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| Serial 'D' - Marco Polo Written by John Lucarotti Directed by Waris Hussein First Aired: 22nd February - 1964 |
Episode 1: "The Roof of the World"
At last we've come to the story I've been looking forward to. Marco Polo is one of my absolute favourite stories and I absolutely love everything about it, apart from it being deleted by the BBC! Which is one of the most shameful periods of Doctor Who history! How I would love to appreciate these fine performances and those wonderfully designed sets in their original format. Thank heavens for John Cura's screencaps and the wonderful Loose Cannon reconstruction which comes as close to the original as we'll ever get.
The episode follows on from "The Brink of Disaster" with Susan having discovered a giant footprint in the snow. Immediately, Ian dispels the girl's suggestion that it was made by a giant and states that it was a normal footprint and the snow had just melted around it forming a larger one. I initially sighed and wondered if Susan was being written as thick again this week, when I realized that she had probably visited worlds where giants walked.
Giant based discussion aside, the jovial Doctor at the end of the last episode soon reverts to type as he grumps and shouts about the TARDIS having broken down once again. However, this time it isn't just inconvenient, it's life threatening as well. With the heat, water and engines out of action, the travellers could soon freeze to death on "the roof of the world". The Doctor's grumping is understandable in this instance, but the rather dismissive attitude to Barbara was rather jarring considering they'd only made up and come to accept each other five minutes earlier. Still, I suppose that's irascible old Time Lords for you.
Thankfully, the travellers are spared a chilly demise as they are soon discovered by a group of Mongols and come face-to-face with the villain of the piece: Tegana. Lots more on him in later episodes, but in this episode you can certainly understand his views of the travellers and their magical caravan, especially given it's 1289. Wanting to put them immediately to death is a bit harsh, but that doesn't become a reality thanks to the arrival of the true leader: Marco Polo.
Indeed, from this point on the episode really belongs to Marco Polo as the story is framed through his diary entries and so much of the rest of the episode is given over to his background, establishing a very strong and firm reason for wanting to steal away the TARDIS and present it to Mighty Kublai Khan so that he can buy his freedom to return to Venice. Yet, Marco doesn't feel like the villain, as the audience is made to understand his reasons for what he does. It's certainly a different approach to that taken with Kal or the Daleks.
One thing of note with this episode is the fact that the initial remit of the series to be educational is bleeding through strongly. Ian is definitely in schoolteacher mode as he tells Susan about the footprint and later has time to educate Marco Polo about the lower boiling point of water and thinner air at higher altitudes. Even, I was learning, and I haven't done that since the Ninth Doctor taught me how to spell "buffalo" correctly. Yet, it does feel slightly more forced here than in earlier episodes.
Now, I must come to my moment of the episode, and that has to be the Doctor's reaction to Marco Polo having stolen the TARDIS from him. Initially, we have the justified anger at being prevented from working on the damaged ship, but that soon gives way to a fit of hysterics as he feels completely helpless. What's even better is that in the screencaps, Barbara seems to be joining in as well! Whether this was Jacqueline Hill's reaction to Hartnell's performance, which she tried to obscure on camera, or what was actually broadcast we'll probably never know. Yet, I hope it was the intention as that highlights the bond that has been established between the pair.
Will the Doctor and his friends get the TARDIS back? Will Marco Polo make it to Venice? What is Tegana up to? We'll hopefully find out in the next episode.
The episode follows on from "The Brink of Disaster" with Susan having discovered a giant footprint in the snow. Immediately, Ian dispels the girl's suggestion that it was made by a giant and states that it was a normal footprint and the snow had just melted around it forming a larger one. I initially sighed and wondered if Susan was being written as thick again this week, when I realized that she had probably visited worlds where giants walked.
Giant based discussion aside, the jovial Doctor at the end of the last episode soon reverts to type as he grumps and shouts about the TARDIS having broken down once again. However, this time it isn't just inconvenient, it's life threatening as well. With the heat, water and engines out of action, the travellers could soon freeze to death on "the roof of the world". The Doctor's grumping is understandable in this instance, but the rather dismissive attitude to Barbara was rather jarring considering they'd only made up and come to accept each other five minutes earlier. Still, I suppose that's irascible old Time Lords for you.
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| Marco Polo, Tegana and the Doctor. |
Indeed, from this point on the episode really belongs to Marco Polo as the story is framed through his diary entries and so much of the rest of the episode is given over to his background, establishing a very strong and firm reason for wanting to steal away the TARDIS and present it to Mighty Kublai Khan so that he can buy his freedom to return to Venice. Yet, Marco doesn't feel like the villain, as the audience is made to understand his reasons for what he does. It's certainly a different approach to that taken with Kal or the Daleks.
One thing of note with this episode is the fact that the initial remit of the series to be educational is bleeding through strongly. Ian is definitely in schoolteacher mode as he tells Susan about the footprint and later has time to educate Marco Polo about the lower boiling point of water and thinner air at higher altitudes. Even, I was learning, and I haven't done that since the Ninth Doctor taught me how to spell "buffalo" correctly. Yet, it does feel slightly more forced here than in earlier episodes.
