Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow it
are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the last
story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is an
allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess... before
K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than Stockfish) the
TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been turned into a giant
bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis) run by "The Company".
Under their regime Pluto has become an over-priced,
over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist planet of misery. Of
course, where Capitalism thrives the rich get richer while the
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
brother!) Which means we get to meet a group of downtrodden
workers that have become rebels against the system and live
underground like sewer rats. Although in practice they are more
akin to Citizen Smith than Che Guevara.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien in a
wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate choice by
the production team.) who resides in his ivory tower like the
landlord who believes charging rent for oxygen is good business.
The Collector is Pluto's CEO and he treats the entire planet
like an Excel spreadsheet come to life. As far as he is
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade, the
unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Despite the political overtones "The Sun Makers" is still very
much a Fourth Doctor romp...The Doctor is sarcastic, irreverent,
and openly on the side of the rebels (as you would expect)...
mocking the idea that the rich should be protected while the
poor are punished. The tone is light enough though, so it never
feels like an in-your-face lecture like the political messaging
we get in today's version of the show. But the underlying
message about class, exploitation, and resistance is crystal
clear. Well, maybe not crystal clear to me in 1977, a lot of it
probably went over my head back then, but I can see now what
Robert Holmes was trying to do.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being killed
off during this story. Fortunately the production team decided
against it... a companion death in this story would have ruined
the narrative.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately the
script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story that
gets to shine without too many special effects and explosions.
For entertainment value I'll have to give this an 8/10 rating,
as I did enjoy my two sessions rewatching this story today. I
could nit-pick a few things here and there but overall it's
pretty much Doctor Who as Doctor Who was meant to be,
entertaining and fun.
Signed: Citizen Blueshirt
PS: Stuff The Company!
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow it
are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the last
story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is an
allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess... before
K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than Stockfish) the
TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been turned into a giant
bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis) run by "The Company".
Under their regime Pluto has become an over-priced,
over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist planet of misery. Of
course, where Capitalism thrives the rich get richer while the
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
brother!) Which means we get to meet a group of downtrodden
workers that have become rebels against the system and live
underground like sewer rats. Although in practice they are more
akin to Citizen Smith than Che Guevara.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien in a
wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate choice by
the production team.) who resides in his ivory tower like the
landlord who believes charging rent for oxygen is good business.
The Collector is Pluto's CEO and he treats the entire planet
like an Excel spreadsheet come to life. As far as he is
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade, the
unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Despite the political overtones "The Sun Makers" is still very
much a Fourth Doctor romp...The Doctor is sarcastic, irreverent,
and openly on the side of the rebels (as you would expect)...
mocking the idea that the rich should be protected while the
poor are punished. The tone is light enough though, so it never
feels like an in-your-face lecture like the political messaging
we get in today's version of the show. But the underlying
message about class, exploitation, and resistance is crystal
clear. Well, maybe not crystal clear to me in 1977, a lot of it
probably went over my head back then, but I can see now what
Robert Holmes was trying to do.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being killed
off during this story. Fortunately the production team decided
against it... a companion death in this story would have ruined
the narrative.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately the
script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story that
gets to shine without too many special effects and explosions.
For entertainment value I'll have to give this an 8/10 rating,--
as I did enjoy my two sessions rewatching this story today. I
could nit-pick a few things here and there but overall it's
pretty much Doctor Who as Doctor Who was meant to be,
entertaining and fun.
Signed: Citizen Blueshirt
PS: Stuff The Company!
On 22/05/2026 15:58, Blueshirt wrote:
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow it
are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of >Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it. Shada might have been counted if
it had been completed. But Douglas Adams might be overrated even if it had.
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the last
story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is an
allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
It's an allegory of state controlled industry and partizan corporate >monopolies in the 1970s as well as the personal greed of the people >appointed or chosen to run them.
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess... before
K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than Stockfish) the
TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been turned into a giant
bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis) run by "The Company".
Under their regime Pluto has become an over-priced,
over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist planet of misery. Of
course, where Capitalism thrives the rich get richer while the
Capitalism it must be made clear does not believe in high taxation or >taxation at all. Massive taxation is a socialist ideology. This story >describes corporatism which is a from of Marxism invented by Mussolini
and adopted by the National Socialist Adolf Hitler. Look at all the
workers calling themselves comrades.
