Doctor Who review: Season 14 – Why it’s one of the show’s greatest

Tom Baker’s third season as the Fourth Doctor doesn’t just stand the test of time. It also stands out as one of Doctor Who’s greatest seasons ever.

It’s hard to know where to begin with Doctor Who‘s fourteenth season. It’s not just the third season of Tom Baker – arguably one of the most popular Doctors in the show’s long history. But it’s also the third season from the extremely strong team of producer Philip Hinchcliffe and script editor Robert Holmes. Their previous two seasons had been highly successful, giving us some of Doctor Who‘s greatest stories. Naturally, their third and final season working together was no exception.

There’s a nice sense of variety to Season 14, perhaps more so than in the previous two. Season 12 featured several returning monsters, including the Sontarans, the Daleks, and the Cybermen. Season 13 focused more on new monsters, or at least, Doctor Who‘s new takes on classic monsters. So strong nods to both Hammer Horror and classic Universal Monster movies featured throughout.

However, it’s clear from the beginning of Season 14 that Holmes and Hinchcliffe wanted to go for something different, at least for the first couple of stories. While still featuring some influence from gothic horror, The Masque of Mandragora features an unusually strong focus on history, too. It’s handled extremely well, featuring plenty of scheming villains that wouldn’t look too out of place in a Shakespeare play.

Variety

That sense of variety continues in The Hand of Fear. Set on contemporary Earth, this story features less of a horror influence than the title suggests. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its fair share of creepy moments – especially the cliffhanger to part 1. But it comes across as less atmospheric or stylish compared to other stories from this era.

Another example of the kind of varied storytelling that this season displayed is The Face of Evil. Along with introducing Leela as the new companion, this classic serial also featured several brilliant ideas – not least the fact that it casts Tom Baker in the dual role of both hero and villain this time! It’s a fantastic debut from Chris Boucher, and stands out as a great Doctor Who story.

Or at least, it would stand out. Because if there’s one thing that really great stories like The Masque of Mandragora, The Hand of Fear and The Face of Evil have going against them, it’s that they’re in Season 14. A season that gave us not one, not two but three of Doctor Who‘s greatest ever stories.

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Three of the best

The first stand-out story is The Deadly Assassin. At the time, this story provided a rare glimpse at the Doctor’s homeworld. It was also completely slated by a great deal of the fandom for that very reason. Writer Robert Holmes was keen to present us with a picture of the Doctor’s civilization in gradual decline, and fans were not too happy with that picture.

Of course, the perception of the serial changed completely over time. Not only did it become a source of major mythology for the series (it even established that Time Lords only had thirteen lives, a rule that had been unheard of up to that point). It also became recognized as one of the show’s very best stories.

Another classic from the very same season is The Robots of Death. Chris Boucher’s second story is even better than his first. While its plot of servant robots slowly turning bad and killing humans one by one is extremely basic, the well-written characters, strong performances, and excellent execution help to make this a highly memorable and thrilling story to watch.

Standout story

But if there’s one story that outdoes both The Deadly Assassin and The Robots of Death, it’s The Talons of Weng-Chiang. Along with giving us Jago & Litefoot – two of the best one-off characters in the show’s long history – it features a strong sense of atmosphere and makes excellent use of its period setting. On top of that, Robert Holmes fills the story with excellent dialogue and character moments. It really does stand out as one of the show’s very best.

And that’s true of Season 14 overall. While it’s sad that it marked the end of Hinchcliffe’s and Holmes’s run on the show, it at least ensured that it ended on a high. A season full of classic stories, and easily one of the greatest seasons in Doctor Who history.

What are your thoughts on Season 14? Do you agree that it’s one of Doctor Who‘s very best? What’s your favorite serial from the season? Let us know in the comments below.