Leela's first episode does a lot right.  Her character is well realized even if there's a clear element of sexualization going on here.  I love her character's agency and the way she winds up joining up with the Doctor.  It feels very her.  The actual story going on with the Sevateem and Tesh is alright.  It's a lot more interesting as first when it is a bit more mysterious compared to near the end where events feel like they start to drag out a bit. The angle of this involving a past adventure with the Doctor, one never mentioned or shown before, is novel for its time but isn't really used in a way that felt extremely meaningful.

Yet I like the energy Leela and the Doctor bring to the table almost immediately.  This is a great introduction for her and really shows off Louise Jameson nicely.  This is one of the better examples of performers elevating a middling story I have encountered in the show thus far.  Our leads are just so pleasant and fun to watch that little else feels like it matters all that much.  Even if they do make the insane mistake of changing the character's eye colour to not match that of the actor's.

It's okay. I like the idea of exploring the impact of one of the Doctor's past adventures (even if it would've been better had we actually seen that story) though it never really goes anywhere that exciting with it, and the tribe stuff is a bit dull. Couple of cool cliffhangers with Tom Baker being the 'Evil One' though

Up until this point in the show’s history, there has has only been one other time we’ve had two such strong stories back to back. 1966’s The Tenth Planet into Power of the Daleks, which was 10 months ago in this marathon. Doctor Who is a naturally uneven show, so on the rare occasions that it manages to be consistently flawless I find myself in awe of the producers.

Leela is magnificent. They had a hell of a job following Sarah-Jane but they managed it. Four companion free episodes buttered us up for someone new. Having someone from an entirely different culture who retains some of that culture and does not come across as contemporary the moment they step through the TARDIS doors is also a rarely used and brilliant move at this point. Leela follows in the tradition of several 1960s companions, particularly Victoria, Zoe and Jamie.

The story is of a survey team and a tech team who for generations have been manipulated by a sentient, malfunctioning computer which was set on the wrong course by The Doctor many years before. I mean. Read that pitch. It’s perfect. The survey team becomes the tribe, prized for their brawn and reflexes, the tech team become a learned book smart race. The computer has a plan to use the best example of each species in a eugenics experiment. Bloody hell. Now THAT’S science fiction.

First time Who writer Chris Boucher can stay based on this performance. In fact - he is back next week!