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The Mind of Evil

Reviewed by Cameron Pritchard

This, I thought, was an average sort of story. Perhaps if it had been faster it might have been better, but even so when I reached the end of the story I was satisfied. Roger Delgado again gives a stunning performance. I found it quite funny when the Master was on the Keller Machine and he was seeing the Doctor laughing at him - the Doctor was obviously one of his fears. I watched the story once more and still found it quite enjoyable.

Reviewed by Jonathan Park

This story will forever be held as one of my favourites. I really loved the Master's character and the idea of a mind-sapping parasite. I also enjoyed the characters of Mailer and Barnham. The cliffhangers were really great and I liked the monsters coming out of the machine. I hope that the machine, perhaps, comes back in a future story.

Reviewed by Clinton Spencer

The Master returns. People are dying in strange ways. A mind parasite. Jo in flares!! It had to be a semi-classic, and it was. When I sat down to watch the first episode I wondered how they were going to pad this story out for six episodes. Five weeks later I had found out how. Time seemed to fly by as I became engrossed with the adventure. I just couldn't keep my eyes off the screen.

After Don Houghton's last classic, Inferno, he was destined to produce another excellent piece of work. It is a pity he didn't write any more for the show.

The characters of the Doctor and Jo seem more settled than in Terror of the Autons and there's not a daffodil in sight! It was also good to see Jo getting split up from the Doctor and fending for herself. A nice range of locations were used, especially Dover Castle. I loved the UNIT battle around the prison; real Pertwee stuff. Pity it lead to the overspending of the budget. The mind parasite is an interesting creation. It is a pity we didn't see its actual, true form, and it would be good to see it return one day. The excellent theme music for the creature just tops off the overall effect.

I must admit that although I say the story is a semi-classic I doubt I'll be watching it too many times... the UNIT shoot out maybe... boy, am I blood thirsty!! But why else do I watch Doctor Who then?

This item appeared in TSV 29 (July 1992).

Index nodes: The Mind of Evil