Patrick Troughton’s final Doctor Who episode was just how not to do a multi-Doctor story

Doctor Who is known for its celebratory multi-Doctor stories, but “The Two Doctors” from 1985 shows exactly how not to do this kind of adventure. Most Doctor Who Multi-Doctor stories come in anniversary years, a pattern set by 1973’s The Three Doctors and followed by the 2005 relaunch. Russell T. Davies went even further with Doctor Who‘s 60th anniversary, literally bringing back David Tennant as the main Doctor.

1985’s The Two Doctors, which appeared during Colin Baker’s tenure as the Sixth Doctor, is something of an anomaly. Producer John Nathan-Turner was keen to do another multi-Doctor story after the success of “The Five Doctors,” but writer Robert Holmes produced one of the strangest scripts he ever wrote for the classic series. A location shoot in Seville, Spain, turned into such a disaster Doctor Who Would not film overseas again for decades. but in the end, The problems with “The Two Doctors” are much deeper – and they show how Not To do a multi-doctor story.

The Two Doctors Are Not Strong Enough To Be A Multi-Doctor Story (or Patrick Troughton’s Last Episode)

The Two Doctors is an attack on nostalgia

in the heart, A multi-Doctor story is an attempt to appeal to nostalgia – To remind viewers of past Doctors, to celebrate the show’s history and heritage. “The Two Doctors,” however, confronts nostalgia in a rather dramatic way. It renders the Doctor as ruthless and harsh – and not just Colin Baker’s controversial Sixth Doctor, but also Patrick Troughton’s Second, which feels almost unlikely. The plot is a not-so-subtle rebuttal of the idea of ​​monsters, with experiments depicted on an alien race known as androgams that the Doctor objects to in a way that seems quite racist.

“You give a monkey control of its environment, it will fill the world with bananas,“He barely.”Dastari, I have no doubt that you could grow an earwig to the point where it understood nuclear physics, but it would still be a very stupid thing to do!“These are monsters, and they should stay in their place – a shocking argument of Doctor WhoOnly that feels almost like a critique of the show’s history and heritage rather than a celebration of it. In “The Two Doctors” there is something quite uncomfortable on a thematic level, and it is not entirely clear whether this was entirely on purpose.

but worse, None of this is explicitly questioned in the scriptures. The doctor turns into a monster at one point, but neither the second nor the sixth seem to learn anything from the experience. Modern viewers may criticize “Twice Upon a Time” for being clichéd Doctor Who Scenes that portrayed the First Doctor as sexist, but “The Two Doctors” was far worse, and didn’t even hint that the Doctor had outgrown past prejudices. Tragically, this turned out to be Patrick Troughton’s final appearance on the show, with the actor sadly passing away in 1987.

The worst part is the Second and Sixth Doctors barely interact

Even stranger, however, is the fact that the Second and Sixth Doctors barely interact. The best multi-Doctor stories explore the relationships between different characters, positioning Doctors against one another, or otherwise showing how one Doctor would treat another’s companion; Think “The Five Doctors” or “The Day of the Doctor.” “The Two Doctors,” in contrast, barely shows any interaction at all. It’s completely underwhelming – and it’s hard to avoid feeling that was the whole point.

Unfortunately, the script has been rewritten several times, in large part because the location filming has moved from one part of the world to another; It was originally set in the United States, with Holmes’ script full of jokes about the difference between American and British English. The crossing to Spain had to be rewritten, and it feels like the joy has been sucked out of the story along with the one-liners. It is interesting to imagine what “The Two Doctors” would look like if it had been shot in the United States, playing to the original concept.

The two Doctors show the danger of relying on the multi-Doctor story format

In general, therefore, “The Two Doctors” demonstrates the great danger of the multi-doctor format; This is a story with only Patrick Troughton’s return to attract viewers, and little to nothing else. The plot is threadbare, the ideas are ill-formed, and even familiar characters feel unlikable. All these years later, “The Two Doctors” is mostly remembered for its violence, Australia Doctor Who Fan club president Tony Howe famously criticized one scene for its “Sick, shocking violence… [for] Only cheap shock value.“

Robert Holmes was one of Doctor Whos greatest writer, but unfortunately this was not his finest hour. It’s just such a shame that this disappointment is Patrick Troughton’s last story, which makes it such an important part of the franchise’s history. It is to be hoped that Nathan-Turner and Holmes’s successors have all learned from this misstep.