Mindwarp
review

Holistic Review: Dark, depressing and dull. One intriguing plotline leads to a halfway-decent final episode, but the rest is a waste.

I'm sorry to have to say it, but Philip Martin - who scripted the excellent Vengeance on Varos - really lets the ball drop with Mindwarp, which easily takes the award for my least favorite story of the 80s. It's not just that it's boring, it's actively painful to watch. This was even more distressing for me because, when I was younger, this was one of the few adventures that I missed when it aired on PBS. I can remember avoiding story descriptions in books at the time, and I found out what happened to Peri while reading the novelization of Terror of the Vervoids in a mall department store. (I was so surprised, I went to tell my mother, who I'm sure had no idea what I was talking about!) So when I finally did see it, it was heartbreaking to learn what an awful mess the story is.

One of the main problems of the story, for me, is that it's very difficult to get caught up in the narrative. Numerous little details are introduced, with minimal relevance to the overall plot, and then discarded and never again mentioned once they have fulfilled their usefulness. The first is the unseen adventure with the Thordon warlords. I usually like references to unseen adventures, but this one is handled oddly, and its connection to the situation on Thoros-Beta is vague. After paying much closer attention than usual, I was left with the impression that Thoros-Beta was helping Yrcanos conquer Thordon with the aim of being allowed to then develop it; presumably, then, they were also supplying Thordon with weapons so as to profit from both sides of the war, but this is never made explicit, nor does it reap any sort of narrative benefit in the plot, aside from providing the Doctor and Peri a reason to visit, and to some extent, bringing Yrcanos into the story. The whole reason they come to Thoros-Beta - to find out who is providing these weapons to Thordon - is almost immediately forgotten about. Then we have the machine which controls the tides on Thoros-Beta; this is made out to be a big thing, but is subsequently dropped entirely, barring the odd mention of how quickly the planet's tides come in. The only reason I can think of for its inclusion is to demonstrate the state of advanced technology on Thoros-Beta, but if that's the case, then it's an isolated example. The Raak is presumably meant to highlight Crozier's advancements in brain augmentation, but again, it's not really clear what the Raak was, or why Crozier was experimenting on it in the first place, and it seems to serve the sole purpose of getting the Doctor and Peri caught. The Lukoser serves a bigger role in the plot, as a companion to Yrcanos, but his status as a wolf-man is mainly used for laughs, and again, it's not at all clear why the Mentors were experimenting on him, or what he was doing chained up in an empty passageway. So the first episode feels like a case of "throw everything against the wall and see what sticks". As Peri says (in her blatant-exposition-y way): "Oh Doctor, what's going on here? Sea monsters upgraded to operate machinery, and wolfmen who beg for help." Yes, Peri, it is all rather confusing. As the story progresses, these deadweight elements mostly drop by the wayside, but they are replaced by a band of Alphan rebels who seem to have come to Thoros-Beta merely to skulk anarchically in caves, awaiting someone to tell them what to do, and the odd aging weapons that have no apparent relationship to other Thoros-Betan technology, and are only ever used offscreen anyway. There's also Crozier's machine, which can apparently pacify, force truthfulness, monitor vital signs, carry out brain transfers or simply transfer its contents... in short, it's a miracle machine, and we never really get any sense of how it operates or what it's actually designed to do. In my opinion, the overload of useless plot elements in the first episode is sufficient to keep the viewer from getting truly engaged, and the more it happens, the more the viewer disconnects.

The next big problem - and the one that truly cripples the production - is the quality of the acting. Crozier is the best of the worst, because his character manages to be believable and moderately interesting, but Patrick Ryecart delivers his lines in a very nonchalant monotone. This still manages to be much more naturalistic than many of the other guest cast, but it's not a memorable performance. Then there's Brian Blessed, who truly defies categorization with his performance as the warrior king Yrcanos. Is he entertainingly expressive? Or is he just painfully over-the-top? There's a little bit of both, and you can't deny that he's giving 110% to bring Yrcanos to life, but the bottom line is that I just have a hard time watching him. Yrcanos is entertaining in the way that much reality television is entertaining: it's so outrageous that you can't take your eyes off it, but you're still vaguely repulsed by everything it stands for. The wild mannerisms and booming voice certainly leave your jaw hanging on the floor, but underneath it all Yrcanos is a fairly one-dimensional character, who wants to kill his enemies and lives by a warrior code. And while Brian Blessed is riveting to watch, and he has some good moments, Yrcanos never ever feels like a real character to me; he feels like an actor giving a flamboyant performance. (A typically unbelievable line: "We will grrrrrrrrrrind every last slug beneath our feet!") His constant whistling and trilling his 'r's and hissing should feel like an attempt to portray Yrcanos' alien nature, but I just find it irritating. But at least he's (surprisingly) lighthearted, which is desperately needed in this particular story. Then we have the bottom of the barrel, which range from Alibe Parsons as Matrona Kani (who isn't exactly bad, but can't seem to find more than two or three ways to deliver her lines) to Trevor Laird as Frax (a terribly unsubtle villain who cannot make his dialogue sound naturalistic) and Gordon Warnecke as Tuza (who is more wooden than the Forest of Cheem). I applaud them wanting to use black actors to fill most of the guest cast in this story, but it pains me that they couldn't find any more talented ones.

