Before I talk about today's viewing, a huge shout out to Simon Fisher-Becker (Dorium Maldovar), Daphne Ashbrook (Grace Holloway), and Sylvester McCoy (if I have to tell you who he played, you are reading the wrong blog). This evening I met all three of them, and they were the first Doctor Who actors to sign my Time Treadmill inspiration poster. They were also, all three of them, very nice. I had a lovely chat with Mr. Fisher-Becker about Patrick Troughton and pure historicals. Ms Ashbrook could not have been sweeter in her support of this project. As for Mr. McCoy, what can I say? He was sharp, witty, and just a lovely gentleman. I am really thrilled that I got to meet them all and talk, if very briefly.

As for today's episodes, they were pretty dang good. Inferno most definitely falls into the "science run amok" genre of stories, all about a project to drill through the Earth's mantle to harness a new power source. Oddly enough, things do not go well.

Let's talk about that.

Inferno - Episodes 1 & 2

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

So, here's a pro tip: If you are performing maintenance on a piece of machinery, and there is a pus-yellow fluid bubbling out and eating through the metal, maybe don't try to touch it with your bare hand. Best case, you will get a serious burn and need medical attention. Worst case, it will turn you into a hairy blue-skinned zombie with homicidal impulses. Tragically, an unfortunate technician does exactly that and then winds up going on a murder spree in the drilling research facility. Meanwhile, the Doctor is making use of the facility's nuclear reactor to try to repair the TARDIS console, which he has removed from the TARDIS itself. He is also butting heads with the lead scientist on the project, but in all fairness the lead scientist is an egotistical prick.

UNIT gets involved, of course, and things get worse when the infected maintenance guy kills his way into the nuclear reactor's control center and spikes the power. Fortunately the Doctor arrives in time to subdue the mutated maintenance guy and turn the reactor back down. Unfortunately, the prickish lead scientist keeps speeding up the drill and ignoring every sensible warning. Oh, and he also becomes infected by the yellow acid. So that's not good.

By the end of the second episode the Doctor has gone back to his workshop and managed to fire up the TARDIS console. The last shot is of Liz and the Brigadier rushing in as the Doctor and the console vanish completely. Uh-oh! I hope he doesn't wind up in a parallel Mirror-Mirror universe filled with evil doppelgängers of all of the familiar characters. (Hint: he totally does.)

I am really liking this one so far. Good setup, lots of interesting guest characters, and just enough action and mayhem to keep things cooking along. It's nice to see the Doctor really chafing at his exile to a single time and place, even as he takes time out from his own project to act the hero. This is another seven-parter, so I fully expect it to sag in the middle, but at least it has kicked off with a strong opening. And, of course, there is the big Mirror-Mirror swerve coming up tomorrow. Which, I guess I am not supposed to know about yet, but it's really the core of this story. It's a wee bit difficult to remain unspoiled, forty-five years on.

Daphne and me

Sylvester and me

STATS:

Doctor(s): Third
Companion(s): Liz Shaw, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Episode(s): Inferno - Episodes 1 & 2
Steps Walked: 6,889 today, 933,713 total
Distance Walked: 3.57 miles today, 454.85 miles total
Weight: 269.66 lbs (five day moving average), net change -37.64 lbs