The TARDIS lands in Berlin in the 1930s, where Hitler and his National Socialist party are in the ascendant.
Some of the greatest scientific minds are gathering here: Einstein, Heisenberg, Planck, Schrödinger, Wigner. The people who will build the future of planet Earth.
But the Doctor and Susan have brought something with them. Something apparently harmless, something quite common. Yet something that could threaten the course of history…
THE COMPANION CHRONICLES: THE ALCHEMISTS
The seventieth Companion Chronicle, and the second in the eighth series, is Ian Potter’s “The Alchemists,” a story set both in early 1930s Berlin and in the time before “An Unearthly Child.” While the story makes great use of the former setting, it does almost nothing with the latter – which isn’t necessarily a problem but it does make me question the intent.
“The Alchemists” actually has a framing device, something that has largely gone by the wayside in the later Companion Chronicles. Susan is leaving a letter for Barbara to be read in the event of her death or departure from the TARDIS. She uses the letter to illustrate two things: that it is possible to change history, just very dangerous, and that it’s important not to judge people by a limited range of actions. This of course addresses Barbara’s relationship with the Doctor, and is a neat way of using series continuity without it feeling intrusive. But there appears to be no reason for this story to be set prior to the TV series. There are a few features that set it apart – the TARDIS chameleon circuit is functional, for example – but both the Doctor and Susan seems basically the same as they do later on. Susan even remarks on this in her letter. Could it simply be a function of wanting fewer regular characters? In any case, it doesn’t detract from the story, fortunately.
The historical setting works very well, for the most part. Potter expertly captures the undercurrent of paranoia running through late-period Weimar Germany. Everyone has an agenda, everyone suspects someone else, and the anti-Semitic thoughts that parallel the rise of the Nazis are in full swing. I applaud Potter for not shying away from this: there are moments of stark hostility toward Jews that shock the conscience, giving the story an uneasy realism that most Doctor Who stories do not attempt. I also like Pollitt (Wayne Forrester) as a character: he’s rightfully appalled by the attitudes of Hitler and his followers, but he’s also an amoral secret agent who’s not above torture and murder.
And that’s the central theme of the story: people aren’t completely good or completely evil, and even the worst people have some redeeming qualities. This conflict is summed up in the most prominent historical figure in the story: Fritz Haber. Haber is known primarily for two things: the Haber-Bosch process that underpins the synthesis of modern fertilizers, and being the “father” of chemical warfare. His technology was used to save countless millions and also to murder countless millions. Unfortunately, I think the story makes a serious misstep by failing to emphasize his negatives. The Doctor is delighted to meet him, and eagerly discusses science with him, which seems more than a little out of character. Admittedly, the Doctor also claims a personal friendship with Chairman Mao, but Susan’s occasional mentions that Haber “made weapons” don’t accurately describe a man who personally stood on the battlefield of Ypres and directed the release of chlorine gas that killed thousands upon thousands of Allied soldiers. If you want to have a conversation about how his agricultural work mitigates against those actions, go right ahead, but misrepresenting his work with chemical weapons is not the right way to do so.
There’s not much to say about the actual plot, which is a very simple capture-and-escape historical. Carole Ann Ford gives one of her best Companion Chronicle performances: her hysteria under Pollitt’s interrogation is disturbingly convincing. Lisa Bowerman directs with her usual skill, and the sound design and score from Jim Hamilton and Toby Hrycek-Robinson are convincing. Overall, “The Alchemists” is a thought-provoking story with some odd decisions made around the margins. It’s worth hearing, even if it’s not the story you might expect.
Recommended.
7/10