KOOL TV REVIEW: 'DOCTOR WHO - DEATH TO THE DALEKS' DVD

A fight for life. Jon Pertwee tackles the Daleks once again in DEATH TO THE DALEKS. Images: BBC.

DOCTOR WHO: DEATH TO THE DALEKS

A four-part adventure by Terry Nation

Starring Jon Pertwee as the Doctor and Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith

Released on DVD from BBC HOME ENTERTAINMENT from 18^th June 2012

Reviewed by Scott Weller

The first, and most successful, low price VHS tape of the original Classic DOCTOR WHO adventures releases from the mid-eighties, with everybody’s favourite iconic early seventies Doctor, as personified by dandy action man Jon Pertwee, taking on his most dreaded of nemeses, the 1974 transmitted adventure DEATH TO THE DALEKS is finally given the remastered and restored polish it deserves on DVD, as well as bringing the original series release of surviving, complete Dalek tales in the shiny disc format to an enjoyable and satisfying end.

DVD release trailer: Dr Who - Death to the Daleks (DVD Trailer) - YouTube

Jon Pertwee prepares to bid adieu to the series.

Probably best known for the iconic art created by Roy Knipe for the cover of the 1978 TARGET adaptation book by Terrance Dicks- with its exciting and evocative imagery of an exploding Dalek’s head (effectively recreated for the photo composite cover of the new DVD release), DEATH TO THE DALEKS has, for the most part, been considered one of the classic series least remembered Dalek adventures. Thankfully, the cobwebs of time surrounding it are finally pushed away, alongside other earlier foggy history, to reveal a highly enjoyable action adventure yarn of lively invention and fast paced thrills from the penmanship of BOY’S OWN enthusiast Terry Nation, who weaves new and recycled ideas to continued success (c’mon, where would we be without a first episode cliff-hanger from Nation that doesn't have the obligatory Daleks have arrived mission statement!), within a particularly eerie and confident start for the opening episode, building well into the middle and then floundering ever so slightly in the fourth and final episodes last five minutes or so, where it all feels very rushed as everything is tidily wrapped up.

The Doctor negotiates with his old enemies.

Terror-firma! Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) is followed by the alien Exxilons

Jon Pertwee’s beaky nosed action hero Doctor may not have any defining character moments in this particular story of his final season, but he retains a fine and commanding presence. There is a noticeable air of sombreness about him in his performance, though, as the actor/personality mentally prepares himself to leave the series he’s made such a distinctive mark on over five years. And as one light begins to diminish, another shines ever brighter, as Elisabeth Sladen, rising above a basic character sketch in Nation’s script, continues to develop within the soon iconic Sarah Jane Smith role, of which it won’t be too long before the actress and her part becomes a well and truly established figure/personality with the arrival of Tom Baker’s incarnation, quickly becoming the companion we know, love and recognise all these years later…

Two of the aggressive alien Exxilons.

This final season-number eleven in WHO’s overall history- sees our worthy Time Lord’s third incarnation in his last, and Sarah in her first, encounter with the Skaroan war machines, as the TARDIS is forced down and power paralysed by what will soon be described by our velvet jacketed hero as one of the Seven Hundred Wonders of the Universe-the mighty living city and energy drainer of the mysterious and now primitive beings, the Exxilons, whose remaining atrophied civilisation treat it like a God. As a life and death mission by a human space crew arrives on their world in a race against time bid to stop an intergalactic plague ruining the outer colony worlds of mankind, their efforts, helped by our TV heroes, are hampered by the also arrived Daleks, on a mission of a similar life saving kind for their own infected species-the killers themselves now being killed (and a hint of the Movellan virus threat to come, which will be used against the war machine race by the time of the Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor era). From then on in, with both sides compromised by superior alien technology, there comes an uneasy but necessary mutual alliance pact between human and Daleks, so as to acquire the desperately needed Parrinium ore solution found in abundance within the planets hostile infrastructure.

