I agree with this. I read reviews where people moaned about the padding and the chase sequence which took up an entire episode when it could have been done in 5 minutes, but regardless of how pointless it was, it was enjoyable. Featuring Bessie, the Whomobile, Gyrocopters and fight sequences it was a perfect ode the Three's era.

Exactly!

If you read Barry Lett's comments on the chase sequence, it was clearly inserted into the story for a reason and not just for the sake of having a chase.

And also just to add to my earlier comments, the chase is one of several reasons I like this as a Pertwee story. Yes, the fact that it's Pertwee's swansong always gives it an edge but the other reason I like it is because it has so many different elements to it. It isn't set exclusively on Earth like the majority of the Pertwee stuff and each episode is almost a story within itself with the first episode given over to The Doctor's research into ESP with Sarah and Mike having their own storyline, the second the chase, the third is nearly a Doctor-Lite episode with him being confined mostly to the monastery with the focus on Lupton and Sarah. Then the fourth has the majority of it set mainly on Metebelis Three before the final two episodes mixes it up good and proper with the Regeneration at the end.

All in all one of the best stories of the era for me.

For me possibly one of my favorite stories, It was the first full Doctor Who adventure I'd ever watched. I'd seen little bits of the Time Warrior but this was me getting excited and working out what I'm watching and really enjoying it. I remember the regeneration sequence, it blew my mind!

I do sometimes miss the innocence just taking in the show and not over analyzing it.

Its an intriguing thought imagining Tennant as an action hero. Physically he is attractive enough to play the action hero and he could have been a James Bond heroic type but being given the baggage of his actions in the Time War he played as quite damaged at times.
It would have been such fun to see him behind some boys toys but I quess the BBC cant afford those gadgets these days ( although couldn't they have borrowed from Top Gear- those guys race everything)

I agree a bit about the whimpering exit he got. The 'Its not fair line' felt petulant and (makes me cringe) he's just far too much like a depressive at the end.
from memory watching in the war Games I think Troughton's Doctor protested about his forced regeneration didn't he ? I prefer noble and dignified & the 4th and the5th regenerations were rather good in that respect.

Yes, Tennant certainly had the capacity to be an action hero, but I think I was referring to the fact he could have had a faster paced and action packed finale in line with episode 2 of this story and a lot of the finale's of his own era, instead, it was at times a bit of a crawl, I thought he deserved better imo.

As for Troughton, yes he did protest but I think any Doctor would have done the same as it's within The Doctor's nature to be a rebel against authority, whatever his incarnation. He didn't cry, though, did he?!

I'm reading The writers Tale at the moment so looking forward to

One of my earliest Who memories is The Doctor confronting the Queen Spider, scared the hell out of me as a kid. I even found the colour separation overlay weird and unnerving whenever it was used, of course at the time I didn't know it was a studio effect.

Revisiting the story as an adult however I struggled getting through the entire series due to extreme boredom and at just how bad it is. Found myself skipping a couple of episodes just to see the end.

Run of the mill Doctor Who retro TV but nothing more imo.

this was, according to a J P interview, his favourite story, because of the action man chases, but he unfortunately called it "The Green Death"

Why was that? Was his mind starting to go, not long before his death in 1996?

I saw this comment aimed at The Caves Of Androzani a few weeks ago and pointed out that it was a very atypical Davison story and therefore I considered that comment to not really be true.

Though Planet Of The Spiders wasn't as atypical of the Pertwee Era as Androzani was Davison's, I'm still puzzled as to how any Doctor's Swansong can be considered 'Run of the mill.'

Surely by it's very nature that it is a swansong is that it should give that special something, even if the story isn't that great. It has that special vibe and a regeneration at the end which only happens every few years.

In this case we had a Doctor who at that time had played the role for the longest period and you can see by watching the story that it really sums up the Pertwee Era as already discussed and in watching it, it really does feel like the end of an era. Whether you like the story or not is irrelevant, even The End Of Time wasn't that great but it still had that end of era vibe to it.

