Mission to the Unknown

Mission to the Unknown

We open on a loud and hostile sounding jungle.

The man from last time rises to his feet, pulls a gun out and repeats "I must kill!"

Meanwhile two men try to repair a crashed spaceship.

CORY: I hate to think what kind of an animal makes a noise like that.
LOWERY: Yeah, they're getting closer.
CORY: Yes, all the more reason to stop talking and get on with the job.
LOWERY: Just you listen to me, Cory. I know my orders were to let you have full reign, and you've certainly taken advantage of that, but as Captain of this expedition, my first responsibility is to get this ship off the ground. So just cut the chat. Some other time, hmm? Bring that wrench.

(all quotes with aide of the Doctor Who Transcripts Site!)

Worried captain Lowery and his passenger Marc Cory. It's Edward de Souza. Did you see him in Sapphire and Steel? Very good actor, very good at creepy. Just from the intonation alone you can tell Cory is a dangerous man to be around.

ADVERT - If you like this blog, you can follow Michael on Twitter, YouTube, Soundcloud or send some Irn Bru/bill paying funds his way via the donation button. Every little helps, especially with covid nobbling over 2/3rds of our income. Thanks!

They are stalked from the bushes by the earlier man. He rushes out to attack the Captain and is shot dead by Cory.

LOWERY: You've killed him. You've killed Jeff!
CORY: It was him or you.
LOWERY: You didn't give him a chance. You shot him down like an animal. You just shot him down!

The Captain tries to attack Cory for killing his friend and Cory thumps him. This is a bit grim.

Cory looks over the body and finds a thorn imbedded in it.

"Varga Plant," he says in disgust and then casually mentions that if Lowery got infected he'd have to kill him too.

But as they leave Jeff Garvey his hands start to twitch.

Inside the Spaceship, Cory reveals his Space Security badge (which apparently was a secret) to Lowery and we actually get a bona fide cultural reference in-joke. The first in the series?

LOWERY: I might have known. Space Security Service. Licensed to kill.

Hah!

CORY: This other document gives me the authority to enlist the aid of any persons, civil or military. You were just enlisted. From now on, Lowery, you can take your orders from me.
LOWERY: All right, all right. But I don't fully understand. Better fill in a few details.
CORY: All right. I suppose you've heard of the Daleks?
LOWERY: The Daleks invaded Earth a thousand years ago.
CORY: That's right. Well, they haven't been active in our galaxy for some time now, but that doesn't mean they've exactly been sitting around. In the last five hundred years, they've gained control of over seventy planets in Ninth Galactic System and forty more in the Constellation of Miros.
LOWERY: Don't see why that should concern us. I mean, they're both millions of light years away from our galaxy.
CORY: Hmm, that's what we all thought. But about a week ago we had a report from the captain of a space freighter. His navigator spotted a space ship of a type never before used in our system. He saw it only for a second but he gave us a good description.
LOWERY: So?
CORY: What he described was a Dalek spaceship.

In the hands of anyone else, exposition. In the darting eyes of Edward de Souza (we do have some telesnaps) a life or death scenario breaking out around two desperate men.

Outside the Spaceship, the dead spaceman rises to his feet. He is now half man half plant.

I can see this freaking out the kids.

The communications are ¤¤¤¤ed, which freaks out Cory even more. He's been on edge since he saw the Varga Plant thorns, because you see... the only planet in the galaxy Varga Plants arise naturally is Skaro.

CORY - If the Vargas are here, the Daleks are, too.

Immediately we cut to DALEKS.

The Daleks reveal that their delegates will soon arrive, and also that they are aware of Cory and Lowery's spaceship and plan to exterminate both men!

The Daleks have found the spaceship!

The two men try to send off a rescue beacon into space.

Lowery shows Cory how to launch the SOS beacon.

Spaceships of the Great Alliance land on the planet.

The two men just escape as the Daleks find the spaceship and destroy it. Lowery is horrified, but then he looks at his hand to find... a thorn imbedded in it. He panics, trying to suck out the poison from his hand and moaning. Its genuinely quite disturbing.

He knows he's doomed and he's terrified.

The delegates worry about Cory's existence on the planet but the Black Dalek announces he will be EXTERMINATED! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! And we'll just putting Dr Who lore into place brick by brick now.

Lowery desperately tries to hide his arm but then his mind starts to go. "Kill! Kill!"

CORY: The Varga!
LOWERY: That's right. I'll soon, soon I shall be one of them. Kill. Kill,

Cory executes Lowery on the spot. I wonder if he was conflicted or saddened by this. I don't think an actor of De Souza's calibre would have played it without layers.

Cory tries to send off his SOS, but is surrounded by Daleks.

And you know, right about now would be a bloody good time for Doctor Who to show up.

Only, he doesn't. This is the story about what happens when the Doctor isn't there. And what happens is... Marc Cory dies.

Exterminated by multiple Daleks.

Because even someone with his survival skills is no match for these Daleks.

The Dalek Alliance announce victory and their plans to conquer the Earth.

Unless the Doctor shows up, Earth is probably ¤¤¤¤ed tbh.

A Doctor-less oddity, Mission to the Unknown shows what the Who universe is like without the Doctor there. Harsher, cold and those on the right side, however flawed, have no hope. Nothing to shine on their better qualities. No one to keep them alive.

I think if Mission to the Unknown existed, it'd be a massive fan favourite, especially with those who love darker edgier Who.

As it is, the quality of the 25 mins shine through with photos and audio alone. So lord knows how good it was with the actual images...