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
Or suicide.
brother!) Which means we get to meet a group of downtrodden
workers that have become rebels against the system and live
underground like sewer rats. Although in practice they are more
akin to Citizen Smith than Che Guevara.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien in a
wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate choice by
the production team.) who resides in his ivory tower like the
landlord who believes charging rent for oxygen is good business.
The Collector is Pluto's CEO and he treats the entire planet
like an Excel spreadsheet come to life. As far as he is
Remember Dennis Healy who the Collector resembled was a socialist
chancellor who kept on raising taxes on everyone. Didn't he set the
upper tax band rate to something like 98% which caused the rich to leave
the country and stopped investment. You see this allegorised by the
Doctor having the company's profits taxed into oblivion the more
productive it became so it went bankrupt.
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade, the
unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Again social commentary on the corporatist Labour government of the time.
Despite the political overtones "The Sun Makers" is still very
much a Fourth Doctor romp...The Doctor is sarcastic, irreverent,
and openly on the side of the rebels (as you would expect)...
mocking the idea that the rich should be protected while the
poor are punished. The tone is light enough though, so it never
feels like an in-your-face lecture like the political messaging
we get in today's version of the show. But the underlying
message about class, exploitation, and resistance is crystal
clear. Well, maybe not crystal clear to me in 1977, a lot of it
probably went over my head back then, but I can see now what
Robert Holmes was trying to do.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being killed
off during this story. Fortunately the production team decided
against it... a companion death in this story would have ruined
the narrative.
Fortunately they never managed to kill her off in the original final
story either.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately the
script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story that
gets to shine without too many special effects and explosions.
Less is more.
For entertainment value I'll have to give this an 8/10 rating,
as I did enjoy my two sessions rewatching this story today. I
could nit-pick a few things here and there but overall it's
pretty much Doctor Who as Doctor Who was meant to be,
entertaining and fun.
Signed: Citizen Blueshirt
PS: Stuff The Company!
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 22/05/2026 15:58, Blueshirt wrote:
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow
it are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet,
The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it. Shada
might have been counted if it had been completed. But Douglas
Adams might be overrated even if it had.
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the
last story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is
an allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
It's an allegory of state controlled industry and partizan
corporate monopolies in the 1970s as well as the personal
greed of the people appointed or chosen to run them.
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess...
before K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than
Stockfish) the TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been
turned into a giant bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis)
run by "The Company". Under their regime Pluto has become
an over-priced, over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist
planet of misery. Of course, where Capitalism thrives the
rich get richer while the
Capitalism it must be made clear does not believe in high
taxation or taxation at all. Massive taxation is a socialist
ideology. This story describes corporatism which is a from of
Marxism invented by Mussolini and adopted by the National
Socialist Adolf Hitler. Look at all the workers calling
themselves comrades.
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
Or suicide.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien
in a wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate
choice by the production team.) who resides in his ivory
tower like the landlord who believes charging rent for
oxygen is good business. The Collector is Pluto's CEO and
he treats the entire planet like an Excel spreadsheet come
to life. As far as he is
Remember Dennis Healy who the Collector resembled was a
socialist chancellor who kept on raising taxes on everyone.
Didn't he set the upper tax band rate to something like 98%
which caused the rich to leave the country and stopped
investment. You see this allegorised by the Doctor having the
company's profits taxed into oblivion the more productive it
became so it went bankrupt.
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade,
the unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Again social commentary on the corporatist Labour government
of the time.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being
killed off during this story. Fortunately the production
team decided against it... a companion death in this story
would have ruined the narrative.
Fortunately they never managed to kill her off in the original
final story either.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately
the script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story
that gets to shine without too many special effects and
explosions.
Less is more.
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
The True Doctor wrote:
On 22/05/2026 15:58, Blueshirt wrote:
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow
it are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet,
The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it. Shada
might have been counted if it had been completed. But Douglas
Adams might be overrated even if it had.
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary Tamm.
One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly a story I
really liked from S16!
"City of Death" from S17 is also a sure fire 10/10
"Shada" might have reached that level but I don't include half
made stories.
Next week's "Underworld" clearly won't be at that level though.
I recall it being quite poor, but I haven't watched it in years.
