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"THE RIBOS OPERATION: A SCATTERED START TO THE KEY TO TIME QUEST"

Robert Holmes kicks off The Key to Time season with The Ribos Operation, an adventure that establishes the overarching arc while introducing K9 Mark II, the refined yet underutilised new Romana, and the enigmatic White Guardian. The quest format is an intriguing departure for Doctor Who, with each story in Season 16 focusing on the Doctor retrieving one of six key segments to restore universal balance. However, despite the promising setup, the adventure itself lacks energy and urgency, often meandering rather than building tension.

A STORY THAT NEVER REALLY BUILDS UP

The opening episode does a solid job of setting the scene, but the serial quickly settles into a repetitive loop, moving between the same locations and characters without escalating stakes. Holmes, usually a master of pacing and wit, seems content to let the story coast along until the Doctor finally gets his hands on the Key segment. The cliffhangers are particularly underwhelming—one even sees the Doctor throwing himself under a closing door in a bafflingly silly moment. The teased Shrivenzale monster could have added a layer of menace but is barely utilised, making its eventual appearance feel more like an afterthought than a real threat.

ROMANA’S INTRODUCTION AND A CLASH OF PERSONALITIES

Tom Baker’s performance here marks a shift in his approach to the show. It’s clear that by this point, he was becoming more protective over Doctor Who and his interpretation of the Doctor, and his early interactions with Romana reflect this. Mary Tamm’s Romana is refreshingly different—an intelligent, confident Time Lady who refuses to be in awe of the Doctor. While she lacks the raw energy of Leela, she provides a new dynamic, frustrating the Doctor with her intellect rather than her impulsiveness. It’s a promising contrast, even if their chemistry isn’t fully developed yet.

A STRANGE MIXED BAG OF GUEST CHARACTERS

The supporting cast in The Ribos Operation is an unusual bunch, with performances that range from compelling to outright irritating.

Iain Cuthbertson’s con artist Garron and Paul Seed’s aggressive Graff Vynda-K dominate much of the story with their bickering, but their exaggerated, theatrical performances can be grating rather than engaging. Their political and economic debates feel weighty in concept but rarely translate into compelling drama.

Robert Keegan’s scarred warrior Sholakh has a great presence but is underused.

Anne Tirard’s portrayal of the Seer is, frankly, one of the weakest performances in Doctor Who history.

However, there is one standout: Timothy Bateson’s Binro the Heretic. His character, an allegory for early scientists persecuted for challenging religious dogma, is a highlight. His interactions with Unstoffe are surprisingly moving, adding a layer of depth and humanity to an otherwise uninspired adventure.

A PLANET THAT NEVER QUITE COMES TO LIFE

The planet Ribos has the potential to be an intriguing setting, but its limited set design prevents it from feeling fully realised. The snowy, medieval aesthetic is interesting, and the Ribosian costumes are well-designed, but the small number of sets makes the world feel constrained rather than immersive. The production doesn’t do enough to make Ribos feel like a living, breathing society, reducing it to a mere backdrop for the story’s events.

📝VERDICT: 6/10

The Ribos Operation has moments of brilliance—particularly in its themes and the introduction of Romana—but ultimately feels like a slow, unfocused start to The Key to Time arc. The narrative never gathers much momentum, the guest performances are inconsistent, and the script lacks the sharpness expected from Robert Holmes. While there are glimpses of the wit and depth that make Holmes’ work so beloved, the story struggles to maintain engagement. A passable introduction to Season 16, but not one of Holmes’ strongest efforts.

I found this episode dull and over-long. The new K9 didn't have much to do, and Romana was something's of a non-entity as well. Maybe I'm just still annoyed about Leela's poor send-off and had my hopes set too high for Romana, but this isn't a great start.

On the subject of characters, Garron was fine as a magnificent scoundrel, but to me he felt like a cheap imitation of Harry Mudd from Star Trek, an all-around more fun and compelling character. Unstoffe was okay, and being the only nice character he served as a good contrast to everyone else. Binro absolutely stole the show and was probably my favourite part of this episode.

I enjoyed the little reveal of the Doctor's scarf under the guard's cape and Romana shutting K9 up with her dress, but these little moments weren't enough to salvage this episode.

We’ve never had a season long arc in Doctor Who before now, a concept well ahead of its time in 1978. It gives a new lease of life to the show after a meagre season 15 and gives me the impression that season 16 will be far superior. Although Robert Holmes is always likely to perk up a a production.

Romana is a nice switch up from Leela. Hyper intelligent, one of The Doctor’s race, posh. Her intro screams “male gaze” though as the camera pans up showing the length of her legs in the cut of her glamorous dress. It has the desired effect but feels a bit seedy and makes an effort to overshadow a lovely, understated performance. She reminds me of Caroline John's Liz Shaw. Someone who is not going to get the dues of a Leela or a Sarah-Jane but shines in each and every one of their scenes.

Binro the Heretic is one of Robert Holmes’ best characters. I am especially fond of the the “Binro was right” scene which I remember well after not seeing the story for the best part of 10 years. It is amazing how well his character comes across given how few scenes he appears in and how inessential to the plot he is.