In their last solo outing before being permanently saddled for the rest of their series career- for good and bad- with their humanoid creator, Davros, the following season onwards (played by Michael Wisher, who does a great job of voicing the Daleks in this particular story), our durable exterminators are once again seen as a clever, adaptive and formidable nemesis for the Doctor to vent his spleen at-something Jon Pertwee-who hated being upstaged by the creatures on his TV series platform-clearly relishes both on and off screen.

Humans and Daleks join forces on the Exxilon planet.

Resplendent in their new metallic silver and black paint jobs (back inside the Dalek casings to bring such on-screen scene stealing are the reliable talents of John Scott Martin, Cy Town and Murphy Grumbar. (What a brilliant surname the latter has, eh? Conjures up Cornwallian skulduggery doesn’t it!?), the scenes where the Daleks, now unable to use their energy weapons against their allies, imbue themselves with the power of control and threat once more by adapting machine gun weaponry to aid their cause are excellent realised, as the happy little psychos they are bloodthirstily turn on the Exxilon primitives in order to enslave them for their own doings, as well as thematically bringing them ever closer to Nation’s allegory to the creatures being outer space Nazi’s, a scenario taken up a considerable notch with Tom Baker next season all-time classic, GENESIS OF THE DALEKS.

Like their Mechanoids foes of old, the Daleks also come across another distinctly alien enemy, this time in the shape of the serpent-like energy tendrils of the Exxilon city, located across various parts of the planetary landscape, of which there’s several moments of crowd-pleasing conflict between the two parties resulting in several Dalek casualties. (And a fun state of affairs for the darker mindset of incoming series script editor Robert Holmes, who, loathing the popular villains, came up with the title of the story!)

The Doctor makes a new friend in Bellal (Arnold Yarrow).

Playing the stranded Earth team, DEATH TO THE DALEKS has a solid guest cast that includes John Abineri as the doomed Captain Railton and grizzled Scottish bear Duncan Lamont as the semi-traitorous Galloway as primary standouts. But our favourite performance in the story has to come from diminutive Arnold Yarrow in his role as the small but brave Exxilon cave dwelling rebel, Bellal, almost like a phosphorescent stone gargoyle, but with lovable Lemur-like eyes, who helps our heroes in the battle against the Skaroans. He’s almost like WHO’s equivalent of Galen from the American PLANET OF THE APES TV series, and works well in his scenes opposite Pertwee. It’s a shame he couldn’t have gone along for a few adventures with our TARDIS travellers, but it wouldn’t have worked out-heck, after all these years, the new series doesn’t have any alien companions, either!

Two of the rather nasty Exxilon guardians of the city.

Alongside the running, shouting and machine gun blasting, there’s some very ambitious and quite stylized work on show here within its 1973/74 origins, despite its small budget, though it’s a pity that the entire story couldn’t have been made on film rather than the bulk of it being shot on video tape-the curse of Classic DOCTOR WHO filming of the period, which, with its often jarring mixing, lets down some of the talent brought to the adventure by assigned designer Colin Green. Alongside some basic but inventive effects work (the Exxilon living city is an impressive model) there’s some great visuals from the always talented Michael E. Briant- a very safe, confident and interesting director who brings style and memorable imagery to the show, working to keep the Daleks as on-screen popular and menacing as possible. Thanks to Briant, the expansive Dorset quarry used for this story actually does look a little more alien than usual, and there are some good behind the sofa creepy moments for the little ones to be fearful of: the opening scene of actor/stuntman Terry Walsh’s astronaut traversing a darkened alien wilderness and then being arrow speared, falling to his death down into a watery ravine, sets a strong, mysterious and atmospheric start, quickly followed by the moment where Sarah is attacked by a primitive in the darkened main TARDIS console room. There are further eerie scenes in the Exxillon’s main sacrificial chamber and the catacombs (helped with alien masks effectively realized by the series then top prosthetics and appliances technician John Friedlander), followed by a dangerous trap filled stroll by the Doctor and his new alien buddy, Bellal, through the interior of the ominous living city where, as well as being pursued by Daleks, they are attacked by its quickly created anti-body killers: all of which are well handled.