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the
last story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is
an allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
It's an allegory of state controlled industry and partizan
corporate monopolies in the 1970s as well as the personal
greed of the people appointed or chosen to run them.
Right on Brother!
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess...
before K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than
Stockfish) the TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been
turned into a giant bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis)
run by "The Company". Under their regime Pluto has become
an over-priced, over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist
planet of misery. Of course, where Capitalism thrives the
rich get richer while the
Capitalism it must be made clear does not believe in high
taxation or taxation at all. Massive taxation is a socialist
ideology. This story describes corporatism which is a from of
Marxism invented by Mussolini and adopted by the National
Socialist Adolf Hitler. Look at all the workers calling
themselves comrades.
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
Or suicide.
I'd choose rebellion first... I'd break a few windows or blow a
few buildings up before throwing myself off of a high roof.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien
in a wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate
choice by the production team.) who resides in his ivory
tower like the landlord who believes charging rent for
oxygen is good business. The Collector is Pluto's CEO and
he treats the entire planet like an Excel spreadsheet come
to life. As far as he is
Remember Dennis Healy who the Collector resembled was a
socialist chancellor who kept on raising taxes on everyone.
Didn't he set the upper tax band rate to something like 98%
which caused the rich to leave the country and stopped
investment. You see this allegorised by the Doctor having the
company's profits taxed into oblivion the more productive it
became so it went bankrupt.
The ruling elite always tax the poor, no matter what colour
rosette they wear at elections.
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade,
the unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Again social commentary on the corporatist Labour government
of the time.
Labour are just red Tories... they pretend to be for the working
class but in practice there isn't a lot of difference in how
they govern the UK. They are two sides of the same coin. The
bourgeoisie always look after themselves first and foremost
while the plebs get taxed on everything possible.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being
killed off during this story. Fortunately the production
team decided against it... a companion death in this story
would have ruined the narrative.
Fortunately they never managed to kill her off in the original
final story either.
Although the ending Leela did get was unexpected, and probably
out of character. In-universe Leela was more likely to get
together with one of Gallifrey's 'outsiders' as opposed to a
Citadel guard... and one that there had been no signs of a
romance with.
Killing a companion should only be reserved for the absolute
worst companions. Killing off a Sarah-Jane or Leela would have
been upsetting for the children watching the show at the time...
and overshadowed whatever story it was part of.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately
the script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story
that gets to shine without too many special effects and
explosions.
Less is more.
As we have seen lately, when you focus too much on the visuals
the actual story can get forgotten. Doctor Who of this era was
so good because they actually had really good stories to begin
with, and great performances from Tom Baker, and the cast.
Doctor Who didn't need lavish sets or tons of effects to make it
watchable.
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did >agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of
Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did >blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
nurse queen."
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
In article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>,
Blueshirt <blueshirt@indigo.news> wrote:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
What about all 26 episodes of the Key to Time?
Verily, in article <10usb96$1pvt$13@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did >doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>,
Blueshirt <blueshirt@indigo.news> wrote:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
What about all 26 episodes of the Key to Time?
What about them? We'll get there eventually.
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of
Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
nurse queen."
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
In article <MPG.447b700af789d8a1989ef5@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did
blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
nurse queen."
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
Many around here believe usenet drwho is like the fight scene in Part 8 of Key
to Time when Xanak and the TARDIS try to materise around Eath.
The True Doctor wrote:
On 22/05/2026 15:58, Blueshirt wrote:
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow
it are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet,
The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it. Shada
might have been counted if it had been completed. But Douglas
Adams might be overrated even if it had.
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary Tamm.
One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly a story I
really liked from S16!
"City of Death" from S17 is also a sure fire 10/10
"Shada" might have reached that level but I don't include half
made stories.
Next week's "Underworld" clearly won't be at that level though.
I recall it being quite poor, but I haven't watched it in years.
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the
last story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is
an allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
It's an allegory of state controlled industry and partizan
corporate monopolies in the 1970s as well as the personal
greed of the people appointed or chosen to run them.
Right on Brother!
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess...
before K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than
Stockfish) the TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been
turned into a giant bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis)
run by "The Company". Under their regime Pluto has become
an over-priced, over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist
planet of misery. Of course, where Capitalism thrives the
rich get richer while the
Capitalism it must be made clear does not believe in high
taxation or taxation at all. Massive taxation is a socialist
ideology. This story describes corporatism which is a from of
Marxism invented by Mussolini and adopted by the National
Socialist Adolf Hitler. Look at all the workers calling
themselves comrades.
