I’m
not 100 percent sure what to do with “The Time Meddler”. It’s an historical, a
story type I have really grown to enjoy a lot more than I ever have. It’s got
comedy, thanks to the script from Donald Cotton (“The Romans”), and some great
performances from the “new” TARDIS crew of the Doctor, Vicki, and Steven. Finally,
it has Peter Butterworth as the Meddling Monk who is enjoyable but not, I
think, quite as good as the regular cast. So why don’t I know what to do with
it?
Part
of the problem for me is with the story itself. The idea of one of the Doctor’s
people setting up shop in Earth’s past to change the future is an intriguing
one. It seems like a very “New Series” concept to me. My first problem with it
though, is setting when and where they did. There is NO suspense in trying to
change the events of 1066, because we know how things turned out. The good guys
will of COURSE win this match up. If there was a more consistent threat to the
TARDIS crew or the guest characters in the story, it could have been worked
around. But the way it was set up, just no. The dual threat of the Monk and the
Vikings could have been some really exciting stuff, but oh my god the Vikings
bored the heck out of me.
Speaking
of threats to other characters, I was REALLY put off by the implied (and
frankly couldn’t have been more strongly implied without some graphic violence)
rape of Edith. She’s practically catatonic once the Vikings leave the
settlement, barely able to speak, and absolutely in shock. That to me was a bit
much for this “kid’s show” – in this supposed romp of an episode it brought my
enjoyment way down. What was worse is that when she reappears in Episode Three,
Edith seems to have fully recovered and is simply angry. I don’t think that
character arc, for lack of a better term, would pass muster today. And it
shouldn’t.
Even
putting all that aside, I just can’t love this story. I’m old enough to remember
when it was rediscovered in Nigeria and subsequently sold to PBS stations here
in the US. “A lost story! It’s a classic!” and I was young enough, and
inexperienced enough to buy into the hype machine. I had it in my memory that I
LOVED this story, and rewatching it now was such a letdown.
To be sure, there are
still things in it that I can like. The Doctor’s speech to Steven about the
things he sees in the TARDIS, ending with “…that is a chair with a panda on it.
Sheer poetry, dear boy. Now please stop bothering me.” is one of the Hartnell
moments that shows how much the character has changed since “An Unearthly Child”.
He has whimsy now, also evident in the “What do you think it is, a space helmet
for a cow?” exchange. I love the relationship between Steven and Vicki. Peter
Purves gets the sarcastic but still good natured demeanor of Steven
immediately, while Maureen O’Brien’s Vicki is like the know–it-all sister, but
one who you can’t help but find endearing.
As for the Monk, as
much as the fanboy in me would LOVE for him to be an earlier regeneration of
the Master, I can’t quite make that leap. Lines like “A master plan to end all
master plans!” would make it so easy, but the idea that this character could
someday be played by Roger Delgado…? I just can’t buy it. Give me a couple
interim regenerations and we’ll talk.
“The Time Meddler” is
a frustrating story for me. There are bits that I enjoy, but not quite enough
of them. Except for poor Edith, the rest of the supporting cast are
forgettable, but Edith is memorable for terrible reasons. I don’t hate this
episode, but as the saying goes, my memory cheated. More than anything, “The
Time Meddler” left me disappointed.
NEXT EPISODE: Galaxy Four
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