Doctor Who:
The Androids of Tara
By David Fisher
“Hear that, K9? Wedding
bells or a funeral knell? Do hurry up. A hamster with a blunt penknife would do
it quicker.”
The Doctor and Romana have
landed on Tara in search for the fourth segment of The Key to Time. The Doctor wants nothing to do with it and
decides to do some fishing. So Romana
heads off and finds the fourth segment in fact she finds it pretty quickly as
it was a piece of a statue. Romana gets
into trouble as she is attacked by some sort of creature. She is rescued by Count Grendal who thinks
she is an android of the Princess Strella.
In fact Romana is looks just like her and can pass as her twin.
The Doctor has some
problems of his own as he is persuaded to help Prince Reynart with his android
double. Of course The Doctor accepts and
finds himself embroiled in the feud for the crown of Tara as Count Grendal
drugs their drink and kidnaps Prince Reynart in his quest for the crown. Things get crazy as androids get destroyed and
Grendal goes on the offensive and the double cross is the word of the day and
it is up to The Doctor to save Romana and Prince Reynart his throne.
The Androids of Tara is
the story where Mary Tamm shines. She plays two roles as Romana and as Prince
Strella. She is given a lot to do instead
of being pushed to the background like she was for most of the time. She is given a bigger role and flourishes as
Princes Strella and as Romana posing as the Princess. It is too bad she wasn’t utilized more in
Doctor Who as she was the better of the Romana’s.
I enjoyed this story as it
harkens back to a time where there isn’t much technology and that the Doctor has
to outsmart his opponent. In The Androids of Tara there is a really good sword
fight between The Doctor and Count Grendal which ends up with Grendal jumping
of the castle into the lake.
The Androids of Tara is a
nice story to watch as it is not too complicated and it is a fun one to watch with some lighthearted and funny moments.
It has some pretty good scenes and some action also but if you are a fan of Mary Tamm’s Romana then
this is the story for you.
Grade B
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