Here's a bit of meaningless trivia for you: The two episodes I watched this morning of The Enemy of the World also happen to be the very first episodes of Doctor Who to have been broadcast during my lifetime. I was born on January 15, 1968 and then five days later Episode 5 of this story originally aired. I missed it the first time around, but I am thrilled to have finally caught up to it today. It only took my 49 years to get around to it. As for the story itself, the wrap-up was every bit as good as the setup.

Let's talk about that.

The Enemy of the World - Episodes 5 & 6

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

The giant plot twist at the end of episode 4 sews the seeds of Salamander's destruction. He has brought supplies to the bomb shelter survivors, but didn't notice a section of newspaper caught wedged beneath one of the crates -- a newspaper that reveals the real world above, not vexed by war or radiation. Meanwhile, up on the surface the Doctor infiltrates Salamander's research station in order to rescue Jamie and Victoria.

There are two big character switches that happen in the final act. First, Salamander's top security chief turns out to be a stand-up guy who is fully on board with toppling Salamander once the truth is revealed to him. Second, Salamander's arch rival Giles turns out in the end to actually have been colluding with Salamander from day one. In fact it was Giles who took the group of people down into the bomb shelter to begin with five years earlier, and then tricked them into believing a nuclear war had broken out. In the end Giles and Salamander wind up at each other's throats, and Giles detonates a giant explosive hidden in the cave system above the bomb shelter and beneath the research center. Fortunately, everyone in the building above is able to escape the blast and it is also shown on a television monitor that the people in the bomb shelter have survived uninjured. 

With Jamie and Victoria having already returned to the TARDIS, there is one final confrontation between the Doctor and Salamander in the TARDIS control room. During the scuffle, the TARDIS is launched without the doors closing properly and Salamander is sucked out into the time vortex. The TARDIS is clearly about to crash. Roll credits!

There is just so much good stuff in this story, and I fully intend to revisit it. I shall be very much surprised if this doesn't stand as my favorite of all Second Doctor stories. Patrick Troughton proves his acting chops at every turn, and the story itself is very different than anything else the show has ever attempted. The characters are rich and varied, from start to finish, with plot twists and character turns that are fully earned. There was never a moment where the story felt padded or meandering. There are any number of stories where I will readily say something like, "If you are a Doctor Who fan you will like this." But this story is one of the few that I would show to pretty much anyone, because it's just that good.

Hey, guess what? Tomorrow I start The Web of Fear with the first appearance of not-yet-Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart! Yay! I am so excited!!

STATS:

Doctor(s): Second
Companion(s): Jamie McCrimmon, Victoria Waterfield
Episode(s): The Enemy of the World - Episodes 5 & 6
Steps Walked: 7,129 today, 647,538 total
Distance Walked: 3.66 miles today, 309.41 miles total
Weight: 277.80 lbs (five day moving average), net change -29.50 lbs