The Creature from the Pit

"What do we do when we find the monster?"

Writer: David Fisher
Format: TV
Broadcast: 27 October - 17 November 1979
Season: 17.03

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II, K9

Synopsis

The Doctor and Romana receive a distress signal and arrive on Chloris. It's a lush and verdant world with only small quantities of metals, all of which are controlled by its ruler, Lady Adastra. She keeps order with the aid of her Huntsman and his Wolfweeds – mobile balls of vegetation. A band of thieves, led by Torvin, organise raids on her palace to steal whatever metal they can. But the mine of Chrolis is something huge, a creature thrown into the pit to be forgotten... and the Doctor is about to join them.

Verdict

The Creature from the Pit was a very good serial and another good example of an underrated story in my opinion! I didn't really know what to expect going into this adventure, but I was pleasantly pleased with what I watched. This tale doesn't exactly have the best reputation and I can see why when it comes to Erato and the prop that was the giant green blob monster. Giving it that description makes it sound a bit targeted for children, but that wasn't the case at all here. I thought it was a bit strange for the creature to not have any real shape or noticeable features. It just looked a bit of a mess, but it was still imposing. I enjoyed the cliffhanger to part two with the Doctor seemingly being sucked up and going under the giant creature, but then the resolution at the start of the third instalment initially seemed poor as nothing much seemed to have occurred. Of course, we would soon loon that Erato was actually an ambassador and was on the planet to try and conjure up a trade agreement. With that being the case and finding that Erato had been trapped for fifteen years, it was made Lady Adastra even more of an evil villain. I actually thought she was a fantastic enemy and the scale of the story was really good. Rather than have the universe at stake, the TARDIS had just picked up a distress call. The way Romana had found the device that the Doctor had removed enabling them to receive calls, including Time Lord missions. The Doctor really wasn't very fond of those which was magnificent. I thought Tom Baker had a fantastic outing as the Fourth Doctor. A really great performance. Romana was also brilliant and she looked very high class in her white outfit. She was quite dazzling. I always seem to forget that for Season 17 K9 was not voiced by John Leeson and I have to say that it is a little off-putting in all honesty. It's just not right in this incarnation I have to say! K9 played a good role in the story though and I enjoyed how willing he was to stun a number of people. When the Doctor was essentially arrested, the moment he got a guard to itch his nose and then butt him to aid his escape was terrific. That was just wonderfully Fourth Doctor. Romana also had a moment to shine and show her superior intelligence when got the thieves and raiders to blow the whistle that would bring K9 to her side and bring her to safety. I really enjoyed that. Their obsession with metal was intriguing and I enjoyed their reaction to seeing that K9 was also metallic. His annoyance at being referred to as tin dog was magnificent. Another highlight of the adventure. Organon was an excellent character and his continued interest in the stars and their signs was lovely. His relationship with the Doctor was a joy to behold and I loved how he kept pressing him for the star sign of his birth. Sadly, he wouldn't get the answer. The conclusion to the story was pretty simplistic once Adastra was killed early on in part four and it just had the Doctor aiding Erato home whilst diverting a star. Just the small things! Where a creature that size had got a ship still in working order so quickly is beyond me though! Organaon foreshadowing the arrival of the TARDIS was a lovely way to end things as well. Overall, a really good adventure!

Rating: 8/10