Doctor Who: The Seeds of Death [DVD] [1963]

The acting is also worthy of praise. Doctor Who has had its fair share of cheap extras in its time, going over the top and giving the series a reputation for being a pantomime. That can't be said for this particular story. The extras aren't merely people to be killed by the monsters or help the Doctor defeat them, they are people in their own right, and we get the impression that they have a history and motivations, even when they're only in minor roles. Of particular merit is the old gentleman who designed the last rocket ship before space travel was replaced by the revolutionary T-Mat transportation technology, and Miss Kelly, the feisty chief technician for T-Mat on Earth who actually manages to appear authoritative and isn't patronisingly put into a mini skirt.

Patrick Troughton, nearing the end of his tenure, looks comfortable and assured in the role. He gets to do a bit of his usual clowning, but as with the best Doctor Who stories, we are left to wonder by his performance if perhaps the Doctor isn't quite as ahead of the game as he likes to think he is. In a particularly welcome twist, it is the Doctor who gets captured by the Ice Warriors, not Jamie and Zoe, even though it looks like they're wandering into that particular clichéd plot device, as so often happens in inferior stories when they're running out of steam.

If there's one niggle, it's the Ice Warriors, who do tend to lumber about in their baggy rubber suits. Beyond that, though, the production values are far better than the original series of Star Trek, which was being made at the same time. As villains, the Ice Warriors are hardly Daleks or Cybermen, though they do manage to get a lot closer to conquering Earth here than their more popular franchise mates do on occasion. Their plan is not only quite crafty but also particular evidence of this story's resourcefulness. By sending a fungal virus to wipe us out first, the story can be restricted to sets for the moonbase, T-Mat control, a space rocket cockpit, a few exterior locations and a weather control centre. Yet it retains the feel of being an epic.

This is a two DVD set, with the six-part story on the first disc and a small mountain of extras on the second, the most interesting of which was the lost footage from The Evil of the Daleks. This is a much longer edit of some footage featured on the Tomb of the Cybermen DVD, this time with a commentary as well.

This story is also very well served by it's features, which are a very neat little package. The commentary is informative, amusing and never dull. The doucumentary is light-weight, and is pretty much just the actors complaining about their sweaty costumes, but is still highly entertaining. 'The Last Dalek' feature is a fascinating look at the end sequence of 'The Evil of the Daleks' which also has an excellent ommentary by Michael John Harris and Peter Day. But the real treat on this DVD is the newly discovered New Zealand censor clips from 'The Web of Fear', which are frankly stunning and really make this particular story one you desperatley wish could be recovered in it's entireity. 'The Wheel in Space' punch-up clips don't really stand a chance against those marvellous Yeti!
All in all this is yet another fantastic Doctor Who DVD release, with plenty to enjoy in the story and features. So go buy it if you haven't already, and enjoy everything this disc has to offer.

With regards to the extra's my favourite is the commentary with companions Frazer Hines, Wendy Padbury, Director Michael Ferguson and in the later parts Terrance Dicks (I know, I was shocked when he popped up too, turns out he did uncredited rewrites on the later part of the story). All are in fine form and the comments towards Troughton are incredibly touching. The quality of the picture is also vastly improved from the poorly edited and scratchy VHS version - its just so amazing to see this type of quality in a black and white story. Theres a nice little interview with various actors who played Ice Warriors and the makeup artist. However a must for any fans is footage of effects shots from (the missing/deleted) Evil of the Daleks which shows us a quick glimpse of this epic.

To sum up I think this is perhaps the best Ice Warrior story (they seem to work more in black and white for me) and a good example of the Patrick Troughton stories that still remain. Theres not a lot of this gorgeous era remaining so I'd recomend enjoying what little is left...