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TARDIS Guide

Overview

First aired

Saturday, December 28, 1968

Production Code

WW

Written by

Robert Holmes

Directed by

David Maloney

Runtime

100 minutes

Time Travel

Future

Tropes (Potential Spoilers!)

HADS, The Doctor Falls, Robots

Location (Potential Spoilers!)

Gond planet

Synopsis

The TARDIS arrives on the planet of the Gonds, who are ruled and taught in a form of self-perpetuating slavery by the alien Krotons — crystalline beings whose ship, the Dynatrope, crash-landed there thousands of years earlier after being damaged in a space battle.

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4 Episodes

Episode One

First aired

Saturday, December 28, 1968

Runtime

25 minutes

Written by

Robert Holmes

Directed by

David Maloney

UK Viewers

9 million

Appreciation Index

59

Synopsis

When the TARDIS arrives on the planet of the Gonds, the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe discover a world ruled and enslaved by the Krotons. The brightest Gonds are always chosen to serve as companions of the Krotons and are never seen again...


Episode Two

First aired

Saturday, January 4, 1969

Runtime

25 minutes

Written by

Robert Holmes

Directed by

David Maloney

UK Viewers

8.4 million

Appreciation Index

57

Synopsis

Zoe is selected as a companion for the Krotons and the Doctor insists on joining her.


Episode Three

First aired

Saturday, January 11, 1969

Runtime

25 minutes

Written by

Robert Holmes

Directed by

David Maloney

UK Viewers

7.5 million

Appreciation Index

56

Synopsis

Jamie is held prisoner by the Krotons who intend to recapture the Doctor and Zoe for their mental energy.


Episode Four

First aired

Saturday, January 18, 1969

Runtime

25 minutes

Written by

Robert Holmes

Directed by

David Maloney

UK Viewers

7.1 million

Appreciation Index

55

Synopsis

Selris succeeds in drawing the Krotons out of the Dynatrope but Eelek agrees to hand the Doctor and Zoe over to them in return for their leaving the planet.



Characters

How to watch The Krotons:

Reviews

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5 reviews

Okay I was kinda heavily invested in this story probs more then I thought it would be in a good way


I felt that this serial started off strong, with a nice hint of mystery, but became duller as it went on. The core idea is cool but let down in some aspects of its execution.


Interesting idea, but unfortunately it ends up being rather dull and uninspired. It feels like a 2-parter stretched to 4 parts. The performances are solid, but are ultimately wasted here.

I keep praising them, but the costume department has done another incredible job in this episode. The guest actors costumes are simple, but they convey the concepts of the story well. The regular cast costumes are on point too in this serial.


This review contains spoilers!

We've reached 1969 and this mixed series continues (thank God for The Invasion). This is another story with great potential which ultimately doesn't work.

The first episode and a half is mostly entertaining, if a bit slow. I enjoyed the concept of the most intelligent members of the community on this (unnamed) planet being taken away on a regular basis (we are never told how often - every day, every month?) as part of a "self-perpetuating slavery". I also enjoyed The Doctor's explanation of the human race coming from a kind of "genetic soup" in the sea and inferring that these aliens had developed on this planet from "a different kind of soup".

Before the Krotons are revealed we see different disembodied alien features throughout the episodes, this was effective and gave the enemies an individual feel. If they had kept this up of the four episodes I think I would have a very different view of this story.

Once revealed in their entirety the Krotons are disappointing generic "robot baddies" with no real character or substance. Doctor Who is at its worst when it tries to summon a robot enemy without putting any thought into what makes these creatures different or interesting. In all honesty I can't tell you what separates these creatures from Quarks or War Machines - why should I care about them? What makes them tick?

Similarly, I don't care much about any of the stories' characters. In that respect it is a world away from The Invasion and unbearably similar to The Dominators (how did they end up in the same series?!). Just like The Dominators there is a race of almost annoyingly placid individuals with the exception of one man who is not afraid to speak out (in both cases a relation to a high ranking official - yawn). The population seem uninterested in taking any kind of action to stop themselves from being completely controlled by an unseen force. In fairness, there is greater explanation surrounding the Kroton's power over the Gonds actions than in this other season six story (general mind control).

By the time we got to the point in the story where the Krotons reveal their entire plan in full to The Doctor I'd lost interest. This exposition didn't feature anything that wasn't immediately obvious from watching the previous three episodes.

Thank God this wasn't an 8 part story, eh?


Unfortunately, The Krotons largely deserves its somewhat infamous reputation. I think the story is okay, it gives some interesting stuff to the Second Doctor and Zoe, both really shining in these episodes but otherwise so much works against this story. From the effects looking pretty terrible while at the same time relying pretty heavily on them, to a story that too often meanders, this is a strong example of the kind of Classic Doctor Who story that might be worth watching once, and then never again. It very much reminds me of Galaxy 4 but with the Second Doctor on a few levels, including quality of effects and a story with some moments but a lot of unfocused writing and lost potential, too.

I think "dull" might be a key word here that I've seen in another review. That about sums up my emotional experience of The Krotons overall. It is a bit of a snooze-fest and feels like it could or should have been a lot more fun than it wound up being.


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Statistics

AVG. Rating284 members
2.89 / 5

Trakt.tv

AVG. Rating288 votes
3.45 / 5

The Time Scales

AVG. Rating138 votes
3.00 / 5

Member Statistics

Watched

530

Favourited

8

Reviewed

5

Saved

0

Skipped

0

Owned

9

Quotes

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DOCTOR: Oh, my giddy aunt.

— Second Doctor, The Krotons

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Transcript Needs checking

Episode One

[Learning Hall]

(A man in hi-tech clothing removes a tablet from a hole in the wall and makes an announcement.)

SELRIS: Class three one nine six in the first grade. The names of the first selected candidates are, male, Abu-Gond! The second name is female. Vana-Gond!
THARA: (a young man) No!
SELRIS: Abu-Gond and Vana-Gond, alone of your generation you have been chosen to receive the highest honour that can befall a Gond. You are now the companions of the Krotons! Our warmest, our most sincere congratulations to you both. You will now step forward for the investiture of your robes of honour. Eelek.

(Eelek, played by Philip Madoc, places a silver cape on Abu's shoulder.)


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