Doctor Who Season 4 (1966)
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Doctor Who Season 4 Review
The fourth season of Doctor Who is another difficult season to judge after the third one.
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“There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things,
things which act against everything that we believe in. They must be fought“
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The same applies here as the previous time. Literally the same. Only 10 episodes survive out of 43 which really does not provide me good context for this review, but I will try my best. So the first serial is The Smugglers and it is unfortunately entirely missing. It was I presume a fun pirate-centric episode.
The second serial is The Tenth Planet. It isn’t the greatest story although it does have its moments. Here the First Doctor, William Hartnell, leaves us which is unfortunate as I prefer him over Patrick Troughton, at least thus far. The Second Doctor just isn’t as interesting or as memorable so far.
The Power of the Daleks is missing and I guess it was a more sinister take on the Daleks‘ storyline owing to its premise whereas The Highlanders is another historical episode, but this time with the new doctor. It is also missing in entirety.
The Underwater Menace truly is one giant curiosity. It is silly and ridiculous even, but I have to applaud them in a way for making it so different than your usual Doctor Who story what with all the underwater scenery and the weird visuals and performance artistry even. Very weird.
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The Moonbase is a pretty solid serial which features competent and memorable villains in the Cybermen. It is half-missing, but the two episodes that do exist are quite entertaining and well crafted.
The Macra Terror is entirely missing which is a good thing presumably as the insect Doctor Who storylines are not my cup of tea. The Faceless Ones has identity stealing aliens as villains and although a typical setup, it is the one storyline that works to this day as it doesn’t require great effects.
The Evil of the Daleks only has the second episode available for viewing and it is another one of those dull Dalek storylines which did not interest me particularly.
So all in all, this is one pretty difficult to judge season. Most of these episodes are solid, but none are great. Without the option to see the missing ones, I still cannot judge it accurately though I do think it is slightly better than the previous season. But the Second Doctor thus far does not capture my interest too much.
Worst Serial: The Evil of the Daleks.
Best Serial: The Moonbase.
Worst Episodes: The Underwater Menace Part 2 and The Evil of the Daleks Part 2.
Best Episodes: The Tenth Planet Part 1 and The Faceless Ones Part 3.
