Invasion of the Dinosaurs - Episode 4

As I approach the second half of the story there is a desire to ensure that things keep moving. This is where traditionally the story shifts in direction and we are as a result introduced to new characters. In this cast we are introduced to Mark (Terence Wilton), Adam (Brian Badcoe) and most famously Ruth (played by Carmen Silvera). This episode is where we are introduced to the Whomobile which will show off itself in a future story but in this case just seems like a weird thing to introduce into this story but hey-ho.

The Doctor and Sarah are in very different surrounding in this episode with the Doctor going to find out where and who has been sabotaging his equipment. He manages to make it down to where Butler and Professor Whittaker who are playing games in trying to get the Doctor to leave. When the Doctor returns with the Brigadier there’s a depressing inevitability about what they are going to find and that is nothing.

Sarah Jane is still led to believe that she’s on a spaceship and she isn’t accepting what been told to her. There is a moment when Sarah is watching a video in the reminder room which I thought was similar to when the Doctor was watching a video in ‘Colony in Space’. It’s simple yet effective and it explains why Mark, Adam & Ruth have moved away and there is a nice CSO shot to show that this is a vast number of people involved. Although as the story will show this is as fake as the CSO.

General Finch, Butler, Professor Whittaker, Yates and Grover share the same scene for the first time in this story and it’s a great moment to see the people responsible. They come up with quite an ingenious plan by trying to discredit the Doctor and they do this very well to set up the cliffhanger because the last shot is of General Finch and the Brigadier basically catching the Doctor red handed. This hasn’t been an episode that has been about the dinosaurs which is why this is the best episode of the story. Yes there were some dinosaurs that appeared but I think that we have now got to the part of the story where the Dinosaurs have become a tool of the conspirators as opposed to being the main menace and now the good parts of this story are going to take centre stage and that’s a big relief really.