The Daleks finish exterminating Carey Blyton for the appalling theme music they are given!

One vital element, though, which almost, but not quite, scuppers the story is the incidental music. Having previously contributed what many consider to be a noteworthy score for an earlier Pertwee story, DOCTOR WHO AND THE SILURANS, Carey Blyton’s compositions for DEATH TO THE DALEKS prove a mixed bag-all of the Exxillon related stuff, brought to life with the accompaniment of the London Saxophone Quartet, is often mysterious and spooky, but all this fine work falls down whenever the Daleks come on screen, as Blyton provides an arrangement for them which falters right out of the starting gate: a far too humorous and memorably awful piece that makes the viewing audience think of them as bumbling comedy stars rather than the onscreen heartless killing automatons they truly are…

On the extras side of this DVD release, DEATH TO THE DALEKS is well represented. Alongside an insightful and informative audio commentary (from actor Julian Fox, Michael Briant, Cy Town, sound designer Dick Mills, and others), there’s a basic but enjoyable making of documentary with surviving available cast and crew (including a contribution from the rarely seen Arnold Yarrow-kudos to the DVD team for getting hold of him) that’s taken up a notch by the enthusiasm of Dalek lover and modern series vocal contributor Nicholas Briggs, whose adoration for all things Dalek, and this particular story, shines through in a fun and nostalgic way. There’s also a look back at the cinematic Daleks, too, making their then successful sixties launch from black and white to the full colour cinema screens, alongside Peter Cushing’s popular Doctor, as rare behind the scenes footage from the making of the first AMICUS Dalek movie of the sixties is revealed, discussed by fan historian Marcus Hearn, alongside a warm and personal tribute/contribution from film and TV star Jason Flemyng, whose father, Gordon, would direct the ambitious production.

Flanked by Daleks, the Doctor confers with Galloway (Duncan Lamont) and Peter (Julian Fox) on their situation

Always nice to see is behind the scenes material from the time the original TV story was made, and DEATH has some intriguing footage, composed in an edited highlights form on the disc. You can clearly see a very good and hard working cast and crew at work, with a radiant Elisabeth Sladen standing out as an actress to watch out for: you can see that she has been genuinely well-cast in the role and a true professional. Star Jon Pertwee, however, seems ill at ease, showing slight annoyance and frustration, occasionally fluffing his lines and seemingly not quite being able to fully concentrate-perhaps sad because he was by that point leaving the role, and further narked because of the way that the episode filming structure had changed from this story onwards. This footage also includes a rare scene where the Daleks are conferring and conspiring in whispers-a first for the series and an interesting moment that ultimately doesn’t work. No wonder it was re-voiced.

A fun DOCTOR WHO STORIES tribute to some of the actors who have played Daleks in those early black and white years, with contributions from the late John Scott Martin and an enthusiastic Nicholas Evans, proves welcome, along with a great rare picture gallery (full of colour and B/W location stills), informative behind the scenes notes from stalwart Martin Wiggins, and a very effective trailer for the next DVD release, the Patrick Troughton starrer THE KROTONS, edited in such a fine way that one can almost forget that its quite a poorly regarded adventure! There are also the usual PDFs, subtitles, etc.

One of the story's most effective images, as the Exxilons destroy a Dalek.

I have only vague memories of DEATH TO THE DALEKS story from its original March 1974 transmission, but I enjoyed its aforementioned later VHS tape release, when the grainy, picture viewing format was at the height of its commercial selling powers. Seeing it again on DVD reminded me in general of my undiminished fondness for all things Daleks and Terry Nation in WHO. It may not be an all-time classic, but DEATH is under-rated, and certainly has its interesting merits. It’s well worth a purchase, alongside special features that are a much more enjoyable and pleasing affair than the gloomy and often miserable work presented in the previous Tom Baker released tale, NIGHTMARE OF EDEN.

