"Doctor Who" Planet of Evil: Part 3 (1975)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

David Maloney

Writer:

Louis Marks (written by)

TV Series:

"Doctor Who" (1963)

Original Air Date:

11 October 1975 (Season 13, Episode 7)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Time Lord | Alien | Renegade | Companion | Eccentric

Cast

Tom Baker	...	Doctor Who
Elisabeth Sladen	...	Sarah Jane Smith
Frederick Jaeger	...	Sorenson
Ewen Solon	...	Vishinsky
Prentis Hancock	...	Salamar
Graham Weston	...	De Haan
Michael Wisher	...	Morelli
Melvyn Bedford	...	Reig

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

BBC Television Centre, Wood Lane, Shepherd's Bush, London, England, UK

Trivia:

This episode was watched by 9.1 million viewers on its original transmission.

"We may have to play the rites but we don't have to listen." Going nowhere fast.

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Doctor Who: Planet of Evil: Part 3 starts as the Morestran spacecraft is about to take off from Zeta Minor minus the anti-matter that Professor Sorensen (Frederick Jaeger) collected from the surface, the Doctor (Tom Baker) managed to cross over & bargain with the forces that created the energy creature. In return for leaving all the anti-matter & samples behind on Zeta Minor they will be allowed to take off safely, however there is still anti-matter aboard & it affects Sorensen as well as halting the spacecrafts progress. As more of the Morestran crew die & the ship is slowly dragged back to Zeta Minor time is running out to find & get rid off the anti-matter...

Episode 7 from season 13 this Doctor Who adventure originally aired here in the UK during October 1975, directed by David Maloney my patience is running out with Planet of Evil which started promisingly. The script by Louis Marks started off really well set on a dark & sinister alien planet that had a cool monster going around killing everyone, unfortunately apart from a few inconsequential scenes of people walking through the jungle it hasn't been used in any effective way & Part 3 takes place almost entirely on-board the Morestran spacecraft as the Doctor & Sarah Jane (Elisabeth Sladen) are yet again accused of the murders & they yet again try to convince Salamar (Prentis Hancock) that they weren't responsible, to be honest it's getting old very quickly. The character's aren't great & the story just isn't clear enough, when Sorensen changes into the thing with glowing eyes what causes the change? The potion he drinks with steam rising from it? The anti-matter that changes colour? The energy monster? Why does he change & why doesn't he stay changed? Maybe these will be answered in Part 4 but I must admit this story has lost me a bit & I'm not that interested in it anymore especially since it left Zeta Minor & encamped itself on the dull spacecraft.

Despite having one of the best alien world sets ever on Doctor Who Planet of Evil has completely wasted them, apart from seeing various character's walk through them it hasn't been used to any effect whatsoever. There's no alien monster to jump out at people, no carnivorous plants or other threats & dangers at all, very disappointing & it barely features in Part 3. The see-thru energy monster was actually quite impressive & had decent special effects but that too has been underused, wasted & gets about 30 seconds in this episode.

Planet of Evil: Part 3 has really let the first two parts down, it's a bland, dull & not very good. This could have been a great story but all the elements that I thought would make it one have been largely ignored or underused, disappointing but still fun on a basic sci-fi level I suppose.