One of the things that I love about the DVD revolution is the fact that all sorts of weird, wonderful and obscure television shows are getting a new lease on life. I’m a fan of crappy old sci-fi shows… so I was pleased to find out that M.A.N.T.I.S., a series I missed during its initial run in the 1990s, was being released on DVD. I’ll be perfectly honest — it’s not brilliant television by any stretch of the imagination… but it is interesting, it tries really hard and it’s kinda fun.

Created by Sam Raimi (the man behind such films as The Evil Dead and 2002’s Spider-man) and Sam Hamm, M.A.N.T.I.S. is a sci-fi, superhero series most notable for featuring television’s first African-American superhero. Scientist and entrepreneur Miles Hawkins (Carl Lumbly) is shot during a riot while helping a child, and ends up in a wheelchair. Using the resources of his company, he creates a powered exoskeleton. Not only does it allow him to walk, but it empowers him with superhuman strength. Of course, he ends up using the exoskeleton to fight crime, becoming a vigilante known as the Mantis.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, M.A.N.T.I.S. stands for Mechanically Augmented Neuro Transmitter Interception System.

Hawkins teams up with his best friend and fellow scientist, John Stonebrake (Roger Rees), a young courier named Taylor Savage (Christopher Gartin) and the beautiful police detective, Lt. Leora Maxwell (Galyn Görg). Oh yeah, and he has a secret underwater base, a flying car and immobilising darts (so he doesn’t have to actually kill the bad-guys).

Although the show has some silly aspects and is primarily action/adventure driven, it tries hard for human drama as well. Particularly well handled is how Miles Hawkins comes to terms with his disability and how he struggles with the concept of being a vigilante. It’s also nice to see that he and Stonebrake don’t always see eye-to-eye on how the exoskeleton should be used.

It’s interesting to see how the show develops. As well as the 22 episodes of the series, the DVD set also includes the original pilot, which is quite different — the exoskeleton looks different, the support characters are different, and the whole thing is very heavy-handed and full of commentary about the oppression of African-Americans. The series itself concentrates more on personal drama. Despite the fantastical nature of the concept, the series starts out by trying to ground itself in some semblance of reality. So the Mantis fights ordinary crime — robbers, corporate crims and the like. But about half-way through, the series suddenly changes and goes for full-on, over-the-top sci-fi. We get everything from supervillains to time travel and alternative dimensions, from mind control to ancient druids… hell, we even get to see (or not see) an invisible dinosaur.

The second half of the series is certainly the weaker, pushing aside reality and human drama in favour of cheesy sci-fi. But it’s still fun.

There are a couple of other interesting points worth mentioning. The series has a definite ending. SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! Miles Hawkins, a.k.a. the Mantis, dies at the end! You would think this would be dramatic and sad and a great way to end the show. Unfortunately, the final ep is the one with the invisible dinosaur, and the whole thing is rather dumb and anti-climactic. A pity!

The first half of the series is scored by Christopher Franke, who would go on to write the much-talked about music for Babylon 5. His music includes quite a catchy theme. But the second half changes composers to Randy Miller.

All up, this is an interesting show. Like seaQuest DSV (read my review of the third season), it straddles the eras of American-made genre television, sitting a little uncomfortably between the silly, gimmicky, episodic sci-fi and the thoughtful, more arc-driven science fiction that was to come. M.A.N.T.I.S. is not something I’d recommend for people who are after high-quality television of the sort we often get these days. But if you’re interested in the development of television sci-fi and superhero drama, then you could certainly do a lot worse. And if, like me, you simply enjoy a bit of old, crappy, sci-fi fun… then M.A.N.T.I.S. is one of the better ones.

The DVD set has no extra features, but is presented in a rather flashy metal case. The case looks terrific, but is lacking in info. A list of episode titles would have been nice. Why oh why do designers think it’s a good idea to leave off such pertinent info?

M.A.N.T.I.S. is released on DVD in Australia by Viavision.

Catch ya later,  George

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

Gamers’ Challenge has joined Gamers’ Quest on the reading list for the Victorian Premier’s Reading Challenge. Both books are listed for two age groups — Years 5 & 6 and Years 7 & 8. I’m rather pleased about this.

