N.B. there might (or might not) be spoilers in this article!
There are a lot of nice touches in Planet of Evil.
The jungle sets, the anti-matter monster and Sorenson’s Jekyll and Hyde-like transformation are the obvious standouts and have been rightly praised over the years, but I also liked the background detail given to the Morestrans. Whether it’s the disgruntled shop talk between Morelli and De Haan or Vishinsky’s alluding to the differences in religious beliefs – ‘We may have to play the last rites but we don’t have to listen.’ – it all adds depth without holding back the plot.
“Perhaps my receivers are better than yours … My manners certainly are.”
The Doctor,
Planet of Evil: Part One
Despite the intolerant tolerance Morelli’s death causes him to feel, Vishinsky still seems more suited to be Controller on the Morestran spaceship, for Salamar is a bit rubbish as commanders go. Salamar starts out all shouty and obstinate. despite the lack of evidence to support his belief that the Doctor and Sarah are responsible for the killings, and gets shoutier and more stubborn the longer the lack of evidence doesn’t pile up. I was reminded of all those Peter Principle types Kit Pedler and Gerry Davis gave us back in the mid-Sixties. So much so that you almost cheer when the Doctor socks him one in the kisser.
To be fair to the Morestrans they do appear to have the silliest space uniforms since The Dominators. Do they still have medallion men 30,000 years into the future? If so, it can only be a matter of time before the Morestrans succumb.
“Night’s candles are burned out and jocund day stands tiptoe on the misty mountain top.”
The Doctor,
Planet of Evil: Part Two
For the most part Planet of Evil is great stuff, cranking up the tension with its interesting monster and Frederick Jaeger’s excellent performance as Sorenson. It’s only in the final episode where it starts to come apart. Whilst the anti-man Sorensons look good, all the Doctor’s running around spaceship corridors and then somehow being able to pilot the TARDIS accurately back down to Zeta Minor cause it to lose something for me.
Season twelve and Terror of the Zygons showed signs of Doctor Who‘s new direction under the guidance of Philip Hinchcliffe and Robert Holmes, especially The Ark in Space and the nastier tone of The Sontaran Experiment and Genesis of the Daleks, but this is where the horror really begins.
Planet of Evil is not an unqualified success, but it’s claustrophobic, particularly in the jungle of Zeta Minor itself, and at times almost threatens greatness.
"The anti-man Sorenson looks like the monsters from Inferno – no green goo though."
"I would not want to live on that planet."
"The puddle of nothing."
Son of UT Rating: 7/10