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| The Doctor and friends react to Polo's actions. |
Will the Doctor and his friends get the TARDIS back? Will Marco Polo make it to Venice? What is Tegana up to? We'll hopefully find out in the next episode.
Episode 2: "The Singing Sands"
The Doctor and his friends are in a bit of a pickle. With the TARDIS once again malfunctioning, they are trapped in 13th century Cathay and have fallen under the "protection" of Marco Polo, whose only goal is to keep the TARDIS and offer it to Kublai Khan to buy his way back home to Vienna.
As the episode commences it is obvious that some time has passed since the conclusion of "The Roof of the World" as Marco's caravan has begun it's journey across the Gobi Desert. Indeed, the Doctor's companions seem to have gotten over any ill-will towards Marco as Ian happily plays chess with the Venetian. The Doctor, however, is not in a forgiving mood and has been sulking in his rooms and refusing to eat. As Barbara points out though, this comes from a feeling of hopelessness, couple with his pride having been dented by being defeated by a man who he regards as a savage.
During their travels, Susan has also drawn closer to Ping-Cho, whom she shares a room with. I must admit that this relationship with Ping-Cho is what Susan's character needs... desperately. With having someone her own age to interact with we can see the intelligent and resourceful young lady she can be and not the whiny screamer that she is viewed as when she is interacting with her grandfather and her schoolteachers. What is bizarre is that she's suddenly using early Sixties buzzwords such as "fab" when we've never heard her use them before. Then again, we've all be a teenager, trying to impress our friends and acting and speaking completely differently.
Indeed, it is Susan and Ping-Cho that drive the main thrust of this episode, setting out into the desert together on a pleasant stroll, before they notice Tegana also out for a walk on his own and set off in pursuit. Unfortunately, the arrival of a sand storm puts the two girls in extreme peril in what has to be one of this stories most harrowing scenes. Again, it's unfortunate that this episode no longer exists, but perhaps having just the audio of the storm with all the whooshing sounds, clanging instruments and haunting voices can make you imagine far worse than what could have been realized in Studio D at Lime Grove Studios.
The terrifying sandstorm and the discovery of the missing girls certainly shakes the cozy atmosphere that has built up between Marco, Ian and Barbara. Barbara is absolutely stricken with grief and hysterics and the thought of the girls being out in the storm alone. Kudos for Jacqueline Hill in this scene, as she pitches it just right to my mind and she certainly succeeded in making me concerned for the fate of Susan and Ping-Cho. Of course, when the girls are brought back to camp by the villainous Tegana, her reaction to them was just as spot on, relieved yet angry at them both for putting her through the experience.
It is with this whole sandstorm experience, though, that we come to one of the main problems with Doctor Who in the Sixties: the need for actors to have weeks off. Apart from the final scene of the episode, William Hartnell is absent from this episode. His lack of appearance is waved off by saying that he simply slept through the storm. Sorry, but considering the racket going on, coupled with the whinnying of the frightened horses and Barbara's outburst, the Doctor must have been in a coma to miss it all. I also didn't like the fact that those who were awake decided to keep the fact that Susan had nearly died in the storm a complete secret.
The next day, the caravan continues its journey across the Gobi Desert and move ever closer to its next crisis as Tegana finally makes his move. As planned at the end of "The Roof of the World", Tegana slashes all but one of the water gourds in the hopes of driving the caravan back towards Lop and into an awaiting bandit trap. Indeed, his plan would of worked to if it wasn't for those meddling time travellers. Marco takes Ian's suggestion that they head north, a week long journey to an oasis. True, they'd be getting weaker each day as the water ration ran out, but there was less chance of being attacked by bandits.
After several days of travel however, the water ration runs out completely and they are still some distance from the oasis. The Doctor collapses from heat exhaustion and Marco reluctantly gives his permission for the Time Lord and his granddaughter to rest in the TARDIS as they continue their journey. In an interesting twist, Tegana volunteers to be a hero and ride out to the oasis and bring back water to the caravan. Obviously, he has no intention of doing so as his gloating at the oasis in the final scene shows.
What will happen in the next episode? Will the Doctor and Susan be able to repair the TARDIS? Will the caravan make it to the oasis in time? Find out next time...
Moment(s) of the Episode
I actually have two moments of the episode this time. The first is the glorious scene between Susan and Barbara outside the main tent. The Doctor has just refused to eat his dinner and Susan rushes outside all upset. After discussing why the Doctor is feeling the way he is, they both look up at the stars.
The second moment is when Marco and Tegana are alone in the tent. Marco is writing in his journal and Tegana asks him what he is doing. It is all very convivial on the surface, but you can here the lack of respect and even disdain that Tegana has for the Venetian. Then to cap it all off, Tegana shouts and brandishes his sword, yet Marco reacts quickly and meets the Mongol well. Lesson learned for Tegana perhaps.
