The Fifth Doctor:

PERSONALITY: Youthful and vibrant, with a touch of the first Doctor's temper, the fifth Doctor was a departure from the humourous and unpredictable approach of his predecessor. In this incarnation, the Doctor had a great love of Cricket, and was much less dependent upon gadgetry then his previous selves were, being a master of thinking on his feet. Though at times he seemed rather vulnerable, innocent, and haphazzard, occasionally endangering his companions, the fifth Doctor displayed a steady resolve and an intelligence that belied his youthful appearance, and would not hesitate to rush headlong into the fray. Thus, the fifth Doctor quickly earned the trust, respect, and often the loyalty, of those around him.

QUOTE: "I owe it to my friend to try because I got her into this, so you see I'm not going to let you stop me now!"

STORIES: 20, from Castrovalva through The Caves of Androzani.

MILESTONES: The Visitation: Introduces the Tereleptils, and features the destruction of the Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver. Black Orchid: First purely historical story since The Highlanders. Earthshock: Return of the Cybermen, and Adric, one of the Doctor's companions, is killed; the first to do so since the Hartnell era. Mawdryn Undead: The Brigadier returns. The Five Doctors: Marks the show's 20th anniversary. Reunites former companions and Doctors. Warriors of the Deep: The last of the Sulurians and Sea Devils perish. The Caves of Androzani: Explains the reasoning behind the Doctor wearing a sprig of Celery on his coat. The Doctor and Peri are poisoned, and the Doctor gives her the last of the antidote, saving her, but forcing his regeneration.

My Thoughts: Peter Davison is sometimes criticized for his somewhat Low-Key performance as the Doctor. But any actor would have had a hard act to follow as the 5th Doctor, for Tom Baker left an indelible mark on the series. Nonetheless, Peter Davison's Doctor was probably the most British of them all. And next to Paul McGann, he certainly had the best taste in clothes. His sandy-haired, almost boyish Doctor was a stark contrast to Tom Baker, and he soon endeared himself to me. Though his tenure was relatively short, and the show itself seemed to take a somewhat downwards turn during his reign, his Doctor left an impression that lasts to this day, at least in my mind.

Finest Hour: The 5th Doctor, ironically enough, truly comes into his own in his very last story, The Caves of Androzani. The Doctor and his companion Peri have, as per usual, gotten themselves caught up in a web of trouble and intrigue. However, things truly reach a fever-pitch when the Doctor finds that both he and Peri have contracted Spectrox Toxiemia...a fatal malady caused by exposeure to raw, unrefined Spectrox.

With Peri hanging near-death, the Doctor becomes a desperate, decisive, almost maniacal force who will grasp at any chance, no matter how slim, to save his friend, heedless of the risk to himself. He manages to escape from gunrunners, corrupt politicians, and even manages to gain aid from one of the supposed villains of the story in order to save Peri's life.

Himself dying from the toxemia, the Doctor manages to get the antidote (milk from a unique breed of Bat), get back to Peri, carry her from below-ground, across the surface of Androzani, now alive with deadly mud-bursts, and back to the TARDIS, where he spills half of the antidote. However, the Doctor manages to pull Peri inside, and pours the remaining bat's-milk down her throat, leaving none for himself. As Peri begins to recover and rises, the Doctor collapses, now dying. As Peri begins to panic, the Doctor suggests he might regenerate, but states that it "feels different this time." Amidst a swirl of faces and voices from his past, the Doctor passes on...and once again changes into a man who is yet again the same, and yet completely different.

The events of this story, and Davison's superb portrayal, not only define the 5th Doctor, but the true nature of the Doctor himself. It is easily one of the finest Doctor WHO serials ever, and, fittingly enough, it was one of the first Davison-era serials to be released on DVD.