IMO no swansong of any Doctor(bar the 6th of course as he never had one) can be considered run of the mill. They are all special in their own way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihepKx__WdY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMdg7paUXfo

he looks totally compos mentis, enthusing about scuba diving and trying to get Worzel Gummidge back on screen

slightly rude comment about British fans in Pt 1
POTS confusion in Pt 2 (I think)

For me it is a run of the mill story, all be it with a regeneration at the end. Of course the regeneration isn't 'run of the mill' but I'm not going to ignore the episodes that preceded it solely because of a regeneration.

Run of the Mill doesn't mean I think it was crap or the worst ever it means i found it average, at times below average, just as there are many many many other average Who stories that may or may not have good endings.


Yet, for me the story does not have an end of an era vibe to it, that is hindsight, take the regeneration out and it isn't anything special imo.

If Pertwee's regeneration happened at the end of say.. Inferno then fair enough, but I'm afraid I cant change my opinion of a story because of what happens at the end. For me that is no way to view any form of storytelling be it TV, movie or books.

Stick a regeneration at the end of a story you do not think much of..is the story now better for it?

Just as I think Tom Bakers final story is average, not because it has him regenerating at the end but because for me it is an average run of the mill story.


I only gave my opinion on a Doctor Who story in a relevant thread. My opinion is a relevant as yours and visa versa.




I'm afraid I dont view the show like that. A few fireworks at the end of something doesn't mask how average the rest of it was. I'm afraid I cant ignore what I think of something based on if the final episode had a wow moment in it or not, or if the story was a characters, any characters swan song. That's a terrible way to judge something imo,



If Matt Smith had the most amazing regeneration of all time at the end of Lets Kill Hitler it wouldn't and shouldn't stop me from thinking LKH is the worst episode of all time.

Must I like The Phantom Menace because it has a lightsaber battle at the end and Liam Neeson gets killed?

When I said it doesn't matter whether you like the story or not, I wasn't actually referring to your comment but talking about watching the story in general, so if you feel I was dissing your opinion, I really wasn't.

Off course everyone views every story differently and I was merely stating my own view on it.

When I watch through Doctor Who in order, I always look forward to the Regeneration ones as it means an instant refresh with the next Doctor around the corner. In some ways I'm sort of reliving watching Doctor Who but at quickspeed so I get an idea of what it must have felt like at the time to get used to a change of Doctor, I get the vibe etc that goes with each regeneration.

All I think I was originally trying to say was that a Regeneration Story isn't run of the mill simply because it's a last story and a regeneration is involved. A run of the mill story for me is when The Doctor fights a baddie, faces a lot of peril wins the day and then pops of in the TARDIS with his companion and at the end of the Series we just say goodbye until the next one.

Yes, the basic core of what I just described happens in regeneration stories as well but then you have the whole build upto the Regeneration; how's it gonna happen, where's it gonna happen? What's his final words gonna be? All those things that make a Regeneration Episode or story so special.

And that is what I meant when I said no final Doctor story for me is run of the mill. What I described above does not happen every single story. It's a once in a three/ four year/sometimes longer event.

I appreciate you view it differently, and that's cool, but that really is how I see it.

I never liked the actual regeneration sequence myself.

Great build up to it but the actual transition is just a soft fade from one to the other, seemed too hasty to me and I always felt they could have done more with that scene, especially as Pertwee was my favourite doctor.

I've watched the Hartnell / Troughton regeneration many times, the effects again are very simple but the way it's done, the way the scene is lit (even in black & white) it's just a perfect sequence - very simple but very effective.

I like the "Planet of the Spiders" although it's been a while since I've seen it. I also like the regenerations better in the Classic Who than in new Who and that's because I don't like the whole "explosive" regenerations of the new Who. For starters, it reminds me too much of the Highlander tv show "quickening" scenes and also I don't find the idea of how explosive it is that believable. And actually, the Doctor would put other people around him at risk every time he regenerates. (No more people crying over him as he gets ready to regenerate). In fact, if the 10th Doctor had regenerated inside a nuclear power plant, he could have blown the whole place up.