KOOL TV OVERALL RATING (story and extras): 3.5 out of 5

Get DEATH TO THE DALEKS on DVD here: Doctor Who - Death to the Daleks [DVD]: Amazon.co.uk: Jon Pertwee, Elisabeth Sladen: Film & TV

With thanks to the BBC for all their help with the compiling of this feature review.

KOOL TV REVIEW: 'DOCTOR WHO - NIGHTMARE OF EDEN' DVD

Caught in a time\space collision, the Doctor (Tom Baker), Romana (Lalla Ward) and K-9 face the monster Mandrels in DOCTOR WHO: Nightmare of Eden. Images: 2entertain/BBC.

DOCTOR WHO: NIGHTMARE OF EDEN

Starring Tom Baker as the Doctor, and Lalla Ward as Romana

Released on DVD by 2entertain/ BBC CONSUMER PRODUCTS

Reviewed by Scott Weller

“Interfere? Of course we should interfere. Always do what you’re best at, that’s what I say.”

The Doctor

It’s anchors aweigh for the intergalactic cruise liner Empress on its regular space journeying.  But this time, unfortunately, and in the worst H.M.S. Titanic tradition, their trip doesn’t quite go according to plan. Swap an iceberg for an unusual and highly dangerous Hyperspace collision with another craft and you have a tense and volatile situation that only our Time Lord hero, the Doctor (in the guise of iconic Jelly Baby munching Tom Baker), can solve within the confines of the classic 1979 adventure of catastrophe, drugs and big clawed monsters now available on DVD: Nightmare of Eden…

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDG11TJO4kc

Away from writing partner Dave Martin, Bob Baker’s first (and last) solo WHO script is original and has lots of good ideas and moments of drama/sci-fi capable of being achieved on a relatively low budget (and this story, due to intensive 1979 budget cuts at the BBC, really suffers from it in places), and is certainly lively enough to keep the general audiences and the shows all-important families viewers entertained. It may not have any gothic horror atmosphere, and sorely needs the studio lighting turned down in places, but the overall story of Nightmareis well structured and moves at a strong pace across its four parts that’s easy to follow and not too full of technobabble, alongside some notable cliffhangers to parts two and three. I have very good memories of watching this on Saturday nights of the time, even in the post high-tech film world established by movies like STAR WARS.

The Doctor investigates the dark jungles of Eden.

With the subplot idea of intergalactic drug peddlers and their hidden shipment of the lethal Vraxoin, WHO is subtly stepping into late seventies SWEENEY territory here, if developed for a younger audience, and without the fisticuffs, car chases, and kipper ties (though this WHO story’s futuristic fashions are almost as bad!), in a brave move championed by the series script editor, Douglas Adams. Cleverly linked to the main concept of the time/space cross collision, the drugs angle is not overly done but it’s subtle moral messages clearly make the Doctor a fine champion and crusader against both it's deadly addictions and it's evil dealers. The other classic monster on the loose arc comes from a further intriguing idea, similar to a sci-fi concept explored in the Pertwee era’s popular Carnival of Monsters, with creatures who have a biological connection to Vraxoin, the aggressive animalistic Mandrels, being accidentally unleashed from a time/space imbalanced CET (Continual Event Transmuter) machine, which keeps sections of diverse planetary environments in crystalline form. (And also well utilising high quality film stock outtake footage of intriguing alien worlds from the first and best year of SPACE: 1999!)

On-set, Lalla Ward cannot escape Lewis Fiander's appalling German accent!

For a season in which he’s been more larger than life than ever before, thanks to the equally big ideas and humour cultivated by Adams, superstar Tom Baker continues to show a lot of his trademark wit, playful charm and acting invention, but, apart from one really over the top moment in its finale (you’ll know what it is when you see it!), on the whole he’s a lot more serious in this tale than he has been for a few episodes (perhaps affected by some of the behind the scenes pressures going on at the same time-more on that later), alongside his Time Lady companion/posh totty, the always alluring classy sophisticate Lalla Ward as Romana, and David Brierley as their faithful robot dog, and children’s favourite: the computer mind and always ready for action, blaster nozzled K-9 MK II, who’s as brill as ever, this time voiced by David Brierley (always sounding a bit more relaxed and less hyper urgent than his predecessor, John Leeson. As if the robot pooch had been taking a chill-out pill throughout this season!).

