Planet of the Spiders - Episode 6

So this is it, after 128 Jon Pertwee bows out of the show which very nearly could have ended after his first season. The show has gone under a tremendous transformation over the past four seasons and whilst this season hasn’t been the finest, one thing for sure is that it’s going to end on the sort of high note that Pertwee deserves. I don’t know why but it feels like the cliffhanger goes on for even longer than in previous episodes. The stuff where Lupton’s goons are shooting at Tommy appears at the five minutes mark.

The shot of Sarah Jane shooting the Doctor and him reacting is one of the most played clips from the 3^rd Doctor’s era. Elisabeth Sladen doesn’t really have much of a purpose in this episode and that is because it is all about Jon Pertwee and what involvement she does have in the episode is strong and she has done really well in her first season on the show. Due to the nature of the episode, Lupton doesn’t have quite the impact that he had in previous episodes which is a shame because I really have liked the character.

The fact that the Doctor never really shares a scene with the Great One would normally be one that causes some annoyance to me but I think that due to Pertwee’s performance and the awesome sight of the Great One model, it works really well and is the epic final scene that the story deserved. Had Roger Delgado not being killed then the Master would have featured in this story and I would like to think that there would have been an equally great scene. As it is, the final scene ends with the Great One falling victim to her own plan and it is perhaps the best way for this part of the story to end.

The final scene is lovely and its odd that it starts quite slowly with the Brigadier and Sarah Jane talking about if the Doctor would come back. When the Doctor does return he instantly falls to the floor and utters these words “While there life theres….”. I like this scene not only because it’s so sombre and well acted by everyone but that it involves those that it features the Brigadier who was in Pertwee’s first episode and it does feel like a goodbye between two friends.

This episode marks the final appearance of Mike Yates and I think that he has been really good in this season and in particular ‘Invasion of the Dinosaurs’. This serial was more of a redemption that anything else and it was a good story for him and Richard Franklin has been one of the unsung heroes of the UNIT family and whilst Benton takes a lot of the glory due to his goofyness, Franklin has done some good stuff during his time on the show.

The actual regeneration is rather ordinary and I couldn’t help but notice that when Tom Baker finally makes his appearance, that he looks a lot like Tom Jones. I don’t know who or whether that was what they were intending (doubt that very much) but I think that considering Jon Pertwee’s involvement and contribution to the show seems like a bit of an anti-climax. One thing is for sure, whilst we have been witness to some truly classic moments in Doctor Who we are about to enter a whole load of more iconic moments and this week it was revealed that Tom Baker was voted the favourite Doctor from the first 50 years of Doctor Who and I am about to find out why. As much as I have enjoyed the Pertwee era I must say that I am looking forward to the Tom Baker era.

Planet of the Spiders - Episode 5

After the rather disappointing cliffhanger, it didn’t take long for the episode to get back going and considering that this is the penultimate episode it’s has to move the plot along to just the right point to have an epic final episode. The thing that is noticeable about this episode is that there isn’t a particular trait that would show an aspect of the Pertwee era. There is no Bond chase sequence and no fight sequence. The Doctor manages to be put (somehow) into a cocoon and escape within the first couple of minutes. I do find the way that the Doctor escapes to be quite fun. I don’t quite know why he does free the bloke that he’s trapped with.

The scene where Sarah Jane is talking to the spider is a creepy. This is the episode where the spider jumps on Sarah’s back and also on other peoples back and its still a good effect and also a creepy idea that could be these eight legged disciples of evil on people’s back. I like how the spider that’s on Sarah Jane’s back affects her in the way that it does. It’s the first time that Sarah Jane has been affected in the way that she has been.

The episode trundles along well enough until the ten minute mark when the Doctor comes across the great one. The way that the Doctor comes across this is quite clever with the Great One using Sarah Jane’s voice. The ‘Pop Goes the Weasel’ line is quite chilling and like the Doctor, we don’t get to see what the Great One looks like though we learn that the cave is killing the Doctor slowly and this will lead to his regeneration. The first encounter between these two is brilliant because the Doctor is shown to have fear of the Great One and at times didn’t have full control of his body.

I was surprised at the death of Cho-Je in this episode as he has been one of the nicest characters in the serial. Though the involvement of this character isn’t ended here but I thought that as death scenes go in this serial, it’s the second best/most shocking death.

The appearance of all the spiders during the death of Cho-Je was rather good as there was at one point a mixture of CSO and live model. I admit that the CSO in this story isn’t quite as good especially with the scene where the Doctor encounters the Great One. It is suppose to be one of the most important sets and yet it’s let down with by the CSO.

The cliffhanger is another rather disappointing cliffhanger. I know from the information text that this was due to timing reasons but surely they could have come up with something more dramatic. As much as I like the idea that Tommy has become more intelligent and seems to be stronger and able to withstand a lot of pain, I think that the cliffhanger should have featured either the Doctor and/or Sarah. This seemed like a bit of a wasted opportunity to get us ready for the final episode.

