Doctor Who review: Dethras captures the spirit of Season 18 brilliantly

Dethras is an interesting and complex story that captures the flavor of Tom Baker’s final season of Doctor Who brilliantly.

When I think of Season 18, I think of stories like The Leisure Hive, Full Circle and Warriors’ Gate. Stories that made sure to include some of your classic Doctor Who thrills, including distinctive monsters and dangerous villains, but also included some interesting hard science ideas and used them well.

The stories I’ve reviewed so far for Series Six of The Fourth Doctor Adventures, set shortly before Tom Baker’s final season on television, have aimed to capture that spirit, to an extent. While the series has been enjoyable so far, Dethras is probably the story that, at this point, captures the flavor of Season 18 best.

The story begins with an intriguing mystery. The Fourth Doctor and Romana have found themselves on a 1940s British submarine from the Second World War…which is somehow in the middle of deep space. What brought it there? What are the creatures threatening to swarm it? And why is there a chimpanzee on the submarine?

Dethras introduces us to intriguing questions in the first half, and there are many interesting ideas and characters that are explored. Doctor Who has always been good at telling intriguing sci-fi mysteries, and writer Adrian Poynton gives us that with Dethras.

Hard scientific ideas

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Of course, things change in the second half of the story, when we finally start getting some answers. Naturally, I can’t talk about the second half too much plot-wise, but I can say that this is when the story really explores some interesting and hard scientific ideas.

We see one such idea explored in a new and fresh way, and this is what would’ve made Dethras feel right at home in Season 18. Because it was these kind of stories that Christopher H. Bidmead was going for as Doctor Who‘s script editor at the time. The earlier stories have been great, but Dethras is the one that seems most at home with the likes of Full Circle and Logopolis.

We also have some interesting characters, too. Sheila Ruskin (who played Kassia in The Keeper of Traken) is great as Flague. While she’s far too paranoid and eager for power, Flague is a little more complicated than your usual Doctor Who villain. Alistair Petrie is also great as John, a man on board the submarine who has made some very dangerous choices.

Overall, Dethras is a rather strong story, one that balances major scientific ideas while also telling an excellent Doctor Who story. Another strong release for The Fourth Doctor Adventures.

Have you listened to Dethras? Are you a fan of Season 18, and it’s more hard scientific approach to Doctor Who stories? Let us know in the comments below.