A story that excels the most in atmosphere, with a deserted gothic manor haunted by an alien god and it's cultists - straight out of an H.P. Lovecraft story. It has this oppressively dark tone which really makes it feel like the Doctor's up against some impossible odds. The mummy robots are a little silly, but work for what they are and fit the theme. Seeing the 4th Doctor drop his usual persona for a more serious attitude that holds pretty much all the way through the story goes a long way in helping to hype up how dangerous Sutekh is.

The performance of Sutekh by Gabriel Woolf gives the character a dominating screen presence. It is refreshing seeing an enemy which is more of an unfathomable, eldritch power that can't necessarily be stopped - only delayed, which is reinforced by the increasingly desperate measures our protagonists (and there are quite a few active ones besides the Doctor in this story, not the least Sarah Jane!) must take to stop the worst from happening. One of the must-see stories of Baker's era.

It's fun viewing, but nothing too memorable; not awful or amazing, but pretty middle-of-the-road. The drama on Nerva Station, first in dealing with the "plague" and then with the invasion of the Cybermen, are the most engaging parts of the whole story. The storyline concerning the Vogans has some interesting seeds, such as the conflict between the two factions over the path their people should take and the use of gold as the Cybermen's weakness are interesting, but don't feel like their used to their fullest. There's perhaps a little too much going on in this story for it's own good. Having plotting between three different factions (including a double-agent!) can be an interesting story element if done right, but here, it felt like a case of too many cooks in the kitchen. (why didn't Kellerman just tell the other humans on Nerva station he was working with the Vogans in the first place if he intend to betray the Cybermen all along? Did I miss something?)

All-in-all, a very average story. It has it's high points at the beginning and end, but feels weighed down by the middle and the confused plot. I like the on-location filming and I would be guaranteed to buy a toy cybermat if it came in the design like in this episode.