Planet of the Spiders - Episode 4

It’s over two minutes before the cliffhanger ends and the episode starts. As much fun as it is to see Pertwee doing his thing it’s too long. Thankfully once that is over I can start to enjoy the episode. Now that I have reached the second half of the story it seems that the plot has picked up and it feels like the ending has been prepared for and now that this is clear on screen you can feel the tension ramped up during certain scenes.

Lupton has become quite brave in this episode when he confronts the Queen Spider and over the course of the episode, he seems to have become a sort of lieutenant though this doesn’t last for long as the power struggle seems to have taken control between the spider on Lupton’s back and the Queen.  

This is the episode where Tommy goes from being child-like to an adult. The scene where he realises that he can read and starts to read his children’s book is one of the nicest moments in Doctor Who. John Kane is arguably the best thing about this episode as his development is one of the few positive things in this serial.

It’s good that there is a bit of backstory about what happened on Metebelis 3 and how the spiders got to be the size they are. The spiders (or eight legs) came from Earth on the ship with the colonists and the spiders came across the blue crystal and they became bigger and cleverer. I think that is a reasonable explanation and I like how the explanation is split so that the Doctor is being told and a part of it and Sarah Jane is told the other half. As much as I have tried I just cant get worked up about the humans. It’s the only real aspect of this story that doesn’t quite work.

The cliffhanger was rather poor. It’s simply the Doctor walking into the cell that Sarah is in and that’s it. The most disappointing end to an episode for quite sometimes and it’s a shame that after what was a rather interesting episode. I think apart from this minor blip the final story for Jon Pertwee has been just as I have thought of it in the past. Even the spiders haven’t been able to dampen my enjoyment of this serial and apart from the humans on Metebelis 3 I still I still think that this is a strong story and hopefully that continues for another two episodes.

Planet of the Spiders - Episode 3

I am reminded a little bit of the issues with the second half of the previous episode when we get a repeat of the Bond sequence but the idea that Lupton disappeared off a moving boat is still impressive. There is a scene which has a roomful of spiders which is a little bit creepy. Up until now it there has been a lack of spiders and their planet hasn’t appeared but that all changes in this episode. I like how the spiders consider themselves to be superior to humans and call humans ‘two legs’. The Great One is mentioned in this episode and just from a few mentions the impression is created that the Great One is going to be an impressive set.

The CSO of Lupton in the Spiders chamber is very good but the shot of the spider that was on Lupton moving across the floor just looked poor. Other poor CSO shots include when Sarah Jane is looking at Lupton it’s clearly a CSO shot.

There is a nice bit of backstory about Lupton which isn’t something that Doctor Who does very often when it doesn’t concern a monster. Basically it boils down to him being snubbed and decides that he wants to take over the company, then the country and then the world. The scene where the spider tries to hurt Lupton and then he does the same to the spider is a great little moment and shows that there is something more to Lupton than what first appeared.

The episode sees the action change direction a little bit with the action moving to Metebelis 3 where there is a human village and they seem just as scared of the spiders as I am. Just as the spiders call the humans two legs, the humans call the spiders eight-legs and it seems to be frowned upon to use the word spider. I don’t know why they have decided to create Metebelis 3 with CSO screen instead of doing what they did in ‘Planet of the Spiders’ and use every plant in the garden centre. On the matter of the two legs, I think there is an interesting mix of strong characters and rather ordinary characters. I am hoping that the stronger ones will be the more memorable ones at the end of this story.

Whereas in the previous episode, there was a fair amount of airtime given to indulge Jon Pertwee. Here there a short but sweet fight scene which is very much of Pertwee’s era but it doesn’t last anywhere near as long as the Bond stuff so I don’t mind it. The episode ends in a good way with the Doctor collapsing in front of the TARDIS. This episode takes a substantial step in terms of plot and I found this episode to be very exciting and the story has really found its feet and Pertwee’s final story could be a fitting end to his tenure in the role. It wouldn’t be a review if I didn’t mention stats and todays stat is that this is the 38^th episode for Richard Franklin who has now appeared in more episode than Roger Delgado did.

Planet of the Spiders - Episode 2

The journey to the end of the Pertwee era takes a more gentile pace in this episode than perhaps the last one or any that we have had recently. It doesn’t take long for the spider prop to look more than just a prop. The spider talks to Lupton must have been a surprise to viewers at the time and I always find the bit when it jumps on Lupton’s back very creepy and it always makes me shudder. The effect of it jumping is actually quite good and they have got around how silly it might look by making it disappear.

We find out the reason as to why the spider has come to earth and it’s to do with the blue crystal that the Doctor gave to Jo and she gave back. It’s good that the two plot strands seem to be joining up. The voice of the spider isn’t quite what I was expecting. I can’t figure out whether I like it or not but one thing is for sure is that at least they’ve made an attempt to make it sound less human. Lupton gets better in this episode as his villainy takes shape and this is largely down to the spider. On the downside he looks a bit silly when he sticks his hand out so that the blue spark effect can be used. The main problem with Lupton being involved in the chase sequence is that he looks like he could run about 100 yards before having to take a breather whereas Pertwee looks the peak of physical fitness and looks like he could easily catch him

It takes about ten minutes for Sarah Jane and the Doctor to meet and it’s good that their plot strands meet up. When they reunite they have a fun scene where Sarah Jane is talking about her experiences and the Doctor is blatantly not listening. The Brigadier is on the phone to Harry Sullivan who will appear in a few episodes time. I like to think that this is the production team getting ready for a smooth transition.

The second half of this episode is basically one long action chase sequence. It lasts 11 minutes and involves Bessie, a gyroplane, the whomobile and hover cars. This was clearly designed to indulge Pertwee and whilst I have no objection to him being indulged, I think that it goes on just a bit too long. The moment when I knew that it had gone on for too long was when the Whomobile goes into the air and is flying. The CSO shot doesn’t quite work but its not the worst that there has been

This is essentially two episodes in one because the first half sees the plot developed somewhat and then the second half is just a homage to Bond films and I sort of wanted less Bond and more Doctor Who. It does feel also like Sloman was trying to pad the story.

I thought that the cliffhanger was rather good and it was one that no one could have seen coming and that is perhaps the best way to have ended the episode. Thinkabout it when was the last time the episode ended with the Doctor on a powerboat? Never and that’s because William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton rarely left the studio and even then it was never to do the sort of things that occur in the final 10 minutes of the episode. I think that the ‘silliness’ will end in the next episode and we can get back to the story.

Planet of the Spiders - Episode 1

The final Jon Pertwee story has arrived and I am going to make this joke many times over the next five episodes when I say that the moment has been prepared for. Hey if you have been following this since the early days then you will know I did this during the previous two regeneration stories. I am going to say straight from the beginning that I don’t like spiders. I seriously don’t and I hate it when people say “oh but they eat flies!” like that’s a perfectly fine excuse. I would quite happily wipe every single spider off the face of the earth. So with potential sitting on the fence issue dealt with, I start to watch Jon Pertwee’s 123^rd episode as the Doctor.

This episode sees the return of Richard Franklin who last we saw of him was allowed to leave UNIT quietly. So quietly we didn’t see him leave and so his return was much appreciated. He seems to have found himself at some retreat where a lot of people meditating in the basement. It takes just over four minutes for a spider to feature when Yates walks into a spiders web. It’s good that they go to the trouble of reminding the viewer of what happened to him and why he has ended up in the retreat. The scene where Yates is talking to Sarah Jane ends up with them swerving off the road avoiding a tractor that appeared from no-where and disappeared instantly.

The Doctor and Brigadier seem to have been watching some talent show. It’s a weird way to start the episode for these two which considering its Pertwee’s last story lacks the impactful start that I would have expected. It was all to introduce Professor Clegg (played by Cyril Shaps) who goes from being a proper clairvoyant and then pretends to be a fraud before being shown as the real deal but doesn’t actually want the ability.

I love it how Lupton would have accepted a journalist coming to the retreat but a female journalist is one step too far. The Master was due to feature in this story but with the death of Roger Delgado meant that Lupton was introduced and from the very moment he appears he seems like there is more to him that the meditation.

Tommy (played by John Kane) is introduced as a simple yet strong person. By the end of his first scene he is holding a squashed flower and looks over it like someone looking over a dead loved one. When he pops up again alongside Sarah Jane and Yates, I found him to be slightly annoying because he seems to be holding the story up and even though its only for a moment, its long enough to bother me.

The Doctor’s journey in this episode isn’t quite what I was expecting because he doesn’t really seem to be involved in the story and even towards the end the involvement with what is going on with Sarah Jane and Yates doesn’t seem very clear. The wedding present that the Doctor gave Jo in ‘The Green Death’ makes a return and it’s the first time that an ex-companion had an involvement in the story. Even though she doesn’t appear on screen her involvement does have detrimental effects on the Doctor and the show.

The ending is very simple yet effective because it’s the titular spider (not including the one Yates bumps into at the beginning of the episode). There are issues with the spiders that will be mentioned in future episodes but as a cliffhanger it’s a good one and the opening episode is very calm and all the building blocks seem to have been put in place. I suspect the story will pick up once the Doctor and Sarah Jane start to interact but I think that that this a promising start to Pertwee’s departing story.

The Green Death - Episode 6

I forgot to mention that episode four was the 100^th episode for Jon Pertwee as the Doctor and now joins the century club with Patrick Troughton and William Hartnell. This is the final episode for Katy Manning as Jo Grant in her 77^th episode and is tied in second place with William Russell as longest serving companions though is still 35 episodes short of Frazer Hines’ record of 112. I commented that it didn’t feel like this episode was the final one. So it has to effectively rush things into a 25 minute episode.

Jo doesn’t do much for the first 10 minutes until she reveals that she had the happy accident which the Professor was saying serendipity about. She doesn’t really have much to contribute until the final half of the episode but when she’s involved she’s really good and gives the sort of performance that we come to expect from Katy Manning. Jon Pertwee is on fine form as usual and actually doesn’t deliver the fatal blow but almost inspires Stevens to do the job for him.

If I were the Professor I would be slightly miffed that I had been bumped down the list of priorities when they decide that killing the maggots was a greater priority once they knew that Nancy’s food had an effect on the maggots. The scene where Benton is treating the maggots like cats and this annoys the Doctor was a funny moment.

This episode does feature the unfortunate flying insect which does undermine all the good work of the maggots and I had always thought that this featured earlier in the story not in the final episode. I suppose one of the benefits of watching an episode a day is that it breaks up the monotony that a six part story can have if watched in one sitting. The flying insect was a brief part of this story and I liked that the Doctor just did a simple thing of flinging his coat over it to kill it.

The relationship (if you can call it that) between Stevens and BOSS is a curious one because by this episode, BOSS seems overly confident his plan will work and Stevens is panicking that things wont work out. The build up to this episode comes when the Doctor is trying to convince Stevens about trying to put an end to BOSS. The end is the best pay-off that we could have had because it’s the pupil that puts and end to the teachers plan and the last shot of Stevens with a tear running down his face is the icing on the cake.

The moment when the Professor seems to be out of the woods is when it seems like Jo has left Team Doctor and gone over to Team Professor. The build up to Jo Grant’s departure has been well handled over the six episodes and she gets the exit that she deserves. Unlike Caroline John’s exit (which wasn’t really an exit), Katy Manning’s final scene is as emotional as when Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury left in ‘The War Games’. What makes the departure even more emotional is the reaction of the Doctor who leaves quietly without saying goodbye to Jo. Even I found myself getting a bit emotional which isn’t something that I normally do. It’s a very downbeat ending which isn’t something that classic Who tended to do. Even when a companion left it always had a more upbeat ending but I suppose that considering Katy Manning was such a good companion that there was no way to put a positive spin on it.

Despite being concerned that this episode wasn’t going to end the story in a good way, I thought that it was a very solid episode which was a episode of two halves with the Global Chemicals/BOSS stuff dealt with at just the right time and there was just the right amount of time to write Jo out of the show. This was a great way to end the anniversary year and I think that on the whole, this season has been the strongest since Pertwee’s first season. Only ‘Carnival of Monsters’ let the side down and even that wasn’t the worst story ever.

The Green Death - Episode 5

As we approach the final stages of this story, it’s important really that it feels like its building to something.

The Doctor starts the episode talking to the BOSS. The first big scene is of these two have a debate about the human mind. Considering that Jon Pertwee is acting on his own, he manages to give a great performance during this scene. Pertwee has a good episode because after the stuff with the BOSS and Stevens, he has a good attempt at escaping from Global Chemicals. Mike Yates pops up every so often to remind us he’s still around and starts by helping the Doctor escape and then gets hypnotised into trying to kill the Doctor and then is ‘treated’ and goes back to Global Chemicals to pretend that he’s killed the Doctor however as is always the case with someone who works for UNIT, he over does it and raises suspicion with Stevens when he reckons that Jo’s death wasn’t important.

Jo and the Professor are in a spot of trouble at the beginning of the episode after Jo went off to find a maggot. Now they are both trapped in a cave with a few maggots as friends. There is another bit where Jo’s changing feelings after Cliff gets hurt during the explosions. Even though it’s her own fault for being in this situation, Katy Manning is very good in this episode. As this is her penultimate episode its perhaps the best time to just think about how far the character has come since that first episode of ‘Terror of the Autons’ and how far the show has progressed during this period.

This might sound weird but this is where I learnt the word serendipity and its meaning. The word is used after the Professor becomes infected by the green stuff and this means that its game set and match as far as the tennis match for Jo’s feelings go. There is nothing the Doctor can do to turn this around.

The CSO used in this episode is curious. Not because it doesn’t work but because it’s used in a scene which could have been done on location. Especially when in the same scene they go from studio to location filming, it then goes back to the studio before ending with location filming. It ruins the illusion of this being filmed outside. It’s one thing when it’s all filmed one way or another but it doesn’t make sense to do it both ways. The production values in this episode weren’t quite as good as they usually are and that’s a shame considering how good the story is.

Tony Adams was forced to leave the show due to illness and so had to be replaced by Mr James played by Roy Skelton. The voice of the Daleks, Cybermen and of course Zippy from Rainbow, it’s good that he finally gets to appear on screen. He is involved in the cliffhanger which unusually doesn’t involve the Doctor or Jo but it’s still a good cliffhanger, largely due to Jerome Willis’ performance and the stare he gives which the camera zooms into as the theme tune plays. The main issue that I have with the story at this stage is that it doesn’t feel like it’s building up to anything and if I didn’t know beforehand that the next episode would be the last then I would be expecting a few more episodes before the end so it would have been a surprise in 1973 to know the truth. Still a great story with great characters and maggots that don’t undermine the moral that this story has subtly put in front of us.

