… is The Smugglers! 
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I think it’s fair to say that Jackie Lane’s performance is not the worst thing in “The Smugglers”, yes.
But then, it isn’t an issue in THE ROMANS either!
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Like others have said, I love getting to see the TARDIS team relaxing on a holiday. A holiday which very quickly (from our perspective) goes wrong.
Ian and Barbara’s domesticity is fun to watch, especially the joke about the fridge.
The Doctor’s lyre-playing is a highlight of the episode. Truly cannot believe that William Hartnell was such a skilled musician
I actually think this is one of Hartnell’s better episodes.
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I thought this serial was okay. It wasn’t awful, but it didn’t seem to resonate with me the way it resonated for others. Perhaps one of the reasons I had some difficulty really enjoying the story was I didn’t care for Nero being played for laughs. The fact that Nero could kill people indiscriminately with no consequences is reprehensible to me, and I wish there could have been more of a qualm about fraternizing with such a person. The implications of the scene where Nero chases Barbara struck me as particularly in poor taste in light of the increased attention in the past few years towards compulsion and violence against women. I suppose one of the difficulties of depicting Nero is that he is a larger than life figure who has a complicated historical record. I hope that I’m not being too much of a Debbie Downer with my review.
However, I did enjoy that the serial had interesting vignettes, as well as “getting to know the ropes” moments for Vicki. The setting and scenery was also well done. The traveling that occurred in the serial was great, and the fact that the serial managed to cover both the lives of the lowest in Roman society (slaves) and the highest (the Emperor’s court) made me feel immersed in the society.
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An article that I found that outlines Nero’s real life, and some of the problems with ascertaining the truth:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/who-was-nero
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Yeah, the fact they were giving a simplified school approach to history when we’re talking about someone where a lot of what happened is actually questionable, given most of the historical records were written by enemies of his, was something that rather bothered me while watching it.
(And just think, if it was set a few years later, we would’ve had Sporus instead of Poppaea…)
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Thanks for sharing the article. It was an interesting read and I learned a lot about Nero that I didn’t know before. It’s interesting how we tend to see him in a certain (unflattering) way, when there’s little to no hard evidence to support those views. This reminds us that history is written by the winners and we should always be aware of who has written the historical sources we rely on and why.
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The Romans is simply “exquisite!” I love the TARDIS team here, Vicki has slotted right in & they are all having so much fun. Those opening scenes are brilliant, in fact I wish we had a prequel episode with the gang just hanging out before the proper adventure begins.That scene at the table discussing lunch! Hartnell is so good in this one, so playful & handy in a fight - “You know, I am so constantly outwitting the opposition, I tend to forget the delights and satisfaction of the arts, the gentle art of fisticuffs.”
Having the characters split up on their own adventures helps the story whizz along, assisted by the witty dialogue from writer Dennis Spooner. This story is so eventful with a great supporting cast I think it really holds up today. Iit would be one I’d show young fans & think they’d enjoy it. The pace feels more modern than a lot of other stories from the era.
CENTURION: Is that your lyre?
DOCTOR: Why? Why, have you lost one?
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I remembered the serial very fondly, but it did not quite work for me this time around.
First, the positives: I really liked the first episode, especially the on-screen chemistry of the main cast. For the same reason, I also liked the very ending.
For the rest of the serial, the interplay of the different story threads and tones just did not gel for me this time around. There were many parts I liked (and some parts I disliked), but in the end, the composition of them as a whole was subpar in my opinion.
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this is one of my all time favourite Hartnell serials, everything just works for me and the best part about it is you can tell just how much fun Hartnell himself is having during this one.
solid 8.5/10
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This was a complete departure from amything we had seen before. I found the fact that they had apparently managed to successfully have a holiday for several weeks without getting into any scrapes surprising. This also deprived us of experiencing the initial bonding between Vicki & the others, which more usually takes place during a high-stakes adventure. Her frustration & boredom at staying in one place in an Earth historical setting is also interesting in light of the way in which she will eventally leave the TARDIS.
I found it to get off to somewhat of a slow start as the first episode contained few of the farcical elements for which this story is renowned, & I was feeling a bit disappointed. But it more than made up for this later, & for a while I thought I was watching the Benny Hill show as Nero chased Barbara around the palace.
To start with it did frustrate me when the crew kept narrowly missing each other, but I soon realised that this was an intentional aspect of the comedy and just sat back for the ride.
Others have already mentioned most of the highlights above so I won’t repeat them. Overall I did enjoy the story, it just didn’t feel like the same show we had been watching up until now, due to the complete tonal shift.
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Really enjoy it!
I’d love to see our regulars just having a good time at the beginning. How it pens out is absolutetly lovely. Hartnells Doctor having to pretend he is a musician is genius. As a huge fan of the first Doctor, it´s always nice seeing this Doctor just enjoying himself and being the chaotic little gremlin that he is! (I refuse to believe in the “Grumpy old man” Idea!!)
Anyways I really love it. Season 2 in many ways is a huge improvement over a already great first Season. Vicki is such a lovely addition to our Tardis Team here. Hartnells Doctor acting like he is playing that instrument is truly delightful and the comedy (for the most part) works really well.
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