Story #9 - Planet of Giants (1964)

Harry -
We've made it, Sarah! We've made it to Season 2.


Sarah -
Season 2! Imagine that!


Harry -
Can we agree that this might have been the one Doctor Who story we knew the least about going in? I'd never seen it before, and couldn't even tell you how many parts there were to it.


Sarah -
It was a surprise for me, too. I only learned after watching it that it had been edited from four to three episodes, which explains some of the awkward transitions in the story.


Harry -
It looks like the Doctor and Ian enjoyed some time in the TARDIS wardrobe during the break. Ian has got some natty threads on, and check out the Doctor's flash cape. New hair too.


Sarah -
Everyone is looking fresh and ready for adventure. Well, except for Susan in those silly overalls.


Harry -
But some things do not change, and before the theme music has barely faded, the TARDIS console overheats. Danger! The doors open in midflight -- not long enough to jettison some of those clunky TARDIS furnishings, but enough to alarm the Doctor. It looked like "The Edge of Destruction" all over again. And things were going so well, those first few seconds...


Sarah -
Alarms blasting! Doors opening! Susan screaming! The Doctor mopping his brow! Chaos has returned to the TARDIS!


Harry -
And so our Travelers find themselves on a strange new planet, which turns out to be Earth, only they've gotten themselves miniaturized during the emergency landing.


Sarah -
You can’t go wrong with a story about folks shrinking down to size. Doesn’t every child imagine exploring the world in a miniaturized body? Absolutely classic.

The Doctor even seemed rather delighted about being shrunk; at first, anyway.


Harry -
Those "giant" sets. Let us admire them!


Sarah -
Oh yes, let’s!


Harry -
Matchboxes and attaché cases, telephones and sink plugs. The design crew really knocked it out of the park.

But I guess the highlight for viewers would be the "monsters." Giant ant! Giant bee! Giant dead guy!

The giant fly was revolting and terrifying. Flies are creepy enough in small size -- I can appreciate Barbara's horror at having a giant one land beside her and start giving her the eyes.


Sarah -
The sets were spectacular – and even more so, because we know how small the budget must have been.

The image of Barbara facing off the fly was wonderful. Still, I had a more extreme reaction to the dead ant Susan found. I find ants to be the creepiest of all insects, due to my suspicion that they’re the ones actually running the planet. But that’s another story…


Harry -
Had there been a giant spider, I may not have finished watching. I hate spiders!

Not sure if I liked the "film noir" storyline that played out while our tiny heroes scampered around. I was not impressed to see the man from the ministry get killed. And the Doctor's scheme to start a fire seemed utterly mad!


Sarah -
I’m still not clear on why The Doctor decided starting a fire was a good plan, but the explosion did foil the bad guys, I guess.

That whole story was a bit of a non-starter, but it gave us some nice moments – especially scene where The Doctor, Ian and Susan shout into the phone. That was genius.


Harry -
Geniusly kooky!


Sarah -
The nosey telephone operator saving the day was a nice touch, too.


Harry -
Barbara hiding her illness from the others struck me as uncharacteristic. Knowing how intelligent the Doctor is, surely she would have sought his help?


Sarah -
I was thinking that it was typical of Ian to not have been listening to Barbara when she touched the wheat. Still, it was surprising that Our Barbara kept it to herself – and no one seemed terribly concerned about the fact that she was doing so poorly.


Harry -
Well, it all turned out alright in the end. Overall, this was a light, fun story to kick off a new season.


Sarah -  
I found it somewhat disappointing and unsatisfying, despite some nice moments. Even Dear Dudley Simpson’s incidental music didn’t work for me; it was jarring and intrusive.

On a side note, it was interesting to watch this story in the “movie” format. (The only version we could locate.) Having grown up watching Doctor Who in the movie format on public television, it felt unusual when I saw my first story in the original serialized version on home video. I’ve not seen a movie version since “Survival” in 1989. In the meantime, I’ve gotten so used to the serialized format that the movie format seems just wrong. Perhaps that contributed to my disappointment in the story.


Harry -
Good ol' TVOntario used to broadcast Doctor Who in episodic format, but I have some old VHSes in "movie" format. The cliffhangers are usually obvious, but sometimes the editing dampens them, as it seemed to here.

Lasting image - Tiny Ian standing beside the murdered Mr. Farrow's face.

Favourite moment - the aerosol can explodes.

Best line - "Can! You! Hear! Us! Put! Us! Through! To! Police!"

Rating: 7/10


Sarah - 
Lasting image: Barbara facing off the fly.

Favorite moment: Ian, Susan and The Doctor shouting "Can! You! Hear! Us! Put! Us! Through! To! Police!" into the phone.

Best line: The Doctor’s final line – “Perhaps I shall know now where we are.”
(No doubt because I’m positively giddy about where were going next!)

Rating: 5/10

Our marathon continues with Story #10 - The Dalek Invasion of Earth...