Later this year, Ford Street Publishing will be releasing a new anthology — Trust Me Too. Amongst the 50+ stories and illustrations from Aussie contributors is a new Gamers story, “Gamers’ Inferno”. Set in the same world as the books, this story introduces a new game environment and a whole new set of characters, including Raph, the orphan boy from the slums, being pursued by the Militia because of his strange hallucinations; the mysterious Dama Sebastiana Annunciata, hidden from the Militia in the bowels of the city and protected by a secret sisterhood; the slightly unstable Oracle; and the triumvirate lords of the Inquisition — Lord Dante, Lord Brimstone and Lord Blaze.

Thanks to the wonderful people at Roadshow Entertainment it is again time to WIN WIN WIN! Yes, that’s right… three times… WIN WIN WIN. We have three DVD copies of the classic Doctor Who story “The Sensorites”.

“The Sensorites” is a six-part story from the very first season of Doctor Who, starring William Hartnell as the Doctor. You can check out my review here.

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

Complete the following quote from The Sensorites:
“Weakling! Betrayer of our people! Coward! I should imprison you in some room wherein no light can shine and fill that room with…”
PLEASE NOTE that the judge will be looking for creative/humorous answers rather than what was actually said in the episode. So put on your thinking caps!

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 2 March 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, Australian author Simon Haynes.

Born in the UK and raised in the south of Spain, Simon emigrated to Australia with his family in 1983. He’s published four Hal Spacejock novels, one Hal Junior novel and several short stories, and he divides his time between writing fiction and computer software.

Simon’s goal is to write fifteen novels before someone takes his keyboard away. Check out his website for more info.

I asked Simon to tell us a little about his relationship with the classic Doctor Who series…

Ahh, Classic Who. It’s such a cliché, but I spent many happy hours cowering behind the sofa as a six-year-old, simultaneously drawn to and repulsed by the flickering black and white images. At the age of six you don’t notice wobbly sets, fluffed lines or the succession of humanoid monsters dressed in tinfoil and latex. No, at an age where everything else in your life is supposed to be happy and colourful and jolly, Doctor Who was mostly savage, brutal and scary. And I loved it!

Throw in a childhood love of The Goodies and you’ll understand why I write science fiction comedy.

Thanks, Simon.

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

Catch ya later,  George

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

Based on a series of crime novels by Michael Dibdin, Zen is a BBC series of three tele-films about Italian police detective Aurelio Zen. The series is stylish, well-written and shot in Rome — what more could you want?

Aurelio Zen is a mid-level police detective working in Rome. Surrounded by corruption, he ambles along, endeavouring to solve the cases he is assigned while keeping his head above the choppy political waters he finds himself thrown into. Separated from his wife, he lives in an apartment with his widowed mother, and embarks on a relationship with Tania Moretti, a woman in an unhappy marriage who works as a secretary at the police station. Zen has a very straightforward approach to his police work, and despite all that goes on around him, usually manages to land on his feet. Despite his reputation for honesty, he himself is not above a little corruption, albeit at a much lower level than the people attempting to manipulate him.

I’ve never read the books, so I can’t compare — but the series is well written with interesting cases, surprising twists and logical outcomes. But the main strength of the writing is in the characters. There is more to them than just the solving of crimes. All of them, particularly Zen, come across as real people, with personal lives and intrigues and story arcs. You get a sense of their lives before and after what is actually on screen.

The cast are all excellent, particularly Rufus Sewell as Zen. There is a great chemistry between him and Caterina Murino, who plays Tania Moretti. Catherine Spaak is also worth a mention. Playing Zen’s mother, her role is quite small, but she makes the most of it. I would have liked to see more of her.

The series looks superb. The fact that it is actually shot in Rome, completely on location with no studio work, gives it a wonderful look and feel. The scenery is often breathtaking and they also use some really unique locations. The music by Adrian Johnston complements the style extremely well.

Although set and shot in Italy, Zen is a British production. So you have a mostly British cast, speaking with their natural accents. I can accept that. But there are a few cast members with heavy Italian accents, which serve to highlight the non-Italian accents. But I can still accept this as well. What I did find jarring was the fact that background conversations are in Italian. The switch from Italian in the background to English in the foreground was somewhat distracting. But this is a minor quibble for an otherwise excellent production. And, as mentioned in the behind-the-scenes doco, the use of natural accents and background Italian was a conscious decision, made with integrity, by the producers.

