Romana’s secret is in danger of being exposed by those she trusts, and the only hope of escape is through the Axis. But will Leela’s forthright determination to see justice done, whatever the costs, mean their chance to get home will be lost forever…?
And if they are able to regain access the Axis, is the world they left behind any better than the society they have built here?
Time will tell.
GALLIFREY: ARBITRATION
The title of the final installment of the fifth Gallifrey series, David Llewellyn’s “Arbitration,” is a rather large clue that nothing interesting is going to happen. If you’ve never been part of or witnessed an arbitration hearing, you cannot even begin to imagine the wonder and excitement you’ve missed. It’s also telling that the cliffhanger, which has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the story, is the part everyone talks about when they discuss Gallifrey V instead of the three mind-numbing hours that precede it. Nothing of consequence happens in the entire set, including this episode – Llewellyn tries his hardest to make the story about the regular characters, but the drama largely arises from silliness. Leela is convinced that a small settlement of recently freed slaves will be able to defeat a heavily armed battalion of soldiers that outnumber her people 10-to-1, but when Narvin actually sends in a small unit of those soldiers, they are immediately slaughtered without a single opposing casualty! Is Leela right? Are the Outsiders naturally talented warriors? Is the Chancellery Guard composed of idiots? Don’t worry, there’s no explanation given. It’s also amusing that Romana and Leela constantly make overtures about how they want to make a difference and bring positive change to this new Gallifrey, but the instant they are shown a way home they take off. Oh, and the final scene has to be heard to be believed – the crowd reactions are so unbelievable and so unconvincing it almost sounds like it’s being pitched as satire. But apart from that, none of “Arbitration” is terrible. It’s just inconsequential meandering around an alternate universe until our characters finally find a way to go back. Honestly, you could have ended Gallifrey IV with this same cliffhanger and not missed a thing.
Don’t bother.
4/10