Review of all 6 parts:
This story by Bob Baker and Dave Martin brings an end to the season long arc of the Key to Time. It does so in a very entertaining way but ultimately is rather an anticlimax of the arc in that the way the Key to Time is handled in the final part of the story is an odd throw away conclusion which makes the whole quest seem rather pointless. It is not totally illogical or bad but it just leaves you wondering what the whole reason for finding the key was meant to be. I feel they could have ended it much better. That final part is therefore marked down a bit despite being a very enjoyable conclusion to the 6 part story.
The first part of the story is pretty unexceptional but is a solid setup. It introduces the idea that the final segment of the key is hidden on a world in the middle of a nuclear war against an unseen enemy. There are themes of nuclear war/cold war throughout which at times is thoughtful and interesting.
As the story progresses we see that a malevolent being called the Shadow seeks to get the key to provide it to his master the Black Guardian. This creates an exciting and very engaging story of evil interference as well as the war and the story of Princess Astra (played by Lalla Ward who would become Romana II for the following season). Astra's story is a nice subplot which ends up being an important and dark aspect to the overall story. Lalla Ward acts the part perfectly and it all adds to the fun and absorbing story.
Tom Baker and Mary Tamm (in her final full story) are on good form and the character of Drax is a fun addition.
Overall this is a good story but could have been great if had a better opening and a better conclusion to the Key to Time arc.
My ratings: Part 1 - 7/10, Part 2 - 7.5/10, Parts 3 & 4 - 9/10, Part 5 - 8.5/10, Part 6 - 7/10. Overall - 8/10.
Season 16 overall was a big step back up after Season 15 had fallen well short of the super high quality of Season 12 to 14. Season 15 was not bad but was pretty ordinary. While this season still does not get close to the great early Tom Baker seasons I think it is a very good season of very solid standards. Mary Tamm was a great, charming Romana and The Key to Time arc added some interest along the way in addition to some very good individual stories.
My Season 16 average rating: 8.6/10.
