'Smith and Jones', a highly encouraging start to Series 3, reflects an ongoing trend in 'Doctor Who' new series writing. The question I am left with after viewing is, when did Russell T Davis become a good writer? I suspect the answer is that he was all along, barring an infatuation with childish humour; it just never came out in his scripts with any consistency.

I've written a lot of excoriating reviews of Russell T Davies' scripts over the past couple of years, as I would be the first to admit ? and I in no way withdraw my criticisms of his previous efforts. But, starting with the finale to Series 2, and continuing through the highly enjoyable Christmas special to the start of the new season, Russell's writing has taken a distinct turn for the better. 'Smith and Jones' is an engaging, intermittently humorous, imaginative, atmospheric and ? in its lunar setting ? occasionally quite beautiful introduction to the next round of Doctor Who adventures. The colour palette seems darker. We leave the planet Earth. The Doctor becomes the lonesome and compelling figure of mystery he has frequently failed to be so far ? though he remains a heck of a know-all! The incoming companion, played by the likeable Freema Agyeman, is in a fairly traditional 'Who' mould ? which is, of course, high praise. The plot and the monsters work well. 'Rose' should've been much more like this.

There are several reasons why this is so. Way back in my review of 'The Age of Steel' I made favourable comments about the parallel-universe airships, and bemoaned the lack of similar 'scientific romanticism' in the series thus far. So it was with quite a lot of pleasure and not a little relief that I began to perceive more of that kind of thing in recent episodes: the brief insert at the start of 'Army of Ghosts', and more substantially the 'creation of the Earth' sequence in 'The Runaway Bride', and the breathtaking lunar setting and fabulous retro steam-punk rocketships used by the Judoon in 'Smith and Jones'. By virtue of being treated with the sobriety missing from much of the first two seasons of the series revival, all of these scenes came much closer to the more sombre science fiction which I personally prefer. Too much levity and irreverence quickly becomes galling, as we discovered. People have talked about the change in tone being deliberate and permanent; I think it's probably too early to say ? but we have definitely seen steps in the right direction.

A word on Martha: I don't want to detract in the slightest from the sensational Billie Piper, but I strongly suspected before this episode aired that I would prefer Martha to Rose, and it's looking like I was right. Although Freema's performance isn't so immediately arresting, she is pitching it just right, and conveys the compassion, mingled with sometimes hard-headed practicality, that Rose actually didn't have much of, when you think about it. However good and memorable Billie's performance, Rose was not a character you could easily warm to (in my opinion). Martha, I feel, could be different. And ? although this shouldn't really be a concern, and, again, I don't want to detract at all from the wonderful Billie ? Martha is a very much more attractive girl than Rose was! Subtly, it's true; but certainly. She speaks better as well.

A word on the Doctor: the TV reviewer in my local rag perceptively pointed out that David Tennant's incarnation, 'with the suggestion of madness in his eyes', is scarier than any of the monsters he fights, and despite the toned-down performances DT has turned out post-Rose, that's still true. It's a far more desperate and exacting incarnation ? as he himself points out, there's no mercy or tolerance in there, even for innocents, once they cross him, while his relations with his companions are borderline obsessive. Perhaps it's only because of David Tennant's livewire interpretation of the role ? as I once remarked, he only plays psychos. But I've been thinking a lot about this, because something is obviously not right with the Doc ? he's clearly not the same guy we knew and loved. My conclusion is that the Doctor, in his old age and after everything he's been through (just think how many times he's been mind-wiped!), really must be suffering from some kind of mental degeneration, a bit like Alzheimer's or something for human beings.

You could say that because he still delivers the goods, comes up with occasional insightful comments and reacts sharply to situations around him, that's a load of nonsense. But Time Lords' brains are far more advanced than ours, and they can probably give every appearance of functioning normally while in reality being very badly damaged. The way the Doctor's mental processes seem to have fallen into repetitive but quite instinctive patterns (of 'heroism' and 'fighting evil'); his God complex, and swift recourse to rage and moralistic browbeating; the way flashes of the 'old Doctor' surface every once in while to remind us of how he used to be in his prime; all suggest that the Doctor is simply going through the motions of his old life mechanically, not really aware any more of what's happening in the real world. Because he looks so young though, this is far from obvious, and it only makes it more disturbing when you eventually realise what's going on; underneath that youthful vitality and beauty is a very, very old mind that's beginning to unravel. It's a horrible fate for our beloved hero, but I think what we're witnessing is the onset of Time Lord senility; perhaps the one enemy he will never be able to defeat.