As the episode commences it is obvious that some time has passed since the conclusion of "The Roof of the World" as Marco's caravan has begun it's journey across the Gobi Desert. Indeed, the Doctor's companions seem to have gotten over any ill-will towards Marco as Ian happily plays chess with the Venetian. The Doctor, however, is not in a forgiving mood and has been sulking in his rooms and refusing to eat. As Barbara points out though, this comes from a feeling of hopelessness, couple with his pride having been dented by being defeated by a man who he regards as a savage.
During their travels, Susan has also drawn closer to Ping-Cho, whom she shares a room with. I must admit that this relationship with Ping-Cho is what Susan's character needs... desperately. With having someone her own age to interact with we can see the intelligent and resourceful young lady she can be and not the whiny screamer that she is viewed as when she is interacting with her grandfather and her schoolteachers. What is bizarre is that she's suddenly using early Sixties buzzwords such as "fab" when we've never heard her use them before. Then again, we've all be a teenager, trying to impress our friends and acting and speaking completely differently.
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| Susan and Ping-Cho go for a wander. |
The terrifying sandstorm and the discovery of the missing girls certainly shakes the cozy atmosphere that has built up between Marco, Ian and Barbara. Barbara is absolutely stricken with grief and hysterics and the thought of the girls being out in the storm alone. Kudos for Jacqueline Hill in this scene, as she pitches it just right to my mind and she certainly succeeded in making me concerned for the fate of Susan and Ping-Cho. Of course, when the girls are brought back to camp by the villainous Tegana, her reaction to them was just as spot on, relieved yet angry at them both for putting her through the experience.
It is with this whole sandstorm experience, though, that we come to one of the main problems with Doctor Who in the Sixties: the need for actors to have weeks off. Apart from the final scene of the episode, William Hartnell is absent from this episode. His lack of appearance is waved off by saying that he simply slept through the storm. Sorry, but considering the racket going on, coupled with the whinnying of the frightened horses and Barbara's outburst, the Doctor must have been in a coma to miss it all. I also didn't like the fact that those who were awake decided to keep the fact that Susan had nearly died in the storm a complete secret.
The next day, the caravan continues its journey across the Gobi Desert and move ever closer to its next crisis as Tegana finally makes his move. As planned at the end of "The Roof of the World", Tegana slashes all but one of the water gourds in the hopes of driving the caravan back towards Lop and into an awaiting bandit trap. Indeed, his plan would of worked to if it wasn't for those meddling time travellers. Marco takes Ian's suggestion that they head north, a week long journey to an oasis. True, they'd be getting weaker each day as the water ration ran out, but there was less chance of being attacked by bandits.
After several days of travel however, the water ration runs out completely and they are still some distance from the oasis. The Doctor collapses from heat exhaustion and Marco reluctantly gives his permission for the Time Lord and his granddaughter to rest in the TARDIS as they continue their journey. In an interesting twist, Tegana volunteers to be a hero and ride out to the oasis and bring back water to the caravan. Obviously, he has no intention of doing so as his gloating at the oasis in the final scene shows.
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| "Here's water, Marco Polo. Come for it!" |
Moment(s) of the Episode
I actually have two moments of the episode this time. The first is the glorious scene between Susan and Barbara outside the main tent. The Doctor has just refused to eat his dinner and Susan rushes outside all upset. After discussing why the Doctor is feeling the way he is, they both look up at the stars.
Susan: "One day we'll learn all the mysteries of the skies, and we'll stop our wandering."
Barbara: "Then you and I will say goodbye."Such a little, beautiful moment, and wonderfully played by Carole Ann Ford and Jacqueline Hill.
The second moment is when Marco and Tegana are alone in the tent. Marco is writing in his journal and Tegana asks him what he is doing. It is all very convivial on the surface, but you can here the lack of respect and even disdain that Tegana has for the Venetian. Then to cap it all off, Tegana shouts and brandishes his sword, yet Marco reacts quickly and meets the Mongol well. Lesson learned for Tegana perhaps.
Continuity Corner
- Susan and her grandfather once saw the Metal Seas of Venus.
Episode 3: "Five Hundred Eyes"
At the conclusion of the last episode, things were looking rather bleak for the Doctor and his friends as they faced the very real chance of dying of dehydration in the Gobi desert. Fortunately, salvation is at hand, but not from the treacherous Tegana, but condensation forming in the TARDIS as the freezing air of night is warmed by the stifling heat of day.
Indeed this is all explained to us at length as Ian enters schoolteacher mode once again. Unlike, the out of place teaching in "The Roof of the World", at least the explanation is given to preserve the travellers lives as they explain how they suddenly produce water to a apoplectic Marco. Thank goodness that they are able to convince him.
With Marco's caravan now given a new supply of water, they are able to make it to the oasis and find Tegana. The Mongol warlord certainly has some explaining to do as to why he never started back with fresh water, but he concocts a cock-and-bull story about Bandits camping at the oasis overnight. It's certainly a flimsy excuse, as Barbara points out, they must have been very clean as there was no evidence of a fire being built even on a bitterly cold desert night. What's the most amazing is that Barbara seems to be the only one cottoning on to Tegana's duplicity, while Marco and the others are quick to take him at his word.
