The Steel Sky opens with the TARDIS landing, and new companion Dodo running outside immediately, in order to explore. Jackie Lane makes her mark immediately, with Dodo's enthusiasm and forwardness taking her far from the characterisations of Susan and Vicki. The jungle sets have been well designed by Barry Newbery, with director Michael Imison using some interesting camera angles to get the most out of Newbery's sets. The TARDIS has not landed at Whipsnade zoo (as thought by Dodo), but a huge spacecraft in the far future, carrying humanity and the alien Monoids to their new home on Rufusis II. The Human/Monoid relationship is interesting - it's not out and out slavery, with the Monoids appearing to prefer to take a secondary role in the relationship, in fulfilling essential secondary tasks and having a fairly equal role in admin and matters of law.

Intitally welcome on the 'Ark' (as Dodo terms it), things soon turn hostile as Guardian and Monoid catch Dodo's cold - and they have no immunity to it either. The young hot headed 2IC Zentos has them arrested, as the Earth is shown on the monitor heading towards its final end... Barry Newbery's sets for the other areas of the Ark are very effective too. Tristram Cary's incidental music from The Daleks is reused here to great effect to add tension to scenes.

The TARDIS crew are put on trial in The Plague, but Commander manages to stop an ejection into space being carried out - instead the Doctor is to find a cure, which he does so quite quickly with the aid of a Monoid. The majority recover in time to watch the Earth's final moments, and the TARDIS crew depart. Michael Imison's inventive style of direction works well for the scene where the TARDIS dematerialises with a Monoid in shot - the framing of the sequence is unsual, and it's the first time that there is something other than background in shot for when the TARDIS departs. Paul Erikson appears to wrap up the story quite well here - the TARDIS crew undo their damage, become heros and depart leaving the Ark to continue its' journey to Refusis. However, when the TARDIS lands again, they are back on the Ark - but it's now at the end of the journey; the statue is complete, but with the head of a Monoid...

In The Return, the TARDIS crew soon learn what has happened in the past 700 years - the Monoids were allowed to research and develop voice modulators and weapons, and when another cold virus swept through the Guardians they staged a successful revolution, putting humans int othe roles of slaves. It's interesting to note the Jackie Lane has dropped her intial cockney accent - perhaps Dodo gets an accent when she gets a cold? Steven gets put to work in the kitchens, while the Doctor and Dodo are to go down to Refusis with '2' and a Guardian.

The sets on Refusis give the planet an Earth-like feel, and is explained in the story as the invisible Refusians preparations for humanity's arrival. The Refusians were made invisible by solar flares, so are glad for the arrival of humanity. The episode ends with the Monoids preparing to blow up the Ark when they leave without humanity, as the Refusian destroys the launcher, trapping Dodo and the Doctor...

The final episode, The Bomb, sees where The Ark goes wrong - the Monoid civil war. In theory it was good idea; but in practice, with the Monoid costume design, it does not really work - with what should have been some fast paced scenes becoming a bit slow and lumbering, despite Imison's pacey editing. Still, the Refusian saves the day by getting the bomb into space (it was inside the statue), and the Doctir makes a speech uring all to live on Refusis II in peace and harmony. In the TARDIS, the Doctor suddenly vanishes...

The Ark offers a fascinating picture for the future of humanity, and works well has an excellent debut story for Dodo, pairing her up with the Doctor for much of the story. The direction Michael Imison makes use of a lot of unusual camera angles and scene framing, working well to the story's advantage - it's a pity this is his only Doctor Who story, as the early jungle scenes in The Steel Sky are wonderful, climaxing with the TARDIS crew's close encounter with an elephant. For three episodes The Ark is first class story, only let down by an action-deprived fourth episode

7.6/10

Next time: The Doctor plays games with an old enemy...