Before Zygons Return in 50th Anniversary, Check Out Their Terror

Article first published as DVD Review: 'Doctor Who - Terror of the Zygons' on Blogcritics.

With Doctor Who‘s 50th anniversary special airing in just a few weeks, fans of the show are eager to gobble up any hints they may get as to the plot. One thing that has been revealed is that the Zygons will be featured, an alien race that has appeared only twice before, the second time being in a small way, disguised as humans in last year’s “The Power of Three.” Thus, it seems appropriate that the BBC chooses now to release the defining serial about this race – Terror of the Zygons – on DVD.

Terror of the Zygons is set in the Scottish Highlands and combines four familiar elements: an exploding oil rig, the Loch Ness Monster, overreaching espionage, and shapeshifters. I’m sure BP wishes the spill in the Gulf of Mexico could be blamed on aliens and sea creatures, but alas, this is fantasy, not reality.

The Doctor (Tom Baker), Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen), and Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) arrive in a Scottish town and investigate the destruction of the rig. It soon becomes clear that the destruction was not a natural occurrence, but their early attempts to investigate are thwarted because the Zygons are watching them, meaning they know exactly what our heroes are up to. Eventually, of course, the good guys get the upper hand.

It’s interesting just how relevant so much of Terror of the Zygons is, considering it aired in 1975 as the 13th season premiere.. It’s recently been in the news how the U.S. government is spying on everything we do, as well as our allies’ actions, much like the Zygons are doing in Scotland. Plus, the Deepwater Horizon incident is not far from our memories. This may have been nearly 40 years ago, but the story is still something we can relate to.

Many have praised the Zygons as a very interesting race, with Tenth Doctor David Tennant naming them as his favorite Doctor Who monster. It’s curious why they have been gone so long, then. Surely “The Power of Three” telegraphs the modern continuation’s plans to bring them in, and it’s about time. An alien race who live under the sea, have biological engineering, i.e. living mechanics, and depend on Nessie’s milk to survive, they are unique in many of their characteristics, and it’ll be cool to see how they’ve been updated.

Terror of the Zygons is actually an ending of sorts for a major Doctor Who era. Besides being the last series regular appearance of Harry Sullivan (the Doctor will not have another male companion for five years), it also marks the final episodes of Brigadier Lethbride-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney) for nearly a decade. For a time, Doctor Who became an ensemble, with the Doctor and UNIT cooperating frequently, especially while the Doctor was marooned on Earth. Here, we see the departure of that structure, signaling a return to an older version of Doctor Who stories.

The recent two-disc DVD release has plenty of extras, as usual. There’s an audio commentary with a panel of those who worked on the production, photo gallery, isolated music, and PDF materials. A Director’s Cut of the first part is available on the disc, which mainly adds a deleted scenes set early in the story. Featurettes include new additions to already existing series – “The UNIT Family – Part 3,” “Doctor Who Stories – Tom Baker,” and “Doctor Who Stories – Elisabeth Sladen.” There’s also a “Making of,” a tribute to Douglas Camfield, the director of this story, and more.

In short, the most recent Doctor Who release lives up to other recent DVDs in the series, continuing to provide not only the chance to watch classic installments of the beloved show, but also giving plenty of information for those who wish to look a bit deeper.

Doctor Who – Terror of the Zygons is available now.

Doctor Who sails on The Ark in Space

Article first published as DVD Review: Doctor Who - The Ark in Space Special Edition on Blogcritics.

Now available from the BBC is the two-disc Doctor Who - The Ark in Space Special Edition. The second serial in the 12th season, these four half-hour episodes have been called the best of the classic Doctor Who by both Russell T. Davies and Steven Moffat, both driving forces in the latest reincarnation of the show.

Originally airing in January and February of 1975, The Ark in Space, opens with the TARDIS landing on a seemingly deserted, aged space station; it's a creepy place. It isn't long before the Doctor (Tom Baker) and his companions Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) discover that the place isn't nearly as empty as they first think. There is an entire population of humans slumbering peacefully within, frozen in cryonic suspension, waiting to awaken and find a new home to settle in.

But the ark should have already reached its destination, and the people should already be living their new lives. Instead, a dangerous alien parasite known as the Wirrn have taken over the craft. When a few crewmen are woken by the Doctor and his friends, the insect-like creatures take over the captain of the ark, called Noah (Kenton Moore), and the humans must engage in a deadly face-off with these things.

The Ark in Space is credited as being the first to show a darker side of Doctor Who, bringing a horror element to the series that continues to this day in "Blink" and other episodes of the modern version, most notably the ones featuring the angels. Doctor Who wanted to expand its appeal more towards an adult audience at the time, and this is how they chose to do it. They didn't go too far, even cutting out some footage deemed "too scary." But this is a turn away from the show's lighter, fluffier stories.

