That is the interesting paradox of the premise. The Doctor has the Tardis, which gives him a godlike power he is unable to use. I mean, the reason he is set to be executed in this and every other episode 1 cliffhanger in every serial is that he can't explain how he arrived, so the only possible conclusion to the other…

I suspect Oliver's ghost is real: as other posters have mentioned, other characters see him and it is implied that he is able to affect changes in the material world, albeit offscreen (e.g. releasing the lizard). Nevertheless, there is no harm in seeing it as ambiguous. I am thinking of the scene when Geoffrey tells…

He's quite chivalrous to punch Geoffrey.

I was looking to see if someone else mentioned Stairways before I posted about it. I liked the Slim Whitman version, and I'd buy that album if I could.

That's what I came in to ask. Uzbeks? What fits inside Russia? For Pete's sake…

most annoying is your whiney post about it

I agree with Jay S. I refuse to hear any comments that are overly scornful, condescending, or disparaging of the Monkees. I will simply continue to nurture my mild loyalty and affection to them free of acrimony.

Porpentine: do you scream at yourself "you should know better!"?

I had to name my dog Diefenbaker. And my buddy still says "thank you, kindly."

the meaning of which will be immediately apparent to anyone with even passing familiarity with the work of Roland Barthes.

Is he really 80? I thought he was 79 (born 1934).

I notice a lot of recent releases (e.g. Ambassadors, Shada) popping up here pretty quickly. Makes sense, since for some (many?) fans this is the first time seeing them in ages.

It's been a while since I have seen this one, tremolo_. Is Sagan the one who keeps killing rather than "reviving" various Tharils (burning them to death) then gets the tables turned on him and, just before the Tharil touches the live wire to his chest, utters a pitiful and desperate "hang on a second…"?

I agree Traken is best viewed as a Sci-Fi fairy-tale. I also love it. (Wish I could think of which joke you are referring to, Prole Hole.) I thought of Traken recently while watching The Snowmen. In the flashback, when the snowman first speaks, it reminds me of Melkur's first chilling word, repeating a bit of Kassia's…

That "wonderful? I suppose I am. Never really thought about it…" exchange  plays both ways. It is a delightful moment in a good serial amid a particularly strong string of them. I think season 18 is among the best in DWs run, and like season 7, another of the best, there's really nothing else like it before or after.

Gotta root against the Ravens. The "Ray Lewis' last game" storyline was sickening and annoying before it began, not the least because it rests on forgetting a few inconveniently murdered human beings.

Great post, pipe. I like a lot of what you've said, but especially want to endorse your comment about the "Right, cut it open!" cliffhanger. That has long been on my list of favorites (also includes Warrior's Gate, part 3; Horror of Fang Rock, part 3; City of Death, part 2).

I thought the teaser for episode 1 was excellent: "something took off from Mars."

Wasn't Caroline John leaving the show regardless, due to a pregnancy? So the problem was not so much writing her out as the execution of her successor. Jo Grant might have been Emma Peel—she was supposed to be a spy—but instead they (I imagine it is more Terrance Dicks than Barry Letts) made her a bumbling ditz,…

When the snowman spoke back, did anyone else have flashbacks to Melkur in "Keeper of Traken"?