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
Or suicide.
I'd choose rebellion first... I'd break a few windows or blow a
few buildings up before throwing myself off of a high roof.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien
in a wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate
choice by the production team.) who resides in his ivory
tower like the landlord who believes charging rent for
oxygen is good business. The Collector is Pluto's CEO and
he treats the entire planet like an Excel spreadsheet come
to life. As far as he is
Remember Dennis Healy who the Collector resembled was a
socialist chancellor who kept on raising taxes on everyone.
Didn't he set the upper tax band rate to something like 98%
which caused the rich to leave the country and stopped
investment. You see this allegorised by the Doctor having the
company's profits taxed into oblivion the more productive it
became so it went bankrupt.
The ruling elite always tax the poor, no matter what colour
rosette they wear at elections.
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade,
the unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Again social commentary on the corporatist Labour government
of the time.
Labour are just red Tories... they pretend to be for the working
class but in practice there isn't a lot of difference in how
they govern the UK. They are two sides of the same coin. The
bourgeoisie always look after themselves first and foremost
while the plebs get taxed on everything possible.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being
killed off during this story. Fortunately the production
team decided against it... a companion death in this story
would have ruined the narrative.
Fortunately they never managed to kill her off in the original
final story either.
Although the ending Leela did get was unexpected, and probably
out of character. In-universe Leela was more likely to get
together with one of Gallifrey's 'outsiders' as opposed to a
Citadel guard... and one that there had been no signs of a
romance with.
Killing a companion should only be reserved for the absolute
worst companions. Killing off a Sarah-Jane or Leela would have
been upsetting for the children watching the show at the time...
and overshadowed whatever story it was part of.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately
the script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story
that gets to shine without too many special effects and
explosions.
Less is more.
As we have seen lately, when you focus too much on the visuals
the actual story can get forgotten. Doctor Who of this era was
so good because they actually had really good stories to begin
with, and great performances from Tom Baker, and the cast.
Doctor Who didn't need lavish sets or tons of effects to make it
watchable.
On 23/05/2026 11:46, Blueshirt wrote:
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary
Tamm. One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly
a story I really liked from S16!
You could have called her Xanxia, but then again that would
probably not have been a good idea.
Tara Romana Blueshirt?
Next week's "Underworld" clearly won't be at that level
though. I recall it being quite poor, but I haven't watched
it in years.
I remember the blue screen and shield gun effects not looking
good at the time and thinking why didn't they film it in a
real cave system.
Although the ending Leela did get was unexpected, and
probably out of character. In-universe Leela was more likely
to get together with one of Gallifrey's 'outsiders'
Yes.
as opposed to aCitadel guard... and one that there had been
no signs of a romance with.
And why would she won't to be stuck in the Citadel instead of
exploring the entire Universe with the Doctor?
Killing a companion should only be reserved for the absolute
worst companions. Killing off a Sarah-Jane or Leela would
have been upsetting for the children watching the show at
the time... and overshadowed whatever story it was part of.
Correct. The thought of killing off Leela should never have
entered their minds.
On 23/05/2026 12:39, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of
Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The Pirate Planet was probably the best of the Key to Time series. It
took elements such as telepathy, inertia free motion, and space jumping >planets from E E Smith's Lensman series and Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 23/05/2026 14:05, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did
blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
That was brilliant. K9 vs. Albatron.
nurse queen."
You've given away the answer to the mystery.
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
"What do you think we should do with it K9?", "Blow it up, Master", "I
think that's an excellent solution, don't you Romana, and immensely >satisfying".
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 23/05/2026 14:50, The Doctor wrote:
In article <MPG.447b700af789d8a1989ef5@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did
blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
nurse queen."
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
Many around here believe usenet drwho is like the fight scene in Part 8 of Key
to Time when Xanak and the TARDIS try to materise around Eath.
That was part 4 of The Pirate Planet, but it amounts to the same thing
when you add up all the episodes from The Ribos Operation onwards.
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 23/05/2026 11:46, Blueshirt wrote:
The True Doctor wrote:
On 22/05/2026 15:58, Blueshirt wrote:
Greetings citizens: Praise The Company!
