Ep. 39 A Change of Identity

As a countdown to the 50^th anniversary of Doctor Who I and my wife will be watching an episode a day until we are caught up to whatever the Beeb has planned. This is a record of my initial reaction to each day's episode published with minimal editing and crappy synopsis.


"We have surprise on our side.  It's worth three men."

   We have another first in this episode; the first live animal to appear in Doctor Who.  An uncredited horse.  Ang gave me the "and why did I marry this bozo" look when I pointed that out.  In my defense, I'm a baseball fan so useless stats are a second language to me.
   The plot thickens.
   Barbara and Susan are being wheeled off to the guillotine when the horse throws a shoe.   While they are stopped Barbara tries to get away, but Susan is not doing so well.  Fortunately for them, a pair of men with pistols liberate them from their fate.
   Back at the prison Ian is being served his daily gruel when the warden is loudly summoned by Lamaitre.  Lamaitre's summons is so urgent that the warden leaves his keys in the cell door.
   Ian reaches through the bars of the cell window, grabs the keys, takes the key to his cell and returns the rest to the door.  The warden returns in a few minutes and collects the remaining keys, not suspecting that he's short one.
    The Doctor makes it to Paris and finds his way to a tailor's shop.  He exchanges his ring and clothes for the uniform and sash of a Regional Officer of the Provinces.
   Barabra and Susan find themselves in the home of Jules, his sister Danielle and Jean.  The trio are part of an underground railroad smuggling prisoners out of Paris, to the farm house that the time travelers passed through and out of the country.
   They are joined by Leon who tells Jules' that some stranger is throwing Jules' name around.  Leon promptly makes a beeline for Barbara.  The man has taste.
   Ian makes his escape.  It'll turn out that Lamaitre was behind the wardens carelessness.  The Citizen wants to see if Webster gave Ian a message to deliver to James Sterling.
   The next morning the Doctor comes into the prison disguised as a Regional Officer.  You can hear him long before you can see him.  He yells at the guards, upbraids the warden and acts like a VIP who thinks he's even more VIPer.  Hartnell is great at this.
   Of course the three people he's come to rescue aren't here any more.  The Doctor leaves the warden, but not before Lamaitre asks to inspect the Doctor's credentials.  There's something about the way he holds himself that suggests that Lamaitre isn't buying this act for a minute.  Instead of calling the Doctor out Lamaitre invites him to dine with First Citizen Robespierre and discuss matters with the Doctor's home province.
   The Doctor walks off with Lamaitre with all the joy of a man walking to the gallows.
   Their boot steps are still echoing through the corridors when the tailor who made the Doctor's disguise approaches the warden and declares that he has found a traitor.
   In his hand is the Doctor's ring.

Next up: The Tyrant of France