The Time Monster

In a ninth season proliferated by such memorable monstrous creations as the Daleks (‘Day of the Daleks’), Ice Warriors (‘Curse of Peladon’ which also added with lesser threatening impact Aggedor and Alpha Centauri to the list), Sea Devils (‘The Sea Devils’) and Mutts (‘The Mutants’) one could be forgiven for denigrating the closing story entitled ‘The Time Monster’ for arguably not offering up another memorable alien foe to live on in the viewing public’s collective memories. I personally would like to offer up my support of this particular story which despite running to almost two and half hours always manages to enchant and delight me whenever I return to watch it making it an entirely pleasant complete viewing experience where its six episodes pass by relatively quickly.

Right from the opening scenes with the Doctor waking up from a nightmare vision of the Master succeeding in some diabolical scheme involving a trident shaped crystal you are immediately aware that our hero’s arch enemy will be the main protagonist of this particular story. Whilst Jo (wearing another groovy seventies outfit (grey short skirted dress and knee length high heeled bright yellow boots)) mentions about recent volcanic action on the island of Thera I take a moment to glance around the light airy lab surroundings and ponder if it might be in a similar waterfront building to that which was used during ‘Terror of the Autons’. Returning to Jo’s volcano newspaper article and the Doctor’s subsequent supposition that it might be linked to some scheme involving both the Master and Atlantis this is indeed prophetic reasoning despite the inconclusive verbal input from both Captain Yates and the Brigadier.

Nestling in the English countryside we find in the grand period setting of the Newton Institute the instantly recognisable features of the soberly dressed Master involved in highly scientific and undoubtedly costly research. So as to avoid detection whist at the Institute he goes by the Latin Professor nodeplume of Thascales, which to anyone with a classical education would have realised translates to Master. With the intention of making him the intellectual superior most viewers don’t gain a favourable opinion of his two assistants however when you have scientists of the calibre of both the Master and the Doctor you really don’t want humans to either equal or even outshine them thereby upsetting the balance between reality and fantasy. Having said that I personally feel that although undoubtedly ‘out of her depth’ regarding the Professor’s experiments Wanda Moore’s seemingly resolute and determined character of Doctor Ruth Ingram acquitted herself commendably, if not entirely memorably during her scenes in the Institute lab. The same really can’t be said regarding her colleague Stuart Hyde (played by Ian Collier) whom, with possibly the worst line of the story (‘May God bless the good ship women’s lib and all who sail in her’) is really, for the most part only on hand to offer comic relief to this story. The main scientific aspect of the story has the amusing acronym of TOM-TIT but it’s actual meaning, that of Transmission of Matter Through Interstitial Time is a fascinating concept rendered believable through clever camera trickery and convincing performances by the Master and his colleagues whilst manipulating their experimental equipment. Of all people it is Sergeant Benton whom grasps the concept of TOM-TIT and through a child like amusing but essentially accurate way infers that with the equipment the Professor and his team have found a way to move an object ‘through the gap between now and now’. Unfortunately there are advanced and reduced time side effects to the procedure as both Stuart (whom ages to a wrinkled old man) and Sergeant Benton (reverts to a naked baby leading to the humorous ‘reverting to normal size and age’ sequence at the stories conclusion) discover. Using the equipment also apparently causes time dilation in the immediate vicinity of the Institute building as experienced by a window cleaner, the Brigadier and a platoon of UNIT troops to name a few whom are frozen in time as a result. Time is very much on the Doctor’s mind and, in keeping with this third incarnation’s predilection for speed his modifications to his yellow roadster, charmingly called ‘Bessie’ now feature a ‘super drive’ device, pulling said lever dramatically (and it has to be said, rather comically) increases this vintage motorcar to unbelievable speeds particularly when journeying towards the Newton Institute. Having established through his time sensor device that the Institute is the origin of the disturbances in the time field the Doctor is anxious to put an end as soon as possible to any further effects generated from the scientific activities occurring at the rural research facility.

With the use of the TIM-TIT equipment, the Master acquires the powerful multifaceted trident crystal from the fabled city of Atlantis. Through this haloed jewel he gains control of the feared time eating creature Kronos whom appears in the Institute lab as a brilliant white-attired humanoid figured entity with a vast feathered wingspan. In my opinion, with sparing use here and there towards the end of Atlantis itself this alien life form is effective albeit in a rather blurred brief fashion. As we have seen so many times before Roger Delgado’s Master seeks out those weak willed individuals whom hold a position of authority and in ‘The Time Monster’ actor John Wyse renders a timid easily led character in Newton Institute director, Doctor Charles Percival whom is a rather short lived cast member ultimately devoured by the initially uncontrollable Kronos. Now not only does the TOM-TIT apparatus transport the entire crystal structure from Atlantis to the Institute but surprisingly the Master also gains a new weak willed servant in the form of the wide eyed High Priest Krasis (Donald Eccles). Now presumably by drawing power from the crystal the Master is able to draw other people and objects from the past to combat the advancing UNIT forces. On the one hand you have the Master clearly enjoying showing off to his new and rather backward lackey and on the other you gotta feel sorry for poor old Captain Yates out there in the rural countryside where he and his armed forces are faced with a myriad of increasingly dangerous obstructions to their route. First up he faces a knight in full armour, whom on horseback raises his lance and charges towards them forcing the convoy off the road to let the medieval figure pass. Personally I found this highly amusing as indeed were the detachment of Roundhead soldiers whose armoury and experience were clearly no match for the modern armed forces of UNIT. Far more serious however is the Master bringing forth a World War II flying bomb which indeed made for a very tense and exciting episode cliffhanger ending.