"The Sun Makers" is another one of those stories that people
rarely talk about when they are discussing Tom Baker's era on
the show... probably because the stories that precede/follow
it are more likely to grab the headlines... but, hidden among
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet,
The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it. Shada
might have been counted if it had been completed. But Douglas
Adams might be overrated even if it had.
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary Tamm.
One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly a story I
really liked from S16!
You could have called her Xanxia, but then again that would probably not >have been a good idea.
Tara Romana Blueshirt?
"City of Death" from S17 is also a sure fire 10/10
"Shada" might have reached that level but I don't include half
made stories.
Next week's "Underworld" clearly won't be at that level though.
I recall it being quite poor, but I haven't watched it in years.
I remember the blue screen and shield gun effects not looking good at
the time and thinking why didn't they film it in a real cave system.
Season 15 is this gem of a story, and a very good example of
Doctor Who doing political satire. "The Sun Makers" was the
last story that Robert Holmes wrote for Doctor Who and it is
an allegory of corporate greed and tax driven exploitation.
It's an allegory of state controlled industry and partizan
corporate monopolies in the 1970s as well as the personal
greed of the people appointed or chosen to run them.
Right on Brother!
Inside the TARDIS the Doctor and K9 are playing chess...
before K9 can proceed to 'mate' (more Stockdog than
Stockfish) the TARDIS lands on Pluto... which has been
turned into a giant bureaucratic tax-hived city (Megropolis)
run by "The Company". Under their regime Pluto has become
an over-priced, over-regulated and over-taxed Capitalist
planet of misery. Of course, where Capitalism thrives the
rich get richer while the
Capitalism it must be made clear does not believe in high
taxation or taxation at all. Massive taxation is a socialist
ideology. This story describes corporatism which is a from of
Marxism invented by Mussolini and adopted by the National
Socialist Adolf Hitler. Look at all the workers calling
themselves comrades.
poor suffer, so the only answer is... revolution. (Right on,
Or suicide.
I'd choose rebellion first... I'd break a few windows or blow a
few buildings up before throwing myself off of a high roof.
Good idea. Take as many of them as you can with you.
The main villain of this story is "The Collector", an alien
in a wheelchair with Dennis Healy eyebrows, (A deliberate
choice by the production team.) who resides in his ivory
tower like the landlord who believes charging rent for
oxygen is good business. The Collector is Pluto's CEO and
he treats the entire planet like an Excel spreadsheet come
to life. As far as he is
Remember Dennis Healy who the Collector resembled was a
socialist chancellor who kept on raising taxes on everyone.
Didn't he set the upper tax band rate to something like 98%
which caused the rich to leave the country and stopped
investment. You see this allegorised by the Doctor having the
company's profits taxed into oblivion the more productive it
became so it went bankrupt.
The ruling elite always tax the poor, no matter what colour
rosette they wear at elections.
This is why the poor stay poor.
concerned, human suffering is just a minor accounting
irregularity! The Collector's number two is Gatherer Hade,
the unhinged lieutenant who thrives on bureaucratic cliches,
red tape and petty fines.
Again social commentary on the corporatist Labour government
of the time.
Labour are just red Tories... they pretend to be for the working
The Tories are corporatists not capitalists. That's why they resemble >Marxist Labour because corporatism is a Marxist ideology.
class but in practice there isn't a lot of difference in how
they govern the UK. They are two sides of the same coin. The
More or less they are. Except Labour are degenerate authoritarian
control freaks.
bourgeoisie always look after themselves first and foremost
while the plebs get taxed on everything possible.
Look at how they appointed the pervert Mandelson as ambassador to the US.
Leela gets plenty of action here too... and she is ten times
more braver than any of the rebels she meets up with. Whilst
this is the first time we get to see K9 in action as The
Doctor's pet. Early drafts of the script had Leela being
killed off during this story. Fortunately the production
team decided against it... a companion death in this story
would have ruined the narrative.
Fortunately they never managed to kill her off in the original
final story either.
Although the ending Leela did get was unexpected, and probably
out of character. In-universe Leela was more likely to get
together with one of Gallifrey's 'outsiders' as opposed to a
Yes.
Citadel guard... and one that there had been no signs of a
romance with.
And why would she won't to be stuck in the Citadel instead of exploring
the entire Universe with the Doctor?