Gave this one a rewatch after being rather rudely lambasted for daring to suggest that it was a "guilty pleasure" in another thread.

And, I'm sorry to say it, but it still doesn't rise above Guilty Pleasure for me.

I do genuinely enjoy it, but there's just too much wrong with it for it to be regarded as a classic (or even just "very good") adventure.

The acting from all the guest stars barring John Kane, John Dearth and the guy who played K'Anpo is pretty abysmal, with the lady who played Neska taking the crown as the single worst Who performance ever.

The Brig is made an absolute laughing stock here, so far from the military man we first came to know (and it's a petty point, but the length of his hair really bothered me: not as a stylistic thing [my hair is below my shoulders personally, so...] but it just looks wrong on a high-ranking military official).

As for the chase sequence... I get it, I really do. I know why they wanted to do it, I like that it gave Stuart Fell et al a chance to appear "properly" in the series, and it certainly is a bit of a visual spectacle... But that doesn't change the fact that I find the whole thing rather wearisome. Padding with intent is still padding, and they really should have integrated it better or made it shorter - Part 2 just sticks out like a sore thumb to me. And am I the only one who has issues with the fact that The Doctor straight-up runs a guy over without any effort to swerve out of the way or at least look back over his shoulder? I don't think it was supposed to play into the "arrogance" theme, either, because The Doctor calls himself out - or is called out on - the death of the professor and the theft of the crystal, whereas this (for all he knows) vehicular homicide goes unmentioned.

And the padding elsewhere is pretty awful, too - the number of times in parts one-and-two alone that Mike, Sarah and (eventually) The Doctor go to the Llamastry, then leave, then go back, then leave... is ridiculous. This could easily have been a four-part story (and still kept the chase, mostly).

Oh, and I'd like to echo the sentiment that Tommy being "cured" and becoming "normal" is actually grossly offensive - John Kane is wonderful in the serial, so it's no comment on him, but... Ouch. A case of changing times, perhaps, but still hideously out-of-date (right up there with One wanting to get out of a place because it's "full of Arabs" in the wince-factor).

As I said, I do enjoy the story - and I think that the special effects actually deserve some praise in this one: while there's never any doubt that Metebelis III is a CSO screen, it actually looks very good I reckon - but I can't pretend that it's faults aren't legion.

Interesting post, disagree with a lot of it, but do agree about Neska, truly awful acting!

However, it was the comments you made about Tommy I'd like to talk about. You quite rightly made the point about changing of the times and maybe that's what should be considered when discussing Tommy. I'm not sure if mental health was perceived as widely then as it is today and I think by today's standards, maybe the issue would have been more sensitively handled.

However, I do think the other guys in the monastery's reaction to him is out of date by the way they treat him but on the flip side, Tommy is shown to maintain some dignity in some of the scenes he is in. However, I absolutely agree Sarah calling him 'Normal' after he is 'cured' does seem in today's terms to be old fashioned as well.

I also think though, that Tommy was purely written to have a such a condition to emphasise the power of the Great Crystal's Healing Power in the story itself. Would such a storyline be written today? Possibly, but I think the reaction of the characters around him and the response to him being made better would also have to be different.

I thought that "Tommy" was one of the loveliest characters ever to appear in a Dr Who serial. The "healing / awareness" scene ("Tyger! Tyger! burning bright... that's pretty... ....No. It's beautiful") I found quite moving in a strange way, and then when Sarah-Jane exclaims "You're just like everyone else!" - Tommy: "I sincerely hope not!"...there's a lot of depth and wisdom in those few lines.
I like the whole Buddhist theme running through the story, about being changed/enlightened, confronting one's inner demons and all that. It's a very peaceful fable.

homage to t lobsang rampa.