It is now fairly safe to say, that in a crowded room, perhaps in the middle of a bombastic party , conversation can be halted quite readily and changed dramatically by the simple utterance of the name of Russell T. Davies.? Uncle Russell moved into the household three years ago, bringing to the table? the? idea of resurrecting the tired DOCTOR WHO format, with? a sense of Fan Boy passion . Davies managed to do this, while retaining the critical respect he garnered? for previous escapades on British Television that had already left him on the lips of? the talk of the industrial crowd, like a lingering wine of very fine vintage.? He even managed to survive the Slitheen ! Davies is a unique mixologist taking elements of classic Doctor Who and tendering it against the lines of stark unapproachable, envelope ripping outrageousness that makes it thoroughly modern and mindlessly enjoyable to watch DOCTOR WHO. It has made DOCTOR WHO accessible to the masses and the success it is.

Anyone watching DOCTOR WHO on the BBC? and partaking in Uncle Russell's latest carnival, SMITH AND JONES cannot deny the ride was enjoyable, mindbending and? without question witnessed? the strongest opening debut episode of the first three years. Yet scratching the surface of many elements of Doctor Who Canon, it merely was an institution that readily served the purpose of introducing Martha Jones to the good Doctor Smith, a welcome alias whose myth is fancifully buried in the original series and resurrected here to good measure. Once again, Russell Davies has created a strong, self sustaining character in Martha Jones? and perhaps in many ways, she could be considered perhaps too similar to Rose Tyler. Her somewhat confused and dysfunctional family only lightly contrasting Rose's own little cultural cul-De Sac of a disjointed family.It is entirely clear that Martha's soap operatic family will feature prominently in the latest series as a formula that has worked well in past seasons, yet dangerously treading over past success a bit all too obvious. SMITH AND JONES also sees the mechanical insertion of this years? "Badwolf and Torchwood" arcs with the introduction of mention and posters of "Saxon" whose identity has sparked a whirlwind of speculation. The obvious "formula" that is being followed here could ultimately be very damaging to the series? and perhaps another vision and different angle needs to be explored in coming years.

Because the series is so expensive to produce, the necessity of? a mainstream audience is vital to its success . This of course, is the biggest compromise the true DOCTOR WHO fan must make today. Of course the series is far more contemporary than its ever been? yet? at times, the show is written to excess? with these elements in mind.? Far less however than that which occurs in the Christmas Specials which really have? to reach such a broad demographic that it may as well be called? a song and dance variety show! .With this in mind,? I am absolutely delighted the episode took itself seriously with? comic relief coming from The Doctor,? who seems much more eccentric and sillier than Tennant's Doctor has ever been. Perhaps traveling without Rose and the Lonliness of the Long Distance Timelord has left the Doctor A little stir crazy. Suspension of disbelief is in order here on as many levels as a parking garage with Russell Davies consulting absolutely no one about anything that occurs in the episode. No Hugo nomination on this one!?? The episode was very well directed at a breakneck pace hitting its agenda of introducing the new companion and bringing the Doctor and Martha? together quite nicely .The episode has an aire of believability until it becomes totally unbelievable, of course. The "invasion" scenes were especially effective and all the "cataloguing " that was going on reminded me a bit of 'THE SONTARAN EXPERIMENT" The Doctor is instantly taken to Martha, impressed instantly by her intelligence and resourcefulness. There is a nice play on the fact that Martha is studying to be a Doctor and, of course the Doctor is the definitive article so to speak. Of course the Series has often featured Hospitals as a background to the story. SPEARHEAD FROM SPACE and? THE INVISIBLE ENEMY and the 1996 film ENEMY WITHIN? come quickly to mind. However since its reintroduction, The Doctor has been hanging around hospitals quite a bit in recent years.(ALIENS OF LONDON, NEW EARTH etc)so much so as to be overly concerned whether they have "gift shops" in them or not.? The Story background of the Judoon transporting the entire hospital to the moon to help discover a wayward alien criminal provided necessary fireworks and the scene where the patients? look out the windows to their mutual realization and horror the Hospital has been transported? off the earth is a genuinely scary, well realized moment. Even scarier with a sense of total wonder, but not as well realized is the suspension of disbelief I spoke of earlier, when you realize how on earth, or the moon,is the electricity still working in this hospital to begin with. But lets not think about this, as it ruins all the fun.? ?anyway!