The story feels like a historical adventure despite its alien setting which is to its credit. Much in the mould of the Peladon adventures it makes a more convincing setting of the alien world whilst still allowing for menacing green creatures to be part of the narrative without them being disguised from the local.

I liked the con men double act at the heart of this story too - the dastardly one and kind-hearted one balance each other out well.

Here's to season 16 (hopefully) being a continuing success. And to a much improved, much quieter K-9 mk 2!

This is a fun introduction to the Black and White Guardian storyline with a really memorable set-up at the start I think really worked to gear viewers to know what to expect out of the season. It's done really well and left me excited, especially with this also being Romana's introduction, too.

So it starts out very energetic and full of excitement, but I do feel as though that once we get into the thrust of this story on Ribos, that goodwill fades pretty quickly. The story is pretty boring and I checked out of it quite quickly. It is far from unacceptable, but easy to forget a lot of the plot line and I didn't really care much for the characters outside of the Doctor and Romana. The latter of the two being a Time Lady feels pretty good, I like the idea of her possessing a lot of intelligence but lacking the Doctor's experience. I feel they get a good handle on her character here but it does improve over time. I do like the look of the setting though and the ending had a nice feeling to it in the snow, still leaving me with that same feeling of excitement for the possibilities of what was to come out of the series going forward.

Nowadays it seems standard for Doctor Who to tackle a series arc but during the classic series it was very uncommon. Sure, there was 1964's The Keys to Marinus but that was more of a single serial arc - it didn't take up the entire season. The only true examples in the Doctor Who's classic series of a season-long arc are The Trial of a Time Lord...and the Key to Time. And so it was the job of The Ribos Operation to introduce what the arc was about.

The idea behind the Key to Time was that in each story the Doctor (Tom Baker) and Romana (Mary Tamm) would arrive somewhere where one of the pieces to the Key to Time is detected to be by Romana's locater. The Doctor and Romana are recruited by the White Guardian (Cyril Luckham ) to find all six segments of the Key to Time. With all six segments together, the White Guardian can restore the balance of order and chaos to the universe. They arrive on the planet Ribos, where Garron (Iain Cuthbertson) and Unstoffe (Nigel Plaskitt) are trying to sell Ribos to the ruler of planet Levithia the Graff Vynda-K (Paul Seed) by convincing him it is full of a rare and powerful mineral known as 'Jethrik'. They place a lump of the rare mineral in the glass case housing the planet's crown jewels and show the Graff, who becomes convinced the planet is a rich source for it. When the Graff realises he has been conned, the Doctor and Romana are forced to work with Garron and Unstoffe to claim the Jethrik back.

I'll admit, I was rather disappointed with this story as I expected more from the opener of a quest storyline. It is a fun tale though and typical of writer Robert Holmes' style. It is great fun the way the narrative subverts the heist genre; instead of trying to steal something FROM an unsuspecting owner, it becomes about trying to steal something BACK. This prevents the heist genre from becoming predictable, offering a fresh take that sometimes the genre could need.

The problem is that it doesn't offer any memorable conflict. The Graff is a bit of a generic threat; all he really does is order executions and understandably become extremely angry at being conned. He's certainly no threat compared to Daleks or even the Cavemen from An Unearthly Child, where you feel like the TARDIS crew are in danger. The Ribos guards seem a bit useless too. You've got towonder who hired them considering one of them lets a complete stranger (IE the Doctor) pull their whistle away without any forcible protest. Surely a proper guard would be a bit more forceful: pull the Doctor's hand away and blow the whistle to call for the guards? The Graff's guards aren't much better either but at least they seem a bit more threatening and imposing than the guards on Ribos.

If anything makes this a Doctor Who story you have to see, it's the comical relationship between Unstoffe and Garron. Unstoffe and Garron make a brilliant double act and one that no doubt reminds some Whovians of Jago & Litefoot. They are hugely entertaining and definitely the best part of this rather average serial. Ian Cuthbertson and Nigel Plaskitt play to Robert Holmes' writing well and it's a crime that they never got the chance to record Big Finish audios. Ian Cuthbertson sadly passed away in 2009 and Nigel Plaskitt is still alive but Undtoffe without Garron like all great double acts really wouldn't work.

Also: James Purdie's lighting for this serial is very impressive, especially for the White Guardian scene. The scene with the White Guardian looks suitably dream-like and a nice almost Hawaiin-like quality that plays nicely with the ethereal quality of his being. I'd say it's definitely the best classic series serial for lighting - it prevents the show from feeling cheap even though it was made on a shoestring budget, meaning it can compete better with the blockbuster films of the time.

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Overall, The Ribos Operation is a disappointingly average opener for a season-long story arc. There's nothing too special to be found here, however it can be applauded for its inventiveness with the lighting and subversion of the heist genre. The double act between the characters of Unstoffe and Garron is brilliant too, it's just a pity that the story offers little in the way of conflict for the Doctor, Romana, Unstoffe and Garron. The Gaff is certainly not going to be considered one of Doctor Who's greatest villains anytime soon.