Image of the Fendahl | Sophisticated Idiots

Image of the Fendahl
1977

Image of the Fendahl review: The High Priestess of the Fendahleen

or The Power of Skull

or Fendahleen, Fendahleen, Fendahleen, Fendahlee-een,
please don't take him even though you can

First World problems and all that. But we feel a little sorry for stories like this from the Tom Baker era.

It’s safe to presume the Sophisticated Idiots rankings have now been universally accepted by Whodom as the definitive authority on such important affairs of state.

And a glance at our incontrovertible list is, well, incontrovertible.

Image of the Fendahl sits above anything Pertwee or Colin managed. Davison is only gift-wrapped a higher entry thanks to the Five Doctors Jamboree that he’s barely in.

More impressively, it would break into the top five of both McCoy and Troughton (who, admittedly, is shorn of half his serials by the BBC recycling police) as well as Hartnell’s top 10.

In Tommy’s reign, it’s clocking in at Number 11 – at the time of writing, mind. We’re yet to watch Talons or (less threatening to Fendahl's position, we suspect) most of Season 18.

For comparison/amusement, the 11th strongest entry on Tom’s list currently sits at 37 on the main ranking. Colin’s 11th best (aka least-worst) props up the entire caboodle, at an impressive 125th.

And we can all comfortably predict who would win in a rock-salt shootout between Image of the Fendahl and *gags involuntarily* Mark of the Rani.

On the subject of comforting, there’s a most welcome air of familiarity about Fendahl. And not necessarily because it’s a Who’s Who of the British small screen, brimming with friendly faces from EastEnders, To the Manor Born and Only Fools and Horses.

This familiar feel comes from its status as a gold-smothered classic of its type (a classic Classic Who?).

In fact, if you asked the water-quaffing behemoth ChatGPT to manufacture a 70s Doctor Who story, it would regurgitate you something close to this Gothic wonder-athon.

Hold those (fools and) horses, traditionalists – this is no criticism.

Rather, it’s an acknowledgement that Image of the Fendahl is bursting with everything you’d want from Peak Doctor Who:

Gothic environs
Casually racist yokels
The occult
Iffy-realised monsters
Tom Baker on fabulous form.

We reckon it could only be improved if Sarah Jane were accompanying the Doctor.

To be fair, though, Leela is well used here. She overcomes the ignominy of being clad in a nude-coloured dress by channelling her ire into a hilariously relentless thirst for violence (leaving the Doctor, at times, resembling John Connor trying to curtail Arnie’s termination programming in T2).

In fact, we now occasionally pounce on council verge-cutters, just to keep our hunting instincts sharp.

There are untold reasons Image of the Fendahl is an absolute belter.

One of these, obviously, is Tom Magnificent Baker.

If he’s not holding up four fingers to indicate three, he’s chatting with cows or obsessing over fruitcake.

Bustling with “great knowledge and gentleness,” he’s never anything less than outrageously watchable. Even if he’s occasionally assisting a guy to top himself. Or – worse – mistaking an Allsort for a Jelly Baby.

We also laugh out loud at the Doctor’s appalled response to the TARDIS landing on Earth. Having endured the Pertwee exile years, we share his trepidation for Earth-based stories.

Oh, and yes, as you thought, “Wandering Armageddon peddler” is unequivocally the finest description of our Time Lord in the entire series.

Such magical prose is typical of a story that oozes delightful dialogue.

Every character is blessed with verbal vivacity, and we could easily fill the remining word count with zinger pull quotes.

But that would not only be lazy writing (which we could never be accused of *conveniently forgets the Paradise Towers review*), it would undersell how effortlessly the wondrous wordsmithery permeates every aspect of Fendahl.

A few casual examples offer a glimpse of what the writers spoil us with:

“I’ll see you later.” “Get some practice first.”

“They’re investigators. They’ve come to investigate.”

“I’ll plunge you into chaos and death if you don’t shut up.”

We even chortle at Colby’s, “End the day with a smile” declaration in the opening scene. As dislikeable as the smug posh oik may be, he certainly leaves a lasting impression.

Principally because of how much his shirt buttons fail him during the sacrifice finale.

Speaking of which, it’s always a good sign when the supporting players are memorable in a Who serial, and the four scientists lead the way here.

As well as Colby with his slappable chops, we doff our caps to Thea and her penchant for humming skulls and applying awesome makeup; the curiously-accented Dr Fendelman (whose electronics credentials are, weirdly, mocked as being “not Japanese”); and Stael, the tough-guy who follows the Master’s example of being hoisted by his own petard when he messes with a sinister force he can’t control.

However, everyone is overshadowed – even Tom – by the gloriously uncompromising Martha Tyler.

Whether foreseeing the death of Enders’ Charlie, castigating her grandson’s tea-making talents, or creating salt weapons, Mother Tyler is superb. No wonder the Fendahl is hungry for her soul.

She’s so great that the masochist in us yearns to see the “loony old trout” and her varicose veins pally up with the First Doctor for a while. She’d give him a run for his money, all right.

We guess Image of the Fendahl stands out for another reason: it marks the end of the Gothic horror era *wipes tear*.

The genre may have enraged the censors, but they'd be the only ones with the temerity to deny it represents Doctor Who at its very best.

Sadly, after this one we’ll only be treated to the occasional homage, such as Stones of Blood and Ghost Light.

Though we take comfort (there’s that sentiment again) from Fendahl rounding out the era with a golden goodbye. Thankfully, it’s not even ruined by the tacked-on K9 scenes.

If the quality of Doctor Who's Gothic age is widely acknowledged, then the sheer might of the Tom Baker Years more broadly is fearsome.

One of the fallouts from such a stellar run is that certain stories will slip under the radar amid the brilliance of some of its better-known counterparts. Ladies and gentlemen, we give you Image of the Fendahl.

Still, First World problems, eh? It could be worse – you just wait till we reach Colin's 11th strongest entry.

Remember, end the day with a smile, guys.

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