In amongst the chaos of the undesirable ship fusions and the accidental unleashing of those green-eyed monsters contained within the CET machine, several of this story’s main guest stars make notable second returns to the series, notably David Daker as the beleaguered ship captain, Rigg, and CORONATION STREET star-to-be Geoffrey Hinsliff, as an overzealous Excise Policeman alongside on-screen partner Peter Craze, the duo coming across asbumbling and annoying intergalactic versions of the Keystone Cops, who also look like they've wandered onto the set from a seventies disco dancing championship.

The Doctor confers with Professor Tryst (Lewis Fiander).

The seasons use of well-known actors as scientists/baddies also continues with the casting of Lewis Fiander- a solid actor who can hold his own in a performance with Tom Baker-no mean feat, that!- who makes the unfortunate and highly controversial choice to act his part with a God-awful German mad scientist accent and wearing the most hideously camp square sunglasses. The early portrayal of Tryst clearly shows him as a bumbling type, which Fiander plays on, but then he completely overdoes it in the most clichéd way, ultimately ruining what could have been a good character. The actor doesn't spoil the show overall, but whoever made the creative decision to let him go ahead with his portrayal and visual look should either have been reined in more severely prior to the studio filming, or at the very least taken out and shot!

The Mandrels are out of their CET enclosure!

Regarding monsters of another kind, the story gives us the one and only appearance of the under-rated Mandrels. They may not have the pedigree of such classic creatures like the iconic Daleks, Cybermen, Yeti and Sontarans, but I’m rather fond of them here. They didn’t live up to early press reports of the time stating that they’d be the series most scariest monsters yet, but the Mandrels work well enough and certainly the majority of the actors inside the costumes give it their all on-set, with some relatively good locomotion about them. In scenes with darker lighting and smoke they look quite effective, too, though their hairy headed, fish scaled bodies would have looked so much better had they been set to film (as would the story itself). They’re certainly superior to the villains of Tom Baker’s next tale: The Horns of Nimon.

The series characters may have been undergoing stress and strains with the story’s time collisions and monster rampages, but behind the scenes, tempers were fraying to boiling point, too, as Alan Bromly’s second and final directorial work on the series in the seventies ends on an abysmal note. An experienced, older director not used to the way WHO was then being made, and not willing to take advice from the series experienced production veterans, or from star Baker, director and lead mightily clashed heads to the point where Bromly quit/ was fired from the production, with producer Graham Williams and the effects crew, already under duress, racing against the clock to finish it off. A shame all this happened, really, as a lot of Bromly’s work, though basic, looks competently handled, with some nice angles here and there. On-screen it all zips along relatively smoothly.

A Mandrel gets a bit too up close and personal with the Doctor!

As for the rest of the behind the scenes ingredients rounding things out, Roger Cann’s set designs are basic but colourful, though Rupert Jarvis’s costumes look pretty ropey and cheap, especially with regards to the Space liner crew and the aforementioned Excise Police, which spoils things a bit (even Lalla Ward’s specially chosen costume, normally highly memorable, is a disappointment-the only one of the season where she doesn’t look gorgeous in it!). To compensate, the majority of the electronic effects, despite a few misaligned lasers here and there (presumably due to time pressures), from then BBC electronics expert A. J. Mitchell, are pretty good, alongside some competent video model work, whilst series regular composer Dudley Simpson enlivens the murder/mystery runabout moments with a jaunty score that nicely mixes his small orchestra with selected synthesizer work.

