Doctor Who - The Invasion Of Time [1978]
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List Price: £19.99 £5.98 2 Entertain Video Tom Baker , Louise Jameson
Audience Rating: Parental GuidanceBinding: DVDEAN: 5014503258627Format: PALLabel: 2 Entertain VideoManufacturer: 2 Entertain VideoNumber Of Items: 1Publisher: 2 Entertain VideoRegion Code: 2Release Date: 2008-05-05Running Time: 150Studio: 2 Entertain VideoTheatrical Release Date: 1978
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Editorial Reviews: Doctor Who , The Invasion Of Time sees the Doctor heading back to Gallifrey, with Leela in tow (for the last time). His intention is to claim the presidency of the Time Lords, but some erratic behaviour (for a change!) sets a few alarm bells off. And when the Sontarans and Vardans appear on the scene, all hell seems set to break loose. It’s fair to say that The Invasion Of Time has its problems, and even the more devoted of Doctor Who fans rarely ranks it in their top 20. The cheaper-than-usual looking Vardan monsters don’t help, and when the Sontarans arrive they’re arguably in the weakest shape they were ever seen in on the show.
But that’s not to say that The Invasion Of Time is without a good few merits. Baker is on terrific form here, and any episode that explores the Tardis and Gallifrey in a little more depth always has worth to it.
The Invasion Of Time has also been given the two-disc special edition treatment, and the copious extra features don’t disappoint. Classic Doctor Who double DVDs have a strong reputation for being superb special editions, and the same is again true here.
So while The Invasion Of Time is no classic (and, in fact, is far from it), it's still an interesting entry into the heritage of the good Doctor, and a feast for fans of the show. Perhaps a better story for the next DVD releases though, please… --Jon Foster
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: Underated mid Tom Baker era storyComment: First broadcast in 1978, The Invasion of Time, was a last minute replacement for another story that was planned but had to be abandoned due to budget concerns. As an end of a season finale, The Invasion of Time, certainly succeeds despites its rushed script. It features The fourth Doctor, as played by Tom Baker. Leela played by Louise Jameson, and the voice of John Leeson as K9. This time they return to The Doctor's home planet Galifrey to prevent an invasion. But why is The Doctor beahving so strangely. As with the earlier classic Tom Baker serial, The Seeds of Doom, this adventure has two distinct parts to it. Though this time we the intitial four part story, followed by the final 2 episodes when the real villains behind the story are introduced. Clearly, the opening story is a homage to the then recent Star Wars, the effects are actually ok and stand up better today than the model shots used in stories such as Terminus which was broadcast 5 years later. The vardans are interesting villains, although their voices maybe could have been processed more. The Sontarans make a welcome return. Though the new ones have a cockney accent, this is in contrast to the more refined approach taken by actor Kevin Lindsay who played them in previous serials. All the Timelords are well played, in particular familar actor Milton Johns as The Castellan, and Chris Tranchell as Andred. The sets for Galifrey are also impressive. The final episodes are set in the corridors of The Tardis. The corrior sets have been much critcised over the years for looking like the ineterior of a hospital, they were actually filmed in an abandoned asylum. The only way of looking at this is that perhaps, because of The Doctor's increasing eccentricty, he opted to design the corridors in such a way.
Customer Rating: Summary: Not as bad as 'they' say it to be!Comment: First things first, I'm a completist. So no matter how abysmal an entry in the Who universe, I'll buy it, if not for the show, then for the extra's. I bought "Invasion..." with a mixed bag of feelings. Never saw these episodes before and I knew of the negative attitude to it. I was quite surprised then that it did come together rather well (and no, Tom Baker is not my favourite Doctor)!
Customer Rating: Summary: DullComment: This story does not cut it over six episodes. The two halves of the story - the transition from the Vardans to the Sontarans just disjoints the narrative.
Customer Rating: Summary: Has its moments, but mainly pretty dismal stuff.Comment: With its plot involving the Doctor returning to Gallifrey to claim the position of presidency, this could have been an intriguing look into Time Lord society - a follow-up to The Deadly Assassin, showing Gallifrey now going downhill. Unfortunately it doesn't work out like that. The beginning of the story shows promise, the Doctor coming across as quite sinister, and the scenes set outside the Time Lord city show a side of Gallifrey never before seen. But overall it just descends into tackyness. The alien invaders (Vardans) start off as transparent pieces of tin-foil before they transform into cliched 'troopers' who look as though they've been lifted from a '50s sci-fi action serial. Then there are the Cockney-accented, blundering Sontarans in two episodes of feeble slapstick which have quite obviously been tacked onto what was originally a four-part story. There's also the abandoned hospital which is supposed to represent the interior of the Tardis and which robs it of its mysterious qualities. The story ends disappointingly with Leela leaving the Tardis is marry a complete drip she hardly even knows. The atmospheric Sontaran theme music and the occasional good moment can't save this story from being a might-have-been.Customer Rating: Summary: Fourth Doctor at his most Fourth RateComment: I'm the same age as David Tennant and, like him, a big fan of the 4th Doctor but this DVD shows both the Mid-70's slump in Tom Baker's portrayal of the Doctor and arguably the most wretched production values in the show's history.
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