Doctor Who: Silver Nemesis (BBC DVD)
Picture: B- Sound:
B- Extras: B+ Episodes: B
We’ve pointed out in past reviews of Doctor Who discs that Sylvester McCoy’s 7th Doctor must forever
live the unfortunate truth that show died its first real death on his
watch. McCoy played the Doctor from 1987
- 1989 during a period where its ratings fell and BBC’s creative energies
seemed to wane along with them.
Occurring somewhere in the middle of McCoy’s run, “Silver Nemesis” (story no. 154) features an ambitious plot with a
lot of moving parts. The Doctor must
contend with no less than three significant adversaries in the Cybermen, Lady
Peinforte (ably played by Fiona Walker), and a group of crazed Neo-Nazis looking
to start a “Fourth Reich”.
This three-part story includes plenty of action, with scenes
shot on location around England,
along with the typical BBC sound-stage production often seen in older episodes
of the show. Sophie Aldred delvers her
usual solid performance in the roles of the Doctor’s lone companion, Ace. McCoy himself always seems a bit conflicted
in his portrayal of the titular character.
His Doctor is at once imperious and bumbling, seemingly never quite
certain of where he stands until he springs the final surprise upon his unwitting
adversaries.
This disc includes the usual bevy of nice extras:
commentaries, technical featurettes, deleted and extended scenes, and more.
Shot on video, the picture and sound remain adequate, if a bit soft, but they
do fit the time period in which they were made (1988). Although “Silver Nemesis” represents a bit of
a down period for the show, fans of Doctor Who will still find plenty to
enjoy with this story arc. Any Who
collector will want this appearance of the Cybermen for the archives, and the sum
of disc’s parts still delivers a lot of entertainment for the price.
- Scott Pyle
