Doctor Who (TV Series) The Invasion of Time: Part Six (1978) User Reviews

Battle inside The TARDIS.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 20 October 2019]

The final showdown, as The Doctor battles the Sontarans aboard his TARDIS.

The very patchy Season 15 ends here, some stories I loved, some I didn't like at all, you have the sense that behind the scenes, all was not well. The Invasion of Time has been up and down from the start, this last episode is a totally jumbled mismatch. I love the idea of the TARDIS being explored more deeply, the realization is a mess, swimming pools, bendy straws and art work.

The real problem I have here, is the tone, it's incredibly silly, the Sontarans are actually pretty useless, offering up less menace then The Vardans, they look worse then they had previously, the voices simply don't work. Tom got away with so much, that duck whistle, cringe worthy.

The story doesn't make a lot of sense, The Doctor gets Rodan to make the gun, because they're unable to beat the Sontarans, and get most of them have already been dealt with.

Milton Johns is great as Kelner, it's a performance easy to ignore, he's subtle and snivelling, he was well cast. Jameson excellent also, I hated the ending she got, even worse then Katy Manning's, Leela deserved something epic.

I will applaud it for concept, for being unique, and definitely different, it aimed high, overall though it's a bit of a mess, and it's hard to take seriously. 6/10

The Sign of the Times

[A_Kind_Of_CineMagic · 6/10 · 1 November 2019]

This adventure is a sign of the times in that after a great start it gets spoiled by problems that had crept into the show since Graham Williams and Anthony Read had taken over as producer and script editor. Some silliness and lack of quality in production values detract from what could have been a great, dark story. I really believe that with Hinchcliffe and Holmes in charge, as they had been in Seasons 12 to 14, this could have been a classic. As it is, it is still decent overall thanks to the first half but the second half is a disappointment.

The first 2 parts of this 6 parter are such interesting, dark and intriguing episodes that I rate them 10/10. The Doctor, Leela and K-9 arrive on Gallifrey after a the Doctor had a meeting with some aliens and seemed to make a deal with them. The Doctor is acting very strangely and mysteriously as well as seeming very harsh towards Leela. It gradually appears that he has made a bargain with evil invaders to take over Gallifrey and that he has perhaps turned evil himself! These 2 episodes are gripping and fascinating as well as scarily dark as we wonder what has happened to our hero's usual decency. The arrival of the Vardans at the end of part 2 is fantastically dramatic and impactful as viewers are horrified by the Doctor's apparent betrayal of his people and friends. Even though the edge is taken off by the rubbish on screen realisation of the Vardan's this could be fully resolved by an effects makeover and I do not judge that scene by shortcomings of that one moment of poor effects.

I would love a new CGI improved version of this whole story, it would help by making the Vardans look good and other visual improvements. However, in Parts 3 to 5 the Vardans are shown to have bigger problems that cannot be resolved just with effects. The voice performances are as rubbish as their appearance and when we see them in their humanoid form we see the terrible actors fully and it would require a complete replacement of these characters with CGI and new actors somehow to improve it. Therefore, whilst I do not judge too heavily for poor effects the issues of the acting start to drag down quality in a way I cannot ignore.

Part 3 is still great in terms of story with plenty of darkness, intrigue and interest. The main cast are very strong with The Doctor, Barusa, Castellan and Leela performing their roles to excellent effect. K-9 is good too. The costumes and tribal weaponry of the outer Gallifreyans is a slight weakness though and the Vardans are just awful. They alone take Part 3 down a bit but luckily they are not in it too much at this stage. As they become more central and appear more on screen in Parts 4 and 5 it detracts from what was potentially a great story and we get the arrival of the Sontarans who turn out to be as badly acted as the Vardans! It rather spoils it. The story itself for the first 4 or 5 parts remains pretty solid and the main cast remains great but the acting of the villains is the major negative which drops the episodes from their potential.

Finally we reach Part 6 and at this point the Vardans are thankfully eliminated from the adventure but we still have the rubbish Sontarans and a poor attempt to show different parts of the TARDIS interior. I would love a CGI overhaul of this as seeing the TARDIS room and corridors looking like old factory interiors or school corridors is unimpressive. The real issue is that this is all done for a needless, muddled 'chase' around with the story just fizzling out with a weak conclusion. There are still strengths as Tom Baker, Louise Jameson, John Leeson, John Arnatt, Milton Johns and Christopher Tranchell perform well throughout all 6 parts and until the finale the story is dark, dramatic and fascinating. The conclusion is a bit of a mess though and sadly Leela leaves at the end of this story in a way which is too out of the blue and unsatisfying. Louise Jameson was terrific throughout her time and Leela was a great companion. Her exit is not what she deserved.