Michael Dibdin wrote 11 Aurelio Zen novels. This series adapts only three of them — Vendetta, Cabal and Ratking. I’m very much hoping they do some more, as well as release a soundtrack.

Zen is a two-disc set and contains a rather good behind-the-scenes doco, but nothing more.

Highly recommended for anyone who likes a good quality, stylish crime series with characters that you can care about.

Zen was released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow in February 2012.

Catch ya later,  George

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

Project Manta chronicles the efforts of a group of marine biologists to track the migration routes of manta rays off the Australian coast. The movement patterns of manta rays are often unpredictable and very individual, making the scientists’ task far from easy. While the efforts of the scientists are interesting enough, it is the manta rays that are the stars of this doco. They are eerily elegant sea creatures — quite beautiful, really — and the footage of them swimming around, looking like prehistoric birds in slow motion flight, makes this documentary very worthwhile.

My eight-year-old daughter, whose current fascination is sea creatures, loved watching this documentary with me. She enjoyed learning about the mantas and what they ate (plankton), and discovering that they are surprisingly intelligent animals. There were, in fact, lots of interesting facts presented here. For instance, did you know that a manta can be identified by its spots? The markings on the white underside of mantas are like human fingerprints — no two are identical.

This documentary also highlights some of the problems that mantas are facing. They often find themselves accidentally caught up in fishing nets. And, most distressingly, they are being hunted for their gills. Apparently there is a high demand for manta gills in the Asian medicine market.

This documentary is not going to be winning any awards for its cinematography. It does not have the epic beauty of a David Attenborough nature extravaganza. But it is nicely put together and contains some lovely footage of the manta rays.

I don’t normally expect much in the way of extra features on a documentary… but this one has a nice little bunch of short extras. There’s “How to become a marine biologist”, “How to dive with Manta Rays”, and a couple of other snippets that look like they had been shot for the documentary, but not used.

If you like a good doco, or if you’re interested in marine life, Project Manta is well worth watching.

Project Manta will be released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow on 5 April 2012.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: Lover Husband Father Monster part 1 And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

“The Sensorites” is a six-part story from the very first season of Doctor Who, way back in 1964. While it has an interesting concept, and some really good moments, it suffers from being rather long and boring.

The Doctor (William Hartnell), along with his granddaughter Susan (Carole Ann Ford) and schoolteachers Ian (William Russell) and Barbara (Jacqueline Hill), land aboard an Earth space ship trapped in orbit around a mysterious planet called the Sense-Sphere. The planet’s inhabitants, the Sensorites, are keeping the ship and its crew imprisoned. The Sensorsites had a bad experience with a previous Earth expedition and so are now wary of all humans, fearing that they have come to plunder their planet’s supply of Molybdenum. The Sensorites cut out and steal the lock from the TARDIS, thus stranding the Doctor and Co. The Doctor is soon negotiating for the release of his lock and the humans, while also trying to cure the Sensorites of a mysterious disease that is ravaging their planet. And if that’s not enough… add in some corrupt Sensorites and the insane, hidden survivors of the previous Earth mission.

“Weakling! Betrayer of our people! Coward! I should imprison you in some room wherein no light can shine and fill that room with noise!”

It all sounds really exciting. And the basic idea of the story is really good, especially its focus on xenophobia. Unfortunately the story is way too long, with obvious padding and interminably long scenes that go nowhere. In fact, the first two episodes, set aboard the Earth spaceship, do little to progress the story — they could easily have been condensed into half an episode. It’s not until they head down to the Sense-Sphere in episode three that the story really gets moving. And even then, there are plot-holes, hard to swallow moments and much unnecessary waffle. All up, it’s interesting but rather tedious.

This story is, oddly, directed by two different people. Associate producer Mervyn Pinfield directed episodes 1-4, while Frank Cox did episodes 5-6. There are some really nice directorial moments, such as when the crew of the TARDIS exit out through the doors and directly into the spaceship, all in one shot. Awesome! And then there’s the first arrival of the Sensorites — a very eerie, silent scene with a mysterious alien outside the spaceship window. But these wonderful moments are let down by the clunky staging and clumsy movements of other scenes. The look and feel of the sets is quite good and the Sensorites themselves are simple but effective.

