Directed by Richard Martin and Frank Cox
Main Cast-
The Doctor - William Hartnell
Ian - William Russell
Barbara - Jacqueline Hill
Susan - Carole Ann Ford
Synopsis-
The Edge of Destruction is a bit unusual in that the entire story takes place inside the Tardis, with the only characters present being the Doctor and his companions.
The Doctor, while working on the Tardis, causes a small explosion. Everyone is knocked unconscious. As they awaken, The Doctor and his companions begin to act erratically, and become distrustful of each other. The Doctor accuses Ian and Barbara of sabotage, Ian is openly distrustful of The Doctor. Susan, who seems to be the most affected, at one point threatens to stab Ian with a pair of scissors.
The Doctor is attempting to discover what exactly caused the explosion on the Tardis, so that he can fix it. It's discovered that the erratic behavior of the Doctor and his companions is being caused by a broken spring in the Fast Return Switch. This fault, if it had not been repaired would have destroyed the Tardis. Once the Doctor repairs this switch, things return to normal.
Review-
The Edge of Destruction introduces the concept that the Tardis itself has some intelligence and is self-aware. Of course, the idea that the Tardis has an intelligence of its own would be used again, particularly in the New Series. Here, it's mainly used to create conflict.
The Edge of Destruction does resolve the conflict that was inherent in the show from the very first episode - The Doctor resenting the presence of Ian and Barbara being forced upon him. By having The Doctor apologize to Barbara for his earlier behavior and hard words, it softens up the character of The Doctor and allows the The Doctor and his companions to work much more as a team.
While it may not be as iconic as the first Dalek story, The Edge of Destruction is still very good Doctor Who.
