Classic Who "Dragonfire" Part 3 Full Reaction!

"Lay one finger on the dragon, bilge-bag, and I'll rivet your kneecaps together.", Ace, "Dragonfire" I've loved Ace's character from the start. I didn't know she might end up as a companion at this point, of course. "Bring me the Dragonfire and you can have the girl. Special closing down sale, you might call it. But hurry - while stocks last.", Kane, "Dragonfire" In the original script Kane was called "Hess". But the Nazi war criminal Rudolf Hess was in the news, so they decided to rename him. However, because all the scripts had been typed out, Ian Briggs needed a new name that was exactly 4 characters long so the existing script pages could be updated more easily. (Actually, that reminds me a little of when Tolkien was making changes for later editions of "The Lord of the Rings", he had to ensure that change would fit within the existing typeset pages of the books.) "I spy, with my little eye, something beginning with 'I'.", "Ice.", "Your go.", Ace and Mel, "Dragonfire" Who hasn't done that? - pick an obvious item to get your turn over. "Hang about. ... Here, how'd you do that, then?", "Well, it's bigger on the inside than the outside.", Ace and Mel, "Dragonfire" We all love the "bigger on the inside" moments for new companions! "It's transcendentally dimensional.", Mel, "Dragonfire" Er no, Mel. That's not the way we normally say it. "This is a spacecraft. The whole colony's a spacecraft!", Sabalom Glitz, "Dragonfire" Oh, "State of Decay"-vibes - the castle turned out to be the Hydrax spacecraft too. "Vengeance on whom, Kane? You're too late.", The Doctor, "Dragonfire" Oh, "The Hand of Fear"-vibes - Eldrad was cheated of his vengeance too. "What's he doing? It's scorching.", Sabalom Glitz, "Dragonfire" Alien hunt with trackers - movie reference. Kane melting - another movie reference! "Think about me when you're living your life one day after another, all in a neat pattern. Think about the homeless traveller and his old police box, with his days like crazy paving.", The Doctor, "Dragonfire" These lines were taken from one of Sylvester's audition scripts (written by Andrew Cartmel) for a departing companion - that he had originally performed against Janet Fielding who, of course, had played Tegan. Sylvester lobbied for those script lines to be used for Mel's departure. "I'll send you a postcard.", "But I don't have an address.", "Oh, I'll put it in a bottle and throw it into space. It'll reach you, in time.", Mel and the Doctor, "Dragonfire" Oh, a similar idea with what River did with the home box in "The Time of Angels". "I travelled the stars. And good old Sabalom Glitz, he lived to be a hundred and one! Died falling over a whisky bottle, perfect way to go.", Mel, "The Giggle" You were right! Mel *did* mention in it "The Giggle". Nice of RTD to finish the story of Mel's travels in the 2023 specials. Of course, within the TV stories we still don't know how Mel became a companion in the first place. "We're on, if you're on.", JNT as related by Sophie Aldred, first filming day on "Dragonfire" As has probably been mentioned in earlier episodes this season, they needed a new companion to replace Mel. So JNT organized two scripts with two possible companion replacements: - Ray (with the motorcycle) from "Delta and the Bannermen", and - Ace (with the nitro-nine) from "Dragonfire". Actually, Sophie had auditioned for the part of Ray as well, but she got the part of Ace. So JNT's comment, above, was him saying that he had decided that Ace would be the Doctor's companion. "But there are three rules. One, I'm in charge.", "Whatever you say, Professor.", "Two, I'm not the Professor, I'm the Doctor.", "Whatever you want.", "And the third. Well, I'll think up the third by the time we get back to Perivale.", The Doctor and Ace, "Dragonfire"

Andrew Vignaux