Directed by Gerald Blake
Main Cast-
The Doctor - Patrick Troughton
Jamie - Frazer Hines
Victoria - Deborah Watling
Main Guest Cast-
Professor Travers - Jack Watling
Padmasambhava - Wolfe Morris
Songsten - Charles Morgan
Thomni - David Spenser
Khrisong - Norman Jones
Synopsis-
The Tardis has landed in Tibet a short ways from the Detsen Monastery. The Doctor is delighted and intends to visit the monastery to return the Ghanta bell, a holy relic that The Doctor has had in is possession for safe-keeping.
Leaving Jamie and Victoria in the Tardis, The Doctor encounters Professor Travers camp during his journey to the monastery, and discovers that Travers' companion has been killed. Upon arriving at the monastery, Travers convinces the monks and the lead warrior monk, Khrisong, that The Doctor is responsible for the death of his companion.
Travers is fully aware that The Doctor is not responsible for the death of his companion, as he was attacked by a beast which Travers believes was a Yeti, which he has been searching for years. Travers' motive for having The Doctor locked up is that Travers believes that The Doctor is a reporter on the lookout for a story at Travers' expense.
Jamie and Victoria eventually leave the Tardis to explore. They discover a cave, where Jamie finds several silver spherical objects. They are attacked by a Yeti, but are able to escape and make their way to the monastery. The arrival of Jamie and Victoria, along with the Yeti following them, proves The Doctor's innocence.
The Doctor is able to capture one of the Yeti, and discovers that they aren't real, but robots. The robot Yeti are being controlled by the Great Intelligence, which also has the abbot Songsten and the three hundred year old Padmasambhava under his control. The silver, spherical objects are the control mechanisms that allow the Great Intelligence to control the Yeti.
Travers, who has ventured outside of the monastery and has discovered that the Great Intelligence is attempting to manifest a physical form. Victoria, meanwhile, has visited the Inner Sanctum despite being warned not to do so by the young monk Thomni that has befriended her. Once inside, Victoria encounters and is hynoptized by Padmasambhava.
Victoria leaves the Inner Sanctum and warns the monks to evacuate the monastery. The warrior monk Khrisong enters the Inner Sanctum, only to be killed by Songsten. Songsten has now been revealed as the link between the Yeti and the monastery and is taken prisoner. The Doctor confronts Padmasambhava with the help of Jamie, Victoria and Thomni. Together, they destroy the equipment that allows the Great Intelligence through Padmasambhava to control the Yeti. The control spheres are destroyed which frees Padmasambhava from the Great Intelligence's control, and Padmasambhava dies peacefully in The Doctor's arms.
Travers accompanies The Doctor and his companions as they leave the now ruined monastery. Travers spots a real Yeti and runs off to investigate as The Doctor and his companions leave.
Review-
I can certainly understand the Great Intelligence's motivations, but watching this story one has to wonder why the Great Intelligence needs robot Yeti. The Great Intelligence also control several monks, including their leaders Songsten and Padmasambhava, so there's no need for the Yeti to terrorize the monastery. Indeed, the Yeti only appear at the monastery once Travers and the Doctor arrive.
In the end, The Abominable Snowmen is simply best enjoyed as a gripping adventure tale. The Great Intelligence does make a great adversary for The Doctor. Indeed, one of the main reasons to watch this particular story is because of the recent return of the Great Intelligence in the New Series. If you have an interest in the Great Intelligence's history, the Abominable Snowmen a must view, along with its sequel story The Web of Fear.
