 |
| Harry is taken prisoner by the Zygons! |
4 episodes. Written by: Robert Banks Stewart. Directed by: Douglas Camfield. Produced by: Philip Hinchcliffe.
THE PLOT
The Brigadier's call for help brings the Doctor, Sarah Jane, and Harry to Scotland, where several oil rigs have been destroyed by an unknown force. An investigation of the wreckage reveals that the metal bears the unmistakable impression of teeth - with a single tooth being roughly half the size of a man!
The attacks are the work of the Zygons, aliens who crash landed on Earth centuries ago. They have kept a low profile, content to await rescue. The situation has changed, however. Their planet has been destroyed, leaving them with no home to return to. Broton, the Zygon leader, has decided to use their superior technology to make Earth into their new home world... with crushing the human race the first step in their plan of conquest!
CHARACTERS
The Doctor: After my previous viewing, I wrote that Tom Baker's Doctor seemed unengaged in this story. I can only conclude that I was in the wrong mood when I watched it - This time around, I thought he was terrific. He carps at the Brigadier for calling him back over oil rigs, but he gives the investigation his full attention once the Brig points out that lives have been lost. He is singularly unimpressed with the Zygons, treating their ability to change their form as if it was a mere carnival trick. Baker continues to play against the lines, clowning during serious moments - which makes it all the more effective when he actually does take a situation seriously, as when he and Sarah are locked in a pressure chamber.
Sarah Jane Smith: This is a particularly good story for her. When the Brigadier briefs the group on the situation, she seizes on her experience as a journalist and begins interviewing the locals, finding out what they know about strange occurrences. Later, a Zygon attempts to impersonate Harry to steal a device that the Doctor discovered. Sarah has no idea about their shape-changing abilities - but she can sense that he's behaving oddly, and she trusts her instincts enough to stop him from getting away with the device. Elisabeth Sladen's rapport with both Tom Baker and Ian Marter elevates several scenes in the first and final episodes, as well, with both actors' performances improving in their scenes with her.
Harry Sullivan: He gets the smallest slice of the action he has had since Robot. He's put out of action early, injured and then made a prisoner of the Zygons for the bulk of the story. This may well have been a conscious decision. Harry got a lot of focus in Season 12. Minimizing his involvement allows this story to emphasize the bond between the Doctor and Sarah before Harry's departure. He still gets a few good moments, particularly in Part Three when he saves the Doctor by mashing random switches in the Zygon control room. Ian Marter also is very good as the Zygon Harry in Episode Two, playing him as cold and brusque in his interactions with Sarah, then becoming downright vicious when he attacks her.
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart: This would be his last appearance until Season 20. It was probably time for him and UNIT to be given a rest, truthfully, as they had fallen far from the crisp, military competence exhibited in Season Seven. Here, he's perplexed at such a basic and obvious investigative technique as filling a cavity with a plaster of Paris to gain an impression, something the Season Seven Brig would have ordered without needing the Doctor to do it for him.
Nicholas Courtney retains a stiff dignity, and the character gets some decent scenes in the back half of the serial. He executes a well-planned mortar attack on Loch Ness, where the Zygons are hiding, an attack which results in the alien ship surfacing. I also think it's appropriate that, in his final regular story, he gets to meet and deal with an alien menace that is not resistant to bullets.
THOUGHTS
When I reviewed Terror of the Zygons more than a decade ago, I stated that it's a fan favorite but not a favorite of mine. I'd agree with my past self that it's not a "great" story. It is a good one, however, one that gives strong roles to the regulars and to the returning UNIT characters while offering some fine set pieces.
Sarah's encounter with the duplicate Harry is a genuinely memorable moment, made all the better because Ian Marter succeeds in making this Harry different. Gone is the easy affability, with him being cold and even vicious. The Part Two cliffhanger sees the Doctor pursued by the Scarasen (the Loch Ness Monster, under Zygon control), an encounter he only survives because of Harry's fast action on the Zygon ship. The Zygons themselves are particularly well realized. They may be men in rubber suits, but the suits look reasonably convincing and even organic. It helps that we mosty see them on their ship, where the tinted lighting disguises any limitations.
There are some notes from the previous version of my review that I'll stand behind. I stated then that Terror of the Zygons feels a bit like a leftover Pertwee story: The Brigadier and UNIT investigate strange occurrences in a rural area; there's an energy conference that we're assured is important but whose specifics are vague; the Doctor climbs (briefly) on a soapbox to talk about fossil fuels; and locals are portrayed as simple and highly superstitious. Replace Elisabeth Sladen with Katy Manning, and this would fit snugly in the middle of Seasons Nine or Ten.
But I don't think that's a bad thing in any way. Sometimes it's fun to see a new TARDIS team in a familiar story setup. This serial offers the same pleasure as Robot: A chance to see how differently a Third Doctor-type story plays when it stars the Fourth Doctor. As an added benefit, this is a much better story than Robot.
The 4th Doctor/Sarah/Harry team remains one of my favorites. The first shot of the trio, walking merrily together through the Scottish countryside, is charming: The Doctor decked out in a Tam o'Shanter, his scarf a Tartan palette that loops lazily from him to Harry, while Sarah walks comfortably and happily between them. There's a genuine sense of chemistry and affection, the sort of thing that can't necessarily be planned or made to happen. This, more than anything, makes me regret that Harry was written out so soon. If I were to cite one Philip Hinchcliffe decision that I strongly disagree with, it would be that one - I could have happily watched this trio stay together for another full season, at least.
OVERALL:
My opinion of Terror of the Zygons has risen considerably with this viewing. I still wouldn't class it as a favorite story, but I would rate it as comfortably above the series' average. It benefits from location work, from the sure hand of director Douglas Camfield, and from the Zygons themselves - one of the best-realized humanoid aliens of the Classic series. It's easy to see why the Zygon design was not much changed when the aliens reappeared in the New Series decades later.
Rating: 8/10.
Previous Story: Revenge of the Cybermen
Next Story: Planet of Evil
Search Amazon.com for Doctor Who
Review Index
No comments:
Post a Comment