The Flames of Cadiz

The TARDIS brings the crew back to Earth in 1587, to Cadiz, Spain, during the Inquisition and the bloody war with England. Although they know this is a cruel and brutal time the crew explores the city and inevitably end up caught up in the tide of events, with Ian arrested and the Doctor exposed as an impostor when he tries to rescue him. Susan and Barbara must attempt to save them if they are to get away together, and later Ian gets a chance to meet his childhood hero, Sir Francis Drake. And there's a saying about meeting your heroes...

With the participation of Carole Ann Ford as Susan this time, Flames of Cadiz feels more like one of the early adventures as opposed to a Companion Chronicles adventure in tone, and in length. All the previous Companion Chronicles were told by one regular with a guest star, and they were told over two approximately 25 minute episodes, but this time the cast is fuller and therefor richer, and they are given four episodes to tell this tale. As a result it's a bit more of an epic adventure again, by comparison, and maybe should be dropped back into continuity further back and enjoyed between some televised episodes. Ian references having been on The Endeavour recently in Transit of Venus, which would mean this tale comes somewhere between the first two seasons, possibly before the Lost Stories range episode Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance. And again as it was commonplace back in that early era, there is not some alien plot behind events taking place in Cadiz - the only science fiction is the time travel which brought the travellers to the city in the first place. The rest, as they say, is history.

The question of changing history comes up again here, and it also brings an interesting notion of what would happen if the Doctor got his dates wrong. It's a bit of a plot point so as not to make a spoiler I'll leave it alone for now, but imagine if the Doctor was convinced something was going to happen but he was off by a year or two and either caused it early or prevented it, entirely out of ignorance. Handy to have a history teacher along for the ride. Bust history lessons did not prepare Ian for his meeting with Drake, who is not the hero he had imagined him to be from films and school lessons. But travelling in the TARDIS has given Ian a taste for adventure and he plunges on, deliberately going where the Doctor tells him not to.

Having Susan show up again now after not hearing from her since The Sleeping Blood is a bit interesting, but undermines her own continuity after having left the Doctor now her own life on Earth in the future has been established. Another argument for placing the story earlier in the series instead of after; either have Ian or Susan establish that they are recounting this tale for someone else or place it in proper chronological order. Sorry, I like order; it's just a bit hard to maintain with so many ideas and so many historical perspectives jostling around as the classic series of Doctor Who expands on all its fronts...

NEXT EPISODE: THE LIBRARY OF ALEXANDRIA