THE DAEMONS [4.8]

Hearing about a plan to unearth an occult burial site, the Doctor leaps into action. Despite his adamant refusal to believe in magic or the supernatural, he teams up with a local white witch to stop the dig. Meanwhile, in an idyllic neighbouring village, the Master is posing as the new vicar. Leading an underground coven of black sorcerers, he is attempting to summon demonic powers with which to rule the world. But the alien demon he conjures up may be too much even for him to control.

The Majesty

The campy horror vibe of this story finds a cozy little home in my heart. The Master is at his most charismatic; the threat level at its most apocalyptic; the setting at its most quaintly English. Yates and Benton, in civilian clothes, come across as action heroes, and get much more to do than usual. The whole mythos that emerges is very compelling: Azal, last of the Daemons, guiding humanity's development from his miniaturised spaceship in some infernal scientific experiment. This is one of these stories that is almost too short. If only they had had the budget to expand the story beyond the tiny village enclosed in its magical heat-barrier, then I'd have happily watched another four episodes. "The Daemons" had the potential to become another of these epic stories like "The War Games" or "The Key to Time".

The Misery

Miss Hawthorne – the white witch – is very irritating. Her constant blinking and school teacher delivery are either an extreme characterisation choice by the actress or her own personal trait. Either way, she undermines the drama of her scenes over and over again.

There is something very staccato about the editing (or possibly the direction) of this story. The shots are coming thick and fast and it's not always clear what we are looking at or where we are. It seems deliberate – perhaps to disconcert the viewer – but it ends up mainly being confusing.

Magical moments

• The Brigadier is all dolled up in ceremonial uniform for a military dinner. The camaraderie among the troops is pitch-perfect.
• After a long scene deploring superstitions, the Doctor watches TV with the UNIT gang. Miss Hawthorn is raving wildly about magic and the occult and Beltane and devils. “She's absolutely right!” cries the Doctor. “We have to stop that lunatic!”
• Miss Hawthorn calms a demonic windstorm just before a possessed policeman attempts to stone her to death. Very dramatic!
• If the devil comes to the pub, says the landlord, he'll get the best room. “After all, he's my bread and butter.”
• In a similar vein, the Professor has a sharp retort when the TV producer asks what to do if the devil appears. “Use your initiative! Get your chatty friend over there to interview him.”
• The cliffhanger of episode one is spectacular, with the opening of the dig and the apparent apocalypse.
• The Brigadier feels he is hanging around like a spare lemon… whatever he means by that.
• Another great one-liner from the Master, in his guise as a vicar: “It won't be a sermon but this may be the day that changes your life.”
• Azal makes an off-the-cuff threat implying that he was the one who destroyed Atlantis in a fit of pique and will do the same to the Earth. (Infamously, Atlantis is destroyed in three different ways across the history of Doctor Who...)
• Why in the world is the Doctor called Kwee Kwai Kwod? Of all the ridiculous names...
• The Brigadier gives one of the most unique commands of his career: “Chap with wings there – five round rapid”
• Once it's all over, and the Doctor and Jo are dancing round the maypole, Yates turns to the Brigadier: “Fancy a dance sir?” “Kind of you,” he replies, “but I prefer a pint!”

In Summary

“There is magic in the world after all.” Definitely one of the more challenging or boundary-pushing stories of its time, “The Daemons” sees Doctor Who entering new territory. The Doctor even makes controversial theological pronouncements, saying that the alien Azal is “far more real and far more dangerous than the Devil”. Despite this, or maybe because of this, I love this story. The blend of humour and action, of fantasy and science, is perfect for Doctor Who. And for such a quasi-mythical story it has a perfectly suitable quasi-mythical resolution, as Jo saves the world through the power of self-sacrifice.

Overall: 4.8