The major issue is the Vardans and Sontarans who are very bad and that sabotages what could have been a great serial. Thanks to the opening two parts, the strengths of the main cast and continuing strong story elements the adventure still gets a good overall rating from me. The weak elements are not really the major aspects of the adventure but I dream of seeing a version where the TARDIS interior has a CGI enhancement and the Vardans and Sontarans whole performances are removed and replaced somehow. It would be so much better without their inadequate acting and visual realisation.

My ratings: Parts 1 & 2 - 10/10, Part 3 - 8.5/10, Parts 4 & 5 - 7/10, Part 6 - 5.5/10. Overall - 8/10.

This is the final story of Season 15 and like the whole season it is a mixed bag. Following the consistent brilliance of Seasons 12 to 14, this season was a noticeable drop in quality but it is still decent. New producer Graham Williams has certainly not given any reason to think he has brought a great deal to the show whilst the mid season change in script editor from Robert Holmes to Anthony Read created the most obvious fall in general standards. That is not to say this is poor at all it just follows the best era of the show's history and is obviously weaker by comparison.

Very slow start but great fun at the end

[dalekprimelol · 8/10 · 11 June 2022]

I've always really enjoyed this story and I think if you look past the cheap Tardis set and the vardans you have a very underrated story. And I personally don't think the vardans even look that bad. It does feel a bit long at six parts though the first three parts can feel tedious. But nevertheless I still enjoy this story.

S15: The Invasion of Time: Some good elements, but also some that are terrible (SPOILERS)

[bob the moo · 18 September 2016]

The Doctor returns to Gallifrey, claiming the vacant position of President and all the power that comes with that position. His motives are unclear, but a previous meeting with an unseen alien group suggest that all is not as it seems.

An interesting serial to end this series – although it is a fitting one since, like season 15, it has strengths and weaknesses, good and bad, and generally cannot seem to keep a consistency in the delivery. In its microcosm, the serial offers an interesting return to the planet of the Time Lords, and some decent attempts at a twisty political thriller. The Doctor appears to be being played, but at the same time is maneuvering to get the upper hand in all situations. It is not as smart as it needed to be, but it is a nice change of pace. The final two episodes feel tacked on in the way they change villain and threat, but it works reasonably well. The material is mixed; sometimes it feels nicely written but then frequently humor or poor writing is laid on.

The design of the aliens is probably the most memorably bad thing about it. The Vardaans are probably the worst 'alien' yet – they look like dry-cleaning bags hung up and rustled by a light breeze; I was reminded of the You Look Nice Today proposal of revamping movies by adding a character called Razzledazzle who, due to budget constraints, was just a 20-sided dice held in shot while someone jangled keys offscreen – not too far from the 'design' of these aliens. It is hard to watch seriously, and even though it seems there should be danger, it detracts a lot that the 'danger' is from 2 transparent bin bags. The return of the Sontarans is pretty good; their costumes look cheap in some ways, but they have more force to them – and are certainly more engaging than the comedy version which is the norm of the new seasons recently.

Generally, performances are okay, with Johns being nice and weasely in his character, while Arnatt adds weight. Baker is mostly good, but is a bit too comical at times – reminding one of the more recent outings. Jameson isn't offered much to do, and is given a distinctly weak exit in the general serial but also in the specific moment. Personally I wasn't ever able to totally get beyond the heavy sexual role she played, but she was not bad and probably deserved better than this (certainly it is no Susan or Jo). K9 gets better treatment, with a farewell but hope for more of him due to a sneaky kit box version.

Mostly I enjoyed this serial, but it has plenty not to like. Season 15 as a whole has been variable and with low points I'd not seen before in previous seasons, so hopefully the next season can continue the good and lift the weaker aspects.

The TARDIS Finally Explored...

[hmens1 · 10/10 · 7 May 2013]

I personally am not entirely sure what to make of "The Invasion of Time" as a whole, however Part Six was my favourite installment. And for one particular reason: The TARDIS. I am a huge fan of the ship, and in this episode we finally see the deeper innards of the Time/Space ship. All of the rooms we see the Doctor and Co. chased through by the Sontarans were filmed on location at St. Annes Hospital, along with parts of the Gallifrey Citadel. We see a real sick bay (as TARDIS Sick Bay) and also parts on location. The corridors, store rooms, sick bay and garden were filmed at the hospital, while the swimming pool was filmed elsewhere. The main confrontation occurs at the Bathroom (Swimming Pool), when both Leela and Borusa and Kelner and the Sontarans get lost and end up at the Swimming Pool. One defect to the TARDIS: the Control Room does look rather small... All in all, it's brilliant that the TARDIS was explored a bit more, especially in 1978...

The Anti-Climax of Time...

[Xstal · 5/10 · 5 July 2022]

Lost and nowhere to go, the Tardis rooms endlessly flow, the turtle heads chase, at the slowest of pace, in the end, not a lot to bestow.

A farewell to Leela, an unforgettable companion, for all the right reasons.