The Rescue (TV story)

From Tardis Wiki, the free Doctor Who reference
For the short story featuring the Rani, see Rescue.


The Rescue was the third story of Season 2 of Doctor Who. Maureen O'Brien joined the cast as companion Vicki in this story.

Summary

Two crash survivors on planet Dido live in fear of the dreaded Koquillion, but the Doctor soon discovers things are not as they seem...

Plot

The crew of the TARDIS are still missing Susan Foreman when they land on an unnamed planet, which the Doctor later recognises as Dido, a world he has visited before. The trio soon encounter two survivors of a space crash, Vicki and Bennett, who are awaiting a rescue ship in three days time. Vicki is also in fear of Koquillion, a bipedal inhabitant of Dido who is stalking the area and encounters the time travellers, attacking Barbara. Vicki finds her injured and rescues her from Koquillion, and they share reminiscences. Vicki’s father was amongst those who died when the most of the survivors of the crash were lured to their deaths by the natives of Dido. She is evidently very lonely, having befriended "Sandy", an indigenous Sand Beast for company. However, while Ian and the Doctor reach the ship tempers become fraught when Barbara mistakes the Sand Beast for a threat and kills it.

The Doctor begins to suspect things are not as they seem – especially when he finds things in Bennett’s room. He follows Bennett through a trap door in the floor of his cabin and reaches a temple carved from rock where he unmasks Koquillion as Bennett. He reveals he killed a crew member on board the ship and was arrested, but the ship crashed before the crime could be radioed back to Earth. By killing the other crew in an explosion – and with Vicki asleep and unaware of the situation – he covered his original crime. The Koquillion alias has been used to keep Vicki in check until the rescue ship was due. At this point two silent Didonians arrive and force Bennett to his death over a ledge. With nothing left for her on Dido, Vicki is welcomed aboard the TARDIS.

Cast & Characters

Crew

References

  • The Doctor tells Ian and Barbara about a previous visit to the planet Dido.
  • Vicki left Earth for the planet Astra in 2493.
  • Vicki's mother had recently died and her father was about to start a new job on Astra.

Story Notes

  • This is the first episode featuring Vicki.
  • All episodes exist in 16mm telerecordings.
  • Negative film prints of both episodes exist and were recovered by the BBC in 1978.
  • Telesnaps of this story are held by private collectors.
  • The story was originally known as Doctor Who and Tanni. It was originally intended that the new companion would be named Tanni.
  • Koquillion was originally credited as Sydney Wilson (a combination of Sydney Newman and Donald Wilson) to hide his true identity.
  • Desperate Measures was the first episode of Doctor Who to make the UK's top 10 most watched programs list.
  • The 1973 Radio Times 10th anniversary special called the story The Powerful Enemy as it titled all the early stories by the title of the first episode. Some subsequent listings repeated this error, as did the story's broadcast on some American PBS stations.
  • During the scene in which Jacqueline Hill fired a gun at Vicki's pet she was injured suffering shock and a sore face. This was caused when the explosion connected to the wooden gun went off with more force than expected.
  • "The Rescue" is also the original broadcast title of episode 7 of The Daleks.
  • Tom Sheridan, who played the Space Captain heard but not seen in this story, was also inside the Sand Monster costume.
  • "The Powerful Enemy" boasts the first occasion on which a sound effect is laid over footage of the TARDIS re-materializing. Prior to this, exterior shots of the TARDIS landing had implied that the ship appeared soundlessly in a new environment. Although the precise sound of "re-materialization" — with its distinctive, final "thud" — would not be finalized until The Three Doctors, this was the start of a sometimes important convention about the TARDIS. People on the outside can hear it coming and going. Without this innovation, the teaser from The Christmas Invasion, for example — in which Jackie and MIckey respond solely to the sound of the TARDIS — wouldn't have been possible.

Ratings

  • The Powerful Enemy - 12.0 million viewers
  • Desperate Measures - 13.0 million viewers

Myths

  • The inhabitants of Dido are known as Didonians. (There is no evidence provided in the episode to support this.)

Filming Locations

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors

  • There is no back in the TARDIS prop used and consequently the cave wall is visible behind.
  • In episode 2 a stage hand can be seen behind Vicki's pet.
  • When Barbara fires at Vicki's pet, the firework can be seen to fall off the gun.
  • The Doctor explains how peaceful the natives of the planet Dido are. This would seem to be inconsistent with the traps which they have built into their caves.

Continuity

DVD, Video and Other Releases

  • Video Release: Released as Doctor Who: The Rescue/The Romans
The next episode caption has been removed from episode 2
Released as a double tape with The Romans
UK Release: September 1994 / US Release: March 1996
PAL - BBC Video BBCV5378 (2 tapes)
NTSC - Warner Video E1313 (2 tapes)
NTSC - CBS/FOX Video 8338 (2 tapes)

The BBFC has confirmed the Rescue for a 2009 release with the Romans

Novelisation

Rescue novel.jpg
Main article: The Rescue (novelisation)

External Links

Template:Season 2 Template:Wikipedia

Retrieved from "https://tardis.wiki/w/index.php?title=The_Rescue_(TV_story)&oldid=150141"