I decided to pick this one up on dvd, as I hadn't seen it in years and it was worth it, especially as I picked it up for cheap. A few tiny flaws aside, this is a fun story to watch unfold. The bonus features were up to standard as well, it was interesting to see Mark Gatiss pop up on the main documentary. Although Pertwee is one of my least favourite Doctors, I hugely enjoy his swansong.

I wonder after the most recent regeneration when even hasty seemed too quick, what you think of this regeneration in comparison now?

I think I covered most of what I wanted to say last time but still disagree with earlier comments in the thread that is a typical run of the mill story. I watched it last night and the construction of some of the episodes is very unusual.

Very rarely in a first episode do you see The Doctor in hardly any danger and really he doesn't enter the main part of the story until the second episode. All that stuff with Jo and the Crystal and the fact an old companion has actually contacted The Doctor again was a first. The second episode was a runaround to celebrate the Pertwee Era in all it's glory and the third was a more quiet affair with The Doctor being stuck in one room.

The later episodes I agree are a bit ruined by the mess over the cliffhangers between Parts 5 and 6. However, they are still enjoyable to watch.

I'm not saying this story is perfect by any means but I still think it has enough to stand out on it's own to the swansong status of the story.

I wasn't overly impressed with the recent regeneration but my problem with the Pertwee / Baker regeneration scene still stands I'm afraid!

I think it stems from reading the Target novelisation at school - the regeneration scene is well described, I seem to recall the doctor being covered in a shimmering golden light and his features began to change - in reality all we got was a quick soft-fade from one actor to the other. I felt really cheated when I finally got to see it!

So I am being a bit self indulgent in resurrecting this thread with my own post but I just watched this story last night again as part of my Pertwee watch in order. Its taken a whole year !!! on and off, between series 8, and general life to get from Spearhead to here and I think I was a bit harsh originally watching this story two years ago off the cuff. It just cements for me that context is everything
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I really enjoyed this story so much this time. Sarah Jane just slots in with Mike Yates so much better than Jo ever did. I would have loved another season of the 3rd and Sarah. They really work well togetherand I get it now why they had the extended chase sequence for Pertwee. He was a charming, debonair, sophisticated, cultured Doctor and the whole era has a James Bond vibe with all the cars, helicopters and UNIT. I can imagine instead of Lupton they might have had the Master, if dear Roger Deldago had still been alive, driving all those mechanical toys tearing up the road and the Doctor..
As in my original posts Its a good story full of interesting human/ Time lord characters with differing reasons for being in the retreat. Still think overall not absolutely special enough to be a swansong to such a dashing Doctor. But then not every regeneration story has been a classic has it and there are a lot worse stories out there. But I still love Pertwee and the regeneration. It isn't a drawn out affair but quick, quiet and dignified.
.

So ends an era for me. Finally got to see all the Pertwee's ....I am sad as this era has been generally very very good. There are maybe 3 or 4 stories I personally found tonally not to my taste or not that well paced ( The Mutants, Colony in Space, Claws of Axos or Carnival ) but otherwise there have been some cracking tales. Pertwee's Doctor really found his niche, being stranded on Earth and I have enjoyed all of the companions as Liz, Jo and Sarah all brought out different sides of the Doctor . Liz I liked from the start because she challenged the doctor intellectually, Jo grew on me as she brought out a paternal, emotional side of the Doctor, Sarah Jane was bright resourceful and independent but I think there was a mutual respect there. Sometimes I think the writing could have been better for the 'assistants'. The best stories for me for the companions and this doctor: Inferno ( 2 different Liz's) , Frontier in Space ( Jo grew up) and Time Warrior ( Fiesty Sarah)

. Debating now where to go next - backwards to the 2nd ( not a lot to see unfortunately) or forward to the 6th Doctor. Thought about Tom's era but its a long stretch to see it in order via renting and the new series is coming up in a couple or so months....Maybe a little break ..