The introduction of the "Plasmavore" alien almost begs for a return unwarranted? appearance like the Slitheens, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see them again by the end of Season three.(although we really haven't "seen" them at all) One would have hoped for a more interesting mosaic? of background? on the Suspected Plasmavore? than? her motive? of doing in an intergalactic princess? as vengeance? against her "pink cheeks and blonde curls"? which is just another dose of Uncle Russell's irreverent need to inject controversy into the series and? perhaps even a disguised reference to the demise of Rose Tyler . Either way, the remark is a trifle racist and the episode has its share of reverse racism at play? with its attitude towards' dumb blondes" as providing comic relief? in the form of Martha's Dad's? tryst with a? blonde waif? and getting caught at it no less.? Once again, however we get this rushed resolution of the plot in the final minutes which felt amazingly similar to the end of THE RUNAWAY BRIDE , in revelation and pacing., a RTD trademark.? The Doctor's resolution however was in fact brilliant when you consider that all he managed to do to save the earth from destruction was merely to pull the plug.? What did leave me? with a question mark was the Doctor, seemingly dead and drained of blood? did NOT regenerate . This no doubt will be a hotly contested element of the story for months to come and is evident that Uncle Russell will sacrifice everything for the purpose of the advancement and resolution of the plot.

In closing,? high? marks? go the? production team for turning in a fast paced , brilliantly and artistically? designed episode and a strong start to Series three. The Judoon were brilliantly designed and executed? and? it was a nice touch to see them talking in their native language until they assimilated the language.The JUDOON could very easily have been the Sontarans and I believe this oportunity was lost or even intended as? Uncle Russell will reap all the financial rewards for their creation.? Overall, SMITH AND JONES? exhibits the total confidence in the creative teams behind Doctor Who? in the series, and the evolution in the Doctor's character in declaring to Martha and the TV audience, unabashedly,? that he is a Timelord. The episode suffered most in its thin "schoolyard idea"? plot? but written well enough around the idea to be blissfully entertaining!? The chemistry between the Doctor? and Martha is tremendous and I believe we are in for a real treat, and the sparks will certainly continue to fly on occasion, as the Doctor certainly has found a new lady to take his mind off of Rose a bit. Welcome Martha Jones, and Thanks once again to Russell? Davies? who can never be taken for granted.

So, series 3 of Doctor Who has finally began, and this is pretty much exactly as I expected the first episode to be.? Light-hearted, fun and chock-full of witty humour and comic aliens, as well as making the new assistant, Martha Jones, extremely likeable.? I was not surprised at the result of Smith and Jones, though I was perhaps slightly disappointed.

The main focus of the episode is obviously Martha Jones, played brilliantly by Freema Agyeman.? She genuinely acts as a strong-headed human being would in that bizarre situation, disbelieving, scared, and yet determined to discover what exactly is going on.? All the looks of surprise, anger, amusement and sadness on her face are all so believable, and her intelligent points make it obvious that she is the perfect companion for the Doctor, and she is so unbelievably likeable that Billie Piper, wonderful as she was, has been more or less forgotten.? The whole point of the episode was really to get the audience to warm to Martha, and this could not have been done more successfully.

David Tennant also does well here, though his comedy performances seem a bit forced at times.? Having said that, he does make for some genuinely funny moments and gives an overall entertaining performance.? His acting here is very well done, and one of my favourite scenes with him is after he has just barely regained consciousness after the kiss of life and stares up at the controls that are wrecking the ship.? He looks genuinely sick and rather ill, and I was surprised at how convincing the expression on his face was.?

Plotwise, the story is alright.? Pretty easy to understand.? The Judoon transport the hospital that contains an evil alien to the moon(not sure why?the moon was chosen of all places)?so they can scan all the humans to find out which one is the alien who killed some princess.? A few unecessary sub-plots, like with Martha's rather annoying family who I hope we've seen the last of, and that rather worthless and unfunny comment about the princess, but overall the story was OK, but not one of this episode's strong points.

