The Krotons

The TARDIS lands on a barren planet that stinks of sulphur. And on this nameless planet live the Gonds, a simple people content to go about their days in their grey jumpsuit uniforms and obey the will of the Krotons; which is to go to school every day until they are smart enough to become companions of the Krotons and enter their "home". And never be seen again. The Krotons never come out of their home, which is a machine called the Dynatrope, but the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe discover that they do indeed come out the other side but as midless zombies, and then get blown away by gas jets as soon as they stumble outside. The truth of the Krotons' ambitions is made public and the Gonds revolt, but the Doctor and Zoe infiltrate the machine by passing a series of tests that proves they are smart enough to be useful, and they inadvertantly reactive the two crystalline Krotons who have been hibernating on board. It seems that only mental energy can help the Krotons but the Gonds are not smart enough to toast bread, so they have been patiently letting their machines teach them and accelerate their brains to a level that will be useful. And to keep them from getting dangerous, they are not told much of science, particularly of the effect that sulfuric acid has on crystalline forms. But then Doctor knows.

Not exactly a gem of it's time, but still entertaining, The Krotons has survived intact - all 4 episodes - and can be enjoyed on VHS. The quality between episodes is vast though, with episode 1 being almost broadcast quality and episode 2 looking like it's being watched through a foggy window, but when DVD time comes it's a forgone conclusion that the Restoration Team wizards will even things out and make it sparkle like new.

Are the Krotons scary? Not really. Okay they're big crytal chunks with claw hands and weapons that can blow things up, but they are not very mobile and once outside their Dynatrope need to be fed contstant instructions to see where they are going. They do have cool voices though. What is scary is the Gonds' total lack of willpower to question the Krotons and their demands to have their two brightest pupils join them in their machine. No, they're not the brightest of people and are even ready to attack the Doctor and company as soon as they arrive, fearing stranger like they do. Jamie gets a chance to scrap with one of the Gonds, but spends a lot more time in the adventure as a prisoner of the Krotons or being left behind by the Doctor and Zoe as they carry on. Fair dues, though, Jamie got a lot more to do in The Invasion than Zoe did.

How's about one more adventure, this time on DVD, then a few more books to extend the season? Oh good I knew you wouldn't object.

NEXT EPISODE : THE SEEDS OF DEATH