The
Curse of Peladon
The
Curse of Peladon,
for many, is a textbook Doctor Who adventure. With a healthy mix of
mystery, deception, villainy and suspense, the story is as entertaining
as any new series offering, and has held up well to the test of time.
With secret passages, allies who are villains and villains who are
allies, there are more twists and turns than the underground tunnels of
Peladon itself.
The
selection of features for this release is adequate, and compared to previous DVD releases
like 'Black Orchid', you
can't help feeling there is more distance for extra content.
The
'Commentary' is moderated
seamlessly by Toby Hadoke,
who also provides some informative facts connected with the story.
Joining Toby is Barry Letts
(Producer), Terrance Dicks
(Script Editor), Katy Manning
(Jo Grant) and Chris D'Oyly-John
(Production Assistant). It proves to be a rather amusing commentary,
with all parties contributing equally, together with a great selection
of amusing and revealing stories.
'The
Peladon Saga - Part One',
is by far the highlight of the extras on this disc, providing a
behind-the-scenes look at the making of
The Curse of Peladon.
Although it's not as in-depth as previous 'making of' documentaries, it
looks at the production of the adventure as well as putting it in
political context with the time.
'Warriors of Mars',
gives us a history of The Ice Warriors. There's a chronological look at
their appearances in Doctor Who, as well as the different classes of Ice
Warrior. Narrated by Donald Gee, the feature provides interviews with
Sonny Caldinez (Ice Warrior),
Bernard Bresslaw (Ice
Warrior), Sylvia James
(Make-Up Supervisor) Michael
Ferguson (Director), Terrance
Dicks (Script Editor) Alan
Bennion (Ice Lord), Barry
Letts (Producer) and Brian
Hodgson (BBC Radiophonic Workshop).
'Jon
and Katy', looks at the pairing of
Jon Pertwee (The Doctor) and
Katy Manning (Jo Grant), with interviews from
Katy Manning, Terrance Dicks
and Barry Letts. In the
feature, Katy looks back with genuine love for both her character, and
John as an actor and friend.
The
'Storyboard Comparison'
compares design sketches with the final shot, together with soundtrack
excerpts that lead up to the clips.
As
with previous DVD releases, there are the usual 'PDF Material', 'Photo Gallery'
and 'Production Subtitles'
included.
The
Monster of Peladon
The
Monster of Peladon
heralds the second (and final) chapter in the Peladon Saga - albeit a
slightly long-winded story, weighing in at six episodes. There's a
wonderful sense of continuity mixed with enough fresh elements to
rejuvenate the settings and situations, and with a rather feisty Sarah Jane
Smith, helps add another level to the Doctor / Companion dynamic.
As
with
The Curse of Peladon, this
release is a little feature light - even though there is one disc for
the story and another for the features, that being said, the quality of
the extras is in no way compromised, and adds value to an already
worthwhile box-set.
The
'Commentary' is again moderated
by Toby Hadoke, and features
Terrance Dicks (Script
Editor), Barry Letts
(Producer), Nina Thomas
(Queen Thalira), Donald Gee
(Eckersley), Ralph Watson
(Ettis)
and
Stuart Fell (Alpha Centauri). Once more, Toby does a great job with the direction coupled
with his Doctor Who knowledge, and both Terrance and Barry add some
entertaining memories, but it can't help feeling a little overshadowed
by the Curse commentary, owing to vacancy of
Katy Manning and her
boundless energy.
There's also a 'Fan Commentary' for episode Four of the
story, featuring Rob Shearman, Mark Aldridge,
Kate Du-Rose and Philip Newman. The
commentary is well placed as it breaks up the pace and dynamic of the
commentary thus far, and it's nice to hear a take on the story from a
fans perspective - or in this case four!
'The
Peladon Saga - Part Two',
follows on from the previous part with additional interviews from
Donald Gee (Eckersley),
Nick Hobbs (Aggedor),
Stuart Fell (Alpha Centauri),
Sonny Caldinez (Ice Warrior)
and Ralph Watson (Ettis the
Miner). The second installment goes more into the production of the
story, and we also learn from cast and crew what it was like working
with Jon Pertwee. The
crowning moment, though, has to be
Terrance Dicks' hilarious breakdown of
Alpha Centauri's physical appearance.
There's a 'Deleted Scene' in
the form of photos and off-air recordings featuring Eckersley trying to
convince Gebek to get the miners to continue mining for the trisilicate.
'Where are They Now?'
features an interview with Ysanne
Churchman, conducted by David
Jacobs. Ysanne is asked about providing her voicework for the
Hermaphrodite exopod; Alpha Centauri, before treating us to a rather
alarming Birmingham accent!
'On
Target: Terrance Dicks',
offers an in-depth look at the writer's work off the screen, with the
Doctor Who Book range. Featuring interviews with
Alan Barnes (Ex Doctor Wgho Magazine Editor),
Paul Cornell (Writer), as
well as input from Terrance himself. This is the most significant
feature on
The Monster of Peladon
disc, as everything about it from the titles, down to the concise
information and text readings from
Katy Manning, smacks of sheer quality.
As
with previous DVD releases, there are the usual 'PDF Material', 'Photo Gallery'
and 'Production Subtitles'
included.
Peladon Tales
is a great box-set, well worth the £29.99 RRP, but with
2|Entertain's previous
history of quality extras, the bar has been raised so high, that the
viewer is spoiled, and can’t help feeling a little deflated with
anything less than two screens of features per story.
That being said,
the quality of the features for both stories are as high as ever, and
act as a great companion to the Peladon saga.