Part of why this serial is different from that which came before is the level of danger threatened by the enemy; there are casualties and heart-wrenching deaths. People cannot all be saved, and the ending is only happy for some, mixing tragedy into the finale. For those who have seen many episodes of Doctor Who, this may not seem all that novel or different a concept in 2013. But for the time period it aired, it represented something very fresh. And the experiment worked, buoyed by fantastic performances and a gripping script, garnering high ratings and forever changing the series.

The picture and sound have been remastered for this DVD release. As is typical for classic Doctor Who serials, it's not perfect, but it's far better than what is available prior to this release. The newer stuff almost always looks better (depending on the source used to make the DVDs), and considering The Ark in Space comes from the middle of the run, it's easy to find examples of restored Doctor Who that are both better and worse than this one. I would rate this towards the higher end of the spectrum, though, with clearer picture and more vibrant colors, as well as more detailed and less fuzzy sound, than many Doctor Who releases that I've recently reviewed.

This newest Special Edition release, like its peers, contains a whopping pile of extras. The commentary for these episodes is provided by producer Philip Hinchcliffe, joined by series stars Baker and Sladen. A photo gallery and PDF materials are included, as usual, along with the original BBC trailer for the serial and an alternate title sequence and special effects. There is also a shorter version of the whole serial in TV Movie format.

Plenty of featurettes appear are included with this release, including "A New Frontier" is a "Making of" special specific to The Ark in Space. "Scene Around Six" is Tom Baker captured by public news crews a few years later than this was filmed. "Doctor Forever! - Love And War" focuses on the novels written and published during the years Doctor Who was off the air. There is also an interview with a designer and some amateur film shot during the production of another episode. So there's a range of stuff, both pertaining to this specific adventure and to the series as a whole.

Doctor Who - The Ark in Space Special Edition is available now on DVD.

'Doctor Who' attends a 'Carnival of Monsters'

Just released on DVD this week is a Special Edition of the classic Doctor Who: Carnival of Monsters. The Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and Jo (Katy Manning) are on their way to a distant planet when they accidentally land the TARDIS on a cargo ship in the Indian Ocean circa 1923. Escaping the crew, who seem to have no short-term memories, they find themselves sloshing through a marsh.

A marsh on a cargo vessel? Yes. They are actually inside of a machine that miniaturizes things, providing shrunken habits for shrunken animals. This marsh is a dangerous place, teeming with carnivores, and the pair seek to escape. The Doctor manages to get out, after being separated from Jo, and finds himself in an unexpected place.

You see, the machine is a Miniscope, and it belongs to a traveling showman whose name is Vorg (Leslie Dwyer, Hi-de-Hi!). Vorg is bickering with the members of a tribunal council who won't let him show his machine on their planet. This fight threatens the Doctor as he goes back into the machine to rescue Jo.

Vorg is a petty criminal, in the (proud?) tradition of such tricksters as Harry Mudd and Harold Hill. He isn't malicious, but he is selfish and greedy. He will do the right thing only when forced to. This is evident in the story throughout, and gets some ice icing on the cake when Vorg is forced to use the old 'three magum pods and a yarrow seed' trick just to try to buy his way home. For those not familiar with the contest, think of the classic shell game one might see on the street corner. It's a nice touch that viewers can relate to right away.

Interestingly, in Doctor Who's universe, the Time Lords have banned machines such as the Miniscope. One wonders why. Yes, it is inhumane to keep intelligent beings trapped in there, but is it any worse than a zoo for the animals? In fact, it might be better than a zoo, because their natural habitat is fully recreated, rather than being behind literal bars. Unless the Time Lords think all zoos are cruel. Carnival of Monsters doesn't go into this deeply, but it's something worth thinking about.

Carnival of Monsters was originally slated as a serial for season nine, but was pushed to season ten to make it easier for legendary Who producer Barry Letts to direct that adventure. Apparently, timing is important to someone so intricately involved in the show.

This being a Special Edition, Carnival of Monsters is loaded with extras. There is a commentary by Katy Manning and Barry Letts, as well as a second one using several guest stars and a special sounds creator. Of course, there is the usual photo gallery and PDF materials, too.

A twenty-three minute featurette called "Destroy All Monsters!" is a Making Of special, and calls on many of those involved, both in front of and behind the camera, to tell the story of putting together this four-part serial. Additionally, there is a two minute look Behind the Scenes. And Ian Marter, a guest star in Carnival of Monsters, as well as being a novelist, gets his own sixteen minute retrospective.

