Well, this was a bit of a surprise, Harry. I have no memory of ever having watched this story before.
Harry -
Me neither. The images of the Doctor and Sarah Jane creeping around the grounds of Harrison Chase's estate were familiar, but maybe from still photos.
Sarah -
I'm sure I would have remembered it, what with the killer plants and all. By the end of the story, I found myself looking nervously around the room, waiting for my houseplants to attack.
Harry -
While watching part one, it felt as though we'd missed an episode. We first see the Doctor propping his eccentric golf shoes up on Richard Dunbar's desk at the World Ecology Bureau, having been referred there by UNIT. From there, he and Sarah travel to Antarctica, where a strange alien pod has been discovered. There was a disjointed feeling to the opening of the story, as if some scenes had been cut out.
Sarah -
It really was a strange start to the story, but things picked up from there.
Harry -
And what's up with the Doctor and Sarah? They both seem distant and cold, as if they'd just had a row. The Doctor is in a particularly pissy mood, barking at people like an angry dog.
Sarah -
I imagine there's a missing adventure in there somewhere that explains everything.
While the beginning of the story is a bit awkward, things pick up once they get to Antarctica. It’s sort of a base-under-siege-from-the-inside situation, with overtones of The Thing, just to get the classic horror reference in there.
When the researchers find what appears to be a rock, we know it’s not going to be that simple. Soon enough, the rock proves itself to be a pod, which opens and infects the first human it encounters. Hello Krynoids -- intra-galactic weeds with a hunger for animal life! This can’t possibly go well.
Harry -
Even though the "frozen base under siege" thing has been done so many times, there's always something wonderfully creepy about it. Maybe it's because these bases are the most isolated places on Earth and there's no cavalry about to arrive over the hill.
Sarah -
I know what you mean; I never get tired of these stories. Fortunately, the Doctor and Sarah Jane are on the case – flying into Antarctica on a helicopter. Unfortunately, they’re not the only ones interested in what’s going on at the base. The misguided Dunbar alerts plant-obsessed Harrison Chase of the goings on and he dispatches his minions Scorby and Keeler to Antarctica.
How utterly brilliant is Tony Beckley as Chase?
Harry -
At first, Chase is presented as an eccentric millionaire plant preservationist, snapping at Dunbar about the plight of bonsai trees.
Sarah -
Oh, the horror of bonsai torture! That piece of character development was a nice touch.
Harry -
The discovery of alien pods attracts his interest, perhaps as a collector at first. But with each subsequent episode, as we learn more about the destructive power of the Krynoids, Chase concurrently becomes more and more of an utter loon, determined to help them destroy all animal life on the planet.
Sarah -
His spiral from plant lover to plant avenger is brilliant.
Harry -
In part three, as the Doctor and Sarah looked around Chase's greenhouse, I thought we were hearing a Pertwee-esque snippet of electronica as part of the score. But no! It was Chase's own synthesizer composition, performed just for them. "The Hymn of the Plants" is one of the most supremely insane moments ever!
Sarah -
I couldn’t stop laughing!
Harry -
I snickered for hours. That was followed immediately by "The Floriana Requiem." Whew, what a loony!
I'd have to say that the casting and performances of the supporting actors keep this story from being dull. There really isn't much to the story: alien pods discovered and mishandled, alien menace spreads, greedy humans get in the way as the Doctor and Sarah race to save the day. They had to find a way to fill six episodes, and yet each episode was fast-paced, partially because the characters were interesting. Sir Colin Thackeray, Amelia Duckat ("That's Doo-KAY"), even Scorby the stock henchman came to life thanks to the great work by the actors.
Sarah -
Amelia Duckat is an utter delight. I wish she had gotten her own spin-off series. She could solve a new mystery every week with the help of Sir Colin!
Harry -
She clearly took delight in her minor acts of espionage. Sir Colin was the classic exasperated civil servant who just wants to return to the safety of his desk.
What is up with UNIT this season? With the Brigadier in Geneva, UNIT sends in not just a replacement Brig, but an entire B-squad, giving us a UNIT story without any familiar faces. That lent itself to the weird atmosphere that was part of this story from the beginning.
Sarah -
The UNIT aspect of the story was definitely the most disappointing. They just become faceless soldiers without the Brig and Benton around. Season thirteen has been a slow but steady move away from the UNIT family and this story is clearly the final nail in the coffin.
Still, it’s a solid story with excellent performances and excellent direction by Douglas Camfield. It’s a nice ending to one of the most memorable seasons in Doctor Who history.
Harry -
Let's raise a glass to the special effects crew, for their realization of the house-smothering Krynoid, one of the most gigantic monsters in the show's history. And it blowed up real good too!
Sarah -
Best Line:
Doctor: “I’ve got a pistol.”
Sarah: “But you’ll never use it.”
Doctor: “True, but they don’t know that, do they?”
Favorite Moment: The Doctor crashing through the skylight to save Sarah Jane.
Lasting Image: The Doctor standing behind Sir Colin holding a chair over his head. I had to stop the DVD for a moment because I couldn’t stop laughing at this moment.
7/10
Harry -
Best Line:
Sir Colin: (into phone) "Yes, yes. This is Sir Colin Thackeray. I am aware that the Brigadier is in Geneva. I must speak to a senior officer. This is a matter of national security. Yes, national security."
Amelia: "Invent a codeword. They love that. What about Operation Nuthouse?"
Favourite Moment: The Hymn of the Plants!
Lasting Image: the Krynoid smothering Chase's home.
7/10
Our marathon continues with Story #86: The Masque of Mandragora...
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