Killing a companion should only be reserved for the absolute
worst companions. Killing off a Sarah-Jane or Leela would have
been upsetting for the children watching the show at the time...
and overshadowed whatever story it was part of.
Correct. The thought of killing off Leela should never have entered
their minds.
Visually the sets are rather bland and basic, some small dark
spaces, bright corridors, ladders, and a roof. Fortunately
the script makes up for the sparse set design, as do the
performances, so this comes across as a rather good story
that gets to shine without too many special effects and
explosions.
Less is more.
As we have seen lately, when you focus too much on the visuals
the actual story can get forgotten. Doctor Who of this era was
so good because they actually had really good stories to begin
with, and great performances from Tom Baker, and the cast.
Doctor Who didn't need lavish sets or tons of effects to make it
watchable.
It's because Davies, Moffat, and Chibnall don't know how to write and
when you start inserting woke crap into the stories and engaging in woke >casting it always results in stinking, festering, crap coming out. Look
are the insulting, racist, shit that Christopher Nolan's has made of The >Odyssey. Terrible script based on the worst translation of The Odyssey
ever made, by a man hating feminist who reinterpreted the entire story >through a bigoted lens, terrible directing, framing, colour grading,
costume design, art design, set design, crass dialogue, and absolutely >racist casting, without one single Greek actor being involved, not even >Helen a symbol of the Greek identity, now a black sub-Saharan African
who Greeks and Europeans whose culture was founded on this epic have
been told to identify with. And apparently there's also going to be a >transgender Achilles. You couldn't be more offensive, racist, and
insulting if you tried. But the degenerate woke legacy media feel that
they have to defend it just like the German press and film makers
defended Nazism which like wokery was another Marxist ideology founded
on hate.
Unlike the modern woke s*t The Sun Makers was not biased. It provided
an even handed assessment of the economic situation at the time.
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
The True Doctor wrote:
On 23/05/2026 11:46, Blueshirt wrote:
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary
Tamm. One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly
a story I really liked from S16!
You could have called her Xanxia, but then again that would
probably not have been a good idea.
I'd never have got THAT past the missus!
Tara Romana Blueshirt?
Close.
In a way.
(Her middle name starts with a C.)
Next week's "Underworld" clearly won't be at that level
though. I recall it being quite poor, but I haven't watched
it in years.
I remember the blue screen and shield gun effects not looking
good at the time and thinking why didn't they film it in a
real cave system.
I seem to recall a lot of caves!
Although the ending Leela did get was unexpected, and
probably out of character. In-universe Leela was more likely
to get together with one of Gallifrey's 'outsiders'
Yes.
It would have made way more sense for a "savage" to team up with
them.
as opposed to aCitadel guard... and one that there had been
no signs of a romance with.
And why would she won't to be stuck in the Citadel instead of
exploring the entire Universe with the Doctor?
An unsatisfactory ending for Leela, based on what we had seen of
her character up to then.
But better than being killed off I suppose.
Killing a companion should only be reserved for the absolute
worst companions. Killing off a Sarah-Jane or Leela would
have been upsetting for the children watching the show at
the time... and overshadowed whatever story it was part of.
Correct. The thought of killing off Leela should never have
entered their minds.
I think Louise Jameson actually suggested it!
She was probably thinking something along the lines of Leela
dying bravely in a battle, or saving the Doctor from an alien
monster... or something.
In article <xn0pq4mho3fflcp001@post.eweka.nl>,
Blueshirt <blueshirt@indigo.news> wrote:
The True Doctor wrote:
On 23/05/2026 11:46, Blueshirt wrote:
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary
Tamm. One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly
a story I really liked from S16!
You could have called her Xanxia, but then again that would
probably not have been a good idea.
I'd never have got THAT past the missus!
Tara Romana Blueshirt?
Close.
In a way.
(Her middle name starts with a C.)
Clara?
In article <10uss9c$2gp4k$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
On 23/05/2026 14:05, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did
blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
That was brilliant. K9 vs. Albatron.
The Bird and it got nailed.
nurse queen."
You've given away the answer to the mystery.
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
"What do you think we should do with it K9?", "Blow it up, Master", "I
think that's an excellent solution, don't you Romana, and immensely
satisfying".
Love that line.
What about Spanner in the works.