Bonus features-wise is a largely uncomplimentary selection of material, which sadly drags things down a bit. With the majority of the story’s cast either unavailable or unwilling to participate, it’s left to Lalla Ward, writer Baker and the main special effects team (a disappointed Colin Mapson, and A.J. Mitchell) to compensate. Their frank contributions across the audio commentary and the main featurette documentary (minus Ward), along with Assistant Floor Manager Val McCrimmon, are good but dispiriting. Ultimately, the documentary titled The Nightmare of Television Centre, leaves a sour taste in the mouth after viewing. Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uV_JYhPL2xo

The Doctor and Romana inside the Nightmare of Eden.

More well-known for his creative and now iconic work on the WALLACE AND GROMIT animations, writer Bob Baker recalls his first solo story work-its ultimate shortcomings and successes in its on-screen realisation- Going Solo a short but interesting featurette, where he also recounts briefly about working with Douglas Adams.

The Doctor’s Strange Love featurette has three influential fans discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the adventure. To be honest, I can’t say that I was bothered about this one, especially as it soon deteriorates into a slagging piece.

Amidst all the behind the scenes chaos of taping, Tom Baker and a Mandrel get ready for the next scene.

A welcome plus on the nostalgia front, though, is an edited version of the popular late seventies/early eighties children’s interview/clip request show ASK ASPEL, where the comfortable and safe pair of hands interviewee Michael Aspel talks to his special guest, Lalla Ward, on a range of subjects, including WHO (pertinent to then Season 17) and her career as an actress (though she doesn't look happy with the DUCHESS OF DUKE STREET clip shown!) and artist. This bonus is great to see- I remember watching it at the time, and, for me personally, is the main redeeming bonus feature of the disc. There's also info text, PDFs, a colourful photo gallery (with lots of unseen pictures), and a lively Graffiti-walled trailer for the ACE ADVENTURES DVD set complete it all.

In watching Nightmare of Eden, don’t be put off by the overall fan negativity shown towards some of the cheaper looking aspects of the story, nor the frustrating annoyance of Fiander, as this is a very entertaining and colourful Classic DOCTOR WHO adventure-a fine and satisfying representative of the show’s latter seventies Tom Baker era, where, despite the lack of horror, its inventive ideas and humour reside triumphantly.

KOOL TV RATING (primarily for the story than the special features): 3.5 out of 5

With thanks to BBC CONSUMER PRODUCTS for their help in the compilation of this review.

KOOL TV REVIEW: 'DOCTOR WHO - THE DÆMONS' DVD

The Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and the Master (Roger Delgado) lock horns with the alien Azal (Stephen Thorne) in the latest DOCTOR WHO classic DVD release. Images: BBC.

DOCTOR WHO – THE DÆMONS

Starring Jon Pertwee as the Doctor and Katy Manning as Jo Grant.

Now available on DVD from 2ENTERTAIN/BBC WORLDWIDE

Reviewed by Scott Weller

Having previously experienced his first full colour intergalactic adventure with the Colony in Space, its back to Earth with a vengeance for our Time Lord hero, the Doctor (here in his Third Doctor persona, as played by Jon Pertwee), and his charming companion Jo Grant (the equally charming Katy Manning), as they fight sinister spectral and occult-based forces emerging from the no longer sleepy English village that soon lives up to its aptly titled moniker: Devil’s End. It’s a place where the Master, always the troublesome Jackanapes for our fine duo, plans to reawaken a dangerous alien force with designs on destroying their once scientific experiment called Earth. Suitably given a well deserved double-disc treatment, THE DÆMONS is finally unearthed and restored on DVD after nearly twenty years languishing on disintegrating VHS tape, and its an adventure widely regarded by the shows dedicated fan base as one of the greatest of all his escapist time travelling yarns.

DVD release trailer: Doctor Who - The Daemons DVD - Coming Soon Trailer (COPYRIGHT BBC AND 2 ENTERTAIN) - YouTube

Inspirationally born out of a brief audition piece originally developed for the casting sessions for Jo Grant, this is surely watered down Dennis Wheatley for kids and families to enjoy, full of the action, wit and charm that signified the early seventies WHO seasons, without offending any potential religious parties with its dark side trappings.