The spark being lit to Barbara's suspicions, the story quickly moves to the city of Tun-Huang where the caravan has set up for a few days before starting on the next leg of the journey. Of course, the Doctor, clever as ever has managed to make another TARDIS key and hopes to use the respite to make repairs. Naturally, things don't go to plan.
Before we get to that though, we have a bizarre little interlude as they all settle down to watch Ping-Cho tell a little story about the Hashashin, Hulagu and the Caves of Five Hundred Eyes. It's certainly well told and the music in the background complements it nicely, but it does take me out of the story every time I watch this episode. Of course, Ian once again slips into teacher mode briefly as he informs Susan that we use a form of Hashashin in the 20th century: assassin. A interesting factoid, but surely Barbara's the history teacher?!?
Not that Barbara has much time to give history lessons as her spidey-sense is definitely tingling when it comes to Tegana. Rather foolishly, she follows Tegana as he leaves the city and makes his way over two miles to the Cave of Five Hundred Eyes. Suspicions are one thing, but you'd think she'd at least tell Ian, but she goes off alone and soon falls into the hands of Tegana's creepy cohorts. Interestingly, Tegana proves not to have the stomach for complete villainy as he is happy for his friends to have their way with Barbara while he returns to the city to drink tea.
Of course, it isn't long before Barbara is missed and Marco, Ian and Tegana set off in search of the young woman. Wonderfully, it isn't the heroes that we focus on, as it is Susan and Ping-Cho that deduce that Barbara has made her way to the Cave of Five Hundred Eyes and they enlist the Doctor's help in finding her. Not that the old Time Lord doesn't get distracted upon entering the cave, entranced by the wonderful carvings in the quartz, he has to be reminded by Susan that they actually came to look for Barbara.
We end the episode with Susan in hysterics once again as she spots a pair of eyes moving on a carved face on the rock. Usually, I sneer at her overreactions, but on this occasion, it absolutely works. What a wonderful cliffhanger, even if she did stumble over her worlds a little.
Indeed this is all explained to us at length as Ian enters schoolteacher mode once again. Unlike, the out of place teaching in "The Roof of the World", at least the explanation is given to preserve the travellers lives as they explain how they suddenly produce water to a apoplectic Marco. Thank goodness that they are able to convince him.
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| Water, water, everywhere. |
The spark being lit to Barbara's suspicions, the story quickly moves to the city of Tun-Huang where the caravan has set up for a few days before starting on the next leg of the journey. Of course, the Doctor, clever as ever has managed to make another TARDIS key and hopes to use the respite to make repairs. Naturally, things don't go to plan.
Before we get to that though, we have a bizarre little interlude as they all settle down to watch Ping-Cho tell a little story about the Hashashin, Hulagu and the Caves of Five Hundred Eyes. It's certainly well told and the music in the background complements it nicely, but it does take me out of the story every time I watch this episode. Of course, Ian once again slips into teacher mode briefly as he informs Susan that we use a form of Hashashin in the 20th century: assassin. A interesting factoid, but surely Barbara's the history teacher?!?
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| The Doctor and Ping-Cho. |
Of course, it isn't long before Barbara is missed and Marco, Ian and Tegana set off in search of the young woman. Wonderfully, it isn't the heroes that we focus on, as it is Susan and Ping-Cho that deduce that Barbara has made her way to the Cave of Five Hundred Eyes and they enlist the Doctor's help in finding her. Not that the old Time Lord doesn't get distracted upon entering the cave, entranced by the wonderful carvings in the quartz, he has to be reminded by Susan that they actually came to look for Barbara.
We end the episode with Susan in hysterics once again as she spots a pair of eyes moving on a carved face on the rock. Usually, I sneer at her overreactions, but on this occasion, it absolutely works. What a wonderful cliffhanger, even if she did stumble over her worlds a little.
Moment of the Episode
The moment of the episode once again belongs to Miss Barbara Wright. Just prior to the Doctor, Susan and Ping-Cho arriving, she is trapped in the cave with a couple of Tegana's Mongol cohorts, who are playing a game with dice while they wait. No real words are exchanged in this scene, but one of the Mongols drawing his finger across his throat as he looks at the terrified Barbara is enough to tell you that they were playing for the right to kill her. Ghoulish.
Episode 4: "The Wall of Lies"
I have been remiss during my watch of Marco Polo in not highlighting Polo himself and his actions and thought processes which we gain some glimpse of through his journal extracts. In "The Roof of the World", Polo takes possession of the TARDIS with the intention of presenting it to Kublai Khan so that he can indeed buy his freedom to return to Venice. In any other story this would mark Polo would then be considered the villain of the story for the Doctor and his friends to fight against. However, that isn't the case, we the audience, and indeed the Doctor's companions (if not the Time Lord himself) feel sorry for Polo and his story of enforced servitude to the Khan.
