Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

After the plagued 1985 season, the long-running British sci-fi series, Doctor Who, was put on hiatus by the BBC. The reason? The powers-that-be decided the show needed a breather to find itself again and tone down the increasingly violent content that had become a constant during the reign of the Sixth Doctor, played by Colin Baker. So for eighteen months, the show was rested. The production staff, who had already begun to shape the 1986 season before hiatus, decided to scrap all the work they had done and produce a new season that represented the travails the show itself was facing. Thus, come 1986, the Whoniverse is given an epic 14 part adventure entitled The Trial of a Time Lord.

For the entire twenty-third season, the good Doctor is put on trial by his own people, the Time Lords, who have grown concerned by his recent activity, and thus decide to try him for interferring and for endangering the lives of his companions of others he comes into contact with. The prosecutor is a black-clad gentleman called The Valyard who is eager to end the Doctor's life. The Inquisitor oversees the court proceedings. And the Doctor has decided to defend himself, turning down an offer by the Inquisitor to have one of her august number act as his counsel. And with all interested parties aboard the space station housing the court room, the Trial of the Time Lord begins.

As is custom, the prosecution is allowed to produce its evidence first. And the first segment of the prosecution's case centers around the Doctor and Peri's involvement on the planet Ravalox, which is separated into two distinct groups, the Tribe of the Free who live primitive lives on the surface, and the Underground Dwellers who eek out existences underground under the supervision of an ancient robot named Jathro. The TARDIS crew arrive on Ravalox, as the Doctor is interested in why this planet is so similiar to Earth. Instantly, Peri feels a sense of deja vu. As the plot moves along, the Doctor and Peri are separated, as the Time Lord is captured by the Underground Dwellers, and Peri is imprisoned by the Tribe of the Free. To complicate matters, two criminals, Glitz and Dibber, are on the scene, wishing to cash in on some secrets Jathro has stashed away somewhere. Eventually, the Doctor and Peri escape, the two tribes merge, and Glitz and Dibber find something else to lust after. However, many lives are lost and the secrets of Ravalox remain a mystery, despite the Doctor's request to know why they're so important they cannot be included in the trial's evidence.

The second segment is even more damning. The Doctor and Peri arrive on Thorus Beta, the home world of Sil, the evil slug-like being who terrorized the TARDIS crew in the previous season's classic, Vengence on Varos. The Doctor is trying to find out who is shipping arms to warlords, but is soon caught up in a plot by Sil's people, The Mentors, to master a surgical procedure that would allow brains to be transported from one being to another forever. Early on, the Doctor is hooked up to a brain machine that appears to change his personality. He is now totally self-serving and devoid of any affection for his companion, Peri, who has now hooked up with a fellow prisoner, King Yrkanos, who is hell-bent on destroying the Mentors and their experiments. With the Doctor's allegiance in question, Peri has no choice but to join in Yrkanos' plan for revolution. As time marches on, the Doctor appears to actually help The Mentors in their quest and lose all the integrity he had once possessed. Then all hell breaks loose, as Yrkanos makes good on his insurgency. The Mentors retreat back to the surgical area, where the chief surgeon, Crozier, has decided Peri would be the perfect candidate to receive the head Mentor's brain. In a chilling ending, the Doctor is taken out of time and space by the Time Lords, Peri's brain is voided in favor of the Mentor's, and King Yrkanos attacks the surgical area, killing every one -- including the now evil Peri -- inside. The evidence is crippling to the Doctor's case, who has no memory of the Thorus Beta excursion and is devastated by his companion's death.

After a brief time to collect his thoughts, the Doctor is allowed to put forth his defense. His evidence comes from his own future, as he hopes to convince the Inquisitor that he will improve if released. The Doctor is now travelling with new companion, Mel, and they land on the Hyperion III, a cruise ship that shuttles people between Mogar and Earth. Reminicent of "Murder on the Orient Express," this story sees the death of one of those aboard, which turns into two deaths, which turns into three, and so on and so on. But who is the killer? And what is their motive? And what is really in the hydroponics center in the hold of the ship? With the captain's blessing, the Doctor and Mel do find their culprits and save the day. As shown in this story, the Doctor does not meddle, nor does he cause the death of innocent people. He will improve. However, the dastardly Valyard had a trick up his sleeve. The Doctor has just proven he is guilty of Article 7: genocide. It appears that the Doctor's solution to saving the people on the Hyperion III wiped out an entire species of creatures. All seems lost.

