Dragonfire is the fourth and final serial of the 24th season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in three weekly parts from 23 November to 7 December 1987.
This serial marked the departure of Bonnie Langford as Mel Bush and the introduction of Sophie Aldred as companion Ace.
Kane, overhearing this, sends more of his forces to seize the head, while causing chaos among the spaceport, including destroying the Nosferatu with numerous escaping passengers aboard.
Broken by this revelation, Kane commits suicide by purposely allowing his body to be exposed to the light of a nearby star, which causes him to melt.
The literal cliffhanger at the end of episode 1 in which the Doctor lowers himself over a guard rail to dangle over an abyss from his umbrella for no apparent reason comes under frequent criticism for its seeming absurdity.
Though this is very similar to the death of Toht in Raiders of the Lost Ark, for the family audience of Doctor Who, the colour red was carefully avoided in the bust.
Ronald Lacey, who had portrayed Toht in the film, was director Chris Clough's first choice to play Kane, but was unavailable.
[citation needed] Paul Cornell, Martin Day and Keith Topping said the serial was "an interesting attempt to do what Doctor Who does best: mix monsters with semiotics and philosophy.
David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker were critical of the cliffhanger end to episode one, "which must surely be the most ludicrous ever presented in Doctor Who."
In June 2021 it was released as part of the Doctor Who: The Collection Season 24 blu-ray box set, which includes an optional extended cut of all three episodes.