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Doctor Who: City of Death

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Doctor and Romana are on holiday in Paris, 1979, which among the vintage of years, is "more of a table wine. Lacks true distinction." They become involved in the doings of Count Scarlioni, a filthy rich art collector who has recently attracted attention by selling heretofore presumed lost masterpieces. He also seems to be selling genuine looking fakes, such as a Gainsborough and a Guttenberg Bible. Also investigating is Duggan, a dim British detective in beige trenchcoat who mainly likes thumping people.

Time suddenly jumps a groove for a few seconds, and it is the temporally sensitive Time Lords who notice and realize that something funny is going on. It happens for the second time in the Louvre and while the Doctor is looking at the Mona Lisa. He snatches an unusual bracelet from a pretty woman. Question: what is an Earth woman doing wearing a micromeson scanner, which could be used for detecting the Louvre's alarm system?

The Count is involved in conducting some time experiments with the help of the meek Russian scientist Theodor Nikolai Kerensky. For a sample of what he's working on, check the scene involving the egg and chicken.

This was the first of three foreign on-location stories, the other two being the Netherlands (Arc Of Infinity) and Spain (The Two Doctors). The story moves quickly in order to flesh out the Parisian scenery, but it's the snappy and witty dialogue that really uplifts this story. Example:

Romana: Shall we take the lift or fly?
Doctor: Let's not be ostentatious.
Romana: Let's fly then.
Doctor: That would look silly. We'll take the lift.

At least one Who book points out that Duggan sees the Doctor and Romana on the ground so quickly in the end, that from the time they left him, they must have flown from the tower.

More witty dialogue:

Romana: Where are we going?
Doctor: Philosophically or geographically?
Romana: Philosophically
Doctor: Philosophically, we're going to lunch.

And the first thing Romana says when the Doctor introduces her to the Mona Lisa is "how come she doesn't have any eyebrows?" Later, the woman who posed for the Mona Lisa is also described by the Doctor as "that dreadful woman with no eyebrows who wouldn't sit still."

The Countess (on the Doctor): I don't think he's as stupid as he seems.

The Count: Nobody can be as stupid as he seems.

Then there's John Cleese and Eleanor Bron's cameos in Episode 4, where they think the TARDIS is an objet d'art whose afunctionalism belies the fact that the art lies in the fact that it is here. When it vanishes, Bron says. "Exquisite, simply exquisite." Which this story is.

Other things: the cliffhangers to Episode 1 and 2 are superb. And well-known guest stars are Julian Glover (the Count) who played Richard Coeur de Lion in the Who story The Crusaders and was General Veers in The Empire Strikes Back. Catherine Schell (Countess) has two famous siblings: Maximilian and Maria Schell.
This story got the highest viewing figures for any Who story: 16.3 million viewers for episode 4 and an average of 14.5 million viewers overall! Episode 3 (15.4 million) broke the record set by Episode 4 of the previous story, Destiny of the Daleks (14.4 million) Finally, Douglas Adams wrote this story under the pseudonym David Agnew. Scaroth's ultimate goal was replicated in his novel, Dirk Gently And The Holistic Detective Agency.

If not the best Doctor Who story, probably the best and wittiest Tom Baker story.

In addition to some front line actors (Julian Glover for one) and a great comic relief cameo by John Cleese (who's details I will not spoil here) this episode has some one of the best storylines and some of the best tag lines of the series. ("Dugen Why is it every time I try to talk to someone you hit them?")

Lalla Ward's Romana is a mature character who could have easily carried her own series as a Time Lord if the powers that be decided it. She even as a 2nd bananna here continues to show that she fits like a glove into the role. Tom Baker is, well Tom Baker who always brings his sense of mania to the character.

The best episode of its season.

Nearly an all-star cast, including Julian Glover, studs this sterling script. John Cleese makes a cameo appearance as one of two art-buffs critiquing the TARDIS where it stands in an art gallery. Fantastic jokes, and a fall-off-your-sofa-laughing scene where the Doctor (Tom Baker) makes his Harpo Marx entrance to the villain's stronghold. Cute scenes of the Doctor and Romana (Lalla Ward) frolicking through the streets of 1979 Paris.

The Doctor and Romana visit Paris to see some great art. When time begins to repeat itself, the Doctor suspects something is wrong. This adventure has possibly the best witty lines, as in:

"That Would look silly. We'll thake the lift"
"My dear, no one can be stupid as he seems"

and a lot more lines!

