Episode One opens in Antartica in 1986, in an underground base run by the rather brash American General Cutler. Robert Beatty gives Cutler a strong, immediate presence. There is evidence of high attention to detail being paid to the set design, with crew quarter's being decorated with posters and other elements to make the quarters seem personal and private. It soon becomes clear that this is not a regular space flight the base is monitoring, and that the Doctor knows more about the situation than he is letting on.

The interfering element becomes clearer - it is a tenth planet that looks almost exactly like the Earth. Visual effects sequences in this episode look rather good, such as the planet floating in space, and the landing of the Cyberman's space craft; stock footage is also used very effectively. The cyberrmen have landed, and they are about to enter the base...

Episode two reveals more of the Cybermen, and the costume design gives them an aspect of humanity by keeping the hands natural, while combining with the alien of the rest of the design - the cumbersome looking chest units with built in weaponry and the head gear. The cyber-voices are very effective, an electronic sing-song that is quite easy to understand. The Cybermen quickly take control of the base, overcoming initial resistance quite easily. There are some quite chilling sequences where Polly and the lead Cyberman argue over a number of issues, with the attitude of the Cybermen is revealed quite early.

The space craft Zeus 4 is lost, and the Cybermen reveal the their reasons for coming to Earth - Mondas needs energy, so Earth will be drained and its citizens taken to Mondas and converted to Cybermen; the Doctor theorises that Mondas will probably burn out before absorbing too much energy from the Earth. Of the other characters on the base Dyson and Barclay, two civilian scientists, come off the best characterised and acted. Ben and Cutler free the base from the Cybermen threat, and Cutler learns that his son volunteered to travel in Zeus 5 too late to rescue the crew of Zeus 4, this action makes Cutler brasher and more determined to run things his way. Relief is short-lived - the Cybermen are now invading in their hundreds...

The Doctor collapses at the start of Episode three, so General Cutler takes charge, proposing to blow up Mondas using Z-bombs - a doomsday-type weapon that would also have consequences for Earth. Polly, Ben and Barclay formulate a plan to disrupt the launch of the Z-bombs, just as the Cybermen return to the base once more, only to be defeated by an ambush. Ben gets caught by Cutler, and the countdown to the Z-bomb launch begins... As can be seen from my brief summary, a lot of action takes place in episode three, as the threat in the episode is Cutler's obesession to save the Earth and his son from the threat of Mondas and the Cybermen. William Hartnell's absence from the episode is very unfortunate - it's a pity that his final full-time performance as the Doctor is affected by illness.

Episode four is currently missing, so this section of the review will be based on the reconstruction produced by Ralph Montagu for the BBC video release. The Z-bomb rocket fails to fire, and the Doctor enters the tracking room as strong as ever. A third force of Cybermen storm the base, and in confusion that follows, Cutler is killed. The Doctor takes charge, and discovers that the Cybermen intend on use the Z-bomb to destroy the Earth. Barclay, Ben and base staff work in the Radiation Room to retake the base using radiation. Mondas is destroyed, and the Cybermen collapse. The Doctor returns to the TARDIS, followed by Ben and Polly, who arrive in time to witness the Doctor changing form...

William Hartnell pulls out all stops in his final episode, with his acting and vocal strength very powerful. The Cybermen finally feel like a real threat at last in this episode, having seemed to be more like momentary disruptions in the preceeding three episodes, with Mondas being the real threat. Michael Craze gets a good role in this episode and episode two, with Anneke Wills not getting too much to do at all, which is a pity as she really sinks her teeth into the material provided to her by the script.

The reconstruction by Ralph Montagu is first class - extremely clear versions of telesnaps have been used, as has many other photographic sources to create as close a recreation of how the episode might have looked as possible. 8mm silent film clips have been inserted where possible and lip-synced, adding real moving footage to where it has been faked by panning and blurring of telesnaps, and flickering has been added to monitor screens. The images don't take up the full screen, leaving room for explanitory captions where needed - the space not taken up by episode four images taken up by tinted backgrounds reflecting the design of places where scenes take place; with the episode footage returning to full size for the final sequences of the story.

Kit Pedlar and Gerry Davis's script for The Tenth Planet takes its time to build up, slowly and suspensefully, which works well for the most part, though it may bore some people. The stock music used throughout the story is well chosen, epecially the piece used when the Cybermen attack. The futuristic elements of The Tenth Planet work fairly well, with regular space flights, more advanced computers and a multicultural cast led by Americans; which makes it a pity that the only other female in the cast apart from Anneke Wills is playing a secretary. An iconic story that is still memorable today.

7.8/10

Next time: The TARDIS crew face the servants of Vulcan...