Then comes one terrific concluding story. Enter the Master, the Doctor's arch-enemy, who has been watching the trial with great enthusiasm. At first, the Doctor believes the Master's appearance is the nail in his coffin, but is surprised to find that the Master hates the Valyard even more. In order to aid the Doctor, the Master sends two witnesses for the Doctor's defense: his future companion Mel and the unscrupulous Sabalom Glitz from the Ravalox affair. Then a real revelation comes about: the Doctor and the Valyard know each other much more than anyone could anticipate, and his motivation for ending the Doctor's life is purely selfish. Facing the now revealed facts, the Valyard retreats to inside the Matrix, the vast depository of knowledge run by the Time Lords. The Doctor and Glitz pursue. Reminicent of the 1970s classic Who story, the Deadly Assassin, this adventure sees the Doctor's return to the land of the Matrix, where nothing is as it seems. It is there that the Doctor and the Valyard have their final showdown, with a little help from Mel, Glitz, and even the Master. In the end, the Valyard is defeated, and the trial is discontinued, as the evidence against the Doctor was largely made up by his prosecutor.

Thus ends 14 very powerful episodes. Season 23 has divided many Who fans over the years. The mid-1980s are not fondly remembered by many viewers, as the production values were too flashy, the Doctor too grumpy, and the stories too boring. Season 23 was an attempt to rectify the situation, and in many aspects it succeeded. Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor is noticeably toned down. The bombastic and arrogant Time Lord is now a bit more quiet and sympathetic. The production values during the Trial are outstanding with the opening shot of the space station being the single most impressive special effects shot in Doctor Who history. And the excitement is back. In each of the four segments of the Trial, the Doctor is full of energy and gusto. Long gone are the lathargic days of the Season 22. The Trial does breathe life back into the aging show.

However, there are some problems with Season 23. First of all, the producers of the show chickened out on the ending. As originally envisioned, the Trial would conclude with the Doctor and the Valyard locked in battle as they tumble helplessly into the Matrix a la Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty. However, the producers abandoned that dramatic finale in favor of a watered down approached where the Valyard is defeated and the Doctor is not only allowed to continue onward with all charges dropped, but he is offered the Lord Presidency of Gallifrey. To make matters worse, at the very end, the Inquisitor nullifies the shock of the final sequence on Thorus Beta by saying Peri didn't die after all but is actually living as King Yrkanos's Queen. Big disappointment. The original ending was much better. The producers wasted a fine opportunity to bring some much-needed drama back to the show.

In the more nit-picky category, Colin Baker really needed a hair cut during Season 23. As has been made famous by various press stories at the time, Mr. Baker gained quite a bit of weight during the hiatus, so the Trial Doctor is a bit more fluffy than the Season 22 Doctor. A little more husky I can forgive, but why didn't anyone tell him to cut his hair? His big old mop of blond curls made him look positively gigantic. Not a big thing, this hair thing, but bothersome nonetheless.

One more noteworthy fact about Trial of a Time Lord: it marks Colin Baker's final television adventure as the Doctor. The ratings for the season were not what the BBC were hoping for, so when the show was renewed for a 24th season it was done so on the condition that Colin Baker be replaced. And so ended the very tumultuous and very short tenure of the Sixth Doctor.

It's a shame really, as The Trial of a Time Lord is quite a good piece of television. The story arc holds up surprisingly well over the fourteen episodes. The stories are gripping, and the ending is quite good despite its being watered down. Colin Baker shines in his court room scenes, and his real life experience as a former solicitor comes to play in his oratory. The Valyard is a treat, and it's a pity he didn't make a return engagement with the Doctor. And of course there's Sabalom Glitz, the thief with a heart of gold. Surely the best character created during the Sixth Doctor's era. Find yourself guilty of enjoying Trial of a Time Lord. You'll be glad you did.


Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV