Noted Doctor Who scribes Steven Moffat and Mark Gattis have teamed up to create this updated version of the adventures of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famed detective, Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock is a thoroughly modern series, yet it is extremely faithful to Doyle’s characters and the essence of his stories — stylish, smart and utterly addictive, it leaves you desperate for more.

Transplanting Holmes and Watson into the 21^st century, this series uses Doyle’s stories as inspiration for modern equivalents, rather than simply adapting the plots. In fact, most of the episodes draw on more than one of Doyle’s stories, even when there is clearly one story that is the main focus. This series also draws on previous adaptations for inspiration, particularly the Basil Rathbone films and The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlock has quite a distinct style with the use of text superimposed over the images. This is used whenever text messages are sent via mobile phone and also when Holmes is making deductions, thus allowing the viewer insight into his thought processes. It’s a very effective storytelling device and lends a unique visual detail to the series. This is coupled with some extraordinary cinematography. Every episode is like a feature film, and definitely benefits from being viewed on hi-def Blu-ray. Season two’s “A Scandal in Belgravia” is a definite visual highlight, with Holmes ‘stepping into’ the crime scenes as he relates the sequence of events.

The casting in Sherlock is absolute perfection. Benedict Cumberbatch gives us the best Sherlock Holmes since Jeremy Brett. He is intellectual, cool, calculating and utterly brilliant, but also lacking in empathy (verging on sociopathic) and utterly clueless regarding the emotions of others — and yet somehow, Cumberbatch makes him likeable. Martin Freeman’s performance as Dr John Watson is warm and sympathetic. Although by no means Holmes’s intellectual equal, he is nonetheless, portrayed as smart and savvy. Most importantly, these two actors have a terrific chemistry on screen. You can see the friendship develop between Holmes and Watson. It is believable and helps to make Holmes likeable.

All the other characters, from Mrs. Hudson to DI Greg Lestrade, are given as much attention as the principals. Its worth mentioning that co-creator Mark Gattis (who, as an actor, can sometimes overplay a role) gives a wonderfully wry performance as Sherlock’s brother Mycroft. But it is Andrew Scott as Jim Moriarty who pulls focus. Every bit as intelligent and calculating as Holmes, he is definitely his equal. Again, it is the on screen chemistry between him and Holmes that adds so much to the series. There is a sense that they are two sides of the same coin — that Holmes could be Moriarty and vice versa.

Each season is comprised of three 90min episodes, and each season ends with a cliff-hanger (which I won’t reveal here). The season one finale, “The Great Game”, introduces Moriarty in a wonderfully tense story where he poses deadly challenges for Holmes. The cliff-hanger, however, didn’t quite work for me. It seemed a little contrived and was the low-point in an otherwise excellent episode. (But it’s all relative… ‘low-point’ in Sherlock is still equal to ‘high-point’ in most other TV shows.) The second season cliff-hanger, on the other hand, is exceptionally well handled and mirrors the conclusion of Doyles “The Final Problem”. Thankfully, a third season has already been announced.

Each season has two discs presented in standard, plastic Blu-ray cases within a cardboard slipcase. The extra features are very good, with a making-of doco for each season, plus some informative and amusing commentaries featuring Moffat, Gattis, producer Sue Vertue and various cast members.

Sherlock is ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! I hereby bestow upon it the highest of possible recommendations!

And if you’re interested in other adaptations of Mr Holmes’s adventures, check out my reviews of The Sherlock Holmes Collection and Sherlock Holmes in New York.

Sherlock is released in Australia on DVD and Blu-ray by Roadshow Entertainment.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Pryor’s Gold And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

Thank you to everyone who entered the DVD giveaway for three copies of Doctor Who: The Daemons. The guest judge, John Richards, has made his decision and so it’s time to announce the winners.

The instructions for the competition were as follows…

In “The Daemons”, the Master tries to convince Azal, last of the Daemons, to hand over his power, thus making the Master ruler of Earth. Of course, he fails. But what if he didn’t? In 50 words or less, tell us why Azal should have handed over his power to the Master.

Now I’ll hand over to John…

I was charmed by how many of the entries believed that even if the Master did end up with Azal’s power, good would somehow prevail. Either the Doctor would end up saving the day in a different way, or the Master would simply get bored with all that tedious power and glory. Who fans are an optimistic bunch, it would seem. So hooray for us!

There was also one elaborately pun-themed entry that nearly made my list but in the end my in-no-way scientific and insanely random choices were:

“Because the Master has a stylish beard, a sexy/husky voice and impeccable dress sense.”
T. Marks

That’s pretty much my approach to life too, so full marks. Shallow, I know, but still a good point well made. Bearded men should be given more power, I think we all agree.

“It may seem like the Master being given Azal’s power and using it to take over the world is a bad thing, but if he’d done it, the Master wouldn’t have had to conquer Earth in 2008, and we might have been spared the horrors of a Rogue Trader song.”
Lee Zachariah

Anything that would rewrite time and stop me from wasting my life sitting through The Sound Of Drums is worth a go, in my opinion. My entire memory of that story is a bunch of evil golfballs and John Sims camping it up on a Gerry Anderson model. That is the one, isn’t it? Make it stop. MAKE IT STOP.

And finally, this:

Azal should have given his power to the Master because ultimately he would destroy all evil in the universe – giving his power to the Master would effectively make him the most powerful. Every baddie would want this power, so they would fight the Master and he would inevitably win.
Mike Edge

Using the Master to cleanse the universe of evil? Very clever, my friend. This interesting usage of game theory would – at the very least – keep the Master busy until the Doctor could do something extremely clever. Or until Jo does something really stupid. Either way, evil is defeated. Boo evil!

George’s bit at the end

Congratulations to all the winners, particularly T. Marks as this is his/her second win on Viewing Clutter.

A BIG than you to John Richards for judging the comp. If you want to know more about John and his television series, Outland, check out the website.

Doctor Who: The Daemons is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment. Many thanks to them for providing the giveaway copies.

And for another chance to win a Doctor Who DVD, check out the latest giveaway for “Face of Evil”.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Revisiting Harry And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

As one Doctor Who giveaway finishes, another begins. Thanks to Roadshow Entertainment we have three DVD copies of the classic Doctor Who story, “The Face of Evil”, to be won. (check out my review).

So, do you want to win your very own copy? Here’s how…

In this classic Doctor Who story, it is the Doctor’s face that is “The Face of Evil”. But if it were up to you, who would you nominate as the most evil of faces?

Email your response to givanoff@optusnet.com.au

You must be an Australian resident to enter, and you can only enter once. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence on the matter will be entered into. Got that? Good!

The competition closes at 5pm (Melb time) on Friday 18 May 2012, after which I will pass all the answers over to our guest judge, without the names of the entrants. He will then pick three winners. I will then contact the winners by email to get postal addresses. Please note that it must be an Australian postal address.

Now, let me introduce you to our guest judge, president of the Doctor Who Club of Australia, Paul Deuis.

The first episode of Doctor Who I ever saw was Planet of Evil Part 1 – I was only about 4 or 5 years old and I watched because my Auntie told me I should give it a go. I was hooked right from the start, and I’m still watching over 30 years later. Everyone used to complain about the dodgy sets and effects, but it honestly never bothered me – as long as the story was interesting, which it almost always was, I was happy to keep watching.

It didn’t take long before I discovered the Target novelisations. I spent whole weekends devouring them, reading them again and again. I remember going away for the Christmas holidays one year, and I took two books in case it rained – Planet of the Daleks and The Face of Evil. It ended up being one of the wettest summers on record and I couldn’t tell you how many times I read those two books in those 5 or 6 weeks.

In the mid 80s, a friend and I used to scour second hand book shops for Doctor Who books, and we came across Doctor Who: A Celebration, which had an address to contact what was then called the Australasian Doctor Who Fan Club. I wrote in and joined, and while I’ve been in and out of it a couple of times since then, I rejoined again in 2002 and have been involved ever since. I’ve done a lot of things that I would never have done if I hadn’t joined the DWCA, and met some really cool people I’d have never met otherwise, including my partner of four and a half years.

I’ve been President of the DWCA for nearly 2 years now, and it’s a lot of hard work, but it isn’t without its rewards. One of the main reasons I joined the club in the first place was to meet other Doctor Who fans, and being President means a lot of people want to talk to you which suits me just fine. Some people argue that fandom isn’t for everyone but I disagree – there’s just so many things you can do within fandom that there really is something in it for everyone, and you get out of fandom what you put into it. Doctor Who fandom is perhaps even more diverse than other fandoms because apart from the sheer length of time the programme has been around, it’s gone through so many different incarnations and exists across so many formats that there’s so much to talk about and there’s always something happening. The DWCA we’re always thinking of new ways to engage with fans, and I’d love to see fandom across Australia united and meeting together more often.

Thanks, Paul.

So, once you’ve all entered the competition for a copy of “The Face of Evil”, why not check out the DWCA’s website.

Doctor Who: The Face of Evil is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

And don’t forget to check out my review of “The Face of Evil”. Now… start writing those entries!

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: A small glimpse of Singapore’s literary scene And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

“The Face of Evil” DVD giveaway is now on! Three copies to be won! Follow the link.

A new companion in a skimpy outfit, the Doctor’s past deeds catching up with him and a commentary on religion form the basis of the Doctor Who story, “The Face of Evil”. Despite a few problems, this is an entertaining and thought-provoking four-part story from the 14^th season of Doctor Who, first screened in 1977.

Travelling alone, the Doctor arrives on a planet where a tribe of savages called the Sevateem, worship a god called Xoanon. Unfortunately for the Doctor, they think that he is “the evil one”, as it is his face that is carved into the side of the mountain where the Sevateem’s mortal enemies, the Tesh, supposedly hold Xoanon prisoner. Aided by Sevateem outcast, Leela, the Doctor soon discovers that both the Sevateem and the Tesh are the descendants of the crew from a crashed space ship — the Sevateem are descended from the Survey Team and the Tesh from the technicians. And as for the great god Xoanon? Well, he’s actually an insane computer. It seems that the Doctor had previously visited this planet, after the ship had crashed, and helped the crew repair their computer by linking his mind with it… but after repairs were complete, he forgot to wipe his personality print, causing the computer to develop schizophrenia. Now it’s up to him to put things right.

“The Face of Evil” is a really interesting story for a number of reasons. Firstly, the central problem is caused by the Doctor himself. The whole adventure — all the drama and death — is a result of the Doctor’s past actions. Secondly, the story is quite obviously questioning religion… not something you would really expect of an escapist series aimed at family viewing. And thirdly, of course, it introduces the character of Leela, who became the Doctor’s companion for the following eight stories.

For the most part, it is a well-paced, well-scripted story — although there are a couple of problems. The most obvious and annoying is the inconsistent use of the telepathic powers of the Tesh. If they are able to incapacitate people with the power of their minds, why do they end up relying on guns? Nevertheless, there is some brilliant dialogue to make up for these oversights.

“You know the very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common. They don’t alter their views to fit the facts. They alter the facts to fit the views. Which can be uncomfortable if you happen to be one of the facts that needs altering.”

The production design and costuming is superb. The look of the planet, with all the forest scenes shot indoors on film, is great, and the use of technology remnants by the Sevateem as costume accessories and religious artefacts is very effective. Most of the visual effects are also quite good, particularly the invisible monsters and the mountainside with the Doctor’s face.

The acting is first rate. Tom Baker is in top form, as is Louise Jameson in her first story as Leela. The guest cast are all good, but it is David Garfield who steals the show as Neeva, the Sevateem’s religious leader. The scene in which he waves the religious relics around the captured Doctor is priceless.

What lets things down somewhat are the rather ineffectual action sequences, particularly any involving the Tesh handguns. They are a great example of how a cumbersome effects technique resulted in very daft-looking action — or non-action, in this case, as any time a gun is used, the person using it has to remain stock-still for several seconds. They would have been better off ditching the visual effect for the firing of the guns and just using a sound effect — as had been done in past Doctor Who stories with much better results.

This is a one-disc release in a standard case, but contains some wonderful extras. There is an excellent making-of doco, some interviews (past and present), some footage from the cutting-room floor and a hilarious toy advertisement. There is also a lively and entertaining commentary featuring Louise Jameson and several members of the crew and guest cast.

All up, this is a pretty good story and an excellent release.

Doctor Who: The Face of Evil is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

“The Face of Evil” DVD giveaway is now on! Three copies to be won! Follow the link.

And if you’re a Doctor Who fan, check out the Doctor Who Club of Australia.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: A small glimpse of Singapore’s literary scene And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

Thanks to the recent Sherlock television series and the Robert Downey Jr feature films, there has been a renewed interest in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famed detective. So it’s not surprising that earlier adaptations are being released on DVD (see my review of The Sherlock Holmes Collection). A little OTT and certainly rather melodramatic, Sherlock Holmes in New York is, nevertheless, a fun addition to the long list of Sherlock’s screen adventures.

Released in 1976, Sherlock Holmes in New York sees the great detective head to America for an adventure not based on any of Doyle’s actual stories. Screenwriter Alvin Sapinsley has penned an original story, which, although entertaining enough, lacks the style and intelligence of Doyle’s plotting.

Holmes and Watson set off for New York when they realise that Holmes’s old love, Irene Adler, may be in danger. They arrive to discover that Moriarty has pulled off the crime of the century and has also kidnapped Adler’s son, Scott, to ensure that Holmes will keep his investigative nose out of the matter. But, of course, Moriarty is no match for Holmes, who sets out to rescue the boy and foil the plans of his old nemesis.

In this version of the Holmes story, Adler and Holmes are former lovers. It is never actually stated that Scott is Holmes’s son, but the script strongly points in this direction. It’s the one aspect of the film that didn’t sit quite well with me. I think I would have preferred a little more subtlety and ambiguity relating to the boy’s parentage.

Sherlock Holmes in New York is a made-for-television movie, but it seems to have been spared none of the expense or lavish attention one would expect for a feature film. While there is nothing outstanding about the cinematography, the sets and scenery of the 20^th Century Fox back lot (using the streetscape constructed for Hello Dolly) fill the screen with sumptuous detail.

This film has an amazing cast. The main players include Roger Moore as Holmes and Patrick Macnee as Dr Watson, with Charlotte Rampling as Irene Adler and the legendary John Huston as Moriarty. But the supporting cast reads like a Who’s Who of Hollywood in the late 1970s and includes David Huddleston, Gig Young and Jackie Coogan. Also interesting to note is the casting of Moore’s son, Geoffrey Moore, to play Scott.

No one in this film is any danger of winning an Oscar for their acting, with the performances on the same melodramatic level as the other elements of the film, but they do all throw themselves into the roles with enormous gusto. As Moore himself points out in the commentary, it mattered little whether he was playing James Bond, Simon Templar or Sherlock Holmes, as he approached them all the same way. Watching Huston and Moore in their scenes together is highly amusing, as they each attempt to outdo the other in chewing up the scenery. Moore and Macnee have a nice chemistry, although Watson tends to be played for laughs and is a dumbed-down version of the character Doyle wrote.

This is a one-disc release in a standard plastic case, with commentary and stills gallery being the only extra features. The commentary, however, is excellent. Sir Roger Moore reminisces about this film and many other things in what is actually a cross between a commentary and an interview.

If you’re a Sherlock Holmes purist, then this film might not be your cup of tea. But if you don’t mind a fun, melodramatic interpretation, then you could do a lot worse than Sherlock Holmes in New York.

Sherlock Holmes in New York is released on DVD in Australia by Madman.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Bradbury’s Martian Classic And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

Five young people doing community service get caught in a freak storm that ends up giving them bizarre superpowers. That’s the premise of Misfits, a humorous British science fiction series. It’s odd. It’s rude. It’s crude. And it is one of the most original shows I’ve seen in a long time.

I must admit that when I started watching Misfits, it came as a bit of a shock. It certainly deserves its MA 15+ rating, which warns: “strong sexual references, sex scenes, violence, drug use and coarse language”. But the bizarre premise and interesting plots soon had me taking the liberal doses of the F-word and the C-word in my stride.

Interestingly, I didn’t really like any of the characters after watching the first episode. But the intriguing nature of the premise kept me watching. And as I watched the rest of the episodes, I found myself getting to know the characters, sympathising with their dilemmas and yes, by the end of the first season, even liking them.

After the weird storm, each of the main characters ends up with a power that is in some way linked to their personalities and/or history. Curtis is a disgraced sporting hero, banned from running because of drug charges. He regrets his past decisions and ends up with the power to turn back time. Simon is a withdrawn young man who often finds himself being ignored. He ends up with the ability to turn invisible. The spoiled Alisha, used to getting her own way through sex, finds herself with the most bizarre of the powers — whenever anyone touches her, they have an uncontrollable urge to have sex with her. Kelly is a chav — full of herself, not all that intelligent and often hiding behind her attitude rather than communicating with people. She discovers that she can read minds. And finally we have Nathan — loud-mouthed, foul-mouthed and never taking anything seriously. He is mightily pissed off because he thinks he didn’t get a power. It’s not until he dies that he discovers that his power is immortality.

There is never any explanation as to how or why this mysterious storm bestowed these powers. And as the series progresses we learn that lots of other people were also affected by the storm. I like the fact that things aren’t fully explained. They don’t need to be. If the writers had gone into explanations of why people got these powers, the series may have ended up going in quite a different direction. Instead, we are as baffled as the recipients of those powers.

In the first season our band of unlikely heroes learn to cope with their new situations. Not only do they have to come to terms with their own powers, but they have to deal with the not-so-nice powers of others, as well as trying to keep their abilities a secret from the general public. To a large extent, the theme of this season is one of self-discovery.

Things change in the second season, as we are given a story arc involving a masked hero. Time travel plays an important role and a key new character is introduced. Seth is a former drug dealer, who now deals in super powers, as his power is the ability to transfer powers from one person to another, without the capability of using them himself. And so at the end of that season, our heroes acquire some new powers.

Season three changes things again. Nathan departs and is replaced by Rudy, a guy who literally splits into two separate people. Unfortunately, he is a very similar character to Nathan — loud, foul, never able to take anything seriously — but with none of the charm. His presence is one of the weak-points of this season. Meanwhile the rest of the gang is trying to get used to their new powers — the ability to see the future, rocket scientist knowledge, gender swapping and the ability to see through the eyes of others. This season is less-arch driven than the previous, with numerous stand-alone episodes that take on some well-worn science fiction plots, including — alternative reality where the Nazis win WW2 (well handled and rather chilling), body swapping (not so great) and zombies (lots of fun). But ultimately, Simon takes centre stage in the final episode, fulfilling his destiny and bringing to a close his story arc.

The main characters are very well cast, even if they are not all the greatest of actors. In the body-switching third season episode for example, Lauren Socha is rather unconvincing at playing a different character within Kelly’s body. Iwan Rheon as Simon is my favourite character. His performance is quite layered and the character goes through the greatest change and development over the course of the series. In many ways, I think the overall arc of these first three seasons is his story.

Given the rather dramatic end to the third season, it will be very interesting to see where the writers take this series next. A US version is also being planned which, I fear, may result in a wishy-washy, watered-down clone.

Each season is in its own plastic DVD case, with a cardboard slipcase for the three of them to slot into. There are some good extra features on the discs for seasons one and three, but oddly, nothing for season two. There is some really good behind-the-scenes stuff, especially with regards to special effects and stunts. And there are a couple of short films, originally released online, that fit in with season three. Unfortunately there are no commentaries, and I do wish that they had given the writing a bit of attention in the behind-the-scenes material. I would have loved to find out about how the creator plotted the series and why he made certain decisions.

All up, Misfits is really quite a unique series — big, bold, well-written and highly entertaining. And this is a great DVD set. Highly recommended!

Misfits is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Bookish Adventures in Singapore, part 3: Books Actually And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE WHO ENTERED.

Thanks to Roadshow Entertainment we have another Doctor Who giveaway! We have three DVD copies of the classic Doctor Who story, “The Daemons” (check out my review).

So, do you want to win your very own copy? Here’s how…

In “The Daemons”, the Master tries to convince Azal, last of the Daemons, to hand over his power, thus making the Master ruler of Earth. Of course, he fails. But what if he didn’t? In 50 words or less, tell us why Azal should have handed over his power to the Master.

Email your response to givanoff@optusnet.com.au

You must be an Australian resident to enter, and you can only enter once. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence on the matter will be entered into. Got that? Good!

The competition closes at 5pm (Melb time) on Friday 4 May 2012, after which I will pass all the answers over to our guest judge, without the names of the entrants. He will then pick three winners. I will then contact the winners by email to get postal addresses. Please note that it must be an Australian postal address.

Now, let me introduce you to our guest judge, John Richards.

John Richards is an award-winning writer and broadcaster. He is best known for co-creating and writing the television series Outland, the best gay-and-lesbian-science-fiction-fan-club comedy ever made “quote”. He is also a presenter on the Boxcutters podcast, where he won a Chronos Award for a special episode interviewing Doctor Who writers Paul Cornell and Rob Shearman. Outland Series One is now available on DVD — you should really buy a copy.

I asked John to tell us a little about his relationship with Doctor Who…

I don’t remember a time without Doctor Who. I grew up in a house where we always watched Doctor Who at 6.30pm and it was always something I loved. Doctor Who made me want to be a writer, because it was a series that revered words above all else. It was a series that stoked our imaginations through language rather than image. Indeed, the limitations of what the series could afford to show back then allowed us to join in, to imagine how these worlds continued off-screen. And it was always a show that celebrated knowledge and loved literature (when I was a kid the Target novelisations were about the only merchandise you could find. When the ABC Shop brought out a prismatic Cyberman badge it blew my tiny mind).

Doctor Who taught me so much, from history to literature to science (I always remember the second law of thermodynamics as being “the more you put things together, the more they keep falling apart”, which I’m sure would horrify a physicist). Most importantly, the programme told me that you could travel, you could explore and you could find your own family. For a small boy in country WA this was a very important message!

Thanks, John.

Don’t forget to check out my review of “The Daemons”. Now… start writing those entries!

Doctor Who: The Daemons is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Tintin in Singapore And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

I have been eagerly awaiting the release of this classic Doctor Who story. It has been many years since I last watched “The Daemons”, and I’m very pleased to say that it definitely lives up to my memories of it. Mixing black magic and pseudo-science to create a wonderfully atmospheric five-part story, this is early-70s Doctor Who at its best.

The final story of the eighth season of Doctor Who from 1971, “The Daemons” features Jon Pertwee as the third Doctor and Katy Manning as his assistant, Jo Grant. This story falls smack-bang in the middle of the Earth-bound era in which the Doctor was scientific advisor to U.N.I.T. — the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce — a special military organisation set up to deal with alien threats. So there’s lots of action and adventure coupled with a rather intelligent plot.

The Doctor and Jo head to the small English village of Devil’s End, where an archaeologist is about to open ‘the devil’s hump’, a local burial mound. Opening the burial chamber releases a force mistaken by many for a demonic power. Of course, the Doctor knows better — it’s not occult forces at work, it’s alien science. We soon discover that the Doctor’s nemesis, the Master, is skulking around, trying to summon up a Daemon — an ancient alien creature visiting Earth from the planet Daemos, occasionally assisting humanity as an experiment. It seems that the Daemons see humanity as an experiment that has gone wrong. Now, will the last of the Daemons destroy the failed experience, or pass on control to the Master. What a choice!

“The Daemons” is an interesting story in that it attempts to give scientific explanations for supernatural occult happenings. It is as successful as it is because it doesn’t try to give too specific an explanation. The occult elements work very well in setting up a wonderfully atmospheric story with great imagery, that at times has the feeling of an old horror flick. At five episodes it is also a surprisingly pacy story that never feels padded or long-winded. And I love the fact that the Daemon isn’t actually evil (that role is left for the Master) — rather, it is simply amoral, viewing humanity as beneath consideration.

Set-up, characters and atmosphere are definitely the strong points of this story. The only real weak point is the resolution, which I didn’t find quite convincing. But the rest of the story is so damn good that I happily forgive it this fault. The special effects stand up pretty well, with the enlarging of the Daemon being the only one that doesn’t work all that well, but given it was made over 40 years ago I’m willing to be lenient.

The cast, as with many Pertwee-era stories, is rather BRILLIANT. Pertwee is in top form, delivering witty lines with aplomb, riding around on a motorcycle and doing his own stunt falls. Katy Manning is also good, with Jo at her most loyal and self-sacrificing. The U.N.I.T. team — Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier, John Levene as Sargent Benton and Richard Franklin as Captain Mike Yates — are given lots to do and they do it well. In many ways this is an ensemble story that gives each of them a moment to shine, with some wonderfully written interactions. The final exchange between Yates and the Brig, as the Maypole dancing begins, is an absolute classic…

Yates: ‘Fancy a dance sir?’
Brigadier: ‘Kind of you Captain… I think I’d rather have a pint!’

This story also sees the return of Roger Delgado as the Master. He was, during this era, a semi-regular, returning story after story to challenge the Doctor. And rightly so. He is the definitive Master, with no other coming even close until John Simm took on the role during the Tennant era. The guest cast is also great, particularly Damaris Hayman as Miss Hawthorne, the self-proclaimed white witch. She is convincing and sympathetic, and her flirting with Sergeant Benton is hilarious.

“The Daemons” is a two-disc set with lots of extra features. The commentary, which gathers Katy Manning, Damaris Hayman, Richard Franklin and director Christopher Barry, is a gem. There is a wonderful chemistry between these people, which results in an entertaining, friendly and fun commentary. Other extras include a making-of doco, a doco about producer Barry Letts, some silent 8mm footage from the location shoot, and the initial colourisation test from the 1990s (the original colour tapes of this story were junked by the BBC and all that remained was a Black&White print), along with a segment from Tomorrow’s World about the colouring process. As usual there is also a set of photos. These sets are often a little pedestrian with nothing but standard publicity shots… but this set is particularly good for all the behind-the-scenes pics, including a lovely series of shots where Jon Pertwee jokingly attempts to sneak up on and stab the sound man. If you don’t usually bother with the stills, make an effort to give this set a look.

My only disappointment with the extras, is that they did not include “Return to Devil’s End”, a doco made back in the 1990s, which I would dearly have liked to see. But given that this doco was not a BBC production, I assume there may have been rights issues.

All up this is a brilliant release — An exceptionally good story for the casual viewer, and lots of additional material for the fans. Highly recommended!

Doctor Who: The Daemons will be released on DVD in Australia on 19 April 2012 by Roadshow Entertainment.

And if you’re a Doctor Who fan, check out the Doctor Who Club of Australia.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Anthology preview And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

The Adventures of Merlin — this hugely successful series about Merlin and Arthur in their younger days is back for a fourth season. Building on the progression of the myth from season three, this season heads further towards the legend we are familiar with, but also substantially deviates from it. Lots of interesting things happen, and yet I found this season disappointing compared to the previous.

I’ve got to apologise and warn people that this review contains a few SPOILERS. Regrettable, but necessary… deal with it!

Season three (see my review) really thrust the series forward into new territory, paving the way for the Arthurian legend people are familiar with. This season follows on from that, again pushing things forward in both expected and unexpected ways. In this season, Uther dies and Arthur finally becomes the King of Camelot. Sir Lancelot sacrifices his life to save Arthur. Against advice, Arthur proposes to the servant girl, Guinevere … but Gwen betrays him with a resurrected Lancelot. All gripping stuff — the sort of plot lines that should have made this season brilliant.

Unfortunately, this season suffers from a great deal of inconsistency, lapses in logic, misplaced humour and generally sloppy attention to detail. So, in one episode you have Merlin and Gaius reluctant to tell Arthur about the magical reasons behind that episode’s mayhem, and yet the very next episode they have no qualms about confiding in him. Season three built up the relationship between Arthur and Merlin to the point where mutual respect was definitely developing… and yet this season sees the return to the slapstick king/servant banter of earlier episodes. Being a family show, there has always been a certain element of childish humour to the series. It’s not something that has particularly bothered me, but I’ve always felt the series was at its strongest when it was being dramatic. This season we have some pretty dark story elements coming through, but the humour (rather than being used in light-hearted episodes) has been inserted into the middle of the dark plotlines. The emotion in the episode in which Uther dies, is short-changed by the misplaced slapstick humour that pervades.

There are also some characterisation problems in this season. Morgana has now completed her transition from trusted King’s ward to villain. Unfortunately this is accompanied by the shedding of her character complexities. She has gone from the intriguing, multi-layered character of seasons past, to a pretty standard one-dimensional villain (with the exception of one lovely exchange between her and Merlin about their lost friendship). Her wardrobe is now predominantly black and she’s acquired a push-up bra.

With Morgana now out of Camelot, a new subsidiary villain is introduced in the form of Lord Agravaine, Arthur’s uncle. His motives are never fully explored and neither is his origin. He just suddenly appears in the first episode without explanation. There has never been any mention of an uncle in the past.

All these little things combine to make this season less satisfying than the last. It’s by no means bad, just not as good as it should have been. Certainly there are also lots of positive things about this season as well. Production values have continued to rise, and the guest cast is magnificent. Even though I have reservations about the character of Lord Agravaine, Nathaniel Parker plays him with a great deal of enthusiasm. It’s also good to see the return of the aged Merlin from season three. Colin Morgan does extraordinarily well behind the aging makeup and delivers a very convincing performance.

All up, I enjoyed this season. I’m just sorry that it did not live up to its potential.

There are some good extra features on this five-disc set, including a making-of doco, outtakes and quite a number of deleted scenes (I love deleted scenes). There are also some reasonable commentaries on five of the episodes. Those with director Alice Troughton are particularly worth listening to. I’ve no idea what the packaging is like this time around as my review discs were naked.