Another let-down are the monsters featured in this episode.? None of them are either interesting nor original.? The Judoon are basically a rehash of the Sontarans, with Dalek-like speech(or is that Cyberman)who don't pose as much of a threat, even when they are trying to kill the Doctor, and after they kill the foolish man who attacks them, this makes a very minor impact, possibly because it was so predictable and now an over-used cliche in the show, or because it wasn't a very dramatic death scene.? There are also the insignificant and incredibly boring Slabs, which are the new Adherents of the Repeated Meme, only far less menacing and intriguing, and the Slabs are pretty much a boring and forgettable race.? As for the Plasmavore, this probably works the best out of all the creatures, though it could have been creepier and more disorientating, and the whole idea of it borrows heavily from the classic series' Curse of Fenric.? If they are going to redo this, they could use better special effects and make the idea of it scarier.? At its core, this could make a pretty freaky monster, but the whole idea of it is thoroughly wasted.

This is a so-so episode, the strong points being the excellent performances from David Tennant and Freema Agyeman, spoiled by the mediocre storyline and dull monsters. 6/10

'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' is notable for several reasons, the most obvious being the return of the Daleks themselves. If 'The Mutants' established them as a scientifically advanced, xenophobic, ruthless threat, then 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' takes them several steps further. In their first appearance we saw them perfectly adapted to their environment, and prepared to wipe out the Thals with a release of radiation in order that they might survive, without any care of the consequences to others. Here, they have progressed further and have overcome the limitations on their mobility, now not only able to leave their city, but able also to build spaceships and travel to other worlds, where they can move beyond the confines of their ships. Now able to move and exterminate anywhere, they seem utterly unstoppable. Had I seen the ending to episode one on its first broadcast, it would undoubtedly have had huge impact, as the Dalek glides out of the Thames (frankly, I don't care what it was doing in there); even seeing it for the time in the right story order, it still has impact, as the Daleks become the series first recurring threat, and it sends a shiver down the spine. Just as they were prepared to eradicate the Thals, here they are prepared to eradicate mankind in order to achieve their aims, a scenario given all the more power by the way in which they conquered Earth – stories of horrendous plagues wiping out most of the Earth's population are starkly horrific, and the Robomen only enhance the Daleks' monstrous influence. Whilst they are often criticized for being stupid looking, the Robomen are surprisingly effective in the context of the story, being in essence zombies – they horror is not in the idea of being robotized per se, but in the thought of being forced to fight friends and loved ones irreversibly transformed into brainless collaborators of the Daleks'. This is most effectively shown in the scene between Larry and his brother, as the traumatized rebel tries in vain to appeal to his brother's memories only to be killed by him even as he anguished kills him in turn. It is interesting that Tyler notes that the Daleks knew robotizing captives would "humiliate and degrade" surviving humans on Earth and serve to further break their spirit – it demonstrates an unpleasant understanding of other species on the Daleks' behalf, indicating that whilst they do not care about the consequences of their actions for others, they do understand them, making them seem even more callous. The often-citied Nazi allegory is clear and appropriate – the Fourth Reich had no redeeming features and neither do the Daleks. The new appearance of the Daleks (they now have an energy collection disc on their backs and enlarged bumpers) is not their best, making them look somehow more unwieldy than usual, but it serves as a reminder that they have managed to overcome the problem of movement beyond metal floors and are hugely advanced scientifically, a point further emphasized by their admittedly rather B-movie plan of removing the Earth's core and installing a motive system – this is an ambitious plan, and their confidence in their abilities to safely channel they energy released by the penetration explosion is further testament to the danger they represent. All this however pails in comparison with the main reason that they are so effective here – the location filming.

This is the first time that Doctor Who was filmed extensively on location, after the brief film inserts in 'The Reign of Terror'. This largely because, although it is set in the future, it is clearly filmed in London 1965, and as such we get the first example of the Yeti-on-a-toilet-in-Tooting-Beck principle – the Daleks were impressive gliding through their city on Skaro, but the sight of them gliding around Trafalgar square and other landmarks is truly unforgettable. It gives an air of realism that really lifts the action of out the studio. That said, the sets are also impressive, giving a convincing dingy feel that fits in well with the overall feel. This feel also helps to emphasize the sense of paranoia and fear throughout – if 'Planet of Giants' was too laid back, 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' more than makes up for it. From the initial discovery of the "It is Forbidden to Dump Bodies in the River" poster to the climax as the resistance and the TARDIS crew race against time to prevent the culmination of the Daleks' plans, the story is charged with danger, as resistance members are routinely killed off, and danger threatens from all sides, be it from Daleks, Robomen, alligators, human traitors or the Slyther. Throughout the story, the TARDIS crew are confronted with constant threats, all of which they must struggle harder than ever before to overcome. 

