Originally from the planet Mondas, also known as Earths long lost twin, the Cybermen are amongst Doctor Whos most terrifying villains. These former humans shed any vestiges of their flesh centuries ago and now exist as cold, emotionless, robotic soldiers intent on conquering or converting the galaxy. Their first appearance triggered the Doctors regeneration from William Hartnell to Patrick Troughton and since then they have tackled each regeneration of the Time Lord, with the exception of the Earthbound Jon Pertwee. They were among the Classic Series most popular villains, but were they overexposed? And did they retain that terrifying effect on viewers when the show moved to colour? While the Cybermen remained popular, they certainly lost some of their originality and terror as the show moved into the 80s. The colour-era highlighted the cheap costume designs, such as the spray-painted cricket gloves and flesh that could be seen between the gaps in the silver. The scripts also began to ignore the basic premise of the silver psychopaths: they displayed emotions such as greed and satisfaction and even anger. Their plans became overly complex to the point of incomprehensibility. And, most noticeably in the Colin Baker era, the terrifying Cyber-controller looked a little less scary thanks to an unforgivable pot-belly and a poorly fitted costume. For your reading pleasure, and undoubted arguments for and against the stories as presented here, this list compiles four colour stories that almost destroyed the Cybermens reputation before their chilling resurrection in NuWho and four black and white adventures that still have the power to chill, even to this day. Prepare to be deleted...
