Mawdryn Undead

There’s a lot going on in Mawdryn Undead, almost too much if I’m being honest. Despite that, it still manages to be among the very best Fifth Doctor stories up to this point. It introduces us to Turlough, who will become one of the Doctor’s companions by the end of the story, even though he’s been tasked with killing the Doctor. It reintroduces us to the Black Guardian, the big bad from the Key to Time saga, who’s behind Turlough’s murderous mission. It also brings back Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, retired from UNIT, now working as a teacher at Turlough’s school. And yet all of that is just window dressing for the main storyline about Mawdryn, a scientist who’s been horribly mutated by stolen technology from Gallifrey. The rest of the plot is filled with time travel paradoxes and complicated moral conundrums. The whole story is bursting at the seams with great ideas. Plus, you get to see Turlough try to cave in the Doctor’s skull with a big rock.

Rating: What would you say if I told you I was looking for my TARDIS?%