The regulars all fare well here – Ian fulfills his usual action man role, single-handedly saving the Earth by blocking the Daleks' bomb-shaft, and Russell gives it his all throughout. Even when facing the ridiculous looking Slyther, he acts with utter conviction. Barbara is also hugely resourceful, helping Jenny to escape London in a van and running a Dalek blockade in the process, and later brazenly and bravely lying to the Daleks in an unsuccessful attempt to gain control of the Robomen. Hartnell is also on top of his game here, as the Doctor ferociously pits himself against the Daleks and taking a key role in their defeat, by destroying their (still-external) power source at the mine. Interestingly, in episode two when he is seized and taken to be robotized, he seems genuinely frightened, something which has not been so clearly seen since he was held prisoner in the last two episodes of 'The Mutants' – this adds to the menace of the Daleks, since even the Doctor is clearly afraid of them and doesn't underestimate their threat. After using his brain to escape from the cell, he basically loses control of the situation and seems truly vulnerable, and that has rarely happened thus far during the series. And then there is Susan.

I've never been a fan of Susan, but watching the series in order has made me change my mind a bit. She is still annoying and prone to hysteria, but she's a lot braver than I remembered. Here she gets a fine send-off, showing increasing independence from the Doctor as she joins David to fight the Daleks. Her desire to belong somewhere and her obvious attraction to David build nicely and convincingly towards the climax, where she tearfully prepares to leave in the TARDIS. I've seen the episode several times before, but never in the context of the entire series – the moment when the Doctor locks her out of the TARDIS is shocking, and the subsequent speech he gives over the TARDIS loudspeaker is extremely moving. I was surprisingly moved as the TARDIS dematerialized and Susan dropped her key in the dirt. However much she has occasionally irritated me, she's still been a member of the TARDIS crew since the beginning, and her departure makes a notable impact.

Another part of the success of 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' is in the characterisation, especially of the resistance members who all give an impression of people desperately struggling to survive. The young and passionate David, the cynical and world-weary Tyler, and the bitter but idealistic Dortman are all well played, as are Larry and even the older woman in the cottage who gives Barbara and Jenny away to the Daleks. The only weak links are the badly acted and wooden Jenny, and also Ashton the latter of who gets several cringe-worthy lines. Nevertheless, they still fail to detract from the whole.

'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' is not perfect. Despite occasional references to other countries and continents, it still feels like The Dalek Invasion of England, and it is difficult to believe that London in the 22nd century will resemble London 1965. These points are minor quibbles however, and unavoidable given the production costs and technical limitations of the time. Less forgivable are the dreadful saucer model work and the Slyther, which looks ludicrous in both costumes (the costume from the end of episode four was replaced for the reprise in episode five) and is present only to provide a cliffhanger to episode four. There is some awful dialogue as well, especially during the conversation between the Doctor and the Dalek in episode two. And 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' has some of the worst episode titles ever seen in the series. In spite of these quibbles, 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' is a true classic, and having watched it all in one go, I found that it didn't drag at all, and it gets my vote for first VidFIRED six-part Hartnell DVD release.

In the old, old days when seasons were long and stories could be made in thirty seconds flat, when there was a certain requirement in the narrative such as the introduction of a new companion it was possible to throw away a couple of episodes and dedicate them to that cause. Whether this is good or bad is debateable as while it means the episodes don’t get bogged down trying to do too much in too short a time (such as Rose and The Long Game of the new series have), it means that they’re completely inconsequential in their own right apart from that one function to the overall programme that they perform. The Rescue is such a story, being far more important to Doctor Who in general than it is to its place in the canon of individual serials. “Inconsequential”, however, doesn’t necessarily mean “bad”.

It gets going pretty sharpish though, as it presents immediately the situation of the crashed spacecraft as opposed to a TARDIS scene linking back to the previous story, as was the norm at the time. The model work of the crashed spacecraft is wonderful (courtesy of that old miracle worker Raymond P. Cusick) and might have been one of the season’s most iconic images if this story was more memorable. The interior set of the spaceship is also good, being decorated enough to be interesting without being cluttered. It is harder to tell about the caves though as they are very darkly lit and it has to be said that the picture quality isn’t great (for future reference, at the time of writing this story has yet to be remastered for a DVD release).