The best thing about “The Sensorites” is the performance of the regular cast. William Hartnell, in particular, is in top form, while Susan actually gets some useful and interesting stuff to do, instead of just getting into trouble and screaming.

My review disc was unclothed, but I would assume it comes in the regular plastic DVD case with extensive notes on the sleeve. There’s not a huge amount on this disc in terms of extra features. There is no ‘making-of’ or ‘behind-the-scenes’ doco, which is very disappointing. There’s an overly-long featurette in which writer/actor Toby Hadoke goes in search of information about Peter R Newman, the mysterious scriptwriter of “The Sensorites”. There’s a couple of other little things, including an interview with vision mixer, Clive Doig.

The lack of extras is partly made up for with the commentary. Eight people come and go over the course of the six episodes — William Russell (Ian), Carole-Ann Ford (Susan), Ray Cusick (designer), Joe Greig (Sensorite), Frank Cox (director #2), Sonia Markham (make-up), Martyn Huntley and Giles Phibbs (two of the human survivors). There was a real danger of this commentary degenerating into a bunch of old people trying desperately to think of something interesting to say. But it’s saved by Toby Hadoke, who mediates and expertly steers the conversation. So the commentary ends up being a lot more interesting than the actual story. We get all sorts of great little tidbits, including how director #2, loved giving close-ups to one of the guest cast (Ilona Rogers) because he had a crush on her.

Although an interesting insight into Doctor Who history, I’m afraid “The Sensorites” is a release best left for the die-hard fans.

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

Catch ya later,  George

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

The question people had to answer in 50 words or less, was: If you could take one trip with the Doctor in his TARDIS, where/when would you like to go?

Our guest judge for the competition was Narrelle M Harris. Narrelle is a Melbourne author with several novels and short stories under her belt, including the rather fabulous vampire novel, The Opposite of Life. She is also a long-time Doctor Who fan. For more info about her and her writing, check out her website.

But now I’ll shut up and hand over to Narrelle…

Judging the Competition
By Narrelle M Harris

Okay! That was hard. I started by highlighting all the entries that tickled my fancy, and then read and re-read them, eliminating them slowly as I went to end up with:

“I would ask the Doctor to take me at least 100 years back in time to Tasmania so that we could save the Tasmanian Tiger from extinction. Convince the Government to remove the bounty and scare off the farmers and hunters.”
Jamie Chapman, Tasmania

There were some great ideas expressed, from exploring some unexplored ideas from the series and going back in time to rescue the lost episodes from the 60s and 70s right up to travelling to exciting times in the Earth’s history in scientific advances. I very much appreciated those in the spirit of enthusiastic scientific inquiry!

But this entry combines a lot of nice ideas: travelling to a part of Australian history, to do something good for our environmental legacy by reasoning with those in charge. I’m sure at the very least the winner and the Doctor could rescue a pack of Tigers and take them somewhere safe to save them.

George’s bit at the end

Congratulation to Jamie.

And a BIG than you to Narrelle for judging the comp.

Don’t forget to check out my review of Doctor Who: The Complete Sixth Series.

Catch ya later,  George

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

“Miracle Day” is the fourth season of Torchwood, the BBC’s Doctor Who spinoff series for adults. It had quite a mixed reception when it aired, with many fans being rather disappointed. It’s quite different from the previous seasons, but is still an enthralling, dramatic, thought-provoking, heart-pounding, well-written, well-produced set of episodes. I really enjoyed “Miracle Day”!

Torchwood is a really interesting series that has evolved quite a bit since it’s beginning as a Doctor Who spinoff, following the adventures of the immortal Captain Jack and the last branch of the Torwood Institute (set up by Queen Victoria in a Doctor Who episode). The first season, made up of 13 individual episodes, did not start off too well. It seemed obsessed with proving that it was aimed at adults… so we were given sex, violence, swearing and even a woeful story about an alien intent on humping as many humans as it could. Thankfully, by the end of the season, it had settled down somewhat. The second season was a definite improvement. This time there was a season story arc, although the episodes were still individual stories. Things changed rather dramatically for the third season. Titled “Children of Earth”, it was a one-story, five-part mini-series. And it was utterly brilliant. It was everything Torchwood should have been right from the start… it’s adult nature derived from mature and somewhat disturbing story concepts and themes, rather than from cheap thrills.

