Holistic Review: Those who are easily bored or have a low tolerance for low budgets will find The Web Planet to be dull, plodding and uninteresting. But if you can put your skepticism on hold, there's a whole lot to appreciate in both the script and the execution of this unique story.

The Web Planet is certainly one of the most unusual stories ever told in Doctor Who, for a variety of reasons. Primary among them, and an aspect which affects everything about this story, is the mind-boggling wealth of ideas on display. The plot itself is, when you boil it right down, fairly simple: an alien creature has arrived on a planet and begun to take it over, and the TARDIS crew must help the inhabitants mount a resistance. There are any number of Doctor Who stories that follow this basic format, and if that's all there were to The Web Planet, it wouldn't be anything special. This, I think, is why so many people find the story tedious: it's basically six episodes of the regulars and guest cast running around, getting captured and escaping, trying to find a way to defeat the pervasive menace of the monster-of-the-week. And then there's the one aspect that either makes or breaks this story, depending on your point of view. The guest cast are entirely non-human, almost all non-humanoid. If you can't deal with a lot of weird insects running around, then it's just going to be the last straw, and you're going to turn off the television in disgust, muttering about the boring story with a lot of people dressed up as giant butterflies.

But in my opinion, this is exactly what makes the story click. I'll admit, I don't watch The Web Planet all that often. It's a long story, and the plot itself is rather slow, so it requires the right frame of mind. But every time I sit down to watch it, I find myself utterly fascinated by all the thought and care that went into making Vortis such a thoroughly convincing alien environment.

It's got its downsides, I won't disagree. It appears there wasn't a whole lot of money to spend on this episode, and the script asks for some demanding visuals that the production can't realize as effectively as they might have liked. The Menoptra actually look pretty good, with their butterfly-marked faces, long antennae and beautiful shimmering wings, although the striped bodies look a little cheap. They're rather majestic when they fly, but the wires supporting them are sometimes a little too obvious. The Zarbi aren't bad, particularly their bodies and the cleverly-designed mandibles that they use to grip things; where they fail is mainly the spindly legs that are only good for gesticulating, and the tree-trunk legs that are clearly disguising the man within. But as a way to realize giant ants via a man in a costume, it's really pretty successful. The Optera, on the other hand, look pretty awful by comparison, with four limbs that do nothing but hang off the costume and big dreadlock-like things hanging off their heads. Scenes set on the surface and caves of Vortis are beautifully realized, despite the obviously painted backdrop which often suffers from having shadows fall on it; the Carsenome is somewhat less successful, with corridors that look more like a bunch of moveable bits of set dressing (some of which vaguely resemble cabbage leaves, I think!) than an organic growth. Then there's the famous goof in the beleaguered episode 3, where a Zarbi runs headlong into the camera (which is jolted a little), and thanks to lack of time for reshooting, makes it into the final cut.

So what I'm saying is this: you can't let the apparent cheapness of the production put you off this episode. I feel really bad even suggesting that the costumes and sets are anything less than genius, because in my opinion, everyone working on this story just did a masterful job of making it greater than the sum of its parts, and if they didn't have quite enough money to put into design, I don't think they should feel that their contributions are somehow devalued, or a failure. Just because some of the designs don't look completely authentic to a modern television audience takes nothing away from their achievement.

To elaborate, I want to spend some time praising this production team for everything that did go right. Aside from the basic plotline, the inspiration behind The Web Planet is clear from the script alone, which is just bursting with ideas. It's wonderful that the production team were brave enough to go ahead and try to realize it onscreen, despite the budgetary restrictions with which they were faced. And then they weren't satisfied to simply bring Bill Strutton's ideas to life, they enhanced them. To make Vortis seem even more alien, they filmed scenes on the surface through lenses that distorted the light, and gave the sound an echoey quality. The Menoptra, already highly alien butterfly-like creatures, were made even more alien through their choreographed body language and distinctive intonational patterns developed by mime Roslyn de Winter, who portrayed Vrestin. Not to be outdone, the Optera were given an unusual hopping movement, the abruptness of which was reflected in their speech. To top it off, there are a variety of interesting sound effects, particularly the Zarbi chirrups, which sound both insectoid and menacing, and the venom guns, with their frightening slow buildup to firing. I also like the distraught noise that one Zarbi makes after it wanders into the bright TARDIS console room.

I also want to specifically praise the actors who portrayed the Menoptra and Optera. Every one of them is just superb, their mannerisms and inflections making their characters seem like real people with real, alien, cultural backgrounds. I especially like the way the Menoptra whimper about pain or loss, and hiss and gesticulate at each other during challenges. The Optera, meanwhile, are probably my favorite thing about this story. They're extremely funny, all brusque and matter-of-fact (Hetra's line "Light is good!" always makes me laugh), but they can also be very sad and sympathetic. All of the guest cast are just wonderful and I don't have a single bad word to say about any of them.