Polo's lack of villainy is further highlighted through his journal entries in which he feels he must protect the Doctor and his friends and has a duty to see them back to Venice, even though he is responsible for their situation. Indeed, he strikes up a friendship with Ian, and is content to let Susan and Ping-Cho become the best of friends, even with the inherent risks. In short, Polo is a man of truth and honour, yet is desperate to return home. It is in this episode, that the core of Polo's being is tested.
Moving on to the Mongol warlord Tegana and he plays an absolute blinder in this episode. Throughout this adventure, Tegana has been attempting to stop Polo's caravan from reaching Shang-Tu and his meeting with the Mighty Kublai Khan as he attempts to sue for peach as an emissary for Nogai. To say that the Doctor and his companions have been a bit of a thorn in his side is an understatement, yet it is with their help that he manages to convince Polo of their duplicity and improve his position with the Venetian.
With Polo, I really like to believe that he harbors doubts over Tegana. After all, he is an emissary for an enemy of the Khan, although obviously he is duty bound to ensure his safety and arrival at Shang-Tu. Tegana's attitude and behaviour toward Polo, whether it's pulling a sword on him in an attempt to test his reactions, a tone dripping with disdain on occasion or sneaking off into the desert and cities without permission would certainly get me thinking. Indeed, it could be said that he hardly has a friendly relationship with Tegana like he has with Ian.
Perhaps then, his discovery that the Doctor and his friends have somehow made another TARDIS key, have conducted their repairs and planned to slip off in the middle of the night, speaks more of a betrayal of friendship, of trust, and especially honor. Yes, it was Tegana's poisonous words to Polo that led to the Venetian having doubts, but actually, there was truth to those words: The Doctor is the leader of their little band, but also can you truly trust those who have been wronged by you. Polo's anger is certainly understandable, yet Tegana is still very much the villain to the audience, as he makes things far harder for the Doctor, Susan, Ian and Barbara.
Still, with a dead guard outside the time travellers tent, is the next phase of Tegana's plan about to play out?
Polo's lack of villainy is further highlighted through his journal entries in which he feels he must protect the Doctor and his friends and has a duty to see them back to Venice, even though he is responsible for their situation. Indeed, he strikes up a friendship with Ian, and is content to let Susan and Ping-Cho become the best of friends, even with the inherent risks. In short, Polo is a man of truth and honour, yet is desperate to return home. It is in this episode, that the core of Polo's being is tested.
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| Tegana speaks poison about the Doctor and his companions. |
With Polo, I really like to believe that he harbors doubts over Tegana. After all, he is an emissary for an enemy of the Khan, although obviously he is duty bound to ensure his safety and arrival at Shang-Tu. Tegana's attitude and behaviour toward Polo, whether it's pulling a sword on him in an attempt to test his reactions, a tone dripping with disdain on occasion or sneaking off into the desert and cities without permission would certainly get me thinking. Indeed, it could be said that he hardly has a friendly relationship with Tegana like he has with Ian.
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| The confrontation outside the TARDIS. |
Still, with a dead guard outside the time travellers tent, is the next phase of Tegana's plan about to play out?
Moment of the Episode
The Doctor: "You poor, pathetic, stupid savage!"There's absolutely no question with this one: it has to be the big confrontation outside of the TARDIS. I truly believed that Tegana was going to be shown as a fool at his insistence that the Doctor was inside his "caravan", thinking that the Time Lord would notice what was happening on the scanner and stay put. Instead he steps out into the waiting Polo, Tegana and Ian. This whole scene is dynamite as Tegana's poison takes route in Polo and he explodes, officially making the travellers prisoners of the Khan and threatening them with a death sentence.
Episode 5: "Rider from Shang-Tu"
In the review for "The Wall of Lies" I spoke at length about the motivations and actions of both Polo and Tegana. So, it was rather nice to see that this episode followed up on yesterday's discussion and not only that, but see the Doctor and his companions also considering the same when it comes to Tegana.
From the very beginning of the episode, it is hinted at that Polo still trusts and respects Ian as he is so quick to accept that there is about to be a bandit attack. True, it would be a strange method of executing an escape plan by waking up the entire camp, when they could just quietly steal back the TARDIS keys and be on their merry way. This makes Tegana's bluster regarding the travellers intentions all the more mystifying.
It is through Ian's honesty in revealing that they are making an escape attempt, as well as all of their actions in defending the camp from the bandit attack that brings Polo to see past their former betrayal and restore all of the privileges they once had and rescind the Khan's decree so that they are now his prisoners. Once again, we are shown that Polo is a man of principle who places honor and trust above all else. After all, he simply had to implore Ping-Cho not to reveal where he had hidden the TARDIS keys, and that was enough for Ping-Cho to keep her word (although she stole them anyway, following the letter of her promise, if not the intent). It was therefore a strange experience to feel sympathetic toward Polo when the travellers once again try to abscond at the episode's conclusion. Yet, that speaks to how well the characters in this story are written.
