3. The Time Warrior
Were now entering into the key eras of Doctor Who, those that set the precedent for the programmes entire development over the forty-nine years that followed its inception. John Pertwees reign in the early 1970s was met with great popularity, and one particular example of the reasoning for this in my opinion comes with the introduction of one of Whos most famous B-Lister enemies. Yep, its time to examine The Time Warrior and of course the ever lovable potato-headed Sontarans. Perhaps the finest attribute I can hand to this classic 1973 story is its introduction of one Elizabeth Sladen to the shows regular cast. Fans whove followed the sci-fi drama even since its second post-2005 season will no doubt recollect this name: the late Sladen reprised her role as Sarah-Jane Smith in School Reunion, The Stolen Earth/Journeys End and The End Of Time, as well as featuring in her own spin-off for five seasons before her untimely passing last year. Sarah-Jane is heralded as one of the great companions, and The Time Warrior does her no injustice in this respect, bringing her aboard as an intrepid journalist. Her morals and beliefs about the rights of time-and-space travellers would force the Doctor to re-examine his own methodology of dealing with situations, truly shaking up the status quo for the programme in a much-needed way. There are plenty of other fine aspects to the story, though. While the Sontarans are as I mentioned perhaps Doctor Whos most infamous B-listers, brought out onto the stage whenever the drama requires a cheap old enemy story, here we see one member of this clone race at its raw and most dangerous level, adapting to survive and gain an advantage in the Rutan war by any means necessary. The cold brutality of Linx in medieval England makes for thrilling and tense viewing, as the Time Lord must use all of his strength and wit to outclass a deadly foe with no remorse or regard for human life. Later stories like The Invasion Of Time and The Sontaran Strategem/The Poison Sky would pitch the Sontaran race as gung-ho warriors, and Steven Moffat has put a great comedic spin on the old foe by turning one (Strax) into a semi-companion for the sixth and seventh seasons, yet it is here that the potato-heads that could even get Toy Story worrying have their finest hour. Just as Remembrance defines the Daleks, Blink defines the Weeping Angels and the America two-parter the Silence, so too does The Time Warrior give an accurate and oft-chilling representation of the aliens who
just missed out on their place in the Time War (maybe next time, eh?).