Now, I can handle stories with questionable scripting and poor acting. What really tips this story over the edge, for me, is the gloom and doom that permeates it. If a story isn't even fun, and is desperate to be purely dramatic, it really has to be well-written and well-acted to hold my attention. The best example I can think of is Cube, which is terribly pessimistic, but is so gripping that the good points far outweigh the upsetting content. In this story, we've got people dying left, right and center, everything is set in dark caverns, Yrcanos is the only character who seems to be having a good time, and Peri is stranded on her own in a hostile alien environment with no Doctor to protect her. I think a large part of the odd atmosphere of this story is generated by the Doctor's apparent betrayal of Peri. If the Doctor were actively working to defeat the Mentors the entire time, this story might be bearable, but with him seeming to be in their clutches the entire time, it seems like the horrific events keep spiralling out of control and the Doctor does nothing to stop them. So in this instance, I think the "fallibility of the Matrix" plot thread really works against the story. In The Mysterious Planet, this thread was limited to certain sections of the plot being bleeped out, which was quite effective. And in the following story, Terror of the Vervoids, the altered sections are signalled by the Doctor behaving in an extremely anti-Doctorish way, so it's clear that the evidence has been tampered with. But in Mindwarp, there's no clear explanation for the Doctor's behavior. It may be tampered evidence from the Matrix, it may be an elaborate plan on the Doctor's part, or it may be mental instability brought about by Crozier's brain scan. We have no way of knowing, and we're never given any answers (nor, apparently, was Colin Baker, because nobody would give him one - so if he wasn't sure how to play the character, how is the audience expected to know?).

The Doctor in this story, therefore, vacillates between "under the Mentors' control" and "trying to escape them", although he exhibits the former traits pretty consistently until he frees Yrcanos and admits that he's been working against the Mentors the entire time. But if that's the case, then it's very difficult to rationalize his actions in certain scenes. One also wonders how, if his behavior were part of the faked evidence, events still unfolded in the same way - to take one example, if the Doctor's interrogation of Peri really was intended as part of an escape ploy, why then does it fail? One possible answer to this is that everything after the Doctor's brain scan is faked - since, as we later learn, the entire ending of the story is fabricated - which essentially means that episodes six through eight are an exercise in futility. Which, perhaps, is just as well. Colin's generally quite good; I especially like the way he looks convincingly sick after eating one of Sil's marsh minnows. The problem is that it would be easier to accept the Doctor's erratic behavior if he were clearly not in his right mind. Because the Doctor otherwise seems exactly like his old self (at least, after his mental disorientation miraculously clears up the moment he betrays Peri and Yrcanos), it makes the scenes of betrayal that much harder to stomach. The worst by far is the scene in which the Doctor interrogates Peri while she's chained to a rock on the sea; it certainly doesn't look like an act, and the Doctor is downright vicious to her. So it's not really a great story for Colin, but Nicola fares somewhat better. She's actually given a decent role in the plot this time, saving the Doctor from Yrcanos and being forced to lead the (cliché) rebel army in his absence. The downside is that although she takes a lot of action, she never seems to get anything done - her inadvertent attempt to infiltrate the ranks of Matrona Kani's servants only results in her discovery, and her brief success in brokering a peace with the rebels is deflated when their entire party is captured shortly thereafter. Peri then spends all of episode four in captivity, doing mostly nothing. (This continual maltreatment of Peri also contributes heavily to the story's unrelentingly grim feel.) She does, however, get to hold a gun on a bunch of guards (and fire at Sil!) but this is partly negated when, just before leaving, she flings the blaster at them frantically, as if hoping that it will bop one of them on the knee and knock him unconscious. Nevertheless, throughout the ordeal, Peri maintains a proactive attitude, and gets to show her compassionate side and her sense of loyalty to the Doctor. It must be said that Nicola Bryant's final scene is a knockout, and unquestionably her best in the series (but more on this later). She also displays some good acting throughout - her delivery of "Eeyuh" when Peri steps into the water is amusing, and she gets nice scenes with both Dorf (discussing Yrcanos' jealousy) and Yrcanos (discussing love). Her dialogue is definitely improved here, but she's still given some real clunkers - "That klaxon's bound to attract someone's attention", "Why do you hate me so?", the ludicrously funny "Nobody likes brain alteration" (she sure tries hard to make that one sound good), and "It might be responsible for his premature aging." The real kicker, though, is Peri's new habit of adding "huh?" to the end of her sentences. It starts out gradually, but in part three it becomes so noticeable that you almost expect her to start tacking it on to the end of every sentence. The only time it's even remotely appropriate is in its final appearance (which is, sadly enough, also Peri's final line):

