Snakedance

After two disappointing stories, the Peter Davison era is back on track with a sequel to the previous season's fantastic Kinda. Like all good sequels, Snakedance expands on what the original explored. In what could have been a disastrous move, it explains the origin of the Mara, an origin that is very reminiscent of the origin of the Id monster of the film Forbidden Planet. However, the story is about so much more than that. It is about how cultures develop, how history is recorded and interpreted and how horrors in the past can be so blunted by ceremony and ritual that it can easily be forgotten that that horror could rise again. Manussa is a fantastic example of world building where a culture of a thousand years is painted with consummate skill. The technologically advanced Manussan Empire is destroyed by the creation of the Mara and the Sumaran Empire it commands. The post-Sumaran Manussans seem to live in a non-industrial society, although mentions of other worlds and space travel do not surprise them. Knowledge is also a key theme- perhaps the key scene is the 'Six faces of Delusion' where Ambril's attention to detail has made him overlook the blatantly obvious. Christopher Bailey's script is rich in invention and has some wonderful dialogue. The ending is a bit abrupt (the story was overrunning) but this does not really detract from the story.

Fiona Cumming directs wonderfully, with some very memorable imagery- the scene where Tegan looks into the mirror and her head is replaced by a snake's skull is terrifying. There is some great editing (such as the mixing of the snake and Tegan) and the lighting is superb. The costumes and sets are of a very high standard- the only criticism I can make is that the sound of footsteps are wooden, rather than stone and earth.

Characterisation is first rate, with a very talented cast doing it justice. Despite his own, well publicised reservations, Martin Clunes is excellent as the arrogant, pampered, but by no means evil Lon and Colette O'Neil is very dignified as his mother. John Carson makes Ambril engagingly pompous and Johnathon Morris gives a nicely low-key performance as Chela. Most interesting is the portrayal of the regulars. The Doctor is seen interrupting dinner parties and comes off looking like the lunatic that the supporting characters think he is. Janet Fielding is again wonderful as the villain and Sarah Sutton gives an engaging performance, particularly in the charming opening TARDIS scene where she tries to get the Doctor to notice her new outfit.

The Mara stories are not only a highlight of the Davison era, but of Doctor Who as a whole- unmissable telly!

NEXT: Mawdryn Undead