Doctor Who: 8 Tom Baker Stories To Celebrate In January
2. The Armageddon Factor (1979)
The final story in the Key to Time season is a bit of a slog, frankly. Even the late Mary Tamm, when she recorded a commentary on all six episodes for the DVD set, had difficulty finding the good in it. There are some good bits, though, including the introduction of yet another renegade Time Lord, the Doctors old school friend Drax, the weirdly prescient ideas of a war being live-streamed for a television audience and being conducted remotely by computer and the introduction of Lalla Ward, even though shes not in the right body yet. Unfortunately, calling this story slow and uneven would be an understatement and it doesnt feel like it really gets rolling until the major reveal of Princess Astras (literal) part in the Key and the confrontation with the Black Guardian at the end. It doesnt help that Mary Tamm, who has been a fantastic companion up to this point, gets next to nothing of a send-off. But at least the Key to Time storyline is wrapped. Thats something worth celebrating, surely?
Tony Whitt has previously written TV, DVD, and comic reviews for CINESCAPE, NOW PLAYING, and iF MAGAZINE. His weekly COMICSCAPE columns from the early 2000s can still be found archived on Mania.com. He has also written a book of gay-themed short stories titled CRESCENT CITY CONNECTIONS, available on Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle format. Whitt currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.
