The Curse of Peladon Episode Two

The one where the Doctor is sentenced to death without trial for desecrating a holy temple...

The falling granite statue misses its target thanks to a quick-witted Doctor, but this attempt on the life of a delegate makes everybody very jumpy (particularly Alpha Centauri), and the conference is in danger of falling through. Luckily, the Doctor has taken very easily to his newfound role as chairman of the committee, and pleads with everybody to remain calm and retire to consider the way forward.

In their quarters, the Doctor and Jo have a good chinwag about what they think is going on and who they suspect of trying to scupper the conference. Yet again, the chemistry between Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning is obvious as the two tease and chuckle their way through the script like old friends just having a good time. They're physically close in frame too, reflecting the "mother hen" nature of Pertwee's portrayal, and it's a delight when Jo prods the Doctor's self-importance by saying: "You love all that chairman delegate stuff, admit it!", and he replies, "Well how do you like being a princess, princess?"

The truth is that the presence of the Doctor and Jo is only making the situation worse. The Doctor finds himself at the centre of a very delicate interplanetary political negotiation which could go either way, but which in any case will change the course of history for the people of Peladon. One of the first things he does is to accuse Izlyr of sabotaging Arcturus's life support unit, thus stirring up distrust between the delegates when there really ought to be honesty and harmony.

The Doctor allows his personal experience of the Martians to cloud his judgement, and speaks his mind without thinking about the consequences. His accusation provokes distrust in the Earth delegates from Izlyr, who fears that the blossoming romance between Jo and Peladon will lead to a politically fortuitous marriage in Earth's favour (Peladon's mother was from Earth, rather like the Doctor's... allegedly...).

The romance between Peladon and Jo is gathering pace, or rather it is until he asks her to speak on his behalf to the council. Jo sees this as Peladon merely trying to use her to get his own political way, and rejects him, but even so, the attraction between the two is strong. Peladon says he rarely gets to see or speak to people his own age (are there no female courtiers?). Maybe he'd be more attractive to the opposite sex if he dressed in a more masculine fashion: that tunic and knee-high boots he wears make him look like he's wearing a mini skirt!

By seven minutes into episode 2, the viewer knows who the bad guy is: it's Hepesh, working with Grun. We already knew Grun was behind the falling statue, but in the temple we witness Hepesh declaring the delegates as Peladon's enemy, and citing the Earth delegate specifically as the greatest enemy. "The one they call the Doctor," he says. It's a terribly hackneyed line, used a lot in 1970s Doctor Who. They call him the Doctor because that's his name, Hepesh!

It transpires that the Doctor's opinion of the Ice Warriors as a "savage and war-like race" is misplaced, as Izlyr informs Jo: "We were once. But now we reject violence, except in self defence." Jo immediately apologises for suspecting that the Martians might have sabotaged Arcturus's life support, merely because Izlyr explains that the delegate was never in fatal danger. Quite how this exonerates the Martians from all wrongdoing, I'm not sure; they could still have tampered with Arcturus.

Grun leads the Doctor into the tunnels beneath the palace, only to turn tail and flee at the sight of Aggedor, that ancient beast which is supposed to be extinct. The beast pursues the Doctor until he escapes through another secret door into the inner sanctum of the temple of Aggedor, where he is promptly captured and accused of sacrilege by Hepesh. All very convenient.

What astonishes me is that Peladon then admits there's no helping the Doctor, that the planet's laws do not allow a defence for this crime, and that he must die. If Peladon really does want to become a member of the Galactic Federation, they need to ditch this barbaric sanctimony and their undemocratic laws (in episode 1 we learn that only women of royal blood may enter the King's throne room).

And while all this is going on, where on Peladon is the real Earth delegate? Have they not rung ahead to say they'll be late? At least this time we know it's not going to be the Master in disguise turning up.

First broadcast: February 5th, 1972

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: The scene between Pertwee and Manning in their quarters is lovely.
The Bad: David Troughton really does look silly in that tunic and boots.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

"Now listen to me" tally: 15
Neck-rub tally: 5

NEXT TIME: Episode Three...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: Episode One; Episode Three; Episode Four

Find out birth/death dates, career information, and facts and trivia about this story's cast and crew at the Doctor Who Cast & Crew site: http://doctorwhocastandcrew.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-curse-of-peladon.html

The Curse of Peladon is available on BBC DVD as part of the Peladon Tales box set. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Peladon-Tales-Monster/dp/B002SZQC70