The Krotons Episode Two

The one where the Doctor and Zoe accidentally create the Krotons...

I've never really thought about it much before, but the title The Krotons is really pointless, isn't it? It tells you absolutely nothing about the story, because the word "Kroton" doesn't mean anything to anyone, unless you're a Brazilian educationalist. You might guess that there's an alien species in the story called the Krotons, but you can't be sure, and even their name doesn't tell you what sort of alien they are. It's actually a rare example of a Doctor Who story being named after a monster we know nothing about, and learn nothing about from their name.

The Daleks is the obvious similarity, but stories such as The Sensorites, The War Machines, The Ice Warriors, The Dominators, The Daemons, The Sea Devils - even Doctor Who and the Silurians - all tell you a little something about the titular creatures, whether they be sensitive, war-like, domineering, aquatic, demonic or icy! I can only think of Meglos as another example of a story title named after a monster which means nothing before you've watched it. And let's be honest, Meglos doesn't really mean very much after you've watched it either...

Anyway, back to the story. The reprise from that awful cliffhanger is no improvement on the original, and as I watched Patrick Troughton crawling around on the floor, oohing, aahing and gurning as a giant bendy torch snaked towards him, I considered this was the very worst moment of his tenure. It's embarrassing to see him doing this, and I'm sure he'd probably agree, as it hadn't been long since he'd decided to quit the role. The bridge between episodes 1 and 2 of The Krotons is officially my Worst Second Doctor Moment Ever (to date anyway). I had to laugh when Troughton starts to pretend he's in the Wall's Sky Ray ice lolly advert though, desperately shielding his face, not from an approaching Dalek this time, but a big phallic light bulb!

This appalling moment over and done with, I have to admit that Robert Holmes (the man who would become one of Doctor Who's greatest ever geniuses) actually writes a vastly improved second episode, and this is in large part down to the fact he almost completely sidelines the Gonds and concentrates on the Doctor, Zoe and Jamie. The episode gradually morphs into dependably grass-roots Doctor Who fare, with our heroes investigating a new environment and getting into all sorts of scrapes. Once Holmes ditches Selris and his chums (in fact, he ditches Philip Madoc's Eelek and James Cairncross's Beta altogether!), the story gets far more interesting, if remaining mildly silly.

I like how the Doctor deduces that what the Krotons' machines do not teach the Gonds may be significant, and I love how tactful he is when he asks Jamie to stay behind and look after Vana, because he actually needs the far cleverer Zoe to accompany him to the Hall of Learning. Appealing to Jamie's ego and libido is the perfect way to placate the Scotsman, and is a lovely little demonstration of the dynamic between the current TARDIS team, and how new boy Holmes already understands it.

And there's more evidence of Holmes' thoughtful characterisation when he has Zoe transfixed by the lure of the teaching machines. Zoe is a super-intelligent mathematician, so of course she'd be attracted by a machine which fills you up with knowledge. She even refers to this type of education in her own future in The Wheel in Space. Wendy Padbury gets Zoe's wide-eyed wonder across very easily, and it's a perfect bit of characterisation, with Holmes using the character's attributes to further the story (rather than inventing one that wasn't there before, such as Victoria's sudden aptitude for lock-picking in Fury from the Deep).

On the downside though, I feel there's something wrong with Patrick Troughton's performance. I guess it's because we now know he was exhausted and bored to tears by Doctor Who, but in this story in particular, it's like he's running on autopilot, and making performative decisions which almost infantilise, or at least undermine, his Doctor. The awful "Great jumping gobstoppers" line, the bumbling of the teaching machine test, and in particular the reaction to being chosen to go into the Kroton ship: "Doctor-Gond? IDIOTS!" The way he delivers that line is when I realised what was wrong: this is The Five Doctors Second Doctor. Terrance Dicks wrote semi-caricatures of the first three Doctors in the 20th anniversary story (just as with Twice Upon a Time, the First Doctor we see in The Five Doctors is nothing like William Hartnell's true portrayal). The Second Doctor from The Five Doctors is like a half-remembered thing based on the silly version we see here in The Krotons, I'm sure of it. And who was script editor for The Krotons? Mr Dicks...

Don't get me wrong, I love The Five Doctors, and seeing that story started a lifetime's adoration for the Second Doctor and Patrick Troughton. But the Second Doctor we see in The Krotons isn't the Second Doctor we're accustomed to, at least not during his tenure.

Troughton does settle down a bit when he shares his scenes with Padbury while exploring inside the Kroton ship. The melodrama is dialed down and we get the thoughtful, gravel-voiced imp we're used to, rather than the over-pronounced buffoon he's wandered into.

There's some lovely direction from David Maloney too, who uses a fish-eye lens to shoot the mental assault on the Doctor and Zoe, and when the Krotons are finally crystallized, he's careful not to show them in full until the end of the episode. This may be because, despite a really rather magnificent design from the waist up, the Krotons also have ridiculous skirts around their legs, which make them look downright silly. Maloney is wise to try and avoid shooting them full-length, but isn't always successful. Their arms and hands are reminiscent of that icon of science-fiction, Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet, although it's more accurate to say the ribbed arms and pincers are similar to the Lost in Space robot's, which of course is quite different to Robby the Robot, despite received wisdom to the contrary.

The fact the Krotons have South African accents is bewildering. It's a very definite creative choice too, because voice actors Roy Skelton and Patrick Tull are not South African at all. I suppose I see no reason why aliens shouldn't have South African accents. Maybe, as the Krotons are crystalline beings, they've arrived on the planet of the Gonds all the way from the diamond mines of the Lower Orange River in South Africa? Or maybe it's just a very weird production choice.

The cliffhanger is infinitely better to the previous one, with Jamie succumbing to the Krotons' mental assault. David Maloney doesn't opt for a fish-eye lens this time, but Frazer Hines decides instead to audition for Aardman's Wallace and Gromit animations 20 years ahead of time. Flash those gnashers, Frazer!

First broadcast: January 4th, 1969

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: Robert Holmes sidelining the Gonds enables the story to develop markedly, and the Doctor and Zoe's exploration of the Kroton ship is classic Doctor Who.
The Bad: This Second Doctor feels off. I want the proper one back.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

NEXT TIME: Episode Three...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: Episode One; Episode Three; Episode Four

Find out birth/death dates, career information, and facts and trivia about this story's cast and crew at the Doctor Who Cast & Crew site: http://doctorwhocastandcrew.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-krotons.html

The Krotons is available on BBC DVD. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Krotons-Patrick-Troughton/dp/B007Z10GUG.