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Summoned by Shadows (1992) (V)

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3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Alterna Who, 27 June 2001
Author: zedthedestroyer from Chicago

Interesting. Initially this comes across as something of a "sort of/what-if" story. What if the newly-regenerated Sixth Doctor decided to become a hermit instead of travelling through time and space? That being the case, this story begins a few months (or maybe years) after his regeneration, when a distraught Ms. Brown (an older Peri with an English accent) leaves the Stranger to his self-pitying contemplation. In the true fashion of a Doctor Who companion she immediately falls into some sort of trouble by coming across a surreal cocktail party hosted by an older debonair man (played by Michael "Davros" Wisher). Meanwhile, a young deaf mute's girlfriend is mesmerized and spirited away to a work party by an illusionist clown (also played by Wisher). After receiving no help from the town's elder (again Wisher - the guy's prolific), the mute seeks the Strangers help. The Stranger is initially deaf (no pun intended) to the young man's pleas, but eventually decides to help him.

The Doctor Who ties run even deeper when the Stranger and the young man are captured by the primary villain - the Controller, who looks suspiciously like the Master from "The Deadly Assassin". The Master's propensity for disguises is echoed in the fact that the illusionist, the town elder, and the party host are all aspects of the Controller.

I'm not knocking the Who-ish aspects of the story. In fact, I enjoyed them. The story was a simple run-around, but it was a treat to see Nicola Bryant and Colin Baker (proving once again what a great Doctor he could have been without the clownish clothes and outside interference).

Worth a look by Doctor Who fans, especially if they're fans of Colin Baker.

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