In article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
On 23/05/2026 12:39, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of >>>> Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The Pirate Planet was probably the best of the Key to Time series. It
took elements such as telepathy, inertia free motion, and space jumping
planets from E E Smith's Lensman series and Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
What about Armageddon factor?
In article <10uss9c$2gp4k$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
That was brilliant. K9 vs. Albatron.
The Bird and it got nailed.
On 23/05/2026 12:39, The True Melissa wrote:
[quoted text muted]
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The Pirate Planet was probably the best of the Key to Time series. It
took elements such as telepathy, inertia free motion, and space jumping planets from E E Smith's Lensman series and Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
It would have made way more sense for a "savage" to team up with
them.
as opposed to aCitadel guard... and one that there had been
no signs of a romance with.
And why would she won't to be stuck in the Citadel instead of
exploring the entire Universe with the Doctor?
An unsatisfactory ending for Leela, based on what we had seen of
her character up to then.
But better than being killed off I suppose.
On 23/05/2026 23:50, The Doctor wrote:
In article <xn0pq4mho3fflcp001@post.eweka.nl>,Tara Clara Sara anyone?
Blueshirt <blueshirt@indigo.news> wrote:
The True Doctor wrote:
On 23/05/2026 11:46, Blueshirt wrote:
I liked a lot of the following season... and I loved Mary
Tamm. One of my daughters is named Tara so that's clearly
a story I really liked from S16!
You could have called her Xanxia, but then again that would
probably not have been a good idea.
I'd never have got THAT past the missus!
Tara Romana Blueshirt?
Close.
In a way.
(Her middle name starts with a C.)
Clara?
Tara Clara Sara Mara?
Tara Clara Sara Mara Dara?
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 23/05/2026 23:43, The Doctor wrote:
In article <10uss9c$2gp4k$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
On 23/05/2026 14:05, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <xn0pq4ajb2za2yo002@post.eweka.nl>, did
blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The
Talons of Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate
Planet, The Androids of Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one
of my personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
There's not a lot wrong "The Pirate Planet" but there are a lot
of better Tom Baker stories, as we have seen.
I have two three-word phrases for that: "robot pet fight" and "evil
That was brilliant. K9 vs. Albatron.
The Bird and it got nailed.
nurse queen."
You've given away the answer to the mystery.
I'll save the rest for when we get there. :-)
"What do you think we should do with it K9?", "Blow it up, Master", "I
think that's an excellent solution, don't you Romana, and immensely
satisfying".
Love that line.
What about Spanner in the works.
That was a good one too.
"What do we do now Doctor?", "Hit it!"
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 23/05/2026 23:42, The Doctor wrote:
In article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
On 23/05/2026 12:39, The True Melissa wrote:
Verily, in article <10ur0cs$1tt3a$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
I don't think there was really anything much better than The Talons of >>>>> Weng-Chiang which came after it. The Pirate Planet, The Androids of
Tara, and City of Death is mostly it.
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The Pirate Planet was probably the best of the Key to Time series. It
took elements such as telepathy, inertia free motion, and space jumping
planets from E E Smith's Lensman series and Xanxia was based on Xaxa >>>from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
What about Armageddon factor?
Doctor Who's attempt to do Star Wars. Princess Astra standing in for >Princess Leia. Darth Vader was the Shadow agent. The there was "Honey I >Shrunk the Kids", except The Armageddon Factor came first.
The Death Star of course came from Triplanetary in the Lensman series.
Luke Skywalker losing his hand came from Grey Lensman. Star Killer Base >comes from Second Stage Lensmen. Slave Leia comes from A Princess of
Mars. Han Solo is Gahan of Gathol in The Chess Men of Mars, as is Clark >Kent.
----
The True Doctor https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngrZwoS0n21IRcXpKO79Lw
"To be woke is to be uninformed which is exactly the opposite of what it >stands for." --William Shatner
On 24/05/2026 8:43 am, The Doctor wrote:
In article <10uss9c$2gp4k$1@dont-email.me>,
The True Doctor <agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM> wrote:
<Snip>
That was brilliant. K9 vs. Albatron.
The Bird and it got nailed.
Oh!! You're familiar with nailing birds, are you??
----
Daniel70
Verily, in article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>, did >agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
On 23/05/2026 12:39, The True Melissa wrote:
[quoted text muted]
I'm glad to see someone praising The Pirate Planet. It's one of my
personal favorites, and I never hear anyone mention it.