The Green Death - Episode 4

The maggot crawling over the floor via CSO is still quite effective as is it leaping up. Normally this is where the story would fall apart but its clear that the money has been spent to try and make them look good which is perhaps the most important thing when they are the main selling point of the story. A bit like the dinosaurs in ‘Invasion of the Dinosaurs’ but the maggots work a lot better.There is a nice build-up of tension when the Doctor has 32 and a half minutes to talk to Stevens to try and stop the exploding. There is a surprise during this scene when we see the return of Mike Yates. Yates is pretending to be helpful to Stevens but goes so far as to go against the Doctor and seem like he’s siding with Stevens. Benton has a light presence in this episode which is a shame because he always provides some light comedy relief and this is what this story needs a bit of.

The cleaner that appears at the ten minute mark does feel like she stereotypically welsh but that’s the only real problem with this episode. The relationship between Jo and the Professor seems to have developed even more in this episode. Even to the stage where Jo does something insanely stupid as to try and get him a maggot. This is the sort of thing that she would have done for the Doctor before this story so it’s another sign that she’s moving away from the Doctor.

We get another great quote from the Brigadier which is similar to what he said in ‘The Daemons’.

“Never thought id fire in anger at a dratted caterpillar”

The Brigadier is on fine form in this episode and Nicholas Courtney is enjoying himself which is always a good thing. Jon Pertwee is also someone who is having fun as he has not one but two disguises that he uses as he dresses up as a old milkman and also as a cleaner. The Doctor doesn’t really get to be his usual self until the very end of the episode where we get to find out who is in charge of Stevens and it’s an even bigger screen with the squiggly line on. It perhaps has a lot more of an impact on first viewing but after several viewings, it doesn’t quite have the same effect. That said I still think that this story is very good and this episode continues to entertain me. The performances are very good and the maggots are quite impressive and the CSO has been a positive influence. It does feel like after four episodes, the story is changing direction and these final two episodes will be something different.

The Green Death - Episode 3

Here come the maggots is what I was thinking when I started episode three. I am still looking forward this story and think that I am going through a new enthusiasm with these stories. It’s hard for me to believe that since mid-January I have been enjoying (mainly) the Pertwee stories and since February I have been enjoying Jo Grant and so I realise that with every episode I am enjoying the story more but realising that the number of Jo episodes is reducing.

I am getting frustrated with the rather inconsistent CSO that has been used in this serial. The shot of the Doctor and Jo going back the maggots is rather dodgy. The Doctor and Jo make their way to Elgin and during this period is one of the best moments in the episode where there is tremendous tension in whether the Doctor and Jo would make it out before the pipes are filled with the horrible sludge. The CSO used to make the maggot moved at the end was the only bit of saving grace for the technology but its still frustrating that it is used in the way that it is.

I quite like the Brigadier out of his army uniform and into civvies. He looks like he should be shooting pheasant on some country estate. His involvement in the episode begins with Stevens and having a telephone conversation with the Prime Minister who is called Jeremy however the PM in 1973 was Edward Heath.

I like how Stevens shows a more human side than we have seen before and its good because it will make his demise all the more striking. The way that he reacts to Fell’s death is what makes the character more interesting and not just a rather two dimensional villain.

The story stops for a moment where we learn a bit more about the wholemeal community and the different people there who started off in the city but have become different people. It’s almost as if Robert Sloman (and Barry Letts) are trying to say to the viewers that there is a better way of life from what is currently been experienced.

I like the line that the professor gives about there never having been a person like Bert, not will there ever be. It comes in the final stages of the episode which shows just how far Jo has drifted towards the Professor and away from the Doctor after Jo’s rather poor attempt at a positive response to the Doctors revelation to getting to Metebelis Three.

This is another great episode and it continues to move along at a good pace and I never found myself bored or my attention wandering. Apart from the occasional iffy CSO, the quality of the story holds up rather well over 40 years after it transmitted. Second half should be just as good as the first.

The Green Death - Episode 2

This episode starts with the intriguing way of how Jo and Bert are going to survive plummeting to the ground. The fact that the Doctor just managed to stop it. The CSO used in the early moments of this episode were not great. The bit used in the previous episode wasn’t great but it was better than this instance. When the Doctor goes down then it’s slightly better but the thing that undermines it is the slightly dodgy movements that they do which is designed to give us the impression that they are in a lift but it all highlights that it’s a dodgy set/sequence.

Global Chemicals comes across as a thoroughly nasty place when the Doctor is after the cutting equipment to help Jo. Stevens seemed like the one running the place in the previous episode but it’s not quite so simple and I like that things are developing in this aspect of the story. We are introduced to the person that appears to be controlling Stevens. I say persons but that’s not true really at the moment it’s just a voice. I like the simplicity of how he’s realised with just a squiggly line (technical term). Elgin is the only one in the entire company that seems nice and Tony Adams gives what I perceive as a genuine performance that is a bit more than acting.

Bert is trapped with Jo and I like him because he seems nice and jolly but he doesn’t last long but really it’s his own stupid fault really because he touches something he clearly shouldn’t and any right minded person would have avoided it. That might sound a bit cold but it’s hard to try and defend something when it’s undefendable.

