"The Ultimate Foe" - Best Episode 2 version?

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Lately, I found this site that purpots to be the original draft of the second episode of The Ultimate Foe, the fourth serial in the Trial of a Time Lord story arc, namely Season 23.

Now, I am making this thread so that each member can choose which version do they prefer - this original version, draft by Eric Saward, based on Robert Holmes and his ideas, and the Pip & Jane Baker's version, transmitted back in 1986 - but, I do admit that this could, for all intents and purposes, not be the actual draft that Eric Saward fought for hard enough that led him to resign over it.

Here's the alleged Eric Saward version of The Ultimate Foe, Part Two.

In that case, which version do you think is better? Is the canonical version best? Or is Saward's draft the superior alternative? How and why?

Vote, and discuss away!

 

[diankra]

FWIW, a skim read says that is the original ep14 (with a few typos), not a fake.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

I was thinking that, but you know, it is the internet, after all, so you can never be too sure. But anyway, thanks!

 

[DWF]

As painful as the finale I have to go with the televised version. The original ending pretty much meant the end of the series.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

The characterization and motivation of the Valeyard is certainly more consistent with both Episode 1 of that two-parter and the whole of the arc in Saward's draft. The beaurocratical nature of Episode 1 makes sense, because the Valeyard only care for the validity of his contract with the High Council, which fuels his fantasy world to the extent that he did. In the televised version, the Valeyard's plan and motivation makes no sense. At all.

But, the televised story actually ties some loose ends from The Mysterious Planet and showcases a little more of the Master in what is, in my opinion, Ainley's finest hour in the program. I've never liked him as the Master, but he's quite lovely here - not too over the top, and just delightfully devilish enough.

Glitz's motivation and his ties with the Master is also made clearer in Saward's draft, but then again, the televised version did a decent job on him too, so he comes off relatively unscathed.

Also, I do prefer the ending of the Doctor making out OK, because Saward's climax makes nearly zero sense. Since Mel is there, and she's his future companion, he must come out of it alive. If Saward had bothered to include a line like "well, since you're in the presence of a paradox-free establishment, your memories of your adventures with the Doctor won't be affected, but unless the Doctor comes out of this alive... they never happened. Not anymore" or SOMETHING like that, it'd have worked somewhat.

So, in the end, I would have really prefered a rewrite of Saward's ending, myself. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with JNT there - the ending really is too open-ended for a show that just got back at the airwaves. Anyway, I'd say the loose ends being tied up from Mysterious Planet, the overall idea that the Doctor managed to survive (and so did the Valeyard), and the bulk of Saward's draft would make for the ideal, suitable Episode 2, for me.

 

[DWF]

Ainley's Master peaked in Planet Of Fire IMO, he was pretty ineffectual after that. And really there was no real reason to bring the Master into the story. I'm not entirely certain why they needed to show us that Peri was still alive, it lessening's the impact of her death. The change in the Valeyard's motivation and the change in the charge's of meddling to genocide some out of nowhere, it's really senseless for the Valeyard to try and take out the court. And in any event it's likely taht in taking out the court he could've killed the Doctor as well, threatening his very existence.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

I agree. It'd have been better if a future Doctor was there - as hard as that would've been to accomplish, but considering the next season would've had a new Doctor anyway, but oh well - than the Master. Wait, perhaps the Rani would've rather been there. But, in any case, I liked Ainley in it, so it was OK.

I like to believe that the reason the Valeyard tried to take out the court was because he realized that his contract was no longer valid. In some "unseen" scene, he realizes this. Ah, well.

And Peri surviving did undermine her rather grim and cruel fate. But, at least it gave birth to the wonderful Peri and the Piscon Paradox audio story, which is the best Companion Chronicle, by far. But without the merit of the audio story, it was a rather cheap way to appease to the audience.

 

[Sindatur]

And Peri surviving did undermine her rather grim and cruel fate. But, at least it gave birth to the wonderful Peri and the Piscon Paradox audio story, which is the best Companion Chronicle, by far. But without the merit of the audio story, it was a rather cheap way to appease to the audience.

LOL, some believe that marriage would be a fate worse than death