Likewise, the regulars, who never disappoint. William Hartnell is less cuddly here than usual, being more concerned with imperiously addressing the Animus and being grandfatherly to Vicki, but he does have the occasional moment of giggly absent-mindedness that we've all come to know and love. William Russell gets perhaps the most interesting plotline of the four of them, being part of the initial exploration party, exploring the Carsenome and encountering the Optera along with Vrestin. He and Hartnell also do an excellent job of setting the stage on Vortis, making it clear to the audience that this new planet is drastically alien. Their attempts to breathe the "thin" atmosphere of Vortis are highly convincing. Jacqueline Hill, of course, is a star. She's superb in the early scenes, portraying Barbara's terror when her arm seems to be acting of its own volition. I was also impressed that, by this point, regaining consciousness to find herself surrounded by butterfly men barely even startles Barbara - her only reaction to them is "Who are you? What do you want?" I also really love her sweater, which feels very typical Barbara. Maureen O'Brien doesn't get a whole lot to do, being mostly stuck inside the TARDIS or the Carsenome, but Vicki gets a lovely scene with Barbara at the beginning, when they're gently poking fun at each other. The only downside is that Stratton writes most of them as being a bit daft, so as to move the plot along: the Doctor accidentally plays his recording of the Menoptra transmissions, clueing the Animus into their plans; Ian practically stands around in the Carsenome and almost lets himself get recaptured, rather than diving under the doors as they close; and Vicki hides their irreplaceable weapon to destroy the Animus inside the astral map, for no apparent reason, then is unable to retrieve it before they're taken to the center of the web. Fortunately Barbara escapes this curse, even managing to save the day by destroying the monster!

One other thing that lends The Web Planet some dramatic punch is that, despite the fact that the story is superficially about a bunch of men running around in strange insect costumes, it's really a very tragic and sad story. The Menoptra have been forced to eke out their existence on a planet where their wings are withering; when captured by the Zarbi, their wings are painfully ripped off, preventing them from ever flying again; numerous peaceful Menoptra are killed by the Zarbi larva guns; and the tragic Optera, surviving underground without ever seeing the light, face death by acid on a regular basis and stoically sacrifice themselves to protect the others. "It is danger that is always with us," as Hetra matter-of-factly states. It's very, very sad and only makes the audience sympathize for the Menoptra even more.

Minor points:

• I've always thought this story had a really scary title, especially since webs (of the authentic and the net-trap variety) are present in abundance. But it seems like a bit of a cheat that, even though this episode is full of insectoid creatures, there's not a spider in sight (unless you count Vicki's description of the Animus).

• The TARDIS sure looks weird during its attempted dematerialization scene. It's like there are an extra two sides on it!

• It's odd how the console room seems to have flipped its orientation and added a new alcove. I suppose we're meant to be seeing the side of the console room that the camera is usually on? If so, I say, good for them! It's nice to get to see the other parts of the console room for once. It's just a shame we only ever get to see one side or the other, but never both!

• A really cute exchange:

  Barbara: "So, you studied medicine in school, did you?"
  Vicki: "Yes, of course I did. Didn't you teach it?"
  Barbara: "No. We worked upwards from the three Rs."
  Vicki: "Hmm?"
  Barbara: "Reading, writing, 'rithmetic."
  Vicki: "Ohh, it was a nursery school."
  Barbara: (offended) "It was not!"

• The Doctor, meanwhile, starts off really batty in this story, when Ian's gold pen mysteriously disappears from his grasp:

  Doctor: "Yes... whatever power's got hold of the TARDIS has taken your pen, of course! Ha ha! Now then! There's something for us to solve! Come along, come along, come along!"

• The gold bracelet that Nero gave Barbara is a really great use of continuity. It's just a shame Barbara doesn't realize that's what's causing all her trouble, otherwise she could have taken it off and it wouldn't have had to die in the acid pool. (I'm terribly sentimental about such things.) Although then the plot would have taken longer to get going. Ah well.

• Why does the TARDIS sound like it's taking off when the Zarbi start dragging it away?

• Aack, bad Menoptra! Look how they mess up Barbara's perfect hairdo with their shard-of-ice thingy!

• Sometimes I hate line interruptions:

  Hrhoonda: "Have you any weapons?"
  Barbara: "No, but we -"

  ...what??? I want to know! "But we come in peace"? "But we know where to get some for a good price"? "But we can kill you with our bare hands"?

• The name "Crater of Needles" has always reminded me of an episode of "Read All About It", a TV-Ontario show I used to love when I was a child. The episode that I always remembered the most vividly (Chapter 18, "The Planet of Maze") involves the kids going to rescue someone from the titular planet, which is full of deadly traps. One of these traps is called the Web of Spikes, which the kids must navigate without touching even one spike, or their craft will explode. The set itself isn't really all that scary (it's a low-tech pair of parallel walls made of spheres and rods, with spikes pointing inward, and a nice wide straight path between the spikes for the vehicle to sail blithely through) but the idea certainly frightened me, and they filmed it in flashcuts and strobe lights to make it scarier. Kinda similar to the creativity : budget ratio of The Web Planet. And how different is a Crater of Needles from a Web of Spikes? Unfortunately Barbara didn't have to navigate any creepy literature-themed mazes on Vortis.