The Pirate Planet was probably the best of the Key to Time series. It
took elements such as telepathy, inertia free motion, and space jumping
planets from E E Smith's Lensman series and Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
Yes, she does remind me of Xaxa.
It's not just the elements. They're used well. The plot twists and turns--
to reveal new layers. People we feared turn out to be good, and villains >turn out to be doing their best.
--
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
Verily, in article <xn0pq4mho3fflcp001@post.eweka.nl>, did >blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
It would have made way more sense for a "savage" to team up with
them.
as opposed to aCitadel guard... and one that there had been
no signs of a romance with.
And why would she won't to be stuck in the Citadel instead of
exploring the entire Universe with the Doctor?
An unsatisfactory ending for Leela, based on what we had seen of
her character up to then.
It only makes sense if she's pregnant. Even then, it's a strain.
But better than being killed off I suppose.
Peri may have had the worst exit. She was kidnapped by a rapey warlord.
When the Doctor remembered about her, he looked in on her and decided
she seemed okay, so he just left her with her kidnapper. This guy is the >hero?
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
In article <MPG.447ca65672cc4932989efe@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Peri may have had the worst exit. She was kidnapped by a rapey warlord. >When the Doctor remembered about her, he looked in on her and decided
she seemed okay, so he just left her with her kidnapper. This guy is the >hero?
She married him!
In article <MPG.447bd4ece0afaa97989efa@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>, did >agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
Yes, she does remind me of Xaxa.
Xaxa?
Verily, in article <10uunqf$20tg$25@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did >doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <MPG.447ca65672cc4932989efe@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Peri may have had the worst exit. She was kidnapped by a rapey warlord.
When the Doctor remembered about her, he looked in on her and decided
she seemed okay, so he just left her with her kidnapper. This guy is the >> >hero?
She married him!
How does that matter? Do you think it was voluntary?
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
Verily, in article <10uunn1$20tg$20@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did >doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <MPG.447bd4ece0afaa97989efa@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
Yes, she does remind me of Xaxa.
Xaxa?
Yes, Xaxa from the Barsoom series, as AGA mentioned. Wait until we get
to The Pirate Planet, and we can compare the characters.
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
In article <MPG.447cb5de3205186a989f01@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10uunn1$20tg$20@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did >doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <MPG.447bd4ece0afaa97989efa@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
Yes, she does remind me of Xaxa.
Xaxa?
Yes, Xaxa from the Barsoom series, as AGA mentioned. Wait until we get
to The Pirate Planet, and we can compare the characters.
Xanxia no Xaxa.
Verily, in article <10uuqjm$ra4$5@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did >doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <MPG.447cb5de3205186a989f01@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10uunn1$20tg$20@gallifrey.nk.ca>, did
doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca deliver unto us this message:
In article <MPG.447bd4ece0afaa97989efa@news.eternal-september.org>,
The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
Verily, in article <10usrtt$2glh6$1@dont-email.me>, did
agamemnon@hello.to.NO_SPAM deliver unto us this message:
Xanxia was based on Xaxa
from Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Master Mind of Mars.
Yes, she does remind me of Xaxa.
Xaxa?
Yes, Xaxa from the Barsoom series, as AGA mentioned. Wait until we get
to The Pirate Planet, and we can compare the characters.
Xanxia no Xaxa.
They are two characters. No, they're not both named Xanxia. Xanxia is
based on Xaxa, according to AGA, and that makes sense to me. They're not >identical, but they share some traits.
----
The True Melissa - Canal Winchester - Ohio
United States of America - North America - Earth
Solar System - Milky Way - Local Group
Virgo Cluster - Laniakea Supercluster - Cosmos
The nurse is really
Verily, in article <xn0pq4mho3fflcp001@post.eweka.nl>, did blueshirt@indigo.news deliver unto us this message:
An unsatisfactory ending for Leela, based on what we
had seen of her character up to then.
It only makes sense if she's pregnant. Even then, it's a
strain.
But better than being killed off I suppose.
Peri may have had the worst exit. She was kidnapped by a rapey
warlord. When the Doctor remembered about her, he looked in
on her and decided she seemed okay, so he just left her with
her kidnapper. This guy is the hero?
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