Time Lords can regenerate but what if humans could, too?
Synopsis
Martha’s “one trip†with the Doctor is at an end and the TARDIS materializes in her apartment. As she bids a reluctant farewell to the Doctor, her mother calls, leaving a message that her sister is on TV. Martha tunes in to see Professor Richard Lazarus explain that tonight he will “…change what it means to be human.†This piques the Doctor’s curiosity enough that he decides to stay.
They visit Lazarus Labs where the elderly Professor Lazarus (played by Mark Gatiss who takes a turn at acting in Doctor Who rather than writing this year) is attempting an experiment in bodily regeneration funded by the mysterious Mister Saxon. The experiment starts to go wrong and the Doctor prevents a catastrophe; however, after the experiment is shut down, Lazarus emerges, young, looking remarkably like Peter Davison.
The Doctor warns of the consequences, but Lazarus pays no heed.
Later Lazarus discusses the future with his wife when the instability of the process manifests itself. Lazarus transforms into a monstrous creature which drains the life from his wife. Afterwards Lazarus returns to the party, apparently normal.
Lazarus goes after Martha’s sister and takes her to the roof. The Doctor realizes the danger she’s in and, unfortunately, spills a drink on Martha’s mom (a shallow and irritating woman.) Later, she’s approached by a stranger who suggests that Martha should choose her friends more carefully.
On the roof, Lazarus transforms and gives chase. His attacks on the roof door causes the building to go into complete lock down, trapping everyone inside with the monster.
The Doctor distracts the creature to give the others some time to escape. Over her mother’s objections, Martha returns to help the Doctor. They hide in Lazarus’ machine, but Lazarus turns it on. The Doctor reverses the polarity and Lazarus is killed, reverted to human form.
Lazarus resurrects and sucks the life from the ambulance EMTs, then escapes to the nearby cathedral in human form. After some exposition about the price of living a long, long life he begins to change again. Martha and her sister lead him to the bell tower (on the Doctor’s suggestion) while the Doctor cranks up the volume on the pipe organ. The sonic percussion causes Lazarus to fall and (finally) die.
The Doctor agrees to take Martha on full time and they leave as her mom leaves a message that the Doctor is dangerous and her information comes from Mister Saxon himself.
Analysis
There’s not much to comment on about this episode. The episode was a light, well-paced, chasing episode.
The comment about being out of practice reversing the polarity was a welcome throw back to the Pertwee era
The most notable comment I can think of is that the production team finally seems to be finding their pacing. The first two seasons of the new Who all had a terribly rushed feel to them, while this year the stories finally seem to fit their time allotment.
Having just recently watched Ambassadors of Death, Day of the Daleks, Colony in Space, Curse of Peladon, Time Warrior, Deadly Assassin, Invasion of Time, Full Circle, State of Decay, Warrior’s Gate, King’s Demons, Frontios, Twin Dilemma, Attack of the Cybermen and Delta and the Bannerman from the classic series I have renewed my opinion that, despite their improvements in pacing this year, the new single episode format is inferior for telling tales of exploration and adventure.
In fact, having recently watched all those episodes, I realized a major difference between the old and new Doctors. In the old series, when the Doctor arrived somewhere, he didn’t know everything. They had to explore and learn and “fill in the blanks†of where they were, what the culture was and what the problems were facing the inhabitants. The multi-part story allowed them to weave the history into the story.
The new series’ Doctor already knows everything on importance. He’s no longer the curious traveller eager to see the big, unknown universe, he’s a knowledgeable tour guide operator. Of course, this makes the unfolding of the story much quicker, but it robs the viewer of the joy of discovery that the Doctor once experienced.
Speculation (and, consequently, potential spoilers, if I ever turn out to be right)
In keeping with my original speculation, the case for Mr. Saxon being the Master is building more evidence. Research into bodily regenerations? Who more logical to fund that than a Time Lord with no more regenetations, desperate for more life. How could the Doctor, who claims he’d be able to feel it if there were any Time Lords left, not know the Master was still around? Answer: The Master hasn’t been a Gallifreyan for some time, ever since he stole Tremas’ body on Traken.
I have great hopes that Russell T. Davis’ team does with the Master what they did with the Daleks and the Cybermen – make him into a truly menacing and dangerous foe. The Master of the John Nathan-Turner era, while welcomed, was a bit of a pantomime Master.
One thing I always found amusing during the Davison-era episodes were the tortured anagrams of the Master’s name they used to disguise his presence. Can it be a coincidence that “MISTER SAXON†is an anagram for “MASTER NO SIXâ€? Or that, if Mister Saxon is the Master, he will be the 6th incarnation on our screens? It would be a colossally well-played red herring if he isn’t.
Are there more revelations for us? In one of the Doctor Who Confidentials, David Tennant indicated that he is the last of the Time Lords, the Doctor isn’t wrong, but the Face of Boe wasn’t wrong, either – he is not alone. Tennant also indicates that there is still a mystery to be resolved as to who the Face of Boe was. Why will Captain Jack be in the last of the series? Could it be that his immortality is the key? Could the entire immortality sub-plot in Torchwood just have been to build it up for something to conclude this series of Doctor Who? Does the Master want Jack’s immortality? Could it have something to do with the longevity of the Face of Boe?
None of that has anything to do with the Lazarus Experiment except that this episode appears to be the one setting the stage for the conclusion of the season. The Doctor has a new companion-in-law who hates him and that could spell trouble.
The Lazarus Experiment
by Stephen Greenhorn
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