• Has the Doctor been taking lessons from the Daleks?

  Doctor: (to Ian) "Stand still! Obey!"

• It's rather suspect, the way that Vicki magically (and accidentally) manages to re-align the fluid link and restore power to the TARDIS. Another example of moving the plot along with little regard for narrative justification. It's kind of amazing how, as much as that happens in this story, we can forgive it so easily.

• I realize they haven't known each other long, but surely Ian and Vicki have been through enough together that this is inappropriate and offensive?

  Ian: (to the Doctor) "You think that kid'll be all right out there?"

• Silly Doctor! On waiting for the Animus' communication device to drop from the ceiling:

  Doctor: (to the Animus) "Come along, drop this... hairdryer or whatever it is."

• It's a nice touch that the Zarbi can't get up on their own, if toppled over. And, on a similar theme, the venom guns are alarmingly easy to kill - all you have to do is push them against the wall! They must be very soft-skinned.

• What exactly does it accomplish, I wonder, for the Optera to dunk Ian and Vrestin's hands in the acid pool? Apparently it's not strong enough to actually cause them harm - they moan a little bit, but the brief dip doesn't actually seem to hurt them, even after they fail to wipe off the acid that stays on their hands. But they do have odd lumps (and, at least in Vrestin's case, a kind of white deposit) on their skin, which makes it look like either their skin has melted, or the acid has some kind of lumpy texture. All in all, it's very strange and I can't figure out why Hetra made them do it. (On a later viewing - ah! The liquid, whatever it is, seems to glue their wrists together. Optera-style handcuffs?)

• A superb line, illustrating the Optera's very different thought processes:

  Ian: "What's wrong?"
  Hetra: "A silent wall. We must make mouths in it with our weapons. Then it will speak more light."

• The cell destructor sounds like a very neat weapon. Some people seem to be a little bit annoyed that the Menoptra have absolutely no basis for their belief that it will kill the Animus, since none of them have ever come back from the center of its web and their secondhand information turns out, in the end, to have been completely wrong. But I think these people overlook the fact that the Menoptra have developed a weapon that seems to be able to kill just about any living thing! I can easily see how they would believe that it would destroy the Animus. It seems like they could use it against any enemy they wanted to, and so I guess it's just a good thing Barbara didn't wave it around too wildly when she was firing at the Animus. (The only thing is, I wish it made some kind of sound, so we would know when Barbara was using it.)

• The cliffhanger to episode 5 could have been so much better, I think, if they had only cut it a few seconds earlier. When the gun swings away from the wall and fires, and Vicki moans, it's very very scary - we've seen what this weapon can do, and for all that we know, the Doctor and Vicki are dead. But then the camera cuts to them, and we can see that they're perfectly fine, just a little scared, and sticky with webbing. And that's the image the credits choose to roll over? Please. Why did they destroy the tension of the cliffhanger like that?

• The Doctor gives the cell destructor to Vicki, with the excuse that it will be less conspicuous with her. But... the Doctor has pockets, and it seems unlikely that the Zarbi would search them (unless the Animus would be able to detect it while they were communicating?). Vicki, on the other hand, is wearing a slim black dress with absolutely no pockets whatsoever, leaving her no option but to hold the isoptope in her hands, very conspicuously! Which, of course, leads her to hide it inside the astral map and then leave it behind when they need it most. Not, I think, one of the Doctor's very best ideas!

• The Menoptra taunting the Zarbi always makes me laugh. "Zaaaaar-biiiiiiiiii!"

• I wonder, why exactly does the Animus want to attack Earth? It makes me sad that writers think they have to threaten Earth or we won't be interested in their plot. (It seems tacked-on in The Pirate Planet, among other stories, too.) It claims that it wants to absorb man's mastery of space, but since when were humans the most experienced space travellers ever?

• It sure seems dangerous to go tossing the isoptope around the way that Barbara and the Menoptra do, when they're trying to keep it away from the Zarbi. What if one of them had dropped it?

• How exactly did the Zarbi on Vortis survive if all the water was underground? As soon as it reappears on the surface, one of the Zarbi starts lapping at it, so clearly they do need to drink it. Maybe the Animus set up a feeding station for them.

• I always get a little worried about the Menoptra's claims that once the water flows over the surface again, the vegetation will grow back. Unless the flower forest left very resilient seeds scattered around the surface of Vortis, how do they expect to be able to regrow it? I suppose there's also the point that the Animus clearly hadn't covered the entire planet yet (the Menoptra mention that at that point, it would be too late to try reclaiming Vortis), so maybe there are more flower forests on the other side of the planet.

The Web Planet is a beautiful story with sympathetic characters, and it presents a fascinating look at a culture which is completely alien to us. If you can't digest it all in one go, spread it out over six weeks; but give it a try, keep an open mind, pay attention to the details, and see if you don't find it thoroughly engaging.