Eleven minutes are devoted to the various gadgets shown in Doctor Who. It's quite interesting, as some are obviously based in science fact, while others are definitely pure fiction. Another eight minutes expands upon some of the models used for the visual effects. Barry Letts spends three minutes talking about using blue screen in a separate extra. This is cool because the technique is brand new when this serial is made. It makes this short feature a little piece of history.

Eighteen minutes are given to Mary Celeste, who discusses disappearances in human history. The cargo ship seen in Carnival of Monsters has to be taken from somewhere. Celeste outlines some wonderful unsolved mysteries from our past that are actually real, the basis for the ship in the story.
 
For those curious about the process of restoring the Doctor Who classics, there are some real treats. A longer, un-restored version of the second episode is included in this two-disc set. This provides a model for comparison, as well as shows what the technical team is working from. It really helps one to appreciate the amount of work that goes into the Doctor Who DVD project. There is also a Director's Amended Ending, done to remove an error involving a bald cap.


Doctor Who's "Carnival of Monsters" is another excellent effort by a very talent team. It is on sale now at retailers everywhere, including online.

If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Click here for every Doctor Who review I've ever written. Article first published as DVD Review: Doctor Who - Carnival of Monsters Special Edition on Blogcritics.

"The Android Invasion" threatens Doctor Who

     Just out on DVD from the BBC is Doctor Who - "The Android Invasion." This four-part adventure aired at the end of 1975, as part of the thirteenth season of the classic series. The Doctor (Tom Baker, The Beeps, Little Britain) and Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen, The Sarah Jane Adventures) return to Britain, but find the world a bit odd. The little town they come to is empty, the calendar is stuck on one date, and all the money is newly minted. It's soon apparent that the Kraals are set to invade Earth with androids, and this is their training ground.

     This period of Doctor Who is full of invasion stories, and so this one might seem a little stale. Or, for those nostalgic for the previous Doctor, still adjusting to Baker's version, it may be a nice return to formula. Either way, it's a well written story by veteran Who scribe Terry Nation about using human-like androids to take over the planet. Once more, Sarah and the Doctor must thwart these attempts, this time without the aid of UNIT, who has already been infiltrated.

     "The Android Invasion," as par for the time, does lend itself to a little cheese. For one thing, the Kraals are pretty fake looking, something discussed in the DVD extras. For another, why don't the doors in the Kraal base close all the way? Then again, there are also some pretty cool tricks. The androids look pretty sophisticated, and the scene where Doctor Who must fight an android version of himself is done well enough to pass a casual glance test. The double is close to Baker in build, and the camera angles work well enough, that the conceit holds up. It probably helps that Doctor Who doesn't seek to get two identical faces in the same frame. So overall, pretty good job.

     These episodes are notable for a couple of reasons. Namely, that two recurring characters make their final appearances in them. Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter, Crown Court) is the Doctor's companion in season twelve, then does this one last adventure, albeit with a very tiny role, before disappearing forever. Similarly, Sergeant Benton (John Levene, Z Cars), also plays a small part in "The Android Invasion," without a big send-off, but does not return to the series again. It's a shame that the two just drop out with no real explanation after this.

     The quality of this DVD is very good. The team did a fantastic job restoring picture and sound, and while it still looks like it's from the 1970's, of course, it does seem like an original, well preserved copy, rather than a cheap reconstruction.

     Besides the four episodes, there are a few DVD extras. The standard photo gallery and PDF materials are present. In addition, there is a hilarious, completely cheesy commercial for Weetabix cereal featuring the Daleks, which doesn't really seem to tie into this DVD, since the Daleks aren't in the adventure. However, there really isn't any room to complain, because it's fantastic that it's included somewhere in the Doctor Who DVDs. There is also audio commentary by guest stars Milton Johns and Martin Friend, who are joined by producer Philip Hinchcliffe and production assistant Marion McDougal.

     In addition, two half-four featurettes are present. "Life After Who - Philips Hinchcliffe" is an extensive interview with producer Hinchcliffe. He discusses various television series and projects he has worked on. "The Village That Came to Life" is an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at "The Android Invasion." Everything from the filming location, to the look of the Kraal, to Terry Nation's development of the story, to amusing anecdotes of filming are included. It's actually everything one needs to know about this adventure, and is a thoroughly complete special.

     While not as essential to one's Doctor Who collection as the other release from this past week, "Invasion of the Dinosaurs," the wonderful acting and great extras do make this a valuable buy. I recommend picking up a copy of Doctor Who - "The Android Invasion," on sale now.

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Article first published as DVD Review: Doctor Who - The Android Invasion on Blogcritics.