S22E9
Cynical
Written by Robert Holmes
View Graph

The Two Doctors Part 3

The Doctor and his companions navigate a complex web of time travel and deception as they encounter the Sontarans and an Androgum transformation plot.

The narrative begins with the Doctor and his companions encountering the Sontarans, led by Group Marshal Stike, who plan to use a functioning Time Space machine. The Doctor and his friend Jamie are captured, and the Doctor is forced to undergo a transformation into an Androgum. Meanwhile, another Doctor (the Second Doctor) is also trapped and undergoes a similar transformation. The story unfolds as the Doctors and their companions navigate through various locations, including a hacienda and a restaurant, while trying to stop the Sontarans' sinister plans. The plot thickens as Chessene, Dastari, and Shockeye play their parts in the transformation and pursuit of the Doctors. The resolution involves a confrontation between the Doctors, their allies, and the antagonists, ultimately leading to the defeat of the Sontarans and the escape of the Doctors.


Events in This Episode

The narrative beats that drive the story

57
Act 1

Peri, the Sixth Doctor's companion, falls victim to Shockeye's predatory nature, being knocked unconscious and carried off by the large, brutish Androgum chef. Concurrently, the Sixth Doctor and Jamie are held captive by Group Marshal Stike, a Sontaran commander, who intends to exploit the Doctor's knowledge of a functioning Time Space machine. Stike's goal is to use this advanced technology to return to his unit and gain a decisive advantage in the ongoing Sontaran-Rutan war. Under duress, with Jamie's life explicitly threatened, the Doctor is forced to prime the machine, seemingly making it operational. However, Jamie seizes a critical opportunity, stabbing Stike in the knee, which allows both him and the Doctor to escape the Sontarans' immediate grasp. During their flight, they soon discover the Second Doctor, also a prisoner, tied to a wheelchair in the hacienda. The two incarnations of the Doctor meet, an unusual and significant event within their shared timeline, marked by a moment of mutual recognition and a playful "Snap!" Meanwhile, Chessene and Dastari, the scientists responsible for the Androgum transformation, reveal their sinister plan to turn the Second Doctor into an Androgum. Their intention is to create a powerful consort for Chessene, one imbued with the Time Lord's unique abilities. The Sixth Doctor, Jamie, and Peri manage to regroup outside, where the Sixth Doctor reveals his cunning pre-emptive sabotage: he intentionally provided Stike with false information about the machine's full functionality and, crucially, removed the Briode Nebuliser, a vital component, ensuring Stike cannot use the Time Space machine effectively. This complex web of deceptions and escalating threats sets the stage for the unfolding conflict, with the Doctors and their companions now acutely aware of the multifaceted dangers they face from both the Sontarans and the Androgum conspirators.

Act 2

The narrative intensifies as Chessene and Dastari proceed with the Second Doctor's transformation, implanting Androgum genetic material. Simultaneously, Chessene plots to eliminate Stike, using canisters of coronic acid, which she believes will destroy the Sontarans. Shockeye, now freed and partially transformed with bushy red eyebrows, bonds with the Second Doctor over their shared Androgum instincts, particularly their insatiable hunger, leading them to seek out restaurants in Seville. The Sixth Doctor, Jamie, and Peri pursue them, witnessing the Second Doctor's alarming transformation and his increasing disregard for human life, such as when he enables Shockeye to assault a truck driver to steal his vehicle. The Sixth Doctor himself begins to experience the early stages of Androgum transformation, manifesting as an unusual craving for small mammals, which he fights off by immersing his head in a fountain. The pursuit culminates in a Seville restaurant, Las Cadenas, where Shockeye, frustrated by the concept of payment for their gargantuan meal, brutally murders the proprietor, Oscar Botcherby. This shocking act unexpectedly restores the Second Doctor's Time Lord identity, as the Androgum characteristics recede upon witnessing such extreme violence. However, their brief reprieve is short-lived as Chessene and Dastari recapture the two Doctors and their companions, marching them back to the hacienda, effectively resetting their escape and raising the stakes significantly for their survival.

Act 3

Back in the cellar of the hacienda, Chessene and Dastari discover the Briode Nebuliser is missing. The Sixth Doctor reveals he possesses it and is forced to return it, using Peri to demonstrate its functionality, having previously sabotaged it to work only once. Chessene, still distrustful of the Time Lords, orders Dastari to chain the group. Jamie is singled out by Shockeye, who intends to cook him, leading to a desperate escape plan by the Doctors. They ingeniously manipulate a wheelchair to retrieve the keys, allowing the Sixth Doctor to free himself and rush to Jamie's aid. Upstairs, Shockeye tortures Jamie, tenderizing him with a modified sanding tool. Chessene, enraged by the Sixth Doctor's escape, orders Dastari to kill him, but Dastari, now regretful of his creations and recognizing the danger, hesitates, warning of the Time Lords' immense power. The Sixth Doctor, wounded by Shockeye, manages to escape the hacienda, while Jamie frees himself in the kitchen. The Sixth Doctor uses Oscar's moth-hunting kit, specifically its cyanide crystals, to incapacitate Shockeye, effectively "mothballing" him. In the cellar, Dastari confesses his remorse to the Second Doctor and Peri, acknowledging his error in creating Chessene. Chessene, consumed by her ambition, shoots Dastari and attempts to escape in the now-sabotaged Time Space module. The module explodes, killing Chessene and reverting her to her original warty Androgum form. With the immediate threats neutralized, the two Doctors share a final, characteristic exchange before the Second Doctor uses his Stattenheim remote control to summon his TARDIS and departs with Jamie. The Sixth Doctor and Peri are left to contemplate their next adventure, with the Doctor declaring a new, healthier vegetarian diet.