The Deadly Assassin [TV/1976.10.30 ~ 11.20]

 

(Cover art created by @Harnois751 on Twitter)

★★★★☆

  Gallifrey was a planet begging to be explored in depth, and Robert Holmes rose to the demand with this incredible four-parter. I had no idea that so many of Gallifreyan history and culture I've been taking for granted in other stories originated here: the various houses, the Castellans and the Chancellors and the CIA, even the sound of alarms! Its significance in the broader strokes of the franchise would have warranted my interest in itself, but The Deadly Assassin gets extra points by being a genuinely great serial to boot.

  Tom Baker's obviously riding high, knowing just the right way to play his Doctor Who (it probably helped that Robert Holmes was a writer who knew how to write for this particular incarnation): eccentric, acerbic, intimidating and gleeful in equal measure. What enhances this razor-sharp performance is the political thriller trapped inside a science-fiction casing, with POV assassination shots and heated arguments over loopholes in legislations galore. Plus, who can forget those sweet, sweet pre-Matrix (1999) Matrix sequences, with surreal moments leading to danger in every corner? Whichever way you looks at it, this serial is jam-packed with things to enjoy, whether you fashion yourself to be a Who scholar or a thrill seeker. 

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  Despite my thinking it would have benefitted from less Matrix shenanigans and more Gallifreyan politics, there's no denying just how well-crafted The Deadly Assassin is. From a triumphant return of the scheming Master (with that one killer line about hatred and how it burns within him) to the establishment of so many important details about the Doctor's home planet (and how it led to one of Doctor Who's best spinoffs, Gallifrey), this really is a four-parter you can't go wrong with.