I was so bored… good ending though

Another great and memorable monster for this story - a superb start to Pertwee's tenure. The show continues to move at wildly faster pace than ever before. It is obvious that they have decided to revamp and relaunch the show entirely, it is aimed at a new action loving audience. Jon Pertwee is undoubtedly my favourite incarnation of The Doctor so far and his energetic initial 11 episodes could not have been more of a gift for him. He looks like he is having the time of his life playing this role, I feel really invested in his portrayal.

I am loving the regular cast of UNIT, the Brigadier is a wonder, and I am comfortable with the new form of the show. Perhaps Doctor Who can be set just on Earth after all. I believe that it is because of these features that the first two stories of season seven have been able to enter a more adult and thoughtful territory. The display of workers being driven insane by mysterious circumstances and a woman dying of fright are unprecedentedly dark themes. The deaths in this season feel "more real" than before.

The concept behind the Silurians is my favourite for any monster in the show so far. The idea that they have always been inhabitants of Earth and that they are a highly developed race is really subversive and is a great starting point for this story. The writing also allows for the monsters to be seen with greater nuance - some of them are good, some of them are bad. I particularly enjoyed being able to see the world through their eyes, the "three eye camera" moment helps make them a terrifying creeping menace (and is some great direction!) The Silurian caves, with their human prisons look brilliant and give you an other worldly sense that I was worried this Earth bound season would be missing.

Where the Silurians start to become less impressive is when they are revealed and speak for long periods of time. They are unfortunately written to sound like children ("now I am the leader!") when we are told that they are a highly developed race. On top of this I feel that no effort has been put into their movement, which is clunky throughout these scenes. In terms of their costumes, the way they are realised is fine and they work well when they are not on screen for too much time but when their screen time increases mid-way through the story their long conversations with rubber mouths look terrible and do not help sell the plot. It is for this reason that Part Four is much worse than the surrounding six episodes.

My only other criticism of this otherwise excellent story is that Liz Shaw is still too stern and pensive, she just seems slightly annoyed all the time. I am delighted that the writers have decided to write an outwardly feminist character, reflecting its diverse audience - but I don't feel that they are particularly great at writing for women. Its as if they think that women who are not damsels in distress must be resistant to fun!! Perhaps its down to the fact that we are moving into an action based "James Bond" territory that her characterisation simply doesn't suit this testosterone fuelled environment. The caveat I would like to add to this is that I truly believe that Caroline John is doing very well considering the part she is given. I bet she could be great fun given the chance.

The ending of this story is excellently handled. The Brigadier destroys the Silurians underground base against The Doctor's instructions.
This pits our two favourites against each other in a dramatic twist. The Doctor's dream of a peaceful unity between the two races is destroyed. The Doctor, quite rightly is horrified at this act of genocide.

Just watched the last episode tonight, and I have to say, I'm disappointed. I went in expecting to like this a lot more than I did. I've always liked the idea of the Silurians, these Terran 'aliens', but just didn't really enjoy their introductory story. Vague spoilers from here on out. (3/5)

For one thing, the serial went on way too long. I understand that it was likely some financial thing or quota they had to meet - X number of 7-episode serials in the season, something like that - but it really felt detrimental to the story, or, should I say, stories. It felt like two in one - the first couple episodes were a murder mystery with the possibility of humanity and the Silurians reaching a compromise, with the pace methodical and measured, and then there was a sudden jump to people rushing about and viruses (never tell me these old episodes aren't relevant to today!) and so many bodies piling up... it was just too big a change. I think that it would have worked much better if it had been split into two serials, with the first being the murder mystery and the tentative truce resolution, and the second coming later in the season with a rogue faction of Silurians who want to kill humanity, similar to the zygon invasion/inversion double.

I also thought the costumes weren't great, (though the 'third eye' design was quite cool), the noise the Silurians' eye made was downright horrendous (my sensory processing disorder was screaming in agony), and the ending was abrupt and unsatisfying.

However, the serial wasn't a total loss. Caroline John and Pertwee's acting was splendid, and I felt that the first couple episodes were compelling and entertaining. When there weren't so many people rushing about, just Liz and Three talking about the lengths that UNIT might go or the secrets they were keeping, the serial was at it's most interesting. And the sombre tone at the end and the examination of UNIT's actions and intentions were certainly moving and thought-provoking.

So, that brings my review to an end - I didn't personally enjoy it much overall, but there was some great acting and some fantastic moments that makes the serial worth watching.

While The Silurians certainly has its fans, I can't say I am one of them. Between the truly awful effects that rely on some pretty obvious camera tricks to create a dinosaur, and costumes that just don't look great at all (even by the relative standards of the era), I had a tough time getting through these six episodes. The plot moves slowly and never really had me captivated, though I do like how The Silurians are written as a group of people with different opinions the Doctor can negotiate with. The Silurians themselves are pretty original, and the final episode does have some pretty cool moments at the nuclear plant and with the Brigadier wiping out The Silurians at the end, but even those moments struggle a lot in their execution and feel a little underdeveloped.

There are some decent moments of suspense to The Silurians, though that feels a little overdone in my eyes. At a certain point it stops captivating me as we slowly pan/move through cave sets and instead I just start to get bored. In comparison, I had a lot more fun with The Sea Devils. Though they have similar plots, I feel the Sea Devils are better paced, and the Doctor has better chemistry with Jo over Liz. The Third Doctor is fun in both stories but Jo and the Master, along with a more impressive production, made Sea Devils a lot more of a pleasant viewing experience when compared to the Silurians.