The Doctor and Jo (Katy Manning) pose for a publicity image.

Writer “Guy Leopald” (a pseudonym combination of Producer Barry Letts and long time writer/journalist friend Robert Sloman) knows how to make the most of the shows then strengths in story and production ability, crafting a tale that would capture the show at its best and win acclaim from audiences. It also presents some fine moments for the entire shows then Earthbound UNIT era ensemble to enjoy. Sergeant Benton and Captain Mike Yates, as played by John Levene and Richard Franklin, break into their civvie flairs and get the chance to spread their wings a bit in the story, running, thumping and shooting but with a few more choice moments of humour and military savvy, which is great to see-no wonder it’s the actors favourite story of their era. Stars Pertwee and Manning continue to be an audience friendly and formidable pairing as they dart to and from the action in their yellow roadster, Bessie (the vehicle even gets a few HERBIE-like moments, too!). It’s that moustached military wonder, the Brigadier (as personified by Nicholas Courtney), though, that easily has some of the story, and the series, best lines here, including the now legendary instructions to one of his UNIT soldiers when fighting a new foe: “Chap with wings, there. Five rounds rapid!”

Roger Delgado returns as the menacing Master.

There are some excellent supporting characters who make their mark, too, most notably Damaris Hayman as the quirky white witch/village protector Miss Hawthorne, whilst the much missed Roger Delgado’s Master is as irresistibly superb as always, looking more menacing than ever in his church vicars outfit and glasses, as well as later on as the head of a powerful sacrificial coven cult, resplendently nasty in his flowing red robes. At the time, many of the viewers were unhappy with an entire season comprising the Doctor’s Time Lord Moriarty as its main villain, but now, with the benefit of time and hindsight since his sad passing, Season Eight contains a veritable gold mine of great material for his character to be savored, especially in the actors always-terrific scenes opposite Pertwee.

The Doctor is held hostage by some mean country dancers!

After a deliberate few years break away from the series, Christopher Barry returns to the WHO directors chair for his first colour adventure and is clearly enjoying the material he’s working with: the first episodes atmosphere at the Devil’s End archaeological dig site and the build up to the cavern’s doomed opening is well generated (a special nod, too, to the character of the Dig’s Professor Horner, well realised by actor Robin Wentworth, who brings some fine biting edge to the character alongside his distaste for the news team from the fortuitously named BBC 3 channel!). Barry’s handling of the tales many action sequences are also generally good, against a fine backdrop of picturesque location filming in Aldbourne, Wiltshire (which take up at least two thirds of the story), that is first rate, and certainly giving the show a much glossier look than ever before.

Back in the studio, the director also makes the most of the new technology that has been developed in his absence, like the love it or hate it CSO (Colour Separation Overlay) techniques used so prominently in the Pertwee era. And, despite earlier criticism of the shows special effects by the press, some of the model work here would prove so realistic that, at the time of transmission, one viewer complained to the BBC over the corporation’s destruction of the village church at the end of the tale! Aw, bless!

The nasty little critter Bok the gargoyle (Stanley Mason) terrorises the Doctor and Jo.

So, you’ve got your story and characters, but a DOCTOR WHO story without its monsters just wouldn’t be the same, and THE DÆMONS presents us with several intriguing new creations to the shows legendary roster, including the menacing death delivering stone gargoyle come to life, Bok, played with menacing, death delivering impishness by dancer Stanley Mason, who makes his memorable mark in numerous effective moments throughout the tale, and also takes on the bazooka blasting boys of UNIT in the finale.

The Satan-like alien scientist, Azal (Stephen Thorne).

Sadly, the arrival of the much-anticipated DÆMON of the title, in the form of the mighty satanic-looking human with the bad chest hair problem-Azal- played with the immense I can take on Brian Blessed any day! vocal talent of Stephen Thorne (later to portray another equally mighty threat to the Doctor in the form of Omega, for the 10^th anniversary story THE THREE DOCTORS) is painfully underused in the tale: his major appearance in the fifth and final episode thwarted by poorly conceived writing when he quickly seems to go haywire on himself after Jo illogically, and as the best representative of humankind, places herself in harms way to protect the Doctor. The rushed ending dealt in the last five minutes made me wonder why the story wasn’t ultimately a six-parter-the extra episode could have made the story feel a whole lot rounder.