I like the part of the episode where Professor and his group are creating a diversion so that the Doctor can gain access to Global Chemicals is entertaining and it leads to the first encounter between Stevens and the Doctor. There are better ones to come but it’s good that the Doctor is really getting involved in the story. The initial scene between the Doctor and the Professor was interesting because it was like the two people fighting for Jo’s affections and it was so understated.

The cliffhanger is much better because from out of nowhere we start to see the maggots and this is the first time that we get to see the proper threat of this story and whilst I know that the larger maggots are in fact inflated condoms, I still think that it’s a creepy ending. Two episodes in and I feel that its still maintaining my interest and things are going to get even better and Jo’s final story is going to be just as strong as her debut one.

The Green Death - Episode 1

The Green Death is quite a special story for several reasons. Firstly it’s the final story to feature Katy Manning as Jo Grant, a role that she has played since January 1971 comes to an end in a mine in south-Wales. This is the final story of the 1972/73 season and its been encouraging how this season has been so much stronger than the previous one. With the exception of ‘Carnival of Monsters’, we have been treated to so quality stories. Another reason why this story is special is more personal to me as it was the first story to be released on VHS that I purchased. I remember going to the shops and buying it, it was a double pack release with a purple sleeve and it was released a couple of months after Jon Pertwee had passed away and this is one of his best stories. Before I get started with the actual episode, I should also point out that this is the 350^th episode of Doctor Who and Jon Pertwee’s 97^th episode as the Doctor.

It should be pointed out that this is another story that has a major moral to it and this was written by Robert Sloman with uncredited help from Barry Letts. I don’t mind there being a moral message to a story as long as it doesn’t hijack the whole thing and in this case the message blends in well with the story. The story hits the ground running as we are introduced to two of the main supporting characters. Stevens is the man who runs Global Chemicals and in his first scene he gets into a ‘debate’ with Professor Jones. This scene does a pretty good job of painting Stevens as the villain and Jones as the good guy. Stevens comes across as a great villain and this is shown during the criss-cross scene between Stevens and the Brigadier and the Professor and Jo. By the end of the episode we are shown there appears to be an outside influence to Stevens’ behaviour, the mystery has begun.

The first scene with the Doctor and Jo does a good job of achieving two things, first it starts the Metebelis III part of the story and also it puts in wedge between the Doctor and Jo. Jo seems to fall in love with Jones without meeting him. The moment when Jo tells the Doctor that she’s only got 10 minutes and the Doctor responds by saying that she’s got all the time in the world is a lovely moment and it feels like the Doctor knows that he is losing Jo and he doesn’t like it. It’s good to have the Brigadier back in what is the beginning of the end for the character and for the golden era of Doctor Who.

We get to see Metebelis III for the first time and whilst it is as blue as the Doctor has said, it’s not the warmest of planets and I immediately thought that Jo had made the right decision. This is confirmed when the next scene is of Jo and the Professor have their first scene where they do this clumsy and almost flirty scene. The Doctor spends half the episode on the blue planet and it isn’t until the 20 minute mark that he’s back and speeding towards Llanfairfach in Bessie going at least twice the speed limit.

The cliffhanger is rather good because we know Jo’s in peril and the lift wont stop so in the real world this would be a major problem so the threat is real and the close up of Jon Pertwee’s face helps make the tension work. It’s a great opening episode and I am really looking forward to the next five episodes and think that this is going to be a great way of writing Katy Manning out of the show and ending the Anniversary season.

The Time Monster - Episode 6

Like a bolt of lightning, the final episode of the ninth season is upon us. I said in the review of the previous episode that it didn’t feel like the story was building to anything and that’s still true. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t see the big finale that it was heading towards. The Master has been named King in this episode, its now less than he deserves. King Master and Queen Galleia are a formidable duo. In fact there is a shot of the pair of them on their thrones and it suits them even though Galleia is dressed properly but the Master is still in his black suit.

There is a nice little scene where the Doctor talks about his blackest day and we get a lovely little story about an old person he encountered on Gallifrey. There is the strangest line that I have heard in Doctor Who for sometime when the line “The Daiesiest daisy I’ve ever scene.” Is uttered by the Doctor. There is another nice scene between the Master and Jo after Atlantis has started to crumble where the Master wishes he had finished him off a long time ago. It’s a thought echoed by many people. The scene ends with Jo doing what she did in ‘The Daemons’ and sacrifice herself to save the day. What follows it is a rather odd CSO shot where at one or two moments, Katy Manning actually disappears. This is what happens when too much faith is put in CSO.

The thing is that the first half of the story doesn’t really interest me and its only in the closing moments where the Doctor and Jo are talking to Kronos that is starts to pick up. I think that the way that the Master was able to escape was rather poor as everyone could have seen it coming and it doesn’t have quite the elegance that his exit in ‘The Sea Devils’ did.

