"The Twin Dilemma" is one of the most maligned stories Doctor Who's ever produced, and it seems to get a lot of stick largely for the (admittedly poor) production. All the stuff about the twins themselves and the Gastropods is merely a side-show to the two real developments here.

The first of these is, of course, Colin Baker's sixth Doctor. The new Doctor is clearly pitched as a contrast to the largely calm, understated fifth Doctor, but that both the production team and Baker take this to such an extreme is commendable. The Doctor is brash, arrogant, cowardly and violent (his attempted strangling of Peri is still something of a shock even with warning - the idea of The Doctor attempting to strangle someone in any situation is jarring), and the polar opposite of the previous incarnation. The energetic, committed Colin Baker is never less than 100% watchable. Sure, there's a little ham, but the sixth Doctor is so much larger than life that it works.

The other main thread of the story is, of course, Peri, and her new predicament. It's sad that so many Missing/Past Doctor Adventures have been shoehorned in for the fifth Doctor/Peri combination, as it cuts out some powerful subtext running through her stories. As intended, the basic storyline runs that Peri is swept away from her comfortable but dull life after befriending the likeable fifth Doctor, and almost immediately she's left with something quite different, a man she doesn't really like. Peri is dependant on The Doctor, more utterly than any other companion present at a regeneration, and her distress is palpable. She's put through the wringer in this story,sharing the audience's frustration with this strange man who seems to be doing his level best to simply piss off anyone going.

The actual plot itself is noteworthy, too. It's inventive, and the pseudo-mathematics are no more ridiculous than they are in "Logopolis". Granted, that means it's still ridiculous, but it's a fun idea. That said, it remains little more than mildly interesting, and the addition of Azmael's rebellion against Mestor for the freedom of Jaconda just feels like it was thrown in to keep the story moving. The nature of the dialogue also allows too many scenes to stray into melodrama. This suits Baker, but not so the other characters, and The Doctor is sometimes lost in the overacting.

The guest cast is a bit of a mess. Kevin McNally does well in most of his scenes as the rather likeable Hugo, though he does occasionally try to compete with Baker and tends to come off second best. It might have been nice for him to join the regular cast, but then he's possibly a little too similar to the recently-departed Turlough in some ways (edgy, possibly a little untrustworthy). Maurice Denham is passable as Azmael, with the "dotty old man" routine possibly taking the edge off a well-written character. Edwin Richfield is lumbered with a very poor costume, and spends most of his time shouting unintelligibly. The Conrad boys are also woefully flat, making most of the scenes they feature in utterly laughable.

The design is probably the biggest failing. The Jacondans are quite well-realised, even if they're clearly armed with glue-guns, but the Gastropods are woeful - ugly, cross-eyed and immobile, and the idea of a big, lumbering slug is hardly makes for a dynamic monster, even when Mestor is given powers.

The story drags badly in the last couple of episodes as the boring old plot overtakes the Doctor/Peri relationship in screentime, and by the end it's good to see the back of the thing. There's plenty of good scenes nonetheless (notably The Doctor showing his humane side as Azmael dies) and solid performances from the leads. While it's far from a classic story, the direction it takes the story in is a promising one - it's really a shame that the friction would largely be lost in Season 22.

Review written: 09/06/06
"The Twin Dilemma" VHS @ Amazon.co.uk