The Visitation

Another for the JNT reappraisal list, The Visitation does not, ala Kinda, comment on the human condition. It does not delve into the ethical qualms of timetravel. It does not make us reflect upon ourselves via the cipher of our forefathers. What it does do, is entertain.

Treated to a lavishly filmed interpretation of Restoration Britain, there's everything from unemployed interregnum era thespians to the wattle and daub of London. There's a perfect blend of light history and light sci-fi, with a simple crashed spaceship story gradually throw up twists and turns. The Terileptil's story is a subversion of expectation adding a little depth to what could've easily been a monster of the week, and the animatronics are really, really impressive. In particular the body horror of the Terileptil's end is something gruesomely enjoyable.

Some great continuity is handled deftly with Tegan still reeling from events in Kinda and whilst a shame to see Nyssa again so underused, neither she, nor Adric are written poorly.

On the whole, innocuous and well produced Who.

As a story, the Visitation is a true mixed bag. It has a nice setting in 17th Century England, and a fairly good alien villain. The Visitation also has a good guest star. It has also a landmark change which would effect the rest of the classic series. However, the pacing drags the story down.

There's a lot of filler in this story with pointless scenes making this story crawl. Add to that the fact that while this is the fourth story of Season 19, it was actually the second filmed and the cast doesn't quite have the chemistry right even though it does do a better job than many other stories in giving each companion something to do, you have an okay but flawed story that doesn't live up to the best of the series or the best of the Fifth Doctor for that matter. It's surprising to me that every major video streaming service has this available, because it's not all that good.

The Doctor and his companions find themselves in 17th century England where an android and a fish monster are controlling the locals. Entertaining!