Welcome to Sci-Fi Reflections!! Before we dive into John Pertwee's The Mutants, there are several announcements I need to make about the site . As promised, I have created an Enemies page. So far, I have seven Doctor Who antagonists that include the Daleks, Cybermen, Yeti, Ice Warriors, Autons, Silurians, and The Master. This page will expand as I meet new enemies, so if your favorite monster or villian isn't on there yet, don't be offended; it will all come in time. Also, if you go the Second Doctor's page, you will notice that I have completed Zoe's information. If you have comments, questions, or concerns about any of these pages, please email me (my email can be found at the bottom of About the Author page) or leave a comment on the blog.
Now onto The Mutants!! To be honest, I was not particularly impressed with this story, although there were several details I found interesting/amusing that I will adress later. To start with, I didn't really understand about the crystal and radiation. The story indicated that they were partially responsible for the metamorphisis, but it didn't really explain several important questions. Where did the crystal come from, and how did it get on the planet? How does the crystal work? Why do the Solonians need to become bug-eyed monster before becoming god-like? The story didn't explain any of these well. It was difficult to buy into what was going on when the writers didn't answer key plot questions.
Also, I question the Doctor's ability to wander around the caves full of radiation. The First Doctor in the Daleks nearly dies due to radiation sickness, and doesn't John Pertwee's Doctor die due to radiation poisoning? I can understand that he might be more immune to it than humans, but I was a bit skeptical at the ease at which he wandered around the caves and planet.
As to parts I found amusing; The Marshall is one of the most revolting Doctor Who antagonists I have ever seen so far. He is possibly worse than the monsters in The Claws of Axos, and that's saying something. He is so chunky and pasty, and his tight collar adds an extra several chins to his already notable collection. Add all of this to his already less -than- admirable personality, and you have a character that demands about as much respect and warmth as Grigori Rasputin.
Secondly, did anyone else think that the soldier Stubs (Christopher Coll) looks like Paul McCartney?? I couldn't help but hum a Beatle's song every time he had a line!! He didn't look exactly like him, but he looked close enough to remind you of him. I couldn't believe it when the writers killed him off; I thought he was one of the best characters (Sigh). I am not sure, but I believe this actor also played Phipps in the Second Doctor's Seeds of Death.
I shall leave you with this last point I noticed. At the end of the fourth episode (I believe), Varan is sucked into outer space after the Marshall's soldiers blow a hole in the wall of the space ship. If you look closely, you'll notice that the wall is about an inch thick, and looks like paper mache. Hopefully, real spaceships in the future won't actually be built like this unless the designers and engineers decide to cut corners. Oh, and by the way, the vacuum of space doesn't really have a nasty cross-wind as portrayed in the episode. I found this scene extremely funny to watch. To put this into perspective though, aside from that scene, I found the outfits and sets better than most Doctor Who stories.
Thank you for visiting blog and website; I hoped you enjoyed it, and please leave a comment. Next week, I shall be discussing The Time Monster, which I am looking forward to. I can't wait to watch another story with The Master, and it will be good to see the Brigadier back in action again. We haven't seen him since Day of the Daleks. Until next time!!
Now onto The Mutants!! To be honest, I was not particularly impressed with this story, although there were several details I found interesting/amusing that I will adress later. To start with, I didn't really understand about the crystal and radiation. The story indicated that they were partially responsible for the metamorphisis, but it didn't really explain several important questions. Where did the crystal come from, and how did it get on the planet? How does the crystal work? Why do the Solonians need to become bug-eyed monster before becoming god-like? The story didn't explain any of these well. It was difficult to buy into what was going on when the writers didn't answer key plot questions.
Also, I question the Doctor's ability to wander around the caves full of radiation. The First Doctor in the Daleks nearly dies due to radiation sickness, and doesn't John Pertwee's Doctor die due to radiation poisoning? I can understand that he might be more immune to it than humans, but I was a bit skeptical at the ease at which he wandered around the caves and planet.
As to parts I found amusing; The Marshall is one of the most revolting Doctor Who antagonists I have ever seen so far. He is possibly worse than the monsters in The Claws of Axos, and that's saying something. He is so chunky and pasty, and his tight collar adds an extra several chins to his already notable collection. Add all of this to his already less -than- admirable personality, and you have a character that demands about as much respect and warmth as Grigori Rasputin.
Secondly, did anyone else think that the soldier Stubs (Christopher Coll) looks like Paul McCartney?? I couldn't help but hum a Beatle's song every time he had a line!! He didn't look exactly like him, but he looked close enough to remind you of him. I couldn't believe it when the writers killed him off; I thought he was one of the best characters (Sigh). I am not sure, but I believe this actor also played Phipps in the Second Doctor's Seeds of Death.
I shall leave you with this last point I noticed. At the end of the fourth episode (I believe), Varan is sucked into outer space after the Marshall's soldiers blow a hole in the wall of the space ship. If you look closely, you'll notice that the wall is about an inch thick, and looks like paper mache. Hopefully, real spaceships in the future won't actually be built like this unless the designers and engineers decide to cut corners. Oh, and by the way, the vacuum of space doesn't really have a nasty cross-wind as portrayed in the episode. I found this scene extremely funny to watch. To put this into perspective though, aside from that scene, I found the outfits and sets better than most Doctor Who stories.
Thank you for visiting blog and website; I hoped you enjoyed it, and please leave a comment. Next week, I shall be discussing The Time Monster, which I am looking forward to. I can't wait to watch another story with The Master, and it will be good to see the Brigadier back in action again. We haven't seen him since Day of the Daleks. Until next time!!