Planet of the Spiders (TV story)

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Revision as of 22:54, 23 February 2008 by 98.204.125.138 (talk) (→‎Plot)


Synopsis

The Doctor and Sarah Jane travel to Metebelis III, fighting against the Eight Legs, who want the blue crystal which the Doctor stole from them. But if they retrieve it, they will give it to the Great One who will rule the universe.

Plot

Part One

Mike Yates, discharged from UNIT and recuperating at a Tibetan meditation center in rural England, is concerned about a small group who meet secretly in the basement. Meanwhile, The Doctor is researching psychic energy and enlists the assistance of a clairvoyant, Professor Clegg. His experiments backfire when Clegg's fixation on the blue crystal from Metebelis III (which Jo Grant had recently returned to the Doctor) leads to his seeing giant spiders, and the psychic energy released kills him. Mike enlists the assistance of Sarah Jane. Sneaking into the basement they see the group, led by Lupton, summon a similar giant spider into existence.

Part Two

The giant spider melds with Lupton, and they are determined to locate the crystal. He infiltrates UNIT and steals the crystal, leading to a lengthy chase involving the Whomobile, a small helicopter, a hovercraft, and a speedboat. The Doctor finally catches up to Lupton, but when he jumps on board, Lupton vanishes.

Part Three

Lupton re-appears at the meditation center, secretly observed by the simple-minded handyman Tommy, who later steals the crystal. The Doctor and Sarah Jane investigate the meditation center. Exploring the basement Sarah steps on Lupton's mandala and is transported to Metebelis III, where a small group of humans are held in bondage by the giant spiders. The humans are descendants of survivors of a crashed spaceship, and the spiders onboard were mutated by radiation from the blue crystals and rose to dominate. The Doctor follows in the TARDIS to rescue Sarah Jane, but is incapacitated by the spiders' human guards.

Part Four

On Metebelis III, the Doctor lingers in a coma. Tommy's brain is healed when he looks deep into the crystal. Lupton becomes embroiled in a plot led by the Spider Queen against their ultimate ruler, The Great One. The Doctor recovers, but is captured again by the spiders while attempting to rescue Sarah Jane.

Part Five

The Doctor encounters a radiation-filled cave wherein dwells the Great One, who easily manipulates him through psychic energy. The Doctor is too overcome by fear to face her, and escapes with Sarah Jane back to Earth. They meet the leader of the meditation center, the Abbot K'anpo Rimpoche, who the Doctor recognizes as his former mentor: the Time Lord hermit he described in The Time Monster. Meanwhile, Lupton's followers, possessed by the Giant Spiders, attack our heroes to retrieve the crystal, which Tommy has given to K'anpo.

Part Six

The attack is repulsed with the help of Tommy, but K'anpo is injured and forced to regenerate by merging with his assistant, Cho-Je, who was a projection of K'anpo's conscience. The Doctor realizes his greed for knowledge set all these events into motion, and that he must face his fear and probable death by returning the crystal to the cave of the Great One. The Great One, an enormous spider, desires the blue crystal to complete a crystalline web that will amplify her psychic power to infinity. However, once the crystal is in place, the web overloads and destroys her and the other giant spiders. The Doctor receives a lethal dose of radiation, and barely manages to return to UNIT before collapsing. With a little "push" from K'anpo, the Doctor regenerates before the Brigadier and Sarah Jane's eyes...

Cast

Crew

References

  • The Doctor receives a package from Jo Grant containing his blue crystal, which he picked up during during his previous visit to Metebelis III.
  • Mike Yates refers to the last time he encountered Sarah "that business with the Dinosaurs".

Story Notes

  • This is the first time Regeneration is mentioned on screen.
  • This story features a large chase scene featuring: Bessie, the Doctor's car (known as the Whomobile), a police car, a gyrocopter, a hovercraft and a boat.
  • Tom Baker is uncredited in the conclusion of Planet of the Spiders, when Jon Pertwee transforms into Tom Baker.

Myths

to be added

Filming Locations

to be added

Continuity

  • Jo Grant send the Doctor a package containing a blue crystal (The Green Death), which makes Planet of the Spiders a sequel of sorts to The Green Death.

DVD and Video Releases

to be added

Target Novelisations

to be added

External Links

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