| THE WEB PLANET by Bill Strutton |
| Story 13 Synopsis: The TARDIS is forced to land on the planet Vortis. Vicki has a turn, so Barbara looks after her whilst the Doctor and Ian go exploring. They find pools of acid, and a strange rock formation. Ian becomes trapped, so the Doctor goes back to the TARDIS, but it has gone. He frees Ian, and they follow the tracks left by whoever took the TARDIS. They reach a glowing dome, where they find Vicki, and giant ants, called Zarbi. The Doctor has already identified the planet as Vortis. A communicator accuses the Doctor of being a Menoptera, an invading force, but he denies it, using an astral map from the TARDIS to plot the course of the invaders. Ian escapes, heading for the Crater of Needles, where Barbara is being held captive. He meets a Menoptera called Vrestin, and then they are attacked by Zarbi, falling into a cave. Underground, they find a race who try to kill them, until they realise Vrestin is a Menoptera, and that they are related. The Menoptera landing fails, and Barbara helps in an escape. She meets up with Ian, and they plan an attack on the Centre. The Doctor manages to take control of a Zarbi, but the Voice commands them to its heart, where it plans to absorb them. The Menoptera attack, and Barbara uses a new super-weapon to destroy the creature. The Zarbi become harmless once more. |
| Review:- One of the series' boldest experiments ever, this alien runaround is considered by many to be quite a failure. But is it that bad? Certainly, I have to commend it for being the only story to feature no humans (or human-like characters) besides the TARDIS crew. Vortis is also a pretty alien planet, unlike many which are too much like Earth to be credible. We have several new species to consider, and a moral tale of concerns for the underclass. Indeed, it is notable that the Menoptera are the people suffering a lesson. They treated the Zarbi as cattle, and so suffered harder when they were overthrown. By rediscovering an offshoot of their own race, they learn a vital lesson in recognition of others. When the Animus is defeated, the Menoptera do not mete out vengeance on the Zarbi - they have a role to play in Vortis society. Vicki doesn't really have much to do after her initial funny turn that splits the crew up - at best she is comic relief, naming a zombie Zarbi, 'Zombo'. Ian struggles to save Barbara, helps Vrestin to help the Optera, and helps in the final struggle. Barbara gives us the insight into the Menoptera point of view, and helps us realise that the Animus is lying to the Doctor about the nature of the invasion. She also gets to strike the final blow against the Animus. As for the Doctor, he stalls well after helping doom the Menoptera attack, but is little more than a cipher for much of the time. Admittedly he does well to neutralise one of the control bracelets, but he is often just a bystander. A challenging story, but one with messages for us all. EDIT - Having now seen the story on video, it's certainly an exercise in patience, but the heart of the story still shines through. |
| Disclaimer: I've read the book, and seen the video. |