StormSworder 2008-08-25

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

The Doctor returns to Peladon where the miners are rebelling. Don't expect any kind of Heath-era political parable, however. The first three episodes consist of mindless running around, the Doctor crooning to the last of the Aggadors, and 'miners' with laughable badger haircuts. Yes, it's the far superior Curse of Peladon padded out to six episodes. There are even similar characters - the wimp monarch (this time female) and scheming advisor. There's also some character in black who seems completely detached from the whole thing for most of the six episodes, as though he's one of the technical team who wandered onto the set by mistake. The Doctor returning to a planet to find the effects his earlier visit has caused is a good one, but this is a re-make rather than a sequal. Things improve when the Ice Warriors finally arrive at the end of Part Three. Alan Bennion superbly dominates his every scene as the new Ice Lord on the block, and it's nice to see the Ice Warriors back to their old villainous ways. I just feel it's a shame their last story couldn't have been one which did these inspired creations justice.

Eugene Smith 2003-09-18

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

All I knew about this story was the result of received wisdom - it's a tired re-hash of "The Curse of Peladon", it's an unsubtle commentary on the miners' strike, all six-episode stories are too long etc.
Despite not being the best Pertwee, the six episodes fairly fly along. Perhaps this was due to the unfamiliarity of many of the elements - the rare-ish pairing of the third Doctor with Sarah, a Pertwee story with no connection to Earth, UNIT etc or seeing the Ice Warriors being evil in colour, for the only time (OK that last one might be clutching at straws).
Actually, the Ice Warriors really make this story, especially the "troops" - it's nice to see an alien race who don't all look identical.
More enjoyable than it's reputation suggests. AND you get to see Pertwee's stunt double for ages in the fight in episode 4.

2003-02-22

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

Although a long way from a highpoint of the series, this six-parter is interesting for the surprisingly political (and often overtly Socialist) slant the script takes. Whereas social revolutions have been a staple of science fiction even before H.G. Wells wrote The Time Machine, it's rare for a film or television entry in the genre to focus on labour relations and class warfare so explicitly. Just as Frank Herbert's Dune saga was an allegory for the Middle East's political tensions during the oil boom, The Monster of Peladon is an allegory of its own time and place. 70s Britain is now almost ancient history, so many of the references will be lost on a new generation of viewers, but for those who lived through it, watching this show again brings it all back.

For Peladon, standing on the brink of great wealth or even greater disaster, read Britain, for its coveted rare minerals, read North Sea Oil. Joining the Federation (read the Common Market) has not improved the lot of the workers, only the rich; the miners striking for improved wages and conditions (read any of the militant trade unions of the early 70s) are dismissed as bolshie rebels by rulers who would rather confront them than negotiate; while outside enemies manipulate their divisions not so much for conquest as for profit (read the growing trade deficit that saw Britain hover on the verge of bankruptcy). Add a subplot where the Doctor's assistant urges the figurehead Queen of Peladon to seize power by explaining something they have on earth called Women's Lib, and you've got a perfect reflection for the concerns and paranoias facing 70s Britain - that dark, depressing time of strikes, power cuts, IRA bombing campaigns, the three-day week and inept government.

As drama, it works well enough, but as social history, it's positively fascinating.

2001-10-09

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

Well , not bad at all , but this is basically just a remake of the much better Peladon story from 1972. Very little is added that is new to this particular story , and it just ends up being an average tale of interplanetary corruption regarding mining.It is just too long at six episodes . I own this , but you would be better watching this on uk gold rather than shelling out for what is basically an inflated version of the curse of peladon .

Mr. C. Lewis 2000-09-15

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

The Monster Of Peladon is a much more exciting remake of the earlier Curse of Peladon. It features the Ice Warriors,Aggador and a whole host of other monsters and people. I highly recommend this video as it is a 6 parter and is on 2 videos. It also features 2 of the best characters in Dr Who-The 3rd Doctor(Jon Pertwee)and Sarah Jane Smith(Liz Sladen) The cliffhanger to part 1 is one of the finest in the show's history! Recommended!