The Mutants Episode Six

The one where the Marshal wants to rule New Earth...

Dear oh dear oh dear... this story really does go downhill fast, doesn't it? It didn't start out all that promising, but it enjoyed a bit of a peak midway through thanks to the beautifully lit and directed location filming at Chislehurst Caves. But now we're at the end I can't help feeling that The Mutants really does deserve its reputation as one of the poorest Pertwee serials of all. It's certainly the worst I've watched so far on this marathon, although I'm aware there are horrors to come...

The Investigator (played by Peter Howell with, as per Geoffrey Palmer's Administrator, sacks more gravitas and professionalism than the majority of the cast) arrives with his tribunal and guards in an effort to get to the bottom of this debacle once and for all. Dressed in a rather Time Lord-y fashion, the Investigator listens to the reports and statements of various protagonists in an interminable summary of 'the story so far', like it's some kind of intergalactic Poirot mystery. This tribunal is dull, dull, dull, until the Doctor manages to expose the Marshal's true splenetic nature.

This does the Doctor's cause little good though, because the mutts have followed Sondergaard to Skybase, and crash the tribunal in such a way that convinces the Investigator that the Marshal's fears about mutations on Solos are well-founded. The mutt costumes lose every ounce of their effectiveness on the harshly-lit Skybase sets. They worked much better in the caves on location, peering out of the half-light or silhouetted in beautiful greens, pinks and blues.

The story is paddling in circles now, with the Doctor and Jaeger returning to the lab to try and turn the atmosphere of Solos into a breathable, Earth-like one, so that the crazed Marshal can make it the centre of a new empire, with him in control, obviously. His megalomania is truly on the surface now as he admits he plans to arrange for an "accident" for the Investigator and use ionisation to turn Solos into New Earth (I wonder if it'll have a New New York?).

Luckily, Ky has been exposed to thaesium radiation, triggering the final metamorphosis from a humanoid man of Spring into an ethereal spirit of Summer! Ky's transformation into a floating, caped angel figure, complete with dainty voice and strobing Gay Pride flag, is well realised, even if the movement of Ky around the Skybase doesn't quite pay off (it worked for 1972, so we shouldn't judge too harshly!). One of my favourite bits of the story actually comes from the mouth of Rick James (amazing, I know) when Ky leaves, and Cotton says: "'Goodbye'? Great, innit? He just flashes off and leaves us here."

Ky floats to the lab, where he kills the Marshal in cold blood, proving that just because you've evolved into a big gay angel, doesn't mean peace and love are your watchwords. One of the Marshal's final lines is so appallingly written and acted that it sums up how bad Bob Baker and Dave Martin's script has been for The Mutants. Levelling his gun at the Doctor, he says: "Doctor... you've destroyed my dreams. I'll destroy you!" The shocked face Paul Whitsun-Jones pulls when he sees Ky puts the icing on a particularly messy cake.

And so it's all wrapped up very easily in one of those scenes where everybody has already decided what they want to do next and how it will be achieved. The Investigator appoints Cotton as acting Marshal of Solos, which I suppose isn't as crazy as it first seems: despite being acted abominably, Cotton has been a very capable character throughout, much more capable than a regular guard has any right to be.

The ending is atrocious, with Jo bizarrely likening the TARDIS to a broom cupboard, and the Doctor punning that they've made a "clean sweep" of events on Skybase. It's the sort of ending you expect from Star Trek: The Next Generation, or a really cheesy 1970s sitcom, not a Doctor Who story about atmospheric pollution, organic evolution and attempted genocide. And oh yeah, does anybody remember Stubbsy? That guy who helped you all out but who was killed in episode 5? No? Ah well, life is such a valueless commodity in 70s Who sometimes, isn't it?

The Mutants has a really good, serious and intelligent story at its heart, but the execution almost completely ruins it. Barry's direction on location is stunning, but once everything gets into studio, it is cheap and hokey, while the cast is almost universally atrocious. I'd love to see The Mutants remade with some proper actors, because then - trimmed down to four episodes - I reckon it'd be classed as one of the best Pertwees, not one of the very worst.

First broadcast: May 13th, 1972

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: It's both awful and wonderful at the same time, but as I'm struggling for anything positive to say about this episode, I'm going to nominate Paul Whitsun-Jones' stunning "shocked face". He rehearsed that well.
The Bad: "Doctor, you destroyed my dreams. I'll destroy you!"
Overall score for episode: ★★☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ (story average: 4.8 out of 10)

"Now listen to me" tally: 17
Neck-rub tally: 7

NEXT TIME: The Time Monster...

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

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/2014/05/the-mutants.html

The Mutants is available on BBC DVD. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Mutants-Jon-Pertwee/dp/B004DNWDYQ