“Miracle Day” sees even more changes. It’s no longer a solo BBC production. Creator Russell T Davies has taken this season to the USA in a co-production deal with the Starz Network. Made up of ten episodes, it is one large story containing smaller related stories within.

One day, no one dies. People start calling it “Miracle Day”. But it’s more than one day — it appears to be a permanent change. All over the world, people have stopped dying. They still get sick, they still get injured, they still feel pain… but they keep on living. CIA agents Rex Matheson (Mekhi Phifer) and Esther Drummond (Alexa Havins) begin to investigate. Their investigations soon lead them to the last two members of the now-defunct British secret institute, Torchwood. After a bumpy start, Captain Jack (John Barrowman) and Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) set about helping Matheson and Drummond.

It seems that since everyone else on Earth became immortal, Jack became mortal. And there are mysterious people out to get him. Our team soon discover that the miracle was no accident — it was expected and prepared for by a certain drug company. In fact, it was orchestrated. But who is behind it all? What has Jack got to do with it? And can it be reversed before the world becomes over-populated?

It’s a great concept for story! And for the most part, it is well executed. I only had one problem with “Miracle Day” — a rather obvious and annoying plot inconsistency. In the first few episodes it is established that when people don’t die, they remain conscious… no matter what. So, a woman who has her neck broken is still running around (although with her head twisted backwards), and a guy who gets blown up is still watching the doctors at his own autopsy. Really creepy stuff! But then a few episodes in, without any explanation, people now happily lose consciousness at the drop of a hat.

Aside from that inconsistency, I loved “Miracle Day”. One of the strongest story points is how the world tries to cope without death — how current medical infrastructures prove to be inadequate; how governments step in and start to classify people according to whether they should be dead; how bureaucracy thrives as society breaks down; how governments seeks to attain control over death. Some rather frightening concepts are explored. The media is also put under the spotlight, as convicted paedophile and child killer Oswald Danes (Bill Pullman) suddenly becomes a world-wide celebrity.

I’ve always considered John Barrowman to be the weakest of the Torchwood team, as his acting style tends towards the OTT, particularly in the more dramatic moments. Happily, his performance in this season is considerably more restrained and believable. Eve Myles is good as Gwen and it’s great to see Kai Owen return as her long-suffering husband. The two new CIA agents are also good, if unremarkable. But the standout performance of “Miracle Day” is provided by Bill Pullman. Usually cast as the all-American good guy (remember him as the US President in Independence Day) he is wonderfully ambiguous and creepy as Oswald Danes.

Some of guest cast are also worth a mention. Arlene Tur puts in a very sympathetic and likeable performance as Dr Vera Juarez. Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under) gives a wonderful performance as the PR person without a conscience, who ends up managing Oswald Danes. John De Lancie (Q from Star Trek: The Next Generation) shows up in the later episodes as the no-nonsense head of the CIA. And we even get former teen-star and B-movie actor, C Thomas Howell, as a hired assassin.

It’s really interesting seeing how the focus of the series has shifted to America. Although parts of the series are still set in the UK, America is the driving-force of the plot. We also get more guns, bigger explosions and more expensive effects than in previous UK-bound seasons. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does give this season a rather different feel. The fact that it’s made with the US audience in mind, who may not necessarily be familiar with past seasons, they have made sure that viewers don’t need to see the previous seasons to understand and follow “Miracle Day”.

All up “Miracle Day” is a thoughtful, exciting, entertaining and sometimes disturbing season that is another step in the development of Torchwood. It will be interesting to see where things go from here. The end of this season certainly sows enough seeds for more Torchwood… although there is also a distinct opening for a new US-based spin-off series.

The four-disc DVD release is very nicely presented in a foldout case, within a slipcase. The only problem with the packaging is the lack of any info on the contents of each disc. So if you want to watch a particular episode or extra, you need to guess which disc it’s on.

