The Caves of Androzani (TV story)

Synopsis

The Doctor and Peri are caught in the midst of a power struggle between gun runners, a fiendish masked madman called Sharaz Jek, government troops and crooked politicians over the precious mineral Spectrox.

Plot

Part One

The Doctor and Peri before they get shot

The TARDIS lands on Androzani Minor, and the Doctor and Peri decide to explore a set of tracks that lead into a nearby cave. As they explore, they are briefly caught in a ball of an unknown sticky substance, but they easily break free. Further into the caves, they discover a hoard of weapons, but are then captured by General Chellak's forces, believing the two to be working for gunrunners Stotz and Krepler. Morgus orders their assassination after seeing that Chellak's "gunrunners" are not his own men over holographic communication. The dangerous, desert planet Androzani Minor is the only source for a powerful drug called spectrox created by bats that inhabits the planet's caves. Spectrox is highly-valued by the population of nearby Androzani Major due to its capacity to extend one's life. The spectrox mining interests are controlled by Trau Morgus, a business conglomerate leader on Androzani Major, but the operation has been threatened by the masked Sharaz Jek and his army of androids, causing public tension on Androzani Major due to limited supplies. Morgus has publicly funded a military operation by the Androzani Major's government against Jek's androids, but at the same time has secretly backed a gunrunning group to deliver weapons to Jek to profit from the war. When the two are brought to the execution squad, they are dressed in a red cloth. The soldiers step foward and take aim. General Chellak gives the order to fire, and the soldiers pump bullets into them...

Part Two

General Chellak asks the soldiers to check their weapons and Morgus switches the screen off. When the soldiers go over to look at the bodies, they discover they are androids. The Doctor and Peri are rescued by Sharaz Jek who had been watching the two enter the caves and was able to prepare duplicate androids with help of his personal android Salateen. They complain about rashes and cramps in their bodies where they touched the sticky substances.

Jek realises the two have been subjected to the first stages of spectrox toxemia from exposure to unrefined spectrox, and that while there is an anti-toxin, it requires the milk of the queen bat. Unfortunately, due to the mining activity, all the bats have migrated to deeper levels of the caves where there is no oxygen.

The Doctor enters the caves and takes cover as Stotz and his band of gun runners are attacked by a ferocious magma beast. The beast suddenly smells the Doctor nearby and approaches the rock behind which he is crouching...

Part Three

The gun runners distract the beast, so it turns on them again. Before leaving to meet with the gunrunners while leaving the two under his androids' guard, Jek explains that he is seeking revenge against Morgus as it was his actions that left his face disfigured.

After Jek leaves, the Doctor is able to reprogram the androids and allow him and Peri to escape, but they quickly encounter Chellak's forces; Peri is recaptured while the Doctor is caught by Stotz. Stotz decides to take the Doctor back to Androzani Major to see Morgus directly.

As Stotz discusses the situation with Morgus via holographic communication en route, Morgus sees the Doctor still alive, and fearing deception, kills the President of Androzani Major and makes his own plans to travel to Androzani Minor to put the situation right himself.

The Doctor is able to gain control of the ship from Stotz. Stotz and his men try to regain access to the bridge by cutting through the door. The Doctor refuses to give up until he rescues Peri. Stotz gets ready to aim as the Doctor tells him: 'I'm not going to let you stop me now!' The planet looms large on the ship's view screen and the Doctor closes his eyes as the ship prepares for a crash landing...

Part Four

The Doctor regenerates

The Doctor lands the ship back on the surface of Androzani Minor. Weary from the spectrox poisoning, he makes his way into the caves to save Peri. Meanwhile, Chellak plans an assault on Jek's base, luring him to believe an attack lies elsewhere. The battle kills nearly all of the military forces including Chellak, the gunrunners, and Jek's androids; Jek is able to rescue the unconscious Peri from the military base and return her to his base amid the chaos. The Doctor arrives, struggling to hold off his body's attempt to regenerate to rid itself of the spectrox. Jek provides him with a limited air supply and equipment and directions to find and milk the queen bat. As the Doctor departs to get the milk, Morgus arrives on the planet, finding that his shrewd secretary has deposed him from power.

Morgus quickly deals with Stotz to kill all the remaining gunrunners, including Krepler, and then plot to secure Jek's private stash of spectrox so they may disappear quietly to another planet. The two make their way to Jek's base, lured by fans that Jek is using to try to keep the base temperature cool for Peri. A brief fight breaks out, and Jek, Morgus, and Stotz are killed. The Doctor arrives just after the battle, and after feeding her all of the bat's milk, takes the recovering Peri back to the surface and to the TARDIS as the planet erupts around them.

Inside the TARDIS, Peri recovers to find the Doctor lying in pain on the floor. The Doctor quickly explains he only got enough bat's milk to cure Peri, but his body will shortly regenerate, though it feels different from his previous regenerations. The Doctor begins to hallucinate images of his past companions urging him to continue to fight for his life, followed by the Master laughing at his state. The regeneration completes, with the Doctor suddenly alert and active though with a new face. When Peri asks what has happened, the Doctor replies, "Change, my dear, and it seems not a moment too soon."

