Review: Doctor Who Classic: Inferno

1970. John Pertwee's Third Doctor has been a powerful influence on the show. Season 7 has been one of the best in recent history, with high quality stories boasting powerful messages and top quality acting. The fact that budget constrained the series to Earth had very little effect, and for the first time, the newly colourful Doctor Who is a real ratings-topper.
   Here, as a finale to Season 7, is Inferno, a story about the dangers of ignoring safety guidelines. Well, it's better than it sounds. In short, it is a revolutionary piece of television that makes the most out of the format, including interesting monsters, a parallel universe and great human enemy as well.
   A group of scientists are digging deep into the Earth's crust, attempting to harness an new energy source deep below. UNIT is supervising the operation. Within the operation, Proffessor Stahlman is determined to complete the operation, at the cost of all safety procedures. Sir Keith Gold is the voice of rationality, representative of the Ministry financing the operation. The whole project is disturbed when a strange green substance begins leaking from the coolant towers, brought up from the depths. People who touch the substance turn into heat-loving mosters that have a contagious touch.
   Meanwhile, The Doctor visits the project while using their nuclear power supplies to power his TARDIS, which is now cut down to the console. During one argument with Stahlman, he goes off and attempts to travel away, but Stahlman unknowingly cuts the power half-way through, throwing The Doctor into a parallel universe. In this Universe, Britain is a fascist state, and the drilling project is in a much further stage. Even though he is captured by this universe's version UNIT, he manages to watch on and tries to help as the monsters spread and the planet literally crumbles around them. He escapes the parallel universe, and manages to save our Universe just in time.
   The two main plots, both fighting for attention, are the Parallel Universe Plot and the Drilling Plot. Both are intertwined quite nicely, and white it starts quite slowly, it soon picks up. The acting is superb, and you can tell that the main cast had real fun being their evil counterparts. As a finale it passes with flying colours; as a story is does so even more.
   A quick comment on the Commentary, as usual, and this one is quite splintered, with certain episodes being devoted to the writer, producer and The Brigadier, while others to Sergeant Benton. It's still as informative as usual, though.

Thanks.