TV Review: Doctor Who: Shada (1979)

Doctor Who: Shada (1979) written by Douglas Adams and directed by Pennant Roberts

The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) and Romana (Lalla Ward) are summoned to Cambridge by Professor Chronotis (Denis Carey), who is a retired Time Lord posing as a Cambridge don. The only problem is Chronotis can't remember why he summoned them. A bit of the professorial senility has set in, which is probably why he loaned out an important Gallifrean book to one of the undergraduates. It's an ancient text with enormous power. Another time and space traveler has shown up and is looking for the book as well. He has a creepy grey sphere that he uses to steal other people's memories. What better device to set up end of episode cliffhangers?

This story is a bit legendary because the production was shut down half-way through making it. Strikes caused a lockdown at the BBC. A bit of the content was used in The Five Doctors but otherwise it had remained unseen for a long time. For the thirtieth anniversary of Doctor Who in 1993, they edited together what they had and Tom Baker filled in the gaps with descriptions of the missing action. Having Baker in a Doctor Who museum exhibit telling bits of the story makes for interesting viewing. The plot is good and the performances are a lot of fun. The special effects are the usual mishmash of good sound effects and dubious visual effects. The Cambridge location shooting is nice, especially if you've been there before.

Recommended, well worth putting up with the shortcomings. Beware--there is a more recent version of this with the choppy animations of other Doctor Who restorations that is generally poorly reviewed.

TV Review: Doctor Who: The Pirate Planet (1978)

Doctor Who: The Pirate Planet (1978) written by Douglas Adams and directed by Pennant Roberts

The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) and Time Lady Romana (Mary Tamm) continue their hunt for the components of the Key to Time started in The Ribos Operation. They travel to the planet Calufrax only to find it not there. The TARDIS had trouble landing, which they initially assumed was just tempramental machinery (though Romana wants to fly the TARDIS by the instruction manual, which the Doctor disregards). They discover the planet is called Zanak. The planet's society goes through periods of prosperity which are heralded by a change in the stars in the sky. That is, the pattern of the stars completely changes. The Doctor and Romana investigate, finding out that the planet jumps around the galaxy, landing on smaller planets to mine them for valuable resources. Such a plan must be stopped and they get to work.

The show has a fairly interesting plot with some surprises along the way. The writer is the same fellow who wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, so humor abounds. The captain of Zanak is a bit like a Vogon captain, all shouty and threatening death to those who disobey. His cartoonishness has a better explanation than uncreative writing. Baker and Tamm make a good team and work well as individuals.

Recommended.

TV Review: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1981)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1981) produced by Alan J. W. Bell

At first, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was a radio program broadcast on the BBC in 1978. It became wildly popular, becoming a six-part television program in 1981. Most of the radio cast is back. The story is largely unchanged, starting with the destruction of Arthur Dent's home to make way for a suburban highway bypass. That event is overshadowed by the destruction of the Earth to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Luckily, Arthur's friend Ford Prefect is really an alien and found out about the demolition project. They manage to escape by hitching a ride on the Vogon constructor fleet that destroys Arthur's home world. Thus begins a comic adventure that stretches across space, time, and credulity. The story is episodic and immensely enjoyable. If you have never listened to it, read it (the novels are perhaps the most accessible format), or seen it, you owe it to yourself to have a very enjoyable time.

The TV series makes for an interesting adaptation. The voice actors from the radio do a good job as television actors. Arthur is played by Simon Jones as the quintessential British everyman. In addition to figuring out what's going on, he's looking for a good cup of tea. Different actors were used for Ford Prefect and for Trillian (the other surviving Earthling), whom they meet when they are picked up by Galactic President/Conman Zaphod Beeblebrox. In the radio program, Zaphod is describes as having two heads and three arms. The TV show does its best to recreate that but the special effects are really not up to snuff. The other head looks fake and lolls around a lot. Occasionally they have it talk, though it looks more like a cheap animatronic than an actual head. The third arm is usually tucked in Napoleon-style except for a few scenes where it looks like someone is standing behind the actor and sticking their hand out. Most of the effects are reminiscent of the old Doctor Who visual effects from the 1980s.

On the other hand, the computer graphics (which are actually hand-drawn animations) are fun. The various entries from the Guide are animated in an enjoyable, faux-informational way. They add an element that the radio obviously could not provide. The physical prop Guide looks like a bulky cell phone and the lettering is hardly as big and friendly as one imagines from the radio description. The music and sound effects stand the test of time, though they are basically the same as the radio show.

The show is more for Hitchhiker's completists. I wouldn't recommend starting here. The radio programs or the novels are the best way to get the story.

Recommended for fans of the story.

I watched it on Hoopla, a streaming service my local library has access to. I guess (from the ads tacked on the end of episodes) that it is available on streaming through Britbox. It's also available on Amazon Prime.

TV Review: Doctor Who: City of Death (1979)

Doctor Who: City of Death (1979) directed by Michael Hayes and co-written by David Fisher, Douglas Adams, and Graham Williams under the pseudonym David Agnew

Fourth Doctor Tom Baker and companion Romana (Lalla Ward), who is also from Gallifrey, visit Paris circa 1979 for some relaxation. Their fun times are interrupted by two things. First, minor time loops start happening, indicated someone mucking about with technology far in advance of Earth 1979 A.D. Second, thieves are planning to steal the Mona Lisa, again using technology far in advance of what the locals have. Naturally, the two are related. The Doctor does his usual bit of running around, getting captured, and saying witty things.

The episode is a little slow in parts. It does feature actual Paris locations and the filming has lots of interesting angles and camera movements. The dialog does have the fingerprints of Douglas Adams (he of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fame) all over it. Adams, in addition to being a co-writer, was also script editor for the show at this point. He definitely gave a lighthearted touch to the story, though the story itself is pretty standard Doctor Who fare. I enjoyed it but it is not great by any stretch. Tom Baker is charming as always.

Recommended.

Sleepless, Mindless, Blogless

I swear I'll start blogging about our America trip soon...soon as there's a free evening!

Jacob and Lucy fell asleep last night between 10:30 and 11. Tonight it was between 10 and 10:30, so things are moving in the right direction. Hopefully Wednesday will be over the hump day for us.

Stephen Mangan/Dirk Gently

Not having energy to write a blog tonight (which is a nifty little paradox), I watched the third episode of the BBC's Dirk Gently TV series. Yes, it's based on Douglas Adams's less famous novels about a holistic detective investigating whatever comes his way. I read them back in the day and barely remember any details from them. The show was pretty entertaining, though starting with the third episode meant that it took ten minutes to figure out who was who in the cast of character. It was more than amusing enough. The twists were nice and not predictable and I laughed several times. I'd have watched earlier episodes, but they've all expired on the BBC's iPlayer. Hopefully they will show up again in the future and I can watch them. And yes, the series was only three episodes long. I think that's pretty common on UK broadcasting. If you run across it at a video rental store (if you can still find one) or live streaming, definitely check it out. Silly but fun, which is what we love here.