The Adventures of Merlin is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

Catch ya later,  George

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U.N.I.T. Files is a box set with two stories featuring the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce — “Invasion of the Dinosaurs” and “The Android Invasion”. Both these stories, despite some flaws, are very watchable and are great examples of their respective eras.

“Invasion of the Dinosaurs” is a six-part story from Jon Pertwee’s final season in 1974. It is much talked about for its rather shoddy dinosaur effects. Granted, the dinosaurs are pretty dreadful, but Doctor Who has suffered from poor effects before and since. I can live with the effects given the strong performances from the actors, who make you believe that what is obviously a puppet is actually a Tyrannosaurus Rex. It also helps that it is an excellent story, examining the age-old dilemma — does the end justify the means? Its only drawback, apart from the effects, is that it’s a little too long, with much of episode five being a rather pointless, extended chase sequence. Five episodes would have delivered a tighter, better-paced story.

The third Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith, on her second trip in the TARDIS, arrive in an evacuated London that is under martial law, where prehistoric creatures are randomly popping up to cause havoc. Although U.N.I.T. and the Brigadier are there, they are under the command of the regular army’s General Finch. The Doctor soon discovers that the dinosaurs are merely a diversionary tactic, as a group of fanatics in an underground bunker work at perfecting a time machine with a difference — the device will turn back the clock, taking the Earth (and a select few human beings) back to prehistoric times, thus countering the effects of pollution and mismanagement, at the expense of billions of people… who will never have existed. It’s an interesting idea that explores the notion of fanaticism at various different levels, from the instigators to the easily lead to those unaware of the means being used.

“Look, I understand your ideals. In many ways I sympathise with them. But this is not the way to go about it, you know. You’ve got no right to take away the existence of generations of people.”

This story is particularly interesting for regular Doctor Who viewers in its development of U.N.I.T.’s Captain Mike Yates. An important story in his character arc, Yates changes teams from the good guys to the bad guys, albeit with the best of intentions. This story then directly leads to his participation in the Pertwee swansong “Planet of the Spiders” later in the season.

“The Android Invasion” is from Tom Baker’s second season in 1975. At four episodes it is well-paced and exciting. Unlike “Invasion of the Dinosaurs”, the effects work in this story is rather good. The uncovered android faces are used sparingly and to good effect. And the design of the controlling aliens is convincing.

The Doctor and Sarah arrive in what appears to be a deserted English village. They soon discover it is filled with android replicas, and that the village isn’t even on Earth. It’s a training ground for an upcoming invasion. Aside from the giveaway title, this story is plagued with little continuity and logic problems. How does the Doctor use his android duplicate after all the androids have been deactivated? What happens to the invasion fleet at the end of the story? And my personal choice for most ridiculous subplot — astronaut Guy Crayford’s missing eye, that isn’t really missing. Are we really expected to believe that he never lifted his own eye-patch? Surely he washed his face on at least one occasion? It’s an annoyingly daft detail that goes a long way towards ruining credibility. And yet, somehow, despite these stuffed-up details, it’s still an enjoyable story.

“The Android Invasion” is notable for being the last of the U.N.I.T. stories, containing the final appearances of Ian Marter and John Levene as Harry Sullivan and Sergeant Benton.

Something that both “The Android Invasion” and “Invasion of the Dinosaurs” have in common is an excellent cast. The regulars are in top form, with Elisabeth Sladen working particularly well with both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. And the guest cast is top notch.

There are lots of really good extra features in this box set, include making-of docos for both stories, a featurette about producer Philip Hinchcliff’s “life after Who”, and an interview with Elisabeth Sladen. The vintage Wheeabix commercial is a good laugh, but the hidden extras are not worth the effort of trying to find them. The commentaries are a mixed bag. The commentary on “The Android Invasion” features a variety of people and is entertaining. The commentary on “The Invasion of the Dinosaurs” is odd. Some of the episodes feature numerous cast and crew in discussion, but three of the episodes have director Paddy Russell in conversation with interviewer Toby Hadoke. Despite Hadoke’s valiant efforts to elicit more than one-sentence answers from Russell, she is quite unsuited to a solo commentary, providing lacklustre and sparse comments.

All up, this is a great release — a good one for casual viewers as well as for fans.

The Doctor Who: U.N.I.T. Files box set is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow Entertainment.

And if you’re a Doctor Who fan, check out the Doctor Who Club of Australia.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Spec Fic Awards And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.