Planet of the Spiders

One thing that colours all reviews is personal preference- no matter how objective you try to be, it will always colour one’s impression. Therefore, I should warn you that I really enjoy this story, despite its many problems. However, I will try to be fair.

The plot itself is intriguing. The summoning of the Spiders at the meditation centre turns out to be a link between 20th century Earth and Metebelis III of the future, with the Spiders attempting to recover the crystal that the Doctor took from the planet in The Green Death. This brings aspects of the Pertwee era together for its finale- Metebelis III is probably the closest thing to ‘Bad Wolf’ that the original series produced. Jo sends the crystal back to the Doctor with an affectionate letter to the UNIT family. This is all integrated well into the plot, and doesn’t seem gratuitous. More importantly, this is no mere celebration of the past. The Doctor’s past, in fact, haunts and catches up with him. The seemingly meaningless death of Professor Clegg is a timely reminder that the Doctor leaves a trail of destruction in his wake and the Doctor’s taking of the crystal is, in fact, a theft. The Doctor is on trial in this story, and he is, indeed found guilty and must pay the ultimate price. The story is a bit flabby and could have done with some pruning, but Robert Sloman and Barry Letts produce their best script (not saying much, obviously) for the programme, telling an intriguing story with a great deal of thematic depth. Even the basic Buddhism taught only enriches the story, when it could easily have been mere proselytism (Letts is a Buddhist).

In production terms, the strengths of the story can be seen in the first episode. The scenes set at the meditation centre are excellent, with great set design and atmospheric lighting and shows Barry Letts at his very best as a director. The extended chase sequence in episode 2 is the only example of really gratuitous padding, but it at least manages to be visually interesting, with Bessie, the Whomobile, a mini helicopter, a speedboat and a hovercraft being utilised. It’s a real pity that no explanation is given for Lupton disappearing at the end of the chase, rather than immediately, as this amplifies the gratuity of the sequence. The look of Metabelis III is a bit of a let down after this. Some of the sets look cheap and there is too much use of CSO as a background. The Spiders themselves could have been far better realised. However, the Cave of Crystal and the Great One are very effectively realised.

The quality of the performances seem to vary with the location. The scenes set on Earth are strongly acted. The very talented Cyril Shaps makes the most of the brief role of Professor Clegg. John Dearth is suitably slimy and villainous as Lupton and Kevin Lindsay and George Cormack are very impressive as Cho-Je and K'Anpo. John Kane is touching as the innocent Tommy, a role that could easily have been insulting. However, amongst the natives of Metebilis III, only Geoffrey Morris as Sabor is worthy of any praise. Gareth Hunt is adequate as Arak, Ralph Arliss, less so as Tuar. Then there is Jenny Laird. Laird was actually a very experienced actress- she had a large role in Black Narcissus-however, her...presence... in the story doesn’t even deserve being called a performance.

Mike Yates’s involvement is well handled- it is clear that he has been forgiven, though his actions not forgotten, as he never meets the Brigadier in the story. Elisabeth Sladen gives a very strong performance, especially towards the end, ably assisted by Nicholas Courtney. It is interesting how the relationship between the Doctor and the Brig has developed since Season 7. It starts as mutual toleration, but the Brig describes the Doctor as a friend in The Green Death and we see them both at music hall evening where Clegg performs and, for the first time, the Doctor calls the Brig by his first name. In his final regular performance in the role, Jon Pertwee excellently portrays the well written role he is given. The Doctor must face up to the mistakes he has made and pay with his life. the chilling moment when the Great One makes the Doctor dance for her shows this very self-confident character lose control for the first time and, indeed, feel afraid. The regeneration scene (the first to be shown since the first one, and the first to be described as such) is beautifully written and performed. The transition to the next Doctor is rather simply done, but the writing and performances make up for this.

The problems I have outlined are major ones, yet I have always enjoyed this story and the good parts are too good for this story to be overlooked.

NEXT: Robot