Examining Tegana and once again one of his schemes unravels thanks to the Doctor and his companions and, ironically, it is he that brings an end to the bandit attack by killing the leader, Acomat, rather than be exposed. This is enough to tip off the Doctor that the Mongol warlord is up to mischief, although he believes that he is simply after the TARDIS. However, Ian recalls that Tegana is terrified of it and the "magic" that lies within, which is right, but he isn't aware that Tegana has already made plans to send the TARDIS to Nogai. With the story moving to it's conclusion and the travellers moving on towards Shang-Tu, it can only be a matter of time before Tegana's motives are revealed.
Before I sign off, just a quick note to say that the educational agenda is at play in this episode, and it was actually quite interesting this time. The travellers put bamboo on the fire as it expands and creates a loud bang that will hopefully scare away the bandits. Ultimately, it had a role to play, but it was the death of Acomat that proved the final blow. More interesting was the arrival of Ling-Tau, a messenger from the Khan who had traveled 300 miles on horseback in one day. The facts he relates about changing horses every three miles, wearing bells to notify the next way station and wearing tight bands around the head and other extremities to reduce the physical impact, truly interested me. As much as I have complained at times, it's interesting to see the educational agenda in the program when it's as good as this. Sadly, something that is lost over time.
From the very beginning of the episode, it is hinted at that Polo still trusts and respects Ian as he is so quick to accept that there is about to be a bandit attack. True, it would be a strange method of executing an escape plan by waking up the entire camp, when they could just quietly steal back the TARDIS keys and be on their merry way. This makes Tegana's bluster regarding the travellers intentions all the more mystifying.
It is through Ian's honesty in revealing that they are making an escape attempt, as well as all of their actions in defending the camp from the bandit attack that brings Polo to see past their former betrayal and restore all of the privileges they once had and rescind the Khan's decree so that they are now his prisoners. Once again, we are shown that Polo is a man of principle who places honor and trust above all else. After all, he simply had to implore Ping-Cho not to reveal where he had hidden the TARDIS keys, and that was enough for Ping-Cho to keep her word (although she stole them anyway, following the letter of her promise, if not the intent). It was therefore a strange experience to feel sympathetic toward Polo when the travellers once again try to abscond at the episode's conclusion. Yet, that speaks to how well the characters in this story are written.
Examining Tegana and once again one of his schemes unravels thanks to the Doctor and his companions and, ironically, it is he that brings an end to the bandit attack by killing the leader, Acomat, rather than be exposed. This is enough to tip off the Doctor that the Mongol warlord is up to mischief, although he believes that he is simply after the TARDIS. However, Ian recalls that Tegana is terrified of it and the "magic" that lies within, which is right, but he isn't aware that Tegana has already made plans to send the TARDIS to Nogai. With the story moving to it's conclusion and the travellers moving on towards Shang-Tu, it can only be a matter of time before Tegana's motives are revealed.
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| Ling-Tau, the rider from Shang-Tu. |
Before I sign off, just a quick note to say that the educational agenda is at play in this episode, and it was actually quite interesting this time. The travellers put bamboo on the fire as it expands and creates a loud bang that will hopefully scare away the bandits. Ultimately, it had a role to play, but it was the death of Acomat that proved the final blow. More interesting was the arrival of Ling-Tau, a messenger from the Khan who had traveled 300 miles on horseback in one day. The facts he relates about changing horses every three miles, wearing bells to notify the next way station and wearing tight bands around the head and other extremities to reduce the physical impact, truly interested me. As much as I have complained at times, it's interesting to see the educational agenda in the program when it's as good as this. Sadly, something that is lost over time.
Moment(s) of the Episode
In an episode filled with bandit attacks and another intense scene outside the TARDIS, it is actually two little scenes between Susan and Ping-Cho that stand out in this episode. The first is when the two girls are watching the fish swim around in the koi pond and they are suggesting who the fish remind them of, which leads to them both talking of their desire to return to their respective homes. The second follows on from this, when Ping-Cho hands the TARDIS keys over to Susan. Two beautiful scenes.
The Doctor: "'I could hardly have it placed in the hanging garden, now could I?' What does he think it is? A potting shed, or something."
The third moment must be given to the Doctor's interaction with Wang-Lo at the White City way station. Asking about the whereabouts of the TARDIS, Lo remarks that he'd put it in the stables as he could hardly leave it in the hanging gardens. The Doctor's outrage and mimicry of Lo are great, but the reactions of Ian and Barbara make this moment priceless.
Episode 6: "Mighty Kublai Khan"
There has been an elephant in the room throughout this entire viewing of Marco Polo so far, not because it wasn't something that I didn't want to talk about in case I might cause some upset, but simply because I knew a point was coming in the story when it would be brought to the fore. That subject, is, of course, the upcoming arranged marriage of Ping-Cho to a somewhat older gentleman that she has never met.
