

After this I truly think 5 is the most Doctor-y Doctor beaten only by maybe 12. His willingness to lay down his life and save a companion that (excluding Big Finish) he'd only just met while suffering from one of the deadliest poisons in the universe is one of the most noble things the Doctor has ever done and is one of the main reasons why this story has and will continue to go down as some of the greatest Doctor Who (atleast on TV).

"I owe it to my friend to try because I got her into this. So you see, I'm not going to let you stop me now!"

Next Story: The Twin Dilemma

Stories during: Circular Time: Winter