Review: Doctor Who Classic: The Five Doctors

1983. Twenty years have passed since the first episode of Doctor Who in 1963. Celebrations are in order. And here we are; The Five Doctors was a commissioned film of sorts, displayed at the end of Season 20. It was to have had all five of the current Doctors and their main companions; the main changes were as follows: William Hartnell was dead, and so Doctor1 was played by Richard Hurndall, and Tom Baker turned down the role, and was instead portrayed using stock footage.
     I have a confession to make. This was the first piece of Doctor Who that I ever saw, and I fell in love with it. Especially since this was a Cyberman story.
     The basic plot entails a mysterious watcher who scoops the five Doctors out of their time-zones and into the Death Zone on Galifrey, complete with companions and their greatest enemies. The Fourth Doctor is however stuck in a time loop. The aim is to reach the top of the Tower of Rassillon, where the secret of this watcher can be found, before any of the villians do. So, each Doctor makes his way through the Death Zone, with their companions, fighting Cybermen, a Dalek, The Master and a Yeti. They all meet in the Tower, where they discover that the whole enterprise has been the machination of Borusa, Lord President, who seeks Rassillon's eternal life.
   Yes, it's fanwak of the purest kind, and each of the Doctor's is playing more to their stereotype than to any realistic degree. Despite this, it is entertaining, a good turn by the Cybermen in particular and such a wonderful thing to see more than one Doctor together. It was the second canon multi-Doctor story, and by far the most famous, as well as introducing a new TARDIS console. Richard Hurndall is an ok replacement, although never as good as the real thing, and I think that Tom Baker's refrainment from appearing is for the best. Compared to his counterparts, he would have completely stolen the show.
    To conclude, I love it. I love it I love it I love it. It's had a monumental effect on Doctor Who, and while it signalled a decline in the quality of the show, the film itself is a wonderful thing. Just wonderful.

Thanks.