Time and the Rani Part Four

The one where the Rani cracks the secret of Loyhargil...

OMG Mel, please stop screaming! Mel has always been a vocal companion (as proven by that cliffhanger to The Trial of a Time Lord part 9), but Bonnie Langford goes all-out here, screaming at everything she claps eyes on, from Urak to the Rani and even the sight of the Doctor in the cubicle. I wouldn't mind so much if it wasn't for the fact Langford has such a piercing scream, it goes right through me (much like Deborah Watling's did at times!).

Amusingly, trying to feed the Doctor's knowledge to the Rani's giant pink brain results in the big veiny blob developing "multiple schizophrenia", spouting awful jokes and this incarnation's (short-lived) love of malapropisms. The Rani is forced to switch off the process, before the revived Doctor shoves her in his cubicle and locks her in. Kate O'Mara tries her best to act imprisoned, but we can all see it's a fairly flimsy sheet of Perspex which she could quite easily break through if she wanted.

Time and the Rani Part Three

The one where the Rani releases a swarm of killer insects...

There may be some pretty ripe dialogue in this story, typical of Pip and Jane Baker's wordy work, but the cast seems to cope with it amiably. It might not be the most sayable dialogue ever written, but the actors say it with conviction, which is what just about gets it by. There's a great scene between the Doctor and Beyus, after the latter rescues the former from the Tetrap lair, which is loaded with awkward lines, but the essence of them is character-forming, especially for Sylvester McCoy.

The Doctor is clearly angered by the Rani's scheme to pluck geniuses out of time to place them in some kind of menagerie (or "abysmal parade"). His outrage at what the Rani's up to tells us that this is the same Doctor who has railed against injustice and inhumanity since we first got to know him in 1963. He's also frustrated that he can't find out what's behind the Rani's big door, and confused by Beyus's willingness to obey the Rani. But Beyus sends him on a mission to discover why he is complicit, at the Centre of Leisure/ Indolence.

Time and the Rani Part Two

The one where the Doctor and Mel are reunited...

As well as everything else that changed with part 1, there's also the fact Doctor Who was now broadcast on Monday nights at the surprisingly late time of 7.35pm, after Terry Wogan's chat show and before sitcom Hi-De-Hi!. The move to a weekday evening slot harked back to the Davison years, when episodes were shown at around 7pm, but this even later slot showed the BBC was thinking about Doctor Who in a different way. As a matter of fact they were thinking about Doctor Who as something of an embarrassment, to be tucked away in the schedules, hidden in plain sight in primetime. This scheduling was the beginning of the end sadly...

On Lakertya, Mel is screaming her lungs out inside a bubble trap which is bouncing its way across the rocky landscape, before settling on the surface of a lake, where it runs aground. The interaction between special effect and location is so impressive, and you really believe it's there. I could do with a bit (lot) less squawking from Bonnie Langford, but at least Ikona voices my feelings on that score.

Time and the Rani Part One

The one where the Rani impersonates Mel...

Season 24 bursts onto the screen like a jack-in-a-box, eager to get going and unrelenting in its determination to entertain. The pre-credits sequence is a riot of busy CGI which would have been mightily impressive at the time, but has sadly dated since. Still, it's a statement of intent: Doctor Who is back (again!), and this time means business. The CG TARDIS being buffeted through space might not be as awesome as the opening model shot of The Trial of a Time Lord, but it shows that Doctor Who is using the latest technology it can afford to keep up with the Joneses (or at least try to). 

Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and Mel lie unconscious on the floor (love the continuity of the exercise bike in the background), and as the TARDIS is brought down onto a barren planet in a rainbow beam of LGBTQ+ splendour, a weird-looking alien looks on, framed by a computer-enhanced pink sky. These opening moments are a real assault on the eyes - it's brash, brazen and bursting with courage. It's the most exciting, and excitable, season opening yet.