City of Death is distinguished from the other Tom Baker Who episodes by virtue of two things: 1) it is essentially a comedy, rather than a campy drama with strong tongue-in-cheek humor (like most Who episodes) and 2) there is a definite, quasi-romantic vibe going between Tom Baker and his wife (and ex-wife) to be, Lala Ward. Maybe it was the Paris setting; maybe Tom and Lala were so ga-ga for each other at this point they couldn't hide it; but I can't recall any episode with any female companion where the relationship seems quite so intimate. These two factors make "City" a bit of a departure from the norm. I am not as enamored of this episode as many fans are, but it is still very enjoyable. On the downside, I found the long travelogue shots of Paris to be a bit boring and time-consuming, the actor who plays Professor Kirinsky to be a giant ham, and some of the plot elements to be absurd beyond the usual level of absurdity (no one in that cafe seems to care about the goons who keep coming in to stick up the Doctor at gunpoint). Those are, however, pretty weak criticisms. On the plus side, Baker, who was beginning to flag a bit in his enthusiasm for the role at this point in his seven-year run, clearly had a ball with the fast-paced, completely comedic script. His biggest strength as an actor was always his ability to recognize when a plot moment or bit of dialogue was ridiculous, and then use humor to make it fly. In this episode he gets plenty of chances and clearly enjoyed all of them. The Duggan character was hackneyed (nice trenchcoat) but also quite funny as a sort of male Leela who is not terribly bright but terribly keen on breaking things and punching people in the face. His interplay with the Doctor is very good ("Duggan, if you do that again I am going to take very severe measures with you." "Oh yeah? What are you gonna do?" "I'm going to ask you not to do it again."), and he works equally well with Romana. Skaroth's polite, homicidal butler is also a huge kick ("Kill those two fools please, Harold," says Skarroth. "With pleasure, sir," replies the butler). The brass ring however goes to Julian Glover as Skarroth/Count Scarleoni, who sci-fi fans will always remember as General Veers in "The Empire Strikes Back", one of the fortunate imperial officers who Vader does not strangle for ineptitude. Glover has beautifully campy dialogue and he plays it out with relish as a profoundly evil villain who never loses his sense of whimsy or humor ("This is going to be a treat. Please remain here while I bring the instruments of torture.") even when he has to wear the disgusting Jaggeroth costume. The plot seemed thin and somewhat confusing at times as it goes along, but everything ties in very nicely at the end....except for the fact that for such a warlike race, the Jaggeroth don't seem to be able to take a punch very well. I guess that's why they're extinct. Anyway, while I don't regard "City of Death" as a classic, it remains a must-have for the true fan's collection.

Not just for fans, City Of Death is for those folks who either have never seen Dr Who or were unfortunate enough to see one of the truly BAD ones and never watched again. I mean, you can't sit them down to just any story. That is why, for Tom Baker's era, I recommend City Of Death as one of the gold list. A great story setting, great performances by cast regulars and supporting actors, an interesting plot that carries through four episodes, a minimum of cheap effects, etcetera, etcetera, and so on. City Of Death shines, especially since that season of stories produces very little classic Who otherwise.

the title of this review is not a knock on the program but a praise. This is very funny stuff, and it is also very interesting. It is full of light-hearted humor, but is not so silly as to not be believable. The story involves an alien who must find what he lost(no spoiler there). A tour of Paris and a lot of time travel is involved, what more could you want?

City of Death is considered to be one of the greatest Dr. Whos ever. This was when the Doctor had the 2nd Romana (and K9 although he doesn't appear in the story) as a companion. So instead of "I'm the Doctor and this is my companion" we have "we're Time Lords". Plus Tom Baker and Lalla Ward's chemistry shows up on screen (they married a year or two later, sadly it didn't last). They arrive in Paris 1979 (more of a table wine year) and proceed to enjoy the sites and sounds. They go to the Louve to see the Mona Lisa and stumble upon a plot to steal it involving some curiously advanced technology. Enter Scalioni (played by Julian Glover, General Veers in Empire Strike's back and Donovan in Indian Jones and the Last Crusade), a rich count with a secret. In reality he is the alien Scarroth, last of the Jagaroth. His spaceship exploded on the surface of prehistoric earth fragmenting his being into several personas throughout history. He is responsible for most all of man's great advances. Now in his last era, he strives to build a time machine to send himself back in time and warn himself of the explosion. Such a paradox would destroy the existence of man. This story is so enjoyable you don't notice some of the obvious plot holes. Thugs robbing the Doctor and companions at gunpoint in the middle of a crowded cafe. Scalioni on a whim telling his butler to kill the same thugs who later show up perfectly unharmed. Scallioni pulling a bundle of a million francs out of his pocket and waving it in a guys face (I laugh my butt off every time I see this scene). Y'see however, the bulk of this story was written by the late Douglas Adams (under a pen name) and it shows. Tom Baker is such a wonderful comedic actor. And Lalla Ward has some great moments of dry wit too. This is Dr. Who at it's best. Look for a cameo by John Cleese.