With regards to the overall picture quality of the story on DVD, the BBC, incredulously destroying so much of their WHO material in the seventies, sadly only kept the original part 4 in its original PAL master tape quality, so the rest of the episodes mix colour NTSC with black and white film. It’s an intriguing fusion from the BBC’s dedicated Restoration Team that is, expectedly, of varying quality, but this overall new regenerative attempt for the release is far superior to their original first efforts from 1992 for the VHS release-the opening two episodes of the DVD being particular standouts in comparison. My hat continues to be raised to the Restoration Team for their continued enthusiasm, dedication and fine work within limited time and resources.

Jon Pertwee and Damaris Hayman have fun on location.

Packed with super extras on a special second disc, Chris Chapman, who did a fine job with his prior documentary for THE FACE OF EVIL release, creates an interesting successor with The Devil Rides Out, his look at this 1971 tale, with vital contributions from script editor Terrance Dicks, Katy Manning, Richard Franklin, Damaris Hayman and the late Barry Letts, there’s also a short but sweet section of cinefootage from the time of the original filming, a look at the Restoration Team’s work in fusing the colour and black and white footage together from a 1992 TOMORROW’S WORLD programme (plus some other early test work), a photo gallery that feels a little incomplete (it doesn’t have much of the material that superfan Andrew Beech has in his private collection), a lively commentary from Terrance Dicks, Katy Manning, Richard Franklin and Damaris Hayman, PDFs and subtitled production notes. The discs icing on the cake has to be a lovely documentary tribute to the late Barry Letts, covering his behind the scenes work in and out of WHO, as an actor, writer, producer and director of note-with some lovely contributions from his sons Dominic and Crispin Letts and nice career footage. Remembering Barry Letts is a warm and deserving tribute to the much-liked man. Rounding the extras material off is a little bit of Mandrels monster mania, with a fun trailer for the next DVD release: Tom Baker’s lively NIGHTMARE OF EDEN.

DVD behind the scenes clip: Exclusive First Look - Aldbourne - Doctor Who: The Daemons - BBC - YouTube

With their having been a previous fan DVD –Return to Devil’s End-which saw many of the shows surviving cast travel back to the Aldbourne location and recall the shows making, I understand the BBC DVD team’s reasoning in not wanting to cover existing trod ground for their new release, but I feel that the use of a little bit of that archive material should have been included with regards to the late Jon Pertwee. The lack of Jon’s presence in any of the major behind the scenes related material (bar the cinefootage) is keenly felt-even if they hadn’t used any Return footage, its a shame that something from somewhere (an old talk/interview) couldn’t have been incorporated for the release, for what is such an important story of his five year TV reign as the Doctor.

There might some occasional tame moments here and there that date the production, within a genre type which could probably be explored again more effectively in the Modern WHO, but the vast majority of THE DÆMONS works very well after forty-one years. The general rushed nature of the show’s final episode, for me personally, robs it of its all-time classic status, and doesn’t get me country dancing around the veritable May pole, but, nonetheless, I can certainly see why it’s regarded so fondly. It triumphantly retains its position as one of the essential purchases of the DVD range: not only invocative of the Pertwee era but of Classic WHO, too!

KOOL TV RATINGS

STORY: A Beltane busting 4 out of 5

EXTRAS: 4.5 out of 5

Get THE DÆMONS on DVD here: Doctor Who: The Dæmons [DVD]: Amazon.co.uk: Jon Pertwee, Katy Manning, Rodger Delgardo, Nicholas Courtney: Film & TV

It's also available in a special, limited edition slipcase (shown above) here: 

Doctor Who: The Daemons (Convention Exclusive Edition) @ Forbidden Planet