There is a moment at the end of The Wheel in Space in which the Doctor, having roundly defeated the Cybermen, is pouring liquid mercury bare-handed into a filler port on the top of the TARDIS console using a plastic funnel. It was the most terrifying thing in the entire story, just how carelessly the Doctor treated a very dangerous material that is easily spilled and difficult to safely clean up.  I don't know if the control console has any heat sources, but mercury vaporizes easily and is a virulent poison that can cause serious issue both short- and long-term. But other than that, it was a good story.

Let's talk about that.

The Wheel in Space - Episodes 5 & 6

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

Story-wise, the last two episodes wrap up pretty much how you would expect. The two Cybermen who have infiltrated The Wheel are the advance force for an entire shipload of Cybermen that plan to take over the space station and then use that as a means to gain access to the Earth and conquer humanity. You know, the usual stuff. There are a couple of surprising deaths along the way, and a tense final standoff where the Doctor manages to amplify the station's big laser gun and destroy the main Cyberman attack vessel while Jamie and some other crew members repel a boarding party.

Afterwards there is a nifty little scene in which Zoe tries to sneak onto the TARDIS in order to join the Doctor and Jamie in their travels. Of course the Doctor notices right away that she is stowing away (after he finishes handling the liquid mercury in a horrifying manor), and he coaxes her out of hiding. Then, because this was the last episode of the season and the following week was a re-run of The Evil of the Daleks, he teases Zoe with a preview of the Daleks to make sure she really understood what she was getting into. It worked well, both as a character moment for the new companion and as a teaser for the upcoming re-run. To my knowledge it is the only time the show has done something like that.

I can't believe I am already 2/3 of the way through the Second Doctor's era. I did the math this morning, and I will wrap up The War Games on the Fourth of July. That seems very appropriate. I am also almost done with the Loose Cannon reconstructions. Patrick Troughton's final season is all available on DVD with one exception, his penultimate story The Space Pirates. I'll get there in a little over two weeks. 

STATS:

Doctor(s): Second
Companion(s): Jamie McCrimmon, Zoe Heriot
Episode(s): The Wheel in Space - Episodes 5 & 6
Steps Walked: 6,885 today, 716,265 total
Distance Walked: 3.48 miles today, 344.48 miles total
Weight: 274.58 lbs (five day moving average), net change -32.78 lbs