I had forgotten about baby Benton, this meant that we got a rather nice amusing end to the story with the Brigadier finally out of the time bubble and storms into the lab expecting to see the Master but instead sees Jo in a different costume and a naked (not really) Benton. With everyone giggling away as the theme tune starts to play it seems like a pleasant way to end the season which has at best been patchy. If this story hadn’t moved to Atlantis then I could argue quite happily that this is a fine story and a fine way to end the ninth season however as I found the Atlantis material to be a bit dull I cant make that argument.

The Time Monster - Episode 5

We move into what is unofficially the second part of this six part adventure. The first thing to notice about this episode is the rather odd way that they resolve the cliffhanger. The Doctor is talking to Jo through the air. There are loads of voices in the Doctors subconscious (some of which are female). Jo flips a switch and all of a sudden the Doctor appears and all is normal. I say normal, as normal as can be considering what happens in this episode. It could be argued that the TARDIS scenes were a transition from the institute to Atlantis. This is I’m afraid where my interest starts to wander. The sets and costumes look rather wonderful but the problem is that things move at such a pedestrian pace that it doesn’t maintain my attention for very long.
The episode introduces the legendary Ingrid Pitt to the story. Pitt is perhaps most famous for appearing in several Hammer Films. Here she plays Queen Galleia and from the moment she appears on screen she comes across as the most important character in the story and it doesn’t take long for her importance to be seen. The look on the Master’s face when he sees the Doctor is priceless. Speaking of the master, one of the most intriguing things (and perhaps most memorable things) about this is episode is the relationship between him and Queen Galleia. In fact she seems to have come under his spell far better than King Dalios. If the Master ever got married then I would like to think that it would have been with her.

The performances from Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning were perfectly fine and it was intesting to see Jo in some different attire. She did seem to revel in her new surroundings and it was good that she was given something to do. I know I keep going on about whether a companion is given something to do but I think that when you compare companions from the classic era to the new era, its shocking to see sometimes how they are at times reduced to window dummies.

It’s not a particularly memorable or interesting episode but what it doesn’t have that is a good thing is Kronos. The thing is that like the previous story, there isn’t a feeling that we are building up to anything. It’s weird that this has happened two stories in a row but I suppose that’s the problem with these type of stories. I still think that this is a better story than ‘The Mutants’.

The Time Monster - Episode 4

The cliffhanger lost nothing in the reprise which shows how good it was. When we do finally get to see what happened to Yates it’s a rather good setting. We of course now that the TARDIS is indestructible so to see it at an angle is a wonderful sight. The story moves on a fair bit as we have pretty much done with the institute and the action moves into the TARDIS’. The interior of the TARDIS is silly. It cant be avoided but the roundels look just bathroom sink. It’s obvious why this interior never lasted beyond this adventure because it would have just looked even sillier in the 1980’s than it did in 1972. In the past that there has been a noticeable difference between the Doctor’s and the Master’s TARDIS’. In this case all that is different is the column in the middle of the console. That’s not enough of a difference in my opinion.

The idea of a TARDIS being inside another TARDIS is a fun idea and its done well in this episode. I like the interaction between the Doctor and the Master during these scenes and in particular when the Master turns off the sound and then when the Doctor reinstates it, turns his words into gibberish. It’s a nice bit of fun in what is otherwise a rather fun-free episode.

Its good to see Benton, Stuart and Ruth forming their own little Scooby Doo gang. It doesn’t seem like a team that is going to win when you consider that Benton hasn’t had the greatest luck in any episodes that has been in (remember ‘The Mind of Evil’?). Then there is Stuart who seems like if a strong gust of wind blew his way that he would topple over rather easily. Then there is Ruth who seems to be very animated when talking about womens lib and how pathetic men seem to be but apart from that doesn’t really stand out. However despite these minor quibbles they are more than a match (for a little time) for the Master. This episode is memorable for Benton to be turned into a baby. This is would have been the moment that John Levine would have realised that his days were numbered in this show.

The performances from everyone were fine but Krasis is a bit of a wasted character as he doesn’t contribute anything to the story. The other problem that I have with this episode is that aprt from the story moving from moving the story to the TARDIS, very little actually happens and this is rather frustrating but it’s the perils of having a six part adventure which has a pretty thin premise to it. I’m afraid to say that the rather ropey bird costume makes a return at the end of the episode. Again it was only a brief appearance but its means that we are getting closer to seeing it a lot more in the final two episodes. The cliffhanger isn’t as effective as the previous one. But that’s more to do with the fact that the previous one was so solid. This one was a bit strange as with the Doctor gone it was left for Jo who was in another

The Time Monster - Episode 3

As I approach the half way mark of this story I can’t help but feel good about this marathon which is the opposite way that I felt during the previous story. Nice stat comes with this episode and its that this is the 100^th episode that Terrance Dicks has been responsible for as script editor. This is the 67^th episode for Nicholas Courtney and the 30^th to feature Roger Delgado.

Despite finding a lot of positives in this story, I am afraid to say that the appearance of Kronos is the first thing that has appeared in this story that troubles me. I know that Doctor Who has prided itself on the fact it pushes the boundaries of technology and effects but sometimes its hard to argue with the sight of someone flapping their arms/wings. Thankfully its kept to a minimum in this episode which is perhaps the saving grace of this character.

