Written by Dennis Spooner | Directed by Christopher Barry | Produced by Verity Lambert | Original air date 01/16/65
Dennis Spooner figures out how he best writes for Doctor Who here. His last historical, the season one finale "The Reign of Terror," didn't quite work - first of all, it was stretched out to six episodes and didn't have nearly enough plot to show for it, and it also failed to be at least funny in any way. This - the serial fans call "The Romans" - is funny. It's obvious from the start - the cliffhanger of the TARDIS falling segues into seeing Ian, presumably passed out, making the viewer wonder if he's hurt. Turns out he was just napping - everything is fine, and the Doctor is watering some plants nearby. The episode does this sort of thing several times - most notably when the Vicki points out the Doctor can't remember the name of the man he's been mistaken for, when the soldier, just offscreen, says - just at that moment, implausibly - "Are you ready, Maximus Pettulian?"
Even the scene where Ian and Barbara get captured by the titular slave traders is comedic - it looks as though they're going to be able to overpower their captors, but then Barbara, aiming for one of the slave traders but missing, knocks Ian out by breaking a flower vase over his head.
All of the above after the Doctor, talking to Ian at the beginning of the episode, has an exchange that reminds me, of all things, of how the Eleventh Doctor spoke. Ian asks him where Barbara and Vicki are, and the Doctor starts talking about Roman aqueducts and pipes, then without prompt and seemingly without context, says they've gone to the market. Ian has no idea what he's talking about and the Doctor explains he's just given him a perfectly straightforward answer as to where Barbara and Vicki are. Besides being funny - again, this is a comedic episode - that is exactly the tone of much of the Eleventh Doctor's era.
The other thing that leaps out at me, and did the first time I watched it, is how comfortable Ian and Barbara are with each other. Barbara does his hair up to look more Roman, they flirt a bit and drink wine together, even falling asleep near each other. I don't remember if it was in Sandifer's blog or in About Time, but one of those two put forth that Ian and Barbara look "post-coital," and I don't think anyone could disagree. If they weren't an item before this episode, they are now, to hell with whatever William Russell's thoughts on romance between the two (Jacqueline Hill, in one of the few interviews she did about Doctor Who, did say she thought Ian and Barbara were together. I agree with her. And given this episode, I don't see how anyone couldn't).
I'm settling into a pattern in this season - I knew before watching it in order that it had the biggest stretch of my favorite First Doctor stories, but I'm impressed at how enjoyable the entire season has been so far. This is excellent stuff. Hartnell has settled into his somewhat absent-minded, goofy old man mode, which is the First Doctor at his best. He's charming and funny, and not an angry old coward like he was sometimes in the first season. Fans often debate the exact moment when Hartnell becomes "The Doctor" as we've come to know the character - some argue it's during Marco Polo (I don't), some during The Sensorites when he decides to stay and help rather than leave the first chance he gets... For my money, it's the beginning of season two. Watching the show in order has made his characterization stand out - he's much, much different, here, and was so during Planet of Giants. It's not an exact moment, but he feels much more like the character we get for the next fifty years in this season.
"Doctor Who" puns so far: 2 | Tomorrow: "All Roads Lead to Rome"
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