The Web Planet

The Web Planet is an imaginative and ambitious attempt to create an alien world run by insects. The moth-like Menoptera are trying to reclaim the planet that is being controlled by the ant-like Zarbi under the influence of the evil Animus. The plot devise is typical for early Hartnell stories. The TARDIS crew lands, then becomes separated, then the TARDIS is stolen, then the Doctor and his companions help the good guys triumph, then they reunite and retrieve the TARDIS and leave. 

However, there are a number of interesting ideas: a totally alien world without any humanoid inhabitants or visitors (other than the TARDIS crew), the evolution of intelligent insects, and the ability of the Animus/Zarbi to control gold objects and those in contact with gold. I also liked the attempt to give the Menoptera insect-like movements. 

The story suffers from too much padding and too little story to sustain all 6 episodes, but the novel ideas make it worth viewing. There is one biological problem with the Menoptera and Zarbi. Giant insects and insect-like creatures existed on prehistoric earth only during periods when the oxygen levels in the atmosphere we about 50% greater than our current levels. The reason is that the insect respiratory system is very effective at small sizes but not efficient at larger sizes. Increased oxygen levels allow them to over come this problem that normally limits the size of insects. The problem is that the alien planet has a thinner atmosphere than earth, so large insect-like life wouldn’t be possible. 

Visually the Web Planet looks like a high school play. The sets, Menoptera costumes, the Zarbi (plastic ants with human hind legs), and Zarbi larvae are awful and look amateurish. Some reviewers say that it was quite good for 1965 but it just doesn’t hold up 42 years later. I disagree because the visuals do not hold up to productions from the 1950s and 1960s. Alien insects with good visuals were seen in Them, First Men in the Moon, and the Outer Limits episode The Zanti Misfits. 

It isn’t just the low budget special effect that let the production down. Scenes set in the atmosphere of the alien world were shot with special filters that were smeared with Vaseline. This made the camera lenses distort the images with the intention to show that the alien atmosphere was different from earth. I understood this only after I watched the documentary that accompanies the DVD. Although I like the reason that they did this I just think that it looks like bad filming. 

The Web Planet is probably the most ambitious of the Hartnell years. But the comical costumes and props make this story primarily of interest to longtime fans who really want to see every existing episode. If this was the first 6 episodes of Doctor Who that someone watched, then it is likely that it would their last. It is interesting to note that the viewing audience in Britain peaked during the early episodes of The Web Planet and then dropped throughout the 6 episodes. The audience for Doctor Who was never this high again until a decade later. The story line is imaginative and interesting enough to make The Web Planet a great candidate to be redone with post-Jurassic Park CGI effects. 

** out of 4.