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 Thanks to exceptionally witty dialogue by Robert Holmes it means this story doesn't get bogged down in over-the-top outdated performances.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

I do really like stories like this that are just an absolute nightmare scenario for the Doctor and their companion(s). I'm a big proponent of the philosophy that beating the hell out of your characters is how you get some of the best character moments and this serial does not disappoint.

Five sacrificing himself to save Peri at the end was incredible and heartbreaking, and you have to feel a bit horrible for Peri because then she has to put up with Six for the rest of her tenure as a companion, and that probably weighs very heavily on her.

Across Doctor Who’s first 21 years the show has simply never been this dramatic. The Doctor has never had an opportunity to be more of a classic hero figure. And no Doctor has had an opportunity to bow out on such a wonderfully perfect story. The best story in many years. The best since Talons which was also written by the master of writing Doctor Who: Robert Holmes. The quality is his only defining feature here with the story, appropriately for this era, being extremely dark.

So many twist and turns and betrayals give The Doctor, awesome new companion Peri and the rest of the cast (including two prominent stand out baddies) an opportunity to truly shine. Every member of the cast pulls their weight though and makes for a flawless production.

Part one kicks off with some incredible matte paintings which are seamlessly blended with the quarry. Even by today’s standards I can’t tell where the seams are. It looks genuinely alien, otherworldly and beautiful.

It’s weird that so many of the fan’s favourite adventures are those that are as deeply dark as this - but it has to be said that there is particular depth to this story. Much has been writing about Graham Harper’s direction but it can’t be underlined enough - he absolutely nailed this. It looks phenomenal. The fact that a quarry could look so alien and that big embarrassing monsters could look so menacing is a triumph.

It’s the end of an era. And a relief in some ways because I’m leaving The Fifth Doctor’s time wanting more after having been fairly lukewarm on it to begin with. Season 21 has been head and shoulders above Davison’s first two seasons. Of course, the season is not quite over yet…!

This was a high water mark for Doctor Who.

I really hate putting together reviews like this, because I know damn well this is a highly rated episode, but just like Inferno, I'm not sure if the hype did me any favours. I had seen and heard so much about Caves of Androzani I expected a lot more out of it than what I got.

Now, don't get me wrong, there is a lot to like here. The Doctor getting desperate and doing everything he can to save Peri, even sacrificing himself, is very moving. The ending with his regeneration is memorable and might, to date, be my favourite regeneration scene. An 8/10 is not a bad rating, after all, it is just not quite as high as what some others have given here.

I stand by it though, because a lot of the surrounding plots and ideas don't live up to some of Androzani's stronger moments. The shoot-out at the end felt a little dull from a narrative perspective. Peri's fake American accent really stuck out to me here. Some of the sets were really cool looking while others felt very artificial and hastily constructed, while the ADR at the beginning stuck out like a sore thumb.. It is perhaps most impressive that the episodes look pretty good thanks to how well shot they are considering the above. Graeme Harper and the cinematographer did a really good job in that regard, at least. I just think this story is more of the John Nathan-Turner era than people want to admit, sadly, as it has a lot of those traits.

The first time I watched The Caves of Androzani, I didn't like it. After a recent rewatch, I have come to realise that this was more due to the circumstance in which I watched it, not the serial's quality: I had been binging Doctor Who really hard and the Fifth Doctor was starting to drag a bit, so I couldn't wait to get to the Sixth Doctor's run. Following my rewatch, I can no longer deny that this is an absolutely excellent, stand-out, serial. It's tightly written and I think that the characters are really well done - I feel that there is some aspect of moral-ambiguity in each supporting character. The first and third cliffhangers were really good, although I do feel that the second was increadibly unecessary. Moreover, I felt that some of the special effects weren't great. Other than that, a great serial.