I’m excited for what this era has in store. Sylvester McCoy’s performance fizzes and sparkles and ups the game of every actor around him. Bonnie Langford is a changed woman, partly, to be fair, because she’s actually properly introduced to The Doctor in this story, rather than being an unexplained companion from the future. In this story she also earns her stripes as the ultimate screamer.

The show looks amazing too. For the standards of the era it is visually impressive with wonderful and entertaining CGI. The monster and set designs are truly gorgeous too - the production team are working their socks off.

The bits I’ve seen of McCoys’ era have always given me a huge rush of instant nostalgia, perhaps because I was born in 1992 and it reminds me of the children’s TV I grew up with. It’s the ultimate feel good comfort blanket for me. A lot of that also has to do with the warm and likeable performance from the lead actor.

So… why is this not a beloved story then? The responsibility for that sits with (you guessed it) Pip & Jane Baker whose meandering plot bubbles away for three episodes before completely failing to conclude in part 4. An explosion does not constitute an ending. There are other problems too - the Tetraps, whilst looking good, are given absolutely nothing to do. They are a mild scare because all they do is run up to characters and roar. The local species are another in a long line of passive, oppressed people who you may recognise from pretty much any Terry Nation script. Locals with no agency never increase the sense of drama or threat felt in a story.

So is this bad? Yes. Is this overhated? Most certainly. This is not one of the worst Doctor Who stories of all time and there are several elements that get me excited about the next three years of Doctor Who.

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

Previous Story: The Brink of Death

That was... alright? I've heard so much hating on it, that it's one of the worst if not the worst story of Classic Doctor Who and it just ended up being a passable if not enjoyable little adventure. It's definitely not great but it absolutely doesn't deserve it's reputation. There were a lot of things to like in this story, the soundtrack is brilliant, the direction is brilliant, Sylvester McCoy's performance is great (and really funny).

Speaking of McCoy, he comes out swinging. His Doctor is so immediately different from 6 (and refreshingly kind (atleast compared to Sixie on TV)). I love his little gimmick of constantly quoting things but getting them wrong, it's really funny and it doesn't get old - especially when they start acknowledging it.

The Rani's plot is a bit nonsensical but you definitely feel the stakes. "When the Rani dabbles, she dabbles on a grand scale." It was a bit odd having people like Einstein in the story and then hardly using them beyond the odd joke about relativity. I do think this story is quintessentially Classic Doctor Who, it's got all the hallmarks; set in a quarry, silly looking alien drama, hammy performances. But it does all those things a lot better than most; they atleast try to make the quarry look like an alien planet with the whole pink sky thing, the Tetrap props are genuinely really good, the effects for the traps are also really good.

Overall, I can't say I understand the hate for this story. If this is the worst that McCoy gets on TV then I'm going to enjoy these next three seasons very much.

Next Story: Unregenerate!

📝3/10

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

"Time and the Rani: A Rocky Regeneration"

Time and the Rani struggles under the weight of being both a new Doctor’s introduction and a fresh start for the series. Unfortunately, it fails to deliver on either count, often stumbling into the awkward and absurd.

The story begins with what might be the weakest regeneration sequence in Doctor Who history. Sylvester McCoy, visibly wearing a wig to resemble Colin Baker, lies under a cheap blur effect to mask Baker’s absence. It’s not a great start, and the first episode doesn’t help matters. The Doctor spends much of it confused and erratic, while Mel screams her way through a quarry, pursued by clunky aliens and a painfully grating soundtrack.

The narrative itself is overly simplistic and repetitive. Instead of developing the plot or adding layers to the story, it goes in circles, making the whole experience feel lifeless. The subplot is equally uninspired, leaving the story dragging and dull.

Sylvester McCoy’s debut as the Doctor feels awkward. Whether due to the lingering shadow of Colin Baker’s Doctor or McCoy’s struggle to find his footing, his portrayal feels half-hearted, more like an eccentric caricature than a convincing Time Lord. He improves slightly by the end, but his early performance is more clownish than compelling.

Bonnie Langford, as Mel, fares no better. Reduced to a screaming, stereotypical companion for most of the story, she’s given little to work with until a brief moment of competence when she flips the Doctor over her shoulder. However, that’s hardly enough to salvage her role here.

Kate O’Mara returns as the Rani, but the material lets her down. Her impersonation of Mel is amusing, but the character herself is underdeveloped and far less menacing than in The Mark of the Rani. The Tetraps, her bat-like alien henchmen, are clunky, uninspired, and utterly ineffective.

The supporting cast, including the talented Donald Pickering and Wanda Ventham, are wasted in thinly written roles, leaving little impact. The sets are uninspired, and the music—reminiscent of a bad 80s game show—is a jarring misstep, undermining any attempt at tension or atmosphere.

One bright spot is the CGI, which, while primitive, was ambitious for the time and a bold step forward. The opening sequence and titles showcase early computer graphics, even if they don’t hold up to modern standards.

Despite these flashes of innovation, Time and the Rani is a disappointment. It introduces the final Doctor of the classic era but lacks the heart, humour, or drama to make the transition memorable. It’s a story with little tension, no real scares, and a missed opportunity for meaningful character development.

Ultimately, Time and the Rani is a painfully awkward start for the Seventh Doctor and a disappointing episode that highlights the struggles of the show during this era. It’s arguably the weakest post-regeneration story in the programme’s history—and one you likely won’t rush to revisit.

Random Observations:

• The double pulse Mel accepts as proof of the Doctor’s identity makes little sense—all Time Lords have two hearts!
• The Doctor tries on costumes from his previous incarnations, a fun nod to past regenerations.
• The character Sarn shares a name with Turlough’s home planet from Planet of Fire.

Time and the Rani has an awful reputation, and for good reason. However, it isn't *totally* unacceptable. There's entertaining elements to Slyvester McCoy's manic post-regeneration performance, and he bounces off the Rani pretty well in the first half of this story.

Some of the special effects in this story are just wild and the whole thing is a borderline unhinged experience, but it is very hard for me to call this the worst Doctor Who thing I've ever experienced. It was tolerable, and while messy as hell, I've definitely come across content *far* worse in Doctor Who, including Classic TV serials. Time and the Rani wasn't very good, no, but I would take it happily over something boring and forgettable like some of the lesser early era serials any day.

Still, as any Who fan can tell you, this isn't the strongest start for the Seventh Doctor, and there are far better places to go for such things.

Apparently when writing on this script began, the writers had no script editor, no idea who would be playing the Doctor at the time, and no idea how he would be characterised, and it shows. A nothing of a script, let down by how I had to stop every so often to point out #notMYseventhdoctor