Maureen O’Brien makes an excellent first impression as Vicki, elevating some lines which seem to be written for a clone of Susan, and as I said in my recent review of The Keeper Of Traken it’s high time her status was upgraded to “good” rather than “underrated”. Ray Barrett playing the laconic Bennett is also good. I know it’s no fault of the episode’s, but the planet Dido does get a laugh these days due to the singer of the same name, although it’s not as funny as the misprint in the episode guide in Adrian Rigelsford’s book The Doctors: Thirty Years Of Time Travel that reads “On the planet Dildo, the TARDIS crew split up…”

The TARDIS scene, when it comes, is very good due to some excellent lines (what do you expect from a David Whitaker script) being delivered by three immensely talented actors who all have an obvious respect and regard for each other. There are some funny moments, such as the sitcom-style cross-purposes when Barbara tells the Doctor that “the shaking’s stopped” which shows how much lighter the characterisation of the first Doctor became in the second season, possibly because Dennis Spooner took over as script editor from this story on. What is good is the moment where the Doctor forgets that Susan has left him; the ensuing uncomfortable silence tactfully broken by Barbara is a deeply poignant scene.

Koquillion is a good looking monster in the long shots; up close however, it does look very much like a costume. While this can be forgiven in other monsters like the Voord the fact that it eventually turns out to be a costume means that its obvious falseness undermines the twist ending somewhat. His voice is funny, as the sound of people yelling from behind masks often is, but the scene where he first meets Ian and Barbara comes in a scene showcasing some excellent special effects, with flawless split-screen showing the companions looking down upon the ship.

The Doctor’s comment that he didn’t get a medical degree turns out to be another contradiction, which is funny; over time, the Doctor claims to have gained a degree, failed a degree and had every variation between which suggests a shifty and mysterious character far more effectively than any self-conscious “Cartmel Masterplan” ever did. His musing of what could have happened to apparently change the Didonians into an aggressive race is a very dramatic moment.

Barbara’s meeting with Vicki is another pleasant enough scene (although it is never explained how Barbara survived what from the sound effect appeared to be a very long fall without any injury and keeping her hairdo in place); the emphasis on Vicki’s name not being a contraction of Victoria shows a series trying a bit too hard to be hip and modern, but Vicki’s monologue explaining the killing of the crew is absolutely fantastic and why it isn’t reproduced in all the various quotation compilations that are about I’ll never know.

Considering that this is such a short story the Doctor and Ian do spend a long time trapped behind a rock wall, although this does allow the Doctor to fill in details about the planet Dido that some much longer and more complex stories fail to include; The Rescue, it has to be said, is more narratively rounded than it’s given credit for even if that can’t be said in terms of the plot. The ledge-traversing scene shows the B-movie roots that the first few seasons had, even if nobody who was involved in the creation of the Daleks would admit it and even if it does show off some more excellent split-screen effects. The sand monster is utterly lame though: although to an extent I can forgive how fake it looks the inclusion of glowing pen-torch eyes shows that, unusually, Cusick is falling back on stock monster clichйs of old. True to the spirit of the scene the cliffhanger is silly and its resolution the following episode is accordingly simplistic.

The death of “Sandy” is a curious mixture of the surprisingly sad and the completely ridiculous, and if it wasn’t interrupted by the arrival of the Doctor and Ian I’m not sure how it would have panned out. As it is it just about gets away with it, although Ian’s intentional mispronunciation of Koquillion as “cocky-lickin’” had my eyebrows raised so high I had to stand on a chair to get them back. This is the kind of thing that threatens to throw the whole thing into the realm of absurdity and is just about saved by the very sweet scene where the Doctor comforts the untrusting Vicki.

The resolution is on the horizon now and this is where the story comes apart at the seams a little bit. The Doctor knocks on Bennett’s door and is told that “you can’t come in”; his reaction? He grabs the heaviest metal object he can find and proceeds to batter the door in. Am I the only one who thinks that’s a trifle impolite? It’s such an unrealistic moment from a character point of view that it makes all subsequent plot developments that derive from it (which are all the important ones) hard to swallow, and in fact on the subject of illogical plot devices the story has some corkers left to come. The magnetic tape recorder is another moment that is retrospectively funny, and is a problem common to the era.

