User Reviews

While we needed this episode to wrap up this storyline, I don't think we needed this episode.

I don't know what it was in particular, maybe just the same old "I'll let you go haha just kidding" from Za and the tribe.

Clever move to distract them and fake your death to get away, good job Ian.

I just think they could've put Kal's death or exile at the end of the previous episode and called this storyline a wrap. Show them how to make fire, don't, just get out of there.

Anyways, not much else to say about this episode I feel. For this one in particular I'll give a 5/10, but since this was the close to the cavemen storyline, we'll average from episodes 1-4, giving us a 7/10.

This review is really gonna be separated into two parts. Part 1: An Unearthly Child. Part 2: The Tribe of Gum story. An Unearthly Child is an episode with a lot of responsibility. Being the first episode of a show that would go on to become a national, and international, staple of science fiction, does this premiere episode stand up to what came after it?

Before the story even begins, the title scene sets the mood. Eerie, totally alien 'music' with bizarre visuals open the series with the famous "DOCTOR WHO" written in ghostly letters--this was not your typical opening of a TV show in 1963. For me this has always been among my top five favorite themes, instantly putting a smile on my face. The opening in the junkyard adds a nice atmosphere, but it's when we meet Ian and Barbara, two school teachers at Coal Hill School, that the episode really kicks into gear. Susan Foreman is a new addition to the student body. Incredibly intelligent in some areas, she astounds both teachers. But at the same time, baffles them on her apparent cultural confusions (not knowing that England wasn't on the decimal system...yet), and apparent misunderstanding on subjects that should be child's play to her. Jacqueline Hill and William Russel have great chemistry right off the bat, and their curiosity directly speaks for the audience. We're happy to follow our two intrepid busy bodies, as they go to Susan's "Home" in search of answers. It's here that we meet the Doctor, and what a meeting it is. Condescension and disinterest are the Doctor's main deflectors, but he can be down right mean as well! Hartnell seems to have fun with it, but I can't say I do! Eventually the two enter the Tardis and there's a lot of great dialogue thrown out by all. (Just a side note, this version of the Tardis is definitely a favorite. The room is so unique and without any sort of real dimension, mirroring the ship's dimension bending abilities in travel, and transcendentalism. Love it! After a lovely scene of Hartnell talking about his and Susan's people, it becomes apparent that he's not going to allow Ian and Barbara to leave. There's a struggle, and the Tardis takes off, landing onto one of the best cliffhangers in the show's history...It really is a thing of beauty.

Part. 2 The tribe of gum trilogy (it's not a trilogy) is, in my opinion, rather unfairly derided by the Doctor Who community at large. The story is quick, easy to follow, without holes, and establishes the group dynamic of our crew pretty efficiently, for the most part. I think the big problem with it is, it came after An Unearthly Child. We learn that the Doctor has no control of the Tardis, and that it seems to be rather faulty. Our poor teachers are really out of luck, in regards to getting home. But, although they haven't realized it yet, they've found a kindred spirit in the Doctor, who shares their knack for sticking their noses in things. And decides they should go exploring outside. It's around here we meet the characters of our main plot: Za, the would be leader of the tribe of gum, if only he could figure out how to make fire as his father did (because the firemaker is the leader of the tribe, by default apparently!) and Kal, a newly arrived rival for leadership. This is the main crux of the story, and in some small way mirrors the struggle Ian and the Doctor will have in seeing who calls the shots. This conflict is short lived though, as Ian, seemly more out of spite (although he can tell the Doctor is quite intelligent) eventually hands the reigns over to him.

There really isn't a ton to say about this side of the story, as the plot is pretty uncomplicated. The Doctor is captured by Kal, and is saved (somewhat) by Za when he mentions he knows how to make fire. Za sends him to the cave of skulls, where the T-Crew will spend most of the story in. There's a brief stint where the crazy old lady in the village, fearful of the change fire brings, frees them. And a rather nice moment when Za, injured by a boar while searching to recapture them, is helped by Barbara, contrary to what the Doctor wants. He shows very little sympathy for what he considers a savage, at one point even picking up a rock, seemingly intending to kill him just so they can be done with it, and get back to the Tardis. Thankfully Ian stops him. Kal finds out what the old lady did, kills her and blames it on Za, and there's a pretty great moment where the Doctor, showing his cleverness, points out that Za's knife has no blood on it, and tricks Kal into revealing his own with blood on it. Kal is cast out by the tribe, but makes a reappearance for a fight with Za...meeting a rather unpleasant fate. But after that it's more hanging out in the cave of skulls until they manage to trick the tribe and escape back to the Tardis.

All in all, a pretty strong start. "The Tribe of Gum Trilogy" (I'm trying to get it to catch on, just go with it) is a bit slower, and bit less interesting than "An Unearthly Child", but it's really not bad and can have it's fun moments. Ian comes off the best in this story, with his constant clashes with a rather not so nice Doctor, and although Barbara spends more time crying than she would later in the series, she still has a couple good moments and comes off pretty well overall. Susan really doesn't do much of anything, but it's forgivable. 8/10

The Doctor and his companions work together to find a solution to their predicament. Through teamwork, the Doctor and his companions successfully escape and return to the TARDIS.

Considering that "Doctor Who" was a science-fiction/fantasy series, setting the show's first adventure at the time of prehistoric man seemed to be an unusual choice. However, the characters were well developed; and, there were moments of suspense. The power struggles among the members of the tribe were well depicted. The problem-solving skills of the Doctor and his companions were fun to watch. Overall, this first "Doctor Who" adventure worked quite well and ended in a very satisfactory way. This was a great start to a series which would run for decades to come.