DOCTOR WHO MARATHON 16th MEET-UP - GALAXY 4 & MISSION TO THE UNKNOWN

Sunday 21st September 2014

Another Sunday, another meet-up and this time we had a casualty.  Jim, feeling too shattered after a busy few days, bailed out on us!  I know how he felt, having spent the previouse night on the floor at Liverpool Street Railway Station in London!  Still the Who Show must go on!

Photo 1: Shaun, Jason (with the sign), Leigh (holding the DVD cover)
& Michael around Michael's house.

So, after ringing Jason to ask him to pick up snacks, the gang gathered around Michael’s house to watch Galaxy 4 - the first story of Season Three.  Sadly, like a lot of episodes in the third season, most of this story was missing.  So it was down to three re-cons to accompany the existing single episode!  The first episode starts off in the TARDIS with Stephen getting his hair cut by Vicki (some of this scene exists thanks to some off-air cine-camera recordings!).

Photo 2: Leigh, Michael (with the sign), Shaun, Jason (holding the DVD cover)
& Mark (at the front - eyes closed) around Jim's house.

Anyhow the crew lands on a planet with no life on it - which confuses the Doctor as the signs say that there SHOULD be life on it!  So after wandering outside they happen across a funny little robot that Vicki christens a “Chumbley”!  The Chumbley indicates to the Doctor and Co. that it wants them to follow it.  Steven is wary and tries to attack it.  However, as a warning, the Chumbley produces a gun from its shell and sets fire to a plant.  So the gang are led away.

Photo 3: Leigh (holding the DVD cover) around Michael's house.

They have not gotten far when a group of women lying in wait for the Chumbley throw a metal mesh on the machine and deactivate it.  The blonde-haired “beautiful” women introduce themselves as Drahvins, from the planet Drahva in Galaxy Four.

They say that the Chumblies are controlled by a race called the Rill, who are not to be trusted!  They then take the TARDIS gang to meet their leader Maaga (a scene which exists pretty much in its entirety thanks to having been taken out and used in another program that wasn’t Doctor Who!).  Maaga tells them that they were shot down by the evil Rills - but they managed to shoot down the Rills as well!  Maaga’s ship no longer works but the Rills, who tell them lies, have a fully working ship.  Maaga insists that the Doctor must help them steal this other ship as the planet is going to explode in “14 planetary cycles”!  The Doctor goes back to the TARDIS and finds that the planet IS going to explode....

...but in 2 days time!  With this is mind the Drahvins send the Doctor to kill off the evil Rills and help steal their ship - keeping Stephen behind as a guarantee that they won’t disappear.

Well of course it turns out that the ugly “bad guy” Rills turn out out to be the decent ones who have only been trying to help the Drahvins (who turn out to be the “bad gals”).  We learn it was the Drahvins who had shot first at the Rills ship!

Anyhow, Doctor helps Rills, they save Stephen and finally Maaga and her gang end up being fried on the exploding planet!

Although some of the sound quality on the re-cons was a bit muffled I really enjoyed this tale.  There was some good acting - especially by the fantastic villainess Maaga!

After a quick break we then moved onto the single episode story “Mission To The Unknown” sometimes known as "Dalek Cutaway".  This was basically a prequel to the up-coming “Dalek’s Master Plan” - I suppose a longer version of what you might catch before an episode from recent times - via the Red Button!  Back then it would be the Grey Button though!  The main thing that distinguishes this episode is that the regular cast are completely absent (although William Hartnell is still credited on-screen!).

Photo 4: Shaun, Leigh (holding the DVD cover),
Jason (with the sign) & Mark around Michael's house.

 
The story focuses on Space Security Agent Marc Cory and his attempts to warn Earth of the Daleks' latest plan, whilst at their damaged ship on the planet Kembel.

Kembel is a dangerous place to be - one of the crew gets stung by a Varga plant (the thorn, once embedded, slowly turns you firstly mad and then into a Varga plant!) and tries to shoot his crew mates - however Cory sees him and shoots him dead first!

Photo 5: Shaun, Michael (holding the DVD cover),
Jason (with the sign) & Mark around Michael's house.

Yes, this sort of thing goes on and ends with no-one surviving!  Some are killed by the Varga plants - the remaining crew are picked off by the arrival of The Daleks!
However, before they all died (horribly!), they did manage to set up a rescue beacon and the message survives, beaming out to the galaxy.... Meanwhile in the nearby new Dalek city, the representatives from the seven galaxies have gathered in a conference room.  They are worried about the humans, who they believe are hostile, but the Daleks assure them that the humans will be dealt with. The representatives all approve the Dalek plans to conquer Earth...

This will all be picked up next time (after a quick four-parter)!

So apart from the sound being a bit hard to make-out sometimes, the stories were pretty good.  Galaxy 4 was a lot of fun and Mission To The Unknown whets the appetite for a Dalek EPIC to come.  More important than that, however, is the fact that we have a new TARDIS group!  So we need a new TARDIS group photo!  Here it is!

Photo 6: Us as the third TARDIS team - with some Chumblies!
Mark (Chumbley), Leigh (Stephen), Me (The First Doctor),
Jason (Vicki), Shaun (Chumbley)......AND JIM!

Well, we shall meet again in a few Sunday's time.
Until then I shall return, yes, I shall return....

MJ 22-09-14