Cast

Crew

References

Peri asks why the Doctor wears a stick of celery; it is a safety precaution. He is allergic to certain gases in the praxis range of the spectrum. "If the gas is present, the celery turns purple."
Spectrox toxaemia causes rash, cramp, spasms, slow paralysis of the thoracic spinal nerve and finally thermal death.
Morgus is (or was, before being deposed by Timmin) "the richest man in the Five Planets", chairman of the Sirius Conglomerate and a descendant of the first colonists.
During the regeneration sequence; Adric, Tegan Jovanka, Nyssa, Turlough, Kamelion and The Master are seen and heard. This is similar to the regeneration of the Fourth Doctor, who also saw images (in that case, flashbacks) of the previous companions and several enemies of that incarnation.

Story Notes

Despite the title, the Doctor notes that the caves are in fact blowholes.
The maps of the caves shown on screen bear an uncanny resemblance to the video game Dig Dug.
This story had the working title of; Chain Reaction.
This is Peter Davison's final TV story, however he reprised the role on screen in Dimensions in Time and Time Crash.
The regeneration sequence features specially recorded cameos by Matthew Waterhouse, Janet Fielding, Sarah Sutton, Mark Strickson, Gerald Flood and Anthony Ainley.
The closing credits to Part Four feature the face of new Doctor Colin Baker, and list him before Peter Davison.
Christopher Gable was not the first choice to play Sharaz Jek; among the actors offered the role were Tim Curry and David Bowie.
Colin Baker previously appeared (as Commander Maxil) in Arc of Infinity.
The Doctor has been "this way before" and says that Androzani Minor "hasn't changed".
If the pre-companion appearance of Nyssa in The Keeper of Traken is discounted, this story marks the first occasion since 1977's Horror of Fang Rock that the Doctor has spent a complete adventure with only a single companion.
In DWM , The Caves of Androzani was voted the readers favourite episode.
The only characters who do not die during this story are Peri and Timmin, both female. Every male character dies apart from the Sixth Doctor (the Fifth Doctor, however, does).

Influences

Frank Herbert's Dune (people being killed over a drug that extends life; the unstable "tripod of power" between the rulers of Androzani; the "mud blows" and Androzani Minor's generally arid climate)
The Phantom of the Opera (mentally unbalanced but brilliant recluse wears a mask to conceal facial disfigurement; develops obsessive fascination with an attractive young woman and eventually abducts her)

Ratings

Part 1 - 6.9 million viewers
Part 2 - 6.6 million viewers
Part 3 - 7.8 million viewers
Part 4 - 7.8 million viewers

Myths

to be added

Filming Locations

Masters Pit, Hansons Aggregates, Stokeford Heath, Dorset
BBC Television Centre (TC6), Shepherd's Bush, London

Production errors

If you'd like to talk about narrative problems with this story — like plot holes and things that seem to contradict other stories — please go to this episode's discontinuity discussion.

Nicola Bryant, or her stunt double, bounces after slipping down the cliff-face in episode one, obviously hitting a safety cushion of some kind.

Continuity

This leads straight into DW: The Twin Dilemma.
The Doctors last word is: "Adric?"
Part of BFA: Circular Time takes place during/in the lead up to the Doctor's regeneration.
Following this story, the Sixth Doctor goes through a brief period where he subconsciously blames Peri for his previous self's death, and tries to distance himself from her while telling himself he's working towards a greater good, until he finally realizes this in MA: Burning Heart.
In NA: Timewyrm: Revelation it is revealed that after the Fifth Doctor dies he becomes the Doctor's conscience, but is buried by the Seventh Doctor following his regeneration.

Timeline

This story occurs after PDA: Warmonger
This story occurs before DW: The Twin Dilemma
BFA: Circular Time occurs during episode 4 of this story

DVD, Video, and Other Releases

DVD Releases

File:6r-dvd2.jpg

Released as Doctor Who: The Caves of Androzani, this release was the third of 2001.

Released:

Region 2 18th June 2001

PAL - BBC DVD BBCDVD1042

Region 4 7th January 2002
Region 1 2nd April 2002

NTSC - Warner Video E1606

Contents:

Behind the Scenes: The Regeneration - Footage of final studio session, with commentary.
Behind the Scenes: Creating Sharaz Jek - Interview with Christopher Gable.
BBC News - Report of Peter Davison's departure (28th July 1983).
South East at Six News - Peter Davison and John Nathan-Turner talk about the future of the series.
Extended Scene
Music-only Option
Trailer
Photo Gallery
Production Subtitles
Commentary: Peter Davison, Nicola Bryant and Graeme Harper

Rear Credits:

Starring Peter Davison
By Robert Holmes
Produced by John Nathan-Turner
Directed by Graeme Harper
Incidental Music by Roger Limb

Notes:

Editing for DVD release completed by Doctor Who Restoration Team.

2|entertain has announced that a new edition of the DVD, with additional special features and restoration, will be included in a box set entitled Revisitations scheduled for release in 2010.^[1] Confirmed extras include a chat show appearance from Peter Davison and Colin Baker from 1984, along with Directing Who feature on Graeme Harper and it will be a 2 disc set ^[2]

Video Releases