Doctor Who - The Curse of Peladon Reviews

Rating		Votes
10	6%	5
9	21%	19
8	33%	29
7	16%	14
6	16%	14
5	7%	6
4	2%	2
3	0%	0
2	0%	0
1	0%	0
Average Rating 7.6
Votes 89

Synopsis

From http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide

The Doctor and Jo make a test flight in the TARDIS and arrive on the planet Peladon. Seeking shelter, they enter the citadel of the soon-to-be-crowned King Peladon, where the Doctor is mistaken for a human dignitary summoned to act as Chairman of a committee assessing an application by the planet to join the Galactic Federation.

The other committee members - Alpha Centauri, Arcturus and the Martian Lord Izlyr and his Warrior subordinate Ssorg - have already arrived, but are disconcerted by the death of one of the King's advisors, Chancellor Torbis. High Priest Hepesh, who opposes the union with the Federation, attributes Torbis's death to the Curse of Aggedor, the sacred beast of Peladon. Other incidents occur and the Doctor concludes that a saboteur is at work.

At first he suspects the Ice Warriors, but the guilty parties are eventually revealed to be Hepesh and Arcturus. Arcturus has convinced Hepesh that the Federation would only exploit Peladon for its mineral riches, whereas this is in fact his own race's intention. Arcturus is destroyed with a blast from Ssorg's sonic gun, but Hepesh escapes into a network of tunnels beneath the citadel, where he foments rebellion amongst the guards. The rebels storm the citadel and take the King prisoner.

Hepesh then orders Aggedor - a real beast he has been using for his own ends - to kill the Doctor. The Doctor, however, has tamed Aggedor, and it is Hepesh who dies.

Has Prerequisite Story

0 out of 21 (0.0%) raters say this story requires a previous story.

Extended Ratings

Plot

8.0

(32)

Acting

8.3

(32)

Effects

7.6

(32)

Replay

7.6

(29)

3rd Doctor

Alpha Centauri

Jo Grant

Arcturus

Hepesh

Ice Warriors

Politics

Cast

The Doctor - Jon Pertwee

Jo Grant - Katy Manning

Aggedor - Nick Hobbs

Alpha Centauri - Stuart Fell

Amazonia - Wendy Danvers

Arcturus - Murphy Grumbar

Grun - Gordon St Clair

Guard Captain - George Giles

Hepesh - Geoffrey Toone

Izlyr - Alan Bennion Peladon - David Troughton

Ssorg - Sonny Caldinez

Torbis - Henry Gilbert

Voice of Alpha Centauri - Ysanne Churchman

Voice of Arcturus - Terry Bale

Director:

Lennie Mayne

Writer:

Brian Hayles

Reviews

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Doctor Who

Classic TV Series

The Curse of Peladon

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Reviewed By: XxDachshundxX Review Date: 4/21/19 3:59 am

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

I have to disagree with the majority, I'm not a fan of the Peladon stories, which is interesting, because I love political stories, the best being The Keeper of Traken.
It all seems to go too slow with not much happening. Absolutely nothing happens in Part One besides exposition, and the rest is just walking here, and then walking there. I never bought the secret caves as being secret because everyone besides the King seems to know about them! The highlight of the plot was the mystery of who was the traitorous delegate, but I felt that it didn't work well because there were only three other delegates besides the Doctor and the audience knows its not going to the Alpha Centauri or the Ice Warriors because they would be too obvious. I also feel the mystery element was undermined by the fact that we knew Grun and Hepesh were involved, so it didn't really matter if there was a delegate.
The sets are nice, very medieval, but I feel that other stories do them better. The visuals were okay, not too bad, but nothing spectacular either. The model shots were excellent as always, something that I really appreciate.
I also dislike the fact that it doesn't really possess the Pertwee tone of the rest of his era. Its not that its just off Earth, as stories like Carnival of Monsters and Death to the Daleks capture this tone brilliantly.
I much prefer The Monster of Peladon.
5/10

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8.0

(90)

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6.8

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Death to the Daleks

6.2

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The Monster of Peladon

Doctor Who

Classic TV Series

The Curse of Peladon

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Unsure

Reviewed By: BrainofMorbius23Review Date: 7/21/18 10:09 am

0 out of 0 found this review helpful.

I love this episode. It’s a great idea and sure it’s a little cheesy at moments but one must admit that it’s bizzare characters are likeable.
It’s a whodunnit which saves the ice warriors in your face and then goes hang on maybe not. I like this twist that the ice warriors are always evil. Nice to have some races in the show that can be villain or ally.
Always thought the draconians could’ve also been used in this regard.

Alpha centuri is hilarious and brilliant if you ask me

Doctor Who

Classic TV Series

The Curse of Peladon

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Reviewed By: adamelijahReview Date: 7/17/17 12:10 pm

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

The Doctor and Jo find the TARDIS working and landing on the planet Peladon where the Doctor assumes the identity of the Earth representing the Galactic Federation and works to broker Peladon's admittance into the federation despite an atmosphere of superstition, and danger.

The Doctor is marvelous in this episode. He has an air of easy authority that makes him slot right in as the Chairman of the Commission. We also get to see the physicality of the Third Doctor in a brilliant fight scene in episode three.

Katy Manning was also very good, showing great chemistry with the Doctor as well as some very believable reactions to being mistaken for a princess. Her costume for the episode is particularly effective.

The story also makes brilliant use of the Ice Warriors, suggesting a different side to the species and giving them a degree of complexity that surpasses other Doctor Who "monsters." There's a nice bit of political intrigue and the Doctor singing a bit.

Overall, a very fun and satisfying story that, at four episodes, doesn't overstay its welcome.