Lots of good extra features are included on this release. The most interesting is the so-called motion comic, “Web of Lies”. This is a sort-of prequel story done with limited animation and originally released online. The animation is stylised and distinctive, but the likenesses of the characters are rather poor. It’s an interesting story with much potential, but it is rushed and disjointed, with several bizarre leaps in logic. Although worth a watch, it is, in the end, rather unsatisfying.

Other extras include a behind-the-scenes doco, a special effects featurette, character profiles and some fairly boring deleted scenes. The commentary on the first and last eps, from Russell T Davies and his fellow executive producer Julie Gardner, are informative and entertaining and remarkably honest. They chat away like old friends, discussing the differences between working in the US and the UK. And they have no qualms about discussing the season’s failures as well as its triumphs… and occasionally laying blame. Each episode also features a short introduction from Russell T and John Barrowman. They are rather pointless and a little pre-emptive at times.

“Miracle Day” is a great watch and this is an excellent DVD release. Highly recommended… even if you’re not a Torchwood fan.

Torchwood: Miracle Day is released in Australia on DVD and Blu-ray by Roadshow.

And don’t forget… There are still a couple of days left in our Doctor Who giveaway. For your chance to win a copy of Doctor Who: The Complete Sixth Series, follow this link.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: More NYR12 And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

A botanically obsessed millionaire, a carnivorous alien plant and a charismatic thug come together to cause trouble for the fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) and Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) in “The Seeds of Doom”. The end result is a stylish, engaging and exciting action/adventure story from the 13^th season of Doctor Who in 1976.

Scientists at an Arctic base discover a strange pod buried in the permafrost. The Doctor, as U.N.I.T.’s scientific advisor, is sent to investigate. The pod turns out to be a carnivorous alien plant called a Krynoid. The pod germinates and infects one of the scientists, who begins to mutate into a murderous plant creature. Meanwhile, millionaire Harrison Chase, who has an obsession with plants, sends henchmen to the Arctic to retrieve the pod. The first Krynoid is defeated, but the henchmen escape with a second pod. Soon the whole thing begins again in England.

Structurally, this is an interesting story. There are six episodes, but the story is divided, with the first two parts primarily set at the Arctic base and the remaining four, back in England. Six-part stories in Doctor Who have often felt padded, but this division keeps “The Seeds of Doom” moving well. It’s almost like having two linked stories.

Writer Robert Banks Stewart has really delivered a solid script. It’s hard to go wrong with such a great story premise — alien plants that send out pods to other planets in order to take them over. The Doctor himself explains…

“I suppose you could call it a galactic weed, though it’s deadlier than any weed you know. On most planets the animals eat the vegetation. On planets where the Krynoid gets established, the vegetation eats the animals.”

What really makes this story so captivating are the characters and the witty dialogue. There are three standouts for me.

The unstable millionaire Harrison Chase is played to perfection by Tony Beckley. It’s a remarkably restrained performance, given some of the over-the-top lines.

“The plants must win. It will be a new world. Silent and beautiful.”

Not quite so restrained is John Challis as Chase’s thug-for-hire, Scorby. But it is a charismatic performance, well-suited to the role and to the story.

Finally, we have Sylvia Coleridge as the delightfully dotty, chain-smoking, botanical artist Amelia Ducat. Coleridge’s performance is just the right mix of enthusiasm, intrigue and absent-mindedness. She’s a joy to watch and steals every scene she’s in.

Both Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen are in fine form. Some people have suggested that the Doctor is a little out of character in “The Seeds of Doom”, engaging in fisticuffs and brandishing a gun. But this is neither the first nor last time the Doctor has carried weapons and, in his defence, he never actually fires the gun. His dialogue is particularly good in this story, as when he says the following to bureaucrat Sir Colin Thackeray…

“If we don’t find that pod before it germinates, it’ll be the end of everything. Everything, you understand? Even your pension!”

Yes, there are a couple of hick-ups in the logic, and production values do occasionally provide an unintentional giggle (the sound of shoes walking on polystyrene snow), but this is such an entertaining story, these small flaws are easy to forgive. And for the most part, the effects are better than average for 1970s-vintage Who — particularly the model work and explosions. Douglas Camfield, who directed several standout Doctor Who stories, oversees this one with flair and a good sense of how to shoot a low-budget monster and make it effective.

