Silver Nemesis Part Three

The one where Lady Peinforte threatens to spill the Doctor's beans...

There's a lovely little scene in this episode as the Doctor and Ace trudge through the woods and Ace admits she's "really, really scared". I appreciate the sentiment and intent of the scene, as it shows that Ace feels confident enough to share her true feelings with the Doctor, and in turn the Doctor can show compassion for his young friend. When he realises Ace is afraid, he apologises and offers to let her wait in the TARDIS. In the event, Ace refuses to give in and will not leave her Professor's side.

But something bugs me about the scene. I don't quite buy the fact that it would be this story, this adventure, this particular set of dangers which would scare Ace so much. It's not as if Ace has endured very much in this story so far, she's mostly been wandering around the countryside listening to jazz and blowing up spaceships. I don't understand what's made Ace so scared, especially considering her run-ins with Kane, the Daleks and even the Happiness Patrol presented greater threats. It's a lovely scene, but somehow in the wrong story.

Silver Nemesis Part Two

The one where Lady Peinforte visits her own tomb...

The Cybermen disembark from their shuttle, only to be set upon by a trigger-happy neo-Nazi - and so begins the Battle of Windsor! These scenes were actually filmed in Greenwich, not Windsor, and the old warehouse has long been demolished, with the area redeveloped to give way to the Millennium Dome and its car parking facilities. It's thought that the comet's crash site later became the David Beckham Football Academy (until it closed in 2009).

"Eradicate them!" orders the Cyber Leader. Cue lots of explosions, machine gun fire, and impressive stunts as the Mondasian marauders battle it out with the Nazi numbskulls, but it must be noted how pathetic the Cybermen's weapons are. They don't shoot lasers, they just fizzle and spark like damp fuses, and let down the physical might and presence of so many silver giants.

Silver Nemesis Part One

The one where a comet containing a living statue crashes to Earth...

Silver Nemesis was Doctor Who's 150th story, as well as its 25th anniversary serial. It was a chance to celebrate the series' monumental achievement in reaching half a century. It was lucky to have reached this birthday, as there had been a handful of times along the way when Doctor Who could have been axed. The BBC could quite easily have scrapped it when William Hartnell left in 1966; the series was almost cancelled in 1969 when ratings had tumbled to a numbing 3.5m; and then there was the infamous 1985 hiatus, when the BBC really wanted to ditch the Doctor, but didn't have the guts. So to get to Season 25 was a real achievement, and this was the story to mark the moment.

But Silver Nemesis isn't a straightforward anniversary tale. For its 10th and 20th anniversaries, Doctor Who had brought back old Doctors and old enemies, celebrating the show's past and present. Lesser anniversaries tended not to be purposefully marked (The Invasion for the fifth, The Key to Time for the fifteenth), and although Silver Nemesis was marketed and intended as an anniversary tale, there were no returning Doctors, no litany of old monsters and enemies, and (thankfully) no Time Lords. It's just the current Doctor and the current companion in an action-packed time travel adventure.