We then have the brief rather intriguing premise of an interconnection of the Doctor and the Master’s TARDIS the Doctor speaking backwards (which we now know is nothing of the kind!) and Kronos devouring the Doctor. However as this happened in his TARDIS, the Doctor, as a Time Lord existed as an ethereal being, his voice and that of his other thoughts being heard by Jo (and the viewers) before his assistant pulled the ‘fast return’ lever on the console to bring him back.

Although briefly seen whilst the Master is attempting to obtain the crystal it is the last two episodes of ‘The Time Monster’ that are firmly located in the confines of Atlantis. Now even on the meagre budgets available to the production team in 1972 you cannot expect miracles from a studio bound set especially for a story which concludes the five story ninth season of the show. In fact many a fan will I’m sure too easily denigrate the recreation of Atlantis when compared with the perceived reality of the mythical city. Admittedly the starkness and simplicity of the surroundings feel to be in direct contrast to the location and studio work of the ‘present day’ Newton Institute. However for me it is the period specific performances on offer that aid the effective shift in location in this stories closing stages. No more so is this apparent than with Ingrid Pitt’s majestic regal performance as Galleia, Queen of Atlantis. Here we clearly have a ruler steeped in power and influence who does not suffer fools gladly and you almost get the feeling that Roger Delgado has to significantly raise his performance in scenes with Pitt making them feel rather atypical for Doctor Who. George Cormack endearingly portrays the wise white haired elderly King Dalios, a figure whom takes great amusement in rebuffing the Master’s attempts at mind control. In amongst the Master’s plotting in Atlantis we have the inexplicable sequence of the Doctor acting as a ‘Spanish matador’ when faced with the mythical Minotaur beast in passageways under the city. Admittedly it’s difficult to support this clear bit of script padding, no matter how pleasing it may appear. However continuity-wise it links nicely with the Doctor’s ability to subdue Aggedor in the citadel of Peladon with similar skill earlier this season. Again echoing a similar dungeon scene (to be found in Sir Reginald Styles house (‘Day of the Daleks’) we again find the Doctor and Jo imprisoned, this time leading to a rather endearing conversation about how the Doctor learnt the secret of life from a hermit whom lived close to the house where he grew up. Lastly Jo’s trip to Atlantis finds her getting rather pally with Galleia’s handmaiden Lakis (Susan Penhaligon) and acquiring a rather opulent Atlantean gown and ringletted hairstyle leading to the Brigadier’s incredulous comment on seeing her when she returns to the Newton Institute at the end of the story.

Jon Pertwee as the charismatic third incarnation is always a joy to watch however his performance in this story in my opinion seems a tad muted compared with other entries during his tenure as the Doctor. For me his most memorable scene in this story would have to be his constructing a ‘time-flow analogue’ device from a Moroccan burgundy bottle, spoons, forks, corks, key rings, tea leaves and a mug much to the incredulous observations of Stuart, Ruth, Sergeant Benton and Jo. I certainly struggle to recall anything particularly memorable regarding Katy Manning’s scatterbrained but well-meaning character apart from her elaborate Atlantean gown which she gains in the stories latter stages. From the surroundings of the Newton Institute, travelling in his TARDIS through to the time he spends in Atlantis, Roger Delgado renders his usual distinguished scheming portrayal of the Master, each performance cherished all the more due to his untimely death in 1973. Of the remaining cast although the UNIT regulars (the Brigadier, Sergeant Benton, Captain Yates) contribute admirably to the continued ‘family’ feel of the series only the aforementioned Ingrid Pitt and George Cormack are of particular note their characters adding a level of believability and charm to the ruling structure of mythical Atlantis.

In the final analysis I view ‘The Time Monster’ very much an ensemble piece in which each member of the leading cast contributes their own element to the overall feel of an enjoyable, engaging story which although not worthy of classic status is certainly not deserving of its perceived lack lustre reputation. I personally am able to overlook this stories shortcomings (the Master on his knees at the end pleading for his life and some of the truly cringe worthy lines expressed early on between Ruth and Stuart) and just ‘sit back and enjoy the ride’ as the Doctor attempts to foil another devilish and ingenious scheme of the cool, calculating Master.