The Rescue [TV/1965.1.2 ~ 1.9]

★★★★☆

  Sometimes I take a step back and realise, all over again, that the First Doctor era had some of the best actors to grace the show as companions. William Russell and Jacqueline Hill are simply marvelous and were the initial heart and soul of Doctor Who (something that I'll mention again later on), Peter Purves' character remains one of my favourite companions of the Classic series, and then you have Maureen O'Brien showing so much depth and warmth as a character that really shouldn't have worked as well as she did. Vicki is pretty obviously made as a replacement for the Susan character, and yet O'Brien lifts the material to such a height that it leaves Susan rather in the mud. She's such a delight, and even when she throws a tantrum she never seems too unreasonable or childish. She shows genuine happiness when comforted by the Doctor after Barbara accidentally killing her only friend, and her face of sheepish joy after being granted all of time and space is marvellous. It makes my heart leap with joy, and any serial that manages to do that is very special indeed.

  But oh, it's not just Vicki's superb realisation that's worthy of note in The Rescue. By this time both William Hartnell and the Doctor have mellowed significantly, and the old man proves to be quite the charmer here as he investigates mysterious traps and sneaks his ways through lies and recorded messages. Ian and Barbara are the surrogate parents (or older siblings, depending on how you interpret their dynamic with Vicki) that welcome the new companion onboard and show her the ropes, and there's so much warmth present onscreen between the four actors that you forget it's only a two-parter. Oh well, greatness never lasts long, does it? At least the relatively short format accomodates the succint mystery perfectly; it's an incredibly predictable whodunit, but the patient setup and payoff, wonderful miniatures and sets, and ambient music spice things up enough so that The Rescue becomes quite a compact and satisfying serial. Think The Edge of Destruction, but much more refined.