Doctor Who - The Ultimate Foe Reviews

Rating		Votes
10	5%	4
9	14%	12
8	15%	13
7	27%	23
6	24%	20
5	11%	9
4	5%	4
3	0%	0
2	0%	0
1	0%	0
Average Rating 7.0
Votes 85

Synopsis

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide

With the evidence complete, the Doctor learns that the Master has gained illicit access to the Matrix in his TARDIS. Glitz is now revealed to be the Master's associate and the 'secrets' to be information stolen from the Matrix.

The Valeyard admits his identity as a distillation of the dark side of the Doctor's nature, somewhere between his twelfth and thirteenth incarnations, out to take control over his remaining lives.

With the help of Mel, who along with Glitz has been brought to the space station by the Master, the Doctor defeats his future self - although, as they leave in the TARDIS with all charges in the trial having been dropped, it appears that the Valeyard has taken over the body of the Keeper of the Matrix and may not have been as completely vanquished as they had thought...

Has Prerequisite Story

21 out of 22 (95.5%) raters say this story requires a previous story.

Extended Ratings

Plot

7.1

(29)

Acting

7.9

(29)

Effects

7.6

(29)

Replay

7.3

(29)

6th Doctor

Melanie Bush

Peri Brown

The Master

The Master - Anthony Ainley

The Valeyard

Time Lords

Vervoids

Inquisitor Darkel

King Yrcanos

Sabalom Glitz

Cast

The Doctor - Colin Baker

Melanie - Bonnie Langford

Glitz - Tony Selby

Keeper of the Matrix - James Bree

Popplewick - Geoffrey Hughes

The Inquisitor - Lynda Bellingham

The Master - Anthony Ainley

The Valeyard - Michael Jayston

Director:

Chris Clough

Writer:

Jane Baker

Writer:

Pip Baker

Writer:

Robert Holmes

Reviews

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Has Prerequisite(s):

Yes

Reviewed By: adamelijahReview Date: 4/15/15 2:43 am

0 out of 0 found this review helpful.

This final Colin Baker story reveals everything behind the Trial of the Time Lord. It's a bit of a mess but given all the behind the scenes shenanigans, it's a small wonder it turned out as good as it did.

Some of the highlights of the story include the Doctor's ringing indictment of the High Council in Episode 1. Anthony Ainley turns in his best performance as the Master since Castrovalva. The revelation of the Valeyard is a great twist and a strong concept with Michael Jayston turning in an enjoyable performance. Tony Selby's return as Glitz is welcomed.

The script had problems, but given the bizarre nature of its formation, it's about as good as could be expected. The idea of the Valeyard never got realized its full potential, with him coming off more as a duplicate of the Master. The two part format of the finale didn't help matters. A three to four part script written by a single writer would have achieved a better result. Also, there are so many oddities and problems in continuity such as Mel's arrival from the Doctor's future to meet the Doctor before he met her. Probably the best thing that can be said for it is that all the various plot holes were grist for the mill for Big Finish's stable of writers, and launched plenty of novels, comic stories, and other spin-offs.