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Kamelion
daveyboy7472
Posts: 16,416 Forum Member
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I often cited that several things in 80's Who were poorly executed on screen for me, Kamelion was the ultimate example of that.
If it had been done properly there's no doubt Kamelion would have been very useful in his time on board the TARDIS. You could almost imagine him being used in a spy related way to infiltrate the baddies to help The Doctor.
Unfortunately it was anything but mobile, though some of this was down to the death of it's main operator which didn't to help either. That JNT thought he could use it at all seems unbelievable!
I did like the two stores Kamelion was in, though for me The King's Demons was better as far as he was concerned. I liked Gerald Flood's vocals on the character and I also enjoyed the battle with The Doctor and The Master to win him over, but that was as about as good as it got with the character.
If it had been done properly there's no doubt Kamelion would have been very useful in his time on board the TARDIS. You could almost imagine him being used in a spy related way to infiltrate the baddies to help The Doctor.
Unfortunately it was anything but mobile, though some of this was down to the death of it's main operator which didn't to help either. That JNT thought he could use it at all seems unbelievable!
I did like the two stores Kamelion was in, though for me The King's Demons was better as far as he was concerned. I liked Gerald Flood's vocals on the character and I also enjoyed the battle with The Doctor and The Master to win him over, but that was as about as good as it got with the character.
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He could have worked if they had funds for an additional actor.
I don't think that morphing is a get out of jail free card necessarily, on a positive spin, it opens possibilities up even further imo.
The problem with it is that it opens up too many possibilities. There are too many situations that can be easily resolved by imitating someone else, they'd have to find ways of limiting the ability. Something like only being able to do it while within the TARDIS, or needing a live psychic link like Prisoner Zero.
The other problem is for the viewer - it's difficult to follow and relate to a character that looks and acts different in every story.
I was thinking more about having a regular actor playing his 'chosen' look and then shape shift when the story needed it which might not have been that often, also a human form would have provided a better connection for the viewers in times of peril. Bearing in mind, imo, how little K9 was utilised as a get out clause, I don't think that it would have been a problem. Apart from Pertwee, the sonic wasn't used that much in the classic series really, so I would imagine that they probably wouldn't have over utilised the shape shifting ability.
Something like, needing a power supply to keep a shape in place and when out of the Tardis, K had only limited power to hold it would be a good way.
I'm not sure that there were too many possibilities but imo you can't have too many in the pool can you?
It's like having Superman in the Justice League - he's so much more powerful than the other characters, they have to keep coming up with reasons to de-power him or otherwise keep him restrained so that the others have a chance to do something.
And with that, I have crossed the geek event horizon.
Kamelion, or something like him, could work, but I think writing for him would get tiring fast.
Although I did love his big reveal in The King's Demons, where the King's voice is echoing down the halls singing on the lute, then we see that it's actually an android. There was something very eerie about it.
They could have done so much with him, making him a bit more sinister or at least likeable, but he was just an overall annoying pain in the arse.
He was only in two stories and I'd already had enough of him by his second one. By the end I was thinking 'If you don't kill him Doctor, then I will!' :mad:
I'd put him in the list of top 5 most annoying companions from the classic series: Mel, Adric, Kamelion, Susan, Katarina
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**wipes down the bar and pulls a pint of Gallifreyan Ale**
I feel I should have put a tune in just to make it seem more Kamelion like.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GOQrogXytc
Welcome, the food isn't bad but the showers are a bit chilly!
I do very much like The King's Demons though.
Agree with both of these comments. Had Kamelion been working properly, it would have got boring using his shapeshifting ability every episode, and yes, it would have to be used sparingly otherwise the viewer would most likely get bored.
I remember with the Superman TV Series in the 90's, they always seemed to use some ploy to stop him using his powers against the villains for three quarters of the episode otherwise it would be story over before they begun. Kamelion would probably have to have been something similar.
(And yes, I know the reasons why he wasn't used. But the fact is, he wasn't)
You mean stuff like the Tesselector conveniently creating a motorcycle offscreen?
I'm tempted to say that Kamelion was a bad idea from start to finish — he was always either going to be a special effects nightmare or undermine the plot, and I'm surprised they added him even after (I think?) JNT had specifically killed off the sonic screwdriver because of the problems it created in ever putting the Doctor in peril.
I guess they were just trying to come up with a way to create a more interesting companion, during the period when the Doctor already had the most non-human companions.
It's been years since I've seen either story, so can't really give a good appraisal of Kamelion, other than it was an idea that didn't really work as far as I can remember. JNT did seem to have a lot of mad ideas..
I accept you don't Dave, but just in case there's any doubt....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/companions/page28.shtml
http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Kamelion
http://imdoctorwho.blogspot.co.uk/2009/01/companions-kamelion-gerald-flood-voice.html
I wasn't going to but now you mention it.........;):D
Yes, the BBC count him as an official companion. But then don't they also count Astrid?
I also loved Gerald Flood's voice.
I can't agree with puting Kamelion in the same bracket as the truley awful Mel and Adric (may as well add Susan to).
hired an actor to be Kamelion's 'standard' human form (and so do away with the need for the robot that didn't work properly). This way, the Doctor would essentially have had a human companion who could change form.
or
Had a different human form every week, essentially giving the programme a 'new' companion for each story whilst it always, essentially, being the same companion (Kamelion).
That's a bit of a grey area that one. As she only appeared in one story she probably wasn't viewed as such. If that story had been made today, they probably would have counted her as such since the definition of who and who isn't a companion has changed so much in the New Series.
It's publicity driven. It makes a good headline and gets people watching to say Kylie Minogue is going to be a companion, when in fact she's just appearing in one episode.
Exactly. And that's why I don't think that the BBC defining someone as a companion counts. There has to be some kind of criteria one can apply consistently.
- must have travelled in the TARDIS at least once
- must have appeared in more than one story
I think for new Who you could probably add:- must have had the actor's name in the opening credits
I do think it was a bit simpler in the old days. Nowadays its a bit messier. For instance, Martha was considered the first black companion . . . but technically, that was Mickey. And is Rose's mum a companion?How do you decide which of your acquaintances should be left out?
My brain hurts.:eek: