The Macra Terror

"Confusion is best left to the experts."

Writer: Ian Stuart Black

Format: TV

Broadcast:

Season: 4.07

Featuring: Second Doctor, Polly, Ben, Jamie

Synopsis

When the Doctor, Polly, Ben and Jamie visit a human colony that appears to be one big holiday camp, they think they have come across a truly happy place. Yet a shadowy presence soon makes them realise that the surface contentment is being roamed by giant crab-like creatures known as the Macra...

Verdict 

The Macra Terror was a serial I had highly anticipated watching and sadly it didn't quite live up to whatever my relatively high expectations were based upon. I've only briefly read about the completely missing serial in the past so other than their return in Gridlock, I knew relatively little about the historic enemies of the story. Sadly, the Macra were a big let down. Now, I liked the concept. Giant crab creatures stalking and controlling a futuristic human colony has the basis of a good plot but what we got wasn't breathtaking. Before I start sounding ultra-critical, I liked the story and thought it was a good watch but it didn't live up to the standard already set in this fourth season. It certainly can't stand alongside the likes of The Tenth Planet, The Power of the Daleks or The Moonbase. The design of the Macra, for the late '60s, was actually pretty good I thought. They were made as fierce looking as they could be which was a bonus and I did like that the story and the characters exaggerated the threat they possessed. I did though feel there was a bit too much hyperbole regarding their size. The use of claws was frightening carrying on from the lead in from the previous serial. I didn't like the fancy songs the workers of the colony sung. It kind of horribly reminded me of The Gunfighters, thankfully the cheerleading songs weren't overused. I was glad Ben got his shining moments as companion in this serial and he took some of the limelight from Polly here. She has been superb in pretty much every serial since her debut in The War Machines but here, with a new look I wasn't fond of, she wasn't outstanding sadly. She just screamed most of the time or was subjected to capture sadly. Ben being taken over by Control and 'betraying' his fellow TARDIS crew members was fantastic. He and the Doctor were the highlights, with Patrick Troughton being fan-bloody-tastic in this story. He was just mischievous and fiddling around and his reactions were priceless! I'm really fond of the first revamp of the opening titles with the face of Troughton appearing. It's something fresh and unique and looks pretty darn cool! I was a bit disappointed by the cliffhangers in this story for the reason that basically, each one was the same. The threat of an approaching or incoming Macra is good for the first cliffhanger but not for all three! Despite Polly's most disappointing display to date, I liked how close she was with the Second Doctor. Their relationship has developed nicely and that's pleasant to see. The climax was exciting which was great with Jamie clambering amongst the Macra and a crevice. The credibility of the Macra was hurt towards the end though which was unfortunate with the truth about Control revealed. However, they just screeched to my annoyance. The gradual return of Ben to normality was good and done just in time, as I'd have expected. The use of gas as a means of food for the Macra was intriguing so the obvious route of destruction was done well. The gas supply was cut and the TARDIS crew literally danced their way back to the TARDIS. Overall, decent but it could have been so much more. 

Rating: 7/10