Episode #127 : Enlightenment

"You are a Time Lord, a lord of time. Are there lords in such a small domain?"

Episode 127:          Enlightenment.
Companions:         5th Doctor, Tegan, and Turlough.
Air Date:               1st to 9th March 1983.

The White Guardian warns of impending danger and directs the TARDIS to what appears to be an Edwardian sailing yacht, the SS Shadow, but is actually one of a number of spaceships taking part in a race through the solar system, the prize being Enlightenment. The yacht's Captain Striker and his fellow officers are Eternals who feed off the thoughts and emotions of their kidnapped human crew - Ephemerals - in order to fill their own empty existences.

Enlightenment is a very strange story, almost surreal in fact. I can remember a lot of very similar weirdness coming out of the 1970's British science fiction so it isn't out of place. However, sailing vessels from Earth's history racing around Earth's solar system crewed by drugged/mind controlled sailors and commanded by beings from outside our space time continuum doesn't quite fit in with the Whoniverse we know of, but then in other ways it is the sort of thing I can see fitting in well with the 1st Doctor's adventures. This strangeness doesn't spoil the story but if it seems out of place you might not enjoy as much as you could do.

The Black Guardian is defeated this time though for how long we don't know. The White Guardian makes a reference to the Doctor having a third encounter but so far it has not happened on screen. It would be a nice idea to bring that into the current incarnation of the show. As it stands though watching my way through the classic show again, I'm glad that we won't see him, as just three adventures back to back and I'm bored of the villain already.

At the end of the story the Guardian is defeated and Turlough's activities are revealed though the Doctor seems to forgive him and he joins the crew as a proper companion. One thing we don't get often enough are male companions for the Doctor and even though Turlough does seem a whiny coward a lot of the time, it is nice to see a non-female companion.

"Be vigilant, Doctor. Once you denied him the Key to Time, now you have thwarted him again. He will be waiting for the third encounter, and his power does not diminish.... While I exist, he exists also... until we are no longer needed."