Doctor Who - The Tomb of the Cybermen Review

Continuing Our Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Cybermen

Doctor Who:
The Tomb of the Cybermen
By Kit Pedler and
Gerry Davis

“Oh yes, I can when I want to. And that's the point, really. I have to really want to, to bring them back in front of my eyes. The rest of the time they sleep in my mind, and I forget. And so will you. Oh yes, you will. You'll find there's so much else to think about. So remember, our lives are different to anybody else's. That's the exciting thing. There's nobody in the universe can do what we're doing. You must get some sleep and let this poor old man stay awake.”

The Tomb of the Cybermen is the earliest complete story to survive featuring Patrick Troughton.  It was found in Hong Kong back in 1991 and was until The Enemy of the World was found with The Web of Fear (minus ep 3) the only complete story from Season 5 of Doctor Who.  The Tomb of the Cybermen opens up Season 5 and also brings back The Cybermen yet again last seen in The Moonbase (which is out on DVD with animated missing episodes 1 &3).  What is a pretty cool side bar for Season 5 is that it is known as The Season of Monsters.  The Cybermen start off the Season of Monsters in The Tomb of the Cybermen and also finishes it with the Cybermen returning in The Wheel in Space.   So in essence Season 5 is bookend with Cybermen stories.

I remember when this story was found back in 1991 and was really excited to see this story as I had read the Target novelization way back in the 80’s and enjoyed it.  So when the VHS copy of the story was finally released in the US in 1992 I headed for the video store right after my college course was over for the day to purchase it and watch it that day and well the studies took a  back seat to my parents dismay.  Well there wasn’t a test to study for so the homework could wait an hour or two.

Doctor Who - The Tomb of the Cybermen

With the Cybermen returning this week The Gallifrayan Gazette decided to take a look back at some of the classic stories featuring the Cybermen.  Today The Tomb of the Cybermen.

Doctor Who:
The Tomb of the Cybermen
By Kit Pedler and
Gerry Davis

“Oh yes, I can when I want to. And that's the point, really. I have to really want to, to bring them back in front of my eyes. The rest of the time they sleep in my mind, and I forget. And so will you. Oh yes, you will. You'll find there's so much else to think about. So remember, our lives are different to anybody else's. That's the exciting thing. There's nobody in the universe can do what we're doing. You must get some sleep and let this poor old man stay awake.”

The Tomb of the Cybermen is the earliest complete story to survive featuring Patrick Troughton.  It was found in Hong Kong back in 1991 and was until The Enemy of the World was found with The Web of Fear (minus ep 3) the only complete story from Season 5 of Doctor Who.  The Tomb of the Cybermen opens up Season 5 and also brings back The Cybermen yet again last seen in The Moonbase (which is out on DVD with animated missing episodes 1 &3).  What is a pretty cool side bar for Season 5 is that it is known as The Season of Monsters.  The Cybermen start off the Season of Monsters in The Tomb of the Cybermen and also finishes it with the Cybermen returning in The Wheel in Space.   So in essence Season 5 is bookend with Cybermen stories.

10 Reasons to Watch the Second Doctor

The Top 10 Reasons to Watch the Second Doctor

By Ken Parker

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary: The Tomb of The Cybermen by @cheezypeas

Doctor Who:
The Tomb of The Cybermen
Reviewed By Nicky Pugh

"You belong to us. You shall be like us".


As we are still reviewing the Second Doctor’s era for the 50th Anniversary, you can’t help but feel sadness, due to the many incomplete or lost stories. As much as we all keep our fingers crossed that some of these missing gems will be discovered in some dusty attic, we have to be realistic that as time goes on, the chances of finding anymore in playable, restorable condition diminishes.

However, we are lucky to have some stories and episodes that survived the infamous BBC “junking” of the 60’s, one of which, Matt Smith himself has disclosed as his all-time favorites.

And what a fantastic story to pick, Mr. Smith!

Out of the many encounters the Doctor has had with the Cybermen, this story is one that many fans agree with Matt on, and consider it as arguably one of the best.

Second Doctor Revisited - BBC America Airs The Tomb of the Cybermen

On February 24 BBC America will continue to celebrate Doctor Who's 50th anniversary with the second Doctor story, The Tomb of The Cybermen from 1967.  Starring Patrick Troughton as the Doctor, the story is one of the best Doctor Who stories ever (in my opinion) and features the Cybermen when they were creepy and not loud.

The evening will begin with another documentary about that era of the show with interviews and clips.  That starts at 8pm.

Hopefully BBC America's print of The Tomb of the Cybermen is better than their print of The Aztecs.