Episode #74 : Planet of the Spiders

"The old man must die, and the new man will discover to his

inexpressible joy that he has never existed."

Episode 74:   Planet of the Spiders.
Companions: 3rd Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith.
Air Date:       Six episodes. 4th May to 8th June 1974.

The blue crystal that the Doctor took from Metebelis III in a previous adventure is desperately sought by the Eight Legs, a race of mutated spiders, as the final element in their plan for universal domination. With help from an old mentor, the Doctor realises the only way to foil the plot is to make the ultimate sacrifice. The Doctor must risk death to return to the cave of the Great One and save the universe.

Planet of the Spiders is the final story in the Jon Pertwee era and while it has it's good and bad elements, it is a pretty good ending to one of the best Doctors (in my opinion) of the classic show. The story deals with a race of giant mutant spiders from Metebelis III who seek power to travel to Earth and enslave mankind. They need the crystal that the Doctor took from the planet a long time before their arrival to do so, and must use mantric time travel to achieve their aims.

Firstly, while the story is quite good, I am left with the feeling that the writer probably didn't watch the previous story where the Doctor picked the crystal up from Metebelis III. I say this because the planet as it appears in Planet of the Spiders in no way resembles the planet as it appeared in The Green Death. It now appears bright, earth-like and devoid of the giant monsters that the Doctor encountered before. Secondly, the one element that really lets the story down is the appearance of the giant spiders. I am sure that the BBC special effects department could have done a lot better even back then.

There is a lot of padding to this story and part of it comes from a lengthy James Bond-esqe chase involving cars, gyrocopters, speedboats and a hovercraft. Most of that episode was taken up with the chase and it all ends with a bit of a let down. Jon Pertwee may have liked his stunts and cars but it didn't need to find it's way into the story.

The story also sees the return of Mike Yates, who was discharged from UNIT following the events of Invasion of the Dinosaurs. Having retreated to meditation centre to contemplate what he had done, he becomes embroiled in the plot unfolding, and brings Sarah Jane and the Doctor into the story. Having really come to like the character over the last twenty-odd stories it was nice to give him a final send off.

At the end of the story after defeating the giant spiders, he regenerates into Tom Baker. Going through these stories in order I really do feel that I am going to miss Pertwee. His mannerisms and acting approach really have made him stand out far more than the two actors before him, and he has made his run the most enjoyable.