The Green Death is a story that was one of the first that I remember buying on good old VHS. It was just before the TV Movie aired in 1996. Back then it was split into two tapes but thankfully it’s been put on one disc for its DVD release. The story is just as impressive today as it was back in 1996. The Green Death is as political as you would want Doctor Who to get. The story is set in a Welsh mining village where the local big bad company ‘Global Chemicals’ has been pumping its waste down the mine creating giant maggots. There you have the bad guys lead by Stevens who as it turns out is being controlled by something else.
The special effects are hit and miss if I am being totally honest. I think that the maggots are really good. Despite some of them being inflated condoms (if that’s the truth) the effect is quite good and you could believe that they are giant maggots. Also I thought the effect of the people infected by the green ‘oil’ was brilliantly realised. It’s very impressive considering that it’s probably a basic effect. If I had an issue with this story it’s that the actual imagination of B.O.S.S left a lot to be desired. A CSO screen with a wavy line isn’t what I was hoping the real bad guy would be like. Then again I suppose it’s the best they could do with the budget they had in 1973.
I was really impressed with Jerome Willis as Stevens. He started off as who we thought was the baddie because he was the head of Global Chemicals and that was really good because you end up despising him and wanting the Doctor to defeat him but then you feel sorry just before he’s about to die. It’s the typical journey for most baddies. Tony Adams was very good as Elgin who was Steven’s deputy. He was the good guy within the company because he seemed to have morals. It was a shame that he was taken ill during the recording because I felt that the character had more to offer the story.
This is the final story for Jo Grant as played by Katy Manning. Her exit was prepared with her romance with Clifford Jones very obvious throughout the six episodes. Her final scene was heartbreaking. Not because Jo was leaving but because you could feel the pain that the Doctor was feeling and Jo was sad when the Doctor left without saying goodbye. Credit to Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning for the superb way they played this. Their friendship on screen was genuine and it showed. The final shot of the Doctor driving across the landscape with the sun setting was the perfect way to end the story and the season.
The Green Death is a wonderful story and despite the environmental slant to the story it doesn’t strangle you and spoil the rest of the story. It’s one of the highlights of the Pertwee era.
The special effects are hit and miss if I am being totally honest. I think that the maggots are really good. Despite some of them being inflated condoms (if that’s the truth) the effect is quite good and you could believe that they are giant maggots. Also I thought the effect of the people infected by the green ‘oil’ was brilliantly realised. It’s very impressive considering that it’s probably a basic effect. If I had an issue with this story it’s that the actual imagination of B.O.S.S left a lot to be desired. A CSO screen with a wavy line isn’t what I was hoping the real bad guy would be like. Then again I suppose it’s the best they could do with the budget they had in 1973.
I was really impressed with Jerome Willis as Stevens. He started off as who we thought was the baddie because he was the head of Global Chemicals and that was really good because you end up despising him and wanting the Doctor to defeat him but then you feel sorry just before he’s about to die. It’s the typical journey for most baddies. Tony Adams was very good as Elgin who was Steven’s deputy. He was the good guy within the company because he seemed to have morals. It was a shame that he was taken ill during the recording because I felt that the character had more to offer the story.
This is the final story for Jo Grant as played by Katy Manning. Her exit was prepared with her romance with Clifford Jones very obvious throughout the six episodes. Her final scene was heartbreaking. Not because Jo was leaving but because you could feel the pain that the Doctor was feeling and Jo was sad when the Doctor left without saying goodbye. Credit to Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning for the superb way they played this. Their friendship on screen was genuine and it showed. The final shot of the Doctor driving across the landscape with the sun setting was the perfect way to end the story and the season.
The Green Death is a wonderful story and despite the environmental slant to the story it doesn’t strangle you and spoil the rest of the story. It’s one of the highlights of the Pertwee era.
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