Written by Bill Strutton | Directed by Richard Martin | Produced by Verity Lambert | Original air date 02/13/65
We've arrived at the most watched episode of 1960s Doctor Who - and it holds that record as the most watched Who episode ever until Tom Baker's second serial, "The Ark in Space." The British public tuned in in droves to watch this entire serial - the first episode got the highest ratings, but it's pretty consistent throughout, not dipping below 10 million viewers until the second episode of the next story.
I point that out because, try as I might, I struggle through this story. Sandifer's post about this one is informative and persuasive, but even after rereading that post before watching the first episode of the serial, I struggled to enjoy it. The visuals are unique, there's no way around that - and if the visuals, designed to freak out the audience, are the entire point of the serial like Sandifer suggests, then it's a success. I do find them creepy.
I just... there's so much that annoys me. The Zarbi (the ant like aliens not named until the next episode) beep and chirp in such a grating tone, I had to turn the volume down a few notches to not annoy my wife in the next room (and I don't blame her - it's a terrible sound). The plot, thus far, is as thin as it can be - the TARDIS crew has been pulled down to the planet, there are ant people running around, and something is going on with the bracelet Barbara got from Nero pulling her outside the TARDIS. To be fair, this is how a lot of First Doctor first episodes go, so I wouldn't hold that against the serial normally, but there's just not a lot going on otherwise. The visuals hold my interest for a bit, and I will grant you the vaseline over the camera lens actually does do a good job of making the planet look eerie (and the constant echo makes it sound like they're in a cave, which is strange since they're clearly outside, the night sky above them).
So instead, I just find the serial frustrating. I should be more interested in what sort of power could drain the TARDIS of it's power. I want to ask, if the Doctor's ring is not merely for decoration but can power the ship, why did he trade it for the French Regional Officer uniform in The Reign of Terror? How does Vicki learn enough to get a certificate in medicine, physics, and chemistry from just one hour per week of learning when she was ten (machines, apparently. It's not explained how that works)?
To say something nice about the serial, I like the scene when the Doctor asks Ian for his tie (which is tied around his waist like a belt for some reason... that's also very odd, why wouldn't Ian have grabbed a belt from the TARDIS wardrobe if he likes his tie so much?):
Ian: "I hope my pants stay up,"
Doctor: (dismissively) "Well, that's your affair, not mine."
I am going to try to enjoy this serial. I'm trying to follow Sandifer's advice and try to appreciate the visuals and weirdness of the serial for the sake of it. I don't even mind the so-called unconvincing costumes and sets - there's no way to make all that look good today, much less in 1965, so that's not it. It just doesn't coalesce for me, as much as I want it to. I would probably love the serial if the plot wasn't so lacking, given some of the later visuals and dialogue (the quoted bit from one of the later episodes with the ant putting it's head through a wall in Sandifer's entry is an interesting, weird scene), but as is, this is the lone stinker of the second season for me.
I hope I change my tune over the next few entries.
"Doctor Who" puns so far: 2 | Tomorrow: "The Zarbi"
No comments:
Post a Comment