On the positive side there are things to like in this episode which take away the rather silly Kronos costume. The first is that the episode flows along rather well without much to speak of in the way of eye catching stuff. The Doctor has clearly been watching Blue Peter before this episode because he’s making something out of a wine bottle with cutlery and bits and pieces attached to it. There is a fun and slightly barmy portion of the episode where a knight and an army of roundheads are attack Yates and the UNIT soldiers. Only in a Doctor Who story could this occur and not seem out of place. I like this part of the episode because it maintained my attention for the entire course.

The performances are all really good with Roger Delgado being the best of the regular cast. It’s odd talking about Delgado as the regular cast but when you consider his episode count, its shouldn’t really be that much of a surprise. He feels like is having a whale of a time as he gets to show off to Krasis. Speaking of Krasis, I found him to be a silly yet entertaining presence in the episode. He’s not scared of his current surroundings but still finds them enthralling. Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning are on good form as usual with Manning getting to be a bit more productive than usual.

I have to say that the end of the episode was a wonderful ending because all the drama is etched on Nicholas Courtney’s face. I think that it was a clever idea not to show the action from Yates’ point of view for some reason. It makes the potential loss feel even greater and it’s one of the finest build ups to the end of an episode that I can recall for sometime. I am enjoying this story but I can’t say that I am loving it. I don’t really care about the Atlantis stuff but I am still interested in the story and look forward to the second half of the serial.

The Time Monster - Episode 2

After being enthralled with the opening episode and finding it a lot of fun I must admit that I don’t feel as much warmth to this episode. That’s not to say that it’s a terrible episode by any means but something’s changed between the end of the previous episode and todays episode. Not sure if I will ever know but that’s not really important. Let’s just be grateful that this isn’t ‘The Mutants’. The main point of interest seems to be the fact that Stuart has been turned into an old man. It’s not the greatest make up and I might be somewhat cruel as I am comparing it to the old man make up used on David Tennant in ‘Last of the Timelords’.

The interaction between the Master and Doctor Percival. The thing that I like about it is that the Master really treats Percival with contempt. He even comments about not having someone as easy to control as Percival for quite sometime. After Stuart is aged horribly, he doesn’t get to do much apart from stay in bed and that means that Jo becomes nurse and has to stay by his side which is another disappointing episode for her.

I like the moment when Roger Delgado does a good job of miming to Nicholas Courtney’s voice. This is used to convince Benton to leave the lab unattended and I like how Benton actually gets to use his intelligence as he manages to pretend that he has left but just went around the building and came in from another window. Though he is somewhat undermined when he falls for a feeble trick from the Master.

The cliffhanger is rather good. It’s good because of the very last shot which is of Krasis looking very serious which works rather well and leaves a good image in my mind. Despite not a lot happening, I found this episode to fly by at a rate that I haven’t expected for quite some time. I still think that this might not be the best story of the season by any means but I still think it’s a better story than I have given it credit for.

 

The Time Monster - Episode 1

The Time Monster is the final story of the ninth season and it’s the return of an earth based story but more worringly, it’s another six part story and whilst I didn’t enjoy the previous six parter and still not sold on six parters I am still prepared to give this story the benefit of the doubt. It’s one of the last third Doctor stories that I ever saw and it’s the one that I haven’t been able to make my mind up really. I’m going to start with my stat bit. This is Katy Manning’s 46^th episode, she is now tied with Peter Purves and by the end of this story will be the joint 4^th longest serving companion. This is the first time that we have seen Nicholas Courtney since episode 4 of ‘Day of the Daleks’. This is also his 65^th episode which if he were what I would call a traditional companion would put him in fourth place. It’s good to have Courtney back

It takes just three minutes for Roger Delgado to return. He has well and truly into The Newton Institute. Delgado has now appeared in 28 episodes in just two seasons. Less than five minutes in he has hypnotised someone and seems to be making up for lost time. There is a bit where he is operating the machine whilst trying to avoid being noticed by Benton and the Brigadier. It seems rather silly really

Stuart and Ruth are two scientists that are working for the Doctor. It’s revealed quite later on in the episode that they are brother and sister. Ruth is someone who doesn’t like being talked down to by the Master and is quite the feminist which is a character trait that would have been fairly common in 1970’s drama. Stuart seems like a nice if slightly less feisty version of Ruth. He does get the best line in the episode where he says the line about the good ship womens lib (and all who sail in her). Apart from these two the supporting performances (apart from the Brigadier, Mike and Benton) were pretty average.

The acronym TOMTIT might have been fine in 1972 but I can’t say it without a snigger. It’s going to be a problem for the rest of this story. The actual principle of it is what makes it more than a snigger. Despite not being a big fan of this story, I feel quite good about the next five episodes. I don’t quite know why, it could be just because I found ‘The Mutants’ to be such a terrible experience that I am just happy to have gotten past it or it might be because the Master and the Brigadier are back so it feels like I’ve got a new enjoyment in this marathon and despite this being a rather normal opening episode, I am really looking forward to this final story.