However, the confrontation scene between the Doctor and Bennett is very cool, as most scenes featuring William Hartnell are. The hall of judgement set is excellent and is heightened further by the use of Tristram Cary’s score from The Daleks; the story was too minor to have its own score presumably, so they made the right decision to use the programme’s best piece of music until The Invasion. Bennett is a great villain, of the old dastardly boo-hiss type, and is much underrated. That said, he doesn’t exactly require much persuasion to explain the whole plot and if it wasn’t for the fact that the plot was so simple I’d be criticising the exposition now. However, the appearance of the Didonians makes for a famously naff final resolution (featuring the story’s only death; the consequently surprisingly high mortality rate of 25% comes from the fact that the guest cast is so small) which in a larger story would be deeply disappointing. Also, why do the natives smash up the radio equipment? What is the rescue ship supposed to think now? This is a lazy attempt at tying up a loose end that only makes the problem worse.

The reason I love Verity Lambert’s time as producer is that it was a time where immense effort was being put into the show; there was no cynicism at all, simply an effort by all concerned to make a good, original programme. This means that even stories that don’t work so well command respect to a greater or lesser extent, and even stories as minor and essentially unambitious as this are entertaining and well-written. While because of that aforementioned inconsequentiality I can’t give this story more than an average rating, I feel that if the attitudes behind it had been carried over into all subsequent eras of the show then the final product would have been even better.

You know you’re in trouble when you have to take thirty minute breaks between Episodes in order to watch a story without gnawing your ankles off. At least, I’d say that this is a reasonable argument, and it’s certainly one that sums up ‘The Web Planet’ for me. I apologise to fans of the story, but in my opinion it really is not very good at all.

The basic story is nothing too terrible- rival alien factions fight for control of a planet- but the execution of said plot is slow, tedious, plodding and padded out, something that would not be too bad in most stories, but when this one lasts for six whole Episodes, then you quite clearly have a problem. It saddens me to write this as deep down I know there is an okay-ish story waiting to be seen, but here no such story is available for public consumption. Bill Strutton has some good ideas, but his script does not do them justice in any way, shape or form.

Of the six Episodes, it’s arguably the first one- simply entitled ‘The Web Planet’- that impresses the most. The title of the Episode sets up the next twenty-five minutes well: mystery, alien worlds, excitement. Well, maybe not the latter but the first two are fulfilled nicely. The cleverest thing about this Episode is the way that it centres pretty much solely around the four regular cast members (i.e. the current TARDIS crew) and every so often throws in an alien to create a bit of horror. However, such moments sometimes fall flat on their faces. The appearance of a Zarbi in the TARDIS scanner works well, largely due to Vicki’s understated reaction, but they are handled less well earlier on- namely when one of them pops its head up over a rock briefly to take a look at Ian before ducking down again like a naughty schoolboy; whilst the sequence should prompt mystery and maybe a small fright, instead it just looks really, really silly and never fails to make me laugh a little.

The use of Vaseline to make Vortis’ surface look more alien works really well, and is one of the best things about the entire story as it really does give the alien atmosphere that the story is desperate to create.

The best thing about Episode One for me is the ending- and I mean that in a way that is not offensive towards said Episode. By making Vortis seem very alien and not including any other human characters, the cliffhangers that are witnessed as the Episode ends work well: Vicki is alone in the TARDIS as it rolls around, Barbara is about to walk into an Acid Bath (what is it about Acid Baths and stories with Martin Jarvis in them?), Ian is, err, trapped in a net, and the Doctor discovers that the TARDIS has vanished. As viewers, you genuinely care about the protagonists, so the fact that they are all in danger is a rather thrilling end to the Episode, and is easily the highest point that Strutton reaches in his script.

Alas, despite its good points, even this Episode suffers from having parts that simply feel like padding out- a rather look piece about Aspirins here, the Doctor and Ian wandering around in near-silence there. The whole sequence with Barbara’s arm is interesting but again goes on for a little too long, whilst earlier on we have a most painful moment as William Hartnell forgets his lines whilst trying to explain how the TARDIS doors can be opened despite there being no power- full credit to him for slogging through it rather than demanding a re-take, but there is no denying that it is still an awkward moment and a rather painful one to watch.