This is an excellent two-disc DVD release with loads of extra features. There’s a ‘making of’ doco as well as featurettes about music, comics and production assistant Graeme Harper (who went on to direct episodes of both the classic series and the revival). There is an entertaining commentary with Tom Baker, John Challis, Kenneth Gilbert (Richard Dunbar), Michael McStay (Derek Moberley), Philip Hinchcliffe (producer), Robert Banks Stewart (writer), Roger Murray-Leach (designer) and, oddly, the late director’s son. There are also a couple of great hidden extras (easter eggs) — a short but very amusing outtake and an entertaining little anecdote from John Challis, including his Jimmy Stewart impression.

This is a brilliant release for the fans, but also one that can be enjoyed by casual viewers. Highly recommended!

Doctor Who: The Seeds of Doom is released on DVD in Australia by Roadshow.

And for those of you who are into new Who as well as classic Who, don’t forget to enter the DVD giveaway for the Complete Sixth Series box set. Entries close on 27 January 2012.

Catch ya later,  George

Check out my bookish blog, Literary Clutter, hosted by Boomerang Books.  Latest Post: The National Year of Reading And follow me on Twitter to get updates on both blogs.

WIN, WIN, WIN!

And, one more time with feeling…

WIN!

Thanks to the lovely people at Roadshow, I have a DVD copy of Doctor Who: The Complete Sixth Season to give away (read my review here). Wanna win it? Here’s how…

In 50 words or less, answer this question: If you could take one trip with the Doctor in his TARDIS, where/when would you like to go?

Yes, I know — a rather obvious question. Bit it’s your chance to take the obvious and do something creative with it. So, go for it!

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 27 January 2012. After which I will pass all the answers over to our guest judge, without the names of the entrants. She will then pick the winner. I will then contact the winner by email to get a postal address. Please note that it must be an Australian postal address.

Now, let me introduce you to our guest judge, Melbourne author Narrelle M Harris.

Narelle is a Melbourne-based writer with four novels, one play and several short stories under her belt to date. Her latest novel is The Opposite of Life, a vampire story set in Melbourne. The sequel, Walking Shadows, is due to be published later this year.

She also writes in the business sector and spends time dreaming up new iPhone apps to develop. Narrelle created Melbourne Literary in association with Sutro Media.

AND, she’s a Doctor Who fan!

Given that she’s judging this comp, I asked her to tell us a little about her relationship with Doctor Who. Take it away, Narrelle…

After a childhood of watching the occasional episode of Doctor Who from a distance (safely behind my older brothers), I rediscovered the Time Lord in my early 20s. Since then, I have learned to love the Doctor in his many incarnations. Sure, there are some silly stories, but the sense of fun and excitement has never gone away. I was one of many waiting with bated breath to see if the latest incarnation of the Doctor would be brilliant or… not so much. And we let out that breath with a collective sigh of relief, before drawing it in again and holding on for the ride.

Once more, we were careening through the universe, with a madman in a blue box. A madman who made mistakes, but who we trusted to get us out of any jam. What’s more, this version of the Doctor took especial delight in helping others to realise their potential and to become heroes too.

Matt Smith is carrying the torch wonderfully (though I still carry a torch of my own for Chris Eccleston). I love the little hints of older Doctors in his performance – a touch of Troughton, a dash of Pertwee. I love that his Doctor is so in touch with his inner 11 year old.

The sixth season built nicely on the preceding seasons. We got to learn more about the mysteries of River Song, and we got to meet the TARDIS. Rory got to be brilliant. Amy, too, at many ages. Not everything pleased me. I found the baby talk twee and the pirates less than awesome, despite the presence of the otherwise engaging Hugh Bonneville.

Yet Doctor Who remains greater than the sum of its parts. There’s excitement and adventure, and a little soul searching. Some people meet their doom while others find their inner hero—or some inner darkness. The Doctor is both a very human alien and a mystery. I look forward to our next adventures together.

Thanks, Narrelle.

For more info about Narrelle and her writing, check out her website. And don’t forget you can read my review of the Series 6 release here!

Catch ya later,  George

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