London, we have a problem.
It’s a conundrum that we here in the GPR studios have run up against many times, and yet on each recurrence, it’s such a challenge: how do you maintain affection for a creation that has blatant offenses within its past content, or within the minds of its earlier creators? Can mindful reflection allow us to process how far we’ve come, and look upon the sins of our past and predecessors with anything more than embarrassment or even shame? From children’s stories, to literature and film series, to long-running television serials, it’s been a troublesome path to travel…and we’re still not at the journey’s end.
With an attempt to acknowledge the quality of the storyline while remaining keenly aware of the careless, inarguably racist execution, we delve into the six-part conclusion to Season 14 and all the issues it brings to light. We discuss the literary origins and systemic foundations that may have brought Robert Holmes to draft the story as he did, as well as ways the “Yellow Peril” could have been completely avoided as the core construct of the plot, had anyone on the production team felt it necessary to do so. Jay brings up an interesting point on prefacing problematic content before its consumption (especially by younger viewers), and we close with a challenging but unanimous decision on rewatching and recommending this installment of the Fourth Doctor era.
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