“…somewhere the tea is getting gold.â€
Synopsis
The Doctor and Ace return to Ace’s home in Perivale, but something is amiss. All of Ace’s friends have gone missing.
While Ace tries to find someone, the Doctor begins to contemplate the cats in the area. He recognizes the signs of the Cheetah people and the Kittlings. The Kittlings are black cats, that can be used as a sort of telepathic “remote viewing†tool. They are used to locate prey.
Because the Doctor doesn’t bother to warn Ace, she is attacked by a Cheetah person on horseback and taken to the planet of the Cheetah people, where she meets up with her friends. It seems her friends, and many others, were brought to the planet as food for the Cheetah people. When they get hungry, they hunt.
While the Doctor is hunting one of the Kittlings, he and a survival expert are also transported to the planet of the Cheetah people, where he meets the Master.
The Master has become trapped on the planet because the Cheetah people can only carry prey “home†to their planet and not back. The Master has survived by using his superior mental abilities to learn to control both the Kittlings and the Cheetah people. He has brought the Doctor to the planet because he knows he will find a way back.
The planet is being destroyed. It is linked to the Cheetah people and when they fight amongst themselves, the planet edges towards destruction. There isn’t much time left and the Master wants to leave before the end. The Master also reveals that, the longer you stay on the planet, the more it bewitches you. Eventually, you become one of the Cheetah people. The Master is already showing signs of transformation.
The Doctor escapes the Master and rejoins Ace. The Doctor reasons that, if they can catch one of their group transforming into a Cheetah person, that person can return “home†to Earth with their prey. The Master overhears this at captures Mitch, the first of their number to transform, and uses him to go to Earth. On Earth, the Master and Mitch are still showing signs of the transformation. The Master uses telepathic control of Mitch to have him do his bidding.
Ace is the next to transform and returns everyone. She, too, is still partially transformed and helps the Doctor locate Mitch and the Master. A motorcycle joust ensues and Mitch is killed. The Master and the Doctor are locked in hand-to-hand combat and are transported back to the dying planet of the Cheetah people. As they fight, the Doctor begins to transform, and he realizes he must not fight to maintain his humanity.
He’s transported back for no apparent reason and he and Ace leave.
Analysis
Survival is the last episode of the classic Who series. After the episode aired, the series was quietly shut down with an eye towards resurrecting it a few years later.
Survival was actually one of the better episodes from this season, but that’s like saying a stomach ache is one of the less disagreeable symptoms of food poisoning.
The story is a mess, but that’s hardly a surprise. It is completely indicative of the later McCoy years. The DVD extras include interviews with the creative team behind the last series and you can tell from their “brilliant†ideas for the show that they worked by stringing together a series of “scenes†that they wanted to see.
Nonetheless, watching the bonus features shows that, even today, many of the creative team don’t realize that they weren’t doing a good job.
Most of my complaint about the story is that, rather than being a narrative plot, it’s more of an attempt to vaguely wave some allegorical images in front of the viewers.
The look of the episode doesn’t do well, either. Like many of the costumes done in the 80’s, the Cheetah People don’t date well. The materials and styles scream 1980’s at the top of their lungs, and, with their heads grossly mismatching the size of their bodies, the effect is laughable. Don’t get me started on their animatronic black cat.
Anthony Ainley, who seems to have been strapped on the story as an extra, turns in his best performance as the Master – not counting his somewhat ridiculous howling scene. Finally, he gets the chance to play the part less than totally over-the-top.
Truly, the original Doctor Who went out with a whimper.
Survival
Story #159
by Rona Munro
Starring Sylvester McCoy as The Doctor,
Sophie Aldred as Ace and Anthony Ainley as The Master
Technorati Tags: Blog, Doctor Who, Dr Who, DVD, Review, Television, UK, Video