Doctor Who - Timelash (Episode 142)
Starring: Dr. WhoStudio: BBC Warner
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Original recording remastered, Subtitled, NTSC
Running Time: 60 minutes
DVD Release: April 1st 2008
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User Reviews
Decent for 80's Dr Who - Rating: 4/5
Timelash is an ok story. The sets are at times cheap, (yes, that's tinsel in there), the acting of a highly variable quality (the regulars do give very good performances here, it's the guest cast that is, at times, the problem), and the script is average. But it is still a fun to watch story. The great thing about is the imagination carries it. So much of Doctor Who from this period is horribly derivative and obsessed with past continuity and villains etc. This story has very little of that. We are shown (rather cleverly I thought) that the Doctor in his 3rd incarnation has been to this planet before. But the story itself is a good traditional Doctor Who story that stands on it's own. We do have another ugly mad man leering at Peri, but oh well. There is also a bit of controversy about what happens to the Borad (this story's bad guy) in the end. It does contradict the 4th Doctor Who story Terror of the Zygons and it's information on the origins of the Loch Ness Monster. As for the DVD itself, this release is a bit light on extras. It features a commentary track by actors Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant and Paul Darrow. It also has a new documentary, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (dur. 25' 01"), which looks at the making of the story. It features actors Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Paul Darrow, David Chandler, Robert Ashby, script editor Eric Saward, writer Glen McCoy and journalist Paul Lang, and is narrated by Terry Molloy. It will also have a photo gallery, production notes subtitles, and the Radio Times listings in pdf format. I would agree with the first reviewer here, this is a great beer and pizza Doctor Who story. It certainly is not the strongest of Colin Baker's era (Vengance on Varros and Revelation of the Daleks are superior in almost every way to all other 6th Doctor stories), but it is still quite enjoyable and features many elements of strong traditional/classic Doctor Who.
About as good as 6th Doctor gets - Rating: 2/5
There were only two 6th Doctor (Colin Baker) episodes I thought were worth the paper the scripts were written on and this was one of them. Now I'm not saying this was a classic episode. But it was one of the best acted episodes of the Colin Baker period, the special effects were decent for the period and the monster/villain was well-realized. For those who are selective in their purchases of Dr. Who videos, this is one worth the money. The only other Colin Baker episode worth the money for selective buyers is Vengeance on Varos. The others are for hard core fans to complete their libraries!
Why I can't help but like Timelash - Rating: 4/5
I'm in no way saying that this story is a masterpiece. It isn't. The acting is inconsistent, ranging from the best with the two regulars, Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant, (in a desparate bid to carry the story) to the worst with the actress playing Vena, who looks like she's being forced at gunpoint to do this, reading nearly every line in a monotone, the story ending is a cop-out ("I'll explain later" the Doctor says, when Peri asks him how he survived the Bandril's missile), and yes, the some of the set looks unusually cheap (But why should the last thing be a massive issue?)
Why do I like it so much then?
The whole H.G. Wells storyline is a massive plus for the story in my view. Every time I watch Timelash, I found my interest hitting high-gear. Just putting the naive, spirit-mad, writer wannabe young H.G.Wells before he became famous with the most angry, aggressive-eccentric, moody Doctor, and BAM! Fireworks.
Also deserving a mention is the Borad. Most reviews I've found for the VHS release I've seen just lump every part of this story in the "Horrible" category, but the Borad has to be one of the most well-realised monsters of the classic era, done so well on a small budget, like Colin says on the commentary, it's like a trick camera profile, with one side human, and one side Borad, and the two meld in to make it a VERY convincing monster. The scenes between the Doctor and the Borad are easily a highlight of the story
All in all, have another watch on DVD. Buy Timelash, Grab a beer, pizza, whatever, sit down on the couch, empty your mind of 2000's special effects, and enjoy. (If only to see the Doctor about to explode as Herbet winds him up more and more!)