On another note... if you're looking for new Dr. Who material. Look for the audio releases of the missing episodes. Look for my list "Missing Dr. Who's on Audio and DVD" to find out about this. The jewel cases look really cool although amazon USA has not printed most of them on their web pages. Look for "The Web of Fear" for starters. "The Dalek's Master Plan Audio Release is cool too". Also check out Big Finnish productions for the new audio adventures of Dr. Who featuring Doctors ranging from Peter Davison to Paul Mcgann. ...

Paris and the good Doctor (Tom Baker, that is) - what a splendid combination. For many years this has been my favorite Doctor Who episode; it shines with exceptional writing and acting from the likes of Tom Baker, Lalla Ward (Romana), Catherine Schell (the Countess, best known to science fiction fans for her work on "Space 1999") and especially Julian Glover (Scaroth). Glover has made many notable appearances playing villains, most notably in the "Star Wars" and "Indiana Jones" films, but I doubt he has played a villain as cleverly conceived as Scaroth in his various incarnations. I must also note the splendid chemistry between Tom Baker and Lalla Ward (Incidentally, for trivia buffs she later married distinguished British biologist Richard Dawkins after divorcing Tom Baker; I had the pleasure of meeting both last year when Dawkins came to New York City to read from one of his most recent works at a famous bookstore.). Without question this exceptional episode ranks as one of Doctor Who's finest.

This Tom Baker adventure is one of the most original and satisfying Doctor Who stories that has ever been my pleasure to enjoy. It looks wonderful, it is obvious the cast are all having fun, and the story has a terrific blend of humour and seriousness. It is co-scripted by Douglas Adams, which is an automatic sign that there is going to be a certain degree of zaniness in the story - which there certainly is, but not as convoluted as his previous Who effort, "The Pirate Planet". "City of Death" is more down to earth (putting it very loosely!), but it certainly has moments edging on the bizarre, including the central premise, which sees all human learning and endeavour as simply an alien being's means to an end (although not new to Doctor Who - see "The Daemons" and "Image of the Fendahl" among others - but given a more oblique edge). The chief plot device is the Mona Lisa and the attempts of the alien, Scaroth, to steal it. In my humble opinion, the idea of an alien intending to steal the Mona Lisa in order to achieve his goals (which, incidentally, will result in the human race never having existed) is such a wonderful diversion from the standard "alien invasion" plot; in fact, so wonderful that it verges on genius! The Doctor/Romana II combination of Tom Baker and Lalla Ward is at its peak here - in this story it is obvious they are such an ideal team, and probably the best indicator that an off screen relationship was developing between these two actors. The guest list in "City of Death" is also astounding. The brilliant Julian Glover excels as the alien Scaroth (and his various segments), especially so as the final chronological segment, Count Scarlioni. The Count is an elegant villain, charming, disarming and not without a sense of humour. This is Glover's second of two performances in Doctor Who (his first was as Richard the Lionheart in the William Hartnell tale "The Crusade") - what a pity he did not star more times in the programme! The Countess is portrayed by the beautiful Catherine Schell (of Space 1999 fame), who plays up the role tremendously - a glamorous lover/sidekick to the villain, naively unaware that her husband is an alien (perhaps stretching the plot a bit far, but this is Douglas Adams, after all!) Tom Chadbon's Duggan, the dim-witted but amiable detective who joins up with the Doctor and Romana, is another memorable character. Even the lesser roles, such as Professor Kerensky and the butler Hermann, are distinguished. A cameo appearance from John Cleese and Eleanor Bron at the end is the icing on the cake! The story has the honour of being the first Doctor Who adventure filmed outside of the UK - it was made in Paris, and adds to the glamorous feel. The first episode, to its (slight) detriment, is a bit of a travelogue - the Doctor and Romana's walk through the streets of Paris as Duggan follows them IS overindulgent, but because the story is so wonderful, this can be forgiven. "City of Death" is a charming story. It is intelligent, while at the same time enjoyable simply as a great adventure. There are also brilliant moments of dialogue, with many memorable exchanges between the characters. It is certainly a breath of fresh air, and the standout tale from a troubled year of Doctor Who.