  0:34:26   Yrcanos: "Liquefiers that we must obtain quietly!"
Peri:"We? That includes me, huh?"
0:42:43 Matrona Kani: "Do you wish to serve me, Peri?"
Peri:"Well, what have I got to lose, huh?"
0:57:54 "There's a good warlord, huh?"
0:58:26 "Well, it doesn't do much for your taste buds, huh?"
0:59:15 "One thing at a time, huh?"
0:59:21 "And then on to our destiny, huh?"
1:04:48 "But how many of those survived, huh?"
1:08:36 "No, let Tuza find out what's going on first, huh?"
1:11:39 "Let's get away from here and find the others, huh?"
1:27:10 "So I'm fit and healthy, huh?"

Then of course there's Peri's jacket, which is tops on my list of Worst Companion Outfits Ever. Which is funny, because the colors are rather pretty, and I probably wouldn't mind it so much if it weren't in the same vein as the yucky striped yellow jacket from The Mysterious Planet. But in context, it looks like the costume designers have decided that Peri, at this stage in her life, really fancies garish jackets, and are trying to outdo the one from the previous story (which at least showed some restraint) with one that features crazy zigzagging lines that make the eyes pop. When Peri's not wearing her jacket, and the fabric is only visible in her belt, it actually looks pretty nice, but that jacket is just a step too far. Call me crazy, but even Colin's coat is more tasteful.

There are also some guest actors in this story that are quite good, including all of the Mentors. First and foremost is the wonderfully disgusting Sil. It's a delight to see him back, and in his new role as Kiv's devoted underling, he showcases just as much of an instinct for self-preservation and a glee in torture as he did in Varos, plus we get to see his fawning obsequious side, which is highly entertaining. (particulary since Kiv seems to find it all a bit wearying!) I really enjoy his determination to be the "first civilized thing" that Kiv sees upon his recovery. His reaction to Kiv's horrified response is great - Shaban gives an excellent delivery on "It's me! Sil!" And I still adore his hideous laugh. Christopher Ryan is excellent as the beleaguered Kiv, who doesn't seem to like life very much but is still unwilling to die, and his rather pleasant demeanor makes a nice contrast with his calm declaration that if he dies, his servants are under orders to kill everyone who failed to save him. Then there's Richard Henry as the very world-weary Mentor, who manages to be the one truly bright spot in the story. He's an entertaining character, well acted, displaying just the right level of humor. Nothing about him hits the wrong note, which makes him a very welcome breath of fresh air in this dank tale. I also quite liked Thomas Branch as the Lukoser; his role in the story may have been perplexing, but he handles the demands of the part well, seeming both convincingly threatening, and endearingly sweet. On board the trial station, the Inquisitor and the Valeyard are their usual reliable selves. They mainly bicker with the Doctor, but I still find Bellingham's stiff yet kindly Inquisitor to be very appealing, and the Valeyard oozes menace as always.

As visual effects go, the painting of Thoros-Beta seen on the Trial room screen is much better done than the painting of Ravolox. I can't decide, though, how I feel about the crazy tinting in scenes set on the planet's surface. They are unquestionably well-done (it's impressive that none of the colors bleed into Colin or Nicola's clothing) but it doesn't half hurt the eyes (which, when coupled with Peri's jacket, makes for a truly devastating combination). The effect of a rock melting under blaster fire is beautifully realized, as is the shot of the Doctor being pulled backwards into the TARDIS. The costumes for the Mentors are well done, particularly the yellow fisherman - the facial mask looks seamless. On the negative side, when the action cuts back to the Trial room after Peri sees Sil for the first time, the screen is at an angle to the camera, but the effect of the image fading out (in a grid pattern) is locked onto the angle of the camera, making it look lopsided on the screen. Not a whole lot of sound effects to speak of, but the cell doors make a nice sound when they close, and the alarm when Yrcanos destroys the slave control is surely re-used from The Invisible Enemy?

The direction by Ron Jones isn't bad, but it's not really spectacular, either. My favorite is the lovely long-shot of Crozier's lab, and there's a nice shot of Peri being surrounded by guards packing blasters. However, he's hampered somewhat by the sets, which are - befitting this story - an endless succession of dull, dark caves. And, of course, they feel the need to get the most bang for their buck by re-using the opening shot of the space station at the beginning. As for the incidental music by Richard Hartley, I have to say that I find it repetitive and irritating. It matches the doom-and-gloom feeling of the story well, but like the atmosphere, the music is unrelenting. It's effective in the very dramatic scenes, but I wish he'd toned it down in the rest of the story.

Minor points:

Mindwarp has going for it an entertaining race of monsters and a foreboding brain-alteration plotline that leads to a pretty engaging episode four, but pretty much everything else is a disappointment. Watch it for the jaw-dropping final scene, but if you're like me, then getting there is going to be a real chore.

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