"Foresight. You never know when these bits and pieces will come in handy. Never throw anything away, Harry. Now, where's my five hundred year diary. I remember jotting some notes on the Sontarans... It's a mistake to clutter one's pockets, Harry."
Episode 77: The Sontaran Experiment.
Companions: 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith and Harry Sullivan.
Air Date: Two episodes. 22nd February to 1st March 1975.
The Doctor, Sarah and Harry arrive on a desolate and apparently deserted Earth to discover that a group of shipwrecked astronauts from a human colony, GalSec, have been lured there by a fake distress call. One of their number, Roth, tells Sarah of an alien conducting gruesome experiments on him and his crewmates. The alien turns out to be a Sontaran, Field-Major Styre, who is compiling a report on human physical and mental capabilities as a prelude to an invasion of Earth.
The Sontaran Experiment is another excellent adventure story despite having some major plot holes if you were to really think about it. We know that the Sontarans have been in this corner of space before so why are they only know seeking to invade an empty planet? Why are they unaware of human capabilities when they must have encountered us in the past? Why do the Sontarans send a ranking member of their military to do this when he should be leading battle somewhere? These and many more questions filter through the mind when watching this story.
There is a lot of good character interaction in this one and you feel that they are bonding well together after the prior adventure. You get the same vibe that they must be bonding well as actors too. The only element here that I find lacking comes from Sarah Jane who seems to be sliding from the strong feminist reporter to a mere screaming, easily captured female companion.
The make up for the Sontaran has certainly improved since we last saw one though the costume budget seems to have taken a hit. It is good to see the return of the Sontarans even though they don't make many appearances in the classic show.
Being a two part story and coming in at just under an hour this feels like a modern episode and thus it is easy to watch. Where as a child and teenager I would enjoy the lengthy multi-part serials these days I find that a one or two part story (50 to 90 minutes total) is about right.
Just as The Ark in Space led us directly into this story, so too does this story lead us into one of the most famous stories in classic Who... Genesis of the Daleks!
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