Our own views on arranged marriages doesn't matter in this context, although the program assumes that the audiences views would tie in with the Doctor and his companions. Susan's condemnation seems rather out of place considering all the places that she and her grandfather had visited and all the cultures that they had encountered, but then, Ping-Cho has grown to be a rather close friend of the young Gallifreyan. Of course, Barbara is strongly opposed to the marriage, and even goes as far to speak for Ian during in the tense conversation with Polo.
Cutting through all of the issues we must focus on the young woman involved. With their arrival at Shang-Tu imminent and with the botched escape attempt by the travellers that she aided in, Ping-Cho disappears into the night with all the money that she has and travels back to Cheng Ting in the hopes of finding passage back to Samarkand. Throughout this entire story, Ping-Cho has been excellently portrayed by Zienia Merton as a gentle and fragile creature taken far from her home and everything she knew, and the thought of her trekking back to Cheng Ting alone absolutely breaks my heart.
Her arrival in Cheng Ting isn't the end of the trauma for poor Cho either as she is conned out of her money by the eye-patch wearing Kuiju and his mischievous monkey before being admonished and man-handled by Wang-Lo. Thank the lord for the arrival of Ian, although he simply wants to return her to Shang-Tu and her arranged marriage. Until he learns that Kuiji has made off with the TARDIS that is, when the pair set off in pursuit along the road to Karakorum and straight into the path of Tegana. The warlord has also followed Cho back after convincing Polo that the travellers were only interested in the TARDIS (although the discussion about arranged marriages didn't help). As we build into the final episode, Tegana's duplicity is finally revealed as Kuiju revealed it is he who paid him to steal the TARDIS.
In the next episode, we finally reach the end of our journey to Cathay. Will Tegana finally get his comeuppance? Will the travellers finally get the TARDIS back? Will Polo make it back to Vienna as Barbara once suggested? I can't wait to find out.
Moment(s) of the Episode
As much as I loved the scenes between the Doctor and Kublai Khan, my favourite scene was just a small one between Ian and Polo. With the not-so subtle prodding of Barbara, Ian once again tries to
convince the Venetian to give the TARDIS back. Ian finally reveals that they are from the future and that the ship is their only way home. Polo's description of time travel is rather poetic and a great line, but coupled with his testing of Ian's honesty when he asks how he got the key, it just makes a great scene.
Our own views on arranged marriages doesn't matter in this context, although the program assumes that the audiences views would tie in with the Doctor and his companions. Susan's condemnation seems rather out of place considering all the places that she and her grandfather had visited and all the cultures that they had encountered, but then, Ping-Cho has grown to be a rather close friend of the young Gallifreyan. Of course, Barbara is strongly opposed to the marriage, and even goes as far to speak for Ian during in the tense conversation with Polo.
Cutting through all of the issues we must focus on the young woman involved. With their arrival at Shang-Tu imminent and with the botched escape attempt by the travellers that she aided in, Ping-Cho disappears into the night with all the money that she has and travels back to Cheng Ting in the hopes of finding passage back to Samarkand. Throughout this entire story, Ping-Cho has been excellently portrayed by Zienia Merton as a gentle and fragile creature taken far from her home and everything she knew, and the thought of her trekking back to Cheng Ting alone absolutely breaks my heart.
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| Ping-Cho is conned out of her money by Kuiju and his evil monkey. |
Her arrival in Cheng Ting isn't the end of the trauma for poor Cho either as she is conned out of her money by the eye-patch wearing Kuiju and his mischievous monkey before being admonished and man-handled by Wang-Lo. Thank the lord for the arrival of Ian, although he simply wants to return her to Shang-Tu and her arranged marriage. Until he learns that Kuiji has made off with the TARDIS that is, when the pair set off in pursuit along the road to Karakorum and straight into the path of Tegana. The warlord has also followed Cho back after convincing Polo that the travellers were only interested in the TARDIS (although the discussion about arranged marriages didn't help). As we build into the final episode, Tegana's duplicity is finally revealed as Kuiju revealed it is he who paid him to steal the TARDIS.
Away from the runaway Ping-Cho, we of course have the arrival of Polo's caravan at Shang-Tu and our meeting with the Mighty Kublai Khan. And what an absolute gem of a meeting it was! For the first time, William Hartnell was able to flex his comedic muscle on Doctor Who and I was lapping up every single minute of it. The initial exchanges with the Vizier, with the Doctor complaining that his bad back after five days of horse riding meant that he couldn't kowtow to the Khan, was funny enough but the scenes with the Khan was the absolutely pinnacle. I've included my favourite part of the exchange below.
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| The Doctor charms "Mighty" Kublai Khan. |
Kublai Khan: "I think it is better that you ride with us [to Peking]."
The Doctor: "Oh, not another horse."
Kublai Khan: "You spoke?"
The Doctor: "I said I don't think I can get on another horse."
Kublai Khan: "Then walk!"Fair play to the old Time Lord though, soon enough he is able to blag his way to travelling in the Khan's carriage of state and comforting the old despot by stating that age must be bore with dignity. The sly old fox.