After the first Episode, things really hit rock bottom; we have moments that are just embarrassingly funny (“I have a shock for you. The ship’s gone- vanished!” says the Doctor. Cue shot of Ina looking shocked), moments that ruin the illusions being created (namely the many times cast members cast shadows upon Vortis’ backdrop, thus making it obvious that it is a set), moments that just make you cringe (the first time you see an Optera in full view), and moments that are just plain dull (yes, I’m looking at the Optera again). Maybe it’s wrong of me to give the Optera such a hard time, but when they first appeared I actually let out a cry of “Oh… oh boy…” such was the shock at seeing them for the first time. For a story that was so expensive to make, they don’t half look incredibly cheap. Now, poor effects in ‘Doctor Who’ are normally in my eyes forgivable, but here they really look the pits and the way they speak… well, put it like this: it didn’t exactly sell the effect to me. Maybe I’m just being too harsh on them, or perhaps I just see them for what they are- more than a little crap.

As well as the excess padding, the story also feels extremely lazy. In every single Episode there are numerous moments when you scream “I can see a boom shadow!” or “That’s a Stage Light creating that shine!”, and there are often moments where silence passes for a few moments so that the Episode can be just that little bit closer to filling up its running time.

As well as this, there are moments that really stand out as being quite horrific, and such moments are more than a little at odds with the relatively fluffy atmosphere elsewhere. Parts such as a Menoptra having its wings ripped off by a couple of Zarbi, or when an Optera shoves her head in a rock to stop a flow of Acid, stick out as being very, very vicious and are truly shocking compared to everything that is going. Perhaps that is the point- that among everything, something nasty is happening. However, I think it would have been better to stick to just one ambience; despite parts like the lingering close-up of Hrostar’s dead body being some of the most powerful images in the story, as it stands such moments seem jarring and work against the story rather than for it.

The padding problems really become evident in the later Episodes. How many times can Vicki be put under control of the golden collar before it becomes tedious? Several times apparently, or so this story would have you believe as it doesn’t stop shoving it on her when something needs to happen to plug the gaps. It is the ending that really stands out as being overlong though. The actual death of the Animus is decidedly naff, and following this we have some very overlong and drawn out moments with the TARDIS crew milling around on the planet surface. Look over there as Barbara plays with a scrubbing brush… sorry, I meant a Venom Grub (or are they Larvae Guns? Or Zarbi Larvae? Somebody tell me for certain because as it stands I don’t have a clue!), and now we see Ian and the Doctor talk about Ian’s Coal Hill tie, a sequence where I can never tell if it’s meant to be serious, funny, or, well, anything really- it just confuses me and seems to be as pointless as it is confusing. The actual ending once the TARDIS crew have left is not too bad, but its power is somewhat marred again by moments where it could quite easily have been shortened with no loss to coherence.

It’s not all bad in ‘The Web Planet’. The film sequences in ‘Crater Of Needles’ when the Menoptra land and fight the Zarbi are entertaining and nicely shot, whilst Ian’s fight with a Zarbi in the previous Episode is entertaining too but in an entirely different way. Elsewhere, Zombo the Zarbi deserves his own spin-off series and there are some nice touches in the script: the fact that the Menoptra cannot correctly pronounce the TARDIS crew’s names for instance (calling Ian ‘Heron’ for example) is rather nice, as are all the scenes set inside the Crater of Needles, which show a real visual flair on director Richard Martin’s behalf. What a pity then the rest of the story swamps such moments as these.

Acting wise, ‘The Web Planet’ is again hit and miss. The regular cast are on top form, despite line flubs here and there, and the rather patronising treatment of Vicki throughout (the Doctor giving her chocolate to clam her down is one moment that springs to mind). Of the guest cast, Catherine Fleming as the Animus voice is rather impressive and the Optera… well, the Optera are perhaps better best forgotten. The Menoptra are universally good, with Martin Jarvis as Hilio really impressing. Only the odd hissing noise they make to one another when they are arguing lets things down, as does the famous sequence where they taunt the Zarbi by, err, shouting out “Zaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrbiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!” in a very high pitched voice. No, I don’t know why they do this either. Later on, there’s a brief reprise of such behaviour- a Menoptra shouting “Barbara Barbara Barbara!” as if she is about to break into a Cheerleading sequence. It’s a pity she doesn’t, as that would have lightened things up a bit I suppose.

In all then, ‘The Web Planet’, in my opinion, deserves its reputation for being ambitious, creative, and more than little rubbish. Full points to the Production Team for attempting something so other-worldly, minus several points for how dire the actual story is.

“I’ve never experience anything like this in my life before!” cries the Doctor at one point, which is rather like how I felt whilst watching it- thank goodness that I won’t have to do so again.