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Doctor Who - The Mind Robber (Episode 45) | 
| Actors: Patrick Troughton, Frazer Hines, Wendy Padbury
Studio: BBC Warner
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.98
Buy New: $14.99
You Save: $4.99 (25%)
New (45) Used (11) from $9.75
Rating:  25 reviews
Sales Rank: 38781
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 99 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: WARDE2316D
ISBN: 1419813137
UPC: 794051231628
EAN: 9781419813139
ASIN: B0009PVZG4
Theatrical Release Date: September 29, 1975
Release Date: September 6, 2005
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 03/04/2008 Rating: Nr
Amazon.com
The 1968 Doctor Who serial The Mind Robber is a two-fold blessing, because it's not only one of the more engaging story arcs from the program's second season, but also because it's one of the few shows featuring Patrick Troughton as the Doctor that has remained intact since its original BBC broadcast. The five-part story strands the Doctor and companions Jamie (Frazier Hines) and Zoe (Wendy Padbury) in a strange world populated by characters from fiction, including Rapunzel, Blackbeard the Pirate, and Lemuel Gulliver. Controlling this riot of literary personages is a being called The Master (though not the evil Time Lord from subsequent Who seasons), with whom the Doctor must match wits in order to rescue his friends and save the Earth from a sinister plan. A longtime fan favorite brimming with imagination, visual style (despite its limited budget), and an energetic performance by Troughton, The Mind Robber is a welcome inclusion to the growing collection of Doctor Who on DVD. --Paul Gaita
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| Customer Reviews: Read 20 more reviews...
 Very Clever November 12, 2008
C. Riedel
This is a very well written episode. One of Patrick Troughton's best and the story is a true classic. What I found interesting is how they managed to take Frazer Hines' unfortunate illness(He had become ill with chickenpox right before filming episode 2.)and made it look like they intentionally changed Jamie from one face to the other then back again. In the commentary, Frazer Hines does tell how when Zoe slapped Jamie, she clipped his ear and his ear rang for a few minutes and also tells that one of the toy soldiers was, in fact, his older brother, who he asked to be in the episode. What truly stands out in this story is how they blend the fairy tales and classic story characters together to make a very interesting adventure.
When stories come alive... September 14, 2008
Michael Valdivielso (Alexandria, VA USA)
This story is one of the few non-Dalek,non-Cybermen,non-Master,non-invasion ones that I like. I like the Second Doctor and wish more of his stories survived the BBC. This one has Gulliver, Sir Lancelot, and a plot that takes the TADRIS out of space and time completely. Tons of extras, commentary by Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury and behind the scenes features. Even a short from Basil Brush with a Yeti.
And, of course, a great shot of Zoe's butt. What? You all know you like her figure. Don't try to act like you weren't looking.
 dr.who watcher March 30, 2008
tom W.R. (yucaipa,ca,usa)
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
this is the only dr. who movie I did not like,the second dr. who did great shows this is the only bad one
Top-Notch Troughton And Company February 19, 2008
K. Fontenot (The Bayou State)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Growing up, I viewed very few of Patrick Troughton's adventures as the Doctor. For this reason, he was always an afterthought in my little "Who" world. After watching a number of his tales, however, he's quickly become one of my favorite incarnations of the good Doctor. I love his rapport with his companions and anybody else who happens to stumble on to the wobbly sets of "Doctor Who." In this particular adventure, he really shines, making me rank "The Mind Robber" as one of the best "Who" serials in the entire series' long run. It starts out with the Doctor, Jamie (Frazer Hines) and Zoe (Wendy Padbury) in a TARDIS that's about to be engulfed by molten lava. With no real idea as to what will happen to the TARDIS in this state, the Doctor (with a little help from Jamie) executes an emergency exit feature on the TARDIS' console. Where they end up is nowhere, literally. They are out of reality, time and space altogether. Jamie has visions of his home, Scotland. Zoe sees the city she was raised in. Zoe, against the Doctor's orders, leaves the safety of the TARDIS to see her home. What she finds is a void that shows her what she wants to see. Jamie goes to save her and gets caught up into the visions as well. Once the Doctor seemingly saves them, all three end up trapped in a world where fiction is reality and riddles help you find your way home. Who or what is behind this "nothing" that has the trio trapped? Can the Doctor save them? You'll have to watch to find out.
This tale features some wonderful characters from literature. From Gulliver to Rapunzel to D'Artagnan, history's best stories get a nod in this engaging adventure written primarily by Peter Ling, who we find from viewing the retrospective, "Fact Of Fiction," questioned his own ability to write science fiction.
This story seemed doomed from the beginning. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Episode One was thrown together to stretch the adventure into five episodes. It's actually one of the highlights of the story. Also, when Frazer Hines became ill, another actor was cast to portray him in one of the episodes. What's great about this is the rather funny way that a different looking Jamie came to be. Spare robots from a previous BBC production were used as well. This story is a shining example of chaos becoming classic.
As far as the actual disc is concerned, the crew at the BBC have outdone themselves once again. This is an excellent DVD transfer with only a few blemishes visible throughout the episodes. The audio is wonderful as well. As with the other classic "Doctor Who" DVDs, this one is chock full of special features. Including the aforementioned retrospective, there's also "Highlander," which looks at the career of the highly likeable Frazer Hines. There's a fun "Basil Brush" sketch featuring the dapper fox and his run-in with the Yeti, a photo gallery, a "Who's Who" gallery, excellent audio commentary and an easter egg as well.
This is a great "Doctor Who" tale and I highly recommend it to any and every fan of the classic series, the new series or science fiction in general. Fans of mysteries and thrillers may also like this story. It's got a fresh and different (for "Doctor Who") story, an excellent cast, a solid villain who shares his name with another, legendary arch-villain of the Doctor and even a little bit of classic literature education. It's simply wonderful. Highly recommended.
And one other completely chauvinist note: Although the Doctor has had his share of beautiful companions, I must admit that few of them have ever looked as smokin' hot as Wendy Padbury as Zoe in this particular adventure.
Watch it with the lights turned out! December 22, 2007
The Cougar (Australia)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Well, with the first episode at least. Even though Peter Ling (the author) didn't write this episode, as it was a last minute addition, it has to be the best of the five. A subtly creepy opening as The Doctor is forced to take the TARDIS out of time, space and reality, in order to escape being smothered by a volcano (from the previous adventure), and a mysterious voice inside their heads beckoning them to come out... but where do you go when there's... nothing?
The next four episodes are no slouch either. "Out there" is a land of fiction, characters from books such as Gullivers Travels and Rapunzel, but even creatures from mythology, Medusa, unicorns, etc. How do you escape Medusa? How do you escape a stampeding unicorn? When it doesn't exist?
And I don't want to hear any more talk about Rose being a revolutionary companion who "doesn't just scream." The new series was NOT the first to have a proactive companion who wasn't a cardboard cutout. Zoe is fantastic in this, taking down a futuristic superhero (Karkus) that she read about in her own time, and even saving the day as she destroys the computer controlling the fiction world.
An easy recommend. Patrick Troughton seems incapable of having a bad serial, and it's not just due to the writers. The Second Doctor's friends seem to have an impish excitement about each adventure, and that's conveyed through to you in every scene. And when you're watching TV to escape, that's almost impossible to resist.
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