Doctor Who (TV Series) The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: Part Three (1988) User Reviews

A decent episode.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 21 January 2019]

The third entry is the least interesting so far, but it's still a decent watch. Some of the early scares have gone, and it has become a little dialogue heavy, but I still enjoyed.

Best scene has to be where Ace battles tje damaged clowns in the workshop, that had a real sense of terror. I think the scene where Mags transforms is perhaps less successful.

Bellboy is a decent character, his scene where the clowns come alive is suitably creepy, but it's the chief Clown who again steals are show. Reddington is the best thing I would argue.

What's the eye? And who's behind it? How much popcorn hace that family eaten?

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: Part Three

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 22 September 2023]

Once again the clowns dazzle led by the chief clown. The design of the episode is very well realised, especially at an era when the show's budget was slashed.

The Doctor gets away from his captors and meets Deadbeat who reunites him with Ace and Bellboy. The latter informed Ace just how much the Psychic Circus has lots its way. What were once free spirits that entertained have become corrupted. Deadbeat had once been their leader,

The Doctor knows the mysterious eye might be behind the malevolence in the circus.

As for Captain Cook it is always the survival of the fittest. Poor Whizz Kid, starstruck with the circus and Captain Cook. He failed to entertain the family and promptly died. Making the greatest show in the galaxy is no easy task.

While Whizz Kid might have been John Nathan-Turner's own put down of nostalgia tinged toxic Doctor Who fandom. There is no denying the metatextual basis of the episode. A show out of control due to bored and angry management.

Not the Greatest Story in the Galaxy of Who (but far from the worst)

[A_Kind_Of_CineMagic · 7/10 · 30 November 2019]

Review of all 4 episodes:

There are interesting ideas in this story as well as dark, macabre content which is a real strength. Sadly the budget, lack of technology, time constraints, production problems and the bad taste of the era lead to the potential not being reached in my opinion.

The first 2 parts of the story, especially the first part, are reminiscent of the previous season's horrible pantomime feel mixed with a surreal nightmare. The production is like a farcical, weird stage play with odd, anachronistic characters and settings, bizarre situations, embarrassing scenes of action, some zany dialogue and dodgy effects. There is, though, a slight Neil Gaiman feel with a dark, gloominess merged with crazy surrealism and it holds enough fascination and potential to stop it sliding to the low levels of Season 24.

Once it gets to Part 3 things pick up and Part 4 is much much better. To some extent the weirdness of the story is explained away by the psychic elements and the suggestion that at least some of the odd goings on are perceptions projected by the villains who turn out to be the 'Gods of Ragnarok'. These later episodes lift the whole story but do not totally wipe away some of the inadequate scenes, silly characters and rather lame acting.

The final part especially is ghoulish fun with creepiness and humour mixed together. McCoy does his full vaudeville style clown/W.C. Fields act while strange, scary clowns and gothic villains threaten imminent death.

You could not accuse this of being boring or ordinary, it is striking and different and has ideas which with more care and budget could have been a twisted classic. As it is, this is a reasonable effort but not as successful as it could have been.

My ratings: Part 1 - 5.5/10, Part 2 - 6/10, Part 3 - 7/10, Part 4 - 8/10. Overall - 6.63/10.

"I know it's not a good as it used to be but I'm still interested." Couldn't have put it better myself.

[poolandrews · 5/10 · 2 March 2007]

Doctor Who: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: Part 3 starts as the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) manages to escape the clutches the evil robotic clowns & sets about trying to discover why the Psychic Circus is luring unsuspecting visitor's from all over the galaxy & then sending them to die performing in the ring & to stop himself & his companion Ace (Sophie Aldred) becoming the next attraction's. It all has something to do with a sinister eye that keeps appearing as motif's on everything & seems to be the source of the evil that has infested & transformed the once family friendly circus into what it is now...

This Doctor Who adventure was the last story from season 25 & it aired here in the UK during late 1988, directed by Alan Wareing I think The Greatest Show in the Galaxy is average Doctor Who at best & I have to say my patience with it is running out. The script by Stephen Wyatt is taking an age to get to the point, don't get me wrong as I like a good mystery as the next guy but I've just finished watching Part 3 & I don't really know much more than when I began watching Part 1. I mean there's just no hook here to make you want to watch the next episode & there's not really that much going on, sure there's this circus which is apparently sending people to their death (it's all been off screen so far) in the ring for some reason that has to do with a floating eye but for what reason we know not, the Doctor has become involved & to honest that's about it. This story has also had three lame cliffhanger endings that don't exactly heighten the anticipation until the next episode or even make you want to watch the next one that much.

There's an OK scene in this episode inside a trailer full of robotic clowns in various states of repair & some robotic limbs & faces lying around but not much is made of it. There's nothing I'd call scary, particularly effective or exciting so far in the three episodes I've seen & I doubt that will change after Part 4 although there was a cool looking vampire thing at the end of this one which actually had a decent make-up job.

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy is an OK watch, it's dragging it's heels a bit & I'm in no rush to see Part 4 but it's Doctor Who & I like pretty much all the Doctor Who's I've seen but this one could have been better.