29) THE TENTH PLANET

For the first time ever, British Television Drama was about to change. The leading actor, that adults and children alike adored for three years were about to watch his entire appearance change, with no explanation until the next adventure. William Hartnell through his highs and lows, his temper and tantrums, the struggles and triumphs, his desire not to let the kids down at home, and his adoration for his show deserved nothing but perfection for his final one and half hours as science fiction’s most beloved hero…. Bring on the Cybermen, those pesky contradicting monsters. Over the years, the Cybermen’s designs became more refined, more robotic and more ‘inhuman’. Here the Cybermen, despite saying otherwise, still possess some of their original selves. It is entirely believable that a flesh and bone being still lurks behind the Cybernetic equipment, and their individual names Karl, Gern, etc. suggests they have a concept of individual identity. 
The Tenth Planet is more of a template for future Cybermen stories than anything else, where almost every subsequent Cyberman story follows the same basic narrative, recycled over and over again. Director Derek Martinus makes great use of the Snowcap base sets, and the snow polar landscapes do make for some frightening imagery, emphasising the isolation that the main character find themselves in, which is aided with an excellent soundtrack. The plot makes excellent use of having the story take place all over the world, emphasizing the scale and danger that the cast will soon find themselves in. 
For the first few minutes, it would seem that the production team were going all out for William Hartnell. There’s only one major problem. The Tenth Planet is unbelievably, painstakingly, pull your hair out frustratingly slow, and padded out with unnecessary filler and tat. The Doctor disappears for HALF of his final adventure, and the whole Mondas destroying the Earth plotline doesn’t really accelerate until EPISODE FOUR. It’s also incredibly lazy that The Doctor doesn’t actually have to do ANYTHING to save the day. He could lie down and take a nap whilst the Cybermen become the makers of their own destruction. Wait a second, THAT’s EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENS! The rest of characters are mostly stereotypes, the trigger happy General Cutler being the most painstakingly obvious, which is fine, if this was a social commentary on culture and society, but The Tenth Planet is not a social commentary in the slightest. Doctor Who will later go on to do social-commentaries in later years, but most stories in the Innes Lloyd and Gerry Davis era are pure escapism narrative, nothing more.
As a last adventure for William Hartnell this doesn’t hold up compared to other regeneration stories. It’s not that original or imaginative, nor is it that intelligently written, it’s lazy, very lazy, and The First Doctor’s final moments are no fitting departure for Doctor Who’s first and most charismatic, whimsical leading actor. ***