The Smugglers [TV/1966.9.10 ~ 10.1]

★★★☆☆

  In which Doctor Who and his loverbird companions are embroiled in a plot amongst sea-faring outlaws for dead man's gold, the chief crew of which are former mates of that one pirate from that Eleventh Doctor siren episode. Well, this ought to be a rather interesting one.

  I don't quite know what I expected from The Smugglers going in, but I must say I quite enjoyed the romp. There's a charm in swashbuckling historicals, I think; it's obviously a dangerous situation for the Doctor and co., but you just know deep down that the actors are having a fun time and therefore you can't help but laugh along. William Hartnell is either an incredible actor (which he is), or he's past the point of ridicule and at the stage of bewildered respect for such a lighthearted take on brutalistic events. He's a silly old man wandering into dangerous situations and devising even more dangerous solutions — how can you not love this Doctor? On the other side of this aged wise man acting as a buffoon, we have Anneke Wills and Michael Craze being two of the most chemistry-savvy actors in the entire television series. They're young, energetic companions with plenty of attitude and love to give in equal measure. It's a tiny shame that Polly's mostly overlooked by the serial as Ben gets all the fun stuff to do.

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  Riddles, cutthroats and the Doctor constantly being called "Sawbones"... how can you not find enjoyment in The Smugglers? Its reputation, or lack thereof, is sorely undeserved; it's one of those less bombastic serials that still manages to have plenty of bodycount. What's more, this particular Loose Cannon recon contains scenes shot from afar by an amateur filmmaker and all the violent bits retained because a TV station decided to keep the censored bits while junking the (profitable) rest of the serial. Strange how life works sometimes. William Hartnell pirate story good.