In the next episode, we finally reach the end of our journey to Cathay. Will Tegana finally get his comeuppance? Will the travellers finally get the TARDIS back? Will Polo make it back to Vienna as Barbara once suggested? I can't wait to find out.
Moment(s) of the Episode
Polo: "... why not a caravan that flies? Birds fly. I have even seen fish that fly. You are asking me to believe that your caravan can defy the passage of the sun? Move not merely from one place to another, but from today into tomorrow, today into yesterday? No, Ian. That I cannot accept."
As much as I loved the scenes between the Doctor and Kublai Khan, my favourite scene was just a small one between Ian and Polo. With the not-so subtle prodding of Barbara, Ian once again tries to
convince the Venetian to give the TARDIS back. Ian finally reveals that they are from the future and that the ship is their only way home. Polo's description of time travel is rather poetic and a great line, but coupled with his testing of Ian's honesty when he asks how he got the key, it just makes a great scene.
Episode 7: "Assassin at Peking"
And so our journey to Cathay comes to an end. It hasn't quite been a seven-day run-through as originally intended thanks to a couple of real life issues. That feels strangely appropriate for a story that has spanned so much time for the Doctor and his companions as they've travelled from the Himalayas, across the Gobi desert, traipsed through bamboo forests and into the very heart of China itself and the seat of the Khan's power at Peking.
While the regular characters have been on quite a journey geographically, I feel that they've also been on quite an adventure emotionally as well. At the conclusion of The Edge of Destruction, all of the emotional baggage from the previous thirteen episodes had been ejected and a new team had emerged. Over the course of this adventure, the Doctor has emerged as the leader of the group but has also had some of those hard edges knocked off and discovered some well-needed humour and a sense of wonder that is quintessential for the Time Lord.
The Doctor's companions have also developed over the course of this adventure to a greater or lesser degree. Susan is finally served well in a story for the first time since "An Unearthly Child", being given this wonderful friendship with Ping-Cho where we can finally see the young Time Lady in relation to her peers rather than measure her against her authority figures. Through her conversations with Ping-Cho and earlier on with Barbara, we learn of her desire to find a place to settle down and end the eternal wandering, or perhaps even return home to Gallifrey.
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| The three main players. |
Barbara Wright continues to go from strength-to-strength as her independent streak strongly asserts itself and she starts to move out from Ian's shadow. She was on to the villainous Tegana from the very beginning, suspicious of his reports of bandits at the oasis, following him alone to the Cave of One Hundred Eyes despite the possible consequences and being openly defiant with regard to Ping-Cho's arranged marriage to Marco Polo.
However, I feel that Ian has had the least development out of the main characters. Yes, he has served as a spokesperson for the time travellers thanks to his friendship with Polo, but he served a similar function with Ganatus and the Thals. The only new development is that he has slipped into teaching mode and is informing all and sundry about the boiling point of water, oxygen deprivation at high altitudes and the origins of the word "assassin". All very interesting, but not much of a stretch for a secondary school teacher.
Looking back at Marco Polo, it has been a long and meandering story, where the location has changed from episode-to-episode, and even in the same episode. Yet, many of the story beats of each of the individual episodes has been the same: Tegana sets a plan in motion, that plan is foiled by the TARDIS crew, Tegana speaks poison against them to Marco and the Venetian loses his temper and questions his trust in them. It has been a slow affair and yet, and yet, it is due to the performances and the fine characters that it hasn't felt boring at all. Some of the best scenes have been just a few characters chatting away.
"Assassin at Peking" feels like a very different beast from the six episodes that preceded it and suffers from the same problem as the final episode of The Daleks: so much is crammed in that some of the dangling plot threads are resolved in a single line. The biggest victim of this is Ping-Cho's story which has been built up over six episodes, yet her beloved dies off-screen on the night before the wedding and she's off the hook. A bit of a cop out. Even a goodbye scene with Susan was rushed as they just shouted their farewells to each other as the travellers dashed into the TARDIS.
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| The final confrontation. |
In the end, Tegana chooses to end his own life rather than be executed by the Khan's guards. For some reason, this makes me happy and it seems quite fitting. Tegana had been a bit of a pantomime villain at times and his plans have all fallen to nought, but God loves a trier. Thanks to his actions in saving the Khan's life, Polo is finally given permission to return home to Venice and so allows the travellers to depart in their caravan. I love a happy ending.
Moment(s) of the Episode
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| The Doctor and "Mighty" Kublai Khan play backgammon for the TARDIS. |
The moment must of course go to the scene between the Doctor and "Mighty" Kublai Khan. After ingratiating himself with the despot in the last episode, the Time Lord is happily playing backgammon with him and even has him ordering refreshments for him. It turns out that the Doctor is rather good at backgammon, winning a variety of different animals from across the Empire as well as a year's worth of trade from Burma. So, it's only natural that the Doctor seeks to keep the Khan out of trouble with the Empress and bargains it all on gaining the TARDIS back... and loses. A fantastic scene and it's nice to see that the Doctor's sense of humor is here to stay.
8/10
