Doctor Who: The Ark In Space
Directed by: Rodney Bennett
Written by: Robert Holmes
Starring: Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen, Ian Marter
In the 30th century solar flares have left the Earth a barren waste and the only hope for the human race is the space station Nerva. The titular “Ark In Space”, the station is filled with enough cryogenically suspended humans, plants and animals to restart the planet in 5,000 years. Humanity’s knowledge, history and culture is also stored in its vast microfilm library(what? It was the seventies).
Of course everything goes wrong when an alien insectoid creature sneaks in and sabotages their alarm clock. They finally wake up thousands of years later when the Doctor and his companions Harry Sullivan and Sarah Jane Smith stumble upon the ark. Unfortunately the humans aren’t the only ones they’ve roused. The alien Wirrn, our bug-eyed monsters from millennia ago also wakes and starts feeding off the still-frozen humans. The station commander, Noah (who else?), is accuses the Doctor of sabotage but changes his mind when he becomes Wirrn food and slowly turns into a giant insect himself. The Doctor, his companions and a couple of reanimated sleepers save the day by jettisoning the Wirrn larvae into space.
The Daleks are Back and in Colour!
This past week I’ve been trying and failing to write a review of the first couple of episodes of the new season of Doctor Who. For the uninitiated, Doctor Who is a Science Fiction show that scared generations of British children and showed the world what you can do with a modest special effects budget(not much). Still, it ran from 1963-1989 and was successfully relaunched in 2005.
Anyway, io9 has put up some of the concept art for the 3rd episode, Victory of the Daleks. Featuring, you guessed it, the Daleks, long time nemeses of the Doctor. Apparently, they come in different flavors now, all of them itching to EX-TER-MI-NATE!
If you haven’t seen Doctor Who before this is probably the best time to come aboard. This season comes back with a new Executive Producer , Stephen Moffat as well as a new Doctor and companion. I’ve seen all the new eps and I’m really liking Matt Smith’s portrayal of the Eleventh Doctor and his connection with new companion, Amy (Karen Gillan), has been interesting so far. The first few episodes are probably available at your friendly neighborhood torrent site but if you like your entertainment paid for, catch up on the relaunched series on DVD.
