The Ark - The Bomb

The final part of this story starts with the idea that the Doctor and Dodo might have to stay on refusis. This episode sees the Monoids about to land on refusis and its not long into the episode before we are reminded that the Monoid statue has a bomb in it. Its not as simple as that with there being the small matter of a coup in the Monoid camp and also the guardians trying to find the bomb. It's quite good how the viewer knows where the bomb is yet everyone in the story has no clue.

Its good how he Monoids turn on each other as it shows that they are just as another race is suseptical to this form of action. It's fun to watch and helps keep the action going for a few more minutes. Thereis a classic stor trait of someone who has betrayed their own kind gets killed b the people they worked for. It's not long before they are killed and the focus of the story shifts to getting back to the Ark and stopping the bomb.

When the story comes close to the end there's a moral message about how the guardians should be more respectful to the Monoids and vice versa. It's rare that the moral messages is so blatant like it is in this story. The story gets wrapped up quite well and it feels like its ended at just the right moment.

Despite being stuck with the guardians, Steven still tries to work out a way of getting free. He is helped by the fact that he doesn't have to put up with Dodo. William Hartnell has to work along side her and despite this he does put in a good performance. I'm perhaps being harsh to Jackie Lane because she's reduced to a background role in this episode. It's clear that the production seem to be regretting creating the character and that's why she does very little.

The model work doesn't look as good as it did in the previous episodes. the wires are clearly visible and it slightly ruins the effect. The effect of the statue being lifted by the refusion might look a bit cheap and primitive but its quite clever really and when it gets chucked out of the airlock it's done quite well. 

The cliffhanger is a cracker. The Doctor becomes invisible and declares it as a form of attack. It is a great way of leading us into the next story and ends what has been the best final episode of a story that I can remember. As a story it's quite good, its certainly better than I remember and I can't think why I thought any differently. Yes there is a rather cliched moral message and yes the guardians are silly and deserve what they get. However it doesn't detract from my newfound respect for this story.

The Ark - The Return

The second part of this story is potentially where the story takes the next step. They work out that around 700 years have passed since they left and it doesn't take long to see that the guardians are the servants and the Monoids are in charge which is a complete switch of what it was like before. There has been a major development with the Monoids as they can now talk even though the method is somewhat primitive. I think that the head part of the Monoids are well done though there is a moment when one of them has a drink even though there's no clear way as to how this could happen.

When they land on the planet we get to learn that the inhabitants are invisible though its only done in a subtle way and it takes several scenes before they get involved. It's rather disappointing when before the speak the Monoid throws some vases as a way of getting someone's attention. It's rather a childish thing to do and slightly devalues them. Then they foolishly announce their true plans when the guardians can overhear them.

I love the moment when its revealed that even though they found a cure for the cold, the after effects did more harm and that along with various other things helped the Monoids overthrow the guardians. To be honest the guardians were a useless lot so its not such a worrying thing. The Monoids are an effective baddie with 'one' being the best of the bunch. Even the eye looks creepy even though its being moved by the actors tongue.

There is a fun moment when the Doctor appears to be talking to thin air but obviously he's talking to one of the refusions. The refusions seem like a pleasant enough race and have even gone to the trouble of putting up buildings just to make the guardians feel at home. Unlike the guardians, I actually like the refusions because at least they done come across and weak and feeble. Though even though I call the guardians week and feeble, the new ones we meet in this episode are no where near as annoying as the previous lot though that's only because it turns out one of them has become has become a turncoat.

We get more of the model as the capsule lands on the planet. It's good that we get to see it up close instead of on a screen like in a previous episode. It's good that we get to go somewhere different instead of just staying on the ark. Even though its a studio at least its somewhere different and it breathes some new life into the stor and I am enjoying this far more than I was expecting and this was another solid episode that kept me entertained and the final episode should continue this good work. 

The Ark - The Plague

Well even Susan wasn't this quick. In her first episode she has almost wiped out humanity. 

The opening scene after the replay we get a scene of the regulars which basically comprises of Dodo sniffling through the whole thing. She does very little afterwards as it falls to Steven and the Doctor to being the voices of the group.

Its good how Dodo's cold is effecting the Monoids as well as the humans. In fact more Monoids are falling ill compared to the humans. The Doctor, Steven and Dodo are put on trial for infecting them. Steven starts off defending himself and the others but he has become ill with the cold. What's so good about this trial is that the guardians are untrusting and unwilling to let the Doctor find a cure. Sadly for the regulars they are found guilty and it looks like at first that they are done for however when Steven is taken ill it seems that this is the point where the guardians are willing to trust the Doctor.

The story seems to drag for an awfully long time and its not until the Doctor is allowed to find a cure before it gets going. Then the episode seems to get into gear and it seems that the story is at an end when Steven and the guardians are much better. Back in 1966 the viewers must have thought this was a nice simple two parter but the must have been in for a shock when they leave the TARDIS and discover that the statue they saw at the beginning of the previous episode has been completed but is now a Monoid and not a human. This is another good cliffhanger, the slow pan up the statue is what helps sell this to the viewer.

A quick thing to mention are the effects. In the previous episode a guardian was miniturised and in this episode we get another effect. The effect of the Monoid being chucked out into space was rather well done even though we just saw I through the screen and not up close. 

As an episode I thought that this was half a good episode and half a dull episode. I still don't think that the guardians are a bit weak and feeble and so when they fall ill its not a big concern to me. The story picks p and the cliffhanger is a great reason to carry on and the story is a lot stronger than I remember it been and hopefully the last two episodes will continue to impress me.

The Ark - The Steel Sky

What a difference a week makes. After appearing as a cockney in the previous episode, Jackie Lane was forced to change her accent at the request of BBC executives who presumably wanted people speaking the 'queens English'. This is the first time tha I have been able to watch an episode since 'Escape Switch' and its the first full adventure on TV since 'The Time Meddler'. When the TARDIS lands there is no real discussion as to what happened when Dodo stumbled inside. What we do have is a similar discussion between Steven and Dodo that Steven had with Vicki way back in 'The Time Meddler'. Dodo instantly thinks that she is at a zoo on Earth.  

The TARDIS has arrived on spaceship which is carrying a group of wet humans who are rather pathetic.At the first sign of someone making a mistake they decide to shrink them and keep them like that for a set amount of time. The old man who seems to be leading the rest of the humans is rather kind but the role needs something a bit sterner. Also the fact that the humans do silly sign language when talking to the monsoons. The Monoids creation is a mixed bag really. It's quite clever to have their only eye in the actors mouth. They also have silly feet which don't look particularly practical. Also the hair is very 1960's and wouldn't look out of place at a Beatles convention.

Some of the dialogue is rather good and William Hartnell is clearly have a good day and it enables him to deliver his lines in the manner that we have become use to. The threat the comes from the first episode is a simple cold that Dodo makes obvious several times. Due to the fact that cold has been eliminated it makes the locals more likely to die from it. It's a clever plot device and it seems to come out of nowhere and instantly becomes the centre piece of the story.

I commented that Dodo has a different accent and she's wearing strange crusader clothing for no clear reason. On top of that there seems to be an attempt to make a comment about the language used by the youngsters of the age because when Dodo uses the term 'fab' she is instantly reprimanded by the Doctor. Sadly despite the encouraging opening of the previous episode has been reduced to a cliche and rather bland.

Its a good opening episode, the issue with Dodo isn't one that is going to go away but apart from that has some potential but it doesn't really look promising as far as the human cast is concerned. On the plus side at least we have William Hartnell and Peter Purves.