N.B. there might (or might not) be spoilers in this article!
It’s not exactly a whole-hearted compliment to say that The Invasion of Time is a lot like the kind of big end-of-season finale we’ve come to expect of 21st century Doctor Who.
On the one hand it’s full of huge ideas and concepts. Gallifrey is invaded and the whole of time is under threat. And there’s the idea that the Doctor might be behind it all. It’s a sequel to The Deadly Assassin, so Borusa returns but the new Chancellor Kelner, unlike his predecessor Spandrell, is a conniving git. (Milton Johns at his oily best.)
Like The Sunmakers, there’s also a real sense of fun. The jelly baby scene between the Doctor and Andred is rather lovely and generally it’s hard to shake the feeling that Tom Baker is taking things a lot less seriously than he was under Philip Hinchcliffe’s watch.
The Invasion of Time is also an overblown epic mess. The Vardans are poorly realised and even if you forgive the dodgy CSO and their underwhelming materialisation, they sound like churlish prefects most of the time. When the Sontarans turn up, they stomp around and trip over the pool furniture as if they’re looking for the one who insulted their Mum. (Anthony Read’s comment that Sontarans were a lot like Grant Mitchell, however, makes Derek Deadman’s performance as Stor a lot more enjoyable.)
In short, the good bits are great and the bad bits are awful.
“You’re not fit to guard a jelly baby.”
The Doctor, The Invasion of Time: Part One
This is encapsulated neatly in Leela’s leaving scene, which somehow contrives to be beautifully played and utterly implausible at the same time. In a way, it’d be more believable if Leela was staying behind because of Rodan, given the almost complete lack of any hint of anything going on between her and Andred.
And why is Leela is allowed to stay on Gallifrey when Sarah wasn’t even allowed to visit? I can just about accept that the Doctor is flouting the rules because he needs her to be part of his plan, but it’s never adequately explained why the no aliens rule was there in the first place. If I were Sarah Jane Smith, I’d be bloody annoyed when I learned that the Doctor takes his next assistant to his home world after making such a big fuss of saying she couldn’t go!
“Even the sonic screwdriver won’t get me out of this one. “
The Doctor, The Invasion of Time: Part Two
My memory of The Invasion of Time was that it was good for a couple of episodes, after which it fell apart faster than the Character Building Doctor Who Tardis Console Room Mega Set. Whilst it never quite lives up to its early promise and does come a bit unravelled in the final third, it was far better than I’d remembered and my enjoyment was greatly increased by my kids’ reactions to it: not only to the idea that the Doctor might have gone bad but also their shock at the arrival of the Sontarans (one of Doctor Who‘s greatest cliffhangers). “What the heck are they doing here?” were my daughter’s exact words.
For them, The Invasion of Time was edge-of-the-seat stuff and that’s got to be worth a few extra marks out of ten to an old duffer like me.
"Best. Cliffhanger. Ever."
"Where did they come from?"
"So the Doctor knew that K-9 was eventually going to leave, so he already had the parts to make K-9 Mark II!"
"The Time Lords are very ceremonial. They also have almost no Time Ladies in the whole story. (Just one! I didn't notice in The Deadly Assassin that there were no Time Ladies.)"
Son of UT Rating: 7/10
"It's weird in Part Two when the Doctor talks to the camera!"
"It was crazy in Part Four when the Sontarans arrived!"
"It seems like Chancellor Borusa's clothes change from purple to red."
